Intertwined - Tangled series (Overprotective famous brothers)

Private Life or Professional Life?

Alisha

Sohail walked in late, almost at the time we were all about to go to bed. It was 11 pm, and if it weren't for the 4 am flight back to Mumbai for Lauren, Dimitri and I, I would've been in bed already. Salman had decided to come with me as well, so we could answer my father in the Indian courts as well. However, everybody knew the verdict there as well. We had won, these were just formalities. They were so useless, that even the media was bored of it.

Anyways, Sohail walked in with a tired look. He had dark circles and his hair were a royal mess. Malaika fetched him some wine and dinner, as we sat with him, waiting for an explanation. He better have a bloody good reason to miss his nephew's birthday.

"I was working on this proposal I received. They needed answers by today and I had to sort things out." he explained and we all understood exactly what the undertone was. He had been procrastinating until he just couldn't afford to anymore. Smirking, Salman let go of it and grabbed his phone.

"They want to meet you guys tomorrow." he announced, and we all looked at him in bewilderment.

"Well, it was the same movie I spoke to you about." he explained to Salman and Arbaaz. I remembered that conversation all too well. Sohail had received the script to a movie, which was a obvious hit simply because it was very cliche. Player boy meets a nice girls, they fall in love, but things fall apart. And finally, after some sad scenes and a mutual friend interfering, it all settles down and they move in together.

Salman wasn't very keen on working on it, and Arbaaz wasn't keen on directing it. They were going to sell it as a "Khan" movie, with all our family being a part of the movie in one way or the other. They wanted Malaika to be the mutual friend, which she didn't really mind doing if it wasn't for the way she was portrayed to be a bimbo. They wanted me to collaborate for the sound track, to which I said no to ages ago. Arhaan, too, was to be a part of the cast but his parents had refused. Basically, everyone had chorused a no and Sohail had slumped in his seat.

"I think we scrapped the idea." Arbaaz spoke up in the politest way possible.

"I thought you guys were like, kidding, or stressed from the court case or whatever." he said, getting defensive in a moment's time.

"No, Sohail, that wasn't it. I'm just not ready for something related to the reel life before the Olympics. That is my explanation." I told him, going near him. He felt closed in on, cornered and secluded. I felt bad for the pained expression on his face.

"You looked hella ready to shoot a commercial though!" he said, putting his head in his hands. I hated seeing him this way, but even he knew why I had said yes to the commercial. It would help my PR, since it portrayed me as a serious athlete and not just some celebrity sister. But this break for me into Hollywood was simply because I was my brothers' sister, and I didn't like that all too much.

"Sohail man, you've gotta understand. It's not something any of us wants for our careers. It's nothing against you." Salman tried to rationalise, but I could see he was losing patience. He didn't appreciate anyone assuming he would be their saviour, that somehow being related to him meant that they could use him for fame.

Sohail just took a deep breath and got up all of a sudden, smashing the crystal showpiece on the coffee table into pieces. It startled everyone and nobody moved for a good minute.

"You assholes! I need this project to save the production house!" he yelled, looking at the ceiling. I didn't know he was struggling to keep the production house alive, which was one of the many businesses we had managed to start with Salman's income. I knew Sohail headed the business after Arbaaz shifted to other lines of businesses that were just starting up, since they needed his expertise. The production house was our pride, it had given birth to a number of super hits and blockbusters. Now, it was endangered.