*Shrishti Pov*
"I should have known you were hiding something like this. What else, Kanika?" Prathap asked her while she glanced at me and I shook my head.
She sighed and just continued to explain what else happened along with the words she heard when she stayed there and I heard a loud sound suddenly.
I glanced at Vikranth to find him hitting the steering wheel and even Prathap glanced at him from the passenger seat while Kanika and Anny stayed silent between whom I am sitting right now. Vikranth hired a car for us to travel after getting down from the private plane which he also hired to come here immediately.
From the moment they reached the hotel, Kanika started telling them everything without hiding a small matter even though I am trying to stop her.
"Vikranth! It's not like that and I actually ignored them all. Don't think much about it." However, it doesn't seem like he is listening to my words at all.
"That Nitish is going to get a punch from me for sure. Didn't I tell him to take care of you otherwise he will hear it from us?" Prathap just continued his threatening words.
"It's not like that, Prathap. He just cares for his friends just like how you care for me and they must have been good friends but just a few misunderstandings and a bit of jealousy from Lisa caused all this. It is not Nitish's fault." I explained but all his concentration was on how to hit Nitish.
"That's why I didn't tell you guys and didn't even share my problems because I know you all will take action instead of just lending your ears." I shouted and Kanika patted my shoulder asking me to calm down.
"Shrishti! It is a mistake to care for Nitish like this even after knowing he still likes his friend who is also his first love. I am telling you from experience that they make worst partners." Anny commented and Prathap immediately turned around to stare at her with a shocked expression.
"Nitish doesn't like her at all right now and it's all in the past. Also, Prathap doesn't like me and he loves you." I mumbled looking at her but she winked after which I understood that Prathap calmed down and didn't say anything after she uttered those words.
"Why don't we just wait at the hotel? Nitish will come back and I will come back to Mumbai with you guys." I offered when silence surrounded us and everyone glanced at me hearing those words except for Vikranth who just continued to drive without pausing.
Nitish already messaged me that he will be late and I am unable to call him as they are not leaving me for a second and I hope he will not leave the villa before we reach and then get worried because of my absence in the hotel room along with my luggage.
I repeated the words asking them to wait at the hotel for Nitish feeling worried about their actions now as everyone is angry right now. I can't even imagine what will happen when Vikranth is this silent in any kind of situation as he just says the solution and then acts on that solution.
"I came here without taking a break after finishing my shoot and you want me to just wait for Nitish and then travel back? You should let me do the things I came here to do, right?" Anny asked glancing at me while I frowned at her.
"What things?" I asked and she just smiled before glancing at Kanika over my shoulder before turning to stare outside.
"They are really his good friends. Lisa, his best friend even helped him to get a foreign investor to invest in his company and that's why he was away. Otherwise, none of this would have happened as I didn't want to meet any of them without him." I continued to explain to calm them down.
"Foreign investor?" Anny asked from my side.
"Yeah! Her acquaintance I think and they recently signed the contract for a huge amount of investment." I replied and she frowned before leaning forward to reach closer to Vikranth as she is sitting behind the driver's chair.
"Do you know anything about this?" Vikranth shook his head and finally opened his mouth asking who is the investor.
"I don't know the person's name but I know the company's name. Why?" I asked back and he repeated to give me the name.
However, when I gave the company's name both Anny and Vikranth stiffened while I felt a bad premonition in my heart.
"What's wrong?" I asked looking at them feeling more worried.
"We are here!" Vikranth whispered and I glanced out to find we already reached the villa and I didn't even realize.
After we got down, I found the door wide open with a few materials lying both outside and inside the villa.
"Madam!" Suddenly I heard a voice and turned to find one of the helpers reach the main door with a smile.
"I am glad you are back. And you too." She added the last words looking at Kanika.
"I heard from my friend with whom you talked yesterday that you are Madam's best friend's wife. Is everyone here to scold those people?" She asked and I turned to glance at Kanika along with everyone who doesn't have any kind of awkward expression on her face.
"Can you prepare some snacks?" I asked to which the helper nodded and walked away to do it.
"Shall I ask them to prepare some lunch? It's already late and I am sure you guys must be hungry." I offered to which Prathap sighed.
"Don't try to drag it, Shrishti. For your sake, Kanika even lied that she is Vikranth's wife and you want to just pay it back by having lunch and then go back? Have some concern for her and let's go." With those words from Prathap, they all walked inside while he held my hand.
We reached the garden entrance after asking about Nitish's whereabouts and immediately paused near the door hearing his words.
He didn't stop at just one sentence and just continued to say how he was the one who pursued me and even added how until they don't respect me, he will not meet them. I couldn't help but smile and tears formed in my eyes feeling touched hearing those things.
I know their importance in his life but still, he is saying all that for my sake. However, I am still not sure about our relationship at this moment.
"Such a good warning but alas it's no longer needed." Anny commented stepping forward and everyone in the garden turned to look at her and then at us who are standing at the entrance.
"Shrishti!" Nitish whispered my name and then glanced at others in confusion while Anny just walked closer to him.
"Didn't I tell you to keep Shrishti away from that woman? Did you thought I was saying such things because of some past?" She asked looking at him while I frowned not understanding her words.
"Let's go!" Kanika whispered and we all moved to stand with Anny while his friends shifted to stand closer to him except for Lisa who stood beside Aunty who is still sitting down in a daze.
"Anitha... Anny!" Rohan mumbled looking at her while she just ignored him and then I realized they must have known each other as she was in their agency before shifting to GH's agency.
"Didn't I?" she asked while I placed my hand on her shoulder seeing Nitish's expression.
"Should I have thought you weren't smart enough to know how Lisa would act against Shrishti? We all know how she acts when something doesn't go her way and you actually thought she will be the one who joyfully let you be with Shrishti?" I couldn't help but be more confused and what is shocking to me is that Lisa is not saying a single word no matter what Anny is saying right now.
"Anny! Just because you lost to Lisa while you were with us doesn't mean you could show your hatred by saying whatever comes to your mouth. Don't be a sore loser, Anny." Mani shouted while glaring at her and Nitish immediately glared back at him.
"I am a sore loser?" Anny asked and suddenly started laughing while I rubbed my head not knowing why is the conversation shifting to this.
"Let's just leave?" I asked glancing at Prathap who is the only one with a normal expression, unlike Kanika and Vikranth who have scary expressions.
"No! I still need to punch him." He whispered back and I realized even though he has a normal expression, he is in the same category as them.
I continued to look at him with pleaded eyes as I am worried about how Kanika would even tell them about my pregnancy and I don't want Nitish to find out this way.
I am confident that Prathap will accept my wishes if I stare at him with these pleading eyes unlike Vikranth and I don't think just because of a few months gap, he already changed that much, or did he.
"I am not the one who is a sore loser here. She is the one who stole every chance of my debut from commercials to even movies with the confidence of the owner of the agency being her boyfriend. Didn't your friends tell you that?" I froze hearing Anny's next words and immediately turned to stare at Anny's back in shock and then shifted my eyes to look at Nitish only to see him looking down with a guilty expression.
"Why, Nitish? Why hide it when you all were that confident while pushing me away by giving the chances I got to your amazing Girlfriend who couldn't get established properly even after many years of trying? Isn't it because she acted in the movie for which I got selected fairly by auditions, she was able to go outside India? What happened to her now?" I felt someone holding my hand and I turned to glance at Kanika in a daze and she nodded at me.
"Shut up! You never got any of them fairly. How can a newcomer who joined just a few months back get all those projects? You must have done something and that's why Nitish helped me." Lisa finally shouted reaching our side and Anny immediately reached out to slap her.
"Don't mistake yourself with me, Lisa. I can sue you right this moment and no one will save you." Anny warned her before glancing at Nitish again and I closed my eyes.
"I know it was my fault but at that time she was depressed with everything and we just wanted her to come out of it. The production team was fine with the change and we ended up doing that mistake." I heard Nitish's pleading tone but couldn't open my eyes.
"Mistake? You don't know how that mistake of yours caused huge damage to a few people." Kanika stated while I felt her hold tightening a bit.
"Okay! Let's leave all that into the past and I wouldn't have brought it up if not for your friend's words just now. I didn't even tell Shrishti before as it doesn't matter by that time and also she way giving high praises for you which made me think you have changed. But you still do stupid things because of your friends?" Anny asked and I opened my eyes to stare at her in shock realizing how she must have felt whenever I talked about Nitish who betrayed her professionally.
"What is going on here?" we all heard a voice and found Nitish's Dad reaching us while Nitish is just looking at me with pleading eyes while I stared at him with a blank look.
I trusted you, Nitish! I trusted you to be a person who is always honest with me. Didn't you have chances to tell me? You had many, didn't you? I looked away feeling disappointed.
"Didn't you get your chances now and you are even successful, right? Don't talk about the things in the past. It is my mistake regarding the publication of your affair news with that actor. I should have searched more before publishing it when Lisa mentioned that incident passingly. I didn't feel right seeing her so lost with losing her chances while you getting more by doing such things. We both didn't know it was fake and those pictures were of someone else." Everyone paused hearing those words from Rohan from my side.
"Not because of competition? NK was the one to spread it?" I asked in a whisper looking at Nitish hoping that he doesn't know about this but again he just gave a guilty look.
"Nitish didn't know anything about it. Only Lisa and I know and it was just a mistake for us. We even had to pay for it, right? Let the past be in the past and don't say anything to Lisa." Rohan continued and Anny laughed again while Lisa froze in her spot.
"I didn't realize you were gullible too, Rohan. Are you a baby? Didn't you realize what could have happened if the information she passed is wrong? Didn't you think how can she know such a thing and also know that it was me who was taken into that hotel along with those pictures? Didn't you? Are you a kid disguised as a man?" Anny asked looking at him.
"What do you mean?" he asked back frowning.
"Well, she got the pictures because she was there at that time and that too she was the one who was walking into the hotel with that man." Everyone turned to glance at Lisa hearing those words and found her fuming at Anny.
"Not only that, she did everything to get chances and this was just a small matter. She tried to take two shots with a single bullet by passing the blame to me which would remove that man's wife's focus on her and also suppress me. We even have investigation files if anyone doesn't believe that. Also, that man was not the first and not the last." Lisa suddenly shouted and moved to hit Anny and I immediately stepped forward to stop her only to feel the ground slip below my feet but suddenly got engulfed by a few people before I can fall down.
"You just stand aside, Shrishti!" I heard a voice and found Kanika holding my hand while taking me towards the chairs before making me sit down on one of them beside Aunty.
"This is false, right? She is lying, right? How... how would you have done that by knowing it is fake news? I mean... I mean you would have known that when the truth comes out then NK will face the charges. So, she is just lying. You always care for NK and even Nitish and why would you do something to hurt us? Even recently you helped us with the investment which saved the company. She must be just lying." I heard Rohan's voice rambling while I continued to sit there in silence.
What is going on? I thought this was simply a small discussion about their behavior towards me and let them realize their mistakes. I always thought they are his good friends but didn't expect Lisa would hurt them like this.
"Like I said I have evidence even for that. Also, you guys are in another trouble because of her as the investment you guys were talking about is nothing but the one where you lose all powers over your artists and need to do whatever that investor wishes to. That company is a known one for selling their artists for the sake of profit by making them go through exploitation and many other things. I hope you understand what does it mean. In simple words, you guys are going to ruin the lives of the artists under your agency and you all can just watch. Also, these artists can sue you and you guys will get public shame. And this company generally has all the rights over the artists of your company and you can't say a single word to stop them." I closed my eyes hearing those words and I don't even have the energy to feel shocked as too much is going on right now.
"Lisa is part of the group and even a shareholder in that company. So, she is well versed in that, and please don't start thinking that she is innocent and doesn't know all this. Her actions are out of the world and open your eyes even though I don't know how can you guys come out of this situation by opening your eyes now." After that, I didn't hear Anny's voice and heard a sound beside me.
I opened my eyes to find her sitting down on the chair while taking the water bottle from her bag to drink.
"What? Nitish! What is all this?" Uncle shouted while Anny patted my hand before opening her phone and I just stared at her.
"The company was analyzed before even signing up with them, Dad. The documents were even checked by the legal team. It could be a misunderstanding from Anny's side." Hearing Nitish's words, Anny snorted but didn't comment.
"Isn't that right, Rohan? You were in charge of that, right?" Nitish continued while I tapped Anny's hand.
"True?" I asked in a whisper and she nodded sighing before showing the file she opened on her phone which she just received but I didn't check it as I know she must be saying the truth as she doesn't get anything by lying about this.
"I... I am not sure. The legal team I checked up with was a new team as our team was busy with other things and I wanted you to sign this as soon as you can like Lisa suggested that time. Also, the analyzed report was true but it was too perfect which made me question it a bit but Lisa assured me that it is all true and so I didn't query much." I can't even imagine what Nitish must be feeling right now.
"We will cancel the contract right now." Uncle stated and I can hear the anger in his voice.
"Are you okay?" I heard Vikranth's voice and I glanced up before nodding at him but then glanced at Nitish who looked like he will fall down anytime.
"Help him! Please help him!" I whispered looking back at Vikranth who frowned at me and walked back without assuring me.
"I am sorry!" I heard another voice and turned to find Aunty looking at me but I didn't say anything in reply to those words as I am completely blank about anything right now.
"Don't think too much right now." Kanika mumbled who is standing behind me.
"Why, Lisa? Why did you ruin me like this? I thought you are my friends but you..." Nitish asked in a pained tone and I closed my eyes wishing to reach his side right now but I don't want to at the same time.
"You are thinking wrong, Nitish! You will get profits within a year because of this and I assure you that you will never get in trouble from now on. Those artists will never talk back and I know that more than anyone else as they will also earn more than present. Everyone will win and what is wrong with this. Think broadly, Nitish! I did this for your future and you will have everything you want in your hands and we can be together." I couldn't help but glance at Lisa in shock.
Is she in the right mind to say such things to his face? All the thoughts that she behaved like that near me because of her love for Nitish ran away from my mind. I realize she is just that kind of person.
"Let's go!" I mumbled standing up and Kanika supported me carefully.
"I am fine!" I assured her but she didn't let me go.
"Because of such girl, you hurt my friend. You all just can imagine if she can twists such professional things according to her thinking then what can she do with personal matters. And all of you blind people just followed her to torture my friend with those actions. Guess what? She has us and will just stay sad for a few days and will get better with our support by forgetting all of you. Who is the loser now?" Prathap asked finally stepping forward.
"Prathap!" I called stopping him before he actually punches him as he said.
"Don't worry! He already looks like he got a death sentence. How can I punch at this time?" He asked looking at me.
"Let's just leave for now. She needs to calm down and rest a bit." Kanika stated and he immediately nodded calming down.
"Is she pregnant?" Anny asked in a whisper but because of the silence, everyone heard it.
"Shrishti!" Nitish stepped forward to hold my free hand and I turned to stare at him.
"Are you pregnant?" he asked as if he already believes it.
"That's why you were sick all this time, right? You were even taking tablets. Are you?" he asked smiling at me and shifted his hands to hold my face but I stepped back before he can touch my face.
"I need some space, Nitish. Let's talk about everything later." I said and he froze hearing those words but immediately cleared it.
"I am at fault, Shrishti. I will apologize to everyone but don't push me away." He pleaded holding my hand but I shook my head turning away.
"As of now, the engagement is canceled." Prathap stated and I sighed not saying anything to that as I really don't want to think or say anything right now and just want to leave this place.
We all moved to walk away while Nitish continued to plead with me but got blocked with my friends standing behind me.
I turned back to glance at him as I know he must be devastated right now because of everything. But I know right now I need to leave and ask Vikranth to help him and Nitish should concentrate on his business than me.
"Handle your company and set everything right. Isn't that your dream?" I asked staring at him before turning back to walk ahead.
"Where are you guys going? They are already engaged. And if she is pregnant then it is more reason to not break this engagement." Uncle stated moving forward to top us.
"They are not married and there is no need to get related to this family." Prathap commented to his words.
"Don't forget that we have every right on that baby and we can fight legally." I felt a sudden panic hearing those words and I placed my hand on my stomach before glancing at my friends trembling.
"You are really pregnant?" Prathap asked in a shocked tone and I nodded at him.
Vikranth turned away from me to look at Uncle and Nitish before stating, "Fight! If you have the guts to fight and win against the whole GH who is standing behind Shrishti, then fight all you want."
"We all can go to lengths to protect our family and never forget that before throwing any kind of threats at us." Adding those words he held my other free hand before walking away with me following both Kanika and him.
I stared at their back in a daze and didn't comment even when we reached the car but Kanika suddenly let go of my hand.
"I will be back in a few minutes." Saying that she walked away while Anny helped me to sit inside the car.
I sat down like a robot and leaned against the door feeling all the power losing my body. With all these revelations, I don't know what to even concentrate on except to repeat my words from earlier to Vikranth saying, "Help him!"
"Why?" he asked back and I sighed closing my eyes.
"He is also my friend and I even promised Grandma to never leave his side as a friend. Please help him!" he didn't say anything hearing those words and I didn't add anything before drifting off into sleep not able to stay up anymore or maybe I am running away from thinking much right now.
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Finally, the whole Lisa fiasco is here... I tried my best with this chapter and hopefully no problem with it...
Also, i feel bad for Nitish as he already lost so much because of his friends and now a complete betrayal... Damn... to top of that Shrishti's disappointment and his own guilt... damn...
I hope you guys remember that she promised something to his grandma once and this is the things that she promised... The after effect of all this confrontation is in the next chapter... will try for an early one :) hopefully you guys can enjoy this chapter...
How is the chap?
comment plz and vote...