Aryan's head lifted up involuntarily at the sound of heels knocking the floor. The sight laying before him made him cock his brow in confusion.

"Where are you off to, Mister?" Rising from the large couch, he went towards the man before him.

"Hogwarts." Replied RK nonchalantly, putting on his shades.

"Wow. Pretty humourous." Aryan crossed his arms against his chest.

"Thank you." Without stopping to spare him a glance, RK managed to walk past him to the exit door of the large mansion.

"Wait! You're not going to the office today!" Aryan spoke in a commanding tone, making the man before him come to a stop at his words.

"And who would you be to decide that?" RK raised his brows at him.

"Your manager." Aryan replied immediately. "And brother." Added he. "We just had not the safest day there yesterday itself. How on earth can you even think I'll let you go there?"

"You don't have to. I don't bother bothering people for permissions, as you know already."

"But I do bother helping you with one."

"I don't remember asking for your help, do you?" RK spoke blandly.

"You don't have to." Aryan repeated RK's own words. "I don't bother asking for your approval to that, either."

"Stop being the melodramatic creature you are, and make it quick, Aryan." Informed RK in an irked tone.

"Quick it is, then. You're not going anywhere today, or maybe for the rest of the week. Certainly not to the office again. That's all. You may leave for your room now. Good conversation."

RK stared at his friend for a while with unshifted expressions, before turning towards the door, once again, as if the limited exchange of words didn't just take place between the two of them present there.

"RK?!" Aryan took a step forward in his direction, almost yelling his name.

"I don't take orders, Aryan. You out of all should have known that by now." RK replied, without turning his gaze to him this time.

"Seriously? It's not about taking orders, RK! It's about taking just some tiny measures for your own God damn safety! Did you even hear what I said?!"

"I did. I did, Aryan. I did hear when you said that I shouldn't go to my own workplace merely because of some worthless hoodlums who just somehow happen to pass by the area with some equally worthless toys the previous day. I did hear you." RK replied with a voice cold as ice. "Do you really think I'll lock myself up in my house for the rest of my life merely because such meritless people were suddenly discovered roaming freely in my area one day? Come on, Aryan, you know me better than that."

"No, RK. I'm-I'm not saying that." Aryan hurried to justify his side of the argument. "I'm not saying you're afraid of them, I'm just telling you to stay at home for a while! And you're-you're RK. You don't really have to go there each day already. It's nothing important today, as it is. Just why serve yourself in danger's way willingly? It's not safe out there, specially not after what happened. Such a close call it was. Anything could have happened with a moment of delay. I'm not saying you're scared, but I am. And you know of what. Your enemies, HE, might be there again, waiting for a chance they could anyhow get. Even though the security has been alerted even more, anything can happen anytime, like the last day. Just why risk your life when you already know it?! And for what? What's the need?!" Aryan walked up to the man, stopping right behind him.

"To show your HE, I'm not bothered by clowns running around my place. Be it the puppets or HE himself." RK turned to him, staring into his eyes directly. A moment of silence followed, until Aryan decided to break it.

"I understand that, RK. But you're not concerned about whatever they think of you, are you? Then how does it even matter?" Interrogated he, placing his hands on his waist.

"It doesn't. You know what else doesn't matter? Whatever they do. It doesn't matter to me. So, how can what I do be affected by it? It won't." RK replied in an authoritative voice.

"But-" Aryan began, only to be cut off by another voice. No, it was not RK's.

"I think RK Sir is right, Sir." A female voice interrupted the two male ones for the first time since the conversation had started.

"Miss Prachi?" Aryan turned to face the girl.

"You think too much, Miss PA. Like you thought someone asked for your opinion here, didn't you?" RK was the one to speak next, snatching from Aryan the chance to deliver the words from his open mouth. The mere sight of her enraged him even more today. Who does she think she was? And who cared about her filthy opinion? Insolent, vexatious woman! And why on earth did she always show up from somewhere inside his house?!

"Have you cross checked the documents?" Aryan demanded, turned to Prachi, before Prachi's parted lips could serve words this time, as RK's reply, it seemed.

"Yes, Sir. The files are arranged and on your table at the moment." Prachi replied.

"Good. And RK is not going anywhere today. I'll be here too. You may leave for now if you want." Aryan ordered, earning a hard glare from the mentioned man, Aryan keeping his gaze fixated to Prachi intentionally as he spoke.

"Sure, Sir." Prachi nodded sharply. "But as a person working here for him, I would like to say something for it too, with your permission."

"Denied." RK said almost immediately. "No manners at all? Just speak when you're asked to, otherwise stay zipped." He snapped at her, in a tone that would have quietened any other soul standing before him. "And never dare to speak in the middle."

"You may." Aryan uttered as soon as RK was quiet. "I want to hear what she has to say. I've my right to as her employer, and she has too." He added, in a tone of explanation as he looked at a furious RK glaring at him suddenly.

Aryan then looked at Prachi, then at RK once, who was now staring at the woman with narrowed eyes accompanying his hard features. Averting his vision back to Prachi, he nodding once as a sign for her to continue.

"As I said, I think RK Sir is correct." That was something new. Aryan thought to himself.

"I know you don't need my support." She turned to RK as he opened his mouth, about to say something. As he didn't allow words to escape his mouth, Prachi assumed she had replied to his apparent incoming statement already.

"And I'm not supporting you as well. I'm supporting what I feel should be done here. Aryan Sir, I agree to all your points. When you know you're in danger, your life shouldn't be risked more. But I want you to be assured that as long as with me, and with all our team members, he's perfectly safe and shielded from all of them. So, if there's no danger in the first place, no risks need to be involved as well. The last day was not what you could have expected, but being guards, we're always ready for such situations. So, it wasn't something unexpected as well. On the basis of a mere 'What could've happened', we can't totally ignore what did actually happen. And all that happened was them losing no matter how hard they tried. They could do nothing yesterday, and they'll still plot today and again try tomorrow. But, I assure you that the results will always be the same."

"Moreover, if RK Sir had to alter his plans because of such issues, then there's no point of us being here in the first place. It will give a wrong message not only of our duties, but also his image before his enemy, whoever it is. He wasn't able to harm us in any way yesterday, and he should be able to see that as well. Couldn't harm RK Sir, and couldn't harm our confidence as well. It's not just about the silent message his presence will give, but also about the opposite one his absence will give. And the latter is more destructive and mockable than the former one is an indication of his victory." Concluded Prachi, her voice holding the same tone throughout her speech.

"That's why, I think, RK Sir is correct here."

Aryan fell silent for a moment, his eyes staring far off at nothing in particular, as if contemplating something, lost deep in thought. With Prachi's eyes on Aryan's cerebrating face, and RK's gaze on her figure with the same expressions as earlier, a long minute of silence passed.

"You may leave with him." Aryan spoke out of the blue, turning to face RK, though his words were very well directed at Prachi, who nodded.

"Now you agree." RK clenched his jaws, staring at Aryan with exasperation in his eyes.

"You've gotta admit, she was more convincing." Aryan whispered to him, winking at the last phrase. "Now what?" He continued to whisper. "Don't tell me you'll change your decision and terminate your working plans just cuz 'The insolent woman' voted for the opposite, no matter if it was on your side itself?"

"Like I said, Aryan," RK began, changing the direction of his vision to Prachi once, then back to Aryan as he continued. "Actions and thoughts - not concerning me as per my definitions - of people I don't care about, don't bother me, and don't change my decisions. Even if this little chit chat here hadn't taken place, which hasn't for me, I would be going to my destination, as I am going now." He replied, finally stepping out of the villa, before Prachi followed him without another word exchanged.
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With his headphones gently covering his ears completely, RK reclined on his chair, listening to the piece of music he had recently worked on, mentally pointing out flaws in his own masterpiece, seemingly unaware of the rest of the world around him at the moment. Half an hour since his arrival, a faint knock was heard at the door.

Prachi, who had been working with some papers at the couch on the side of the large office room, promptly got up and was by his side in an instant. Alertness lighting up her features instantaneously, as she stood beside his chair, eyes fixed at the door, hands resting behind her waist.

"Come in." To her surprise, RK's voice answered immediately. Wasn't he too lost in his headphones already?

The cabin door creaked open revealing a young man standing at the entrance of the room, with his hands folded midway as he held an object beneath his fingers tightly, a nervous smile plastered on his face.

"G-good Morning, Sir." Dhruv greeted him as he walked closer to his boss, holding his breath unknowingly all through the while. RK didn't respond to him, of course. He saw that the same woman as yesterday - yes, the one who had snatched his job from him - was standing near him with a quite straight face and motionless posture. Wasn't she fired yet? And, don't these people ever smile or something? A tension could be felt in the atmosphere by him whenever he was around his boss, and thanks to this new lady, the feeling of uneasiness only seemed to irritate him all the more.

"Planning to serve your own self?" He heard RK's voice suddenly pulling him out of his reverie. Senses back to the place he was at, he realised he had been standing before RK's table like a statue, with the tray of coffee still in his hands, staring at the woman standing before him with not the most pleasant face - since long.

"Huh?" Dhruv uttered, brought back to reality all of a sudden. "No, n-n-no. Sorry, Sir. S-sorry. Really sorry. Here's your coffee." He apologised sheepishly, moving forward to place the tray on his table.

"I'm afraid you'll have to taste it first, Mister." Dhruv's head suddenly snapped up at Prachi speaking to him, only to find her staring at him with an emotionless face. Though having worked with her yesterday for quite a while, he hadn't really talked to her much, or even heard her voice much. Oh, he didn't even feel comfortable in looking at her for long. She was...scary. Not as scary as RK, of course, he was something unique, a specimen of his kind. But this woman wasn't any less too. He wouldn't personally prefer talking to her if he had a choice to. Was she speaking to him this time, though? What did she say? He missed the content, her interference being unexpected.

"Never mind." She said suddenly, breaking his chain of thoughts, once again. Never mind? Was he supposed to mind anything? Once again brought back to the reality, he realised he couldn't feel the same weight of the tray anymore as he did earlier. He also realised he was slightly bent forward, his hands outstretched towards RK's table, while his head turned towards Prachi's direction. And before the wheels of his realisation could travel any further, a loud voice shook him to the core all of a sudden - shook him quite literally.

"WHAT THE HELL?!" RK yelled at the top of his voice. His voice attracting all of Dhruv's attention glued to the lady beside him earlier, his expressions turning into one of pure horror as he shifted his gaze, his eyes going wide simultaneously.

What on earth did he just do?! He was just serving his boss - well, with some mental calculations - and then the next moment he sees, Dhruv's tray is empty, with the steaming hot coffee spilled all over RK's hand and jacket. Dhruv stopped breathing it seemed for a minute.

"YOU MORON!" RK gritted his teeth, getting up from his chair as he tried to dust his jacket. "HOW DARE YOU!" Dhruv was too numb to speak anything. What did just happen? He was still trying to process.

RK suddenly felt a warm touch on his hand, removing it from his jacket and towards itself. He looked up, only to find Prachi standing before him. With a wet tissue clutched beneath her fingers, she started brushing his hand gently with her eyes fixated at her work, while her face still showcased no emotion whatsoever. No, she wasn't standing inches apart from him. Just where she was earlier without having moved a bit. An opened bottle was kept on the table near her, and she blew on his hand once, making his eyes flicker towards it as it generated a slight cold sensation on his warm skin.

RK stared at her working form for a minute without uttering a word, before yanking his hand away from her warm ones harshly all of a sudden.

"Stay in your limits, Miss PA." He snarled, her eyes lifting up to meet his for a first today. "Don't you dare touch me." He ordered in a menacing tone.

Prachi stared at him, silent, before taking just a step in his direction. Dropping her gaze, her hands then quickly moved against the wet portion of his brown jacket, as she spoke.

"Not really interested, RK Sir."

"Sorry-sorry, Sir. S-so sorry. I'm-I'm really v-very--" Dhruv tried to speak as soon as he could find his voice.

"You may leave, Mister." It was Prachi who replied, earning a glare from RK evidently, which she was too occupied in her work to notice - or care.

"And who the hell are you to order that?" Demanded he in a fierce tone.

"Your PA, Sir. Forgot? He works under me." Reminded she, never bothering to look up.

Prachi then felt something under her chin, before it was lifted up gratingly to face the person standing before her, her eyes staring directly into his as she was forced to look up.

"Throw that attitude of yours while I'm talking to you." RK threatened her, shooting daggers at her.

"Don't you dare touch me, either." Prachi replied, not to his words, stating her own in a loud and firm voice, before prying his finger off her face with a jerk. Then, as if nothing had just happened, she went back to her work without another word.

RK stared at her for a while, before taking a step back silently, breaking her contact from his jacket she had been cleaning, though she wasn't done with her work yet. Prachi just stood there with the tissues still in her hand as he sat back into his chair.

Dhruv didn't know what to feel when RK shook his fingers at him twice, gesturing for him to leave the cabin. Should he be elated that he was being dismissed? Or should he cry over his fate in anticipation of something worse? Though, what he surely knew was that he standing there and daydreaming once again was certainly not one of the best ideas. Not really having heard any of the words that were exchanged between the other two people present there, his mind worked only on being silently addressed to right now. Dhruv decided it was best for him to leave, without his boss could have a chance to change his mind. And he could no where be spotted in the entire room only seconds later.

RK heard the door close as Dhruv left. What an annoying, spineless creature. The only reason he let him go, was something important for him to deal with right now. He picked up the coffee mug kept at the table, still containing one third of the liquid it initially did. Averting his gaze to the object in his hand, he brought it closer to himself, turning his vision back to Prachi, who stared back at him with a blank expression.

Prachi suddenly heard the sound of something knocking hard against the ground, followed by the sound of something shattering against the same. Following the source of the voice, she looked down to find the coffee mug scattered into thick pieces near RK's feet, with the brown liquid spread all over his black shoes. Frowning slightly, she lifted her gaze at him, only to find him staring at her with apparently calm features. Resting his elbows on the arms of the chair, he interlaced his fingers before speaking his next words.

"Clean the mess." He ordered, once again. In the same tone that he had used yesterday while using the same words. Only this time, she knew he was not referring to the mess on the floor. "This, for sure, is part of your "job" now, ain't I right, Miss PA?"

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Sneak Peek ;)

"Gear up. We're having a concert."

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Hey, dear readers! Let's leave it till here today. How are you all doing?
A comparatively quicker update, as promised :)

What is RK referring to at the end? I know it's a pretty easy question, but still. Lol.

What do you think will be Prachi's reaction/reply to his "order"?

What was your favourite scene/part/dialogue of the update?

And, lastly, what do you think about the sneak peek? ;)

The 'your scenes including here' offer is still up. And I'm hoping the next update will be soon too. Also, I really forgot to mention in the previous update, the people who had guessed for the question at the end in the one before it. So, QueeOfHell vaida_pranbirian and Solely_Pranbir you were the ones who had guessed. Though, none of you were correct there (Really Sorry. Much more ahead, though ;)), I really appreciate it and still congratulations for your guesses!

That's pretty much it. Really hope you liked the update. Do vote for it if you like it and leave your honest reviews below, it's a great  encouragement. Also, do share the story if you like it with your friends. Any queries or suggestions about the story, feel free to dm me.
Constructive criticism is always welcomed :)

Thank you.
Your Author :)