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This chapter is mostly Swasan. Raglak for the next chapter, as this became too long.

Next chapter and a few more chapters in between are private. No mature content though. 

"Words in double quotes" - Talking

'Words in single quotes' - Thoughts

Chapter 9 - Victim to Circumstances

#Sanskar's House#

"Bye" Sanskar waved to Abhi as he drove away in his car, after dropping him home.

*phone ringing*

"Hello?"

(Sanskar. Where are you?)

"I'm in front our home Baba. Why? Was there something you needed?"

(I forgot to bring an important file. Could you please bring it to the office?)

Sanskar sighed 'I just got home. Can't a guy get some rest!?'

"I'll being it to you Baba"

(Thank you Sanky. You'll find it in my room) Durgaprasad cut the call.

"Ugh! Now I have to face his useless office staff. And that irritating Tia 😑
*sigh* Things I do for family 😩 "

#With Swara#

Swara got out of the taxi and looked wide-eyed at the building. 'Wow! Maheshwari Industries is huge!'

She paid the taxi-driver and moved towards the building. Once inside, she went to the receptionist.

"Excuse me. Is Sanskar Maheshwari in the office?" Swara asked, knowing fully well that Sanskar wasn't there. But she needed to act as if she didn't know.

"Um...who might you be Ma'am?"

"I'm Swa-"

"Swara?" she heard someone say her name from behind and turned. However, she froze when she saw who it was.

"Sa-sanskar? What are you doing here?"

"I should be the one asking you that question" Sasnkar asked in suspicion.

'Shit! He wasn't supposed to be here. I thought he wouldn't come to the office now. We just got back from camping an hour ago. What to do, what to do!?' Swara panicked.

"Hello Sanky" said the receptionist.

"Hello Tia" Sanskar came near her and gave her the file "Give this to my father. He said its really important"

"Sure Sanskar. Anything for you love." said Tia, as she placed a hand on Sanskar's shoulder "By the way, are you free now? We could go for a cup of coffee"

Swara looked on wide eyed 'Is this girl that dumb? Anyone could say by looking at Sanskar's face that he seems pissed off. This is definitely not the time to ask him out'

Sanskar rudely smacked Tia's hand away. "Do your job. My father doesn't pay you to flirt with random guys. If you want to flirt with guys, go work in a bar"

Tia looked at him in indignation. "How dare you speak to me like this you jerk!"

"Want me to fire you from your job? Don't forget that this is my father's company."

Tia wanted to argue, but remained quite 'How dare you Sanskar Maheshwari?! I'll have my revenge on you.'

Sanskar turned to Swara "Come with me"

"Um... I....I just remembered that I have some unfinished work at home. I'll come back some other time." Swara tried to escape from there with that excuse. However, Sanskar grabbed her wrist before she could leave.

Tia saw this and smirked. She slowly took out her mobile and waited for the perfect opportunity.

"You aren't leaving anywhere. You'll come with me right now" Sanskar spoke in a commanding voice.

Swara looked at him irritated 'No one can be the boss of me!' "I need to go home. So, leave my hand."

Swara tried to pull her hand from his grip, but Sanskar gave it a jerk and pulled Swara closer. They were now standing eye-to-eye.

"I. Said. You. Will. Come. With. Me" spoke Sanskar, saying each word with force. He didn't give Swara a chance to respond as he pulled her away.

None of them noticed Tia silently clicking their picture. 'Now you pay for insulting me Sanskar Maheshwari'

She dialed a number "Hello? Hi Isha! How are you?"

(I'm fine Tia. Although my work is giving me a headache. We haven't had a good tip for our channel and my boss looks like he's ready to kill us all)

"Then I guess I called you at the right time. I've got a great tip for you"

(Tip? What kind of tip?)

"Put the phone on hold and check your whatsapp. I've sent you some pictures"

There was a pause on the line as Isha checked the pictures.

(Oh my! Thank you so much Tia! You don't know how much you've helped me. This will be the latest news that everyone in town's going to be talking about soon!)

Tia smirked "Make sure it gets highlighted well. Bye"

(Right! Thanks again)

Tia cut the call and looked at her phone with an evil smirk "Its is I who should be thanking you Isha. I wonder how Mr. Maheshwari will take the news"

#With Swara and Sanskar#

Sanskar pulled Swara into a cabin. Swara noticed that it had Sanskar's pictures on the wall 'Guess this is his cabin.'

"Is this your cabin? I thought you did modeling."

"I do. But I also help Baba in business. Besides, this cabin is for my relaxation" Sanskar said, pointing at the LCD tv in his cabin.

Swara shook her head at Sanskar "That still doesn't explain why you pulled me here jerk!"

"What are you doing in my father's office? You have no link with any of the staff or my father. So I guess you came here in some matter related to me, didn't you?"

'Ack! He knows. This jerk is intelligent, gotta admit that. But what do I do now? Think Swara think!' Swara was panicking on the inside as Sanskar kept looking at her in anger. His look was making her uncomfortable.

"Quit looking at me like that! I'm not being able to cook up an excuse. So-"
Swara's eyes widened as she realized what she blurted out and put a hand over her mouth.

"Aha! I knew it. You were here to find something against me, weren't you?! How dare you think that you could blackmail me?!"

"Whatever. It looks like my plan failed. I'll take my leave now" Swara spoke casually, flipping her hair behind her shoulder.

Sanskar looked at her with a mix of irritation and confusion "What the....I just caught you red handed. Aren't you afraid that you're caught?"

"You're not some big bad wolf for me to fear. In fact, you look like a cute little guinea pig" Swara winked at him.

Sanskar looked at her open-mouthed.

Swara was about to leave. However, Sanskar grabbed her and pulled her towards him.

"Let go of me!"

Sanskar instead pulled her hand harder "Not until you apologize!"

Both glared at each other, not willing to back down. Suddenly the door to Sanskar's cabin burst open to reveal Durgaprasad.

"I guess it's true." Said Durgaprasad. He seemed pissed off. Sanskar and Swara realized how close they were and broke apart.

"What's true Baba?"

Durgaprasad walked towards the t.v placed in Sanskar's cabin and switched it on. He put on the news channel.

*Famous model and the heir of Maheshwari family, Sanskar Maheshwari seems to have forgotten his morals.
(A pic of Sanskar holding Swara by her wrist is shown, which was clicked by Tia)
As viewers can see, Sanskar Maheshwari is harassing this young girl. However, what is more shocking is the fact that this took place in Maheshwari Industries, while Durgaprasad Maheshwari was still in the building. Is Mr. Durgaprasad aware of his son's actions? Or is it that Durgaprasad chose to ignore this action as a simple mistake of his son? Is Durgaprasad, the person who always prides himself of doing the right thing, taking no action against Sanskar as he is his son?*

Sanskar and Swara looked at the news, shocked.

Sanskar fisted his hands 'That bitch Tia. I'll make sure she never gets to step in this building again!'

Swara was too shocked to say anything. She stood there, frozen.

#Shopping  Mall#

"Maya look. This will look great on you, won't it?" asked Tanuja. Although they managed to bring Maya with them to the mall, Maya didn't look interested in buying anything. She was busy in business calls and told Tanuja to select for her. Tanuja already selected hers, and now she was searching for a nice dress for Maya.

"I'm sure it will look great on me if you think so Tanuja." Maya responded, without looking up from her phone.

"Maya, at least look at it"

"No need. I trust you Tanuja"

Tanuja sighed and looked towards the mall manager standing beside them. He had been circling around them since they arrived. Ever since he heard that Maya Malhotra was at his mall, he has been making sure that they get the best of services.

"Di! Look at this. Isn't this nice? I'm sure it will look great on Swara." spoke Ragini.

"It looks beautiful Ragu" Tanuja said with a smile.

"Wow. Nice choice Ragu. How much is the price?" asked Pragya.

"Wait" said Maya, looking up from her phone "Tanuja has selected for me, but are you all done buying your dresses?"

They all nodded. Maya took the selected dresses and turned to the manager "See these dresses? I want the most costly and best brands of these type of dresses."

"Sure Ma'am. I'll bring them to you right away"

Maya nodded towards him and turned to her sisters. Ragini was looking at her in glee, while Pragya and Tanuja looked on with wide eyes.

"What?"

"Maya, we don't need such costly dresses"

"Don't worry Tanuja, I'll  pay"

"Maya, it's not about the money that Tanuja Di was referring to. She means that it would be a waste of money. The dresses we selected would do just fine" Pragya explained.

Maya raised an eyebrow "Those dresses are beautiful, but ordinary. Others may were them too. You all are Maya Malhotra's sisters. And I want all of you to appear unique. Everyone should be filled with awe and admiration when they look towards you all. I want you all to look the best."

"Thank you so much Maya Di!" Ragini hugged Maya. "Maya Di, I want to buy something to wear for my date with Laksh. Can I?"

"Buy what you want Ragu."

Ragini smiled broadly and went away to look for more dresses.

Tanuja sighed and shook her head "Maya, you're spoiling her."

"And us too. If you buy such dresses for us, we might make it a habit of wearing only costly dresses. I might never want to wear an ordinary dress again!" joked Pragya.

Maya smiled "No problem. All my money is for my family's happiness. I'll be happy to spend if it means your happiness."

*phone ringing*

Maya received the call "Hello?"

Tanuja and Pragya saw Maya's eyes widen on hearing some news from the other end of the line.

"Are you sure?" Maya asked again to confirm "I see. Thanks for the info." Maya cut the call and looked at her sisters with a serious look.

"Go get Ragini. We need to get our dresses quickly and head home to Swara."

#Maheshwari Industries#

"What is this Sanskar? I never expected my son to do this. I understand that you are young and you make mistakes. But this! Harassing a girl, that too in my building? When will you ever learn to be responsible!? And who is she?"

Swara broke out of her shock and answered "I....I'm Swara. Swara Gagodia"

"Swara, I'm deeply sorry for the way my son treated you"

"No Mr. Maheshwari. Please don't apologize. You are my senior. Please do not speak like that. In fact, it is I who is sorry for coming here in the first place."

"That's right. None of this would have happened if you never came here!" Shouted Sanskar.

"Enough Sanskar! I don't care what led to this mess. I hope you find a way to solve this. The media is already outside the building. Come out and get ready to answer them" spoke Durgaprasad, before moving towards the door. However, before leaving, Durgaprasad looked back at Sanskar.

Swara could see the sorrow and pain in his eyes. "You really disappointed me son. I.... What will I tell your mother?"

"Baba please liste-" Sanskar tried to speak, but Durgaprasad left. He turned to Swara in anger.

Sanskar started blaming her for everything that happened. However, Swara didn't pay him any attention and was in deep thought. She couldn't forget the sad look in Durgaprasad's eyes. She felt guilty because although Sanskar was guilty, everything wouldn't have happened if she hadn't come to the building. 'I... I need to fix this. I have to fix this! I don't care about this jerk, but I would never be able to live knowing that I caused pain to someone's parents. Durgaprasad Maheshwari is a hard-working and generous person. I can't let his dignity be squashed by some rumour of the media!'

Swara felt someone grab her shoulder and turn her "Are you even listening to me?! Are you happy now that you've disgraced me? Ruined my name? This is what you wanted right?! Now....now my modeling career would be ruined too. All because of you!" Sanskar screamed.

Swara pushed him back "Shut up! All that you care about is yourself you selfish jerk! Don't you care what impact it had on your father? Don't you care about your parents?!"

"Of course I do! They are my parents. But that's not the point. Th-"

"Just shut up! I don't care what happens to you, but I'm not going to let your father's reputation be destroyed" Swara moved out of his cabin.

"How dare she leave like that? If this girl thinks she can leave me in this mess, than she doesn't know what I can do!"

Sanskar rushed after her. He saw her heading outside the building. 'The media is there. She already ruined my name. What more does she want now?!' He ran to catch her, but could not reach her before she reached the door. The moment both stepped outside, the reporters started questioning them.

"Calm down. Calm down. Sanskar will explain it all" spoke a man who came out after them with Durgaprasad. The man nodded towards Sanskar.

Sanskar, however, didn't have any excuse to defend his actions. He whispered to the man "I don't know what to say Adarsh"

'Adarsh? I've heard that name before. Aha! He's the son of Durgaprasad's brother, Ram. He is like Durgaprasad's right-hand man in business' thought Swara.

Sanskar was thinking of what to say when Swara spoke.

"Sanskar isn't guilty. I am to blame for what happened." Sanskar, Adarsh and Durgaprasad looked at Swara in shock.

Swara now had the attention of all the media. "Yes. That's right. I am to blame for the entire fiasco. I have always been his fan. Yesterday, we met at a cafe and I thought there was something developing between us. However, Sanskar only felt friendship towards me. It was me who was daydreaming everything." Swara paused to let the media digest the news.

'Ew! I can't believe I just said that I am his fan and that I daydream about that jerk. I think I would need to wash my mouth to clear it of those words'

She shook her head and continued. "But I couldn't bear the truth and so I tried to hit him. Sanskar had held my hand in anger to stop me. He wasn't the one harassing me. I am the one guilty."

At once, a ruckus broke out among the reporters, each asking questions at the same time.

Adarsh moved forward "Alright people, you got your answers. Leave us now. No need to crowd over here."

Adarsh signaled the guards. One of them took Swara, Sanskar and Durgaprasad inside, while the rest pushed back the reporters.

Once inside, Durgaprasad looked at Swara gratefully. Sanskar on the other hand, kept on looking at Swara wide eyed. He couldn't believe that Swara had ruined her own name for him. 'But....but why?'

"Swara...beta why? You lied and saved us. But disgraced your own name. You saved Sanskar even though it was his fault. Why did you Swara?" asked Durgaprasad.

"I didn't do it for Sanskar. I did it because I felt guilty for making you sad and destroying your reputation, which I know you have worked hard your whole life for."

"Whatever the reason maybe, you did us a great favor. Thank you Miss Swara" spoke Adarsh "However, now you will be facing trouble because of what you said. But do not worry. We will help you in every way"

"It's alright. You don't need to worry about me. I don't care what media says. I know who I am, what I am. No fake rumors can influence me. That's what my Maya Di has always taught me"

Durgaprasad smiled "You are a strong girl Swara. May God bless you!"

"Thank you. I'll take my leave then" Swara was about to leave, when Adarsh's voice stopped her.

"Wait! You can't go on your own. The reporters will be on you like hungry lions. I'll tell a guard to drop you home."

"No. I'll drop her home" spoke Sanskar.

Swara noted that he had remained silent the entire time, without insulting or thanking her. 'Whatever! It's not like I care.'

Swara nodded and followed Sanskar to his car.

#Gagodia Residence#

Sanskar kept his word and dropped Swara home. He kept silent the entire way to their home. Swara found it odd, but chose not to comment. Once home, she uttered a 'bye' and opened the car door to get out.

She was near the gate of her house, when she heard Sanskar's voice.

"Swara wait!" she turned back and found Sanskar moving towards her.

Once close enough, he spoke "What you did back there, I... I wanted to say thanks for that. And... And also apologize for before. I promise I won't reveal the lake site to anyone"

"I accept your thanks, but I can't  forget the fact that you tried to use me for your own selfish reasons. Neither can I forget how you threatened to make our secret place public."

"I.... I understand. But Swara what I don't understand is why you didn't take advantage of the incident. This was the perfect opportunity for you. You could have used this as a blackmail material against me. So why didn't you?"

"Because I'm not like you Sanskar Maheshwari. I know how to value someone's feelings. Don't think that I did it for you. I did it for your father. I could have used it as blackmail, but I didn't because that would have been wrong. I wanted to find something to hold power over you so that you do not reveal the lake site, but not at your father's expense." Swara turned away from him "But why am I telling you all this? A selfish jerk like you would never understand this! Go home Sanskar" with that, Swara moved towards her house.

Sanskar, for the first time in life, felt ashamed of his actions. 'I wronged her so much. Yet, she helped me, helped my father. If it was any other girl, she would have no doubt used it against me to get money or make me marry her. But Swara took the blame on herself for my father, my family.'

Sanskar looked towards  the gate 'Swara Gagodia... I may have wanted you to like me, so that I could get a contract from Maya. But now.... Now I truly want to win your heart. I know you won't trust me or like me at first, but I won't give up. I will win your heart and make you mine Swara.' thinking that, Sanskar got into his car and drove off.

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To be continued...

Next chapter and a few more chapters are private. No mature content though.