Rahul started his car and sped away quickly. In the dust created by the speeding vehicle, Neel coughed and said to Kartik, "Why don't you tell that Rahul the truth about himself?"
Kartika smiled, brushing his hair back, and replied, "We'll respond to him in the same way he treated us."
Neel was confused and didn't quite understand Kartik's statement. Kartik placed a hand on his shoulder and signaled for the taxi to stop. As soon as the taxi halted, the two of them got out and soon arrived at the palace.
In the living room, Uncle Chauhan was present with some employees, all dressed in expensive suits. As soon as Chauhan Uncle saw Kartik, he stood up and said, "Welcome, Kartik!"
The employees also stood up upon seeing him. Uncle Chauhan added, "Your employees are here and they need some documents signed by you."
The employees looked at Kartik and Neel strangely due to their simple clothes. They couldn't believe that this was the same Kartik Mittal who was now their new boss.
Understanding the situation, Chauhan Uncle said to Kartik and Neel, "I understand you both must be quite tired. You can rest if you like. I'll have these documents sent to your room."
Kartik glanced at the employees and nodded in agreement before leaving.
After exiting, they went through the stairs to a large corridor, where there was a family tree picture of the Mittal family. One corner of the frame was empty. Kartik paused for a moment, staring intently at the vacant space.
Neel put a hand on his shoulder and asked, "What happened? Why did you stop here?"
Neel then noticed that Kartik's picture was missing. Kartik said nothing and headed toward his new bedroom.
After Kartik left, Neel took out his purse, which contained a photo of himself and Kartik. He tore his own picture and placed Kartik's photo in the empty corner of the wall, happily exclaiming, "Now it looks like a complete family tree!" He then proceeded to Kartik's new bedroom.
The room was adorned with a king-sized bed, expensive curtains, and unique art, adding a touch of luxury.
Neel lay on the bed, stretching out his arms and sinking into the soft mattress, saying, "Wow, this is amazing! I never thought our luck would change so drastically!"
Kartik smiled at him and said, "This is just the beginning. We still have a lot to do!"
Neel asked, "We were such close friends. You kept this truth from me for so many years?"
Kartik responded, "What could I do? Rule is rule! Actually, I was adopted by my parents, and my dad set the condition that I had to hide my identity for some years. He would accept me into the family only if I had an education degree when I returned. If I had revealed my identity, I would have lost this chance. After Mom passed away, I felt I didn't need anything anymore, but their love for me made me want to return and become part of this house. That's why I never revealed my truth."
Neel listened attentively, raising his eyebrows and saying, "Big people, big stories. Anyway, leave that. What do you think will happen when Shanon learns the truth about you, my friend?"
Noticing the lack of expression on Kartik's face, Neel ignored his silence and went to take a shower. After Neel left, Kartik removed his shirt and noticed a tea stain on it. He thought, "Some people in this world are so innocent!"
After some time, Neel returned from his shower, drying his wet hair with a towel. He said, "Listen, I'm not staying here."
Kartik looked at him questioningly, so Neel continued, "Your bathroom is so big, it's like the ground floor of the bar where we used to work as waiters. If soap falls in such a big bathroom, you know how hard it is to find it! With all these large mirrors, who looks at themselves while bathing?"
Kartik laughed at Neel's comment.
**Evening at 7:00 PM**
Neel and Kartik were heading out. As they got a little ahead of the palace in their car, they saw a shadow of a girl at the gate. Kartik asked the driver to reverse, and as the car backed up, he noticed it was Shefali.
Kartik was surprised to see her and got out of the car, "What are you doing here?"
Shefali handed him some documents and said, "I came to deliver these documents. All the paperwork is complete, and now you are the official owner of the inheritance. Congratulations!"
Kartik took the papers and asked, "You could have sent these through someone else. Why did you come yourself?"
Shefali replied, "They were confidential papers, so I came personally."
Kartik looked her up and down and asked, "So, what do you really want to say? You didn't come just to deliver confidential papers, did you?"
Shefali responded, "I hope you will continue to deposit your money in CitiBank. I am embarrassed about my actions and don't want you to look for another option."
Shefali's face was innocent, and her voice carried genuine remorse.
After some thought, Kartik said, "I can forgive you on one condition."
Shefali immediately looked at him, and Kartik said, "I'm going to a party. Would you like to come with me? There's no pressure; it's up to you."
Shefali hesitated for a moment but then nodded in agreement. She looked at her office clothes and said, "But I'm wearing office clothes."
Kartik smiled and said, "Don't worry about that!" He signaled for her to get into the car, and the three of them left.
As Shefali looked out the car window, Kartik had the driver stop in front of a large clothing store. As the car stopped, Kartik signaled for Shefali to get out and walked into the large store himself.
Shefali was puzzled, wondering how she would buy clothes here. Inside the store, Kartik suddenly told her, "You can choose a dress you like from here."
Shefali was taken aback, her eyes widening in surprise. Before she could say anything, a store assistant led her to the second floor.
After some time, Shefali came down from the second floor and stood quietly beside Kartik. Kartik was sitting on a large sofa reading a magazine. When he noticed Shefali, he said, "You look great!"
Shefali was now dressed in a black backless short dress, looking stunning. Kartik hadn't expected her to look so beautiful. He complimented her, and after paying with his card, he and Shefali returned to the car where Neel was waiting with the driver.
**At 9:00 PM**
Rahul was sitting at Hoot Bistro with his friends, including Shanon.
One of Rahul's friends checked his watch and said, "I wonder if poor Kartik is trembling with fear."
Rahul laughed and said, "He won't even have the chance to come to us. Let him first find some spare change!"
They were laughing when suddenly Kartik's voice was heard, "Were you waiting for me?"
Rahul and his friends were surprised to see Kartik, who usually dressed simply, now standing in branded and expensive clothes with a neatly dressed, beautiful girl beside him.
Shanon's eyes were fixed on Shefali's beauty. She was clearly jealous of the beautiful girl with Kartik.
Rahul, with a sneer, said to Kartik, "I heard expensive clothes can be rented, but today I've seen it! Let's see if the girl is rented too or if you begged her here!"
Rahul and his friends laughed again, and Neel, feeling angry at Rahul's remarks, said, "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Rahul looked at Neel and said, "Looks like you haven't changed your habit of defending people!"
Meanwhile, the bar owner approached Rahul, surprised to see Kartik. He said, "What are you doing here?"
Kartik replied to the owner, "Please bring the most expensive Scotch from your bar."
The owner frowned and said, "Why should I serve Scotch to someone like you?"
Kartik looked at Neel, who handed a card to the owner for payment. The owner was shocked by their demeanor.
Kartik then said to Rahul, "As far as I know, you wanted to challenge me. You tried to get me drunk before, but today I'm drinking! After losing, you won't get any more chances!"
Annoyed, Rahul tried to grab Kartik by his collar, but when he saw that it had no effect on Kartik, he let go abruptly.
Shanon, pretending to handle Rahul, glared at Kartik and Shefali and said, "You two can compete. Guys, there will be a car race between Rahul and Kartik! Are you excited?"
Rahul smirked and said, "But to race, the poor guy must have a car. Does he?"
Kartik smiled and said, "And if I win?"
"Let's see about that!" Rahul said as he walked out of the bar.
**At the Race Location**
A starting and finishing line had already been set up for the race. Rahul was in the driver's seat of his black BMW, with Shanon beside him. His friends were holding flags and teasing Kartik.
"Will this guy even show up?"
"Maybe he's running away out of fear?"
Suddenly, Kartik arrived in a Bugatti Chiron sports car. Seeing Kartik in such an expensive car, Rahul and Shanon were left speechless. Even the people who used to bully Kartik were astonished to see such a luxurious car up close.
Rahul rolled down his car's side window and said to Kartik, "Did you beg for an expensive car to race with? Hahaha."
Kartik, seriously, replied, "Soon, you'll be begging me for mercy!"
Rahul, with a sly smile, said, "Let's see."
He then pointed to a high hill and said, "Look there. Whoever gets back first and plants their flag there will kiss the girlfriend of the loser!"
Saying this, he glanced at Shefali and bit his lip. Shanon, sitting with Rahul, was annoyed by this comment, but Rahul ignored her.
Then, Neil handed Rahul a blue flag and gave Kartik a white flag before stepping aside. At the sound of the whistle, both of them started driving their cars at full speed.
Due to Kartik's sports car being so fast, Shanon couldn't even see it, no matter how hard she tried. Kartik was driving at full speed, and he glanced at Shefali several times, who showed no sign of fear. Initially, most people were cheering for Rahul, but seeing Kartik's speed, they began to cheer for him instead.
After a while, Kartik and Shefali reached the base of the hill.
Shefali got out of the car, planted her flag there, and then got back in. As they started to head back, Rahul and Shanon also reached the hill to plant their flag.
Kartik and Shefali arrived first and won the race. As soon as they arrived, Neil clapped excitedly. The others were quite upset about Rahul losing the race.
Neil opened Shanon's side door and started singing, "Chumma, chumma de de, chumma chumma de de chumma."
Shanon, irritated, said, "What nonsense are you singing?"
Neil replied innocently, "I'm not making this up. Your boyfriend said that the loser's girlfriend would kiss the winner, and on the lips too."
Shanon glared at Rahul, who was standing silently with his eyes down, and then looked at Kartik, who was watching her while holding Shefali's hand.
Shanon, angrily, said, "I'm not going to kiss anyone."
Kartik responded, "Go ahead, I'll grant Rahul my mercy. Besides, I have no interest in kissing you." He gave Shanon a look of disdain.
Then he placed his hand on Shefali's shoulder and said, "Darling, I think it's time we leave. It's about to start getting emotional for these people."
Shefali laughed at his comment.
Opening the car door for Shefali, Kartik got back into the car.
After a while, Shefali pointed to a bus stop and said, "Please drop me here. I'll manage to get home on my own."
Kartik, seriously, said, "If you want, we can drop you at your home."
Shefali, in a sweet voice, replied, "No thanks. I don't want to inconvenience you. Please just drop me here." As the bus stopped, Shefali got out and walked toward the bus stop.
After thinking for a moment, Kartik went up to her and asked, "What do you want from me?"
Shefali looked at him. Kartik met her gaze and said, "Say what you want to say."
As soon as he said this, Shefali, avoiding his eyes, said, "Yes, there's something I haven't told anyone until now, but today I'm going to tell you…"