"The people around me think I am cold when all I am is sad only."
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Behind every successful man, there is a woman. Atharva had heard from his father and Maria countless times. He might have believed their words in another life, but he would never agree in this one, not even in his dreams unless he was cracking a joke, of course. He was well aware that women only flocked to successful men.
For purely selfish reasons.
If only others could see the truth, the world would be a better place.
The shrill ringtone of the alarm jolted Atharva out of his reverie. He stopped his stare-down battle with the ceiling and rolled out of the bed, stretching his arms above his head. It wouldn't be long before his high blood pressure threw him off, courtesy of his father, the cause of his stress.
After taking a quick shower, he wrapped a towel around his hips and strode to the kitchen. He still had over an hour left for his office to begin, but he didn't want to be late, so he started preparing his usual breakfast; coffee and scrambled eggs.
With his role as the company's CEO, he could arrive and leave anytime he preferred, but he was the epitome of perfection. He did everything exactly the way it should be done. And that was why he was admired so much, for his hard work and dedication. Everyone either wanted to be like the businessman he was or wanted to be with him. After all, money was the ultimate power.
Being a workaholic was turning out to be tough with added pressure from his father for marriage. He was skipping sleep night after night, which led to a consistent headache that had no cure. But work was the only thing that kept him sane. It spared him from getting absorbed in darkness, so he never complained.
Sitting on the kitchen stool, he wolfed down his breakfast, all the while scrolling through his company's current status on his tablet.
He heard a soft ping and glanced down at his phone.
8:12 AM You're getting married within a week. If you disagree, you'll be stripped of your responsibilities, and all the business will be handed over to Nisha.
Atharva stopped mid-chew and stared at the message incredulously. He couldn't believe his eyes, for he never thought his father would stoop to the extent of blackmailing him. His father knew how much he adored this company, and now he was ready to snatch the only thing Atharva had, just because he wanted a wedding ceremony.
Anger coursed through his veins like hot liquid, and his hand itched to smash his phone into tiny pieces.
Nisha, his stepsister, was just like her mother, sweet on the outside but bitchy on the inner side. He hated both of them. Surrendering his company to such a pitiful excuse for a human was unbearable. He would do anything to keep it, whatever the cost, even marry a stranger. The thought of resisting crossed his mind, but recalling his father's endless nagging, he knew it would be futile.
