The love of liberty is the love of others; the love of power is the love of ourselves.

~William Hazlitt

Jagati

"Nelson is here to talk to you." Arianna said through the phone as I was reviewing the new contract.

After that Thanksgiving, I stayed with Dhruv's family and completed my masters during the spring and summer semesters by course overloading. Later I moved to North Carolina and started working for Global being mentored by the greatest business men.

It's been 4 months since I started here and I have to say that I am loving this job and my life here. Amaya and Divya di are my emotional support systems, they make me feel like I belong here with them, like I am part of their family.

I should've done something amazing to get people like this in my life.

But Nelson Pears is my rival at this job, we always compete with each other on every deal and contract. He is 2 years older than me, he has all good features except for the horrible attitude towards others. He is a typical white supremacist.

I quickly sat straight and buttoned my jacket and put a game face on for him.

"Let him in."I told her in the quietest tone possible, ready to face with utmost patience.

"Why did you change the terms and location at the last minute, without my permission? " Nelson yelled coming into my office with his face all red looking like the nerves would pop out any minute.

"I didn't do that to irritate you Mr. Pears. I did that because I feel that was the best option. John Deere is company known for its agricultural equipment, if they want to start a new manufacturing unit why should they do it China, why not India who's main source of income is agriculture. And whatever clauses I added are reasonable, so I suggest you to calm down and think through ." I justified my actions while he seethed at me with anger.

Andrew told me to always stand up for what I believe in, even if it means fighting against the whole world, because silence is not the answer every time. This harsh business world doesn't understand silence, they walk all over you assuming that you are weak.

"Just because you are Mr.Browne's family, doesn't mean you poke your nose in everything. This deal was supposed to give us millions. If we lose this by any chance, I will make sure you will go down with this." He stomped at me and left without listening to me, I could see Arianna peeking through the door giving Nelson a stinky eye.

"What's wrong with him? Does he always yell at people like this?" I asked her throwing my hands in the air.

"Don't worry, he is just jealous of you. You bought so many contracts to the company than he did in the last one year." She snorted at him making me feel proud of myself.

"You are being modest, I am just doing what I can." I replied to her controlling all my emotions.

Arianna is the part time secretary I hired 2 months back, She is doing her bachelors in the state university and she might have a small crush on Dhruv.

We all got back to work, I had to go through a few more paperwork about new contracts with the state. And I am leading the Global Philanthropy hospital in India, Jamie gave me such a huge responsibility and I will do anything to keep the project safe, that's my first baby.

As I was going through the finances, and the audit reports my phone buzzed with a message in kids group.

Alex: SOS!!! AQ is on fire.

To decode that message, AQ is Ace Queen, which is Amaya di, and she is at the highest level of mad.

God! This Alex must've done something to screw her up, he always does this.

I ignored it and was about to look at my never ending excel sheet but the phone beeped again.

Danny: Janu move from that office chair and come home. It's an emergency, she locked herself in a room.

That was the next message with a lot of angry faces.

I smiled at these messages, and got out of the office, looks like I am the last person in this floor to leave, with those thoughts I drove to Amaya di's house.

I hate winters, snow looks pretty but driving and living in there is hazard.I parked the car in the drive way and rang the door bell, but the door was in so I went in and found no one in the house.

"Alex, Danny.."I called out their names.

There is never a quite moment in this house. It's always kids fighting and Amaya di jumping along with them. So for the first time silence is scaring me.

Or did I fall into the Aces prank?

I am gonna kill Alex, for doing this. Danny didn't warn me either, I thought Danny was my best buddy.

I turned out the lights in the living room which was pitch dark.

"SURPRISEEEEE." Yelled everyone as wearing party hats and a big cake infront of them with all happy faces.

They started singing Happy Birthday song to me.My mama, papa, Karthik and grandparents are on a laptop in a video call, Every single member Dhruv bought into my life is here for me.

Their happy faces made me so happy that I broke down into tears in a room full of people, who cared enough for me, who loved me, who are willing to stand with me when I fall. I found something more amazing at the loss of my love.

Divya and Amaya di came forward and pulled me into a hug and brushed the tears off.

Breaking people is easy and anyone can do it, but you know what's hard, gluing yourself back together and these helped me do that holding me piece by piece.

"Thank you so much, I never celebrated my birthday with these many people. Thank you for making me a part of your family." I said feeling grateful.

"Cut the cake! I am hungry." Amar whined rubbing his stomach making everyone laugh.

And that's how the party started, cakes and celebrations, a house full of smiles. Looking at them made me feel that I could be happy without him in my life.

But, Why do I still wish he was here with me? Why am I still missing him? I don't want to miss him anymore, I want to hate him but I can't bring myself to do that.

"Did you not like the surprise?"Arjun asked me as we closed up the party and everyone left to sleep as it's a school day for all the kids.

"Yeah! I did." I said pulling my legs closer to my chest and hugging them on the couch.

"Then why do look like someone just died." He asked sitting beside me and I looked at him with a smile pushing Dev to the back of my mind.

I looked Arjun, who looked really tired but he has the compassion to make every one feel loved and important. Residency at Harvard is eating his life, but he never shows that on his face and is always there for people.

"Do you still love him?" He asked me the question I've been dreading to answer people.

Can you un-love someone?

No, Your heart will never forget someone that made you happy, you might find someone who will love you more which might make the past love not so strong.

But his love in my life can never be replaced and no one can ever love me more than my Dev did. The reality is that my Dev is dead, it's just Devansh and he hates me more than anyone in his life.

"I probably can't imagine the day I would stop loving him. It might be dramatic, but sometimes I can feel him around me. They say time heals everything but it doesn't." I told him with no tears in my eyes for the first time.

Maybe this is what acceptance is, talking about the person you miss without crying.

"For any wound to heal, you should stop touching it. It's his loss for losing an amazing beautiful person like you." He said holding my hand comforting me while I looked into Arjun's dark brown eyes assuring me.

He is so handsome and hot with his chiseled features, and the people in this family have such convincing and soothing voices, like you can spend decades just listening to them.

"You...You think I'm beautiful?" I asked him because he would probably be the second person to say that excluding my family, because they have to say it no matter how I look.

"Mm..Let me re think my statement, You are not just beautiful, you are gorgeous, talented, breathtaking and any guy would be lucky to have you, don't make one person think you other..."

"Eww..Stop flirting with her Arjun, go find someone in your doctor clan. She is off limits for you." Dhruv cut off Arjun and handed me a beer and dragged me away from Arjun near him like I was a toy these two brothers started fighting over.

It was just me, Arjun and Dhruv in the living room, drinking and talking about our lives. Arjun's hospital stories, Dhruv's baskeball tournaments.

Amaya and Divya di are lucky to have these two in their lives, may be I am too. Dhruv treats me like I am one of his sisters and Arjun with his constant ways of cheering me up in some way or the other. Dhruv is like a combination of Karthik and Sammy.

"What happened to you? You are lost in some other world." Dhruv shook me bringing me back from the daze.

"It's nothing."

"Don't hide from me Moonshine, I've seen gloomy faces of my sisters enough. Common spill the problem, Did that stupid Nelson say something? Arjun can drug him and we can hide the body in the hospital morgue." He started cooking up murder plans making me laugh at his aloofness.

"Nidhi and Sammy are getting married this January." I announced putting an end to his blabbering.

"How do you know that? I though all communications were off." Arjun asked me while I gave him a sheepish smile.

"They ended all my personal accounts, but the college email was still there as I had to write my finals. I logged into it to for my transcripts a month back and found this email. " I told them showing the email on my phone and they read it seriously.

Nidhi emailed me the invite with a big message, yelling at me for ditching them and asked me to come to the wedding if I was alive.

Apparently Sammy's grandma was sick, so they had to rush the wedding. She mentioned how they tried to look for me and how they couldn't contact me in anyway. How this email was the last hope, She updated me on Manju, that she is engaged to Aarthav, Kajal and Randhir bhai are planning to get married next summer.

"That was so sweet!" Arjun said to me.

"Do you wanna go? Can I come with you? That's during my winter break, I want to meet all your friends, they sound super exciting." Dhruv started again like someone high on drugs.

I would give anything to be there with them, but my papa will never approve to that with his elections coming this summer, me attending that wedding will be in my dreams. So, I gave up on that long back.

What if I meet Devansh? Can I control myself before him?

Nidhi didn't mention a single word about him. What is he upto? Did he find some one else? Is he happy with her?

Just the thought of seeing him, sends shivers and pushes me into the brink of darkness where I listen to the words he said to me.

I hate you, I hate you Jagati Jagadeesh Dhanraj

I hope you end up alone and bare the dues of your actions

You are selfish, liar..

"She is not going back Dhruv, calm down." Arjun said protectively holding me, calming me down from the anxiety attack, rubbing my back, cheering me with his soothing words.

Dhruv mad me drink some water and wiped the sweat on my face, they looked so worried that I was guilty that I had to put them through this.

"I am sorry for burdening you guys with my problems. You did so much for me and yet here I am dumping my pain on you, I am weak..." I told them taken back by my acting a few minutes ago.

"You are the last person I would call weak. You are warrior Janu, you should be proud, with the way you have handled yourself the last year, the way you got through all those battles within you, the way you rose up to being a COO of Global.  Stop undermining and celebrate yourself, no one in the world is above you. Love yourself." Arjun said to me once again repairing the damage.

"Working for Jamie is no cake walk, I did an internship so it would look good on my college application. Dude, he literally killed me with work, that wanted to quit the first day. I don't know how you manage to impress him." Dhruv cheered me up in his own weird way.

"That's what you do every single time Dru, did you know that he called me on the first day of school saying that he wants to quit, because the courses were too much."

And that's how the brothers like Ram and Laxman started fighting like crazy lunatics chasing each other, telling the other ones embarrassing stories making me laugh clutching my stomach, with tears in my eyes.

We kept talking, watching movies and dozed off like that on the couch. Arjun and Dhruv left the next day as they had finals coming up in a week.

I enjoyed my birthday after so many years because of them, and I feel like I did deserve that.

Everyone deserves happiness, so do I. I can't sit back and keep hurting myself and the people around me. I made a mistake in hiding my identity, I begged for forgiveness but I didn't get it.

If we were meant to be, no matter what we would be, it's been 2 and half years and I can't grieve about this anymore, I don't deserve this pain neither do the people around me.

After that day, work piled up high to the roof, and I got myself fully immersed into it.

"Mr.Browne wants to meet you in his cabin." Ariana said through the intercom.

I checked my calendar to see if I had any meeting with him, but looks like I didn't.

"Thank you Ari, I will go there. Go for lunch and take the rest of the day off. It's winter break you deserve it." I said to her as were walking together Jamie's cabin and sent her away.

As I opened the door, I was hit with the smell of roses and his cabin was filled with roses completely, except for the desk. Jamie and Andy were in there seriously discussing with each other.

"What happened here?" I asked them in shock.

Jamie and Andy's offices always look like one from the catalogs, designed for perfection. A small frame of family photo on the desk, keeping them warm on the inside.

"That's Maya being romantic." Jamie replied with a shy smile.

Their love warms my heart, the great Jameson Browne feeling shy remembering his wife.

"In her words, I am planning to romance the ass off my husband. As the husband here complained that my best friend is not a romantic person." Andy replied glaring at Jamie.

I thought Andy and Amaya di were best friends and that's how she met Jamie, but no she met Andy through Jamie.

"Mr.Pears is here." Jamie's secretary Theresa said through the intercom leaving me confused.

Ughh..I have to see him again.

"Good Morning! Mr. Browne, Mr. Jones, Jagati." He said in a cheerful tone, I wish I could kill him.

Why can't he say Ms. Jagati? Male Chauvinist!

"As you all know that we got the 10 Billion dollar contract with John Deere, but they do have some clauses. And that's the reason I wanted all of us to meet together." He started going through the file in his hand.

That's a good news for me, but why is he happy?

"They are agreeing to Jagati's conditions like, giving free supplies till they are done with building the plant and all lead the world by example stuff. All they want is one COO to physically be there along with their team of 5 in India, in a village of their choice, as she didn't give them a state choice." He added the last part glaring at me.

I am selfish okay, I wanted to give the benefit to the people my father works hard for and ease the burden on him, he is getting old but the problems seem to just get bigger and worse.

It's Nelson's project and he is also a COO, so he could go to India and I can relax here.

That's an awesome plan, it's like that one shot, two birds thing.

"And I propose that Ms. Jagati should lead this from here on, the reason being all this is her idea, She knows more about the location, language and people, and I have to take care of the Zen deal in Boca Rota, at the same time." He said smirking at me and I could feel the world around me move.

I thought I was getting rid of him, but he planning to get rid of me.

"Ja..Mr. Browne, I don't know if can do this..I hope you know the reason." I told reminding him that my father never allow me back in there and all the life and people I left back there.

"Excuses don't give out great results, Ms. Jagati. If you couldn't do this , why did you change all my terms?" He said pointing out the obvious.

How and Why did I get myself into this?

"Mr. Pears! I believe it's our decision to make that who gets to lead and if we want to take it up or not, so it would be nice if you leave now so we can decide." Andy glared at him.

"I just hope that the decision will be fair Mr. Jones. I don't want to ruin our reputation, by not delivering our promises." He said standing up and leaving the room leaving me with a real Sophie's choice.

At one side, the thought of going to India makes me breathless with this choking on my neck, on the other side it was my idea, my doing. Saying no this means losing Global's reputation and robbing the opportunity of improvement in both industrial and agricultural sector in a state which needs both.

So I guess the decision is clear,

"I will go, I will do it." I announced as soon as Nelson left.

One life for thousands, what can I say I am my parent's daughter.

"You don't have to, your life is more important than money." Jamie said disagreeing with me.

"Don't do it Janu, We can look for someone else, if not I could go." Andy added to it.

Why are they so sweet? They gave me a job, a life and so many happy moments when I had no hope for life.

I have to repay them for their kindness and help my papa.

"You guys stop worrying about me, I can do this all you have to do is convince my dad and you know what I could go to my best friends wedding because of this. I am sooooo excited." I squealed and assured them both, packing all the worries in a box so I can open them tonight when I am alone.

And that's how we settled in and started discussing about the things, I have to do before I leave and start there in Global India branch.

"Sir! You have a package."  We all heard someone knock on the door.

"I hope it's not roses again." Jamie mumbled scratching his head.

It's a huge box and Dhruv was the one delivering it using a trolley. His winter break started 3 days back and they all came back here the next day, those brother can't live away from the sisters.

"What did she send again?" Jamie walked to the box.

Before he could open, Amaya di burst out of the box, shocking all of us. Jamie pulled her into a hug, at this cute surprise.

When she got updated on the news of me going back to India, she was hell bent on not sending back but I convinced her.

"Take Dhruv with you, he is on winter break and will come back when his school opens. If he says that you are not comfortable there, I don't care I'll pull you back from the project, I am your CEO's boss, which makes me the boss of everyone."

That was the ultimatum she passed before saying yes.

"I am going to India, I am going to India. INDIA INDIA" Dhruv started jumping like a kid, holding my hand.

I hope I made the right decision, whatever happens here I come.

Tada!

That's partially the end of the collab with Fighting For Him.

Janu is going back, anyone excited for the next chapters ?

Should the meeting be really dramatic? What do you guys want to see?

Anyway Happy Diwali 🪔

I hope you are safe and didn't hurt yourself with the fire works, and the pro-earth person in me hopes that you didn't do fireworks at all.

Don't forget to vote and comment.

Love,
Sneha