🍁 chapter two 🍁

The office door opened, and Shan entered while holding his in hands. Rudra was sitting with his back to the door, unaware of who had come in. The walls of Rudra's office were a soft gray, giving the room a calm and professional ambiance. The furniture was chocolate brown, creating a beautiful contrast with the gray walls. In the center of the room was a large, sturdy wooden desk with intricately carved designs along its edges. Behind the desk sat a comfortable deep brown leather chair.

In front of the desk were two classic-style chairs with chocolate brown wooden frames and light cream-colored cushions. In one corner stood a wooden cabinet neatly filled with files and books.

The wall facing the roadside was entirely made of glass, offering a clear view of the bustling world outside. Light white curtains adorned the glass, softening the sunlight and creating a serene atmosphere within the room.

Seeing Rudra’s office, Shaan's mouth dropped open in amazement. He hadn’t noticed when Rudra swiveled his chair to face him and was now staring at him.

After taking a full tour of the office, Shaan turned to look at Rudra and he was shocked.

Rudra, with his stern demeanor, was gazing intently at Shaan. His face was expressionless, giving no hint of his thoughts. His deep, piercing blue eyes made him appear even more intimidating.

"I am sorry, sir!" Shan said nervously and gripped his file more tightly.

Rudra didn’t react and continued to stare, making Shan even more uneasy.

"Umm, sir..." Shan spoke again with nervousness.

Rudra’s eyes scanned Shaan from top to bottom. "Hello, sir. I’m Shaantanu Joshi, and I’ve joined today as the new fashion designer," Shaan introduced himself with uneasiness. He felt like his throat was getting dry and he was feeling suffocating due to extremely cold behaviour of Rudra.

"Mn," Rudra replied shifting his gaze away from Shan. Shan waited for Rudra to respond but, hearing nothing, he spoke again. "Sir, HOD asked me to get your approval. Please sign my joining letter..," Shan said, placing his file on Rudra’s desk and standing with his hands clasped at his back.

Although he was already selected for the job, still Shantanu was nervous and wishing Rudra shouldn't find any fault in his CV.

Rudra began flipping through Shaan’s file. "Where have you worked before?"

"Sir, I interned for six months at ‘The Haven’ and worked for two years as a full-time fashion designer," Shan replied eyeing Rudra.

"Why did you leave?" Rudra asked, looking up from the file and locking eyes with Shan. After a few seconds of eye contact, they both looked away, avoiding each other’s gaze. Shan started looking at his feet and Rudra started looking around the office.

"My mother is a single parent. She wanted me to return to India and stay with her," Shan replied hesitantly.

"So, you came back from Germany for your mother?" asked Rudra again fixing his eyes at shantanu.

"Yes, sir." Rudra's gaze was making Shan lose his confidence.

"Are you aware that you cannot leave this company for five years? Otherwise, you’ll have to pay a huge penalty?" Rudra asked sternly.

"Yes, sir." determined reply came from Shan.

Rudra signed Shan’s joining letter. Shan quickly grabbed the file and left the office. Outside the office he paused for a moment and took deep breath keeping his hand on his heart. "How can someone be so intimidating? " he muttered relaxing his body.

Meanwhile, Rudra continued staring at the office door. "How did this happen? And how did I not know? Shaan in my company? " Rudra closed his eyes and laid back on the chair.

When Shan returned to Block B on the sixth floor, he found his desk was set up. He adjusted his things and powered on his computer. Across from him sat Priyanka, who greeted him with a smile " hello "

Vivek briefed Shan about the testing period and informed him he needed to create five designs within a month. Those designs would determine his position in Block B.

In his office, Rudra was reviewing Shan’s resume. For some time, his eyes lingered on Shan's relationship status, then he abruptly closed the file and kept it aside.

Just then, the office door opened, and a confident young woman walked in. She was skinny and beautiful with good features. She walked to Rudra and sat on his lap,and Rudra didn’t object to it either. The woman bit her lip seductively. "Why didn’t you answer my call?" she asked sweetly before kissing Rudra.

Rudra neither stopped her nor returned the kiss. Frustrated by his cold behavior, the woman pulled back. "Didn’t you like me last night, Rudra?" she asked in a whinny tone, trying to act cute.

Rudra smirked wickedly eyeing her fake innocent face "You were fine, but I am not in the habit of repeating things"

Her face turned black and her cuteness and innocence jumped out from her body like it never existed "What… what do you mean?" she stammered and wished that she misheard something.

"You wanted fame, right? Congratulations, You’ll get your dream project," Rudra said bluntly.

"You only spent one night with me? I don’t want fame—I like you," she said in her breaking voice.

"Get up," Rudra commanded harshly and his was devoid of expressions.

She remained seated. "Didn’t you hear me? I said, Get off! " This time, Rudra’s voice was so cold and menacing that she trembled in fear. That girl was so scared that it did not take her even a minute to walk out of the office.

Furious, Rudra called his secretary, his mood was ruined because of that woman.

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What is written in the fate of Shantanu and Rudra? To find out, keep reading Chained Heart: RuShan

The main characters of this story are Rudra and Shaan. This is a BL (boys' love) story. If you don’t like gay couples, please don’t read it, as I also don’t want any hate comments.

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