Neil Alistair, the new CEO of Alistair Industries. Every news channel was buzzing with the announcement. Many questions lingered in people's minds: could Neil lead Alistair Industries to greater heights, just like his father, Leonardo?
Today was Neil's first day as CEO at the office. Neil hadn't arrived yet, but he was the sole topic of conversation throughout the entire office, especially among the women. And why shouldn't he be? He was Neil Alistair, a man so strikingly handsome that once seen, one couldn't tear their eyes away. According to some reports, Neil was the most handsome man in USA.
This was the first time Neil was coming to the office; before this, people had only seen him in pictures. Neil had only arrived in the country recently. Two years prior, he had been in Germany, undergoing business training.
There was another fact about Neil that no one knew yet. Neil had an intense aversion to love. He believed love made a person weak, rendering them lifeless. Therefore, he had decided he would never involve himself in something as trivial as love.
The office staff waited for Neil with bated breath. Their new CEO was about to arrive.
A short while later, Neil's car pulled up outside the office. Seeing it, the guard immediately rushed inside. The office was buzzing with loud chatter; he quickly quieted everyone. "Everyone, be silent! He doesn't like noise at all." Hearing him, some people fell silent out of fear, but most were still engrossed in their conversations.
Their voices carried all the way outside.
Wyatt, Neil's bodyguard, was the first to exit the car. He then swiftly opened the car door for Neil.
Neil pushed his sunglasses up onto his head and stepped out of the car with full attitude. The moment he exited, he heard the cacophony of shouting and yelling from inside the office. Neil's eyes instantly turned cold. One could gauge his anger just by looking at them.
Seeing Neil's fury, Wyatt thought to himself, They're in for it now.
Neil stormed inside. As he entered, everyone instantly fell silent.
Upon Neil's arrival, the most senior manager in the office approached him, a bouquet in his hand. He extended it toward Neil. "Welcome, sir!" He had barely uttered the words when Neil snatched the bouquet from his hand, threw it to the ground, and began to cruelly crush it. Everyone's eyes widened in astonishment.
The senior manager barely avoided going into shock. He didn't even dare to meet Neil's gaze.
Neil's cold eyes swept over everyone, finally resting on the manager.
"Is this an office or a zoo?"
The manager looked at him in surprise. "Sir?"
"Are you hard of hearing? I asked, is this an office or a zoo?"
Seeing Neil's anger, the manager became incredibly frightened. Not a sound escaped his mouth. Gathering immense courage, he slowly managed, "It's an office, sir!"
"No, it's not an office; it's a zoo where there are all sorts of animals! You're barking like dogs! Your barking could be heard all the way outside!"
Hearing Neil say all this, everyone bowed their heads in shame. For the first time in their lives, someone had insulted them so openly, calling them dogs right to their faces. The painful part was that they couldn't even say anything. Yes, they had made a mistake, but this could have been explained to them calmly. There was no need to humiliate them so thoroughly. They had been working there for years; was this what they got in return for all their hard work? They certainly didn't deserve this.
Neil's gaze swept over them all, then he looked at the manager. "I need humans in my office, not animals. Pay all of them their salaries and get them out of here. I don't want to see a single one of them in this office again. If I see any of them, you will never be seen by anyone in this world again. And yes, after you've fired all of them, hand in your own resignation letter." The manager's body trembled at Neil's threat.
Having made his point, Neil walked away, Wyatt following close behind.
A deafening silence fell over the entire office. No one could believe their ears. Just moments ago, everyone had been so happy. Now, the office was shrouded in gloom. Neil had shown no mercy, humiliating them terribly for a small mistake, and when that wasn't enough, he'd fired them all.
Neil took his private elevator to his cabin. That elevator was exclusively for him; no one else, not even Wyatt, could use it. Poor Wyatt was scrambling up the stairs. If he were even a little late, he'd be Neil's next victim. Neil was particularly furious right now, and Wyatt wasn't taking any risks.
Wyatt ran up the stairs at full speed, reaching the top in just ten seconds. Once there, Wyatt breathed a sigh of relief. Luckily, Neil hadn't arrived yet. Wyatt was panting. Three seconds later, Neil appeared. Neil glanced at Wyatt, then entered his cabin.
Wyatt followed him inside. Neil sat in his chair and said, "I need new employees within two days!"
Wyatt's eyes widened at "two days." "Sir, two days?"
Neil glared at him. "No, forty-eight hours. Is that better?"
"But, sir?" Before he could say anything more, Neil gave him a furious look that silenced him. "Okay, sir, it will be done."
"You can leave now!"
"Yes, sir!"
Wyatt darted out of the cabin like a bullet. Is there something wrong with sir's mind? How will everything be done in two days? If it were just hiring people, there wouldn't be a problem, but he's emptied the entire office. Now, where do I find new people in two days?! Something has to be done! I need to contact all the hiring platforms. Hmm, that's right. Anyway, there's a severe lack of jobs in this country; someone will surely be found.
The office staff dejectedly began packing their belongings. A sense of hatred for Neil had settled in everyone's hearts. A senior employee turned to his colleague. "That man is full of arrogance! God's mill grinds slowly, but it grinds finely. One day, someone will come who will shatter his pride."
Nick Alistair, the renowned director and producer, was as famous for his work as he was for his flirtatious nature. Perhaps there was no one left in the industry whom he hadn't flirted with. His reputation had been severely tarnished because of this; people outside the industry called him a playboy, and they weren't wrong. News of Nick's affairs seemed to surface in the media daily. How much truth there was to it, only Nick knew.
Nick had two personalities: one, completely cool and jovial, and the other, utterly dark. No one knew about Nick's second personality. Those who did were no longer alive. Anyone who had seen that side of Nick had paid with their lives.
Nick was in his cabin, reading a new film script. His assistant, Ryan, was also present.
Two assistant directors and a scriptwriter were seated in front of Nick.
After reading the script, he set it aside.
The assistant director spoke, "So, sir, what have you decided?"
Nick thought for a moment, then said, "It's good, but I'm bored with these normal boy-meets-girl love stories. This time, I want to try something different."
The director looked at him in surprise. "I don't understand?"
"When I haven't explained anything, how can you understand? This time, I want to do something different. I want to make a story with a unique perspective."
Hearing this, all three looked at him in surprise. "What? Sir, what are you saying? A *queer* love story?"
"Yes, is there a problem with that?"
"Sir, the audience will reject it. They won't like this kind of thing."
"How can you say they won't like it?"
"Sir, people's minds aren't that developed yet. In our country, they still consider this a disease."
"Yes, that's precisely why I want to make this movie. I want to raise awareness. Unless they know about it, how will they understand it? I've decided; this time, I'll make a film about love, pure and simple."
"Sir, that's all well and good, but will any actors be willing to do it? You know how image-conscious these actors are. They'll never agree to do this film."
"I know. I need new actors for this film. I will personally conduct their auditions. You prepare for the auditions."
"Yes, sir!" The three of them left.
Caleb went to a night festival with Aiden. Every December, a night festival was celebrated in Goa, held near the beach. The entire area was decorated with colorful lights, various drinks were served, and there was a DJ. People came here to shed their tension and stress. As the festival neared its end, the crowd swelled. Today was Christmas, so both the crowd and the celebration were doubled.
Caleb had been struggling with his professional life for days, which was why Aiden had brought him here.
Aiden loved to dance, so he joined the crowd on the dance floor. Caleb , meanwhile, was more interested in drinks, so he settled into that.
Aiden dove into the crowd, dancing vigorously, when he felt a hand on his waist. Aiden immediately spun around. A fair-haired man was smiling at him. "Oh, I'm sorry! It was an accident!"
Aiden glared but said nothing. He, too, thought it might have been accidental. He ignored the man and went back to dancing. A little later, he felt a hand on his waist again. Aiden turned around, and it was the same man! This time, Aiden got angry. He pulled his gun from his pocket and pressed it against the man's stomach. Seeing the gun, the man froze in fear. "Don't you dare. I'm a cop!" As soon as the man realized Aiden was a police officer, he immediately apologized. Aiden warned him and let him go. The man quickly disappeared. After he left, Aiden refocused on his dancing. A short while later, his phone rang. Aiden checked it; it was an unknown number. As a police officer, Aiden had to answer every call; you never knew who might be in an emergency.
Aiden moved away from the DJ booth to a quieter area and answered the phone.
As soon as he picked up, a deep voice came from the other end. "Hello, Mr. Aiden Bannick!"
"Yes, speaking!"
"I have a surprise for you! Your surprise is waiting for you in your car; go get it!" With that, the man immediately hung up.
"Hello? Hello? Who is this?" Aiden kept saying, but it was too late; the call had been disconnected.
Aiden grew troubled. He couldn't decide whether he should go or not, because it could be a trap. Aiden had made more enemies than friends in his career so far. He was a thorn in the side of many, and everyone was looking for an opportunity to get rid of him.