"Some wounds don't bleed.
They stay quiet… until someone touches them."
— Eris
📸 Flashbulbs Fade. The Leak Spreads Like Fire.
Screens around the gala begin to flash with side headlines:
"Sara Mehta's estranged father speaks: 'She never looked back.'"
"From poverty to fame — did she erase her past to fit the high-class world?"
Guests begin murmuring.
Some eyes turn sympathetic, others judgmental.
Alisha watches like a vulture circling a wound.
🎥 CUT — FLASHBACK: 12 Years Ago
A small house. A cracked window.
Young Sara, about 13, clutching a bag. Her eyes — bright but bruised.
Her father, Rajesh Mehta, sat drinking on the doorstep.
Rajesh (slurred): "Movies? You're a girl. Girls don't become stars — they get used by them."
Sara didn't cry. She had already used up her tears by then.
Rajesh (angry, bitter): "Run if you want. But if you fail, don't come back."
Sara took one step back…
Then another.
She left.
Not out of ambition.
But out of survival.
📍 Gala — Back to Present
Sara's fingers trembled slightly — the first visible crack.
Aarav noticed.
Always.
Aarav (quiet, meant only for her): "Do you want to leave?"
Her chin lifted slowly — fire sparking behind the glass of her eyes.
Sara: "No. If they want my past… I'll tell it myself."
That answer made Aarav's eyes shift — a slow, dangerous approval.
🎭 On Balcony — Eris to Alisha
Alisha: "She's cracking. Good."
Eris (eyes on Sara): "No. She's choosing to fight. That is better."
Alisha: "…Better?"
Eris's eyes gleamed.
Eris (smiling):
"Because when she fights… the king will show how far he burns for her."
📸 Press Tries to Corner Sara
Reporter: "Sara, why haven't you supported your father in years? Is fame more important than family?"
A loaded question designed to assassinate character.
Sara opened her mouth to answer…
But Aarav — unexpectedly — took the mic.
The entire room stilled.
Aarav (calm, icy):
"Question her work. Question her career.
But if you question her pain…
you answer to me."
🔥 The crowd GASPED.
Internet Explodes
"HE JUST WARNED THE MEDIA?? IN PUBLIC???"
"This isn't a romance. This is WAR COUPLE ENERGY."
"I think I just developed a new obsession — power love stories."
Sara Turns — Looks at Him
She expected protection. Maybe denial.
But not THIS.
He didn't say "Don't talk about her father."
He said "Questioning her pain = enemy of VR."
He made her pain untouchable.
Sara's eyes softened. Then sharpened.
Sara (taking mic back, strong):
"I left home because I chose survival.
And if surviving makes me heartless to the world…
so be it."
The media had no comeback.
🎭 ERIS WATCHES — For the first time, she leans forward, intrigued.
Eris (soft):
"Good, Sara.
Now I will see… if you can survive what comes next."
She sent a new message to her network:
Eris: "Bring him in."
A shadow enters the building.
An old man.
Confused. Nervous.
Sara's father.
Walking towards the ballroom.
As everyone turns…