Sorry for the late update.

"Wow! " Preeto gasped in surprise as she examined Arnav's designs for Payash's wedding and reception. "He is really good..... It is no surprise that he is the best in the business...... I have never seen the use of contrasting colours look so good...... I never imagined such bold design choices would look good on a sherwani."

"Me, too......I was mistaken about him using his designers to achieve his wealth and fame, but I was wrong...... He is really good; no wonder his designers are constantly on high alert and will go to any length to please him........ He is incredibly talented." Khushi praised, and Preeto looked at her, perplexed. "What? " Khushi inquired upon seeing this.

"How do you know his designers are constantly on alert?" Preeto asked, and Khushi immediately realised her error.

"I have heard rumors about it." Khushi lied to cover up her mistake, and Preeto believed her, causing her to sigh with relief.

"If he was not so normal-looking and drop dead gorgeous, I would have assumed he was autistic." Preeto said, prompting Khushi to frown.

"Why would you think that?" Khushi asked.

"Because of his attention to details in arts and design, but I doubt it." Preeto said, leaving Khushi stunned into silence. "Khushi babes, are you all right?"

"Preeto, I will get back to you later." Khushi said and abruptly ended the video call before Preeto could say anything.

She sat on her bed, taken aback by Preeto's observation of Arnav's sketches and design details, as well as his ability to simply feel and see a textile once to determine whether it is of good quality or not.

His extreme outbursts and lack of emotional control, which he later regrets.

"What if Arnav is autistic and does not realize it, or is just a douche?" Khushi thought, which made her hate the sympathy that was creeping into her heart for him. "No, I can not go back to being the sympathetic fool I was in my previous life....... Arnav is no longer my problem, but he is associated with all of my problems, which makes him a problem."

But something kept pushing Khushi to research, and she could not resist; after all, old habits die hard.

Her search led her down a rabbit hole that confirmed Preeto's suspicion that Arnav was autistic, despite the fact that he could be classified as high-IQ autistic.

From his love of gardening, especially since almost all of the plants and flowers in his small garden have scents that help people relax.

From Aleoveras, roses, German chamomile, and lavenders.

Him constantly listening to one music over and over and humming to it which use to annoy her in her past life.

How he despises noises from both adults and children.

His preference for isolation, even when at home, and his dislike for people touching his belongings.

His immaculately clean wardrobe and room, which was always neatly organized.

"Oh my God, Arnav is autistic!" Khushi gasped in shock.

"To hell with his autism; do not you dare forget that he hurt you and his actions hurt Babuji...... He degraded your love by refusing to believe you that day; he is not worthy of your sympathy, even if he has a developmental disability...... Pain is pain regardless of who causes it." Khushi's critical conscience immediately jolted her out of her stupor. 

Manohar observed a middle-aged man sleeping peacefully in a private ward at the St Mary's mental rehabilitation center on the outskirts of Delhi, with monitors attached to his heart rate and vitals.

A middle-aged doctor approached Manohar and sighed, noting his glossy eyes.

He knew his good friend cared about the man on the bed and wished he could wake up normal, but as a doctor, he knew the torture the man on the bed had endured, both physically and mentally, would take a long time to recover because, unfortunately, the one person who could ease his insanity despises him and wants nothing to do with him.

"Satish, he is asking for his Aru, but he despises him." Manohar exclaimed with sadness.

"That is why I want you to figure out what happened to Arvind all those years before you discovered him a year ago...... His injuries show that he has been tortured for years, and we know from his blabbering that Anant and Sudhadra Malik are involved...... I am a doctor, and I know how to get the truth out of people..... Find Anant, and leave the rest to me." Satish said, and Manohar nodded, his gaze never leaving Arvind Malik.

"But why did he react so violently when he heard Ratna and Anjali's names last night?.........What did Ratna and Anjali do to provoke him into such a violent outburst?" Manohar asked, staring at Satish, who shrugged.

"My friend. I am not sure, but this is what I know,Arvind is not reacting violently to their names because of his mental inability; they did something to him, which is why he reacted so violently........ Anant will provide the answers to our questions..... Find him, and I will force him to tell the truth."

Manohar nodded and walked out of the clinic determined to find out what happened to Arvind after a year of treatment, but he was pleased that within twenty-four hours, they had learned something about what had happened.

For years, Manohar suspected Sudhadra Malik and her son Anant were lying about the incident at Sheesh Mahal, and his discovery of Arvind a year ago solidified his belief that his best friend was innocent, just as Satish Joshi, his good friend and Arvind's friend too, suspected.

He was returning from a meeting in Noida a year ago when he noticed a familiar face, despite being covered in dirt and sporting a matted beard.

As the madman approached, he began to hyperventilate and recognized him as his supposed dead best friend, Arvind Malik.

He got out of the car and rushed to him, and he panicked and began screaming, attracting the attention of onlookers and making him look pissed, they all were angry believing Manohar was a kidnapper.

Manohar was almost lynched by the crowd for this, but he took out his phone and showed a picture of himself and Arvind, which persuaded the crowd.

His driver held a hysterically crying Arvind down while Manohar called for an ambulance.

He immediately had him transferred to St Mary's Rehabilitation Centre, where his good friend and Arvind's friend, Satish Joshi, was the head doctor and acting director.

They would been treating Arvind for a year, but he had not responded until Satish called him last night, pleading with him to come to the rehabilitation center.

He arrived to a hysterical Arvind, who had been bound to his bed due to an unexpected violent outburst.

Satish informed Manohar that Arvind's outburst began when he saw pictures of Arnav receiving an award and went crazy, attempting to grab Arnav by smashing the television but was stopped by the staffs.

They concluded that Arvind knew Arnav but worrying how if he wasn't in contact with.

Manohar thinking about how his friend loved his wife thought her name would calm him down but it worsen his condition when he became even more violent and cursed Ratna and Anjali and also cursed out Anant and Sudhadra Malik chanting about how they took his Aru away from him which shocked Manohar and Satish.

Manohar knew if they were to get to the bottom of this, Satish's idea was the best way to not only uncover the truth but also save their best friend.

Back at RM, Shyam's jaw dropped when he saw Khushi in a blue and gold floral printed anarkali.

Arnav's jaw dropped and his eyes twinkled softly when he saw Khushi and everyone else, except Shyam who was busy ogling her  chuckled.

Nk, seeing this as an opportunity to piss Arnav off and draw him deeper into his feelings for Khushi, approached her, took her hand, and kissed it.

"Khushiji, you look absolutely stunning...... If you had not been going to the workshop to check on the progress of the outfits, I would have taken you out on a date." Nk gushed, which made Arnav angry.

Khushi looked at him amusedly and chuckled, which annoyed Arnav.

He approached them, grabbed Khushi, and dragged her out, causing the entire family to laugh.

"This is not done." Shyam said annoyed which halted the laughter as everyone except for Anjali stared at him confused. "Arnav did not let Anjali introduce me and instead dragged her away."

"Hello, hi, bye-bye..... What an odd thing to say." Mami exclaimed, and the other nodded, which surprised Shyam because they had always pampered him and never questioned him.

Anjali smirked discreetly, which was only noticed by Shyam, who disliked the change in the family dynamics.

He realized Anjali was right, and feeling embarrassed, he stood up and walked away.

The family watched him leave, then turned to Anjali, who pretended to be sad.

"Di, is Shyam alright?....... He is behaving strangely." Nk expressed concern, and Anjali sighed sadly.

"He is been in a bad mood since losing his recent case." Anjali exclaimed sorrowfully, and they believed him.

"Khushi is here to stay, so he should not be offended......We all know Arnav likes Khushi, so stop provoking him." Nani warned sternly but Nk chuckled and hi five Mami who laughed with him.

Nani rolled her eyes at them as Anjali stood up and joined Shyam in the bedroom.

She found Shyam pacing back and forth looking pissed.

"Khushi is untouchable, and you better keep those lustful eyes away from her or Chote will kill you...... You can see how protective he is of Khushi..... So you had better behave....... Since Khushi arrived, the family has been at her beck and call, and if you do not want to be in their bad books, you better not say anything negative about Khushi or they will turn on you, just like they almost did to me."

Shyam glared at Anjali and walked to the bathroom to avoid her, but he knew she was right, and he could not help but be attracted to Khushi.

It is possible that Khushi's untouchability appealed to him.

Meanwhile, on the way to ARD, Khushi looked annoyed as she glared at Arnav, who was looking straight ahead, avoiding Khushi's gaze.

"Do you mind explaining why you were acting like a jealous lover back there?'" Khushi asked sternly, and Arnav smiled sheepishly before returning to driving.

"I really need to concentrate." Arnav responded and turned on the music, and Khushi realized he was avoiding the topic.

But what got her was the music and the amount of play on the screen.

Arnav began humming which caused Khushi to glare at him.

"It's okay to stim to another music aside from this one. "

Arnav stepped on the brakes jerking both of them forward and backwards.

"Are you crazy? " Khushi yelled glaring at Arnav who was blinking profusely.

"What made you think I was stimming?" Arnav asked stunned and Khushi rolled her eyes.

"There is no shame admitting to being autistic. " Khushi responded.

"I am not. " Arnav denied but him avoiding her gaze gave him away.

She huffed and folded her arms, sinking into the seat, and Arnav smiled at her cute expression as he drove off.

But he wondered how Khushi knew he was autistic, because his own family didn't know except for Aman and he doubted Aman will tell Khushi about it.

When they arrived at ARD, Khushi was surprised by the new structure.

The old building had been replaced by a more majestic and modern building, and knowing how Arnav was, Khushi knew the interior would be out of this world, and she was not disappointed when she entered the building and was awed by the beautiful interior.

Arnav becomes pleased when he notices Khushi being impressed by the building.

Until now, he had never felt good about the building.

The woman he liked enjoyed it, which made him happy.

"Good morning, ASR. Good morning, Miss Gupta." Aman's voice broke their reverie, and Khushi smiled and nodded as Aman led them to the design room, where all of the designers, both senior and junior, embroiderers, and sewers were working on the designs.

Everyone came to a halt to see them, but their attention was drawn to Khushi, particularly Lavanya and her minions Pam and Sim.

Khushi smiled as she saw some of her old friends still working here and made a mental note to speak with them.

"Who exactly is she?" One of the designers inquired, but the others shrugged, and Arnav cleared his throat to alert them.

"We have less than three weeks to put together the best outfits ARD has ever made for my brother Akash and soon-to-be sister-in-law Payal, as most of you are aware..... This is Khushi, her sister and the designer of Payal's outfits..... Her word is law, and anyone found disrespecting her or not taking her words into consideration will not only be fired immediately, but will also be blacklisted in the industry........ Do I make myself clear?" Arnav exclaimed sternly and authoritatively, and everyone nodded.

Arnav frowned upon seeing Lavanya among the designers, and she gulped as he fixed his gaze on her.

Sim and Pam walked away, leaving Lavanya alone, as Arnav approached her.

Khushi watched on, but she could feel the tension in the room and, having learned from her past, she did not intervene, but she wondered if they were still together or just friends with benefits, as they had been in her previous life.

"What exactly are you doing here?" Arnav inquired sternly, and Khushi was taken aback by the sharpness of his tone, but Lavanya appeared at a loss for words.

"Sir? " One of the designers, who Khushi did not recognize, spoke up. "Miss Kashyap says she is next in command when you are not here, and since she is your girlfriend, as confirmed by Pam and Sim, we had no choice but to let her in."

The designer's tone indicated displeasure and dislike for Lavanya, Sim, and Pam, and Khushi could not blame her because those three were the meanest people she would ever met before Lavanya changed.

Arnav turned his gaze back to a terrified Lavanya, Sim, and Pam.

"How dare you, Miss Kashyap." Arnav bellowed, causing everyone except Aman to flinch. "How dare you use my name to gain access to exclusive events?........ Since you want to be a scapegoat so badly, I will give you what you want...... Aman? " Arnav called out, and Lavanya burst into tears because she knew it was over for her. "I want Miss Kashyap and Malhotra twins fired and blacklisted right away."

Aman nodded and began making calls, while Lavanya and her minions kneeled and began crying and begging.

Khushi felt bad and was about to intervene, but when she saw how disgusted all of the designers were, she realized Lavanya, Pam, and Sim had reverted to their old selves and probably deserved it.

"Arnavji, please stop." Khushi, despite having changed, was having trouble letting go of old habits, so she decided to intervene. Everyone shifted their focus to Khushi. "Please let them go....... This is a happy occasion, and I do not want anything or anyone to taint it..... Please spare them for the time being."

Arnav nodded, and everyone except Aman was surprised that ASR agreed without a fight.

Arnav turned around and glared at Lavanya, Sim, and Pam.

"You three are being demoted until further notice...... Now, leave from here." He yelled, and the trio ran out of the room.

On her way, Lavanya gave Khushi a chilling and cold glare that shocked her.

"No one will take ASR away from me..... "He will be mine whether he likes it or not." Lavanya thought as she walked away.

To be continued.

Precap: Anjali slaps Khushi.

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