Destined Hearts Ch. 03

It was a really dark night and it was extremely cold and a bit scary. But he didn't lose hope of finding a rickshaw or anything to take him to his new home. His faith finally paid off when a rickshaw passed by and he stopped it and went back to the mansion.

Everyone else was still asleep and he liked it that way because he didn't want them to question where he had gone. It was already 2 in the morning and he had to rest. But once he got back to the mansion, he got really nervous once again. All the painful words Antonio had said to him came back and they hurt twice as well. But he didn't let them bring him down or make him feel bad.

He went slowly to the room and found Antonio fast asleep on the bed, snoring softly. Tears started building up in his eyes when he looked at him. He couldn't understand how such a handsome man could be so harsh. But only God knew what was going on.

If only he could turn back time then he would have made sure that the marriage hadn't taken place. But now he was stuck in a marriage which Antonio called his punishment. He sighed as he looked around for somewhere to sleep, somewhere where he couldn't bother Antonio because there was no telling what he would do if he woke up. He couldn't sleep in the same bed with him.

Praveen sat on the big couch which felt a little comfortable, looking all around. He lay there and folded his arms around his shoulders to shield himself from the cold. At first he had a hard time sleeping but the many thoughts and worries through his little head sent him to sleep right away.

***

Praveen was cutting tomatoes into tiny pieces, making sure that they were of the right sizes. He was in the kitchen and he had food cooking on the hot plate. He was cooking one of his favorite traditional foods in Ashton. It was chapatti which was eaten with vegetables and minced meat with either tea of coffee. It was always delicious and he could remember how his mother had always made it for him.

All he was hoping for was for the family to love it. He had woken up as early as 5 am and then prepared for his day of cooking. It was almost 8 and he knew that the family was probably gonna be coming down for their breakfast.

Praveen had fixed himself to try and make himself look like he was okay but deep down he was hurting. He had made sure that he left the room before Antonio woke up because he didn't want any trouble or crying.

He had taken a bath and then put on a beautiful brown T-shirt and white trouser which looked traditional. He also had a scarf around his neck which his mother had made him for him before she died. His hair was tied in a knot.

He was cutting tomatoes for the sauce he was gonna be making. He was almost done but he was lost deep in his thoughts that he didn't even realize it.

"Sir, are you okay?" He heard a sweet voice that got him out of his thoughts.

He moved his eyes past his shoulder and saw a beautiful maid smiling at him. She seemed nice and she had been helping him ever since he had started cooking. He really appreciated her for that.

"What?" He gasped, coming back to reality.

"You seem lost, sir. Is there anything wrong?"

"No!" He smiled unassuredly, shaking his head. "I am fine. It's just that I am just thinking about something really important." He took a deep breath. "Has anyone come down?"

"No!" She smiled at him. "But I am sure they are already awake."

"Okay. Please, help me set the table while I finish this up."

She nodded and then left the kitchen with a large warmer where some of the food he had cooked was. He started making the sauce for the meat. He wasn't even done when Andrea came into the kitchen. She had her long hair tied into a ponytail. She had sports shoes on and she looked like she had just come from a run.

"I hate that boy..." He remembered her words the previous night and they hurt deeply now that he had seen her.

Andrea on the other hand got irritated when she saw Praveen. Fuck! If not for the fact that her brother had told her to wait then she would have given a really cold eye. Now she had to pretend even when she didn't want to.

"Hey!" She smiled brightly, heading to where he was. "Good morning, Praveen? How was your night?"

Praveen wanted to ignore her but he couldn't do it. She was his sister in law. "It was fine. Thank you very much and how was yours?"

"Ha ha..." Andrea nodded, still giving him a fake smile. "It was perfect. I just came from an early morning run."

"Oh!"

"Yeah," She chuckled. "I like to do this once in a while you know, to keep myself fit. You should join me sometimes." She rested her hand on his shoulder, squeezing it sweetly. If only she could break that shoulder and send him to hell. "It would be fun to run with someone for a change, especially your brother in law."

Praveen just nodded, stirring into his sauce. He just wanted Andrea to leave the kitchen because she was making him hurt just by standing there.

"By the way, where's my brother?" She asked, looking all around. "He should be here with you, right? It's your first time cooking and your husband should..."

"You know, Andrea, you shouldn't pretend to be nice to me." Praveen said with a serious look on his face. He couldn't take the pretence anymore because it was just hurting him even more.

"What?" Andrea lost the smile on her face, wondering what Praveen was telling her. "I don't understand."

Praveen shook his head, taking a sad sigh. "I heard you and Antonio talking last night in your room and..."

"What?" She gasped, shaking her head. "Praveen I think you got it all wrong and..."

"I think got it all right, Andrea. Antonio told me everything so you shouldn't even pretend to like me." He sighed. "I don't even understand why you and Antonio..."

"Oh!" Andrea laughed manically, folding her arms on her chest. "So he actually told you." She smirked. "Well, that's good because all this pretence was making me sick. If I had continued like this I surely would have died because of irritation. So you found out and what are you going to do, uh?"

"Why?" Praveen asked with tears building up in his eyes. "I have never done anything to you or your brother and..."

"So you think?" She said hoarsely. "Everything you've done so far is a mistake. Being born was a mistake, knowing my mother was a mistake especially conniving to marry my brother and then..."

"What are you talking about?" He gasped. "You and I know that I didn't know Antonio until he came back from abroad and..."

"Which makes you a slut?" She said smugly, giving him an evil grin. "How can you get married to someone you don't know? Only a slut like you can do that." She furiously dropped her hands, giving him an angry look. "I don't have to explain anything to you."

With an angry gaze at him, Andrea left the kitchen leaving him more confused than he had ever been. He still failed to understand what he had done to them to deserve the treatment he was getting from them. He was the victim in this situation and they were acting as if he was the culprit.

Praveen just stood there and got lost in his thoughts again. He totally forgot that he was even making sauce. Lucky for him the maid came and got the sauce out of the stove before it got burnt. She stood in front of him and could notice that something was definitely bothering him.

"Sir..."

Praveen slowly looked at the maid and he tried to open his mouth but he couldn't do it. Andrea's words had gone deep in his head that he couldn't find any way to get them off his mind.

"Sir, everyone has arrived at the table."

That was when he came back to the real world and shook his head. "Take the rest of the food. I will finish up here."

She nodded and took the remaining things. Praveen had a lot of questions but that wasn't the time to think about them all. He had to focus and finish cooking. He took the sauce back on the stove and added the spices and finally added it to the minced meat. Everything was ready.

He put in a big serving pot and took it to the dining room. Before he went out of the kitchen, he made sure to fix his face. The moment he arrived in the dining room, he found everyone was seated happily, especially granny and Emily.

And when his eyes landed on Antonio who looked a bit pissed, his heart skipped a beat. His breaths came out harshly and he realized just how scared Antonio had made him feel. He couldn't afford to make a mistake so he took his confidence and served the table.

"Hmm, I was wondering what smelled so good but now I know what it is." Granny chuckled happily, looking into his beautiful eyes.

"You got the words right out of my mouth." Emily said happily. "I am sure the food is delicious and I simply can't wait to taste it."

"Why wait?" Granny opened the serving pots and breathed in the aroma of the wonderful food. Her eyes almost popped out of her socket when she saw what he had prepared. "Wow! This is really wonderful. I don't remember the last time I had chapatti. But I am surely gonna enjoy this a lot."

"Yeah!" Emily rubbed her hands. "Everything looks delicious, Praveen. Thank you so much."

Although Praveen was near granny and Emily, he was not even sure if he heard any of what they had said. He was so confused, pained and really hurt. He felt as if someone was piercing him with needles. But he couldn't do it.

Meanwhile, Antonio raised his face to stare at Praveen and could see just how bothered he was. It was written all over his face but he didn't a fuck about Praveen. He could have died for all he cared. He gave him his piece of mind and that was what was important to him. He didn't care about him or what anyone thought.

"Hmm," Granny moaned as she tasted the food. "This is delicious. You should try this, Antonio. It's really good."

Before Antonio even had any word to say, Granny served the food for him and he had no choice but to taste it. It was delicious but to him, it was the most awful thing he had tasted in his life. It was ugly just like Praveen.

"What do you think?" Emily asked. "I am sure Praveen prepared this most especially for his lovely husband." She laughed together with granny.

Antonio glanced Praveen and said nothing. He took a cup of coffee and started drinking it instead. His life had never been good ever since the idiot came into the house. But he was getting what he deserved and he was gonna make sure of that.

"Hmm," Andrea shook her head in disgust, putting the chapatti back on the plate. "I was expecting something better than this."

"It's good." Eduardo said to his sister as he took a bite of his own. "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"I don't like it." Andrea said simply, rubbing her mouth with a napkin.

Praveen stared at Andrea as his feelings got hurt once again. He had been standing the entire time because he didn't feel like sitting where Antonio was especially with everything that was going on. He was quiet and he didn't even realize that he was lost until he felt a hand touching his arm. He got out of his thoughts to find granny staring at him with a serious face.

"Praveen, is there anything wrong?" She asked, getting really worried. "You seem as if something is bothering you."

Yes! Something was bothering him and he had no idea how to deal with that at all. He was scared and he couldn't say anything to granny. He looked at Antonio and the man just looked away. He really hated him.

"I am fine, granny..." He sighed, trying his best to put on a genuine smile. "...don't worry about me."

"Okay." She smiled. "You just got me worried. Why don't you sit close to your husband and have your breakfast?"

Praveen's heart pounded deep in his chest when he heard granny's chest. Shivers ran through his entire body and he stopped breathing for a second. He felt as if he was sitting in ice cold water.

"No!" He said simply, still smiling.

"No?" Emilia gasped, raising her eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"

"Well..." He knew he had to act fast. "...I am not hungry and..."

"I know what's going on here." Eduardo chuckled teasingly, rubbing on his chin. "I think he is shy but you don't have to worry about anything. You two sleep in the same bed so what's wrong with sitting together?"

Normally Praveen would have blushed but he just stared at the man he thought was his husband and said nothing. He moved the chair and sat closer to him. He was scared but there was nothing he could do. Antonio on the other hand said nothing not even glancing at the boy. He just concentrated on the coffee he was having because he couldn't eat what Praveen had prepared.

Praveen started having his breakfast although he didn't have the appetite for it. He could see the ugly looks Andrea was giving him. He was quiet and he was so confused and worried at the same time. He had no idea what the two were gonna do to him or how far they were gonna go with the threats they were giving him.

Antonio knew at that moment that he had to say something. He couldn't bear to see Praveen every time. Seeing his ugly face was bad enough.

"I would like to start work as soon as possible." He said in a really serious voice. "I am ready to take over."

Emilia and granny looked at each other and then Antonio.

"You would like to start work so soon?" Granny asked.

Yeah, he needed to start as soon as possible because he couldn't afford to look into Praveen's ugly face anymore.

"Yes!" He frowned. "Is there any problem, granny?"

"No!" She nodded. "But you just got married and you two should be spending more time together now even go for your honeymoon."

"Mother is absolutely right." Emily agreed, rubbing on her son's hand. "The companies are in good hands. We are not there but..." She sighed and smiled brightly. "...I am sure everything is in good hands. You should be spending more time with Praveen."

Antonio sighed, taking a quick glance at Praveen. "I really need to start working immediately." Or he was gonna go crazy with the little idiot. "There are things to be done and as the president of the family companies I have to make sure that everything goes well. I also have to focus on my music. My fans are going crazy."

"I understand honey but..."

"I am sure Praveen doesn't have any problem with it, right?" He moved his head, staring at Praveen with the brightest smile ever.

Praveen looked at Antonio and just nodded. "I have no problem with it."

"Great!" Antonio chuckled happily. "If Praveen has agreed then I have no problem with it."

Emily looked at Praveen and sighed. "It's okay. We will go to the companies tomorrow and then everything will be finalized."

"Good!" Andrea smiled, rubbing on her hands. "I am so happy right now. My brother is gonna be the president of the family companies and I am so happy right now."

"Yeah!" Antonio smiled, looking at his sister. "I am so happy because now... I will take care of what father had left in my care. All of us will do that."

"I am glad you are happy." Emily smiled. "You deserve it all, my son and I am sure that your father would have been very proud. And I was actually thinking about something also." She laughed. She had a great plan.

"What is it, mom?" He asked, hoping it didn't involve the idiot she had brought home.

"Well, I was just thinking of throwing a party to celebrate your success." She offered, folding her arms on her chest. "This party will also be conjoined with celebrating your marriage. I think it's a great idea right?"

"Yes!" Celine nodded. "It's a great idea. We will get to introduce Praveen and on the other hand Antonio will be introduced as the new president of all the companies."

"I think you are absolutely right." Eduardo nodded. "What could be better than that?"

"Great!" Emily rubbed her hands. "I will start the preparations tomorrow morning. Tomorrow night we will have a beautiful party so you better be prepared."

Antonio didn't mind having a party to celebrate his success. He had a problem with having Praveen and him being introduced as his husband. He didn't like it one bit. He wanted to reject but he couldn't do that. He was gonna enjoy the party because he was finally gonna have his father's wealth. He was really happy.

Praveen on the other hand was really worried. There was just so much that he had to think of, things that were bothering him. He wanted to cry but he couldn't do it. He was afraid of staring at Antonio and he had no idea why. He knew he was in for a really terrible day.

***

Praveen was coming out of the kitchen after taking the dirty plates. It seemed everyone had enjoyed his breakfast but he was worried at that time. He wanted to go to the room to freshen up but he was also scared of seeing Antonio. He didn't want trouble.

He was passing through the living room slowly when he met with Celine who came smiling at him. Her mood instantly brightened his and he actually smiled brightly.

"Praveen, there is a call for you." She said softly. "It's from your aunt and she said it's very important."

Praveen lost the smile on his face as he went down memory lane, remembering all the things he had heard when he had gone back home to his aunt's house. He nodded and went to the living room where the house phone was.

"Hey," He said with a sigh.

"Oh!" She sighed. He could feel she was sad. "Praveen, son I really have to tell you something really important. I would have come to see you but I didn't find the time."

He closed his eyes and gathered his confidence. "What is it, aunt?"

"Well, we are on our way to the airport right now." She said in a small voice. "We are leaving the country and I'm sorry for telling you this right now but I couldn't tell you sooner because I didn't want to disturb you."

Tears built up in Praveen's eyes and his heart felt heavy. He felt really hot and his heart started pounding deep in his chest. His fear maximized and he felt like crying and pleading with her to take him abroad as well. But how could he?

"Really aunt?" He said happily while deep inside he was dying. "I knew you were leaving but I never thought you'd leave sooner."

"Yeah," She sighed. "There is nothing for us here Praveen. I am happy knowing that you are happy."

If only he could open his mouth and tell her what was going on. But he just couldn't afford to burden her with his problems or make her really sad.

"I have fulfilled Grace's final wish." She said happily, chuckling on the other end. "I know I shouldn't have left you alone but I promise I shall return to see you. But I will be at peace knowing that you are happy. Now tell me," She paused and took a deep breath. "Are you happy in your new home?"

A tear went down Praveen's eyes which he didn't even bother rubbing. He was so sad and lonely now that the family he had known for the last two years was going away. It was sad and extremely painful indeed. He didn't know what to do but...

"Yes, aunt..." He chuckled. "...I am very happy here and everyone is so nice to me."

"Hmm, and your husband?"

"He..." He paused and tried to sound calm. "...he is the nicest man I know, aunt."

"That's really good." He could hear the sadness in her voice. "I knew you were gonna be happy and I am so sorry that I had to tell you like this but..."

"It's fine, aunt..." More tears came pouring down his cheeks. "...I know that your life will be better abroad although I am gonna miss you so much."

"Oh!" She whimpered, taking a really deep breath. "I am gonna miss you so much too, all of us will but I promise to come visit you when I settle down. I know you will make me proud, all of us."

"I will try my best."

"That's good." She laughed in satisfaction. "My Praveen is the best and he will always take into account what his mother had taught him. He will never go wrong."

Praveen held on to the phone with his entire life and cried. He just had to be careful so as not to allow his aunt to sense that he was crying.