Destined Hearts Ch. 07

Bruce gave Antonio an angry look who was busy looking at his friend. He loved him so much and it wasn't fair that he gave him such an ultimatum. He was really mad and he seriously expected his boyfriend to stand up for him and not act like Ethan was the most important thing to him.

"Whatever!"

He gave Ethan an angry look and stormed out of the room, shutting the door with such force that Ethan could have sworn the ground shook. Seeing him leave, Ethan started leaving but Antonio gripped his arm and pulled him back.

"I..."

"If you are truly sorry then make things right."

With those words, Ethan left Antonio all alone. Antonio remained standing, thinking about what his friend had just said to him. He loved Ethan so much but he also loved Bruce as much. That was the reason why he did what he did because he didn't wanna upset either. But that didn't mean that he was gonna talk to Praveen or beg for forgiveness because he didn't owe him anything. He was still gonna pay.

***

"Hello, mother..." Praveen said as confidently as he could.

"Hey, Praveen!" Emilia said excitedly on the other end. "How is your honeymoon going? I hope my son isn't being such a pain?"

Praveen remained silent for a while and then cleared his throat. "Everything is fine. But..." He paused and took a deep breath, not knowing how Emilia was gonna take what he was gonna say to her next. "...I... I..."

"Praveen?" Emilia sounded really worried. "What's wrong, my darling?"

"I wanna come back home." He blurted it all out with a tear following. "I think I have had enough of this honeymoon."

"What?" Emilia laughed softly. "Why? Are you afraid of your husband or something? Spend more time together. You know you didn't know each other before this."

"I know that but I miss all of you." He said emotionally, holding the phone tightly. "I just wanna come back and be with all of you."

"Oh, sweetie!" Emilia moaned on the other end. He could hear her harsh breaths. "We miss you too and I want to see you but... Mother and I are currently not home."

"What?"

"Yes, we had decided to visit a temple in another city to pay our respects and also give presents there." She sighed. "We have just arrived and we'll start our work tomorrow. You see, we just wanted to thank the Lord for Antonio's marriage and ask for blessings as well."

"Huh?" He smiled softly.

'All of you are so happy.' He thought as more tears formed in his eyes. 'You are also getting blessings for this marriage but with those blessings, I shall suffer while I see you happy. That will be enough for me and maybe one day, you might find out and I may be free from this burden that I am carrying.' He closed his eyes and prayed. 'I am sorry for keeping this from you but you'll get to understand why I am doing this. I just hope I get the courage to..."

"Praveen!" Emilia's voice disturbed him, getting him from his thoughts. "Are you still there?"

"Err... Yes," He said. "I am still here."

"Okay." Emilia babbled. "Why don't you talk to your husband? If he agrees then you may come home. We will find you there."

"Okay."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Praveen cut the call and slipped it in his pocket. He had no idea that while he had been holding the phone, he had taken it together with the card that Adrian had given to him. It slipped and fail to the ground without his knowledge.

He took a deep breath and left the terrace for the room. He had been there for many hours, thinking and trying to correct his mind. After much thought, he came up to a conclusion that he wanted to go back home. He didn't care about anything else. At least back home, some people loved him and showed him care.

He went straight back to the room and entered, finding Antonio busy typing something on his laptop. Their eyes met and they both looked away. Praveen took his confidence and went to Antonio, standing straight in front of him. He wasn't afraid or anything.

"I wanna go back to the house tomorrow." He said with a small voice. "I have already talked to mother and she has agreed. She told me to ask if we could go back tomorrow morning."

Antonio raised his face, staring at the boy. He went back to the things he was doing.

"Good!" He said harshly. "Going back is a really good idea because being here with you is such torture already. Besides, I see nothing to do here since my boyfriend is gone already."

Praveen stared at the man he called his husband and said nothing. He took their bags and started packing their clothes.

"Hey, what are you doing?" Antonio asked, getting up from the bed. "Don't touch my clothes okay."

Praveen raised his face and chuckled, getting up. "It's not like I love touching your clothes, Mr. Antonio. But if you tell me that you'll pack on your own then I have no problem."

Antonio clenched his fists, giving the boy a long look. "No!" He said softly. "Just do it for me."

Praveen continued what he was doing and so did Antonio. He finished packing everything and then went to take a long shower. Everything went fine. He ordered dinner and then slept really early. The next morning they checked out of the hotel and left for their hometown. Praveen was both excited and happy. At least this time, there was no Bruce to bother him.

***

"Take me to the office." Antonio ordered the driver that had picked them from the airport. "I need to do something important there."

"Yes!" The driver said, bowing his head.

Praveen couldn't believe he was hearing that. Antonio did realize that he was with him right, he thought as he gave Antonio a confused look. There was only one car that had picked them up and Praveen honestly had no idea what was in his husband's mind. He didn't need to go to the office. He needed to go home.

"Antonio, I..."

"And drop Praveen home when you do." He ordered before Praveen even finished his sentence. "Then come back and pick me up in the afternoon."

"Yes, sir!'

Praveen felt at least happy. Antonio was awfully quiet ever since they had boarded the plane and landed. He had hardly spoken a word to Praveen and somehow, Praveen loved it so much. He was really, really happy.

Praveen was dressed in a deep blue skinny trouser, yellow t-shirt and blue snickers. His hair was tied in a braided ponytail which made his face to be in full view. He was looking really beautiful for a guy and his body was looking gorgeous although his clothes weren't perfect. Anyone could see through his beauty.

Antonio on the other hand was wearing a black designer's shirt with his hairy chest exposed which was tucked in a white designer's trouser that was a little tight on him and black shoes that were shiny. His hair was gelled and then combed back. He was looking really perfect, just like a celebrity. Oh wait, he was a celebrity.

A few minutes later, they were parked at the entrance of a really huge building. Antonio took his laptop and then left. As soon as he got out, one of the security guards took his laptop and led him inside. It wasn't long before Praveen left the big building.

The rest of the way home, he just thought about the way things had been while he had been on the so called honeymoon. It had been horrible and he was glad he was back home. He couldn't wait to see people at home and he definitely couldn't wait for granny and Emilia to return the next day.

An hour later and they were passing through a huge gate. Praveen's heart skipped a bit when he saw the beautiful pure white mansion. He got really nervous, excited and all kinds of emotions. It had only been a few days but he had missed it a lot, mostly he had missed the city. He had prayed to travel by airplane and it had suddenly happened but not as he had expected.

"Finally!" He smiled brightly. "I am back." He put his hands together. "Thank you so much, God."

The car stopped and the guard outside opened the car door for him. He got out, breathed in the wonderful air and just looked around as the guard took the bags inside the house.

The door to the house was already wide open as if the house itself was welcoming him. He slowly started going inside and just as he was about to step a foot inside the house...

"Stop!"

Praveen heard a voice that he had never heard before. He quickly withdrew his foot, stood at the entrance and then slowly moved his eyes forward to see what was going on. The moment he raised his face, he saw a woman quickly coming to him.

Praveen had never seen the woman before. She was a bit fat, a bit tall and really beautiful. She had really dark hair that shone as if it had been attended to by the most talented hairstylists in the world. It was short, reaching her neck. She was putting on a beautiful black shiny dress that reached her legs and she was walking in heels. Her face had makeup and she was looking really beautiful.

The woman looked really elegant, rich and did I mention extremely beautiful? She must have been in her mid or late 40s. Praveen had never seen her before in his entire life so he couldn't guess who she was. He also wondered why she had stopped him.

The woman came and stood in front of him with her arms on her chest. She first eyed him from head to toe as if examining him and honestly, the woman gave him chills. He dropped his eyes to the floor, not making any eye contact.

The only time he raised his face was when he heard her chirping.

"And where do you think you are going?" She asked sassily, looking at him as if she wanted to kill him. "What are you looking for here?'

"I... I live here, ma'am." He said, stuttering in the process.

"You live here?" She said, as if mocking him. "Really, now?"

"Yes!" He couldn't understand why she was questioning him. He connected with her eyes for the first time and they were piercing brown eyes, somehow scary. "I got married into this family."

"Oh!" The woman chuckled bitterly, dropping her hands to her hips. "So you are actually the one that forced your way into this house? When I was told, I was actually surprised so I came to see for myself."

"You must have been mistaken, ma'am." Praveen shook his head. "I got married recently to..."

"You think you are smart?" The woman raised her eyebrow. "Do I look like I am joking to you?"

"Ma'am, I..."

"I can't believe this." She quipped, almost raising her voice. "You are married into this house, to my Antonio? No way!"

Praveen was definitely surprised, caught off guard. He had come home expecting to receive a warm welcome but he was really surprised. He didn't know the woman or what she was talking about. His heart was now racing miles and miles away.

Meanwhile, Andrea was standing on the balcony in the living room watching the entire drama with an evil grin on her face. She was looking amazing as usual with her yellow dress and slippers. She was enjoying the drama and she had her accomplice with her, Bruce who was equally watching.

"Andrea, what's going on?" Bruce was just as confused as Praveen. "Who is that woman? What's going on?"

Andrea looked at Bruce and her evil grin just brightened. "That is our savior, sweetheart."

"Savior?" Bruce frowned, shrugging. "I don't understand."

"Let me just say," She chuckled. "That is the woman that will get Praveen out of this house just by snapping her finger."

"But..."

"Shh..." Andrea whispered, moving her eyes to the entrance door. "...we will talk later because right now I am enjoying this."

"Okay."

Bruce moved his eyes forward and smiled. He was gonna have Antonio all to himself if what Andrea had just said to him was gonna happen.

"So now that I left this house, people stopped thinking?" She yelled, stamping her foot on the floor. That stamping made Praveen's heart to hit in his chest. "You are the son in law of this house?"

"Yes, but..."

"Nobody talks when I am talking, especially not an impostor like you." She yelled. "My name is Emma Gonzalez and the boy you are married to is someone that I do not like anybody messing with."

From the last name, Praveen didn't need to be a genius to know that she was related to the family or something, maybe Antonio's father's sister, his aunt. But why was she so rude, he thought as he tried hard to contain himself.

"Just take a good look at yourself." She pointed rudely at him. "You think you are a son in law of this house?'

"Yes!" He nodded. "Like I told you, I..."

"I said nobody talks when I do." She grated her teeth, making Praveen take a step back. "So you like playing games, huh? You are now playing games with my family, trying to threaten their lives?"

"What? No!" Praveen shook his head. "I have never done that, I swear to you. I love them like..."

"You love them or their money and fame?"

"What?" Praveen felt tears building in his eyes. He was hurt by her words. "I promise that I am not like that. I never married into this family because of money. I actually did because..."

"Then why did you get married?" She asked harshly. "Why didn't you get married to a family that suits your standards? You do realize that the Gonzalez family is a very rich, very influential and very powerful family in this country right?"

Praveen felt a sharp pain in his heart. "I am aware but..."

"And as such a son in law of this house must also come from such a family." She growled, giving him her serious face. "It shouldn't just be any trash that is picked from the gutters, not from a middle class family or even lower class or whatever class you are from. Take a good look at yourself and honestly tell me..." She folded her arms on her chest, looking at him in a disgusting way. "...do you think you deserve to live in this house, among the rich and powerful? Forget about yourself, your shoes are not even worthy of stepping into this house."

Emma's words pierced through Praveen's heart, making him bleed emotionally. He had never heard such painful words in his life before. He couldn't control himself. Tears rushed down his cheeks which he quickly rubbed. He couldn't be that weak because she was gonna take advantage of that.

"You used blackmail and made sure that you got married to Antonio, a famous celebrity."

"Ma'am, I promise that whoever told you this lied to you and..."

"Enough!" She raised her hand, signaling him to stop talking. She started moving closer to him, circling him. He just stood and did nothing. "I don't even know what everybody was thinking by allowing you into this house.

First you played your little tricks and then manipulated Emilia and mother. I am sure my poor son must be depressed having to spend time with you. Who knows what he is going through?"

She came and stood in front of him, making a disgusting face. "I can't even manage to stand in front of you but guess what?" She warned. "I will not allow him to suffer anymore. I don't like you because you don't deserve anything from this house. You are not even worthy of working here not to talk of being married into this family. You don't deserve our name because you are nothing but a disgusting boy from the slumps..."

Praveen closed his eyes as a huge lump blocked his throat. He felt as if he was running out hair... His heart pounded so deep in his chest that he felt as if he was gonna have a heart attack. It was really painful.

"My sister in law might be stupid and naïve but I am not like her." She yelled, making Praveen tremble. "You are a mistake that entered this house and today, I am gonna correct that mistake. You are gonna leave this house."

"You are gonna leave this house!" Emma's words rang through Praveen's head. He shook his head as a tear went down his cheek.

"In this house, only the rich, the mighty and the popular live here." She laughed sinisterly. "We all don't wanna associate with classless people like you. But that is a mistake that I will rectify today."

Praveen closed his eyes, trying to control his breaths.

"Don't let them step all over you." He remembered Adrian's words remind him. "You need to stand up for yourself."

"I will show you your place. Now..." She gripped his arm and pushed him outside. Praveen fell to the floor and then opened his eyes. "...you'll get out and I don't wanna see your face anywhere near here. Nobody needs you because my son was forced to marry you and he doesn't even love you. Only God knows what witchcraft you used on her."

Praveen slowly got up from the floor and then rubbed his tears. He looked at the woman and slowly rubbed his tears.

"It's fine!" He said in a weak voice. "For rich people like you, you measure yourselves through the riches and wealth that you posses. But for middle class people like me, wealth and riches do not matter because we don't need them."

Emma was really surprised by the tone in the boy's voice. She wanted to say something but remained quiet. He had tears in his eyes but he was still talking.

"Riches and wealth are not that important to people like me..." He continued. "...our worth is through our characters and values. I might not be rich, powerful or influential but I have values that are in me that control and determine who I am. These values that I have are far more important to me than the riches that you speak of."

Emma was really shocked by the boy's words.

"These riches and wealth can be obtained easily. But the values inside of me are things that your riches cannot buy. I was just a poor boy but mother and father saw something in me that no rich boy had and that is the reason why I am in this house and married to Antonio."

Praveen had no idea where those words came from but he also had no idea that they made Emma so angry. Her breaths became harsh and her blood started boiling. She wanted to kill the boy but she played it cool.

"So you have no right to question my values and my character, madam."

"How dare you?" Emma barked, angrily pointing at Praveen. "Who do you think you are to talk to me like that? First of all you invaded us and now you are trying to act mighty. Well, you are leaving this house and never come back. We do not need you and neither does Antonio. He will marry the one he loves and live happily so if I were you, I'd get myself out of here."

With those words, Emma furiously turned and closed the door right in Praveen's face. Praveen sighed and then looked around, remembering the day he had come to the house for the first time. Now he had to go and maybe it was for the best. He quickly turned and left.

***

"Oh my God!" Bruce chuckled, his voice echoing throughout the room. "I can't believe he's finally gone. Serious..." He looked Andrea who was ever smiling. "...I was really mad but after the gift you've given me I am really happy."

"Don't worry about that, sweetheart." Andrea sat elegantly on the bed, giving him a satisfying look. "If there is anyone who never disappoints, it's Aunt Emma. She's always on point."

"Why didn't you call her earlier?" Bruce asked, now frowning. "You know exactly how I felt when you told me about his wedding. Had she been here, I am sure that this marriage wouldn't have even taken place."

"Huh?" Andrea raised her eyebrow, giving him a look that he couldn't read. "Then we wouldn't have had our wealth back. You seem to forget that dad had left everything in that stupid boy's name. Forget about our wealth, we would have lost everything because every business including Eduardo's hospital is connected to the mother company. We would be on the street by now."

"Yeah!" Bruce sighed, sitting on the bed. "But I still get angry when I think about it."

"Well, you won't have to think about it anymore." Andrea reassured, squeezing her friend's shoulder. "He's gone for good and he's not coming back here. Trust me, not even mom will bring him back because Antonio will be happy..."

"And then he will marry me." Bruce blushed, licking his lips. "I have been waiting for this moment for a long time."