Destined Hearts Ch. 09

Praveen on the other hand just dropped his eyes to the floor, looking like a shy bride. Who knew what Celine was thinking, he thought as he tried to hide his shaky hands. He knew Celine thought they were about to kiss but that wasn't the case. The idiot had just bumped into him. Why did he even look into his stupid face?

"I am sorry to disturb you." Celine apologized, folding her arms. "But Antonio, you've got a guest in the living room. Mother and granny wants you to go and entertain him."

"Great!" He thought as he clenched his fists.

Now he had to go and entertain the same guy he hated. "Of course," He smiled at her. "I just came to drink some water. I will leave."

He quickly picked up his pace and let the kitchen questioning what he had just done.

"I knew that something was up when he decided o follow you." Celine slightly pushed Praveen, making him raise his face. "I bet your husband has fallen deeper in love with you just by seeing that picture."

"What?" Praveen gasped, rushing past her to his cookies. "It's not what you think, Celine. Antonio was just here for wa...

"Yet, he couldn't even drink the same water he wanted." She teased, breathing in audibly. "Anyway, I won't say anything but it's really good that your romance is starting to show. I will leave you to yourself now. Let me go and talk to Eduardo."

She left and Praveen just remained standing there for a few minutes, thinking about what Celine had said. If only she knew how much Antonio hated him. What he didn't understand was the reason why no one in the house knew about Bruce and Antonio's relationship. Antonio had said that he loved Bruce and had been planning on marrying him. Shouldn't everyone have known about him, he thought rubbing on his chin?

But it wasn't his business. As long as they stayed out of his way, everything was gonna be okay.

He shook his head and went to check on his cookies.

***

"Thank you so much for everything." Santiago said, getting up from the couch. "I really had a good time and your cookies..." He looked at Praveen, gesturing to him. "...they were really wonderful. I enjoyed them. You're so good at everything."

Praveen blushed, dropping his eyes to the floor. Santiago had created a connection with everyone using his charm, good looks and his wonderful charisma. Everyone seemed to love him except for Bruce, Andrea and Antonio and of course, not forgetting the ever rude Emma who was just seated quietly without uttering any word.

"Yeah, that's what makes him our lucky charm." Granny said, wrapping her arm around him. "Ever since he came, our happiness has doubled. He is like an angel sent to us."

Andrea rolled her eyes where she was standing, feeling sick in the stomach. Bruce on the other hand just stood there in rage. He had reached his limit because ever since the guy had come, they had just been talking about Praveen.

"Well, he is like my lucky charm too." He looked in his eyes, staring in them. Praveen was just there smiling.

Santiago turned and faced Antonio, extending his hand to him. Antonio hesitantly shook the man's hand, trying his best to act cool.

"You're a very lucky man, Antonio." Santiago said to him, powerfully shaking him. "And I say that not because you're a celebrity but because you've married a gem, a rare diamond and I must commend you for that."

Antonio looked at Praveen and both lost their smiles. He sighed, forcing a smile at Santiago. "Yeah!"

When Bruce heard that, he furiously turned and went upstairs with Andrea following right behind him.

"Well..." Santiago breathed in deeply, his eyes at Praveen. "It was really wonderful spending time with all of you. My day has been great and wonderful. I know you said you don't want your identity known for reasons best know to you but..." He paused and looked at all of them with a brilliant grin before looking at Praveen. "...can you please come to the office tomorrow, please?" He put his hands together. "It will be my pleasure to see you. Please!"

Praveen remained there stationary, not knowing what answer to give to the handsome man in front of him. He was suddenly feeling speechless, scared and dumbstruck. He looked at granny and she raised her eyebrow, still smiling at him. He looked at Emilia and she too was smiling. He couldn't read what was on their mind.

"Well..."

"He'll be there." Granny said in a sweet voice. "Don't worry, son. After all, you two are already friends."

Santiago felt a wave of bliss pass through his entire body, making him really excited. He breathed in deeply, smiling brightly at Praveen. Praveen gave him an equally bright smile, nodding his head.

"I will do that."

"Okay. Should I pick you up?"

"What the fuck!" Antonio thought, clenching his fists in anger which was building deep down inside of him. He felt something moving deep inside of him but he couldn't tell what it was. "This guy has nerves."

"No! Don't worry." Praveen said. "I will be there, don't worry."

"Okay. I will leave."

He put his hands together, slowly bowing his head. Then he left, leaving everyone waving at him. They could all feel his absence as he went, well all, except for Antonio who was still pissed at him for even thinking of coming to his house after all that he had done. He was gonna make him pay for it and that was what he was gonna do.

"Wow!" Granny finally said, touching her cheeks. "He's such a well behaved, sweet man and so cultured. For a moment, I thought he was part of the family."

"You're absolutely right, mother." Emilia agreed, shaking her head. "He's not like these spoilt rich kids nowadays. He's humble, well behaved and cultured."

They laughed but Emma simply rolled her eyes. "Well, I don't think there was anything special. I still don't get why he even came here. He ruined our moment to celebrate our Antonio's victory."

Granny looked furiously towards Emma, wondering what was suddenly wrong with her. It was like she was in a bad mood. "What's that supposed to mean? You saw what he came here to do. He came to congratulate Praveen for a job well done. Their magazine went viral and he was just happy. Is there anything wrong with that?"

"My point exactly." Emma shrugged, chuckling evilly. "What was the point of coming here? It was a picture which he probably cheated everyone by thinking that it had gotten high sales. After all, it's his company and Praveen..." She pointed at him, making him feel uncomfortable. "...it was his first photo shoot and there was no way that his picture would have sold more copies of the magazine compared to top celebrities like Antonio and Bruce. It's impossible."

Hearing her answer, Emilia burst into laughter, making everyone look in her direction.

"I am sorry for that but you sound as if you didn't see the magazine Praveen took. He looked nothing like any model or celebrity out there because..." She paused and looked at him, feeling at peace. "...because he's unique. The people loved him because he gave them everything they wanted, beauty, elegancy, body angle and language. What else could they want?"

"There's a lot more to modeling than that, Emilia, dear." She gave a half smile, folding her arms on her chest. "But you wouldn't understand that, would you?"

Praveen felt hurt, really hurt. Even when he had done something for himself, Emma still did everything within her power to make him feel inferior. He just looked at the floor, trying to forget that she had said. He was feeling out of place, his heart pounding deep in his chest.

But before things went out of hand, he felt little arms wrapping around his legs. He quickly looked and found little Ryan holding him tightly. Instantly, his heart started racing with pleasure and happiness. He had no idea why Ryan made him so happy.

With a grin, he knelt down and took his little hands.

"Ryan!"

"I'm hungry." Ryan said in his little voice, drawing a small chuckle from Praveen. "I wanna eat."

Praveen nodded and then opened his mouth to speak but before he did...

"Ryan my love, granny will prepare something for you." Emma said happily, looking down at her perfect grandson. "I know you like granny's food, don't you?"

There was no way she was gonna allow her grandson to eat food made by Praveen. Never!

Hearing her answer, Praveen lost the smile on his face, slowing looking up at Emma. Their eyes met and the moment he saw that look in her eyes, warning him to stay away from Ryan, he just looked away and then at Ryan, smiling at him.

"Granny is right." He ruffled through his hair. "You should go with her. She'll make you food and..."

"No!" Ryan said angrily, letting go of Praveen. "I want you to cook. I want to eat what you made me yesterday!"

Everyone in the living room smiled brightly, feeling really happy except for Emma and Antonio. Emma couldn't believe her own ears. Her grandson had just rejected her food. She was so mad that she clenched her fists, biting her bottom lip. She felt like a vessel of anger. Her grandson, her own grandson had just rejected her proposal to make him food.

"Ooh..." Granny moaned happily, touching her chest. "That's so sweet. Even little Ryan is in love with Praveen."

"You're right mother." Emilia agreed, nodding her head. "Who wouldn't love him? Praveen dear?" She called, getting his attention. "Why don't you take him to the kitchen and fix something for him? He seems really hungry."

Praveen smiled brightly, nodding. "Yes!"

He took little Ryan's hand and the two left for the kitchen. The entire family went to their rooms to rest after such a long and wonderful day but Emma remained standing there, wondering what had just happened?

What was going, she thought as she looked in the direction of the kitchen? How could her grandson have slipped out of her hands like that when she thought she had him in her hands? It was impossible.

"You've succeeded in turning my own lovely grandson against me, Praveen." She said, chuckling sinisterly. "Let's see how long you'll last in here. Whatever you're doing, better hold on to it tightly because I will hit you back... hard."

She hissed and left for her room, walking like a model on the run way.

***

"No!" Bruce screamed, gripping on his hair and almost pulling on it. "This can't be."

Bruce's heart was on fire, feeling as if someone was about to fucking pull it out of his chest. It hurt so bad and his entire body felt hot as if he was in a sauna. He was sweaty, panting and raging. His hair was a mess... his face was a mess... damn, his whole mood was a mess now.

His heart was pounding so deep in his chest, threatening to rip out. What had happened, he thought as he pulled on his hair hard. He was acting like a wounded bull, his eyes blood red. Veins had popped up in his head and he was ready to kill someone, anyone.

"Fuck!" He grabbed a lamp from a small table, throwing it harshly to the floor. "No!"

The lamp broke to pieces on the floor, scattering all over. Just then, Andrea came rushing inside, only to be met with the mess in her room. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. She rushed to him, gripped both his arms and shook him.

"Are you crazy?" She raged, breathing harshly. "What do you think you are doing? Do you wanna get us both into trouble?"

"I don't care!" He seethed, clenching his fists. "I am so mad right now that... that..." He pulled his arms free, bringing his fists closer to his face, staring at them like they had just disappeared. "...that I don't care about anything."

"Well, this is my house and most especially my room, Bruce." Andrea said angrily, wondering why Bruce was acting crazy. "If you wanna scream, cry or turn the whole room upside down, I won't stop you. But you're gonna have to do that at your house. Do you understand?" She warned, pointing angrily at him. "Everyone is down stairs and they might hear your foolish commotion. Will you please calm down?"

"Calm down?" Bruce censured, angrily shaking his head. "What the fuck do you want me to do when..."

"I am telling you to..."

"What?" He yelled in her face, clenching his fists even more. "What? You know that I worked so hard for..." He was visibly trembling, panicking. "I worked so hard to just... just to..."

"Will you calm down?" Andrea snapped, smacking him hard across the face.

Bruce felt a sharp pain on his face and he knew that Andrea had just slapped him. He held out his cheek, looking at her. Then he felt his nerves calming and he took in a deep breath, sitting on the bed with his fingers passing through his hair.

"I just can't believe this is happening. I didn't see it coming." He was still angry but his voice wasn't high anymore. "I locked him up in that, that room to prevent him from taking a photo shoot but the little brat is smart. He's just shown me that he is smarter than..."

"Calm down!" Andrea sat on the bed, rubbing his shoulders sweetly. "But look on the brighter side..." She shrugged, looking into his wet face. "...you and Antonio finally got to appear in the magazine as a couple and people went crazy. Your fans love you and..."

"Until that stupid magazine came out!" He carped, his mouth shaking in anger. "Everything was perfectly fine until that stupid magazine showed and that stupid man came here to rub salt in our wounds. Why is everything going so wrong, Andrea?" He looked at her, feeling defeated. "The more we try to get out of this house, to destroy him and make him, the stronger and fiercer he gets. I don't get it, Andrea."

"Sweetheart, you don't need to worry about..."

"Why shouldn't I be?" He growled, getting up from the bed. "I am getting really worried. Did you..." He slowly turned, feeling as if his words were eating his insides before they came out.

"Did I see what?" Andrea got up, raising her eyebrow.

"Antonio!" He sighed, feeling tears started to build in his eyes. "Did you see the way he looked at Praveen, how shocked he was? Did you see how he was looking at that man as if he wanted to kill him? Did you see how speechless he looked?"

"So? Everyone was surprised and..."

"No, Andrea." He shook his head. "I am not mistaken because..."

"If you're implying that my brother is in love with that boy then you surely don't know him." She laughed, folding her arms on his chest. "I have lived with him my entire life so I know him. He loves you and he was only shocked because none of us had expected that to happen."

"But what if he..."

"He feels nothing and you can't prove that because of some stupid magazine." She hissed, losing the smile on her face. She knew the magazine had been great but that was what was making her rage. She couldn't accept it. "It was nothing high fashion. The stupid guy probably just faked everything, maybe even photo shopped it. People are probably not even going online to view it. Your photo shoot was beauty, sexy and romantic. The crew even told you..."

"But he also had a photo shoot. He looked really different in that shoot." He complained, fighting off his tears. "Even we couldn't recognize him until he said so himself. That also means that everyone saw him differently, including..." He paused, feeling his heart pounding deep in his chest. "...Antonio! But I won't allow that boy to seduce him. That's why I am confused."

"What's there to be..."

"Him!" Bruce yelled, stamping his foot on the floor. "What are we gonna do next because it seems everything we are doing, we are failing."

"No, baby boy!" Andrea shook her head. "Right now, we need to do something stronger, something that when we strike..." She laughed sinisterly, smiling like an evil queen. "...we will be able to cripple him, make him weak..." She clenched her fists, bringing it closer to her chest. "...something that will bring him down once for all. We need to strike in such a way that even his supporters in this house will not be able to support him anymore. We need to make them throw him out of this house themselves."

Bruce knew what Andrea meant but he was really confused.

"In case you haven't noticed, we have tried everything but something always happens in his favor." He frowned, raising his eyebrow. "How are we gonna do that or rather, what are we gonna do?"

Andrea laughed like an evil villain, breathing in audibly while a lot of things went through her evil mind.

"You see, sweetheart, that's what makes you and I different." She said in a sweet tone, rubbing on her seductive lips. "This is when my specialty will come in. We need to observe him and see his weakness, grab an opportunity that will make him look bad."

"What?" Bruce gasped. "I don't think we can wait that..."

"It doesn't mean we have to tolerate him." She lost her smile. "Just follow my lead and I promise you'll never be disappointed. That boy won't know what hit him. Before he even realizes it, he will be in too deep."

"Hmm..." An evil grip appeared on Bruce's face. "That sounds really good. I like that, Andrea. You really are a genius."

"Just follow my lead, baby boy."

Bruce grinned as the two of them laughed sinisterly. Their plans were gonna be successful. Now plan "get Praveen kicked out of the house." was now in action.

***

Praveen got out of the bathroom, tying his hair which he had made into a braided ponytail. He was wearing a black designer's skinny jean, red shirt that was tucked in and blue snickers that he thought looked nice. Although he didn't like cologne, he had worn it so that he could smell nice that day.

He came to the dressing mirror, took his wedding chain and placed it around his neck. After making sure that he was ready, he checked himself one last time before turning only to meet with Antonio's glaring eyes, piercing through him.

Antonio was staring at Praveen, wondering why he was looking like that all of a sudden. It was not like he was in love with him but the truth was that he looked somehow, different from the way he had been seeing him the past few days.

Praveen stared at Antonio, wondering why the guy was staring at him like that. He looked at himself, making sure he was fine before he went back to look at his husband. The crazy guy was probably trying to look for something to insult him about. He didn't have time.

He picked up his phone and without saying anything started going away.

"Where are you going?" Antonio asked, grabbing his arm.

Praveen stopped in his tracks without even turning. "I am going to see Santiago. You're home today so I will save you the trouble of having a headache with me around. Now you can enjoy your day with Bruce."

He tried to go away but Antonio was still holding his arm. "So now you're friends or what?"

Hearing his question, Praveen turned and looked at him, wondering why he would ask such a question. "For the first time, I have met someone that isn't arrogant but he's rich." He gave a half smile, wondering what the hell was going on in his husband's mind. "I wouldn't mind being friends with him at all. After all, the almighty likes such hearts."

He let loose his arm from Antonio's grip and left the room quickly, leaving Antonio standing and looking like a lost soul. There was something really painful, something in his heart that he couldn't recognize. For some reason, he had a bad feeling about Praveen and Santiago meeting and becoming friends after releasing such a hot photo.

He stared at the door as it shut, feeling as if his heart had also been shut down. He was supposed to be thinking about his boyfriend, how to please him and how to get rid of Praveen for good but his actions were now different. What was going on?

***

Antonio was outside, leaning towards a pillar with a glass of wine in his hands, taking a little sip. He had been outside for over two hours, staring towards the gate, hoping he would see Praveen walk in and say something to him. Since Praveen had left early morning, Antonio's mood had been completely ruined. He had cancelled all his meetings and decided to stay in his room the entire day. He had his lunch with his family members but he wasn't active. Even when his boyfriend wanted to talk to him, he just brushed him off and told him he wasn't feeling very well.