"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 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 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 to 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.
"I will always do that and thank you so much."

"Thank you too." She sobbed softly. "I have to go now but I promise to be calling you from time to time to check on your progress and don't forget to tell me if there is any problem."

Praveen felt terrible as if there was a huge lump on his throat. "Yes!" He covered his mouth to prevent a sound from escaping. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Praveen!"

Praveen quickly put the phone down and more tears came rushing down his cheeks. His heart was beating faster than anything else. He felt suffocated and although he didn't wanna cry at that moment, he couldn't help it. The tears in his eyes kept on flowing nonstop.

He quickly turned to find Celine and granny staring at him with no expressions on their faces.

"Oh my God," Celine gasped, touching her chest. "Are you okay?"

Praveen looked at her and he had no idea why he felt like pouring his heart out.

"My aunt and her family are leaving today." He sobbed softly, trying to rub his tears. "They just called to inform me that..." He couldn't say anymore.

Granny sighed, rubbing on his shoulder. "I am sorry Praveen." She apologized. She didn't like seeing tears in his eyes. She had grown so attached to him in just a few days that she felt the way he felt. "Would you like to go and see them?"

"No!" He shook his head, still rubbing his tears. "They are already on their way to their airport right now."

"I am truly sorry about that." Celine apologized, shaking her beautiful head. "I know how you feel right now but..."

"Don't worry about me." It was gonna take him time to calm down. "Excuse me."

Without saying anything else, Praveen rushed to his room and sat on the chair where he just cried and cried. Celine wanted to follow him but granny told her that Praveen needed to be alone.

Praveen took out a photo he had taken together with his best friend and his family. They had seemed happy, smiling, and just enjoying themselves. He could remember it very well as if it had just been a few hours back. But now they were gone and he had no idea how long it was gonna be before they saw each other again.

Praveen felt as if a very important part of his soul had just vanished from him. They had been his family and now he had no one left. He was all alone in the world with no one to support him. He had no idea just how much he was gonna suffer but he still wished for his aunt to be happy.

"I will miss you so much." He sobbed, holding the photo closer to his chest. He closed his eyes as more tears poured down his beautiful face. "I am sorry I couldn't tell you the truth but I know you will be happier if you don't know that I am sad."

He sat on the couch just crying. He was hurt, lonely and just wanted to lock himself up. He didn't even realize that time was passing. He had no idea if it was an hour or two that passed but what brought him to reality was the sound of something hitting the chair.

He got out of his thoughts, moved his eyes, and saw what was on the couch. It seemed like a small box that was wrapped in a small bag. He couldn't make of it clearly but seeing it there made him wonder who was in the room.

He quickly moved his head and found Antonio looking at him as if he wanted to devour him. Seeing Antonio, he quickly got up and took off his glasses. He tried to rub his tears but realized that they were dry already. But he wiped his face and still wondered what was going on.

"What's that?" He asked in a small voice, gesturing towards the item.

Antonio didn't want to talk to Praveen but he had no choice. "Why don't you open it and check it out? It's for you."

Praveen stood still, wondering if what he had heard from Antonio was correct or it was just his mind playing tricks on him. He closed his eyes and opened them again but Antonio was still there and so was the item on the couch.

He gave him a not so sure look but leaned down and took the item anyway. He removed it from the bag and found out exactly what it was. It was a phone and he didn't know if he read correctly but the words, "iPhone X" was written on that box.

Praveen's heart skipped a beat and his eyes widened. He still thought it was a dream until he decided to open the box. When he opened the box he was welcomed by a beautiful big, silver brand new iPhone X. Praveen was caught off guard and he still couldn't believe Antonio had just bought that for him. It was a surprise.

He raised his face and stared at the handsome hunk. "Thank you so much for..."

"Before you even finish that sentence I want you to know I didn't want to buy that for you," Antonio said hoarsely, folding his muscular arms on his chest. "Mom forced me to buy it for you because according to her, her son in law cannot be phoneless when he is married to her son." He laughed manically, furiously dropping his hands.

Oh! And Praveen had thought his husband was gonna change for a while.

"But you do not deserve that because you are not worth it." He thundered, scaring the boy who was already hurt. "Boys like you deserve to get nothing but you can have it because you could use something valuable in your wretched life."

Praveen closed his eyes as a sharp pain made his whole body squirm. He had no idea how long he was gonna endure the pain, the emotional torture, and everything because he had grown tired of all of them.

"Besides," He smirked, giving Praveen an evil grin. "Things like these are the only things you came into this house for anyway. But let me make one thing straight," He warned, angrily pointing at Antonio. "Stay away from me and know your place in this house and my life. That thing doesn't mean anything at all and if you are wise you will get what I am saying to you..." He paused and looked at Praveen from head to toe in disgust. "...four eyes."

With those painful words, Antonio passed Praveen and started heading to the office on the right but before he even went further...

"Thank you," Praveen said to him, making him stop in his tracks. "Thank you so much for this wonderful gift."

Antonio furiously turned, wondering if what he had heard from Praveen was correct. But Praveen was standing there staring at him with a serious face. That got Antonio angry because he had said that to hurt Praveen's feelings. He hadn't expected to hear that.

"What?" Antonio gasped as his eyes widened. "Why are..."

"Someone once told me that no matter how a person gives you something even if he insults you..." He paused and smiled slightly. "...that thing is a gift and must be accepted. You are right. This phone is really expensive and I couldn't afford it even if I sold my soul..."

Tears started building in his eyes but they weren't moving Antonio at all. "...it is valuable and it will be the most expensive thing I know but I will accept it because I know mother thought of me with love and nothing else. As for my place in this house..." He furiously rubbed his tears. "...you don't have to worry about anything at all. I don't plan to overstep my boundaries. I am used to all this anyway."

Praveen took a quick turn and left the room. Antonio remained standing there dumbfounded and still wondering if the person that had spoken was Praveen. He had expected him to keep quiet and reject the gift but he was really surprised.

Meanwhile, Praveen went downstairs and met with Emilia whom he thanked a lot for the phone. She hugged and kissed his cheek instead and told him how valuable he was in their house and their lives. If only he could hear those words from his husband's lips but according to Antonio, he was a curse, a plague in his life.

Emily told him that she was sorry about his family but she promised that he wasn't gonna miss them that much because she was gonna make him happy.

The day went on with Praveen cooking lunch and dinner which everyone appreciated except for Antonio and Andrea. Things were heating up and Antonio was quiet at the table. He was thinking about what Praveen had said to him in the room.

When night came, Praveen just grabbed a blanket and pillow and went to sleep on the couch before Antonio came to sleep. He had had enough pain as it was and he didn't wanna hear anything. He was still thankful for the phone but that didn't mean he was to get pain in return.

The day went by and he was thankful it was successful, well most it. The next day was coming and a party was on its way.

***

The house was being decorated perfectly by the best decorators. It was shiny, sparkling everywhere one looked. Emilia wanted everything to be perfect. She didn't want any mistakes or anything to go wrong on her watch.

She had hired the best chefs to cook the food and the best DJ to play the music. The entire living room, floor, and even outside were sparkly. She had made some adjustments to the living room so that there was enough space for people to move and dance, most especially the two grooms.

Emilia had prepared the party for both Antonio's marriage and also his inheritance but to be honest, it was mostly about the marriage. She regarded it important because she knew that it was the most important thing to Antonio or so she thought because she had no idea what was going on in his brain.

She had gone to the biggest company they owned and then met with the lawyer to sign some documents and then she had left him with Andrea to finish up work and visit the other companies and finally hold a board meeting. She would have stayed but now she was busy preparing for the party. She had called up most of the people to invite them and she was excited.

She had chosen the outfit for her son and Praveen and she was really happy. She had given Praveen the outfit. She had prevented him from working and had the best hairstylists and makeup artists to make him glow.

It took the entire day for the preparations to be done but at the end of it, she was happy with the outcome. Everything was just perfect. She was just waiting for her son and the guests to arrive.

***

Antonio was seated in the car with his eyes outside the window, looking all around the compound as if he had been there for the first time. He was dumbfounded and he couldn't speak. He couldn't recognize his compound and he was confused.

The entire compound and most especially the house looked different. There were many cars outside that it got him wondering how many people had come. The house was glowing with the most expensive decors he had ever seen his mother put at a party before.

"Surprised?" Andrea chuckled, rubbing on his shoulder.

Antonio slowly moved his eyes, looking at her with a confused look. "Yeah, mom has never..."

"I understand you but she is crazy over that boy." She said harshly, clenching her fists. "Ever since he came to this house, she always wants him to have the best. He has just been here for three days and yet she is..."

"You don't have to worry about that," Antonio said in a dry tone, his jaws trembling. "Very soon, that boy will realize his mistake and he will be out of our lives for good."

"But he keeps ruining each moment in this house." She groaned, feeling anger taking control of her. "That boy will get it from me and I swear..."

"Andrea..." Antonio called.

"Just promise you won't fall for that boy's magic as mom has done and please..." Andrea chuckled teasingly, looking at her brother wide-eyed. "Don't even fall for his tricks. That boy is evil and he might try and take you away from..."

"Are you crazy?" Antonio grimaced, feeling extremely irritated at what Andrea had just said. "What do you think?