"What am I hearing now?" Martin asked.
"I think he said he isn't going to Boston," Dhamini repeated what Julian had said a few seconds ago.
"I am not going to Boston. That's what I said and pretty much, what you heard." Julian told Martin whose eyes bulged out.
"Seems like everybody has their own plans and I wasn't even told that they had something going on," Martin complained.
"Don't make them feel guilty now. It's not like you don't have plans you, yourself." Stacy defended the rest of them while ratting out her fiancé.
"I do have plans and that's why I called them here to tell them. But really though, what do you have planned Julian?" Martin changed the subject and got it back to Julian.
"I do have a boyfriend. His name is Alan King, he is from Haifa, Israel. His family owns a resort there and it's not just some dumbass resort, it's a freaking 100 acres' resort. He offered me a job there as a computer and information research scientist and his family has agreed on that." Julian spoke so hopefully.
"How long have you known the guy? Are you even sure about what you are doing?" Alysa asked him.
"Turns out Alysa knows nothing about this. Big up Julian." Justin congratulated him for having that whole thing planned out in secret.
"I have known him for three weeks. He came to the US for a meeting running away from the arranged marriage his family planned for him back in Haifa. I spoke to his family via skype and it turns out, they did that out of love and care since they never saw him with any girl and they thought he only banged them for fun. But they didn't know that he was gay until when he introduced me to them as his boyfriend. I hope I have answered all of your questions." Julian then took a breath after that long rant.
"That is such a short time to decide a huge thing as that!" Martin intervened.
"You started dating Stacy after four days of knowing her. I see three weeks as eternity." Celine went for her cousin's rescue. "And all in all, it's love. It's never predictable."
"When are you leaving?" Alysa asked him.
"Tonight."
"What?" Almost all of them were shocked except for Celine who burst into laughter.
"I was to go after my house arrest finished but it turns out, there is no any place in the police department which holds a criminal record of mine and which states that I'm under house arrest. Thanks to Martin, I will be getting away from that misery sooner than what I prayed for." Julian told them smiling though his eyes held so much hurt and pain.
"How did you crack that one?" Celine asked Martin.
"I have people I know there. I pulled a few strings and I had everything I needed." Martin said still in shock.
"You also have plans Martin, what are those?" Julian asked Martin.
"Stacy has got an offer which will be our breakthrough to better and quality life. We are moving to Los Angeles for that offer. We leave in two weeks." Martin finally said what their plans were.
"Two weeks! That's too long. I'm leaving for Canada with Anna and Justin." Alysa said.
"You are leaving with us?!" Anna was shocked.
"Yeah, just book three tickets. I have a guy waiting for me in Montreal." Alysa told them while grinning.
"Why does everything seems so weird?" Dhamini asked to earn grunts from Martin who had called the meeting and wasn't expecting any of that.
"Who is that guy? And where had you met him?" Anna asked her sister and before she answered her, she added, "And don't ever tell me it's one of Blake's friends. You won't go anywhere out of this restaurant."
"Chill sis. I met him on the annual workshop of Food Central and we've been writing to one another since then."
"That's all! I need more information!" Anna inquired.
"Name is Levo Abel. Chef at Montreal international hotel. He is old enough since he has a job, an apartment in which he lives, two dogs and two cars. Everything else is mine to know and share and I don't feel like doing so." Alysa glared at her sister and Anna understood that she wanted a little privacy in her relationship since she seemed not entirely sure about the whole thing.
"Well, how about you Dhamini? Everybody else has everything planned out. And what of your relationship?" Stacy asked her.
"Well, I also received an offer but I'll be going to India first next week to settle things at home. Either way, my visa runs out this Friday." Dhamini said.
"We haven't spoken since I came back. Can you come over to Toronto and we will go to India with you?" Justin proposed.
"You are going to India?" Dhamini didn't believe Justin.
"I have unfinished business there. I'll finish my business and settle down with Anna there." Justin said and everybody was feeling bad for him. The unfinished business must be his family and that's why they were all touched with that.
"Good luck!" Celine told him.
"Where are you going after India, Dhamini?" Julian asked her.
"New York Museum. They offered me to be their Director of development." Dhamini answered Julian with love and grace.
"Holy shit! That's some rich opportunity. Congrats bitch!" Alysa flung herself at her sending both of them on the floor.
The rest started to laugh at them but it didn't last long as somebody called Celine's name.
"Celine."
They all turned to where the voice came from and there stood a boy nearly the same age as Celine. He was handsome and shining.
"What do you want?" Celine replied.
"Is that even a question? You left without even saying goodbye. What do you expect me to do?" The boy said to her.
"I expect you to leave me the fuck alone."
"Why should I? I told you last night was a mistake!" The boy pleaded.
"Is he Kell?" Stacy asked.
"Yes, I am."
"Mistake! Trying to rape me is a mistake! Fuck you!" Celine snapped at him.
"I thought you wanted to do it and that's why you came over to my place! You told me that you would let me know when the time came-"
"And did I say that I was ready?"
"You came to sleep with me!"
"Did I say I was ready? And I didn't come to sleep with you, I came to sleep into your house so dad wouldn't find me at the campus." Celine was hot on him like a burning house.
"I told you I didn't know. I'm sorry. You could have said something before you left at least." Kell pleaded with her.
"Well, now that you insist, I know that I could have said something." She then stood up and went to stand near him before she shouted at him. "WE ARE OVER!"
¶
"That was damn cold for a breakup," Justin spoke on the phone while packing the last of his clothes in the bag.
"Do you think I expected that? I never knew the Kell guy and I was shocked with the whole drama that went down when he appeared." He continued.
"Celine is wild and woozy."
Anna who had finished getting ready, stood at the bathroom door trying to get Justin's attention but he was busy discussing the event that took place a week ago when they were in Florida.
"Julian! I'm glad that you remember us every time but if he doesn't stop talking to you right now, we are going to miss our flight. I'll remind him to call you when we are not in a rush." She snatched the phone from him and spoke to the other person on the line sensing that it must be Julian since he was the one who called them after every few hours.
"Hello, Anna!" It wasn't Julian. It was Kenneth.
"Kenneth!" She was shocked hearing Kenneth being on the phone with Justin. As far as her memory was concerned, the last time they spoke, it ended with Kenneth calling Justin a rascal and a cheat. What changed?
"Yes, it's me." She eyed Justin as she lowered the phone down. Her face illuminated disbelief over Justin. She saw him as some kind of a jerk, stupid, and whatever word that befit a person of his type.
"Listen Ken. As much as I would like to insult you and say whatever word that is running through my mind right now, I don't have the time. My flight is worthier than your stupid existence." She then disconnected the call.
"Anna, what was that about?" Justin asked her.
"It was about shutting off all the bad influences and pave the way to good life full of positivity," Anna replied to him already angry and going for her luggage.
"That's bullshit. Do you even know why he called?"
"Do I need to?"
"Maybe if you had calm your tits and acted like a normal person for even a second, you would have known if you need to or you don't." Justin snapped at her making her turn to him.
"Now that's insults, Justin. And I can't believe that you are insulting me because of a person who called you a rascal and a cheat. A person who hated every single part of you."
"A person who -" Justin didn't get to finish what he was about to say as their bedroom door opened and Alysa walked in.
"What's with the noise? You are fighting at 3 in the morning, who does that?"
"We weren't fighting. We were saying goodbye to our beloved bedroom which carries a lot of memories." Justin didn't want to let her know that they were fighting.
"I'm not a toddler."
"You better tell him. what kind of a guy picks up a phone of his enemy at this hour?" Anna pitched in.
"Kenneth is not my enemy because he never was one. And he will never be." Justin shot back at her.
"Well, the answer is that kind of a person is Justin. And what did he want at this hour?"
"Does it matter? He wants no good for us."
"Are you sure? Or you are just shouting whatever that seems like an English word that comes into your mouth, huh?" Justin made a powerful attack on her for yet another time that morning.
"Well, since you are bickering like little children and wasting my precious time, I need the both of you out of my house right now."
"We don't do that to people who give us places to shelter our asses." Dhamini appeared at the door dressed properly for the flight.
"As long as I get peace, I will do whatever I feel like," Alysa replied helping with the luggage.
"And I kept thinking the perfect couple never fights," Dhamini commented going to help with the luggage as well.
"It was barely a fight. Why do you guys keep straining it?" Justin was getting impatient with how everybody kept acting that early in the morning.
"I don't think Anna baby agrees with you." Dhamini pointed out what Anna's face implied.
"Glad you saw that. He picked up the phone from Kenneth and that is at this hour." Anna started the fight again and since Dhamini knew Justin the best, she saw that he didn't want to get into that at that time.
"To be completely honest, I'd rather stuff my ears with whooping cream than listen at anything concerning that jerk." Dhamini looked at Justin with eyes full of comfort and sorry.
"You see! No one wants to hear even his name, from where did you muster the courage of picking up his call? And who gave him your number first of all?"
"Anna! I get it and I'm sorry if I'm too soft, but it's me who picked up the phone and it has nothing concerning you. And I have a flight to catch, so do you." He picked the rest of his stuff and went to the car finding Alysa at the driver's seat.
"Hop in. And where are the rest? I need to drop you off and come back to have some rest." She was being all bossy already.
Justin had traded his apartment with some guy from Montreal who was moving to Toronto for his business. It was a perfect trade as he was trying to find a place for Alysa in Montreal and the guy was looking for a place a little bit quiet but in the city, Justin's apartment qualified for that and so after talking agreements and letting each person's tenant know of the exchange, Justin secured the place for Alysa and the guy would move in at the place that Justin was leaving behind. He also left his car for her and that's why she was being a classy bitch.
After a few seconds, Dhamini and Anna appeared from the door and locked it as they went climbing at the back seats of the brand new Toyota Camry that Justin was gifted by his professor after winning the model UN debate of International Universities, which turned to be Alysa's since they were going away to never come back. His professor was retiring and he had never won the model UN debates before and that's why for Justin making his dream become reality, he gifted him the car.
"You still mad?" Alysa asked when she started driving to the airport which was 20 minutes away from where they lived.
"I don't even know. I think I need to relax a little."
"If you needed so, you would have told Kenneth to disconnect the call. He does nothing other than just stressing you out." Anna chimed.
"Anna! Could you please shut the fuck up? I'm not in the mood of dealing with your ruckus right now."
The rest of the drive was silent as nobody saw Justin that angry before except for Dhamini who also knew that when in that mode, you better get your shit ready before fucking with him. He would burst out like a dormant hundred thousand years' volcano which got active again. He always went into beast mode.
They reached the airport in no time and they said their goodbyes to Alysa who didn't even want to see them off but get back to the comfort of her own bed which she left at the apartment. Her apartment.
Justin didn't speak to Anna during the waiting time and even when they were ready to board the plane. He thought maybe he would speak with her during the flight since it was a 15 hours long flight but Anna bailed out on him when she saw her friend from university and traded seats with Dhamini.
"This is so top-notched!" Dhamini told Justin as she slid into the seat.
"Tell me something I don't know already."
"I don't even know how this relationship started. Could you walk me through it? And don't give me the madly, deeply shit cause I see you aren't even in love with her let alone those exaggerations."
"Truly, I don't even know. We were friends and then the last thing I remember we were kissing at a party and everything happened so fast that I didn't even have the time to process what was happening. I shouldn't have let things go this far."
"Don't blame yourself. Your first relationship was way too shitty for you to learn anything from it. Or get anything I can say." Dhamini comforted her cousin as she patted him on the back.
The announcements were then made and soon after the plane was already taking off. Justin glanced goodbye at the city which he had got so familiar with during the whole time that he could see it. When the city disappeared out of sight, he turned to find Anna who was sat at the far end of the plane doing the same. He smiled at her but she quirked her lips and continued to speak whatever the hell she was speaking to her friend.
"I don't think this relationship is going anywhere."
"Dhamini, please! I'm trying to be positive here." He said to her making her raise her hands in an excusing manner. "First tell me what happened at home after Grandpa died."
"So, you are interested now?"
"Just tell me, duh. It's not like there is anything else far more important to talk about."
"Well, we could talk about what Kenneth Webster wanted, or I should say, Kenneth Desai."
"You didn't want anything to do with him, what happened now? And also he is still Kenneth Webster." Justin then turned his full attention to her.
"Maybe I was interested but the moment wasn't right. Just tell me what did he want?"
"Okay, I'll tell you but you have to tell me what happened at home first."
She wasn't completely happy with that but she agreed and started where she had left off. She had told him about how when they got back, Raichand said that Justin was dead making grandma go into a comma. Grandpa was sick after that and when Shania told them the truth about what happened, Aayesha wasn't happy about what Raichand did and grandpa as well. And so grandpa got angry making his sickness grow over time and died after just a few weeks.
She then continued to tell her how Aayesha had been so down and everything going so awry in the family business. The Singhs even decided to help them by allowing them to have Shreya and Karan but on one condition, that the Solankis would educate Dhamini and let the Singhs have her when she finishes her education. And that was the reason she was going back to settle things with both families and let them know she belonged to her own self only. She wasn't anybody's property.
"That's the craziest thing I've ever heard in all my life." Justin was sad but he had to confess that what those two families did was dumb and crazy.
"Well, you haven't lived that much and you aren't me so, I'm gonna let you have it this time," Dhamini told him as she adjusted herself at the seat.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Whatever you think it means then that's it. No time for explanations and overthinking."
"That's a relief then. And so, Karan and Shreya are Solankis right now?"
"Kind of. Aunt Aayesha didn't want them to take the Solanki name for her tribute to our father, but they are everything Solanki."
"And the heir is Karan."
"Well, duh. You got disowned. He got adopted. Everything else works out itself after that." She rolled her eyes so hard that if Justin was correct, they hurt for that. "And you know what, stop with the stupid questions since you are going there to see everything for yourself. Just tell me about Kenneth."
"Why so curious? Do you love him?" Justin joked.
"Love! Phht! I'd better love a horse I know I would have a ride than loving that jerk of a human."
Justin tested her patience by just looking at her smiling and saying nothing. He knew she would get mad and would do a crazy thing and right she did. She pinched his lips till she left a mark and wiggled her eyebrows while smirking at him.
"That hurt so bad."
"Well, you better get talking."
"He turned down the New York job he was offered and he is going to Boston. And before you say anything, yes he wants to stay away from you and doesn't want to make your life a mess than it already is. He also didn't want to change his name and he's going to Boston to fill the space which was reserved for Julian."
"That's way too manly for an egocentric person like him." Dhamini wasn't believing what Justin was saying.
"You are telling me. He even apologized and said he feels bad talking to you and so asked me to apologize on his behalf! Kenneth has changed for good."
"You just made my bladder fill up quickly. Give way." Dhamini got up and went to the washroom before she got back to catch up with Justin and made a lot of stories before they fell asleep at around 8 am.
¶
Justin and Anna along with Dhamini, went to Karanpur together to meet his parents and ask for forgiveness but it didn't end well. He expected it to be smooth and even if it turned out with a negative answer, then at least they would have let him off easily. But nothing as such happened.
"Anna," Dhamini called over at her. "You ever been in rural areas before?"
"I haven't. And I'm still living a better life without that experience." She replied a little rude than what they expected.
"I didn't mean to say that you were missing out, I just wanted to know if you have been or haven't. That was all I was looking for."
"At least now you know more than what you wanted, the silly questions might stop."
"Actually, that is great since I won't have to deal with your junkyard attitude anymore. I didn't want to be seen rude though that would have been better."
Dhamini wasn't a person to back down in situations like those and Anna was surely not a measure to her. Justin had to help them out before anything wrong went down which again would be a problem to Anna since the model-looking Dhamini was strong and athletic to take down easily a person who just starved themselves to contain their bodies.
"I think we are here already," Justin said motioning for the large gates that stood at a distance from the house.
They went inside the gates and stopped right beside the large wooden doors that hid the inside of the beautiful mansion from the outside. It wasn't like they needed the doors anyway because of the large yard they had, but it isn't a house or a mansion or a palace without doors. Double doors for that case.
"Wooow! This place is -" Anna was amazed by the beauty of the mansion not knowing what lied beneath it. What the people who lived there turned that huge house into.
"Gracious, marvelous, beautiful, and whatever you might think of. Get your asses inside." Dhamini took it into her to try and make everything fall into place and starting with getting the two of them to know who was the boss there.
"I didn't know farm girls can be so rude and sassy," Anna said disapprovingly.
"And murderous as well. A little pinch in the food and you are gone for good." She winked at her making her run to her things in an instant.
Dhamini got in first followed by the two of them. And as soon as she entered the double wooden doors of the house, she announced her arrival. "Guys! I'm back!"
It was Aayesha who appeared first. She was coming from the kitchen and lit up in joy for hearing Dhamini's voice, but as soon as she saw Justin and Anna, her smile vanished at an instant. It was replaced with a look too unreadable for a human being to muster in a fraction of seconds from smiling.
"Welcome honey. I didn't know you came with your friends."
Everybody was astonished after hearing what Aayesha had said. Dhamini had to put fingers in her ears two times to make sure that they weren't blocked and she was hearing right. Anna had to cross-check her mind if Justin had told her before that his family lived with a person who didn't know him and she got no folder for that.
"Mom! Really! That's all I am now?!" Justin wasn't believing what his mom was saying. It was hurting way too much for a mother to say those words.
"Justin! Is that you?" Karan's voice was heard from upstairs and when he saw him, he sprinted down to where he was.
"I knew you'd come back. I missed you so much, Jasu." Karan flung himself onto him making Justin smile after that little intense moment of rejection.
"I missed you too, Kar." He hugged him dearly and just then he smelled the fragrance he knew way too much. "You smell good. Not the smell of trees and leaves."
"Yeah, uncle makes me spray myself with this perfume he gave me. I like it though." He finally released him and just as he did so, Shreya who was outside came through the main doors and ran to Justin shrieking in pure bliss.
She looked happy that tears started to form in her eyes. She didn't leave even a pore to breathe from. She then started to sob so hard and so loud.
"Hey, Shreya! Don't cry. You are making me feel bad now." Justin was then afraid that he might have affected a lot of people by only thinking of himself but deep down he had no regrets. That was the thing that made him guilty.
"Stupid! Why shouldn't I cry? You left us like we meant nothing to you. Did we do something bad? Didn't you like us? Didn't you enjoy being here?" The questions were nonstop and Justin could swear that she was getting into his nerve with all those accusatory. They weren't really questions, they were accusations.
"Stop it, please. I'm here now and that's all that matters. I'm here to fix every piece that I broke even if it means to be broken myself." Justin said to her shaking her body before he hugged her again.
"What are they saying?" Anna whispered to Dhamini who was beside her at that moment.
"You should have learned Hindi. All those years with an Indian boyfriend and you can't even ask for water! Unbelievable!" Dhamini wasn't of help as instead of telling her what was going on, she was full of sarcasm.
"Since I'm here now, I might have to learn it. But can you tell me what are they saying? He is hugging her way too long." Dhamini then understood that it was jealousy that kept running inside her and not curiosity over the situation or anything else.
"She is her first-ever girlfriend. She is complaining that Justin left him so many years without contacting her and she demands to get married at an instant."
The answer that Dhamini gave Anna wasn't the one she had expected and since she didn't know what was the actual thing that they were saying, her features turned sour all of a sudden, and she got bright red and with a look so priceless.
Dhamini was satisfied with the reaction she got for her joke and so she couldn't stop the laugh that escaped her mouth earning everybody's attention. Dhamini was about to speak to introduce Anna when her mom entered the living room.
"What's all this commotion in here? Dhami baby, you're back." She saw the two of them first and was going in their direction before she finally saw Justin who was then out of the bear hug from Shreya. "Matta Rani! What a blessing today."
She changed the direction and went directly to Justin who went down to touch her feet and she gave him her blessings willingly. Justin was so happy about that. It made him feel like there was still hope of being able to solve things.
"How are you aunt?" Justin asked when he hugged her.
"I'm not yet dead, so, I'm still kicking."
The answer wasn't exactly what Justin was looking for but it was Shania. He felt a little bad about what had happened when he was away, but then, they didn't want him involved and clearly, they didn't want him to know as well. There was nothing that he could have done about that.
"Mom! What kind of an answer is that?"
"Hey, English girl! Don't teach me how to answer my questions." Shania told Dhamini in a so dramatic way making everybody laugh at that. Even Anna who didn't understand what they were laughing about, laughed as well.
"Is that your college friend?" Shania asked her daughter after she released her in the bear hug she had put her in.
"Actually, that is ..." Dhamini was finding the right answer for that moment but Justin helped her.
"That's Anna," Justin said motioning to her but Anna had a lot more planned than that so simple introduction.
"Hi, I'm Anna Peter Girlfriend and I'm Justin's girlfriend."
The reaction to what she had said wasn't pretty good as everybody looked at her as if she was a joke for April's fool. Justin even closed his eyes for what Anna had said and made her think maybe, they didn't understand her as she spoke in English and decided to make it clear.
She moved to where Justin was and intertwined their fingers.
"Me and Justin ..." She was looking for the right words to say but she kept thinking they wouldn't understand if she spoke. She had to show them. And that's when she tiptoed and kissed Justin on the lips making the whole house gasp in horror and terror. They even turned around not even ready to face the two lovebirds.
Justin was as shocked as everybody else but he couldn't move from where he stood after what happened. He was rooted in space by the action but just standing there not doing anything had caused a lot of consequences. Especially after a certain voice was heard from the stairs which were directly in front of them. The voice that Justin longed to hear again after those four years of missing him. The voice of his father, Raichand Solanki.
"Congratulations."