Three Hearts

Epilogue #2

Updesh tapped his foot nervously, pressing his lips together and stared at the wooden door. His eyes glued on the golden nameplate. Weirdly, the name was making a different kind of fear chilling down his spine. He gulped, wiping the tiny beads of sweat from his forehead.

Mr. & Mrs. Parmarkar

"Lord!" He intoned, barely moving his lips and tentatively placing a small knock on the door. His knuckles met so softly with the wood that it barely produced any sound. However, the active footfalls near the doorstep told him someone was approaching the door.

Please, it should not be Mr. Parmarkar. Please. Please. Please.

"Yes?" An old man scraped the strings back and peeked from the door. His bushy, dark eyebrows created a soft crease on his forehead as he concentrated and the salt and pepper hair still made him look young. The glow on his face couldn't be denied.

Updesh knew his prayers were not answered and the man was none other than Nidhi's father. He stood there rooted, only making Mr. Parmarkar frown. "May I help you with something, gentleman?"

"Nidhi!" Updesh idiotically blurted and closed his eyes, cursing himself. He had no idea why he said that. Perhaps, she could save him from her father if he messed up.

So much for impressing him. He groaned and inched up his eyes to see that Mr. Parmarkar was full on glowering at him. He pulled the door open and stood before him in a challenging stance. "Come again?"

There you go!

This confrontational stage was least Updesh was expecting and he stupidly led himself there. He couldn't believe how much internally terrified he was inside. It made him feel like a thief who was caught red-handed. Especially for a crime he didn't commit. Yet.

"I, uh, am... my friend, you..." Updesh let out an incoherent stream of adjectives, very much aghast to recognise the speech un-coordination.

In a few previous conversations, Nidhi had told him that her father was an ex-serviceman and a very strict person. He knew she slipped out this detail just as casual information but it made him feel apprehensive. Though he didn't hide any ulterior motive, he still intended to have some intentions for Nidhi.

"Being an ex-serviceman, Mr. Parmarkar must be a very observant person. He would be a little intimidating." He had commented over the phone call and she had nodded in affirmative. "Of course, most of the time, he is intimidating to everyone."

She had further horrified him because Updesh knew she deserved better; someone far better than him. What was in him likely to get acceptance from a reputed family? A bad past, a dangerous career and close to no family. His insecurities just made him compare himself to absolutely nothing for such a possession that came in the form of Nidhi and her daughter. The fear grew more prominent of messing up. He didn't want to do anything wrong to risk Nidhi.

He just wanted to impress everyone in her family to get their acceptance and then perhaps they would see the good in him just like their daughter did. In the span of two weeks, Nidhi and Updesh grew more comfortable from sharing their pains and insecurities to laughing together in best memories.

She knew of his crush, his first gay experience, the long empty nights of hangover and his tasteless journey of food. He was cognizant of her first male best friend, her bully period, her transformation in college time and her struggle in hiding her boyfriend from her father when he came to visit her.

She said it was the worst experience for the guy as he still got exposed and Mr. Parmarkar threatened him with his service revolver. That was her first and last relationship because the guy spread rumors that she belonged to a dangerous family. It had made him grin. But, he didn't know he'd be seeing that revolver soon and the scowl on the old man's face was telling him that that possibility wasn't far.