Siren of Hearts

32. Time To Talk

Siddharth took a deep breath, attempting to quell the rising anger within him. "So, why did you want to see me?" he asked, his voice measured but laced with an underlying intensity.

Ishita's mother responded with a smirk, her demeanor calculated. "To see if you're any different than what I thought," she replied casually, studying Siddharth's face for any sign of vulnerability.

Siddharth nodded in silence, waiting for her to elaborate. "Then, what did you think of me?" he inquired, a hint of impatience in his tone.

She calmly retorted, "That you might be a little different than your father." Siddharth couldn't help but roll his eyes at the mention of his father, sensing an attempt to drag him into a narrative he had no interest in.

"I don't understand why you dragged my father into it, but here's a common sense," Siddharth stated, his patience wearing thin. "Most 'normal' parents think their children should resemble them in some way. Something I don't think you'll understand when you're manipulating and forcing your own child against her will."

A glare shot from Ishita's mother as she scoffed mockingly. "You think I'm forcing Ishita not to meet you?" she questioned, her tone filled with condescension.

Siddharth nodded resolutely. "That's certainly the case." 

She calmly stated,"  She is not seeing you because she doesn't want to. Why would she meet her father's murderer's son?" The shock in Siddharth's eyes was unmistakable as her words hit him like a sudden blow. 

Siddharth's shock transformed into a resolute posture, though his eyes betrayed the turmoil within. "What?!" he exclaimed, his voice carrying a mix of disbelief and indignation.

Mrs. Raichand smirked again, reveling in the discomfort she was causing. "Why? You have no idea? Your father was a coward who ran away from his job for his own selfish reasons," she declared, each word calculated to inflict maximum impact.

The revelation hit Siddharth like a sledgehammer. Memories of that fateful night resurfaced, the trauma still vivid in his mind. He connected the dots, realizing that Ishita's biological father had died on the same night that shattered his peaceful childhood, a night that had devastated his once-normal life. After a moment of absorbing the truth, Siddharth nodded, a mix of emotions coursing through him.

His composure held as he questioned, "Then why didn't you tell her the whole truth, rather than only portraying my father as a 'coward'?"

Mrs. Raichand was momentarily caught off guard by the unexpected counter, but she quickly regained her indifference. She sighed dismissively, "Why should I? I don't owe you and your father anything." With that, she stood up abruptly, issuing a final warning. "Stay away from her. It's better for both of you." And with that ultimatum, she walked away, leaving Siddharth to grapple with the revelations and their implications.

The night was unforgivingly sleepless for Siddharth, his mind wrestling with various scenarios on how to approach Ishita. The entire day had been spent in solitude within the confines of his room, having called in sick at the fire station.

As evening fell, a resolute decision took root in his mind. Ishita needed to know the whole truth; without the complete picture, her judgment of him and his father remained skewed.

Determined, Siddharth decided to initiate a conversation with Ishita. The chapter that he had been reluctant to unfold, he now wanted to lay bare before her. Waiting patiently, he stationed himself outside her hospital, sending her a text notifying her that he wouldn't leave until she arrived.

After weeks of silence, Ishita finally replied that she would be an hour late and requested him to leave. However, Siddharth remained steadfast, standing in the cold outside the hospital. As the night progressed, nearing 9 p.m., he spotted her emerging from the hospital, accompanied by her colleagues.

Ishita, seeing him rubbing his hands together in the biting cold, couldn't bring herself to ignore him this time. She walked up to him, a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and perhaps a hint of apprehension in her eyes. Siddharth, determined and braving the cold, was ready to confront the complexities that lay ahead.

She walked up to him, a small glare of concern visible on her face as Siddharth stood in the cold for hours. Siddharth, sniffing a little to hide the effects of the cold, met her gaze with determination. Ishita looked into his eyes warmly and insisted he should go home. She explained that she had a team dinner in a restaurant and would be late.

Undeterred, Siddharth nodded confidently, "I'll keep waiting till then. Go ahead." 

Ishita sighed in frustration, addressing him by his nickname, "Sid..." 

He sighed and reached out, holding her hand desperately, "Please. I can't let you suffer alone anymore. I want to tell you something important."

She began to speak, but he shook his head, "I'm not here to clear my name or my father's. I just want you to be aware of the whole truth before making any conclusions." Ishita understood the gravity of his desperation. 

She turned to her colleagues who were waiting and said, "You guys go on. I'll see you tomorrow!" They left, leaving Ishita and Siddharth alone.

She looked at him, sensing the cold affecting him. Taking his cold hands in hers, she led him towards her car. It was time to talk, and Siddharth was ready to lay bare the truths that had been concealed for too long.

Ishita, determined to make Siddharth feel more comfortable, ushered him into her apartment. Though he hesitated at the entrance, she gently pulled him inside.

She instructed him to sit on her couch and disappeared into her wardrobe for a moment. She returned with a short scarf, which she delicately wrapped around his neck to shield him from the cold.

Seating herself next to him, she initially avoided making eye contact. To break the awkward silence, Siddharth remarked, "I'm not a child that you're warming me with this scarf."

Ishita arched an eyebrow, challenging his notion, "Why? Is a scarf only made for children?" A small laugh escaped him, and then he took her hand, tracing patterns on the back of her palm with his thumb in silence.

Finally, he sighed, "Your mother asked me to meet her." Ishita looked at him in shock. 

Ishita's gaze shifted downward, a mix of emotions swirling within her. The weight of her mother's revelations hung heavily in the air, and she could sense Siddharth's understanding of her complex feelings.

In an attempt to ease the tension, he reassured her, "She didn't say much. In fact, I said some things out of line. She just told me that now you know about your biological father's unfortunate death and its reasons."

Ishita chose not to respond immediately, grappling with the inner turmoil caused by this newfound knowledge. Discovering that Siddharth's father might be connected to the tragedy surrounding her own father wasn't an easy revelation to digest.

Despite the less-than-fond memories she had of her biological father, she couldn't entirely erase the glimpses of his calm posture that lingered in her mind. The situation had grown increasingly complicated, and she felt the weight of the past pressing on her shoulders.

Siddharth continued, a deep sense of anxiety and urgency in his voice, "As I said earlier, I'm not here to clear my father's name. I'm just here to show you the other side of the fact you know. For my father, being a son, a husband, and the father of two kids comes first, then comes his recognition as a fire station chief. He had always put his family first before everything. He did the same on that night as well."

Ishita listened intently, her anxiety growing along with her curiosity about the events of that fateful night.

Siddharth's recounting began to unfold the harrowing tale, "My father was on duty that night, but he had seen something suspicious in our colony, some disturbance and riots were happening between two groups. He told us to be careful and not to go outside at night. When he was on his way to an operation... he heard about the increased tension in our colony. The two groups started fighting in the streets, breaking and shouting echoed in every resident's ear."

His voice trembled with the weight of the memories, the recollection of that frightening night etched vividly in his mind.