Bulletproof my Heart

27. The bedroom only has one single bed.

Can I earn without doing anything?

Chapter 27. The bedroom only has one single bed.

I look around the tiny house, it looks just as rusty and old-fashioned from the inside as it did from the outside. There's a threadbare rug in the centre of the room, its colours faded to muted shades of grey and brown. On the rug is a solitary armchair, beside a cracked fireplace, its mantle empty and dusty. In the corner, a rickety table and two wooden chairs occupy the space and there are thick curtains on every window. Next to the chair are about half a dozen beer bottles, most of them empty.

But despite the lack of interior furniture, I notice how the locks on the doors and windows are all new and there's a gun next to the fireplace.

Nimit comes from the small kitchen with a bottle of water. "I don't have much utensils in here. I have yet to wash the used ones."

"You don't have much of anything in here." I mutter, noticing the lack of personal touch and technology gadgets. His house is a stark contrast to this one, makes me wonder how is he surviving in this small space. I take a sip of the water and then raise an eyebrow at the scattered bottles. "You do have quite a lot of alcohol."

Nimit coughs awkwardly, picking up the empty bottles and throwing them in the dustbin. "I wasn't expecting company, especially not you. What are you doing here? You know you shouldn't be here."

"Then maybe you shouldn't have hugged me like you were dying to see me and you had missed me so terribly."

Nimit's lips twitch. "I didn't say I didn't want you here, I said you shouldn't be here."

"Tomato, tomahto." I roll my eyes. "I wanted some answers."

"How did you-" Nimit starts and then sighs heavily, closing his eyes as if to control his irritation. "I am going to kill Jace." Nimit grumbles under his breath, offering me a seat on the small wooden chair. It's a bit uncomfortable and hard but I don't complain. He takes a seat next to me, taking out a burner phone as he calls a number. "Greg. Yeah, she's with me. She's fine. Don't let anyone else know... yeah, I'll have her back in a while." He glances at my face and then sighs. "No, not tonight. Tell them she's with Sania. Yeah, I'll call you later."

I press my lips together to stop myself from grinning like a victorious fool. "So? I am staying the night... with you?"

Nimit rolls his eyes. "Only because I know you'll interrogate me for hours and the road back is dark and risky at night."

"Whatever your reason, I am just glad I get to stay." I grin.

"The bedroom only has one single bed."

"Then we'll just have to sleep really really close." I wink and catch his gaze, his eyes darken a bit before he blinks slowly and exhales.

"Your father is going to kill us both if he comes to know where you really are."

I shrug a shoulder. "We'll cross that bridge when we come to it. Greg won't tell him and I certainly won't so we are safe. Now, stop trying to deflect the situation. I came here for answers and I can stay awake all night long to get them. So, the first one, why did you leave without telling me?"

Nimit licks his bottom lip and avoids my gaze. "I – I couldn't say goodbye."

I snort at his reply and glare at him. "You sound exactly like Ved. He said the same thing. Please spare me that bullshit. I know you better than that, Nimit. Why did you really leave without saying goodbye?"

Nimit pauses for a second before replying. "Your father told me not to. He said it was for the best if I just ... left."

My jaw drops and my eyebrows furrow. As realisation kicks in, I scoff and roll my eyes at my father's awful attitude. "Of course he did. That makes a lot more sense. He told you not to do it and you obeyed him like a faithful puppy. How sweet! Are you proud of yourself?"

"Aisha..." Nimit starts and I shoot him an angry glare. "Your next words better be sorry, Nimit."

"I am sorry. I truly am." Nimit apologizes and I can see the guilt and regret in his eyes. It does little to cease my rage.

"Dad said that you left. He didn't fire you."

Nimit nods his head. "If he had fired me that meant losing the business. We couldn't afford that. I had to leave to keep the company afloat. And it was for the best."

"He also said that you are a threat to me, that you have dark secrets and your life is in danger." I gulp as I say the last word, my heart pounding as I wait for his reply.

Nimit takes the water bottle from my hand and takes a sip before answering. "I – I have a rather complicated past and there are some things that are catching up to my present."

I keep quiet, waiting for him to continue.

"My father died when I was 7." He says in a low voice, I have to strain my ears to hear. "Yes, you told me."

"I didn't tell you that he committed suicide."

My lips part in shock and I scan the apprehension lines on his face with concern. I see the flicker of pain that he hides in his eyes and my heart aches. "What? But why?"

"He was deep in debt. He took money from the wrong people and when he couldn't pay them back, he took the easy way out." Nimit shakes his head, looking at the pale ceiling. "He thought it'd be better to leave a woman and a young son alone to face the wrath of the horrible men he did business with. He thought we should suffer for all the mistakes he made. Fucking coward!"

Instinctively, I reach forward and grab his hand, intertwining fingers, giving him the comfort he so often gives me. Nimit squeezes my hand back. "The worst part is I was the one who found him. Mom was at work and he was supposed to pick me up from school. But after an hour of waiting outside, he still hadn't come. A teacher took pity on me and offered to drop me home. I was embarrassed and furious at my dad. This wasn't the first time he had forgotten to pick me up on time but he always came, even if it was 40 minutes late. But this time, it seemed that he had simply forgotten about me. I opened the front door, ready to yell at him and tell him how much I hate him."

His hold on my hand tightens. "But all words died on my lips. The sight I saw still haunts me to this day. He – he was just hanging there, a rope around his neck which was tied to the fan. A stool toppled under him as his body slowly swung in front of my very eyes."

My throat clogs and my tears up. I shudder as I imagine a small 7-year-old innocent Nimit watching his dead father's body hanging in the living room. It's enough to leave a scar that will last for a lifetime. It's just – cruel. How does one ever get over that? And looking at the agony and torment on his face, it's clear that he hasn't forgotten a single moment of it.

I guess, we just learn to live with the excruciating pain and pray that time will heal some of it.

"I screamed out for help and the neighbours came rushing in." Nimit continues. "After 30 minutes, my mom was in the living room, wailing so loudly that I felt my eardrums vibrating. She refused to believe he was dead, she even punched the doctor who came to declare his time of death."

"And where were you?" I ask with a harsh swallow.

Nimit gives a sad smile that breaks my heart into pieces. "I just watched from a corner. Everyone was so busy with my father and mother that they seemed to have forgotten the kid who found the body, the son who just lost a father."

"Oh, Nimit." I gasp out, tears spilling down my eyes. I get up from the chair, going to his. I settle down on his lap, hugging him tight. It's not comfortable because the chair is too small to hold two people properly but I don't care.

I wish I could take back all these painful memories. I wish I was there to comfort him when he needed someone. I wish I could heal his heart and soul.

And I hope he knows that he's not alone. Not anymore.

He has me. And I refuse to go anywhere.

Nimit hugs me back, his face settles in my neck and I feel the wetness on my skin. My own tears start to flow as Nimit cries for the loss of his father and all the challenges he has had to suffer since then.

You never get over the death of a loved one, never.

~~~

Have you ever lost a loved one? :(

Next chapter to have more about struggles and threats from Nimit's life.