11. Aayi aisi raat hai

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Ziah watched as Parizad walked away with Daiyan. Her heart went out for the two because a moment ago they were laughing together and the next, Parizad looked ready to cry. No one could blame her though. A mother's position in life was something more important than air itself. Ziah smiled softly as she recalled her own and the burn at the side of her eyes made her aware of the awaiting tears that could flow any moment now.

Hastily wiping her eyes, she made sure not to smudge the eyeliner or else Allah knows what her face would look like!

Thankfully she had taken Parizad's number and would stay in touch with the sweet woman even from miles away. Her ears registered the loud yellings and whistles and it didn't take a genius to guess what was happening.

She watched as the car zoomed away from the wedding scene. Her stomach twisted in knots, as though to indicate an impending doom but avoiding her subconscious, she turned around to look for the next person she was close to.

Luckily for her or maybe unfortunate for her heartbeat, she found Marwan standing near the catering table with a bottle of water in his hands. His eyes were already trained on her and Ziah tried not to blush at his expression of disbelief.

Walking up to him, she gave him a small smile with a shy 'hi' and Marwan was quick to snap out of his daze. He gave a boyish grin in return and kept the bottle aside and just as he was about to speak, the call to bring the bride to the mandap was heard.

He gave her an apologetic look and Ziah shook it off with an assuring blink of her eyes. The two stood side by side and watched Preeta guiding her daughter near the sacred fire where her to-be husband Kabir was already awaiting her with a nervous look.

The man was a part of the intelligence agency and an expert with techs. He wasn't one of those buff and strong guys, no, he was a simple and reserved person who could do anything but uphold a conversation for longer than 2 minutes and to think that there he was, marrying a woman so fierce and one who played with guns like they were her personal toys seemed surreal.

Aliya winked at him from behind her burgundy veil and his wide eyes averted elsewhere if at all he ended up blushing in the midst of the hundreds of people around.

Ziah smiled widely at the scene while Marwan snickered beside her. A frown graced her features as she gave him a glance and Marwan was quick to straighten up. Giving her a sheepish smile, he gently held her wrist in his and walked near the mandap where they could see the wedding more clearly- and all this was an action so fluent, that it felt like a normal routine.

Ziah controlled her thudding heart as she felt the zaps of energy flow through her blood that was rising second by second. His touch didn't burn her, no, it felt so soothing, so fallacious that it scared the sane part inside her. If it were all to be a dream, just a moment that was meant to touch and go, she didn't know if she could survive for long.

Wounds if visible could be treated by anyone who had a sense of mercy but what if they were invisible? Imprinted on a person's heart and soul? Who then would be benevolent enough to heal wounds beyond their knowing?

But for her, her wounds had healed to an extent that they now felt like a past memory. A memory so cruel and uninvited that it was on the verge of getting buried deep in her mind's grave to never surface again. And all because the man in front of her had subconsciously given his best to not let a sense of slight discomfort creep into her heart.

The days that had passed by had shown Ziah more than enough. Her past experiences with men made her believe that they were nothing but gruesome, power hungry creatures who wanted nothing but control and dominance but was it with him?

Had she finally found someone that resembled her father's ideology more deeply that even she couldn't pin-point it? Had her heart finally accepted someone only for him to be taken away without any mercy?

Or was it all a sick game that her mind was playing? Trying to show her that she had hope when reality was nothing but a truth far away from what her heart desired?

"Kaha kho gayi?"

A whisper next to her ear made her cover a horrified shriek as she came out of her dazed state. Her wide eyes looked at Marwan who was giving her a funny look of amusement and she blushed when their proximity registered in her mind.

On reflex, her head snapped towards the front and she bit her tongue from wincing out loud at the force that she used to do the action. She heard him snicker by her side, maybe knowing very well how she was seconds away from snapping her neck into two.

She didn't bother looking at him for the rest of the while and silently watched Aliya being tied down to Kabir. The phere were done and Kabir was now putting the vermilion in between Aliya's parted hair. The crowd burst into loud applause and hoots as the two finally became each other's for eternity.

Ziah squealed in joy, her worries long forgotten as she smiled a wide smile on seeing Aliya's face that seemed to be glowing with felicity as she looked at Kabir who was already gazing at her with a love-struck look.

Ziah felt a little wish creeping into her heart, like that of a child on her birthday. A wish that they thought could only be fulfilled by their Lord. A wish to have nothing but years that would only make her smile and cry tears of bliss. Sadness was a part of life, it was supposed to come and be overpowered by the blessings of life, but for her that negative emotion was an everlasting feeling that she craved long for to be gone.

Her bizarre thoughts came to a halt as she heard a phone ringing beside her. Looking to her side, she found Marwan staring at his phone and passing her an apologetic look, he walked away to attend the call, leaving her alone in the sea of people.

"Ziah, beta idhar aana!"

The familiar voice of Madiha hit her ears and she sighed in relief on realizing that she wouldn't be alone.

Walking up to where the old woman was standing, she passed her a smile that turned to a look of curiosity when she found a woman in her early twenties standing beside Madiha. She looked prim and proper. Upto the world's beauty standards as so. Her eyes screamed ferocity but with a hint of warmth. Her features matched Madiha's but not entirely and somehow, Ziah knew that the two were related.

Madiha felt guilt trapping her heart in a brutal force as she watched Ziah's smile. But she knew what she was doing was the need of the hour and had to be done before futures and hearts both crumble to pieces without any leniency.

"Ziah, bacha meet Laiha, humare badi behen ki beti hai. She arrived just a few hours back in Bandra toh humne socha yahi bula lete hai ise."

Laiha's eyes gave a once over of Ziah's nervous form. An indecipherable look crossed her eyes and Ziah had to stop herself from shrinking under her heavy gaze.

"Assalamu alaikum. Laiha Zabur, pleased to meet you."

She moved a hand forward for a polite shake, a smile resting on her lips and her posture curt and that of defense. Ziah chuckled nervously and politely shook hands with her.

"Walaikum assalam. Ziah Aslam, pleased to meet you too."

Ziah scrunched her nose as the words felt a little too formal on her tongue and she shook her head. A soft look crossed Laiha's eyes as she observed her and she looked at Madiha, as if to delay what was about to come. Madiha read her niece's eyes and couldn't help the increase in guilt that she felt but it had to be done.

"Laiha came to see Marwan. Couldn't stay away from her fiance for far too long it seems."

Madiha chuckled towards the end, as though the situation was amusing but Ziah stilled in her place. Her mind became shunned at Madiha's words as she looked at the old woman and then back at Laiha.

"F-fiance?"

Her whisper came out like a gentle breeze that would have been easy to ignore if the two women were not standing close enough.

"Ji. The two got engaged a year back and decided to extend the wedding for a year more. Pata nahi aaj kal ke bacho ke dimaag mein kya chal rehta hai."

Madiha tsk-ed towards the end while Ziah could only give a nod. Laiha bit the insides of her cheek to stop herself from saying anything. Her heart had already developed a tiny weeny bit of liking for the adorable woman in front of her but seeing the crestfallen look on her face, she couldn't do anything but remain silent.

"M-main, Aliya ko dekh kar aati h-hu."

Ziah made an almost convincing excuse and offering the two ladies a small smile, she walked away. Her steps carried her to the stage where Aliya and Kabir sat with smiles of bliss on their faces.

And then she heard it.

The mocking laugh of her mind, as if to say 'I knew it!' in the most obnoxious of ways. Her heart stayed still, thinking even the slightest of beats would crumble it into pieces- pieces so fragile and many that it would take ages to put them together.

Her eyes burned, burned with the intensity to cry- weep.

Weep for the misfortune that her fate seemed to be filled with generously.

And then it clicked.

She took deep breaths to calm her chaotic emotions. Her heart finally stuttered as if afraid of what would happen the next second. Her mind cleared the painful haze, her breaths working as mud that was being thrown on her unavailing feelings, trying to dig them a grave deep in her soul, somewhere where they wouldn't be able to surface again but by Allah, how wrong was she!

"What's with that gloomy look?"

A whisper near her ears made her jump in haste. Her legs stumbled a little to the front but she was quickly pulled back before she could kiss the ground. A gentle grip on her elbow made her look up and just like that, her resolve of not feeling anything towards the one who saved her on occasions uncountable perished into pieces.

Her eyes that glistened with tears unshed met his that were like a river so pure, reflecting concern and the sparks of mischief that were hard to ignore. His mere presence worked as a bittersweet ointment on her wounded heart as her eyes met at war with his.

A war so silent yet so destructive.

The moon remained high and mighty, shining in its full glory, as if to say 'who could grapple with me?', oh, but little did it know that for a certain someone the moon was now just a forgotten beauty?

Marwan tried to control his breathing as he observed the fragile features of the woman in his hold. His hands still held onto her elbow as though afraid to let go. A touch so innocent yet so seeking.

His heart didn't let peace enter through as he saw her tears. His mind filled with eccentric thoughts that made no sense but he couldn't block them away and just like that, his soul was enraptured by the siren in front of him for the nth time in a row.

Aayi aisi raat hai jo

Bahot khush naseeb hai

Chahe jise dur se duniya

Woh mere qareeb hai

Were the words meant to sooth her heart? Ziah felt the harsh reality fading away just for the moment. The reality that he wasn't hers and could never be. He belonged to someone else, someone who was more deserving than her.

Or was she?

Kitna kuch kehna hai

Phir bhi hai dil mein

Sawal kahi

Sapno mein jo roz kaha hai

Woh phir se kahu ya nahi

The words slapped Marwan hard. His tongue was tied by an imaginary restraint, something that he didn't want but couldn't erase. His mind registered the bitter surroundings and he was quick to let go of Ziah's elbow as if it had set him on fire.

And it did.

A fire so wild and menacing that it looked ready to burn his last restraint that kept him sane into ashes.

He took a step back and so did she. The distance increased just physically while their souls tried to hold onto the invisible ray of hope- hope that what their future held was different from their present in ways that their heart craved and not what their minds mocked about.

Marwan walked away with quick steps, his mind bustling with words that remained uncanny while his heart remained silent, not knowing how to say what it yearned to unveil for what felt like ages.

And within seconds, Marwan felt himself stepping back into his conscience, his eyes blinked as he adjusted back to his surroundings. A frustrated breath escaped his lips as he rubbed a hand over his face. His hair that was made perfectly now looked untamed.

He bit his lips to not scream in vexation as his phone rang again. Any day now he'd bury the device 10 feet deep under the ground due to its habit of ringing at the wrong moment.

He looked at the caller id and immediately sobered up when it read the name of his best friend, Daiyan.

"Hello?"

An unfamiliar female voice spoke from the other end and Marwan squinted his eyebrows.

"Excuse me? Can I know who you are and what you're doing with my friend's phone?"

But what he wasn't ready for was the response that came from the other end. The last thread of patience in him broke with full force and the insanity in him looked ready to tear down anything in its way.

"Sir, the owner of the phone has met with a brutal accident and is currently being operated. I am speaking from the city hospital. It would be appreciated if you could arrive as quickly as possible so that we can start the needed treatment after the legal formalities."

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This has got to be the most intense cliffhanger I have ever written! Yikes, I feel so evilly good!!!

Mera koi haath nahi hai is sab mein. It's all 'kismat ka khel'. Ab kismat jaane how miserable it wants to make their life. I am just simply a means to put it all into words...

Or maybe I am not...

Ahh, it feels so good to write that. The idea had been in my mind for ages and now seeing it finally being put into words is sooo pleasing... Lol, but I know it's not for you. Ab kya kar sakte hai. Sabr karo sab, shayad uska fal meetha nikal aaye.

Can't guarantee anything!!

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