8.2|Fidaa: His Lost Doll|

She was consumed by the darkness in every sense. Whether it was her soul, or mind, or body.

She was waiting when another beast will come and destroy her more than she already was.

There was a time when she used to live like a normal girl, but one day when she was standing outside her school, waiting for the driver, someone kidnapped her and since then she was living in this hell. Where she is treated as a toy. Every night someone comes and plays with what a woman calls her pride.

She died the day her pride was snatched from her. She was a mere lifeless doll used for satisfying men's desires.

She was waiting for the time when she will die in physical aspects as well. Suicide was never an option, because someone had told her that this life is given by God and only he has the right to take it away.

All she could do was to wait.

For death.

The door opened with a loud thud, indicating that another devil is here to destroy her already destroyed innocent soul.

She closed her eyes, preparing herself to bear the pain again.

As he stepped closer to her, she began mumbling the holy verses she learnt by heart as a kid.

"Fida..."

Her eyes flew open and widened in shock.

How he knew her name?

No one here knew her real name. They called her Noor, because her beauty had a divine radiance.

As she looked at the man standing in front of her, she felt a sense of familiarity. She knew him. She knew him very well. That almost invisible mole on the right side of his nose. His shiny brown eyes, which looks almost golden when he smiles. His fair complexion, which used make her envy him.

"Aziz..."

He smiled, when she recognised him. But the very next moment she passed out. He held her in his protective arms, caging her with himself... forever.

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"Ya Allah, meri aur Aziz ki mangni tudwa do. Kaysan ko thodi akal dedo aur Marwaan thode ehsaas. Shafaq ko iss baar bhi top karwaana. Meri Amma ko thodi insaniyat do, aur mere Abba ko Amma ke saamne khade hone ki himmat. Dada jaan ko sehatmand rakhna. Aur meri pyaari Fida jahaa bhi hai, usey salaamat rakhna. Ameen."

Kauser finished her prayer and stood up from the prayer mat. She was about to wrap the mat when a strong grip held her right ear.

"Ni kudiye, tujhe mai jaanwar lagti hoon jo Rab se mere liye insaniyat maang rahi hai?" Shahana scolded her daughter. It was a ritual for her to scold her only daughter at least once in a day, and she followed this ritual without failing.

"Amma, tum un insaano ki category mein aati ho jinke paas ek percent bhi insaniyat nahi hoti hai. Ab dekho, kaun maa apne bache ka itni bedardi se kaan keechti hai?" Kauser being Kauser always had a comeback to her mother's sharp words.

"Mai keechti hoon! Insaniyat dikhane ke liye aulaad bhi toh dhang ki honi chahiye. Aur ye kyun Aziz se mangni tudwane ki dua mangti rehti hai. Allah miya ne dua qabool kar li, toh?" She left Kauser's ear and said the last sentence in a hushed tone, as if fearing if God actually granted her daughter's silly wish.

"Toh aapke muh mein gud-shakkar. Kya nek baat ki hai!" Even the thought of her engagement breaking with Aziz made her happy.

"Tujhe pata hai jab tu paida hui thi teri marhoom Nani ne mujhse kya kaha tha?"

"Amma, tab mai paida hui thi. Mujhe kya pata aap maa-beti milkar kiski chachi, tayi yaa phuppo ki chugliya'n kar rahe the."

Shahana slapped her forehead, wondering if the girl standing in front of her is her own blood or got exchanged in the hospital.

"Teri Nani ne kaha tha ke - Shahana, jis maa ki pehli aulaad beti hoti hai, woh bohat khushkismat hoti hai. - Mujhe toh apni khushkismati par shak ho raha hai." Her tone was a deafeated one.

"Amma, jis din aapko apni Mercedes mein ghumaungi naa, tab ho jayega aapko apni khushkismati par yakeen." She pinched her mother's cheek.

"Vaddi aayi Mercedes vich ghumaaun vaali. Kitchen mein jaa ke sabziyan kaat." Shahana told her sarcastically.

"Amma, mai 27 saal ki ho gayi hoon. Ab toh aise naa kaha karein." Kauser whined in response.

"Iss hi baat ka toh gham hai. Ladki 27 saal ki ho gayi hai phir bhi maa-baap ke ghar mein baithi hai."

"Tension naa lo. Ek din aapko apne khudke bungalow mein lekar jaungi. Waise bhi uss nikammey Kaysan se toh kuch hona nahi hai."

"Khayali pulao banana band kar aur jaa kar matar pulao bana." Shahana showed her the way out of the room.

"Jaa rahi hoon." Kauser said irritatedly and left while setting her hijab.

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"Kauser Sahiba, aapka mood itna off kyun hai?"

Marwaan asked mischievously when he saw a sad Kauser cooking breakfast in the kitchen.

He could never understand why women of the house cook even when they have plenty of servants.

"Kya lagta hai tumhe, kya hua hoga?" She asked while stirring the gravy.

"Umm... Shahana Mumani ne har roz ki tarah daanta hoga."

She didn't react to his words. It was everyday's happening.

"Marwaan, ladki hona kya itna bura hai?"

"Ye sawaal aap galat gender se pooch rahi'n hai."

"Tumse se toh baat hi karna bekaar hai. Tum ho hi patthar dil, koi ehsaas nahi hai tum mein."

{Agar ehsaas naa hotey toh aap par dil kaise aata?} He thought to himself and smiled.

"Ab jaane bhi do, Kauser."

"Kauser nahi Kauser Aapa. Tumse do saal do mahine badi hoon mai."

{Iss-hi baat ka toh gham hai.} He sighed while mumbling these words to himself.

Without uttering another word he left from there, Kauser didn't bother much at his sudden departure. He will himself began talking to her soon enough, he never gets angry on her. And that's why Marwaan was her favourite cousin.

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"Suno, meri shirt press kardo." Kaysan ordered to his - umm, you'll know yourself.

"Mai nahi kar sakti, maine padhayi karni hai." Shafaq ignored her umm... whatever and made her way to her room.

"O hello! Ye kya nakhrey hai? Tumhara farz hai mere kaam karna." Kaysan argued while holding the shirt and following her all the way.

"Kyun? Aapke haath nahi hai?"

"Ye mardo'n ka kaam nahi hai." Kaysan said arrogantly.

"Marwaan Bhai Jaan toh apne sare kaam khud karte hai. Woh mard nahi hai?"

"Unki baat alag hai."

"Bilkul. Kyunki woh padhe-likhe shakhs hai."

"Tum ne mujhe jaahil kahaa?"

"Maine Marwaan Bhai Jaan ko padha-likha kaha. Lekin aapki kahi baat se mai bilkul ittafaq rakhti hoon."

"Shafaq, ek saal class mein top kya kar liya tum toh khudko najaane kya samajhne lagi ho."

"Shafaq Irfani."

"Shafaq Kaysan Irfani."

"Abhi bani nahi hoon."

"Kabhi naa kabhi toh banogi." He smirked.

And Shafaq blushed. Doesn't matter how much she tries to convince herself she knew she had a soft corner for her fiance. The only problem was his arrogance and recklessness.

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"Dada Jaan, aapki chai." Kauser put the cup of tea in front of her grandfather, who was busy reading the newspaper while sitting on the head chair of the dinning table.

He didn't even hum in response and simply ignored her. Even if it happens all the time, Kauser didn't like this ignorance. Her Dada Jaan never ignored Aziz. Then why he treats her this way? Because she is a girl and Aziz is a boy?

"Marwaan Puttar, bina nashta kiye kahaa jaa raha hai?" Shahana asked in a slightly loud tone, much to her Father-in-law's displeasure.

Nawazuddin Irfani was someone who liked the company of peaceful silence. His younger daughter-in-law was someone who can't sit in a silent atmosphere and keeps disturbing the peaceful silence of his household. And that's one of the reasons why he was unhappy when his younger son Ibrahim married her.

"Mumani Jaan, kuch kaam hai."

"Tujhe toh har vaqt kuch na kuch kaam hota hai. Chup-chap yahaa baith aur khana kha. Warna tujhe dehleez se baahar ek kadam nahi rakhne dungi." She warned him in a motherly concern and Marwaan, like a softy he is, obliged her saying and sat to have a breakfast.

Shahana happily served him more than he could eat, but Marwaan won't complain. He was a boy grown without his mother's shadow, and it made him happy when his aunts would show affection towards him.

"Marwaan, girls' college ki construction kaisi chal rahi hai?" His elder uncle Ahmed Irfani asked.

"Mamu Jaan, construction toh kaafi achi chal rahi hai. Do mahine mein kaam khatm ho jayega."

"Aur asal kaam ka kya?" The Irfani Grandpa intervened while sipping his tea. He never complimented his elder granddaughter but Kauser is the only person who knows his tastebuds better.

"Konsa kaam, Nana Abba?" Marwaan asked hesitantly.

"Gaon walon ko manaoge kaise apni betiyon ko college mein padhaane ke liye? Agar woh hi nahi maane toh kya fayda ye sab karne kaa. Girl Education ke naare lagana kaafi nahi, pehle aurat par lagi bandishein hataana bhi zaroori hai."

The eldest Irfani had a point. A point Marwaan had ignored in his over-confidence.

Kauser, who was serving her father, spoke her mind.

"Dada Jaan, aap iss gaon ke zamindar hai. Gaon wale aapko apna leader samajhte hai. Aapne bhi mujhe aur Shafaq ko padhne ke liye shehar bheja hai. Hamare liye personal drivers hire kiye hai kyunki humein har roz do ghante travel karna padta hai, mujhe job ke liye aur Shafaq ko college ke liye. Aap apna example de. Log aankh band karke aap ki baat maanegein."

Kauser was absolutely right.

But he didn't reply, just put the empty cup on the table and began serving himself the breakfast.

Usually he would let his daughter-in-laws or granddaughters serve him. But when he was deep in thinking or have a foul mood, he preferred doing his chores by himself. Sometimes to distract himself and other times to show that he is angry.

Kauser again felt ignored. She was sure if Aziz had adviced him the same he would have immediately agreed to the idea.

She headed to her room to get ready for the office. Shahana noticed that Kauser left without having breakfast but didn't stop her, because she knew how Kauser's mood gets ruined when her Dada Jaan ignores her.

"Good morning, everybody!" Kaysan greeted everyone in a perfect British accent.

"Janaab, thoda aur late aa jate." Ibrahim Irfani told his son sarcastically.

"Abba Jaan, raat ko late soya tha. Exams kareeb aa rahe hai naa." Kaysan reasoned while shoving salad into his mouth.

"Kaysan, sach bata raha hoon. Agar iss baar bhi fail hua naa, tera hissa mai Aziz ke naam kar dunga."

"Achha! Aziz damaad bana nahi usey hissa dene ki batein ho rahi hai. Mujhe toh aapne kabhi chocolate tak nahi di."

"Toh bachpan mein chocolate kha-kha kar tere daant kaise kharab huye the?"

"Woh chocolates mujhe mere pyare Bade Abba diya karte the, aap nahi." Kaysan said while looking at his Ahmed Abba respectfully.

After this Ibrahim Irfani began counting the times when he gave Kaysan chocolates and Kaysan simply denied saying it never happened. And it continued for next half an hour.

Nawazuddin Irfani sighed thinking how his grandson diverted the topic from his poor performance in studies to chocolates. And how his innocent son easily got tricked.

It was a pretty normal day, everyday Kauser would be getting upset over little-little things, everyday he would be indirectly helping Marwaan in his project, everyday Kaysan would be tricking his father.

But as the main door opened...

The normal day turned upside down.

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Alright, it's first time I am using Urdu dialogues. Do tell me if there is some kind of mistakes.

I have updated this chapter especially for souldead

I was actually planning to update when I finish writing the whole story, but mission failed at the very first chapter.