Chapter : 29 - Yaah Allah, uski hifazat karna.

Uns, every word is a command to me. She told me to win and come, and here I am, stepping out of the car after winning the race.

As I was stepping out of the car, I saw Samir running towards me, and within a few seconds, he had thrown his arms around me.

"Bhai, you won again!" Samir said with great excitement.

"Okay, now let me go, Samir, I need to leave," I said, breaking out of the hug.

"Where are you going?" Samir asked, while breaking the hug.

"Where else would I go? I told her I'd take her out for coffee, so that's where I need to go," I replied, taking off my gloves.

Who? Bhabhi? He asked with a mischievous smile playing on his lips.

I nodded my head as yes, but I don't understand why do I start blushing just by her mention.

We were talking when we heard someone else approaching us. It was Rehan, coming our way.

"Aziz, your phone, bhai. You left it on the chair in the room."

Rehan handed me my phone, and I thanked him with a big smile as I turned it on.

But my smile didn't last longer, it quickly disappeared when I saw the screen-there were several missed calls from Uns and Sahara.

Uns? I murmured slowly, it's very rare for her to call me, and Sahara too?

Without wasting a second, I called Uns immediately, but she wasn't picking up. Just as I was about to call again, Sahara called me. I picked up instantly.

"Bh- Bhai, Appi-" came Sahara's broken voice from the other end, and just hearing her say "Appi" sent a wave of anxiety through me.

"Wh- What happened to Uns?" I stuttered.

"Appi... isn't opening the door, Bhai," Sahara said, her voice was even more broken now.

"Why?" I asked, but my voice seemed lower than before, as if my ears weren't ready to listen anything right now, nor my heart is ready to handle anything about her.

"Ammi and I have been knocking on her door for the past hour, but there's no response from Appi, and neither Abbu nor any of the house staff are around. Please come quickly, Bhai," Sahara explained in detail.

I don't know what came over me, but an unsettling feeling washed over me. I looked at my phone screen, where Uns missed calls were displayed.

Uns called me two hours ago and she isn't giving any response from past one hour.

"Aziz, what happened?" Samir asked keeping his hand on my shoulder.

"Un- Uns isn't opening the door," I said looking up at him, it was even difficult to say this phrase.

"We have to leave now Samir," I said and hurriedly opened my car door.

"Get in," I said to him, but he wasn't moving an inch from his place.

"I can't go there, bhai," I stopped my actions and looked at him to see him looking down.

"Then were else your planning to go right now?" I asked him, being utterly confused by his sudden change.

"I- I just can't go there with you, bhai," he said again his tone was cold. I literally want to curse him right now, but I don't have enough time to do all this.

"Jahannum mein jaou, phir," I said while gritting my teeth, and without wasting a moment, I got into my race car.

(Then go to hell)

"Yaah Allah, uski hifazat karna," I muttered unknowingly as I turned the key to start the car. But my hands started to tremble. Please don't shiver now, I need to get there.

(Yaah Allah, please protect her)

All the way, I kept praying for her safety. Uns, was absolutely fine till morning, then what happened to her suddenly. She is absolutely going to be fine Aziz, maybe......she is sleeping, or maybe...... maybe she is praying, or maybe.....

Even if I don't want, my mind is forcing me to think those scenarios which I don't even want to think.

I pulled up to her mansion, and rushed inside. Sahara came running to me.

"Bhai, Appi...!" Sahara said, while still crying.

"Nothing will happen to her, Sahara," I reassured her, walking quickly toward her room.

Outside the door, Amira Aunty was sitting on the floor, repeating her daughter's name over and over.

Amira Aunty's condition was even more worse than sahara.

At that moment, I didn't want to understand what had happened-I just wanted to see her safe and sound. After two or three attempts, I finally broke down the door; the door shattered into pieces in front of me, and that's when I saw her collapsed in prayer.

What I saw shook me. She had fallen in prostration on the prayer rug. The Quran was open in front of her head, the room was perfectly fine, but I wasn't.

My breath, my heart, my body-they all seemed to stop functioning. My legs gave way, and I fell to my knees.

"Yaah Allah," only this word left from my lips, seeing her in this position.

Amira Aunty and Sahara rushed to her, Amira Aunty cradled her head in her lap and started crying uncontrollably, trying to wake her.

Sahara was also trying to bring her around, but there was no response from her.

Meanwhile I was still on my knees, unable to move closer or say anything.

Sahara splashed some water on her face, and slowly, Uns began to open her eyes.

"Shukr Allah," I muttered when I saw her open her eyes.

Amira Aunty hugged her instantly and cried even more and kissing her whole face.

Sahara also hugged her. They were talking among themselves, but it seemed like i wasn't able to hear anything.

Agar Uns neh ek aur minute aankhen nahi kholi hoti, toh meri aankhen zarur band ho jaati.

(If she hadn't opened her eyes in the next minute, my eyes would have been closed for forever)

As Uns was talking with Amira Aunty, she looked at me and gave me a slight smile. She only looked at me for about five seconds, but it was enough to make my heart beat again.

I came back to my senses when Sahara tapped my shoulder. I realized I was still kneeling there. Sahara helped me up, and I sat on her couch. As I was about to brush my messy hair back, I felt something wet on my cheeks. Tears? Was I crying?

I looked at her then. The room was quite dark; all the lights were off, but the light from the moon outside was brightening the room. Even in the darkness, I could see her.

Her hijab was now completely loose, revealing a bit of her hair at the front. Her nose was red, and her gaze was fixed on her hands.

"Would you like some coffee?" Amira Aunty asked her.

She kept her head down and nodded to her Ammi.

"And you, Aziz? Would you like some tea-" Amira Aunty started to ask.

"Bring coffee for him too, Ammi," Uns interrupted.

And I... I couldn't say anything.

Amira Aunty got up and left the room to get coffee for us, leaving just me, Sahara, and Uns. Sahara said she'd help Ammi and straightened Uns blanket before leaving the room.

Now it was just me and Uns, with the moonlight. The couch was far from her bed, so I walked over and sat at the corner of her bed.

She didn't look at me, nor did she say anything; her gaze was still down. She was just looking at her hands, so I thought maybe she'd gotten hurt, but thankfully her hands were fine.

"Kaisi hoon?" I asked in a soft voice.

(How are you feeling?)

"Ab, theek hoon," she said, keeping her eyes still down.

(I'm okay now)

Then there was a flood of silence.

But what puzzled me was that I had no questions in my mind. Given how I saw her a little while ago, the only thing I wanted to see then was her, just to see her conscious and okay.

And now that she was sitting in front of me, my mind was filled with nothing but her face.

No questions, no thoughts-just her presence made all my worries disappear, bringing a sense of calm in me.

"Won't you ask me anything?" Uns asked, pulling me back to reality.

"What?" I asked back.

"Why I ended up in this state?" she asked again.

"I don't need to ask," I replied.

"You're here in front of me, and that's enough for me," I said calmly.

"Don't worry about me so much." After a long pause, she said.

"It's hard not to," I replied.

"Are you okay?" Uns asked.

"No," I replied.

"Why? What happened?" She asked, her voice was a little louder, but still her gaze didn't meet mine.

"I'm scared," I said, lowering my head.

"Scared of what?" she asked.

"Of someone," I replied.

"A person should only fear Allah, not anyone else," she said gently.

But how could I tell her that I was scared of her Allah itself? It was the first time in my life that I felt fear, but what was I afraid of? Why was I scared of Allah, and for what reason? I had no answers to these questions.

"But I have a question," I asked.

"Go ahead," she replied, but her gaze was still fixed downward.

"Were you always this close to Allah?" I asked after a while, I don't know why I asked this question, but I am still shock how can someone collapse in prayer.

"No," she said without hesitation.

"No?" I replied, being confused.

"I wasn't close to Allah, Nader. But I became close after an incident that showed me my true place. It taught me that only He could hear me, only He could understand me," she was telling and I was just listening to her.

kya sach mein, itni paak hoti hai allah ki mohabbat?

(Is Allah's love really so pure?)

A few minutes ago, my mind was completely blank, but now it was filling with so many questions.

I was about to ask her something else when someone knocked on the door. I turned to see Amira Aunty and Sahara entering the room with a tray of coffee. Amira Aunty handed me a coffee mug and gave the other one to Uns.

The room fell silent again, with the only sound of coffee sips.

I sat at the edge of the bed while Amira Aunty stayed near her, and Sahara adjusted the curtains in the room. I didn't know what to ask them; no questions were coming to my mind. I sat quietly with these three women, listening to their silence. I couldn't leave them alone, nor I wanted to.

Now the room had more light, allowing me to see Uns more clearly. Her gaze was still down. She had only looked at me for 5 seconds, and since then, her eyes had remained fixed on her hands.

In all this, I wondered, where is Hassan Uncle? Right now, she needs him the most. I didn't know what had happened to Uns, the only thing I know is she is in pain.

Another thing that puzzled me was why someone as pure as her, who believes in Allah so much, would be given so much pain by the same Allah. And yet, despite everything, she still has unwavering faith in Him.

"What did you make for dinner, Ammi?" Uns asked Amira Aunty in a soft voice.

"Your favorite dish, will you eat?" Aunty replied, stroking her cheek with a smile.

"Yes," she said.

Her voice was different today-it wasn't as bold and fiery as before; instead, it was very gentle and soft.

Aunty picked up the coffee mugs and called for Sahara, and both of them left the room once more.

"I'll be back in a minute," I said to her as I stood up.

"Where?" This time, Uns raised her eyes suddenly.

My heart skipped a beat when I saw her eyes-the same eyes that weren't even looking at me earlier were now locked onto mine. There was nothing in her eyes-no fear, no sadness, no despair. They seemed empty, and I couldn't read anything from them.

"I brought something for you, it's in the car. I'll go get it," I said, heading towards the door.

She didn't respond, and I started to go downstairs.

"Bhai, are you leaving?" Sahara asked from behind.

"No," I said, turning back.

"Then where are you going?" she asked again.

"I left something in the car, just going to get it," I replied.

Sahara said, "Okay," and headed towards the kitchen.

I grabbed a bag from the back seat and re-entered the mansion. The smell of food drew my attention toward the kitchen. I went in that direction and saw Amira Aunty serving biryani onto a plate.

"Aziz, should I serve some for you?" Aunty asked with a smile.

"No, no, aunty, I'm about to leave," I replied, kindly declining the offer.

"But it's been a while; you should eat here," she insisted.

"No, aunty, Ammi must be waiting for me. Thank you, though," I declined again, trying to sound polite.

"Sahara, serve the biryani, I'll get dessert for Uns and Aziz," Amira Aunty said to Sahara as she headed toward the fridge.

As Sahara was serving the biryani onto a plate, I stepped a bit closer to her.

"Serve a little more biryani," I whispered.

"Why?" she whispered back.

"I'll be eating with Uns, right?" I whispered again.

"Unbelievable," Sahara said while turning towards me and rolling her eyes.

"And add more kebab pieces, Uns and I both like them," I added, ignoring her sarcasm.

"Of course, bhai," she replied, while giving me a tight smile.

Sahara and I entered Uns's room to find her staring at the Lego daisies on her nightstand.

"Should I stay or go?" Sahara asked.

Kabaab mein haddi banne ke shauk hai tumhe Sahara?" I asked her.

(Do you want to be a third wheel, Sahara?)

"Bhai, Seriously, bezati huh? Sahara said, while crossing her arms.

(Bhai, seriously? Insult huh?)

"Are you leaving?" I asked, ignoring her taunts.

"Yes, I should now," she said, then walked out of the room.

Throughout all this, Uns's gaze remained fixed on the daisies.

"Uns," I called to her.

"Yes, tell me," she replied, looking at me.

I left a little space between us and sat in front of her. I took a spoonful of rice and brought it near her mouth.

"What are you doing, Nader?" she asked.

"Feeding you," I said.

"Is that necessary?" she asked.

"Not really, but I want to," I replied.

She didn't say anything and started eating. I was feeding both her and myself.

We both finished eating in silence. She didn't say anything, and I didn't ask her anything either.

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Sabse pehle toh Mazrat, intezaar kar waane ke liye.

Shukriya, intezaar karne ke liye.

Mazrat, aap logon ke feedback ka jawaab jald na dene ke liye.

Shukriya, chapter padhne ke liye.

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