Unique | نایاب

Thanks, @lostgirlinthedreams for sending an amazing book cover. I loved it. God bless you.❤

Unedited:

Agr woh pooch len humse tumhein kis baat ka ghum hai,

Tou phir kis baat ka ghum hai agr woh poch len humse.

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"Zahra beta you will hurt yourself", Faryal picked up Zahra from the shelf of a closet. Faryal was trying to arrange the closet but Zahra was not letting her do anything. Zahra whimpered and struggled back to get away from her Ammi's hold.

"Shhh little one you gotta listen to your Ammi", Zahra gave her a quizzical look and stopped struggling.

"Let's ask Nadia baji for help. You know she is our savior", Faryal said to Zahra, glancing at the messed-up clothes in front of her.

"Jee kese bolthi hai Zahra? (How does Zahra say yes?)", she said lovingly looking into Zahra's eyes.

"Jeeee (Yes)", Zahra smiled and nodded her head vigorously. Faryal laughed, kissed Zahra's forehead, and mumbled "Mera bacha (my baby)".

She went out of the room with Zahra in her hands. Her eyes fell on the retrieving figure of Nadia baji in the corridor.

"Nadia baji", she called her name softly, but she didn't hear that and entered into a room at the far end of the corridor.

"She didn't hear", Faryal mumbled and followed her. She peeked inside the room and paused. Her eyes widened. She looked around the room registering everything.

"Faryal bibi", Nadia baji's voice pulled her out of the trance.

"What is this Nadia baji?", she asked in bewilderment.

"Zahra bibi's room", Nadia baji frowned. "You didn't know about it?"

Faryal shook her head indicating a "No" and entered the room. The room was elegantly decorated in a girly theme. Faryal grazed her fingers on the toys. These were not the things, these were the broken dreams of someone and she knew how much it hurts.

"Ayza bibi and Zohaib sahb decorated this room but....", Nadia baji sighed. "No comes here now. I sometimes come here to clean it".

"My Ammi has decorated a room for me by her own hands just like Ayza did", Faryal said meekly.

"I know how it feels Nadia baji", she added with glassy eyes and hugged Zahra. "Everything belongs to my Zahra and I'll make sure she gets that".

Nadia baji placed her hand on Faryal's head and said "I'm so glad that Zahra has you as a mother". Faryal smiled. Her eyes fell on the blank photo frame hung on the wall.

"Why were you looking for me Faryal bibi?", Nadia baji asked.

"Umm I needed your help", Faryal moved her eyes from the frame towards her. "I was trying to arrange the closet but Zahra wasn't letting me do that. So I thought I should ask for your help. Sorry for always annoying you Nadia baji but you know you are mine and Zarha's wonder woman."

Nadia baji laughed. "Let's go then".

Faryal picked up some toys and glanced back at the photo frame and said "Nadia baji can you please bring that photo frame with you?".

"Sure", Nadia baji replied and they went to Zohaib's room. They both together arranged the closet. Zahra kept attacking but they somehow distracted her with her new toys.

"Bhabhi come downstairs. Someone is here to meet you", Zain said. Faryal changed her dress, made her appearance presentable, and went downstairs. She entered the lounge and saw ladies of the house sitting with a gracefully dressed girl. She wore a hijab and a dupatta on her one shoulder.

"Here is our Faryal", Mom said. The girl stood up and smiled.

"Faryal meet ASP Roshni", Mom said.

"Assalam u Alaikum", Faryal moved forward and gave her a friendly hug.

"Nice to meet you", Roshni stated.

"Likewise", Faryal moved back and they both gave a genuine smile to each other.

"Hi sweetie", Roshni greeted Zahra. Zahra hugged her Ammi tightly.

"Please take a seat", Faryal stated. Roshni sat down.

Roshni told Faryal that Zohaib and Ayza were her immediate seniors in school and she is also Ayza's parent's neighbor but they had shifted to another city a few years ago.

" Seeing Zohaib Bhai after years was such a pleasure. I wanted to meet you and your baby but Zohaib Bhai said I should pay a visit to Durrani house for that. So here I am.", Roshni said to Faryal.

She explained how Zohaib remained steadfast in his determination to bring the harasser to justice in such a short time. The harasser would be soon sentenced to 3 years in jail and a fine. Faryal was surprised to know all this because Zohaib didn't tell her anything. Roshni had lunch in the Durrani house and left after some time.

"Such a humble girl. Who will believe she is a police officer", Dadi Jan appraised her and everyone agreed.

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Zohaib got free from the hospital late today. He reached the house in the late afternoon.

"Mom please ask bhabhi to accompany us", Zain whined.

"Zain don't pressurize her betay", Mom replied softly.

"Fine if she is not going no one is going", Zain said sadly and went away. Zohaib heard their conversation.

"How should I make you understand that she is scared to go outside", Mom shook her head and turned around, "Zohaib".

"Assalam u Alikum mom", Zohaib moved forward and mom kissed his forehead.

"Walikum assalam", she replied. "You got late today. Did you have lunch?"

"I had some extra work. Yup, I ate the lunch Faryal has sent for me", He replied.

"Do you want anything else to eat?",

"No mom I'm tired. I'll take some rest",

"Go beta", Mom said and Zohaib went upstairs.

"Hey, Zahraaa" Zohaib exclaimed when he entered his room. As usual Zahra's eyes lit up.

"Walikum Assalam", Faryal said sarcastically. He laughed. Zahra threw her toys and crawled towards her daddy.

"Let me clean up myself first I can not touch you like that", Zohaib hurriedly entered the washroom. Zahra followed him but he locked the door. Faryal took her in her hands. Zahra kept knocking on the door.

"Zohaib I'm going to kill you. How many times do I need to tell you that you can silently go to the washroom first, without telling her. But no.....you have to announce first and make her restless", Faryal huffed.

"Daddyyy", Zahra called him and looked at her Ammi helplessly.

"Daddy is coming Zahra. Don't worry", Faryal tried to convince her. Zohaib opened the door. Faryal looked at him with narrowed eyes. Zohiab knew that look very well so he pretended that he didn't see her and took Zahra from her. Zahra squealed. Faryal sat down on her side of the bed.

Zahra signaled him towards her new toys and said something in her language. Zohaib scooted down and picked some in his one hand. He went towards the bed, laid down with his head in Faryal's lap and Zahra was sitting on his abdomen.

"Say daddy, Zahra", He urged.

"Day-diiii" Zahra said excitedly. Zohaib smiled proudly.

"Say it again", he pulled Zahra towards him and placed kisses on her whole face.

"Daddyyyy", Zahra said lovingly in low voice.

"Say it again Zahra", he said again.

"Dayyy-diiii", Zahra screamed. Faryal laughed.

"Zahra tell your ammi thanks for teaching you my name", he said genuinely.

"Zahra tell your daddy that your Ammi doesn't need these formalities", Faryal shrugged. Zahra picked up her toy.

"Zahra seems to like her new toys. From where did you get these?", he asked.

"From Zahra's room", Faryal stated.

"Zahra's room", Zohaib mumbled in confusion and paused when the reality dawned upon him. Faryal ran her fingers through his wet hair.

"These things are now with a rightful owner", she said softly. Zohaib nodded.

"I know I'm being nosy but I wanted to ask something else. Can I?", Faryal gave him a hopeful look. He nodded, again.

"There was a photo frame on the wall", she cleared her throat and added " Why is it empty?",

He thought for a moment and said. "We wanted to hang a picture of us with our baby. You know a family picture. Our golden memory in a golden photo frame", he replied in a low voice.

"Oh", she replied. She thought for a few minutes and an idea popped into her mind.

"Get up Zohaib", she said. Zohaib sat down.

"Ohoo", she facepalmed. "Idhr ayen (come here)",

She signaled him to stand in front of the wall, took Ayza's photo from the nightstand, and handed him.

"What are you doing Faryal?", he raised an eyebrow.

"Look it is not that hard, we can still have a family photo". She adjusted his hair.

"Give me your phone", he unlocked his mobile phone and handed her.

"Say Basheeer", she stated.

"WHAT?",

"Basheer", she repeated innocently. "Don't tell me you don't know what does it mean".

"I don't know", He shrugged.

"Such a burger" She scrunched her nose. "It's the desi version of 'saying cheese' while clicking a photo. I've learned it from Meesha".

"Meesha", he rolled his eyes.

"Ready steady...Basheeeer", she chirped.

"Basheer", he said disheartedly. She looked at the photo and shook her head in dismay. "Give a normal smile Zohaib. It seems a forced one".

"Because it is a forced one", he reasoned and tried to go away.

"Last take", she grabbed his hand. "I promise".

She took few pics. He groaned, snatched the mobile from her hand, and stood beside her.

"Kardhi ho jao (Stand here)", He adjusted the camera for a selfie she kept looking at him in surprise. He turned his gaze from the screen towards her and stated, "Ab bolo Basheer (Now say Basheer)", he whispered. She smiled at his words. She turned her face towards the camera and he clicked a selfie.

"Get ready, let's go out", Zohaib told her. The color drained from her face.

"I..I don't wa-",

"I didn't ask Faryal. Go and get ready. I'm waiting", he said. She heaved a sigh.

"Zahra let's get ready", Faryal moved forward her hands to take Zahra from him.

"Uhu, she is not going with us", he said.

"No way", She frowned. "Where are we going?".

"Sunsan jungle (desolate jungle)", he said playfully.

"Ha.Ha.Ha very funny",

"It's just a matter of few hours. Zahra won't know and we will be back".

He looked at his wristwatch and said "You have ten minutes. Get ready or you will have to go like this, the choice is yours".

"Zohaibbb", she whined and looked at Zahra.

"9 minutes", he reminded her. She quickly went towards the closet.

"Wear something casual", he said loudly. She groaned. She picked up a pair of jeans, mid-thigh length lawn kurta, stroller, white sneakers and rushed into the washroom.

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Faryal was looking outside the window but her thoughts were somewhere else. Zohaib glanced at her and then back to the road in front of him. He turned on the radio and hummed a song. She turned her head towards him, he seemed in a good mood. A carefree and lively Zohaib was always a delight to her eyes. She smiled. After a few minutes of drive, Zohaib parked the car. They came out of the car. She looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings. It was a dam, maybe.

"Come", Zohaib said and they strode forward. He seemed familiar with the surrounding.

They went towards the ticketing cabin but she kept looking around the place. He came back and led her towards the shore, which seemed more like an adventure park. She sighed in relief that the place was not crowded.

"What would you like to do sir?", A guide asked politely.

"Parasailing", Zohaib replied and handed him the tickets.

"You can follow me", the guide replied.

"Are you doing this?", Faryal was surprised.

"We are doing this", he stated.

She froze. The panic rose in her heart. "No...I can't", she said in a fear-filled voice.

"You can", he grabbed her hand and followed the man. The guide made him wear the safety kit.

"I'll do that for her", Zohaib took Faryal's safety kit from the guide and helped her to wear it.

"Zohaib please I'm afraid of heights", she literally pleaded with her eyes. He buckled up her safety helmet, looked into her eyes, and questioned "Do you trust me?".

She nodded.

"It will be fun I promise", he tried to convince her. They sat down on the deck of the boat. They were strapped to the parasail and took off. The boat started pulling away as the parasail caught a draft and rose into the air. They rose higher, the further the boat pulled away.

"Ahhhhh", she shrieked.

Zohaib turned his head towards Faryal. Her eyes were closed in she was mumbling something, probably Quranic verses. He left the strap of his seat and took her hand in his hand.

"Easy Faryal", he said.

"Open your eyes, you are missing out on things", he said. "It's going to be fine".She peeked through her narrowed eyes.

"Mur hi jaon gi mein aj (I'll die today)", she said.

"kuch nahi hotha. Aray tum dekho tou sahi (Nothing will happen just look around)",

She took a deep breath and opened her eyes slowly. The view was breathtaking and surprisingly she wasn't scared anymore. In the beginning, her eyes were fixed on the same point but after some time she moved her eyes to look around. Once the peak parasailing height was reached, they started gliding around for a short period of time. She seemed normal. Zohaib smiled.

After gliding around for a while, it was time to land. As the boat slowed down, the parasail naturally started descending towards the ocean. The guides ensured that the parasail landed perfectly on the deck of the boat.

"Are you okay?", He asked quickly once they landed. His eyes flickered over her face.

"Better than okay", she replied breathily.

"We have to do the cliff diving too", he stated. She was hesitant as she was thalassophobic but didn't deny this time. She knew Zohaib won't let anything happen to her.

After doing cliff diving she looked at her wet clothes. It was impossible for them to sit in the car like this. Zohaib opened the back passenger seat door and picked out something in his hands.

"These are your clothes go and change yours, I'll do mine in the men's area",

"You are unbelievable", she was awestruck. They changed their clothes and settled down in the car. Zohaib bought Aloo paratha for the whole family from the Dhaba on his way back. He looked familiar with everything.

"Do you come here frequently?", she questioned.

"Yup, we used to come here a lot. You know we...", he paused.

"You both were fond of these adventurous kinds of stuff", she completed his sentence. "I enjoyed it too".

"I'm glad you liked it", he smiled. "The taste of these Aloo parathas is unbeatable. We don't have time today, but next when we will come here we will eat it in the Dhaba".

"With Zahra, right?", she looked hopefully.

"With Zahra", he confirmed. He turned the car towards the opposite road from their house.

"We are going on the opposite road", she stated.

"We have to finish some business here", he replied. A few minutes later he stopped the car in front of a shopping mall. Zohaib took the photo frame from the back passenger seat. They went to the photo studio, Zohaib gave them the photo frame and the photo he wanted to print and they told him to take it after some time.

The shopping mall was crowded. Cold sweat appeared on her forehead, the incident which happened to her a week ago replayed in her mind. Zohaib understood, he grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers. She looked into his eyes.

"You wanted the pendant. Let's buy it for you", he said.

They went to the jewelry shop. Zohaib showed them the picture of the pendant so they can buy the same one.

"If you want to buy anything else or another design, you can", he offered.

"No, I want the same", she said.

The salesman gave them the exact butterfly pendant. Her eyes shone with happiness. They bought the pendant, took the photo frame from the shop, and went home.

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"It was a new and scary experience but it was fun", Faryal was telling everyone about the parasailing and cliff diving experience while having dinner.

"That's great", Dada jan said.

"Thank you for bringing these Aloo parathas for us bhai and bhabhi", Zain said and stuffed his mouth.

"Zohaib said its taste is unbeatable, and it really is", Faryal said. She took a small piece of paratha and fed it to Zahra.

"Faryal's baba has invited us to their farmhouse and I accepted the invitation", dad said.

"Yeah uncle has told me as well", Zohaib stated.

"I didn't know", Faryal frowned.

"It is going to be fun", Usman said.

"When are we going?", Mom asked.

"Day after tomorrow", Dad replied.

"ASP Roshni came to meet us today", Mom said.

"Hmm", Zohaib hummed.

"She is such a nice girl", Tayi ammi appraised.

"Uzair beta what do you think about Roshni?", Dadi jan questioned suddenly. Uzair nearly choked on the food.

"Why would I think anything about her Dadi jan?", Uzair replied politely. He knew where this conversation is going. He silently started eating again.

"Uzair beta you know what does Amma jan is asking", Tayi ammi said. "You either tell us if you like someone or let us do something. We can not wait for you anymore",

"I don't want to get married now. Please close this chapter mama", Uzair replied. He stood up and left his dinner unfinished.

"Uzair beta at least have the dinner", Mom said but Uzair was fast enough to go away.

"Yeh larka meri jan le ga apni zid mein" Tayi Ammi started crying. Mom and Dadi jan were trying to console her while others were looking at them silently.

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"Zohaib we should talk to Uzair. Tayi Ammi was crying so much, I can't see her like that", Faryal suggested as they entered their room.

"It's their personal matter", Zohaib said.

"He is not only our family but a friend too, please come with me", she stated.

He heaved a sigh and said. "We will talk to him but tomorrow. Let's give him some time to think about it.". She nodded.

"You are right. Then we should hang the photo frame", Faryal said to Zohaib. She was holding Zahra.

Zohaib nodded. "We can hang it here, when Zahra will grow up I'll shift it to her room", he said.

"That sounds like a good plan", She bloomed. She took the photo frame in her hand, removed the paper wrapped around it, and stilled. It wasn't the picture she took of Zahra, Zohaib, and Ayza but it was the selfie Zohaib captured in which she was also present.

She looked at him. He was hammering the nail into the wall.

"Zohaib I think you mistakenly framed the wrong picture", she said meekly.

He turned around and frowned. "Show me", he said. She showed him the picture.

"No", he turned his gaze towards her. "It is not a mistake, it's a family picture and Zahra's ammi should be in it". He hung the photo frame on the wall.

She didn't know what to feel anymore. She was quiet for a moment, grappling with emotions that made her speechless. Her eyes were fixed on him. His actions spoke volumes.

He picked up the pendant and they went towards the dressing table. Zohaib slightly pushed her hair on one side and buckled up the chain. The pendant felt like a missing piece of her soul.

"Ab khush? (Now happy?)", he asked meeting her gaze into the mirror.

She turned around maintaining their eye lock. "Bohut zyada khush (Very happy)", she smiled.

"Just be happy", He smiled, moved forward, and kissed her forehead. She placed her head on his heart sandwiching Zahra between them.

"Thank you for being my rock", She said.

"Same goes for you", he replied. Zahra groaned.

They moved back. Zohaib laughed and took Zahra from Faryal. "Zahra wants attention too, attention seeker like your ammi", he was trying to tease Faryal.

"Zahra we would take it as a compliment. If he thinks we are attention seeker he will be the one to pay us attention the most", Faryal stuck out her tongue and Zohaib laughed.

I need somebody who can love me at my worst

No, I'm not perfect, but I hope you see my worth

'Cause it's only you, nobody new, I put you first🎶

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Assalam u Alikum/Namaste, ❤

I hope everything is great on your side.

How was today's update?

Thank you so much for your lovely messages and comments I'm touched beyond words. Apologies for not responding to you guys as I had taken a break from the Wattpad.

Love and light.❤