Chapter No 32
Chapter No 32
A few weeks later
"How is everything going on at the internship with Roman?" asked Haeem.
"I don't know, I have not seen him home since last week," said Saliha.
"Well, he became so busy that he did not even meet us," said Emaad.
"Where is Hunza?" asked Hania.
"I asked her, and she said, she is not feeling well," said Saliha.
"Come on, it has been three days since she did not arrive at college," said Hania.
"Three days?" asked Emaad, instantly. They all turned to him.
"Why? Are you missing your enemy?" asked Haeem. Emaad remained quiet.
"I think we should visit her this evening," said Saliha.
"I am in," said Hania.
"How many times have I told you to stay away from my things," said Wadiya, angrily.
"Mother, I am sorry, I was just passing by when I accidentally dropped it," she said, crying.
Wadiya was yelling at her while holding her pregnant belly.
"Just shut the fuck up," she said and raised her hand to slap Hala when someone grabbed her hand.
"Don't you dare to touch my sister," Emaad said, angrily, and then she shook off her hand.
"So you got a tongue?" asked Wadiya.
"You don't know what I got for you," said Emaad while clenching his teeth.
"Emaad," they heard a loud deep voice.
Hala felt as if someone snatched her soul away. She hugged her brother. She hated loud-pitched voices. She always got easily scared.
He looked down towards his sister who was shaking.
"Dad," he said, expressionlessly.
"Is that way to talk to your mother?" asked Mr. Irfan Alizai.
"Is that a way of treating a daughter?" he asked with cold eyes.
"Emaad, you are getting out of your limits," said Irfan.
"Dad, there were no limits from the beginning," he said.
Irfan walks towards him.
"Brother, no, please no," said Hala, crying. He felt pity for his sister, she had gone through a lot of pain and suffering.
Irfan was about to say something when he heard Wadiya's painful screams.
"Irfan, I think it's time," she said, holding her belly. He rushed to her. "They made my blood pressure so high that I went into the early pain," she said while pointing towards the siblings.
"I will deal with you later," he said to Emaad.
"Come on, let me take you," said Irfan while lifting her in his arms.
Emaad hugged his sister and took her inside.
"Relax, hey, it's fine," said Emaad, mollifying her.
"I did not break the bowl, she said she was hungry, I was making something for her when the bowl broke," she said.
"How many times I have told you, to stay away from her," he said, politely.
"Brother, are you excited for the sibling to be born," she asked. He stared at the wall for a while.
"I don't know," he said, coldly.
"How dared you do that?" asked Mrs Alam, angrily.
Hunza was playing a game on her phone when she entered the room, angrily.
"Do what?" she asked, expressionlessly.
"Hunza, you have crossed the limit, how could you create this mess, girl, you are getting engaged to Salar and that's final, whatever you do will not change anything," she said, angrily. She knew how to tease her mother as if it was her birth right,
"Mother, this is one and last, I will not engage and marry that prick and I will finish my degree," said Hunza, annoyed.
"Really? Let's see, your father has decided," she said.
"Since when are you relying on what he says?" Hunza asked while getting up from the bed.
"You have married, this family will establish our wealth even more," said Mrs. Dania Alam, Hunza's mother.
Hunza chuckled and then she started laughing.
"What made you think I will end up like you and Dad? Am I that crazy?" she asked with a dangerous expression. "I will kill him and bury him under my basement if he dared to marry me," she said and walked out of the room.
Kashan was sitting on the couch while eating an apple and he was enjoying the conversation.
He was staring at his sister.
"What?" she asked.
"Well, I like your ideas about burying him," he said, smiling.
"I said, shut it, I am not in the mood for shits," she said, annoyed, and walked out of the house.
"Your friends were asking about you," said Kashan.
"What on the earth you were doing in my college?" asked Hunza, annoyed.
"Well, I thought, I should get adjusted," he said. She rolled her eyes.
"Oh come on," she rushed out.
"Wait what? An engagement?" asked Hania. "Over my dead body," said Hunza, annoyed.
"But your mum, she said you have to," said Saliha and it reminded her of her time when a marriage was being forced on her.
"Well, I said, no never, I will kill him and bury him," said Hunza, angrily.
"Whoa, hold your pistols," said Hania. Hunza looked so pissed off.
It was 10 O'clock already but he had not arrived home yet.
"Why do I care? Jerk, he left me all alone in this big house," she thought annoyed.
Roman was so busy these days that she did not notice that his jerkiest ways were now nowhere to be found.
She walked inside the house, she was waiting for him to come so that she could sleep peacefully. Sleeping alone in this big house was creeping her out. Though he would sleep in his room but at least she will feel not alone.
"Where is he?" she thought just then she heard thunder.
"Rain? But it was not expected," she muttered. The rain is so heavy now.
She started feeling panicked.
"He is still not home, where is he? Must be fucking around with someone," she thought.
She started hating him for what he did to her but one part of her heart still beats for him.
She put her ego aside and dialled his number. After the second ring, he answered the call. He appeared drunk from the other side.
Saliha gasped. His voice was heavy.
"Hello," he said.
"Hello," she said, trying hard not to lose it. "When will you come home?" she asked.
"In a while," he said and coughed.
"Okay," she said, shortly and hung up the phone. She was thinking why Roman did not use bitter words today.
She sat on the couch, setting her head back. She was feeling very tired. She closed her eyes and it took hardly 10 minutes, she was in her heavenly early sleep when the door opened with a click. She opened her eyes instantly. He walked in and shut the door. He looked so tired. His coat was all soaked and the water was dripping down from his handsome face. His silky hair was sticking on his forehead, shadowing his blue eyes. His eyes were turning red due to sleepless nights. She was seeing him after two weeks; mainly she went to sleep earlier.
He looked at her from the corner of his eyes. Their eyes met and then he coughed.
He walked ahead.
"He is sick," she thought and got up. He walked towards his room through the stares and after a while, she heard the door shutting sound.
She was playing with the ring she was wearing and after a while, she walked towards the kitchen.
He threw his coat on the couch and fell on the bed. He was feeling very sick and coughing violently. His body was shaking due to fever.
He shut his eyes and almost lost consciousness.
Just then the door opened, and he opened his eyes half.
"Mom," he said.
She walked slowly towards him and sat in front of him.
"Mom, please don't scold me, I know I messed it up, it is just a common cold," he said in a deep voice while closing his eyes. He was hallucinating that Eliza was scolding him.
"Mom," he said again in a deep hoarse voice. Saliha felt her heart beating fast on his tone.
She bit her lower lip in frustration because she does not know what to do. She moved her hand ahead to touch his forehead. She was hesitant because she never touched him before.
She feared him but due to Hunza she gained some confidence in front of him and she was able to speak of his wrongdoings to her.
She placed a warm hand on his forehead while slightly slipping his hair aside. She felt his warm skin which was burning now under her palm.
"Mom, my head is burning," he muttered.
"First, stop calling me mom, and second, don't use this pillow, give it here," she said while taking a huge hard pillow away from the weight of his head. She set the warm and soft pillow under his head.
She set the thermometer in his mouth between his lips and started observing his facial expressions till the measurement. While observing she had gone lost in his glory and beauty again but his words came to her head again.
"You like to fuck around; you are joining slut club?" his deep arrogant voice was echoing in her head.
Her fists tightened.
She took the thermometer out of his mouth, it was showing 102°F. She placed it on the table.
"Here is the soup, drink it and the medicine is here as well," she said, half-heartedly, and got up when he held her forearm. She felt electricity passing through her body.
She turned. He was looking at her with his eyes half open. "Don't leave," he said in a hoarse voice.
Her hard heart was beaten again.
"Please," he pleaded. It was the first time she saw him pleading. She sat in front of him.
"Why did you call me?" he asked while getting up. He was now conscious to recognize her.
Just then a thunderstorm's dreadful voice echoed. She was startled. He looked up expressionlessly.
"You still afraid of thunderstorms?" he asked, chuckling. She handed him a bowl of soup. Their fingers messed with each other. She used to get scared of thunderstorms during her childhood.
"How does he know?" she thought. He took the spoon in his mouth and a very pleasant sense hit him.
"She made it so perfect," he thought. He looked at her but she was all lost in the movement because of the gulp made in his long neck. His Adam's apple was making it all storm in her thoughts but then she found him staring at her.
His eyes were cold. She felt embarrassed and looked away. "How did you make it?" he asked.
"I learned it from grandma when I used to get sick, she always made this for me. It includes ginger, vinegar, and a bit of spice, it will ease your cough," she said. He took another sip and it made him feel better.
There was an awkward silence in them. It was the first time they sat together without any fights and bad words from Roman. The silence was speaking for them.
After a while, he finished the soup and placed the empty bowl on the table.
"Medicines," she said while giving him some tablets.
"I won't take these," he said, firmly. She stared at him for a while but he did not touch the medicine.
"Why do you have to be so stubborn?" she asked, angrily.
"Don't talk to me in this tone," he said, annoyed.
"Here we go, he is back," she thought.
"If you do not take these you will not feel good," she said, bothered.
"I will recover," he said while looking away.
Aunt Eliza once told her about Roman's habit, he does not like medicines.
She took a deep breath and something hit her head.
She walked out of the room. He stared at her leaving. He felt a sharp pain in his head. He started rubbing his fingers against his forehead.
"Stupid pain," he muttered.
After she came back with warm water in the glass. He stared at her and then at the glass. She placed the tablet inside the warm water and after a while, it had all gone solute in the water.
"Here now you can take this," she said, smiling.
He looked up at her and his expression changed and for the first, she saw he had no command over his expressions. She sat on the stool while giving him the class.
He did not say a word and drank the solution. He placed the glass near the empty bowl.
"At least he can say thank you," she thought, annoyed. "My head is hurting," he said while touching his head.
"You have caught cold, it will go away in a while," she said, touching his forehead.
She hated him for everything he did to her. She wanted to scream at him. She wanted to tell him; she is hurt but today seeing him in pain she felt her heart was shattered into pieces.
"I thought he was fucking around," she thought.
"Saliha," he called her name and it was the first time she had not gone startled.
He opened his eyes.
"Don't tell Mom that I am sick. She will get upset, I don't want to make her upset," he said.
"He loves her mom so much," she thought. He closed his eyes again.
After a while, she heard him snoring. A tear fell from her eyes.
"I wish these moments could stop, and I wish you would not change. I wish Roman, this night will never pass. I wish I could sit like this, hold you, and I wish you would have never used those bad words on me," she thought while wiping her tears.