Bonus-2
Shehryaar had qualms about the new company. She didn't apprise him or did anything to bring it in his knowledge about her new job.
After receiving the offer letter, Shehryaar had come to her room seeking answers for his questions and her only response was,'I don't want to be fed on the money earned by you. This nikkah is for Chahat,' She had told him. Her voice wasn't hard but her words were. And after hearing that answer, he had stepped out of her room.
It was the moment of realization for her.
He changed.
Very much.
Because if it was the old Shehryaar, he wouldn't leave the room unless she would have signed the resignation letter to that company with her own hands.
A week already had elapsed since her joining. The company was growing. It was local. On national level. But the CEO Raza Kirmani, a 56 year old man, was still determined to make the roots of the company stronger and make it rise internationally. Nobody at the company knew about Sheharaad's association with Sheharzaad. They only selected her because of her experience at the Syed Enterprises. The top notch company not just of the country but also in South Asia. She had often heard whispers in her office that they want to reach the level of Syed enterprises. And even she heard some girls rumoring about Shehryaar. The most eligible bachelor of the country and in the business market.
Not just that, she had heard some girls whispering about the heir of the Kirmani group of companies, the only son of Raza Kirmani, Maaz Kirmani. His cabin was next to his father's office and was also considered as the boss of the company since they all knew that after Raza Kirmani, Maaz was the inheritor.
As far as Sheharzaad had judged from the conversations going on in the office, Maaz wasn't a serious guy. His father Raza believed in getting him married so atleast some responsibility would fall on his shoulder and he would become serious in his work. Though, she had personally never came across both of them. The CEO dealt with intricate matters. She was just a member of one of the teams working under a supervisor.
These days they were working on a new tender. A company had asked them to construct a certain hotel at a new spot but they were not even able to get pass the blueprint. As that company kept on rejecting every blueprint that they presented, pointing out minor errors and defaults. There was immense pressure from the CEO to get the deal locked with this company since it will be open the door of new ventures. The whole office was under a constant stress. Everyone was working on it. And the task was assigned to the same team in which Sheharzaad worked. Their supervisor was being hard on them. They were total of five. And Sheharzaad wanted to do something. Something extra-ordinary.
Day and night, at home and at office as well, she wanted to get the blueprint passed by their client. It was 2 in the morning and she was in the lounge, sipping on her steaming coffee while an A6 sized white page laid infront her on the table and a pencil in her hand. Her lashes narrowed, depicting her concentration. She was trying to find the possible errors due to which the map could get rejected. At the back of her mind, ran all the errors that had been pointed out by the client in the previous proposals given by her company.
She was busy when suddenly somebody's presence jolted her at her place. She looked back only to find Shehryaar standing there. She saw him coming near and occupying the chair next to her.
"You're still awake," he asked, looking at the chart and then back at her.
"I...yes," she answered shortly.
"I do not want my wife getting dark circles under her beautiful eyes," he uttered.
Sheharzaad remained quiet, nibbling on her lower lip and looked away.
"I want to work hard,"
"Hmm. Maybe I can help you," he mused, looking at the blueprint that laid infront her.
"I want to work hard.... on my own," she said, softly declining his offer.
"Alright, little lady," At this her heart emphatically skipped a beat and her hand slightly shivered.
"Go on," he said and kept on sitting there while subjecting her to his attention as she continued working.
She tried focusing hard but his gaze on hers as always made her nervous and queasy. On the cue, little Chahat came out running from her room while crying. It suddenly gained attention of both of them as Shehryaar stood up, rushed towards her and held her in his arms.
"What happened, baba's life?" He asked. Sheharzaad knew he was worried. Moments like these often made her realize that how important was it for a child to have both parents by their sides. She knew if she was able to do her job, at some point, Shehryaar did have a hand in it. If he didn't permit her or didn't support her and put all the responsibility of Chahat on her then it would have been really difficult for Sheharzaad to manage both.
"I saw a.....snake," Chahat cried out, while streching her arms to make him feel how much of a big snake she saw, obviously, in her dream.
Chahat was fearful of snakes. Back at the village, some areas often had big thick snakes crawling around and one day Chahat saw one which made her weak in knees and she fainted. Sheharzaad was alone with her. She had a bucket of water in her hand that she was carrying back to her home and Chahat who was accompanying her. She immediately left the bucket of water there and held Chahat running away fast. In Shehryaar, she saw Chahat's protector. If Shehryaar was there in that moment when Chahat had fainted because of a snake, Shehryaar had straightly shot that snake to death.
In Shehryaar, Sheharzaad often saw Chahat's protector but also her destroyer. The man who was the protector of her daughter and destroyer of her life was the same person. Irony.
She wished they met on normal grounds. She would have definitely fallen for him if he were this gentle and nice as he was now. They both could have a beautiful life where she would cook him food, she would be able to express her worries to him without any hindrance, she would love her, and he would love and respect her in return. Hold her whenever she needed him to hold her close. But life always had been opposite of what she imagined.
Shehryaar had gone with Chahat and made her sleep in his room. Before going with Shehryaar, Chahat requested Sheharzaad that she wanted to sleep in the middle of both of them. It was 4 in the morning. Sheharzaad already had offered her prayers. But not she was in a dilemma.
She didn't want to go and sleep with Shehryaar but she just couldn't Chahat's request just like that. It made her think, for how long, her daughter would be deprived of the feeling of having a complete happy family. Both of them gave their share of love to her but still the main element of being a family was missing. And at some point it was negatively impacting Chahat.
So she stepped ahead, and this night, she slept along with Shehryaar with Chahat lying in the middle of them.
But sleep couldn't reach her. As whole night, her eyes were just struck on Shehryaar's face and with the memories of her past.
How will she get over this?
How?
......
Sunrays entered the room, radiating a pain through her eye lids as she opened her eyes with one eye squinted. Sudden realization told her that she slept to her lot and longer than she usually did. And this realization was confirmed when her eyes fell on the wall clock.
12?
12??
12???
It was 12 o'clock. And she was suppose to reach the office by 9. An important meeting was held today regarding the progress of their project.
Instantly, she sat up, looking her left and right. Chahat wasn't there. Neither Shehryaar. It meant he had gone along with Chahat, dropped her to her school and then went to his office.
In a rush, she stood up from the bed, opened the door and was just stepping out when her face collided with someone's chest.
And that someone was one and only Shehryaar. He looked ready for the day.
She tried stepping back from him when one hand snaked around the small of her back and pulled her closer. Leaning down towards her, he brushed his nose with hers making her eyes go round.
"Late..." she uttered and straight away got herself out of his hold, not looking back, heading downstairs towards her room. As she reached the head of the staircase, she glanced back at him whose eyes were on her and in a rush she stepped down, lost her footing and slipped. Before the floor could hit her again, Shehryaar held her and pulled her in his arms.
"What's the rush, little lady?" he asked, raising his brows, concerningly while looking at her ankle.
"Office...I'm late," she told.
He held her in his arms, bridal style, since she wasn't able to put pressure on her feet.
"You're taking a leave today," he said and strolled down the stairs towards her room while carrying her in his arms.
Her eyes fixed upon his face. It was after years she was seeing him again this close. But this time, she could just feel gentleness coming towards him for her. Just gentleness. As if she was a flower and he a gardener.
And she was well aware this gentleness was exclusive for her. The people around him feared him, respected him and followed him in the similar way as they did five years ago.
His eyes cursorily met his as she was observing his face and momentarily she looked away but his enigmatic features again made her look at him.
She clearly remembered the first time her grey orbs had absorbed in his. She remembered it all. The fast beating of her heart. The mingling of their breaths. The hotness spreading across her cheeks. The thump thud in her throat.
And his mutter 'Careful' when she walked past him. The earthy scent was instilled in her nostrills. It still was.
His enigma had pulled her into a web of attraction. Days and nights, his scent would be reminisced by her.
She thought, love at first sight, was a thing upon having the first eye contact with her. Her heart hadn't beaten so wildly as it did when they first collided and she had noticed him.
But the day, when he had shown his true colors, she locked all those feelings and threw them in a corner of her heart. And still those feelings were locked in a corner of her heart. His brutality had locked those beautiful emotions. And she had no idea where the key to that lock laid.
"I wish...." she uttered, "I wish we met on normal grounds,"
The words that had been day and night on her mind atlast left her lips.