||Zayaan's POV||
Two months.
Two months had passed and in this whole two months, all I did was destruction.
Destruction from my office to my room.
Destruction from my brain to my heart.
Today, dad called me and told me to come back to Lahore before he came here and locked me to keep me insane or sedated me. Somehow, dad got the hold of everything about what happened here and what I was doing.
I rubbed my face in frustration and looked up at the sky from my car. Today was my last day here and today I would leave everything behind including her, who I didn't want to leave. I got out of my car and locked it before walking a little to see her last time.
I stopped when I saw her looking so beautiful like a goddess. Her eyes were down on the road as she was walking but what happened next made my blood boil. Suddenly, out of nowhere, a man came and held her shawl and tried to snatch it.
"A girl like you shouldn't roam alone," He told her with a creepy smile.
I clenched my fists and jaw and walked to them at a fast pace to teach that ugly and disgusting man a lesson.
"Leave it," She told him in her beautiful voice which I heard for the first time.
Her voice was like a melodic song to my ears and my heart felt pleasure and ease on hearing her melodic voice. I didn't have much time for feeling more pleased on hearing her for the first time because the ugly scene in front of me was making me shake in anger.
"Didn't you listen to what she said?" I asked the ugly man in anger and coldly.
I saw her, from the corner of my eyes, turning around and looked at me. But she quickly looked away with slightly pink cheeks and looked back at him.
When he didn't leave her shawl, I stepped beside her and glared at him intimidatingly. He stepped back in fear and slowly lost his hold. She quickly pulled her shawl from his loose grip and draped it around her properly.
"Ah! I understand you also want to take a little fun of this beauty," He made a mistake of opening his ugly mouth which made me grab him by his neck.
I held his neck tightly and squeezed it. His face turned pale yellow and he trashed under my hold.
"Leave him or you will kill him!" She shouted at me and I felt fear in her voice.
But it didn't stop me from killing him because I wanted him dead to open his mouth and talk about her like that. When I didn't listen to her, she tried to move me away from him with all of her little tiny hands and power. Her strength was zero in front of me and with one glance I could tell she was weak and delicate.
A delicate and fragile doll for me to take care of!
"I said leave him!" She told me, politely when I didn't move an inch but there was firmness in her voice.
Finally, I decided to listen her because I didn't want to make her hate me. I lost my grip on the man and he fell on the ground. In a second, he stood up and ran away from me in fear.
I turned around and looked down at her. I tried to look at her softly but there was still anger and coldness in my eyes for that ugly man.
"Are you insane? What if you kill him?" She asked me in frustration but her voice wavered in fear.
I didn't focus on her words but her voice and her beautiful big innocent eyes. I noticed something with many emotions running in her eyes from fear to frustration, horror, terror, worry, and concern.
When she noticed I didn't respond to her, she stepped back from me and picked her bag from the ground before walking away from me.
• • •
I was standing outside her school where she worked and looked at the gate. My heart and mind didn't want to leave her alone after what happened in morning.
Both my heart and mind craved for her and wanted to keep her close where she would be saved from the world. I wanted to hide her in my arms where she would be closed to my heart and no one could take her away from me.
The school ended half an hour ago but she hadn't come out of the school. I waited for her more and finally saw her coming out of the school.
She was walking in the direction of her house but stopped when she noticed me. Her eyes moved from my face to my hand and she took steps towards me slowly and stood up in front of me but kept a good distance.
"You need to aid it quickly," She told me and looked up at me in fear and in guilt.
I knew my wound on my hand opened again but I was careless about it. I looked at her and observed her carefully with my emotions safely hiding from her.
I noticed her tired eyes, pale and tired face and dark circles under her eyes which made my heart worry about her health.
"Come with me to the near pharmacy," She told me and turned around.
She started walking and I followed her silently and kept distance between us because I didn't want to make her uncomfortable. When we reached the pharmacy, she bought bandages for me and handed them to me.
"Thank you!" She thanked me and was walking out of the pharmacy before I could do anything.
Suddenly, she stopped walking when her eyes fell on something and she moved to that section. My eyes followed her every move but my heart stopped when I saw what she bought.
I walked to her slowly and stood behind her and looked at it properly with a blank mind. All I felt that time was cold and anger along with some unknown emotions mixed.
"Are you?" I asked her, coldly but before I asked completely the word ‘pregnant’ was stuck in my throat.
That coldness and anger wasn't directed towards her instead it was all I was feeling for myself. I felt responsible for her condition. There were many questions hovering in my mind with what if.
She didn't answer me but handed money to the cashier quickly. But when she turned around, I was standing in front of her and was waiting for the answer impatiently.
"My friend. She needs it," She said, quickly and quietly.
I knew she was lying when her voice shivered and she didn't make eye contact with me. She quickly stepped back and walked past me and walked out of the pharmacy while I was left in shock.
Numbness.
It was only one thing which I was feeling inside. I may look strong and cold from outside but from inside I was breaking with the pain which I gave her.
• • •
I had sent Asad back to Multan to keep an eye on Mishal and never left her alone until I ordered him through a phone call. Only person who knew this secret was me, Asad, and Hashim.
Dad didn't know everything; all he knew was that Qadir backstabbed us and tried to release a little information about us which made me angry. He had a rough idea about Mishal but he didn't know what I had done with her.
"Boss, Mr. Adil Jahangir's son died in a road accident last night and his funeral is today," Hashim informed me.
"Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un!" I whispered and closed my laptop.
(We belong to Him and to Him we shall return!)
I stood up from my chair and took my coat before walking out of my office with Hashim behind me. He drove us to Mr. Adil Jahangir's house who was a respectable barrister of the Supreme Court and my father's friend.
He was the man who never made a wrong decision in court and did injustice. His daughters, Innaya and Izzah, were friends of Aabro and his son, Taha, was a friend of my late twin, Rayaan.
Taha's death reminded me of my late brother, Rayaan who was always pampered by the whole family 24/7. His death took the happiness of my family and after the disappearance of Aabro, happiness became our enemy. Since one year no one in my family celebrated any day of happiness.
"We are here, boss!" Hashim informed me, pulling me out of my sorrowful thoughts.
We both got out of the car and walked inside the house. Everyone was gathered in the house for the funeral but when I stepped inside the house, everyone became silent.
I didn't pay attention to anyone and walked to where my dad was. Dad and I gave our condolences to Taha's father. After a few minutes later he left to receive Izzah from hospital who got injured in the accident.
We all were in the living hall when, suddenly, Izzah entered the house and screamed.
"Taha!"
She screamed his name and went to his body and tried to wake him. She begged everyone to wake his brother but no one could help her. Innaya tried to console her but she fainted.
I quickly rushed to her and picked her in my arms and took her to her room. I laid her on her bed and my mom sat beside her.
"I think it's because of shock," Mom whispered looking at Izzah who was like a daughter to her.
"I think it's time to bury the body," Dad said as he entered the room.
We all walked out of the room and went to the living hall except my mom and Izzah. All the men took Taha's body to the cemetery and it made me think of the time when I was in the same position a year ago when Rayaan left us.
• • •
I climbed on the roof of that house with my gun and rope in the hand. I wrapped a bandana on my mouth before I tied the rope tightly on the metal pipe and with the help of it, I jumped down and walked on the wall to the room where she was kept. I jumped on the window which made the window shattered into many pieces and I entered the room.
In a second, I shot two men present in the room and the sound of fire mixed with Mishal's scream. I turned to look at a man standing in front of her while she was crying on the bed, it made my blood boil. I lost my grip on my gun and let it fall on the floor and tackled the man in a second.
I punched him again and again and took all my anger out on him. The inner beast inside me wanted to rip him apart and kill him with more brutality.
I punched him until there was no breath left in him. His face was unrecognizable and he was beaten up so brutality to his death.
I left him and stood up and wiped my blood-full hands. I looked in the corner where I was crying loudly and it triggered my heart to see her like that. She removed her hands from her face and looked at the dead body of him with wide eyes that held fear.
I walked to her slowly and stood in front of her, two feet away from her. I slowly pulled down my bandana which made her gasp and her eyes filled with more tears and fear.
"You killed him," She whispered in disbelief and slowly wiped her tears.
Few minutes before, she was almost going to be killed by them and now all she cared about was them or how I killed them.
I controlled my anger and took steps near her while she was pressed against the wall. Her swollen eyes held fear and her body was shaking in fear.
"I did even if I have to do it multiple times then I will!" I told her, coldly and in anger.
When she again looked behind me at the body in fear, it made me more angry because I didn't want her to witness that disgusting and horror mess anymore.
I banged my fist on the wall beside her head which made her jump in fear and grabbed her chin and made her look at me.
"Are you scared?" I asked her.
She didn't answer me but her eyes answered me and told me everything. Again, she looked past me behind me at the bloody mess.
"You shouldn't be," I said, pulling her face near me by her chin.
My heart clenched tightly and my eyes turned from anger into soft when a tear flowed from her eye and rolled down her cheek. I moved my hand and wiped her tears softly.
"Get ready!" I whispered, softly.
After what happened to her in absence, I made a decision about her and I would not leave her alone now. If I had to force her to stay with me then I would do it.
"For a contract marriage!" I told her, sternly leaving no room for her to deny.
"I can't!" She whispered in a low voice which shivered with fear and her eyes filled with terror.
"Why?" I asked her in anger and pulled her face closer to me.
"I am expecting!" She whispered which made me lose my hold on her in shock.
I didn't believe my ears and all I felt that time about myself was disgust, pure disgust along with guilt.
"I said what I wanted to say and you will marry me no matter what," I told her, firmly and with a challenge to deny me.
• • •
I closed my eyes tightly and fisted the papers in my hands. I didn't have any power to look at the paper to know if the baby was mine or not. I opened my eyes and quickly put them in the drawer. I sighed heavily and sat on my chair behind my desk.
Everyone at home was doing preparation about this sudden marriage and I left Mishal with my mom and hid myself in my office room, in the warehouse.
I didn't make a doctor to do a paternity test and today I received reports but I had no power to know the truth.
I will die both ways after knowing if the child is mine or not.
I couldn't bear the pain if I learnt that the baby belonged to someone else nor could I bear the pain after knowing if that baby belonged to me.
I rubbed my face in frustration and decided to suffer this pain without knowing and gave that baby my name. This was the least I could do for the baby.
After our Nikkah and reception was done, I decided to keep a distance from her because I didn't want to lose control of myself. Everytime I looked at her, my heart got out of my control and I wanted to claim her fully when I couldn't claim her in this critical condition.
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