YA' ABURNEE

Chapter 11

The weeks are passing by smoothly. It is the eighth month of us being married and the third of me realising I am more than fond of this man.

This evening when Umair asked me to read him the news article and kept staring at me intensely all the while, I realised what is this strange feeling I'm feeling for the past few months.

I'm in love. No double checks. No confusions. No question marks. No italics. I Am In Love.

Grabbing my bottle of water I walk out of kitchen. It was past midnight. But my sudden cravings to grab a small bite, knew no time limit.

I walk past his room. Slow and timid whimpers could be heard. I knew Umair was fast asleep. With time I've became more comfortable in this house than to fear of something super-natural. Investing the source of the sound, I quietly pushed his half open door.

Enormous Hamza Umair was writhing in pain.

I run to him, my bottle in hand long forgotten on the floor.

"Umair?" I sweep off the sweat soaked tresses of black wavy hair of his forehead as I take a seat beside his head. "Umair!" I call him once more. This time louder.

He has fisted his wearing in a tight grip. "Don't leave me." He shrinks to his bed more.

"Umair, sweetheart, no ones leaving you." I cup his face desperately. Trying to wake him up from his nightmare, I shake him vigorously.

"I-I promise I-" I near my ear to his mouth, to decipher his incoherent words. Something like-"Fat. Rid of. Break up." came out inarticulate.

He twists and turns in fear as he stretches his hands to grab something. I was anguished to help him and I offered my hands. "Umair! Umair! Honey, calm down."

He grabs onto my hands in despair. "Please!" He calls out, still in nightmare. A few beads of woe escaps his eyes, going down his face in my hands, and stabs my heart on their way.

I take his head on my lap. Soothing my fingers down his scalp. "Umair, look its me. Erum. Umair, open your eyes, dear." My eyes moisten.

This man acted rough and tough all day. Realising he was anything but that inside, was hurting me.

Umair's slow huffs leaves his mouth as he buries his face further into my lap.

And continues to cry in his sleep.

His ragged breaths halts slowly. I could feel his heaves ease down. I knew he is now back to his senses.

I looked down. His eyes were opening carefully.

"I-" His hands went up to his face, tracing the moist on his face. "I was experiencing nightmares again, weren't I?"

"Again?" I sweep tears off his face and my hand goes up to gently comb his hair. "Are these frequent?"

"Not frequent. May be twice or thrice in the past." He heaves a sigh of relief. "Did I disturb your sleep?" His eyes finally meets mine.

"Not at all!" I gently protest and peck on his forehead before trying to put his head off my lap.

He resists. "Can you sleep here?"

I strained myself momentarily.

"Just this night." He reassures. "Please?" He buries his face on my hands that were still cupping.

Considering he might get those nightmares again, I nodded my head.

He scoops to his left, making a place for me to lie down.

I lie down facing him. He immediately scuttle across the bed, to my side. As a bird caught in thunderstorm takes shelter between large trunks of trees, he took shelter in my petite arms.

I stretched my arms and threw them around his neck. I have to protect him was echoing in all of my body cells.

Just when I pulled him towards me, he buried his moistened and scared cold face on the crook of my neck. Almost immediately his body relaxes and sleep drowns him.

I stayed awake. For how long I can't remember. Extremely noisy birds outside apprised me, my head was aching.

I've never seen him cry. Or even go soft, unless we were romantically involved in a moment. No one sees this much horrid nightmare if he's not hurting inside. Unmindfully my fingers sooth down the back of his head as this thought came.

This man here has made me fall. And I fear I might've fallen headfirst.

He did almost nothing special since the day he asked for a second chance. Yes, a few homely dinner dates were special. In fact they'll always have a special seat in the gallery of my sweet memories.

There's some men out there. They sexually frustrate their partners and make them so emotionally disabled that they cannot decipher love from lust.

But, Umair on the other hand, did nothing to make me desperate or even entice me into any sexual relationship. Because let's face it, he was-oh no, he is handsome and at this stage all the had to do was beckon me to him. My stupid heart will surely do something really really stupid then.

He did nothing as such. There were some days when I wondered is he really interested in me or there's something more.

Yet I am falling for him, more and more everyday.

When initially my plan was something utterly opposite. I can not understand when and why my life took such an U-turn.

Umair stirred in my arms. Alarmed, I look down. He'll question me why am I still awake if he wakes up now. Thankfully, he did not. And I so was not ready to convey such conversion right now. Or may be ever.

He stirred and tuned to his other side in sleep. I stare at his broad shoulder. It is rising and falling down, almost in a too stealthy way to notice.

Slowly and carefully I snake my arm around his stomach and rest my forehead on his back. I take my mellowed time to enchant myself in this moment because I could've never done this if he was wide awake. My nervous self wouldn't let me.

Sniffing in his scent, I let sleep engulf me.

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