Ishq Kinara[Love Ashore] Complete

34. Sinking Ships

He angled his bike towards the all too familiar path but just when he was about to enter inside the lane, his bike stopped.

He closed his eyes. Must've run out of fuel or must've broken once again.

He got off and took off his helmet. He was eyeing his bike with a resigned look and then it turned into annoyance, leading to fury and he just kicked it in pure agitation.

He would walk home, it was no biggie.

But why always, when he was close to getting something, life would give up on him and he'd have to look for an alternative.

But how do you look for an alternative to something you were getting so used to calling yours? How do you push away something you need for breathing? How you endure the pain of unknowing someone inscribed on the back of your mind and the front of your heart.

____

Giving a cursory look to a place won't ever tell you much about it no matter you've visited a thousand times.

Elaf's memories of Durrani House were bleak. It wasn't the happiest place for her. It was a house her mother had escaped. So, the definition was always marred by this information. She never even showed the desire of even checking it out for what it was, that was unnecessary. She would just sit with her extended family, or move around in a room or two, mostly of Areeba's or Sabeera's, they'd eat together like a family formed on love and thrived on understanding and then they'd leave in Daud's car bidding the inhabitants of Durrani House a bye which would reek of relief and excitement.

Elaf always felt at ease leaving the Durrani House.

But right now, when she stood in the living room with her luggage by her side, she, for the first time, took her time noticing the interior of the place. The picture frames of the stand and the daybed which was her grandmother's permanent place. The kitchen beginning to the side and ending God knows where and the narrow hallway leading towards the rooms on the ground floor. The staircase was in the middle and it was massive, wooden and intimidating. As if it was more for the nuisance than convenience.

It mimicked many people in this house. More of a nuisance and less of a convenience.

Elaf shook her head. Now this was being ungrateful. They had helped her and her family at such a short notice and she shouldn't be thinking like this.

Now that the prospect of living in this house for indefinite time was here, Elaf took her time to look around and get familiarized with turns and corners. It was big. Way bigger than the house they had left, no wonder all their belongings had been fit inside. Some in a spare room which was more of a storeroom and rest in the old one of Daud and Yusra. Elaf was going to share one with Sumreen about which Sumreen wasn't happy if the scowl on her face was any indication.

Elaf could always be sassy and she definitely could be bitchy when she wanted to be but that now was the time to just be silent.

Being thankful has its own dilemmas.

Daud was happy though. His health was stable. And he was pretty relieved that most of the hassle of this situation was settled pretty easily. Losing a job at this stage of life is never easy. The main reason why he even got that heart attack in the first place. There was so much at stake but he was so grateful that his mother and his brothers hadn't abandoned him and his family. They had given them a house to stay in and that stability was sure going to make the thinking process for what now a pretty easy one.

And seeing Daud like this was another reason why Elaf was silent and just going along with everything. What alternative she even had to present to her parents should they refuse the Durranis about this stay in their house? She hadn't graduated yet and who was she kidding? Even if she did, she wasn't a star student who'd get a job opportunity right away and would start fending for herself and her family, supporting them financially.