Be-panah

TWO

Charcha nashe ki ho rahi thi,
Main zikr teri nigaahon ka kar aaya.

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At exactly 5 in the morning, the alarm went off, breaking Zaroon's slumber. He forwarded his hand to grab his phone from the nightstand and shut the alarm. Then he opened his gallery and clicked on the folder that was titled 'Adab♥'. There were more than a hundred pictures in that folder that he had collected from social media or clicked discreetly himself over the years. Opening the most recent one, which was of their engagement, he stared into the beautiful face that he had fallen in love with. He couldn't wait to have her in his arms every morning!

After going through her pictures for several minutes, he finally left his bed and started getting ready for the gym, a habit that he had picked up from his father, Mahad.

He spent more than an hour working out in the gym of the Hussain haveli.

"Ammi, good morning." He went to the kitchen and greeted his mother, Parishay, who was making his protein shake.

She smiled at her son and passed him the bottle. "Just a few more days and I'll be free from your duties." She teased him, making him smile.

Mahad also entered the kitchen after his morning walk and pecked his wife's cheeks. Zaroon couldn't help but awe at his parents' romance even after so many years of marriage. They were his relationship goals and he was determined to have the same kind of life with Adab.

Zaroon finished his protein shake and went to shower. After having breakfast, he wore his coat and said goodbye to his parents. Outside the haveli, his sleek, black car was ready for him. And beside the car stood a tall, muscular man who looked not more than a year or two older than Zaroon. He was dressed in a black formal uniform and sunglasses.

"Good morning, sir." He greeted Zaroon and opened the back door of the car for him.

"Jahangir," Zaoon nodded at him and sat inside the car.

Jahangir closed the door after him, and then jogged around to sit in the passenger seat, and nodded at the driver to start driving.

Jahangir Ali Khan was one of the most loyal men of Zaroon and the Chief of Staff, Hussain Securities. The Hussain Business Empire had flourished tremendously over the last decade and was now one of the most successful names in the business world in all of Asia. Zaroon was also featured in the Vogue list of 30 under 30. But being this famous also came with repercussions, and thus the Hussain family had one of the finest security teams in the country. Jahangir was also Zaroon's personal and most trusted bodyguard.

It took almost half an hour to reach his office where Zaroon's assistant, Rohit, greeted him with his morning coffee.

"Sir, you've a meeting at 11 with the Shekhawat Group and at 6 with the KYT Ltd." Rohit read out the schedule for the day.

"Cancel the meeting at 6 and schedule it tomorrow. And call Mr Roy. I need the numbers for the last fiscal year. Also, remind me when it is 5:30."

Rohit nodded before leaving the room. He made a call to the Finance Manager, Mr Roy. Then he rescheduled the meeting with the KYT Ltd.

At 5:30 PM, Rohit pinged Zaroon. He shut his laptop, took his phone and made his way towards the car parking. He nodded at Jahangir and they zoomed into the busy streets of the city. An hour later, he was standing outside the arrivals gate of the Indira Gandhi International Airport. He was there to pick up one of the most important people of his life. His best friend, his brother from another mother. Mirhaan Malik.

Zaroon and Mirhaan were just four years old when they met on the first day of school. And since then, they've been inseparable till the age of fifteen. The Maliks had a flourishing family business. When the boys completed their tenth standard, Mirhaan's father decided to shift their head office to London to establish their business overseas. And shifting the head office meant the Malik family shifting there as well. Mirhaan didn't want to go, he didn't want to leave Zaroon but he didn't have any choice. He wasn't old enough to stay alone, so his parents took him. Zaroon was heartbroken too, but they promised each other to stay in touch. And they'd been keeping their promise for eleven years now. Just like Zaroon, Mirhaan had also taken over his family business. And for some work related issue, he was coming to Delhi.

Both the best friends would be meeting each other after almost a year. They both had taken a trip to Manchester a year ago to see their favorite football team play live.

"Welcome to Delhi, bro!" Zaroon greeted Mirhaan when he came out of the airport. They shared a long brotherly hug before leaving for home. Mirhaan was going to stay at the Hussain Haveli.

Upon reaching home, Mirhaan greeted Parishay and Mahad. For the older Hussain couple, he was just like their second child. He got fresh and had a long dinner with everyone while talking. After bidding good night to the parents, the boys made two cups of coffee and went to the terrace to talk.

"So how long are you here?" Zaroon asked while sipping the hot liquid.

"A few weeks. Depends on how long it takes to solve the problem." Mirhaan replied.

"What problem?"

"There is a mole in our Delhi office, who is transferring all our confidential details to the rivals." Mirhaan informed him.

Zaroon nodded. "Let me know if you need any help."

"So, how does it feel to be engaged?" Mirhaan teasingly asked.

This made Zaroon chuckle. "It feels pretty surreal. You know for how long I have wanted to marry Adab, and now that it is finally happening, I can't believe it."

Mirhaan smiles at his best friend. "Still whipped, I see!"

"Totally."

Mirhaan had known about Zaroon's feelings for many years now, and he was really happy for him. But little did he know that Zaroon's happy days were about to end very soon.

"You were not here for the engagement, but you've to attend the wedding at any cost." Zaroon warned him.

Mirhaan laughed. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

They both spoke for a really long time before falling silent. Their friendship didn't always need words to communicate, they could just sit in the presence of each other and not get bored.

That night, while enjoying the soundless serenity, neither of them realized that it was actually the silence before the storm.

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

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