Captive

Chapter-16

" Order whatever you want to eat," Darwish forwarded the menu towards Rubab. A few moments ago they reached a nearby restaurant.

She replied meekly," I will eat whatever you will order."

Darwish didn't say anything. He just smiled looking at her awkward shy face. For a few seconds, he kept observing her. The way her pupils were moving, the way she licked her dry lips and the way she was trying to brush her hair using her fingers, she was looking adorable.

He cleared his throat taking control over his way of thinking for her. He shouldn't be admiring her at any cost. He hates her. He should not forget it. Diverting his concentration from Rubab he ordered the food.

It was an awkward silence between them. Rubab was stealing glances from him while he was just sitting like a robot.  Folding his arms he was looking outside. It was drizzling outside. Sudden black clouds covered the whole sky creating a gloomy atmosphere. Darwish always liked such an atmosphere so he was lost outside.

" So, what do your parents do? You never discussed anything about your family," Rubab broke the silence.

Darwish looked at her," My parents are dead."

Rubab just let out an awkward sigh after hearing him. The way he said it, she was flabbergasted. There was no sign of sadness or pain in his eyes. Those dark brown orbs were empty of emotions.

" My father was from here but my mother was an Iraqi," Darwish added pouring a glass of water for himself.

" Oh!" that's what left Rubab's mouth.

" If you don't mind may I know how they died?" she questioned trying to start a proper conversation.

Darwish asked her," You graduated from XYZ University, right?"

He ignored her question. It wasn't any rocket science for Rubab that he was getting uncomfortable by her questions about his family. So, she did not fuss unnecessarily.

" Yes, I did," she agreed.

Darwish chuckled," You were quite famous at your university, were not you?"

" Famous?" Rubab narrowed her brows. " In what meaning?"

" I mean a lot of people knew you. You were quite famous for your inspirational novel 'Dreamers'. At first, you published it on your social media pages but when it caught the eyes of a literary teacher from your university she helped you with its publication. Just in a few days, you became a celebrity," Darwish narrated. He leaned on the chair while drinking the water.

Rubab was confused after hearing him. Rubab could remember only a few things about her university life as she could only remember her friends whom she met regularly. Otherwise, she couldn't remember anything like Darwish explained. Moreover, how did he know about all this?

" That Novel had 3 parts. Only 2 of them were published. Why didn't you finish the last part? You left your fans on a cliffhanger," Darwish asked creasing his brows.

Rubab shook her head in denial," I don't know what you are talking about. I don't remember writing any novel."

" Liar!" Darwish's mind spoke. " You are not only a thief but also a liar! Look at your shallow acting! You seem like you don't know anything at all."

Rubab asked him," How do you know about my university life? I just met you recently."

" I have a cousin who used to read at the same university as you. He told me about you," Darwish gave a quick response.

Darwish's answer didn't convince Rubab at all. She couldn't recall writing any novel. She felt his words were not making any sense at all. She also felt that Darwish was lying about his cousin because of his facial expression and eye movement. It seemed like he was trying to cover up something.