Match made in heaven

chapter 20- Her voice.

The sharp sound of cries woke Adam up. The sun rays were blocked by the dense fabric of his curtains. He laid on his stomach, the muscles of his back flexed due to his movements. Clearing off the hair that fell on his forehead he turned.

'Laibah why is your daughter crying?', he asked in his head.

"Adam! Adam!", his mother knocked on the door, "It's 12 noon cmon get up!"

"I'm up Ammi", he replied though the door. Hearing this Pareesima went away to Laibah to handle Azizah who was crying.

His head ached. A sharp current hit his eye as soon as he sat on the bed. He involuntarily held his forehead and massaged his temples. The pain grew. He hissed in response.

Somehow managing his body he walked to the bathroom and cleaned himself. The reflection of his mirror hadn't scared him. It was clearly visible that he had changed. He didn't groom his beard, it had over grown its normal length. His eyes had fallen back into the pit of his orbit. It was very evident that he hadn't been sleeping properly.

'Crazy how I've changed in 10 days', he thought

He looked thinner. He had lost weight.
He walked out of his room and there was a knock again. He opened it and Raina walked in with a tray of food, she was struggling to hold it as her dominant hand was preoccupied with the phone.

"Raina you could've kept the phone away for some time", He said taking the tray from her hands,

"No bhai its fine, i can manage", she told. Looking at how off he looked she asked again, "are you fine?",

"Do i look fine?", he replied as he kept the tray on the table,

"No", she walked to him and held his bicep, "what happened?"

"My head is paining, Doctor Raina"

"Did you sleep well bhai?", she aksed examining his face carefully,

"Yeah yeah i did", he sat on the chair and started eating,

"Wait you eat I'll get you tablets"

"I don't wanna die Raina", he mocked at his little sister,

"Shut up bhai", she walked out of the room to get him tablets.

Raina was in her room searching for the paracetamols in her drawer while her phone ringed. It was Aarzu, it was the third time she called her since morning. Raina declined her call as usual.

"Im sorry Aarzu", she murmured under her breath while declining her bestfriends call.

She walked back into her sick brothers room with tablets. She kept them on the table as he was eating his breakfast.

"Aunty get us coffee", she said loudly to the house help woman,

"Bhai...have this", she said handing over one of the white tablets in his broad palms.

Her phone buzzed with messages, she opened it- Aarzu had texted.

'Why aren't you picking my calls?
Is something wrong?
Are you alright?'

She left the message on seen and turned off her phone. With a heart full of regret she watched the birds sitting on the railing of the balcony. Adam could tell from her facial expression that she was sad. It was very easy for him to read her brain.

"Whose texts made you sad?", he asked as he fetched the glass of water,

"Aarzu", she slowly replied,

Her name was enough for his stomach to twist and turn. He choked on the water he drank. After failed attempts of handling himself he gathered his thoughts at one place.

Raina looked at him with sad realization, "oh", he replied.

"She came on friday", she told almost regretting her sentence,

"She did?", he was surprised,

"Yeah", she handed him the tablets, "she wore the blue dress you selected"

His heart clenched, he felt as if he stopped breathing. Without making an eye contact with his sister he ate the pills. On not getting any response, Raina continued, "Bhai...what will happen if she comes to know-"

"She'll hate me.. i can't lose her... but i have no other way.."

"I love her", Raina's voice almost filled. Adam looked at her with pitiful eyes and his brain sent a current once again. He hissed in pain and Raina looked at him.

"Bhai you take rest...I'll leave", saying this she started gathering the plates on the table and keeping them on the tray. Adam sat there, his eyes fixed on the frame that had a picture of lavenders.

Raina told the house help to clean the table when she got two cups of coffee for them,

"Drink the coffee and go...sit", he told his sister,

Adam was a man who lacked the art of expressing but when it came to the women present in his life, he was very expressive. He always spoke to his mother about the things he felt. Later Raina got attached to him due to some situations they had to face. Ever since then Raina also was involved in his emotional exchange.

On the last sip of her coffee, the phone rang once again.

"It's Aarzu", she told keeping the mug,

"Pick it up and put it on the speaker", Adam ordered in a serious tone,

"But-", Raina hesitated,

"Don't ignore her, none of it is her fault in the whole of this drama"

Raina hesitantly picked her call and put it on speaker as her brother told,

"Hello Raina bewakoof!! You finally picked the call after scaring me!!", Aarzu sounded worried and told it in one breath,

"Assalamualaikum", Raina calmly replied,

Aarzu took a deep breath, "Walaikumusalaam"

"I'm sorry Aarzu...i was quite busy"

"Busy?? In what?"

"I had some work..."

"Okay..but you could've said that..i would be calm if you said you were busy..but you scared me so much...i thought of so many unpleasant things and situations-"

"Hey!!! Hey!! I'm sorry im sorry"

Adam had kept his eyes closed, 'I craved her voice', he thought,

"Is everything fine jaani?", Aarzu asked,

"Alhamdullilah...yes"

"Why do i feel like it isn't?"

At this point Adam wanted to run to her. Fighting all the odds he wanted to hug her, he wanted her to comfort him and tell him that she'll forever be his. Alas!

"Everything's fine"

"Is Adam fine?",

His eyes filled with water, Aarzu didn't deserve whatever was happening. He had promised her happiness, he couldn't give her pain. She cared about him, it was her worry that made her call.

Raina looked at him, he was on the edge of vulnerability, "he's fine", she replied,

The next five minutes went in discussing about the casual topics. When Aarzu hung up, Adam was already into sleep. It was as if her voice patted his chest and stroked his hair. He looked like he fell at peace after hearing her.

'If hearing her voice comforted him like this, i wonder what seeing her and hugging would do.....', Raina thought as she spread the blanket around his body.

End of chapter 20

Phew...love is so crazy...!!
On a personal note..im in tears...their situation is so vulnerable...
On one hand Aarzu is dreaming of him,
And on the other Munira told yes to Umair.
Adam has no idea about anything...
Aarzu herself doesn't...know!!!!
T_T