Mine To Be Called ✓

~~•Forty•~~

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The lunch that day was very tense. She could feel an indifferent air lurking between her and her parents. Sitting at this table with her family after such a long time felt weird to her. Andaleeb didn't want to admit it, but so far, she had started to like dining out with Masab.

And now, suddenly, the change was bothering her. Technica,lly it should have ba rought pleasant impact for her that she was back with her parents. She was at her home, her safe place with the love and shadow of the ones near to her. She lived with a kidnapper before that who could have done anything to her. Nikkahfied or not didn't matter. Yet the detached atmosphere of her so-called home wasn't sitting well with her. That didn't feel like a relief, a solace, and a happiness that their beloved daughter was back. It felt unnerving. Especially her father's behavior.

He still wasn't looking at her; he just replied to her greeting and asked how she was. And that was it. There was no tinge of peace on his face seeing her back home safely. He seemed to be in some sort of deep thoughts and anxiety like her reappearance had increased his stress, not the other way around. Andaleeb knew that it was difficult to accept as a father. Sultan Ahmad must have felt immense humiliation, but apart from the fact that she fled her wedding, which they surely didn't know, was it her fault that she was kidnapped? They thought that she was forced by Masab for this marriage and all the things related to it, but again that wasn't her mistake. Or maybe she was overthinking. As a father, maybe he should be given some time.

"Try this beef lasagna which I made specifically for you. You loved lasagna, right?" Fariha coaxed her and filled her plate with delicious-looking lasagna.

She smiled and nodded, even though there wasn't any hunger, which she felt for now. However, she didn't want to make her mother worried.

"Does Dani come here often?" She asked, filling a glass of water for herself because suddenly her mouth turned dry.

"She does. Last Friday, she came and spent a night here," Fariha replied, truthfully.

She recklessly moved a knife over a piece of lasagna. "That's great that she has moved on. Can't you ask her to meet me? I want to see her. I miss her."

Before Fariha could say anything, Sultan spoke making her stunned. "For now, we can't tell her about you. She and Mohid have barely moved on from what happened. I can't take the risk of ruining my other daughter's bare minimum happiness after seeing you ruined as well."

A bitter taste came into her mouth, and her eyes started burning with tears,s, but she shielded them and instead flashed an understanding smile. "Looks like she is very angry at me and I think I deserve it. She didn't deserve all this instead."

Fariha held her hand. "No, sweetheart. Don't think of it this way. Your father is right. Mohid and Daneen's relationship is very fragile as of now. And she will become more anxious about her relationship if she sees you back in her life with Mohid. With time, they will grow as a couple. I hope you are understanding me."

Andaleeb blinked in understanding. "I do, Mama. I can totally understand. Out of all people, I can't bring myself to again ruin my sister's happiness for her."

She then turned towards her father who was silently eating his food. "Baba, I am sorry for making you worried."

He shook his head. "It's okay. It was all written in fate."

She wished that he would have said that it wasn't your mistake and his worry wasn't because of her. But maybe what she did, in the beginning, to carelessly run away with Aurang, she had to bear its consequences in the form of these words.

"I don't want to go back there, Baba. I need your support. I want to fight him and find any way to get a divorce myself. And for this, I need all of your support. Will you help me, Baba?" She questioned, with so much hope in her eyes.

Sultan gazed at her with an incredulous look. "You lived with him for one month, Andaleeb. You must know him better than us. He is a very dangerous guy and has so many links. So much so that the police worked on his and his father's one command. The police dodged us on your case so much because of him. This kind of rich landlords and politicians consider people their property. He has marked you and now you have no way out of it. If we try to retaliate, he will do anything with us. Literally anything. For now, he is after you. But if we will do anything against him, not one but all of our lives will be at stake. Listen carefully. We had to make sacrifices and you should be the one to make it, Andaleeb. For my sake. For your mother's sake. For your sister's sake. For every one of us sake."

Her jaw dropped in shock. She first looked at her mother, hoping for her to say something in her defense but when she found nothing, she stared back at her father. "Are...are you saying that I should just accept whatever happened to me? All the barbarity, cruelness, and unethical things which he did, are you going to forget it and not fight for me?"

"Andaleeb," Sultan murmured, sternly. "He is a rich man. He could have got any woman of his choice on just his one gesture. He kidnapped you because he wanted you. There's no second opinion on it. He isn't a fool to actually let you go after going against all odds. He married you. He has recorded your nikkah as a proof. What can we do in such a state? Are you considering it your advantage and win that he let you meet your family? Then, dear, you are mistaken. He did this to become safe in the future. You are his now and nothing can change the fact."

A tear escaped the barrier of her eyelid and fell over her cheek. "You...you mean that this is my fate now? You accepted this for me? You aren't going to help me, Baba? After what that spoilt landlord made me go through, you are asking me to just go back to him and become a loving wife for him?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "Is there any way else, Andaleeb? If there is, let me know."

She swallowed thickly. "I'll go to court. I'll use social media influence to tell the whole world his true identity. All I need is you to just protect me. Give me strength and become my pillar."

He laughed slightly under his breath. "Do you really think it will work? He will try to remove every evidence. His eyes caught you and now you are trapped, Andaleeb. Accept it as early as possible. I won't do anything for you because I can't threaten the life of all the other dear ones in my life for you. There's no wonder that he will play dirtier now. Think about everyone of us and accept this. He might be a good husband for you. He said that he will take you to his father's mansion. You will become the wife of the heir of Sindh's biggest landlord and prominent politician."

She bit her lower lip in apprehension. She now realized how helpless she had become. In the past, she would have threw any tantrum to make her father understand but now she knew that nothing would work. She was really trapped. "I can't believe this."

Sultan wiggled his brows. "You have to, beta. In a few days, Masab said that he would come here with his family for a proper wedding ceremony and you have to act as positive as ever for that. We including you had already suffered so much humiliation. Let's not increase it more. Okay?"

Andaleeb couldn't say anything anymore because she really had nothing to say. Maybe that was her fate which was helpless. Her older self was laughing at this clueless and hopeless girl and this was just increasing her hatred for that man who caused all this. Her fury just became alive again for Masab and now she knew there would be no coming back.

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Assalamualaikum/ Hi guys!

How are you?

A new chapter for y'all 🌺💖

Are you getting sour vibes from Sultan or he is just being a helpless father who can't do anything in front of a rich and influential guy?

What do you think will happen next?

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