In These White Halls

|• chapter - 33 •|

Sometimes you have to take a step back from everything that is happening in your life. It's only right for you to take a break from it all. But that is all it is. A break from reality and once that break ends, you return back to the hell you dragged yourself out of. This was my hell. The hell prepared for me by Hamza, the man I despised so much. The man who harmed and hurt people and destroyed lives, including mine.

"I'll come." I said and hung up. This mark's the beginning of my hell.

Few hours ago...

I pounded my head against my wooden dresser, waiting for the pain in my heart to fade away but it didn't. The intensity of my migraine was only increasing and I could feel myself burning up.

"Annaya?" Bhai knocked on my door as I straightened myself up. Worrying him or anybody else would be a mistake right now especially with Hamza around.

"Yes?" I answered opening my eyes forcefully so that I don't seem sick to them.

"Annaya are you okay?" He asked sitting on my bed and I nodded my head yes. Liar, the voice in my head said.

"Um well, we were worried about you. You didn't go to work, you didn't come out of your room, you're quiet now and well, Shehryar called as well. He said you weren't picking his phone up-" bhai said but I interrupted him. I needed to know what Shehryar had said.

"What did he say?" I asked seeming unfazed. Pretentious and actor, the voice chimed in again but I pushed it back.

"Oh well he said he wanted to come see you but Manaal told me that I should tell him no and so I did. She said you were going through a 'phase' and that you'll be over it and why bother someone right?" He said making air quotations around the word phase. I was happy that Manaal understood but that only meant more trouble for she would come asking questions. Questions I had no answer to.

"Okay." I said a little dejectedly. I wanted to meet Shehryar and tell him everything but I was afraid. I couldn't stand him leaving me like this, hating me. I couldn't stand being apart from him but I won't ever be able to forgive myself if god forbid anything were to happen to him.

"So um, when will this phase end?" Bhai asked nervously as I laughed it off, giving him false hope that soon everything would go back to normal. He nodded and left the room, leaving me alone with my thoughts and fears.

I sighed and came outside to my balcony, the place of peace and solace. The grey clouds covered the sky, not letting a beam of the warm sunlight, escape through them. It was going to rain soon, very soon. No birds were seen flying around nor were there any stray dogs or cats roaming around. The roads were empty, dead and quiet.

'What do I do Allah?' I thought in my heart. I chanted it to myself more times than I could before my annoying phone rang for the umpteenth time. I had been ignoring Shehryar's calls and texts. Why? I don't know but right now, I didn't have the energy or the spirit to talk to him.

My face paled as I saw an unknown number flash across my screen.

"Hello-o?" I answered and a gruff voice spoke from the other end.

"Hello to you too Annaya." He said and I felt fear crawl over me. Oh Allah, what does he want now?

"Cut to the chase Hamza." I said sternly and he laughed on the other hand before throwing another witty remark at me.

"Oo feisty! Anyways, I want you to come to the docks at 11 PM and if you don't, I'll tell Shehryar how you shot me and then I'll hurt him too. And you know I don't hesitate in it. Remember Dawud?" He taunted and threatened as I gulped the hard ball stuck at the back of my throat. Hearing Dawud Bhai's name brought back painful memories as I sighed and agreed to him.