Locking the Cage from the Inside

Chapter 1: She was worried

She was on her way home from college. She had promised her friends to attend the farewell with them, but now she was worried as she knew that her father will not allow it. She was constantly praying to Allah to help her convince her father. Her father had never even allowed her to go on a school trip. When she entered the house, she said Salam to her mother and younger siblings and went to her which she shared with her sisters to put her bag on the study table and to change the uniform. She took a shower and to calm her self down. 

While having lunch, everyone noticed that she was mentally absent and was eating silently. She always told everything that happened in college while eating. From the pranks her class fellows pulled on someone to mimicking the teachers to almost teaching everyone what she had learned in each class, she shared everything with detail. Palwashah (her younger sister) nudged Mueed (her brother) to divert his attention to Parishay who was silently eating the rice. They looked at their mother who was already looking at Parishay with surprise and confusion.

"Parishay... did something happen? Don't you have stories to tell today?" her mother asked her. Parishay didn't hear her mother and kept on eating.

 "Parishay!!! Beta I'm talking to you... What happened beta? why are you so quiet today? Did you quarrel with Anushay or Samia?" She asked in a louder, concerned tone because she realized something was bothering Parishay as she was unusually quiet. Parishay came in her senses and looked at everyone. They were all looking at her with concern.

 "Nothing! Nothing happened Mama. I'm just tired. The weather's too hot and I had to walk from college to here. I'll be fine. I just need a rest." She tried to smile.

"But you didn't tell any of your stories today. And you didn't whine about coming home yourself and you didn't say anything to tease me or Palwashah," Mueed said after emptying his glass of water.

"So I have to blabber on and on to prove that I'm alright?" Parishay asked while lifting her left eyebrow.

 "Well, yes...!!!" Palwasha said in a teasing manner.

"Look who's talking... You are the one who makes faces when I tell what happened in college. Aren't you the one who starts shouting Appa I don't want to listen to your stories... I'm so so done with you Appa... Your stories are so boring... Appa I didn't want to study science and that's why I chose the humanities group but why are you always teaching me biology, physics, and chemistry??? I think everyone in this house can appear in F.Sc exams now because you have taught us well," Parishay said it all in one breathe.

"Mama! She's alright. Look at her yattering," Mueed said with a smile. "She got us worried for nothing. Appa is fine. She just wants attention. Right, Appa? You just want attention..." Mueed started singing Charlie Puth's Attention.

"Stop it Mueed... " Parishay said with a low voice.

 Aiylah Shah (their mother) was still looking at Parishay who was silently looking at Mueed. That was unusual because, in normal circumstances, she would have thrown something at Mueed. She started eating again quietly. "Mueed stop it! Stop teasing her. Parishay beta what's wrong? Did you fight with Anushay? Did anybody say something? What happened?" Aiylah asked her again. Parishay put the spoon down and looked at her mother, Mueed, and Palwasha who were waiting for an answer.

 "Farewell is coming soon Mama... and it will be the last event everyone will attend together... and when everyone asked me if I'll attend it or not, I said I'll come... but then Shumaila was saying all that gibberish, so, I promised Anushay and everyone that I'll attend the farewell. I'm worried because Baba won't allow me to attend this event." at last Parishay had spilled the beans.

 "So you were making a fuss out of nothing Appa?! Why will Baba not allow it? Last month, he allowed you to participate in that cooking competing that was organized at your college. Didn't he?" Palwasha said while taking a spoonful of biryani her mouth.

 "He allowed me to attend that event and participating in it because it was IN college." Parishay said while emphasizing the word "in", then she turned to Aiylah and said, "Mama you know what happened after that. And I'm worried because not only the venue for this event is PC Hotel but the event will be attended by the students of min campus as well. Our teachers said that female students will sit on one side and male students on the other but I know Baba will not allow me." Now Aiylah looked worried too. "Mama... What do I do now? How will I convince Baba?" Parishay asked while rubbing her eyes.
"Parishay beta! You shouldn't have made a promise you can not keep. Your Baba will not allow it. Just forget about this farewell beta. That will be better for everyone," Aiylah tried to convince Parishay.

"I know you can't help me, Mama... But this time, I'll make sure that I attend this event. I'll talk to Baba." Parishay declared and then went back to her room. 

Mueed and Palwasha were stunned. They didn't expect Parishay to behave this way. Aiylah knew why was Parishay acting like this. She was looking worriedly at the door of Parishay and Palwashah's room.

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Parishay was the eldest daughter of Jahanzeb Shah and Aiylah Shah. Mueed was the second child and Palwasha was the youngest. Mr. Shah worked in a private company. Parishay was in the second year of F.Sc-Pre Medical, Mueed was in class 10 and Palwasha was studying in class 8th. They were a middle-class family. Mr. Shah was a very strict father. He had a strange and complex kind of personality. He never allowed his daughters to go even on a school trip. He was a loving father but he had a strange kind of attitude that had formed strong boundaries around him that his children could not cross. He never allowed anyone to guess what he was thinking. Minor things infuriated him. The whole family always tried best not to offend him. Despite being very caring, loving, and protective, he was a really strict person with harsh words. He knew how to hurt someone with mere words. As a young child, Parishay didn't understand his father's personality and reasons for his anger but it didn't bother her that much. But she was 18 now. She was mature enough to understand that many things her father did were not reasonable. He was oppressive. He did not allow them to visit their friends' houses, to go on trips, to go to restaurants, and not even to their Nano's house without his permission.

Will Parishay's father allow her to attend the farewell party or will she end up breaking the promise she made with her friends?

Stay tuned to know what will happen next... 

This is my first attempt to write something... Give your feedback 
Thank you