BismiAllahiArRahmaniArRaheem
They transferred me to a mansion and I locked muself up in a room over there. It's been two days since the last encounter with that animal and I was glad for the break.
The guy runs a mafia and has no ounce of humanity left. There's no better word for him to describe - except as an animal. I stayed inside and prayed most of the while. I felt hollow without my family's presence and the fact that Humayun is far away, not even in this world got time every single time. But, whenever that happened, I raised my hands to ask my Lord for a blessed abode for him in Jannah.
Here, I couldn't hear any gun sounds not did I see anything bloody and that was a relief. Honestly, I didn't even know where this place was.
Someone lightly knocked my door and I immediately sat up. Dread creeped through me and I involuntarily shivered.
"Bhabhi, can I come in please?" A female voice called out from behind and I sighed in relief that it wasn't Raihaan. I gulped and slowly unlatched the door.
A beautiful girl in her teens came in my sight and she looked as innocent as anyone could ever get. Was this a deception too? She turned towards me when I completely opened the door and darted her hand in my direction, disoriently patting my arm and face.
"Oh, here you are. Assalam alaikum! I'm Laila. Your sister-in-law. Raihaan didn't even inform me that he was getting married, it was such a surprise but I'm happy that the punk got hooked." She spoke at a fast pace and it gave me the impression that she was a chatter-box while I replied to her Salam.
"Can I touch your face?" She requested me and I almost gasped out loud in realization.
"Y-yes, you can." I replied perplexedly. She happily placed her soft palm on my face and recorded my features with her delicate hands. She was such an epitome in beauty but blind?
After she traced my face, she squealed in happiness. "You seem very pretty, Ma Shaa Allah. I'm already liking you. I'm sorry I sound like a creepster, you know?" She retracted her hands and chuckled at her joke. I smiled nevertheless and let her jump at me and hug me tightly. This is the most solace I've gotten from a human in this one week.
"So, how is my brother? Did you like him?" She began on a mischievous note, bumping her shoulder with mine and I felt bile rise in my mouth at that murderer's name. She then wiggled her eyebrows. "Huh, huh?"
I gave a clipped smile but realized that she couldn't see it. I replied meekly instead. "We just got married, so still in the beginning phase."
"Oh ho! Are you blushing? Lemme see!" She shrieked like a hormonal teenager and placed her hands in my cheeks. Her smile dropped at my cold skin and she hesitantly retracted her hands back.
"It's completely fine. Things change after a few days. Maybe you'll fall in love after a while. I mean it's sad that he left for a business meet after dropping you here alone, so I had to come. He doesn't know that I'm here, bunking my college but that's what the fun is. I'll stay here until I see or know that sparks are flying between you two and secretly escape after that." She blabbered while giggling and I felt a smile tug my lips at her loud, carefree form.
So he lies to his sister as well? With what, business? More like trade of sins.
"I won't tell any of that sappy stuff that Raihaan is reserved, he doesn't express his emotions, he has a good heart and all that." She began with sudden vigour, placing her hands on my lap as we slumped on the huge couch. Her amber eyes shone with mirth at that moment.
"Because....he is none of that! He is very expressive if his feelings. If he likes it, then he'll get it. I mean my cheeks are a living proof of that...the assault they've gone through, ya Allah!" She shuddered, cupping her bubbly cheeks, frantically shaking her head. I chuckled at her dramatic expression and it felt like a lot of work to smile.
"And if he loves you, he will lay his life on line for you. Beware of the sudden hugs, traumatizing pecks and scary pranks, because he never stops doing these. He is my everything for me and I would love that you two to live a happy life with each other." She completed, looking slightly away from where I was. Nevertheless, her warm hands enclosing mine showed that her brother meant a lot to her. So did mine.
And that is why, I am willing to do anything for my brother.
"BOO!" A loud voice exclaimed and Laila loudly screamed. My heart almost leaped out of my chest and I covered my mouth with my hand. Raihaan appeared from nowhere and Laila instantly located him with her hands. He waited for her to find him, and she swiped her sandal off her legs to hit him savagely.
"Are you crazy?! I almost got a cardiac arrest, you good for nothing creature!" She shrieked while smacking her flats on his back and he laughed at the beatings. I slid off my chair at his nauseating presence and rushed towards my room at an abnormal speed.
How could he laugh with his sister like that after ruining me and my brother?
I locked the door and leaned against it, inhaling deep breaths to stop myself from vomiting. After a while, I could breathe properly and wiped the beads of sweat on my forehead. I heard someone inserting the key into the keyhole from the other side and my panic raise exponentially.
I flipped and pushed the door with all might to keep it closed but a few seconds if struggle later, I found myself trapped between the door and him. He smiled at me my mouth went dry at his sight.
"Hello, dear wife! Perhaps you enjoyed my absence too much." He spoke in a low tone, cocking his head to the side and twirling a stray strand of my hair. I swiped my clammy hands on the side of my dress and swallowed my saliva.
He pulled the sleeve of his shirt and dabbed it against my face to wipe the sweat. My heart still ran but this time, for a different reason. After he made sure I was cleansed, he dissipated the focus frown from his face and stared at me with a straight face.
"I still have an effect. That's a very good thing. Seeing you all fearful gives me a nonpareil pleasure." He remarked while nodding his head, as if he was impressed. I decided to remain silent because running my wild mouth would only make him angry and give zero progress.
"You met Laila and you know that she is visually impaired. She plans to stay for a while and I expect you to keep a few things from her." He said with a tone of finality and suddenly appeared all dark.
"If she gets to know about what I do, by default, I will assume that you are the culprit and so there will be consequences. Something you won't like." His warning made me shudder. Despite me wanting otherwise, I was scared of him. I bobbed my head, not able to form a sensible sentence in my mind.
He tapped my head with his two fingers and moved back, giving me a much needed space. "Good."
He strolled towards the table and threw his watch on it. He almost slid the t-shirt off his body and I gasped loudly in surprise. The shirt remained midway and he turned around to raise his eyebrows at me. I whirled around and twisted the knto run out of this suffocating room.
Why wouldn't this thing open? It's locked? He locked it?
But when?
I slowly swiveled to take a peek at him and saw him bare without his shirt, his back turned at me. He had long scars running through the skin of his back, all a deep shade of brown. He walked in the direction of his closet and pulled a random shirt out, glancing once at my flabbergasted face.
I immediately shifted my gaze at the door and cursed him in my mind. A scoff escaped past my lips at the fact that he treats me like a prisoner now. I heard the running of water from the washroom and exhaled in relief.
I searched for the keys in the drawers, tucking my hair behind my ear and muttered Du'as to find it. I rushed to his closet in dismay and tried searching there, but I found nothing. The shower stopped and I stilled at my spot. I hurriedly shut his closet, making sure everything was in place and pounced at the couch, hiding myself in the duvet.
I heard the closing of the door and waited for anything unusual with bated breath. His heavy footsteps echoed and he walked around for a while, drying his hair and landed on the bed, all guessed from the sounds I heard. I peeked to have a look, and found him staring at me from his sitting position on the bed. I thought he lied down!
I masked my embarrassment and turned the other side to actually sleep. A moment later, I was lifted in the air and a shriek left my mouth. He had his one arm wound around my waist and the other under my knees.
"Leave me, Raihaan. What are you doing? Let me go!" I thrashed in his arms and he threw me on the bed. Raw fear spread through me as he intently watched me scoot back on the mattress. My eyes gathered tears and I clutched my shirt to myself, feeling excruciatingly petrified.
He rolled his eyes at my face and hurled the duvet from the couch on me. What was happening?
"Sleep. And I meant quietly. Don't start crying and eat my head. I'm already tired." He muttered dusting the couch and plopped on it, face first. I sniffed in gratitude that he didn't do anything to me and lay down slowly on the plushy bed. He began snoring after a while and I felt relieved that he was awake.
I had to stay quiet. At least for now, because I had to win his trust.
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Next night, he barged in the room, closing the door with a loud bang. I flinched at that and tried to decipher the reason of his madness. He angrily answered a call and began yelling.
"I want it done, anyhow! If you don't do it, you're dead. You get that? Now get lost." He glared at me when he found me standing by the side table and marched towards the washroom, clenching his teeth.
I noticed that the door was unlocked today, which means that I did not have to spend the night with him in the same room. I hastily scurried to head outside but held myself before I exited completely. I could win his trust tonight, or provide him some sort of support to comfort him. He'd be assured of my intentions that way.
Okay! Ya Rabb, help me.
He looked a tad bit relaxed after his shower and landed on his bed, doing some serious stuff on his iPhone, apparent from the harsh scrolls and swipes he rammed the phone with. I rounded him on the bed and sat behind him. He followed my moving form and watched me in perplexity.
"What are you doing, woman?" He growled, rubbing his temples and I pulled his head behind. All I wanted to do was rip his hair out of his skull and slash a knife across his neck, but I had to control myself.
I dug my hands in his black tousle and massaged his head. He visibly relaxed and I felt like I deserved a victory pat on my shoulder. I pressed his temples and he leaned back onto me, his back resting on my belly. I went stiff at the contact and muttered internal Du'as to make him stay far away from me. The warmth from his body felt familiar but the act of incredulity angered me.
"You are a prized possession. You should know that." He mumbled while I poured some oil into his damp hair. My eyebrows crunched at that and I involuntarily tugged at his dark mop.
"What do you mean?" I questioned him, halting my massage for the moment. He hummed back and brought one of his legs up on the bed.
"Nothing." He simply answered and I took a sharp breath in. Nevertheless, I resumed as he closed his eyes and lolled upon me. With one final rake through his hair, I dusted myself off and detached myself from him. I got down the bed and caught a glance of his face.
He had a frown etched on his face as I went farther from him. Internally, I smirked at my success and washed my hands. When I returned, he still kept staring at me with a scowl.
Suddenly, he hauled me by my wrist and it landed me on his chest. My mind went frenzy at this act of his and his amber eyes studied my brown ones with rapt attention.
"If any guy tries to approach you with some sort of tattoo on his neck, call me immediately. That's your new mobile." He tilted his head in the direction of a box sitting on the side table and spoke to me with care. Perhaps, I did make progress.
"I will." I gave him my short reply. His eyes dilated a little and he seemed to zone out while gazing at me. The amber of his eyes enraptured me but I diverted my gaze to his shirt and pushed myself off of him. He stared at me with a distant look and thumped on the bed the next second.
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"Here are your onions, potatoes, tomatoes, cheese, chicken nuggets, soy sauce and garlic." I set everything on the table for Laila and she beamed at me with a bright face. I was still wary of her cooking, but upon her insistence, I had to agree.
"Trust me, Bhabhi. Raihaan leeches off my food all the time." She scoffed at the memory off her brother and cracked her knuckles after tying the apron behind her back.
His name made my heart do a somersault but I ignored it for the while.
She hovered her hand above the heated pan and poured some oil into it, with her undivided focus on the dripping sound. She then chopped the onions pretty fascinatingly and dropped them into the container. The sizzling sound made her smile and she swapped her hand over the given contents, singling out the potatoes.
"I will peel them for you. You pay attention on stirring in the saucepan." I stated while grabbing the vegetable from her and she gave me a pursed smile. "Okay."
Half an hour later, a garnished bowl of lasagna sat in front of us and I gave her an appreciating pat.
"You're truly talented, Laila. I'm proud of you." I informed her and she grinned at me bashfully. A sudden bulb went up in my mind and I sat down after seating her down on the adjacent chair.
"What does Raihaan like? Tell me everything. What he prefers over what, what does he not find tasty and all that." I asked her and her lips lifted into a smirk. Oh, it was obvious for her to tease me and went with the flow.
"Oh ho! Are you planning a date night or something?" She nudged me into the shoulder and I cringed internally. I might as well do that thing she suggested.
Two whole weeks until that massage incident and almost a month is up since Humayun died.
Raihaan Abdul Majeed has successfully started to get attracted to me and I'm glad that things are going as I planned. I don't let him touch me unnecessarily and my Lord has helped me with that.
"What is he afraid of? Is there anything like that?" I warily questioned her, careful to not let her get a gist of my intentions. She slowly swallowed the morsel in her mouth and placed her fork downwards.
"Our uncle...he was a-a bad man. Our parents died while we were just kids and we fell into the custody of Uncle Naser. He was a man of no manners, no ethics, n-nothing good. He used to come drunk at night and whip us, mo-mostly Raihaan, with his belt. Raihaan would shield me with his body and get beaten instead. Tha-that man was involved in a lot of illegal stuff and when Raihaan was twelve, he made him join a gang. A Mafia gang." She paused at that and fiddled with her fingers. I didn't want her to continue but I had to know. I had to know what weakens him.
"Things started changing when Raihaan turned eighteen and since Uncle Naser consumed a lot of alcohol, he remained sick most of the time. Raihaan rebelled and expelled himself out of this sinful stuff and started a business of his own. Everything that our parents left for us helped Raihaan to stand up on his own and build ourselves a safe haven. Uncle Naser is still alive, but I don't know where. That was one painful time we lived through but All Praise and Thanks to Allah, we made it." She ended with a heart-warming smile. She indeed was brave. Seems like she trusted her brother too much.
But, she didn't tell me what makes him weak. I opened my mouth to ask her again but she beat me to it. "One more thing. Raihaan loved Mummy and Daddy too much. When they died, he didn't even mourn properly to handle the mess I was in and...being blind didn't help, you know? I couldn't comfort him with Uncle Naser and the other things that went on, and so he deviated. He left Allah, he left finding his solace in prayer and went far away from peace. That is the only regret I have. He became stronger with time but his heart hardened as well." She finished off and swooshed a large bite into her mouth to block herself from the painful memories.
I got up and hugged her to my stomach and she instantly wrapped her arms around me. I will never hurt this baby, but I will destroy Raihaan's life, making a place into his heart only to tear it apart. Wait and watch, Raihaan Abdul Majeed. Allah does justice to His slaves.
He walked in right that minute, and thwacked Laila's head as a greeting. She scowled and pulled back, trying to locate her brother's scent.
"Are you planning on graduating from home or are you a special student they give special services to, haan?" He questioned, forcefully thrusting her head to his stomach. She screeched and thrashed her arms while he placed a hand on her mouth to cut her screams off.
"Mmm...Mmmfffmmm...mmmfffmmmm mmm..." She scuffled against him and he chuckled heartily.
"Well, this is what you get for bunking classes." He taunted her playfully and her red face made him remove his palm from her mouth. She breathed heavily and crouched to get her flats out and he beat her to it, unstrapping her sandals and running away with them.
"Did he just dash off with my Chappal?" She questioned in a fuming state and I bobbed my head in amusement.
"WAIT, RAIHAAN FRUSTRATING ABDUL MAJEED. I'LL POISON YOUR FOOD NEXT TIME YOU ASK ME TO MAKE BUTTER CHICKEN, YOU TWERP! GO SLIP ON A VOMIT, YOU DISGUSTING LOUT!" She screamed at her loudest and propelled a large spoonful in her mouth. I freely let out my laugh and wiped the tears that arrived because of my happy memories with Humayun.
I sneaked upto him from behind and dropped a fake slithering snake in front of his face. He screamed like a mad man and slipped on the carpet in an attempt to run off and kept a hand on his chest. I bent down in laughter and swat my thigh at his priceless reaction, slipping a few tears from the corners. He glared at me. "That was not funny. At to the all."
"Didn't know you had a hidden girl in your Adam's apple. You so caught me off guard by the girly scream." I thumped down while cackling like the hyena I was and placed a hand on his shoulder for support. He swat it off of him and huffed in anger.
I then pinched his nose because he looked so cute with that frown and he narrowed this eyes. Suddenly, blue paint dripped from my face and I gasped at the wetness. He did not just...!
He punched the ground with his fist while laughing like a male gorilla and I wiped the drops off my chin. The blue empty paint can in his left hand intensified my wrath.
"Oh, you want me to spoil that painting of your dream girl? Don't tell me that I didn't warn you." I stated, getting up from the wet ground. His widened eyes brought my evergreen smirk out.
"NO! You are doing no such atrocious thing...!" He cautiously stated, shaking his head to warn me. By then, I already grabbed his large paint book and flipped it's pages.
"AHAA! There it is. You, my pretty girl, are in for a colorful drive." I squealed as I found the side view of a woman, whose gaze remained lowered with her dense lashes weighing her eyes down. Her eyes spiralled with rainbow colours and her lips lifted in a shy smile. Her hair flew to the front, delicate tendrils marking the borders of her face carefully stroked by the painter. The black hair were designed flawlessly and I wanted to add some blues to it. Pun totally intended.
"I'll show you how good of an artist I am today." I ended that with an evil laugh and he kept chantings denials, while clutching the side of his book. He could snatch it but that would be risky with my stained hands holding the book, right? "No, Janan. Leave it, that's my girl. Don't mess that up."
"I FEEL A LITTLE BLUE TODAY! SO I WILL LET IT GO, LET IT GO I AM ONE WITH THE BLUE WIND AND SKY, LET IT GO, LET IT GOOO! YOU'LL ALWAYS SEE HER CRY! HERE ARE MY HANDS IN THE LIGHT OF DAAAAYYYYY......" I sang in my melodious voice while gently painting blue strokes across the lady's open hair. Humayun clenched his hair in panic and I had the time of my life, painting his painting.
"Ta da!" I shoved it into his face after my starry work and he slid his hands down his stubbled face. I popped my head from the side of the huge papers and cheekily grinned at him. "You little piece of...."
"Kaju Barfi? Mint Chutney....or Frozen Olaf?" I cut him off cunningly and the slits of his eyes glared at me.
"Run."
And I was already into the backyard screaming for my life, while my tall brother stomped behind me to make me a beautiful mess of yellow with a brand new can of green paint.
"Come here, you spoiled brat. We'll see who lets go then!"
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Salam alaikum all!
Another update! We're seeing some progress, right?
Also Humayun...who's not sad now?
P.S. Janan painted Humayun's painting ._.
"Run." That one word is enough. Hehe
Until next time, meu amor 🥖
Ma'assalamah!