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Izhaan's pov
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I was on my way home, the meeting stretched for so long, i got tired of sitting. I just want to go home and get some rest.
Reem seemed to have captured my mind, I was thinking about her all day. A smile came to my lips when I remembered how lost she looked this morning when I took her to the university, she was staring at everything like she was a kid coming for nursery admission.
I cannot deny the fact that Reem is a spoiled, arrogant brat, but I also cannot unsee the innocence on her face. I could see her shivering, she was feeling cold but her arrogant self was stopping her from speaking
I got a chance to study her face when she fell asleep in my car, it feels wrong to say but she is beautiful.
The way I felt with her today made me happy, it gave me hope, maybe she is more than she shows, maybe she is not that bad. Maybe she has a good heart.
I reached home and parked my car. I got inside the house, the moment I stepped inside I was welcomed with the mix of so many different and delicious aromas.
I went straight to the living room where everyone was sitting.
"Assalamualaikum" I said
"Walekumassalam" everyone said in unison
I sat next to maa and leaned my tired self on her, I put my head on her shoulder.
"How was your day beta?" Dadi asked
"Tiring" I said
"Water" a glass of water was hovering over me, I sat straight and took it.
"Thanks Amira" I said to the maid who brought water for me
"It's not Amira, look at the face once" Hayat spoke. I looked up and found Reem staring back at me, she had a beautiful shy smile on her lips.
My eyes widened in surprise, she looked so beautiful, it was the first time I was seeing her in an Indian dress, her milky white complexion glowed under the black cloth. Just the perfect amount of make up was there. She looked so pure, so divine. I was mind blown by her. Is this really her?
A loud laughter brought me back to the earth. I looked around and everyone was staring at me and laughing. I realised I have been staring at Reem for very long. I cleared my throat to hide my embarrassment.
"Ab pee bhi lo paani, ya glass pakad k bethe rahoge (are you going to have water or just keep sitting with the glass in your hand)" maa smirked
"Didn't I say Izhaan Bhai will go crazy when he will look at you, Reem bhabhi" hayat teased both of us.
"Shut up Hayat" I scolded her
"Use kyun daant rahe ho, sach hi to keh rahi hai (Why are you scolding her? She is telling the truth)" dadi laughed
"I am going to freshen up now" i got up quickly
"Why are you feeling embarrassed Izhaan, till this day I shamelessly stare at your dadi" dada ji laughed
I looked at Reem, her face was red, she was looking down.
"I'll be back" I said and left from there quickly, I came to my room.
I was surprised to see her, and the way she was beautifully dressed caught me off guard, I just got lost in her.
Once I have put my annoyance aside and noticed her, she has become a riddle to me. Her actions are different, but her face says something else.
I took a quick shower and changed into comfortable clothes, I combed my hair and was about to walk outside but stopped when I saw Athar coming, he had a big scowl on his face.
"What happened?" I asked
"What was that?"
"What was what?" I frowned
"Why were you giving looks to Reem?"
"I wasn't"
"Buddy! Don't fall for her fake charm."
"I am not falling for anything don't over react"
He opened his mouth to say something but got disturbed by a knock on the door.
"Come in" I said, the door opened and Reem entered, I was surprised to see her, oh no! What if she heard our conversation
"Come for dinner" she said, just a small gesture made my heartbeat fluttered, a genuine smile broke on my face
"Ok. Let's go" I said, I walked a step towards her, but athar pulled me back
"You go, we are coming" he told her, she nodded and left
"What?" I asked
"That girl is bad news, try to get rid of her. Don't accept her in your life please, she will just hurt you" he said with concern, I sighed deeply and put my hand on his shoulder
"Don't worry buddy. I know what I am doing"
"Then why do you look attracted to her?" He raised his eyebrows
Really? Do i?
"That's not true" i immediately denied, he gave me an "oh really" look.
"I know you so well, I can tell when you are lying"
"I'm not lying, I'm just trying a different approach with her. Maybe she will mend her ways then" I explained, he heaved a sigh
"Don't get hurt, I will not be able to see it"
"I won't" I smiled, "now let's go before Reem comes again"
"What is she even doing here? Why has she come?"
"Dadi must have called her" I shrugged
"I just don't like her" he shook his head, i chose to not reply
We came to the dining room, everyone was already seated. Athar and I were going to sit, but maa told me to sit next to Reem, she straightened as I dropped next to her. she seemed uneasy
"I'm so hungry" hayat shouted and was about to pick up the biryani dish, but dada ji stopped her, "what?" She asked
"My wife has made food for me, I will taste it first" he said looking lovingly at dadi, she nodded her head
"He is right, I made it for him specially" dadi blushed
"Dadi you give him first morsel from your hand" hayat said, dadi served food in dada ji's plate, and prepared a morsel, he opened his mouth but before she could feed him Athar spoke
"Wait wait"
"Now what?" Dadi asked
"Let me take a picture" he grinned. Our perfect models began posing for the camera, the sight made us smile. I looked at Reem from my peripheral vision, there was a genuine smile on her lips, it made her look so innocent.
"SubhanAllah it tastes amazing" dada ji smiled, dadi looked proud of herself
"Really?" She asked, dada ji nodded
"Can we have food now?" hayat asked getting impatient
"Please" dadi nodded
Reem picked up the salad platter and put some in my plate, I stared at her in disbelief, she was behaving exactly how mummy behaves with papa, and dadi with dada ji
I was a little astonished by her actions, what happened to her? I continued gawking at her while she nonchalantly continued filling up my plate.
I looked at Athar, he mouthed "what is this drama?" to me, I cluelessly shrugged.
Whatever it was, somewhere in my heart I liked it.
"Eat" she said to me, I quietly obliged her
Everyone began complimenting dadi, the food was amazing indeed. I threw all the thoughts of the girl who was sitting next to me, at the back of my head and enjoyed my family time
"I will definitely learn cooking from you dadi" hayat spoke, Athar chuckled loudly
"Tum pehle coffee banana to seekho (learn to make coffee first)" he smacked her arm lightly, Hayat glared at him
"Reem bhabhi. You should have got Gabbar with you tonight, I miss her so much" Hayat spoke, Athar choked on his food, he started coughing. Me and Hayat laughed loudly, even Reem grinned
"Seriously beta you should have brought Ayesha with you" maa said to Reem
"She was just uncomfortable about what happened last time" Reem explained
"She shouldn't be, because of her we saw a side Athar we didn't know existed" dadi said
"Which side?" Papa asked narrowing his eyes at Athar
Uh oh. Papa is very serious about his work, if he finds out about Athar's behaviour with Ayesha, he will get upset
"Can we just focus on the star of the night, my beautiful dadi" I spoke to take away Papa's attention from Athar.
"Yes please! Appraisals should not stop" dadi spoke, she was also trying to save athar from Papa's anger
"Fine" papa shrugged. I sighed in relief, I shook my head at him
I felt the table vibrating, I noticed that Reem's phone was on the table, it must have been on the vibrate mode. She must have felt the vibration too, because she picked up her phone which was kept screen down, she checked the caller's name, then disconnected the call.
"Who was it?" I asked, she looked at me.
"None of your concern" she whispered to me while looking around. She put the phone back on the table, this time the screen was upward.
Whatever act she was pulling all night went away in a jiffy, she was back to her cold self. I lost my appetite, I left my food and just remained seated while waiting for others to finish, so that I can leave the table
Her phone vibrated again, before I could see the caller's name she picked up her phone and disconnected the call again. I got a glimpse of the screen, I couldn't see the name but what caught my eyes was a heart emoji, whoever that person was Reem has put up a heart emoji with the name. Who can that be?
Must be Ayesha! Why am I even thinking about it?
After the dinner got over, we sat in the living room for some time.
"I must leave now, it's getting late" Reem said
"It's just 10:30pm" Hayat said
"By the time I reach it'll be 11:30, and it's late" Reem told her
Yeah right, late.
I rolled my eyes while Athar scoffed
"She is right, sorry beta for not thinking about it sooner" papa said
"Izhaan, go, drop her home" dada ji ordered, I immediately got up
"Ok" I said
"It's fine dada ji, I'll go on my own" she protested
"No beta, it's too late at night. You will not go alone" dadi shook her head
"I drove myself here" she said
"So, you drive your car and I will follow you" i said and left to get my car keys
I went outside and stood by my car waiting for her. She came in five minutes.
"Go" I said to her motioning towards her car
"However I behaved today, it was all instructed to me. Maa and dadi told me" she said
No wonder. I scoffed
"Get in your car" I was in no mood to reply to her
"I'll go on my own, you don't have to follow me" she said in an ice cold voice, it irked me
"Chup chap car mei betho (sit in the car quietly)" I glared at her, she raised her chin and stared in my eyes arrogantly
"No" she said defying me
"Do as I say" I emphasized every word, but she just continued staring at me, with narrowed eyes. Her phone rang, she brought her phone out from her bag, her eyes widened when she saw the caller, then she looked at me
"Fine" she said and went towards her car and settled in
"Maan gayi? Itni asani se? (She agreed? So easily?)" I wondered
I saw her talking on the phone, a genuine smile was plastered on her face, it made me clench my fist in anger. She is always so rude to me, but talking so nicely with whoever has called her.
A very unsettling feeling set in the pit of my stomach. It made me feel uneasy.
She was still talking and driving, I was following her. Who is she talking to? I am sure it's Ayesha, she always seems happy whenever she is with her.
She reached her house. I stopped my car in front of her house. She parked her car and turned to look at me.
"I have reached home, now you go" she said
"You go inside first" i insisted, she rolled her eyes and stomped her foot, but turned towards the entrance nevertheless, she unlocked the door and entered the house, I put the gear in reverse and went from there.
I was hardly two minutes away from her house, when I remembered she forgot her documents in my car, she might need it for the university, I made a u turn and went back to her house.
I saw her sitting in her car, then she drove off to God knows where. I checked the time, it was 11:45, where was she going so late?
My first instinct was to follow her, but then her cold voice and arrogant face lingered in my head and I decided otherwise.
"To hell with her" I said and made my way home. I felt so angry at her. She did so much drama at home saying she was getting late, but in reality she was getting late for her shenanigans.
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Ayesha's pov
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It was so boring without Reem, the house looked so empty, I would have gone for dinner with her if the devil wasn't going to be there.
I was feeling lonely in the bedroom, so I came into the living room and settled on the sofa. I switched on the tv, but got busy on my phone.
I video called mumma, I miss them terribly, I've never been this far from them for so long.
"Assalamualaikum" I cheered when mumma answered the call
"Walekumassalam" she smiled
"How are you and baba?" I asked, momentarily her face fell, but she quickly recovered
"I'm ok" she replied, something was not sitting right with me
"And baba?"
"He's also fine" she looked down while answering
"Is everything ok mumma? You are behaving weirdly"
"No no there's nothing like that" she shook her head, but I wasn't satisfied with her answer
"Where's baba?"
"Office" she shrugged, my eyes widened in surprise
"Till so late?" I looked at the time, it was 10pm. Baba never stays in office till this late
"He is busy with some projects"
"What project?" I asked
"Ohho why are you asking me so many questions?"
"Because I'm very confused. This is very unlike baba, why is he staying so la..."
"How's the office going? When are you expecting your degree?" She switched the topic
"What are you trying to hide?" I asked, before she could reply, the door unlocked behind her and baba walked in, she turned around to look at him. I was getting really worried now because of her behaviour
"Mumma, I want to talk to baba" I spoke, she passed the phone to him
"Assalamualaikum my child" baba said
"Are you ok?" I asked directly, he looked taken aback
"Yes alhamdulillah, I'm perfectly fine. Why are you asking?"
"You are returning so late"
"Yes princess, because I'm working on a new project" he said with a smile, I sighed in relief
"Oh ok" I finally smiled
"I'm going to freshen up now, you talk to your mother" he said and left
"Happy now?" Mumma asked, I nodded, "I will go now I have to prepare food for your baba"
"Ok, bye" I said and hung up
I put my phone aside and brought my attention to the television. Hardly any time passed when I heard someone unlocking the door, I thought Reem returned, but it was Avira Aunty, i was just about to lie down when I saw sufiyan walking in with her, I sat straight.
"Oh Ayesha beta, you are still up" aunty smiled at me
"Looks like it" i replied. She chuckled
"This is sufiyan, my nephew" she said to me, then she turned to him, "and this is Ayes...."
"Ayesha! I know. We met the other day" he said staring at me, I looked back at him
"Really! That's nice" she showed surprise, "ok then you guys sit together, I'll be back in a moment" she left
"May I?" He asked pointing at the couch
"Yes please! You don't need to ask me" I said
"Of course I need to. I don't want to barge in your personal space" he replied gently
My heart filled with warmth at the way he talked. His aura screamed of gentleness. He spoke so politely.
"So" we both said together. then we both laughed
"You say it" I said
"No no you say first" he shook his head
"It's ok. You go first"
"I want to know what you were going to say, it's really hard to study you, that is why I want you to talk to me" he replied staring deep in my eyes.
"Study me?" I asked not understanding what he was trying to say
"Just an attempt to know you" he shrugged, a small smile broke on my face
"If you want to know me you can just ask me" i said
"Really? Would you tell me then?" He asked in disbelief
"Yeah! Why wouldn't I?" His face lit and he scooted a little closer to me.
"Thanks Ayesha! I really appreciate it" he grinned ear to ear. I suppressed the laughter. Is he really this sweet or is he acting?
He asked me so many questions that I wondered why he was so interested in knowing me, but I answered all of his questions.
What I really liked about him was his humbleness. The way he stared at me, I could only see appreciation and truthfulness in his eyes. Unlike Mr Khan.
"That's enough about me. Tell me something about you" I was actually interested in knowing him for some reason.
"What do you want to know?" He smiled
"What do you do?"
"I'm a professor in university of science and commerce, I teach chemistry" he said proudly, I gasped
"Reem has taken admission in that University"
"Really? Reem goes to my university? I have never seen her" he frowned, I giggled
"She has recently joined it, hopefully you'll see her soon, even though she's a commerce student"
"Why has she joined so late?" He asked, I just shrugged.
"Anyways let her know I'm there, if she ever needs anything, I'll be more than happy to help her" his eyes reflected honesty, that brought a smile on my lips.
"That's nice of you" although I hardly interact with anyone, but I get good vibes from him, maybe we could be friends some day
The door opening sound caught my attention, so I turned around and found Reem. I felt so happy seeing her
"You are back" I exclaimed, she looked at me, then she looked at Sufiyan, she gave me a disgusted look. I got up and went to her side
"What is he doing here?" She scowled
"Giving me company" I shrugged
"Hi Reem" we both turned to look at him, he waved and smiled at Reem
"Creep" she groaned, I chuckled. She turned to look outside as if looking for someone
"Who is it?" I asked
"Izhaan. He came to drop me, I'm just making sure he has gone." She looked at me, "can you believe how irritating he is, he came all the way here to make sure I reach home safely, he did not leave till I didn't enter the house" she let out a frustrated sigh, but I found the gesture extremely cute
"That's very nice of him, he cares about you"
"Care? Yeah right"
"No Reem seri..."
"Stop Ayesha" she glared at me, "now I have to go now"
"Where?" I frowned
"Zuhan" she shrugged
"Oh yes, I remember you told me. Should I come along?"
"It's fine, I'll be back soon. You throw this stupid outside" she pointed at Sufiyan, I remembered he was also there. I expected him to be irritated as I left him for too long, but he was sitting calmly while scrolling on his phone.
"Bye" Reem said and turned to leave
"Be safe" i shouted after her
After she left, I returned to sufiyan
"Hey" i said, he raised his head up from his phone
"Where is she?" He looked around
"She had to go somewhere"
"She hates me, doesn't she?" He asked scrunching his nose
"Hate is a very strong word, but yeah she doesn't like you at all" i shrugged
"I hope she changes her mind one day"
"Let's hope so. I'm going to sleep now. See you later. Bye" i picked up my phone and went towards the stairs
"Ayesha" he called, i stopped
"Yeah"
"May I have your number please?" He asked
I contemplated whether to give or not
"Please" he pleaded
"Fine" i said and a huge grin broke on his face
We exchanged numbers, then I left for the room.
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