It was almost a month since the night of terror when Uzayr went wild. Mehr-Bano was not called back to the haveli- she watched the gate of her house, waiting, each day for a summon. It never came. Home was her safety, her comfort zone. Washing babu, cutting his toenails, feeding him lentil and chick pea soup every evening. Shafiq calmed down after seeing the cut on her neck. His wife was home, cleaning, cooking like she should. Her dreams thwarted; she'd finally seen the light. She was kneading dough, making perfectly round chapattis and not trying to conquer Jahanpur.
"Babu, what would you like to cook for this evening? I will send the boy round to Shafiq. He can pick up vegetables from the bazaar and send them home." Meh'r-Bano polished the silver trays that decorated the lounge room. The trays were never used but it was placed for show.
"I will order kerele, I know you love kerele. Maybe make some aloo pakora. With vermicelli after. Yes, that would be delicious." She enjoyed being the lady of her kitchen. At the haveli she followed orders, and had no autonomy.
But this morning, her day broke when a loud pounding on the gate took her breath away. They were here. The haveli sent orders. Her mother-in-law stood up. Babu pushed his body upright on the kat.
"No!" He mumbled.
It was inevitable that she had to return to the haveli.
"Grab an overnight bag. You are going to the city." Ordered the guard.
That was the only information she received.
"The car is out of the village on the main road."
Due to the narrow alleys, only two wheels bike and motorbikes could get through the village. Large SUV's and car would wait outside the village.
"What now?" Said her mother-in-law. "Where are they taking you? What do I tell Shafiq?"
There was no resisting or arguing with the guards. The order came from the Haveli and Meh'r-Bano had to comply.
Gathering a spare pair of clothes, comb, facial crème and lavender oil, she filled a small bag and bid babu goodbye. She kissed his frail, bony hand. He rested his hand on the crown of her head to grant her blessings. She wasn't sure what was expected or where she was going, heading to the unknown. She looked at the ashes in the choolah; her pot was ready to light. Today, she had to abandon it.
Making her way in the back of the SUV, she watched the yellow mustard fields ripe with crops pass her by. She gazed at the cows making their way to the river for their daily wash. Life was normal in the village and she pined for normality.
No one knew she was in the car as the windows were blackened. It was her and the driver.
"Where are we going?"
"City. To dai amma's house.""
"Who else is coming?"
"The chief, Choudhary Shah Nawaz will be on his way."
So, they would pick up few more maids and make their way to the city. Meh'r-Bano assumed. There, the maids would be expected to cook, clean and cater to Shah Nawaz's needs whilst he lived in a opulent haveli in the city.
What Meh'r-Bano expected and what transpired were two separate things. Today, she would see a different Shah Nawaz. A simple man living in an ordinary house, with his three milk-sisters. There was no formality, no pomp and no guards or maids allowed in the ordinary, small house. Shah Nawaz became Shawaj. He became part of an ordinary family; leaving Meh'r-Bano speechless.
***
The bustling, hooting, humid city filled Meh'r-Bano with nostalgia. She was born and grew up in the city surrounded by shopping malls, bazaar, busy rush of people and cars. She attended college, celebrated chand raath in her neighbourhood with her friends and neighbours.
Now the bustling city was a distance memory. Meh'r-Bano's car turned left at the traffic lights into a tight alley. The car rocked on the potholed ridden road. The houses were ordinary, tight spaces and rubbish dumped in the alley. Suddenly the car stopped.
"What happened?" Meh'r-Bano clutched her brown and beige weaved bag expecting a gun fight.
"We are here."
"Where is the haveli?" She looked around for a large mansion, shiny marble pillars, three floors, a large driveway with a stunning garden that would suit Shah Nawaz.
There was no mansion. The grey gate squeaked opened to a brick courtyard outlined with potted plants, an over grown lawn and washing line hanging with baby clothes. The broken concrete pathway led to the door. This was Dai amma's house. She had three daughter who were Shah Nawaz's milk- sisters. The mother who breast fed Shah Nawaz for two years. Backed into a corner of the courtyard, she watched Shah Nawaz march into the courtyard where three women rushed towards him and dai amma appeared behind. Laughter, kisses and happiness basked in the courtyard as they hugged their brother after his long return. Shah Nawaz dressed in a simple white kurtha, black salwar and his head bare- where was his Choudhary turban? Dai amma appeared and kissed her son on his cheeks. The youngest of all- the spoilt son.
"Amma, you have to tell him off." Said the tall woman. "He comes after a long time." The woman clutched onto him like he would fly away. Three young children came racing into the courtyard and joined the mele. It was strange to observe so much love, emotion, happiness. The touching, hugging, kisses. Jahanpur was devoid of this much emotion.
Meh'r-Bano couldn't get her head around the lack of etiquette and formality in the city. The guards backed away and left. There were no maids. Why was dai amma living like a poor woman, when her son was the king of Jahanpur? It didn't make sense. Why didn't Shah Nawaz move her into a haveli?
"You bought her!" Dai amma made her way over to a shocked Meh'r-Bano. The smile Dai Amma's face lit when she saw Meh'r-Bano standing at the gate with her hand bag dressed in pastel lavender salawar kameez. A smile reached her eyes and she approached her.
"Meh'r-Bano."
Meh'r-Bano heart pounded with joy. The woman oozed a natural charm and motherly love. Dai amma embraced Meh'r-Bano and kissed her cheeks holding her face in her hands.
"Emerald eyes." She stared into Meh'r-Bano's orbs. "How are you?"
Zainab, Shah Nawaz's eldest sister watched her mother shower a maid with love and this surprised her. What was special about this maid that her mother knew her name? Together with her younger sister they approached their mother who doted over the maid.
"How was your journey, beti." Dai ama asked.
"It was good." Meh'r-Bano nod her head.
"How have you been? Has my Shah Nawaz been behaving?"
Meh'r-Bano paused. What did she mean?
"So, who do we have here? Who are you showring this love?" Zainab bounced her nine-month-old son on her hip.
"This is my beti." With her arm around her back, dai ama instructed Meh'r-Bano to face her daughters. She introduced Meh'r-Bano as the children's teacher.
"Shah Nawaz bought her on my instruction."
Both sisters welcomed Meh'r-Bano with embrace and a kiss. They treated her with respect and love, like she was part of the family.
"If you're here to work, then you can leave right now. No one is allowed to cook, clean, wash my bhaiya's clothes. They do that in Jahanpur. Here it's our rules." Zainab said with pride.
"We spoil our bhaiya here- it's our only time." Said her younger sister, Ghazala. She grabbed Meh'r-Bano's hand and took her inside to show her around the house.
"Our house may not be as opulent at the havelis in Jahanpur, but it's our humble home. We all live here with our husbands and children. We can't leave our mum alone here."
From the reception, Meh'r-Bano felt warmth and joy watching the dynamics of the family. Shah Nawaz was taken to the lounge for a brief of the day. His single sister was due to meet her suitors and Shah Nawaz was invited to interrogate them.
"Don't take out your gun and scare them, Bhaiya. I want this to work."
The kitchen was buzzing with activity. Children rushed in stealing pinches of pakoras that were ready for the guests. Zainab handed her nine-month fussy son to Meh'r-Bano.
"Can you hold him? He keeps pulling my earrings. I just wore this for today."
Musa was a chunky nine-month-old. With a mop of curly hair, his cheeks dropped either side and he weighed a fair weight. Meh'r-Bano felt a wave of love for the child. Musa reached out for her earrings, but she wore studs. He groaned. Meh'r-Bano smiled.
"You're so cute." She pressed her lips together eager to kiss his delicious cheeks.
The afternoon transpired into a meeting with the future in laws. Shah Nawaz sat with the guests and quizzed them about their background. Saira was two years older than Shah Nawaz. She was searching for a suitable partner for years, and finally the rishtha auntie called a suitor. Shah Nawaz had to have the final say before the wedding could go ahead. The parents sat in the lounge with the eligible bachelor, whilst Zainab and Ghazala watched from behind the curtains. The evening was a success and Shah Nawaz gave the family the approval. The guests left that evening leaving Shah Nawaz to deliberate to his sisters.
"He speaks well. I will get Wajahat to do a background check on him."
"Shawaj Bhaiya!" Saira whined complaining of his ISI techniques.
"I don't care what you say- I will make sure he hasn't got any black mark on his name. He's marrying my sister!" He bit into the crunchy samosa.
The afternoon winded into the evening and Meh'r-Bano made her way into the lounge to take the empty dishes. As she took the plate from the table, Shah Nawaz leaned forward.
"So, what are your thoughts?"
Meh'r-Bano looked at the room, all eyes were on her. She was confused. Were they waiting for her opinion? Shah Nawaz took another noisy crunchy bite. He leaned back with his foot over his knee and waited for her response. Standing in the centre of the room she froze. This was strange. She was just a maid. What difference would her opinion make? Her lips pursed she walked out of there in rush. She placed the dishes in the sink and ran to the safety of the garden making her way into the back of the house.
Today was a strange day- everything was weird like stepped into another universe. Unlike Jahanpur, there was no view. Buildings upon buildings, with satellite dishes, water tanks on the rooftops. She brushed her hair aside and took a deep sigh.
"What happened there?" Shah Nawaz approached from inside and made his way towards her. He played with his hair collecting his shoulder length and tying it in a red ribbon into a ponytail. Meh'r-Bano shuffled to the side and under the shade of the building. Shah Nawaz closed in on Meh'r-Bano leaving no space between them. He placed his arm above her head as she backed into the wall and held her dupatta against her chest.
"That's strange? Bulbul has no opinion."
With her eyes firmly lowered, she looked at her fingers. "Where is the feisty Hoorayn who I met at the bazaar? The prison cell? Fighting for Fiza. Which reminds me-"
With his two fingers he lifted her chin without hesitance, moving her face up and revealing her neck.
"How is the injury?"
Meh'r-Bano sighed and lifted her face revealing her neck. She closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath. His scent grew strong, a familiar scent of sandalwood rushed through her nostrils. His fingers brushed her neck and she fluttered; her body shivered with his touch. This wasn't fear. What was it? Her heart pounded faster to his touch. Gently, he moved his fingers along her neck assessing the injury.
"Thankfully it won't leave a mark."
His breath, warm and fast upon her nose. She didn't dare open her eyes, feeling them burning upon her. Who was this different Shah Nawaz? Shawaj. Calm with his family. Fun. Down to earth and ordinary. Closing her eyes; she could see him playing with Musa, rubbing his nose on the baby's nose. His sisters massaging his head of hair with lavender oil as he teased them about their weight. Seeing this loving version of Shah Nawaz melted her body in his presence unconsciously. Shah Nawaz noticed the gentle hue of her rouge cheeks, the redness in full bodied lips that she aroused him. His left hand cupped her cheek, and he brushed her lips with his thumb.
What was this feeling, Meh'r-Bano succumbed to? Her body burned hot. His touch convoluted her body with a need – what is this? The feeling was explosive. She tilted her chin up, her lips pursued. Shah Nawaz leaned in. She melted in his hands. It was addictive. He was greedy and wanted more. Meh'r-Bano was stunning drawing him in- now she was here, putty in his hands ready for him to mould.
"Hoorayn-" He breathed into her ear softly waking her from her trance. Her eyes shot open. What happened? She gasped for breath and stood tall. Her cheeks flushed red with embarrassment. Shah Nawaz's grey eyes glared at her feasting on her.
"I'm leaving." She blurted out.
He locked her in.
"I want to leave the haveli." She tried to grab her breath.
"Babu is ill. He won't last till winter. I want to spend the last months with him. Caring for him." She looked around finding a way to escape. He wasn't budging.
"What about your dreams? Your wild fantasises about teaching children."
"Jahanpur will never change, Shah Nawaz." She dropped his title and addressed him as his equal.
"Children will always have to slave at the quarry. Bricks in their hand, rather than pens. There is no hope of Jahanpur. The quicker I realise that the better. I don't want to serve wealthy people. I'd rather clean an old, frail man's bed sores. At least I will be rewarded in the hereafter." Softly she panted for breath in a rush to leave .
Leaning in he breathed. I will reward you.
"I've done enough damage. The baba I first met at the bazaar, who you accused of planting a bomb- how is he? Did you kill him? what did you do to him?"
"Some things are best left unsaid."
"I will never forgive myself. Let me go. I'm done."
She hurried off but Shah Nawaz wasn't done. He grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to where she was standing.
"You're not done, until I say so." He locked her in- his left arm above her head.
"What if I told you, you've opened my eyes. You made me see things, in a different light." His eyes honed into her eyes.
Mehr-Bano shook her head.
"I've been thinking about wild ideas. Some make sense-
"What ideas?"
"There are few buildings, near the quarry, wasted, unused."
Meh'r-Bano's eyes widened with joy. Her heart pounded with excitement. "What do you mean?" Was he saying, what she was thinking?
"It would take a few men to brick the holes, fix the roof."
Meh'r-Bano lengthened her spine, she stood up straight; shoulders square. She neared him, but he backed away thinking about the logistics. She scratched his bearded chin.
"Maybe plaster the inside, flooring, few tables and chairs."
She reached out, her hands unchained eager to touch him- but she pulled back.
"Maybe start with the little ones-" he continued.
Her body tingled with excitement. She couldn't stand still. She pressed her fingertips together and poked under her nose. Still, he wasn't looking at her.
"Maybe we can start with five children-"
A smile spread across her face and she quick footed around to stand under his eyes inching closer to him.
"Are you saying, you want to start a class for the children?" She gasped her throat choking her words.
He finally met her wide eyes, bright with enthusiasm. "Would you like that, Hoorayn?"
Her eyes were moist with tears. This was music to her ears. "Would you do that?"
Shah Nawaz noticed she initiated the interaction. Her foot beside his. Her body inches away. If he reached out, he could sweep her up around her waist and press her against his body.
I would do anything for you- for your beautiful eyes.
With his right hand, he cupped her elbow. "You believed I'm an arrogant fool. You judged me and believed I was illiterate-"
"I'm sorry." She snapped.
"You underestimate me. Think I'm a like my forefathers- "
"It was my mistake-" Pleading for an apology she reached out for his hand in a trance.
"I am the chief of Jahanpur. I see the bigger picture. I take the role seriously."
Meh'r-Bano was transfixed under his gaze, every word dripped like honey, and she tasted the sweetness. She was close to her dream.
"The baba in the bazaar, the one we thought planted the bomb. Do you think I'd kill a frail weak man?"
She shook her head. Words failed her.
"You don't have much expectations-" Gently his right hand rested on her shoulder.
"I can't afford to have expectations. I am a nobody."
His left hand now held her shoulder.
"I'm not a bad man, bulbul. Trust me." It was the softness in his voice that anchored her and she trusted his word. In the silence of the evening, Meh'r-Bano was trapped under his charm, his gaze, his promise and his mighty frame. He had a powerful presence, especially when he was gentle and caring. Meh'r-Bano mouth was dry. She didn't want this moment to end.
"Can you, will you let me know about this class? The building? Please." Her voice softened.
Shah Nawaz took deep sigh. The woman was stunning. He couldn't tear his eyes away from her.
"On one condition?"
"Anything-"
He smiled. "Don't promise anything when you don't know the condition." He brushed the strand of hair away from her check.
"I'll let you know when the time comes."
The moment he turned away, Meh'r-Bano grabbed his arm forcing him to stop. She instantly pulled back realising how rude she became and forgot the etiquette.
"I'm sorry- I don't mean to touch you. I wanted to explain-" her body was tingling, on edge like a rush of adrenaline.
"I know the arrogant Choudhary from Jahanpur, the angry, the formidable. But here you are a different person. Easy to approach. Almost human. I feel comfortable around you- I can't believe it's you."
He chuckled walking away from her. "Almost human?" The weather was mild with a cool wind blowing from the east. He pulled up two wooden stools and placed them face to face. He sat on one of the stool and looked for three stones from the potted plants. One small, one medium and one large with ridges.
"Open your hands." He instructed her.
Meh'r-Bano sat in front of him on the wooden stool. She opened her palm and he placed the middle size red stone in her right hand.
"When you have a childhood like mine you have to adapt to three different parenting styles. In your hand is my biological mother's parenting style."
Meh'r-Bano was struck by the way he explained his childhood.
"This is Shahgul." He pointed to the pebble in Meh'r-Bano's hand. "Extremely high standards. Fought my father to get me into a school and education in London. I dread to think what she sacrificed speaking above those dominant males voices. She's a strong woman."
Shah Nawaz took the stone from her hand and replaced a large stone filling her hand. It was so heavy, she had to drop the other stone and used both hands to hold the large stone.
"Whose this?" He asked her
"Your father's parenting style." She smiled struggling with the weight.
"Dilawar-Baksh. A stalwart. Rules with an iron fist. I am a Choudhary first and foremost and must behave like a Choudhary. I yearn to impress my father and gain his approval like any other son. His shadow on my life is weighty and many times painful."
Shah Nawaz relieved Meh'r-Bano of the burden of the large stone. Finally, he polished the small stone on his kurtha and blew over it. He looked at the soft edges.
"Dai ama. My angelic mother." He looked at the pebble whilst explaining her qualities.
"She has no expectations from me, asks nothing. She refused to take any money to survive and will remain in her house. She brings out the ordinary Shawaj, she calls me with love. The soft Shawaj- almost human." He smirked. "She showers me with love. Forgives my mistakes and always wants me to be happy. That's all she ever wants."
He placed the three stones in his large hands. All three were a burden, difficult to carry and balance.
"It must be hard." She looked at the stones and pebbles.
"Each parent brings out a different version of me, Bulbul." He tried to juggle them.
"I am layered with different versions. At times it's excruciatingly hard meeting expectations and trying to please them. Ineed to be the best. I need to make life and death decisions. Then I need to be merciful. I can't please them all."
"Who means more to you? Whose final word do you aim to please?"
Shah Nawaz balanced the stones making his choice. He weighed them all and then dropped the smaller ones holding the large stone.
"A son always looks up to his father. The man who makes or breaks him. The man's whose name I carry and my ancestors blood. We are Choudhary from our lineage."
The faithful muezzin cried to the city dwellers with the call to prayer. Meh'r-Bano and Shah Nawaz sat in silence listening to the call to prayer and in reflection. Meh'r-Bano felt privileged Shah Nawaz shared his existential being with her.
"I haven't told anyone this before. I guess no one has asked. It is you who made me think like this. Layers. You observed me in Jahanpur and now here." Shah Nawaz reflected.
"Didn't you see it?"
"I change with the people that I am with- it's survival skill Bulbul. To survive in the jungle, you have to be prepared to kill."
That evening Meh'r-Bano understood Shah Nawaz's actions. It must be hard having the weight of three parents on his shoulders, then the entire Jahanur expecting him to be the best?
Meh'r-Bano spent the night listening to the murmur of conversation from the next room. Dai amma and Shah Nawaz conversed till the early ours of dawn- but it wasn't their voices that kept her awake. It was Shah Nawaz's idea of building a classroom in the quarry. Was he telling the truth? Meh'r-Bano was critical. She didn't believe him. But why would he lie to her? What would he gain? It didn't make sense. But the idea lit her heart with hope, she felt a spring in her step and snatched away the tiredness from her eyes. But the thought of a class imbued her body with energy and happiness. New found motivation ran through her veins- she couldn't stop her dreams running away with her. Romanticising of how she could start teaching the children to improve their future.
"Stop it Meh'r-Bano." She rested her hand on her chest and calmed her beating heart.
"Shah Nawaz is a Choudhary. They make promises that they don't deliver. I don't believe him." She convinced herself.
Meh'r-Bano tried to douse her hopes with dashes of truth.
"He's lying. Don't believe him, Meh'r-Bano. Don't set your heart on the dream. It will never happen."
The short stay at the city changed Meh'r-Bano attitude with Shah Nawaz. She gelled with the sisters, and Dai amma made her promise she would return.
"If Choudhary Saab lets me." Meh'r-Bano replied.
"It's Shawaj!" The sisters sang in unison. "Our beloved Shawaj."
****
Over the next few days, Meh'r-Bano could think of little else. Shah Nawaz's promise was on her mind, night and day. Every minute of the day she went over their conversations in the courtyard. The stones. His smell. His presence. His promise.
On Friday when she made her way with her best friend Kalsoom to the river, her mind drowned with thoughts of Shah Nawaz as she washed Shafiq's work clothes. Kalsoom was confused with her silence.
"You spend a lot of time at the haveli, Meh'r-Bano. Is everything okay? Are they treating you well?" Kalsoom poured washing powder over the clothes and sprinkled water kneading a foam.
Meh'-Bano hummed and made little conversations, scrubbing soap into the collars of Shafiq's kurtha.
"Has something happened?"
Meh'r-Bano wasn't sure what to say. Her mind was awash with a million thoughts.
"So much has happened, Kalsoom. I don't know who to trust. Who is telling truth- who is lying. The haveli is mired in politics and controversy."
"But you are a maid- what is your involvement in the haveli politics?" Squatting on a stone barefoot, Kalsoom beat her children's clothes with soapy foam.
Meh'r-Bano wished it was that easy. To clean, cook and teach the children and go home.
"It's complicated Kalsoom. At 4pm it's my duty to deliver chai to Shah Nawaz."
Kalsoom raised her eyebrow. Why had she dropped his title? There was lack of formality.
"He talks about the haveli, Jahanpur and his plans about the future." Meh'r-Bano stood up with foamy hands. Now she started speaking, the flow of words gushed out like the river.
"He is different to what I expected Kalsoom. He's highly educated, in London. Can you believe it? He has now tendered his next project to a Swiss team. They will fly in and survey Jahanpur. Baba- remember the baba at the bazaar. He's alive. I met him. He's a in a better village, being fed and has people caring for him and his wife. Shah Nawaz isn't a bad person. He said he will start a class at the quarry- can you believe it?"
Meh'r-Bano's hands grew animated. Her eyes wide with energy as she explained her thoughts that were coiled in her mind.
"Do you remember the dreams I had? He will make them come true? I lost my motivation and the will to stay in Jahanpur, but now- I can see hope and a future for Jahanpur. Shah Nawaz is full of ideas and so intelligent – I sometimes wonder whether to believe him- but he has proved with what he said, he has done." It all gushed out like a damn. Her body trembled from the surge of energy.
Meh'r-Bano finally opened up her thoughts to Kalsoom who stopped scrubbing and looked up squinting her eyes at Meh'r-Bano. Kalsoom didn't understand anything she said, but read her body language.
"You're in love with Choudhary Saab." Returned back to her washing and began beating the clothes.
"What?!" Meh'r-Bano faces burned red. Her heart pounded. "Are you crazy? Did you listen to what I said?"
Kalsoom cackled with laughter kneading the foam deep into the dirty clothes.
"Time and time again you repeat his name. Shah Nawaz this- Shah Nawaz that. He is incredibly handsome, powerful and single. Every girl in the village dreams about him now. He's young."
Meh'r-Banoo shook her head with disbelief.
"Do you know more young girls go to the panchayat now than ever? Choudhary Saab has made the panchayat a place where women can attend. Since Javed and Kiran were bought to the panchayat-"
"What? Who?" Meh'r-Bano threw her hands up in the air.
"You don't know?" Kalsoom stood up and shook the foam off her hands. She wiped her brow and approached Meh'r-Bano.
"You don't have time to come." Kalsoom explained the story of two young lovers who tried to elope as their parents were from different villages and did not approve of their marriage. They were summoned to panchayat where Shah Nawaz presided.
"Choudhary Saab won the hearts of the young girls. He didn't punish Javed and Kiran, he scolded the parents and ordered the young to marry. He paid for the wedding. Since then, the girls are in love with our Choudhary. He is our hero king! Some predict he will marry Choudrani Emaan. She is pure and perfect for our king."
Meh'r-Bano was astounded about the narrative surrounding Shah Nawaz. Jahanpur girls dreaming about him and his marriage.
"But you- you see him, talk to him and of course you will be taken in by his handsomeness. I have never seen you like this when you talk about your husband." Kalsoom shrugged of Meh'r-Bano's infatuation with Shah Nawaz as a symptom of being around a powerful and handsome young king.
"Uff Kalsoom! You don't understand." Meh'r-Bano groaned with frustration.
"I may be illiterate, but I can read your face and your body language. I am not blind and dumb." Kalsoom shook the wet clothes and threw them on large boulders to dry.
"I didn't say that." Meh'r-Bano tightened her fists.
"You are always at the haveli- you always talk about the haveli. There is nothing else in your life apart from the haveli and Choudhary Shah Nawaz."
"I'm a married woman. Fear God!" Mehr-Bano approached her.
Kalsoom smacked her forehead with her wet palm
"So? You told me once Meh'r-Bano you don't love Shafiq. You never felt love, but you care about him. Love can happen any time, who says it can't happen after you marry."
"Kalsoom you have lost your mind. What are you talking about?"
"I trust you Meh'r-Bano, you won't do anything stupid. Love is a feeling which comes and goes. Be patient, soon it will pass."
Meh'r-Bano groaned rubbing her face in frustration and returned to her dirty washing. She beat her anger into the clothes wringing the soap out of the clothes whilst Kalsoom cackled at her.
"Go- have a swim. You'll calm down.
Meh'r-Bano rinsed the shirt. How dare Kalsoom accuse her of having feelings for Shah Nawaz? It was a sin. A black mark on her name. If Kalsoom's loose tongue began talking rumours could spread like wildfire. Meh'r-Bano had to prove her wrong. She stood up to and shook the shirt, her foot hit a pebble, she lost her balance and waved her hands but fell face first into the river. Kalsoom howled with laugher sprinkling water on her. Meh'r-Bano gasped finding her feet, splashing the waves, wet from head to toe.
"That'll cool your anger!" Kalsoom teased her.
Meh'r-Bano fought the gush of the river, slapping the waves and fighting back. Kalsoom watched with joy.
"The girl is drowning and she doesn't even know." Kalsoom reflected on Meh'r-Bano's admission.
Bu this was just a small wave that Meh'r-Bano encountered, soon the dam of her emotions would burst turning her life in Jahanpur upside down.