As Meerab walked through the gallery, she sensed Haya approach Murtasim, who was a little behind her.
"Murtasim ye- tum kise waapas leke aaye ho iss ghar mein?" Haya stopped Murtasim, trying to sound authoritative, knowing Meerab was within hearing distance.
And that stopped Meerab. She looked back at them both in disgust.
"Apni biwi ko," Murtasim replied, looking straight into Meerab's eyes. Meerab felt her stomach do a backflip at his words. Despite the distance, their eyes held each other's for what felt like an eternity until she turned again to go inside the room, all the while feeling a sense of pride. Murtasim started following Meerab to their room, moving past Haya when she stopped him again, with a hand on his arm.
"Accha wo Murtasim,-" Haya started but was instantly cut off by Murtasim, who moved his arm away from her hand and said, "Mere paas tumhari faltu baat sunne ka time nahi hai, I am very tired, and I just want to go to my room and rest with my wife."
"Nahi wo, maa begum ne bola tha Murtasim aa jaye to mere paas bhejna". Haya informed him, unphased by Murtasim's disrespectful behavior like always.
"Accha theek hai, tum jao, main aata hoon," he replied and turned towards his room.
______
Meerab was sitting on the bed, lost in deep thoughts of Haya, when Murtasim entered.
"Hey", Murtasim clicked his fingers in front of her as he sat beside her, "kya soch rahi hoon?".
"Haan? Haan wo- mujhe tumse bohot zaroori baat karni hai.", Meerab decided it was finally time to show him Haya's true colors. She was scared he might not trust her, he might question her again but she had to take a leap of faith. She could not stay in the house with a woman who not only did her dirty but Maryam, as well.
"What is it?" Murtasim asked, now concerned, noticing her eyes that looked like they were holding something back. A storm churning in the cog wheels of her mind but a striking calmness and determination to her face that made her even more beautiful.
"Haya," she turned towards him and replied-just one word. And Murtasim sighed, thinking not again. This was one topic he wanted to run from now, mainly because he didn't know how to tackle this issue. He had noticed Meerab's look of disgust in the gallery; she was jealous of Haya, and despite him telling her repeatedly that she had nothing to be worried about, Meerab wouldn't let it go.
Meerab noticed the change in his expression, from concern to discomfort, and she felt hurt. Because someone who was the cause of many of her miseries was somehow someone he just saw as his innocent and naive cousin, rather than seeing her for who she truly was. Someone who would go to great lengths to make sure they were never one, and that they would never live happily. With a sigh she knew she had to have this conversation and have it now.
"What about her now? What did she do?" he asked as he tried to compose himself.
"Everything," Meerab said point blank. "She was the cause of everything, she is the reason you threw me out; she is the reason everyone hates me, she is the reason Mariyam went through this trauma, she is the reason for everything that happened the past weeks in this house." And Murtasim looked at her, shocked and confused, out of his mind. His mind running a mile a minute. He thought she was going to ask him to maintain a distance from Haya, but here Meerab was telling a completely different tale.
"Heh, I knew you wouldn't believe me," Meerab muttered under her breath, a sarcastic smile on her face. "Like always, she is the goddess, who can do no wrong and I am the one at fault for questioning her intentions. "I am wrong," her voice raised as she took in his silence and tried to hold back her tears.
That brought Murtasim out of his dumbfoundedness, and he quickly took Meerab's face in his hands, "Hey no, no, I didn't say that, meri jaan" he wiped her tears that had come free despite Meerab's attempt to hold them back.
"Please tell me everything clearly, I will listen," he assured her.
Meerab looked in his eyes and found only honesty and pure trust. Some more tears came free as she uttered, "She knew Maryam was seeing Malik Zubair, she knew his real identity, and she also knew when Maryam was leaving with him, she was watching hence the vid-
"She took the video," Murtasim grumbled under his breath, his anger flaring high as he dropped his hands from Meerab's face and stood up. He held onto the bed stand to calm himself down, but his mind kept chiding him. All this while the one responsible for the incident got scot-free while the innocent ones paid the price.
His Meerab paid such a heavy price.
He didn't realise he was taking heavy breaths until Meerab put a hand on his shoulder from the back and asked him to calm down. He instantly turned and took both of her hands in his. He knew he owed Meerab an apology
for becoming a pawn in the others' game, for trusting Haya over her, again and again, for just-just always being a fool and hurting her.
Meerab looked at him and found his downcasted face to be a mixture of guilt and suppressed anger.
"I am sorry maine Haya ki baat ko tumhare oopar tarjeeh di, I am sorry ki maine tumhari nahi suni, and I am sorry ki maine tumhe ghar se nikaal diya tha. Please mujhe maaf-" as he voiced out his apology he was shush-ed by Meerab's finger on his lips. "You don't have to say sorry again and again, I just wanted you to believe me. And now that you have, I don't need anything else." Meerab told him in a soft tone, feeling light-hearted.
He looked at her teary eyed. And she felt a pang in her heart realising just like him, she couldn't see him cry. She took his hands out from his hold, and wrapped her arms around his middle. "Bas, ab sab theek hoga," she murmured in his shirt, as he slowly hugged her back.
Just then, there was a knock on the door. They pulled apart at that, and Meerab left to check who's on the door. It was Maryam.
They looked at each other for a few minutes and then both rushed to hug each other tightly.
"Bhabhi aap waapas aa gayi, bhai aapko waapas le aaye, mujhe pata tha bhai ko sach pata chalega to wo aapko le aayenge. Bhabhi, I am sorry, Bhabhi, meri wajah se aapko nikaal diya ghar se, but Bhabhi aap please Bhai se khafa mat hona, he didn't know." Maryam was crying now as she rambled on.
"Shh, maryam, mera baccha, sab theek hai, main naaraz nahi hoon tumhare bhai se" Meerab broke the hug and held Maryam by the shoulder. She then wiped Maryam's tears with her dupatta. "Aur tumhari koi bhi galti nahi hai, stop blaming yourself."
Murtasim was looking at them from afar, their interaction feeling bittersweet to his soul, when Maryam noticed him. "Oh bhai, wo maa ne aapko bulaya hai."
"Hm, jaata hoon", he said and as he passed them, he put a hand on his little sister's head, feeling extra protective of her after learning of Haya's cruel actions against her.
________
"Salam maa", Murtasim was met with Maa Begum's stare as he entered her room. Paying no heed, he went and sat on the couch next to the bed she was sitting on. Murtasim asked her casually, "Aapne bulaya?"
"Haan mujhe poochna tha ki did you bring Meerab back?", Maa Begum asked him, while counting down her prayer beads.
"Ji maa", Murtasim replied.
"Accha kiya, Mariyum ne Naurez se shaadi karne ki yahi shart rakhi thi ki Meerab should come back, ab sab Allah ki khair se sahi se hoga", Maa Begum said in a content tone.
"Nahi maa, kuch bhi sahi se nahi hoga", Murtasim said. "Mariyam won't be married off against her wish", he finished with finality.
"Kya?", Maa Begum, shocked beyond words, asked him.
"Ji maa, ye iss ghar ke sarbarah ka faisla hai, aur ye aapko maanna padega."
"Lekin achanak kyun? Zaroor uss Meerab ne kaan bhare hai tumhare, isliye I didn't want her to come", Maa Begum's anger rose, and as always Meerab was the one she directed it towards.
"Meerab ne kuch nahi kiya hai," Murtasim said in a loud voice, "ye mera khud ka faisla hai."
"Main maan nahi sakti, Haya ne sahi bola tha, Meerab aayegi aur phir se gadbad hogi-"
"Haya ka naam maat le, hum par jo bhi qayamat guzri hai, all of it has been her doing", Murtasim couldn't hold back anymore and told her.
"Kuch bhi bole jaa rahe ho Murtasim, Haya ne kya kiya hai, and how did she come in between anyway?", Maa begum asked, genuinely confused.
"Aisa karte hai sabko bulate hai maa, then I will tell you what Haya has done, and also what I will do", Murtasim replied with a dangerous edge to his voice.
________
A/N: Just a heads up, Mariyam isn't nikaahfied yet in this fic. That's a detail I have changed from canon.
Also, just a question, should I take more time and upload longer chapters or short chapters at less intervals is okay?