-There were two miserable hearts holding on to painful promises-
"Demir, if you can't find her, then that means she doesn't want to be found. Please don't bother her anymore. If you truly do care, do it for her."
"Okay," Demir quietly nodded, ending the call. He had been desperately calling Maya's mom for weeks...pathetically pleading her to tell him about Maya's whereabouts, but she just wouldn't budge.
He felt miserable.
Living without Maya...imagining her round eyes as they gleamed with so many emotions...it was destroying him. For him, the world without her was making absolutely no sense. He could no longer find the will to move...to do anything. Deep depression and agony had hit him hard. It wasn't this horrible even when he had lost Meeran. Back then, he had found enough will to run away to different countries...to lose himself between tiring work hours, but now he couldn't even move.
Resigned completely to his room, he would spend his days balled up in dark corners, palming his eyes to wipe the lonesome tears and regretting each and every mistake he had made. He missed her...he missed her so much that it was completely ruining him. He had said he wouldn't be able to survive without her.
This was him living up to his words.
Moments now made him feel like he was standing all alone...under the scorching sun...flaming under its blazing heat while desperately searching for some relief...a breather away from his pain, but this agony...this torture...it was his punishment. He had been so incredibly cruel and merciless.
Feeling his left hand constantly weigh down with the burden of his actions, he had to stop himself from making empty calls over and over again. Maya's family just wasn't interested in helping him, and his deadly gang workers couldn't completely be allowed to chase after his wife; it didn't sit well with his heart to allow them to do so.
Tormented and completely shattered, he no longer knew how he was going to return back to his facade of a stone-hearted billionaire. His entire empire...his gang position...everything depended on him being extremely aggressive and merciless-just as he had always been, but now that side seemed to be completely overpowered by intense regret and vulnerability.
He knew that him wasting away would definitely put a dent on his father's huge business legacy, but he just didn't care. Money...business...power...they seemed so meaningless in front of her.
Curled up in the dark corners of his room, he would spend his hours just remembering her sweet smile and regretting moments when he hurt her...ignored her. His past actions were no longer making any sense to him. He had been cruel, merciless, but all the wounds he had inflicted on her made him feel like a beast.
What on earth had he been thinking?!
Manipulative? Gold-digger? His heart was still in denial that he had managed to stoop so low, but time had fully made his mind aware of the blunders he had committed. Raising his hand at her...sprouting utter garbage about her...he had been such a lousy husband, and it took her leaving his house for him to understand this.
He hated to admit, but due to his own issues, he had lost the one thing that truly mattered to him. Maya had tried...she really did try to be a considerate wife, but he had messed up. And now his dear wife was deeply hurt, terribly mad at him, and he just didn't know what to do about it.
He was completely lost.
Grieving, he now winced as his room's door got slammed open and in came the sound of heels clicking against the marble floor. Demir didn't have the energy to look up; his heart was broken into bits, so he was in no mood of showing any sort of courtesy.
"Mom is complaining about you no longer coming to visit her. You aren't picking up her calls, and she got a call from her kitty-party friends. They are complaining about you not setting up meetings with their husbands and signing away some deals," Sonia spoke, making Demir squeeze his fists in irritation. He literally had no energy to deal with this.
"Are you seriously going to stay this way until Maya comes back?" she frowned, clicking her heels against the marble floor.
Demir rubbed his forehead, leaning against his room's wall and closing his eyes. "Not now, Sonia," he tiredly spoke, but his sister wasn't going to have any of it.
"You can't really shut us out like that," she neared him. "You broke my best friend's heart for this girl, fought with your family for her, had Meeran take me along for shopping therapies, so you better tell us your dearest 'Maya' suddenly decided to leave? Did she run away with your money-
"Enough!" he growled, hitting his fist against the ground. Sonia immediately turned quiet after making a small squeaky sound. His temper was just something he couldn't control.
"I hit her," he quietly spoke after a minute, meeting his sister's gaze. "I accused her of things...was really lousy when it came to her, and at the end, I l-lost her," his voice cracked, causing Sonia's awkward and slightly fearful expressions turn sympathetic. She loved her brother...and seeing him look so weak did something to her.
"Oh," she didn't know what else to say.
"Now you get why she left," he let out a sharp and sardonic chuckle.
"I-I-"
"Just go and tell Mom that Hammad and Behlul will be attending the meeting for a couple of days. Any deals she needs to get signed will be signed by them." he tried waving her off, but her resolve only seemed to strengthen as she folded her arms.
"You can't keep doing this to yourself," she spoke, completely ignoring what he had said. "You destroyed yourself when you thought Meeran had died, and now you are literally wasting away because Maya left. This needs to stop. You need to handle grief in a better way."
"Sonia-"
"No," she shook her head, frowning at him. "When Madam Geena announced that you were going to get married to some village girl, I was furious. I knew Aliya deserved better than that, but the way you have treated Maya...I am actually glad Aliya didn't get married to you. You just aren't ready for that sort of a commitment. Meeran's 'supposed' death damaged you in some way, and abuse is how you are venting that frustration out. Before getting Maya back, you need to work on your stability. This spiralling downfall is not you."
"I know,"
"Then do you want me to book sessions with my doctor?"
***
The sun was blazing hot...fine crops seemed to be crumbling away between my fingertips, but I didn't seem to mind as I worked hastily with the other farm ladies. After leaving the elitist street, I had taken the train straight to my parents' house who send me to their main village.
My grandparents were actually villagers who migrated to the cityside to have their children get a good education and better jobs. After the death of my grandparents, my parents decided to move to another city and settle down. I remember when I was little, my parents frequently used to go and visit their relatives still living in the village, but those visits became rare as I grew up. I guess the 12-twelve-hour drive to our main village became a huge obstacle when money was short.
However, after talking to my mom, miserably crying to her about all that I had been through, she advised that I needed to reconnect with my roots. I was just so lost in trying to compete with the elite class that I had, somehow, forgotten my own self-value. This reconnecting was going to help me.
Thus, travelling to the main village brought new anxiety to my soul. I had lost the skill of how to communicate with others, I didn't know how I was going to socialize, deal with a completely new atmosphere, but somehow when my family's village, I immediately felt some warmth...some connection.
My father dropped me off at his second cousin's house. Uncle Zaheer used to be my father's best buddy until distance and own priorities got in the way. Still, when my dad asked him if he and his family would be okay with me staying at their place, he was quick to over joyously invite me for the stay.
The village houses were literally just mud and wood, but when I reached Uncle Zaheer's place, his family literally welcomed me with open arms. His wife, who had studied only till eighth grade, celebrated my arrival by organizing a feast. Meeting the city girl was literally a big deal for everyone, and I had Uncle Zaheer's twin daughters ask me so many questions. They had me teach them how to use a mobile phone, humbled me with so much attention that I couldn't help but feel my heart already soothing with their care.
Yet, after a couple of days of special treatment, I was treated as just like one of their family member. Shazia, Uncle Zaheer's wife, had me help her treat the crops in the morning and fetch water from the well. The exhaustion...the work...it was an excellent form of distraction. I wouldn't even be able to feel my limbs after completing all the daily chores.
The villagers, though uneducated, were hearty people. They loved with pure and simple intensity and were just too hospitable. It made me feel like I had really returned to my true home. However, there were a few noisy farm ladies who asked me about what I was doing here, whether I was married or not, but Aunt Shazia was quick to hush them. This was just how our village worked.
Working day and night on the crop fields, I would try my best to ignore emotions and memories, but sometimes they did slip, and I would just spend hours crying secretly in my room. Anyhow, now skillfully, removing the weeds and picking up the crops, I winced as the farm ladies working alongside my aunt and I began with their naive act of gossiping.
"I am going to send my daughter to study in the city schools, too." One of them smiled at me. I simply nodded. I wasn't really big on making conversations anymore. My heart and soul had been silenced.
"Shazia, your niece really is such a quiet girl. She has yet to tell us anything about the city," another lady then teased my aunt, causing me to awkwardly shift.
"She is my shy little niece. She will open up soon." My aunt diverted their questions, but I knew this was needed. I wasn't really ready to answer some questions these ladies might ask me.
Soon, watching as the ladies returned back to their own gossip, I began helping my aunt carry the crops basket back to her house.
"You should really try making some friends." Aunt Shazia smiled as I followed behind her.
"S-sure..." I really didn't know how to make any friends, and I wasn't really ready to loosen up. There was so much needed to be bandaged if I let my emotions escape. Work and avoiding emotions was just how I managed to function.
"The village girls are really awed by your presence here. Why don't you go to the sewing classes with them? It will really work wonder on your confidence and help you earn some money. Your uncle told me about how you used to support your family by working in another city, you can continue doing that here." she offered, not really buying my surety that I was going to make any friends.
I nodded.
It felt good to be treated as someone special. Always belittled by the elitist society, it felt so refreshing to be treated in a special way. It humbled me...made me realize my worth and how it was never about status, it was about being a good person and perspectives. I was treated inferior in a 'supposedly' educated gathering, but here, everyone treated me with kindness. It was amazing.
I didn't feel any arrogance, which many were wanting me to feel because of belonging to the cityside, and just this feeling that one didn't need to belittle others because of status felt so comforting. Humans just need to treat other humans as humans.
That is it.
Now stretching my arms, I walked inside the Uncle Zaheer's house, a warm sensation hit me as 9-year-old Soha and Mariyam rushed to engulf me in a warm hug. It was time to have lunch with my family.
"Maya bibi, you know I found an old phone in your luggage bag. I managed to switch it on without any help."
Oh no.
A/N: Thank you soo much for reading, voting and commenting on my book. It means so much to me.
Keep smiling....always stay happy and keeping living a blessed life!!
Q1. What do think about Maya's village roots?
Q2. How many people are hooting for Maya taking revenge? (She isn't really that kind of person, lol.)
Q3. Do you think Demir will be able to make amends and earn forgiveness?