Our Hill of Stars

SHAHEER X JENNIFER

✨ The Letter of Search ✨

First crossover story of this book.
And that too #JenHeer!! 
Jennifer as Saima
Shaheer as Naushaad.

"Dil pagal hai roz nadaani karta hai, aag mein aag milata hai phir paani karta hai"
Ahmed Khan recited as a mushaira evening is taking place in the house of Farhaad Alam.
Farhaad is a strong supporter of Muslim league and has organised the event to celebrate his happiness on the upcoming partition of India. He has a handsome and calm son Naushaad who's a budding writer. But today his eyes are transfixed on a pretty and dolled up girl, who one hour ago, served him with welcome drink. That demur of her eyes, etiquettes and walk while serving all the men, in a fit to help his mother, made him lost the game of love. She met his eyes and everything else stopped for them. Her ocean like eyes, golden skin shining through the bronze of her sharara is glorifying her prettiness. In Naushaad's head and heart, he has fallen in love at first sight. To him, she seems a personification of god's grace and shimmers of heaven. Saima too has been constantly eyeing him from behind the pillars of the house. Every single time he meets her gaze, she gets shy and hides herself behind her parda or the pillar itself. For her, he's just perfect. The guy she always dreamt about, with whom she can dare to promise and fulfill the vows of nikaah. A person in whom she feels a desire to become what he tends and bring change. A person who will be there for her. He's all of that. But she doesn't know his name neither he. They don't know each other as She has visited him for first time and he too never came to her house. Moreover their parents are just acquaintances who meet on such poetic nights. They are at loggerheads as Ahmed doesn't support the partition. Though he's a muslim, but he neither supports the league not the Gandhigiri. He just believes that the land should not get divided on the basis of religion or any other background. He wants integrity and peace to prevail like before those horrendous years of slavery. And his daughter is just like him.
Naushaad and Saima's reverie broke when Farhaad began quoting.

"koi paband-e-mohabbat hi bata sakta hai
ek deewane ka zanjir se rishta kya hai" 

"Waah waah!" Everyone in the mehfil praised his sher when Naushaad broke his silence. It's his first time that he will quote a sher in front of his father and his friends.
"Abba aapki ijazat ho to mai ek sher pesh karu?" He asked in his soft yet euphoric voice. Little did he knew that someone behind the pillar melted at the mere vibration of his voice box. His syllables seemed a never ending ghazal to her.

"Bilkul mere sher, padh de ek sher." Farhad happily exclaimed.

"Zaraa gaur se suniyega, kya pata kaano ke bajay rooh me utar jaye." Naushaad told in a loud voice, to address his lady love.
Her breathe hitched and she placed her hand on the chest to calm down her heart.

"us ki yaad aai hai sanso,
uskiii..yaad aai hai sanso...zara aahista chalo.
dhadkanon se bhi ibaadat mein ḳhalal padta hai" and everyone present there bloomed in a bouquet of praises.

"Koi iska jawab dena chahega kya?" Naushaad again addressed her.

"Aree miyan tumhare sher ka jwab to ab koi khubsurat haseena hi de paegi." One of them retorted playfully.

"Usi ki talaash hai chachaa jaan. Par lagta hai jald hi Izhar e mohobbat hoga." He replied as a result of which Saima went to the kitchen, with uneven breathing and thumping heart.