A Tale of Hearts

Chapter Twenty One

Fahad's POV:

"Men tumhe ghar chor deta hun. (I will drop you back home.)" I offered to Rubab while following her out of the restaurant. She had firmly decided to ignore me for the past ten minutes. I knew all the number plates of both of her cars and I was sure, her car wasn't in the parking lot.

"Nahi. Mera driver bas ata hoga. (No. My driver will be here soon.)" She replied without looking at me. I hated it when she did that. I really liked looking into those emotionless orbs when talking to her. As weird as it sounded, I felt like I could get lost in them.

"Are you sure? Cause I don't mind really. Tumhara ghar waise bhi mere rastay men parega. (Your house will come in my way anyway.)" I lied smoothly but I felt her finger twitch.

"You don't mind but I do." Ouch. She never holds back, does she? But that's okay. It is what makes her different. A true ice queen. Much to my surprise, she finally turned to me with narrowed eyes. "Also, isn't your farmhouse near DHA? My house is in the opposite direction."

"Haan lekin men ghar nahi ja raha. Menay tumhare ghar ke pas se aik cheez uthani hai. (Yeah but I am not going back home. I have to pick something up from near your house.)" I dodged the topic. It's always a challenge talking to her. Although, it was a pleasant surprise that she remembered where I lived.

"Acha? Jaise ke? (Yeah? Like what?) Your GPS tracker? Or a new gun?" I felt my throat turn dry. How did she know about that? No, never mind she is just being sarcastic. There is no way she knows about that too. Damn, she was on a roll today. Haath hola rakho meri jaan kitna zaleel karne ka irada hai? (Go easy on me, love, how much more do you plan to roast me?) I really wanted to say that but I had a feeling it would piss her off even more.

"Aw, are you curious about my whereabouts? I can send you my location if you want. Only you though cause you are special. I can't jeopardise my safety. I have a lot of enemies." I had expected a counter from her but the way her eyes turned wider left me speechless too.

Why did she look surprised and guilty? Did she actually want to know my whereabouts? Should I feel glad about this? That's a reaction to my question right? Her eyes didn't turn wide because of something else right? WHY DOES SHE ALWAYS CATCH ME OFF GUARD? Is she doing this on purpose? Damn it woman, why? What do you have against me?

"Why aren't you answering? It was a joke." I tried to ease my way through and she blinked before looking away.

"Of course it was a joke. A guy like you can never be sincere." I heard her whisper loud enough for me to hear. What a direct insult to my pride. I felt eyes on us. We looked like a young couple having a stupid fight which would draw attention.

"What are you talking about? I am sincere." She scoffed at my reply. "Alright, we will talk about this in the car, people are staring, come on." I had hoped that this would atleast budge her from her place at the entrance and it worked. She snubbed me before walking in the direction of my car. The moment she sat in the car, she started her endless insults again.

"I don't trust a word you say, Fahad. Not one." Damn it, I know she was being ruthless but I loved the way my name rolled off her tongue. It sounded so sexy. How was this possible? I had completely zoned out on what she had said though. Something about not trusting me? Or was it herself? Nah, it sounds like the former.

"How did you get in the same car with me then?" Crap, this probably wasn't the right thing to say given the circumstances. Rubab glared at me before turning away.

"Do you want me to get out? Cause I will." She pulled the door handle and I immediately placed my hand on hers to stop her. I felt tingles erupt from my palm traveling all the way to my shoulder.

"Hold on, you aren't going nowhere. Men tou nahi tumhe janay dena. Baith jao araam se. (I am not letting you go. Relax and sit down.)" I pressed on her hand softly, my body was way too close to hers but it felt right. I could feel the warmth radiating off her. For an ice queen, she had quite the temperature. She glared daggers at me before removing her hand from the handle.

"Okay, you can let go of me now." I heard her whisper as I saw the faintest of blush on her cheeks. Aw, the rock does have blood running through her veins. She surprises me a little more every time we meet. I slowly backed away and revved the car to life.

"So about me being not sincere, what was that about?" It kinda hurt me that she thought of me as an insincere person. Ever since that incident with Zohaib happened, I have hardly met any women. Let alone date them. Dil hi nahi karta. Kar bhi jaye tou unjanay men unko Rubab ke sath compare karna shuru kardeta hun. Ahsas hota hai ke Rubab bohat behtar hai. (My heart doesn't want to. And even if it does, I start to compare them to Rubab without realising. I realise that Rubab is way better.)

"Ap tou aisay keh rahay ho jaise apko pata nahi ap kitne baray flirt ho. (You are making it sound like you don't know what a flirt you are.)" For the first time in a while, I actually felt a pang of pain pierce through my chest. I was used to her being brutal but this just hurt. Alot. I knew she didn't have the best image of me but fuck.

"Men tha. Ab nahi hun." I answered truthfully. The change was so subtle that I was noticing it now when I had mentioned it to her. My mind was so preoccupied with Rubab that I didn't really get the time or chance to flirt with others and neither did I want to.

"Yeah right. Have you even seen your Instagram feed?" I could tell Rubab regretted the words that had left her mouth. I was upset before but the fact that she had stalked my account made me feel a whole new level of pride and joy. "Uh, ignore what I just said."

"Na, na. Ignore tou nahi hona mere se. So you think I am a flirt cause of that? Come on, tell me, Rubab. Let's talk about it properly. I want to clear this misunderstanding too." I urged her on but she seemed reluctant. "I know you want too. I can see it on your emotionless face. You know you can't hide things from me. I have learned to read you."

After a couple of minutes of silence and me glancing at her every now and then, she finally spoke up.

"If I say yes, what will you do?" She wasn't looking at me. She looked more focused on the road then I did and I was the one driving.

"Well, I need to prove my sincerity to you then. I told you I am serious about us." I know I hadn't officially confessed but I am sure, Rubab had picked up on some of my hints right?

"How? How will you prove it?" That was a good question and I had the perfect answer.

"How do you want me to?" I had learned in life that it was always better to ask what the other person wants rather than wild guessing on your own so yeah here we were. This way I know what Rubab truly wants. "What will make you finally believe that I meant what I said at the restaurant and before that? I am serious about you, Rubab even if I have this terrible image infront of you. I am not going to lie to you. It might not be love right now but this is the most serious I have gotten with a woman. No scratch that, it's the most serious I have gotten about anything in my life. I really want to see where life takes the two of us. I don't want to jeopardise this or us. You really need to give me a chance-"

"OH MY GOD! FAHAD LOOK OUT!" I felt her grab my arm tightly as the car started to screech. Headlights flashed into my eyes as the next few seconds became a blur.

Author's Note:

Hello and Asalam o Alaikum Lovelies!

Thank you all for the warm wishes. It means alot to me. So who expected this turn of events?