Lovebirds

thirty-five

A melody hummed in her ears as his fingers strummed against his guitar, gliding elegantly along the strings and ensuring a soft tune to surround her. His gaze was steady, following the movement of his hands, visage etched in deep concentration. At times, he would pause to pat the beat on his lap before continuing the tune on his guitar again.

Naira was in complete awe.

She told the boys to work separately on their solo songs, to write about an issue that they felt passionate about, something to show a more human side of them to their fans. Rayan was no exception, so he worked tirelessly the past few nights, focused on the tune of his song and writing the lyrics late into the night.

"How's the song going?" she decided to ask while hugging her tablet to her chest. She was standing in front of him as he sat on a bench in one of their work rooms. "Feeling better about your lyrics?"

His eyes glanced up, a smile fitting his lips when he saw her. "Much better with you here," he winked. "I have been wondering where you've been since the meeting."

"I was busy," she shrugged. Truthfully, she was too embarrassed to be in front of him, a shyness blooming within like a blushing rose. Naira hated that feeling, and avoidance seemed like a wise choice.

"Or is it because you were scared that I'd write my song about you?" he teased her with a cheeky grin, knowing he hit the jackpot. "Don't lie to me now. You know I can read you like a book."

"Why are you like this?"

Rayan threw his head back in a chuckle, hooded eyes meeting hers as the vibrancy of an evergreen shined back at her. He leaned against the wall, top buttons of his shirt undone and rigid muscles outlining the thin fabric of his button-up. Her heart thumped against her chest, clenching at the sight of him.

Stop it, Naira. Pull it together.

"Am I wrong, Naira?" he whispered in a low, tempting voice, one that promised more.

She scoffed, turning away. "Only a fool would be afraid of you writing a love song. Besides, shouldn't you be writing something different from the songs the band usually releases?"

"But I'm in love. For real this time."

"How would you know that?" asked Naira, incredulous at his confessions. "How could you possibly know what love is?"

He wasn't offended by her disbelief, nor was he surprised. Rayan was calm, patiently gazing at her with the same smile that made his entire expression glow in the light. Her questions didn't unnerve him in the slightest. Instead, it made him more confident, more certain about his feelings.

"Love comes from here," he said, pointing at his chest where his heart was. "It beats wildly every time you're near. It hurts when you're far away. When you're in love, nothing else compares because it's that one person who makes the bad days into blissful memories. It's that one person who has the power to take you to cloud nine or to the depths of the earth."

"But-"

"We don't choose who we fall in love with, Naira. We choose how we express it. This is simply my way."

She couldn't understand why he would want someone who could break his heart? Why would he take that risk when there were so many other women willing to give him their hearts, willing to cherish him forever?

For Naira, the case wasn't as simple. Even if she wanted to love him, to express her affections, she couldn't. She was bound to her religion, sworn to her faith. When she wore her hijab, she declared a testament of her beliefs, that no matter the struggle she would strive to stay on the righteous path.

How could she stay true to her beliefs if she was tempted by a concept like love? People lost their minds from it, made poor decisions blinded by the overwhelming hurricane that love was.

Sensing her hesitation, Rayan sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. He held onto his guitar, fingers gliding over the strings on memory alone. It filled the silence between them, shortening the distance and pushing their hearts closer to together as the rhythm picked up pace.

A mystical sound bounced off the walls, jumping around them in hues of beautiful shimmers, light dancing across her skin as if she could picture his song with her eye, as if she could grasp his hand and take him with her on this journey. The effortless beauty that came from his heart wrote a vow into blank pages, inking a story among pages of strife.

Her gaze softened as she watched him.

When he finished, his eyes fluttered open, bright with passion as he met hers with a burning intensity. It ignited a flame in her chest, blood rushing to her face.

"I'd be damned if anyone stopped me from pursuing a love like ours," he said, his voice a deep baritone that burned a path along her skin, leaving a forbidden desire to fester. His words came from his chest, from his heart.

He was laying his heart for her.

She cleared her throat, struggling to find her own voice. "Love like ours?" she asked, barely above a whisper.

"I never had a lot of choices," he confessed, leaning his head against the wall as his guitar rested on his lap. His fingers tapped the wood lightly, a small chuckle escaping him. "Hell, I was told what to do from the day I was born whether it be my family, society, or this industry. My choices were made for me before I could understand the world beyond them. I thought when I chose this popstar life that it would be the first choice of my own."

"And now?"

A sudden gloom crossed his darkened features. "Now I see that even this life has a way of confining me too."

She wanted to reach out to ease the tension out of his muscles, to whisper the words that she'd been dying to tell him. He was a wandering soul, searching the valleys of freedom at every opportunity, every door that crossed his path, and still he was swallowed into a vortex of expectations.

Music was what he loved, and even that was becoming a burden.

Rayan met her steady gaze. "But you're my choice, Naira, a choice that no one else has a claim to. It's just us. Even if you take advantage of me or break my heart, I want to be with you," he said with a smile full of starlight and glittering through a haze of love. "So, go easy on me, will you?"

"You're a fool," she sighed.

"Sometimes you need to be a fool to be madly in love."

----

What a sappy dope. Rayan, pull it together, mate.

Just kidding! I'm a sucker for love declarations >.<

Sorry about the late update. I'm still getting used to working and going to school. Definitely stressful and I'm probably crazy, but WITH THE POWER OF PRAYER AND DUAA IMMA DO IT.

What a good pep talk, team.

Do you think Naira will be even more touched when she hears his full song about her? Don't forget to vote, comment, and follow!