"Miss Vaneeza Tahir! Will you marry me?" And Vaneeza's eyes widened in shock. "What ???"
"Answer me?" Ahmar insisted with a genuine smile.
"I ... you ... all this ... what's going on?" Vaneeza stuttered.
"We'll get married if you want to, of course ... because this offer is valid for a limited time." Ahmar winked at her. Vaneeza laughed and slapped him on the shoulder.
"Shut up!"
Ahmar laughed. "I like it!"
Vaneeza stared at him in confusion. "What?"
"This shut-up call!" And this made Vaneeza laugh as well. But then he turned serious again. "What happened?" Vaneeza inquired worriedly.
"When you met me a year and a half ago ... I haven't seen you cry since that day, but when I felt your tears falling on my heart that day, I regretted that I made you cry."
"Oh! By the way ..." She paused. "Every time I remember our first meeting, I'm ashamed of how ignorant I was to cry over such trivial matters, and what would you have thought of me after our first encounter?" Ahmar smiled at her words.
"Seeing you, I thought of Shiza. She too would cry like a child over small things, give up, and I would comfort her in the same way I comforted her a year and a half ago."
"So you still consider me Shiza and want to marry me?" Although the question was bitter, the way she asked was plain.
"No! But because I want to love again and live." Ahmar shook his head in denial, grabbed her hand then commented. "You haven't answered my question yet?"
"Which question?" Vaneeza wondered. She had forgotten all about it.
"About marriage?" Ahmar reminded Vaneeza angrily and she smiled.
"There is a condition."
"What condition?" Ahmar asked in surprise.
"You will not smoke after today." Ahmar let out a sigh of relief.
"Thank God ... I thought you might not demand a bungalow." Ahmar teased her.
"I can't believe that you think of me like I'm similar to the other greedy girls." When Vaneeza expressed fake anger, Ahmar got nervous.
"Oh sorry ... I just teased you." He explained and Vaneeza couldn't stop laughing when he saw her face.
"I'm kidding ... no need to be too serious." Ahmar sighed with relief. But Ahmar's pleasant mood turned sour when he recognized someone across the hall. Vaneeza also felt this sudden change in him and followed his gaze. "What happened?" She asked worriedly.
"Oh shit... He's coming towards us." Ahmar cursed under his breath and took a deep breath to prepare himself for what was to come!
"Oh hello, Mr Ahmar Adeel! What a pleasant surprise to meet you here. How are you doing?" Vaneeza heard a charming man under his thirties, greeting Ahmar quite pleasantly. She didn't turn around to look at him but she felt Ahmar's reluctance in greeting him back, but he did anyway out of courtesy.
"I'm doing well. How do you do, Mr. Shiraz?" He stood up and shook hands with Shiraz while eyeing that beautiful lady standing beside him.
"I'm fine, thank you! Oh yes, meet my really 'special' friend Zhalay." Shiraz said in a meaningful way.
"Oh, hello!" Ahmar passed her a fake smile after the introduction. The woman also passed him a seductive smile that disgusts Ahmar.
"And who she might be?" Shiraz asked Ahmar while pointing at Vaneeza. "Wife or....?" He trailed off meaningfully. Vaneeza hesitated but Ahmar stopped her, saying "Yes!" as an answer in a firm tone. Vaneeza looked at Ahmar in a puzzled way while Shiraz smiled cunningly at Ahmar.
"Oh! I see. My mother-in-law didn't tell me about her, that's not fair!"
"She wouldn't have considered it appropriate," Ahmar replied, Shiraz's smile faded.
"What do you mean by that? I'm her son-in-law."
"This means that aunty does what she feels is appropriate at the time. That's why she may not have told you. "Ahmar laughed bitterly. He was also surprised that Shiraz had not surprisingly mentioned their last unpleasant meeting.
"Yes, you said this quite rightly. Now look, she didn't even tell me and sent her barren daughter away with me." He spat out unkindly. Ahmar was hurt by his words. "What are you trying to implement?"
"You are his brother, where will you see fault with your sister? But I'm a true man. That's why I told you not to complain about finding out later." And Ahmar was left, looking at him amid sorrow.
"Baby, can we leave now as we're getting late?!" The girl standing next to him was probably getting bored so she spoke up and just then Shiraz had turned to her. "Oh yeah, you're right!" He nodded his head in agreement while staring at her, passing her his charming smile then he looked back at Ahmar. "Nice meeting you. Goodbye, have a nice eve!" Then he turned around on his heels and left without shaking hands.
Ahmar saw him going upstairs with the woman at his arm, giggling and whispering secretly. Ahmar sat down on his seat looking weary and shocked. Vaneeza was aware of his feelings as she held his cold hands in her warm ones and squeezed them gently, reassuringly; surprising Ahmar.
"What caused you more pain, is it his tone or him insulting Shiza like this?" Vaneeza asked gently.
"Both. Aunty said Shiraz loves Shiza very much. Shiza also looked me in the eye and admitted that she was very happy, but now I can see how shamelessly they both kept lying on my face." Ahmar was feeling betrayed.
"So, what will you do now?" Vaneeza questioned him.
"I'll do what I should do!"
"And that is...?" Vaneeza seemed puzzled. Ahmar smiled at her. "I'll marry you." And that made her sigh in relief. She almost thought that she would lose him before actually having him.
♾....♾.....♾
A few days later Aunty called Ahmar to his house and, as planned, she was very sad and expressed her grief for whatever had happened to Shiza in the past. She told him about how aggressive, unkind and abusive Shiraz has been towards her daughter. As far as forgiveness was concerned, she would never have agreed to admit her mistake in front of Ahmar. After hearing her out patiently, Ahmar asked her calmly. "What do you want from me?"
"I want you to bring her back to her old happy self. Give her back what we had taken away in ignorance."
"What are you trying to say?" Ahmar acted baffled although he knew what she was trying to implement.
"I want to say that Shiza doesn't want to live with him anymore as his body and mind can't be able to bear the abuse any longer so she told me that she'll apply for divorce in a few days. You marry her after the iddah is over!" It's like she was not requesting him but ordering him. Ahmar was shocked to realize how selfish she was. How could she act so selfishly when she was herself a social worker?!
"Why does she want to divorce him?" And on his question, aunty stared at him in disbelief but didn't object.
"I've told you everything from the start. She's not ready to compromise any further although I've tried to talk her out of it. She seems decisive this time."
"So you want me to marry her after her marriage ends?" Ahmar confirmed and when she nodded while staring into his eyes, he sighed. Then he left without agreeing to anything or telling her about what he would do. He had returned as he had come, devoid of any emotion!
♾....♾.....♾
YOU ARE READING
Illusion Or Curse (COMPLETED)
Short Story* "But.....but you said that I'm your best buddy..!" And after listening these words calmly, she freed her hand slowly from his grip. On her action, he saw in her eyes blankly. "Please don't do this to me... Please I beg you!" He was begging, cryin...
