Be-panah

SEVEN

Bahut kareeb se dekha hai,
Tumhe dur hote hue.

▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️▫️

Adab was squirming on her seat with her fingers fidgeting in nervousness. She looked at Eshal sitting in front of her with a poker face.

"Aapi, please say something." Adab begged.

Eshal let out a loud sigh, "I am still processing everything you told me."

That was right. Adab had woken up the next morning, drove to Eshal and Ayaan's home and came clean in front of her sister.

"I swear, Aapi, I never meant for all this to happen. I still don't know why, how.." Adab's voice was breaking. Eshal hurriedly stood up and hugged her little sister.

"Shh, don't cry. It isn't your fault." Eshal tried to comfort her.

"It is. It is my fault." Uncontrollable sobs left Adab's mouth. Eshal kept hugging her for a long time until Adab calmed down.

"I have made a mistake. But now I have to correct it as well." Adab spoke.

Eshal squeezed her hand. "Yes, I think what you've decided to do is right."

After talking to Eshal, Adab felt a little better. The next step was to talk to Zaroon. As Eshal saw Adab's car drive away, she made a silent prayer for Zaroor. She asked for strength and patience for her cousin who was about to have his heart broken.

Eshal knew that Adab wasn't exactly at fault. You can't control whom you love, or not love. But what broke her heart was knowing that Zaroon wasn't at fault either, but it would be him who would be at the receiving end of it. The cruelty of the situation would end up affecting both the families. The silence had ended, it was time for the storm to arrive.

_______________

Adab was escorted to Zaroon's cabin by his personal assistant, Rohit. He and Jahangir, Zaroon's personal bodyguard, were the only people to know about Zaroon and Adab, apart from their families.

Zaroon, who was working on his laptop, jumped on his feet and a huge smile appeared on his face when he saw Adab.

"What a pleasant surprise!" He commented as he welcomed his fiance inside with a warm hug. He then turned to Rohit and asked him to cancel the meeting that was about to start in ten minutes and ordered him to not disturb him. Rohit nodded politely and left the couple alone.

Zaroon guided Adab towards the couch that was placed on one corner and sat beside her.

His smiling face was making her feel more nervous than she already was. Her thumb scratched on her engagement ring as she cleared her throat. But before she could speak, Zaroon said, "You look beautiful, sweetheart."

She looked in his eyes, it was filled with love for her. Just like always.

Her heart squeezed in pain and guilt. And for a second, she thought of not telling him anything and let things go the way they were. But the logical part of her brain told her that she couldn't run away from it forever. It needed to be done.

"Zaroon," She started, "umm, we need to talk."

He raised his eyebrow, "Generally girls say that before breaking up." He jokingly said and chuckled.

Stop making it difficult! She screamed internally.

"Umm," She fumbled with her words, "There is something I need to tell you."

"What?" He nodded his head and asked her to go ahead.

She couldn't look him in the eyes, so she looked down. "I.. I can't marry you." She breathed out.

He took a second to understand what she said before grinning. "Yeah, very funny."

But his grin died down when he saw her looking at him seriously. "You can't be serious!" He said, his voice held a hint of horror.

"Zaroon," She rested her hand on top of his, "I am so sorry."

"Why? Is it because the wedding date is too soon for you? We can work that out, you can take as much time as you want. I will wait.." He spoke in a single breath.

But she stopped him, "No, that's not the reason. I can't marry you because," She took a deep breath and batted her eyelashes to control her tears, "because I don't love you."

And then a long silence enveloped them. He stayed quiet while looking down, while she was at a loss of words. She couldn't think of anything to say that would make him feel better.

"Zaroon, please say something." She helplessly cried.

But he just stayed shut.

"I promise you I tried. I tried to love you, but I just couldn't. I am sorry." She palmed her mouth to soften her sobs. "And I didn't want to marry you without loving you, because then it'll not be fair to you. You deserve a marriage in which your wife loves you just as much as you love her."

"Okay." He finally said.

She stared at him in confusion. "What okay?"

"You don't have to marry me. And don't worry, I'll talk to our parents. You can go home and leave the rest on me." He slowly got up from the couch and walked towards the window with both his hands tucked inside his pants' pockets.

She was taken off guard. She had not expected him to take the news so calmly, so she was now confused on what to do. When she realised that he was not going to say anything more, she wiped her tears, got to her feet and padded near his table.

From the corner of his eyes, he saw her taking off the ring that he had slipped in her finger with so much love and promises, the ring that signified so much, and put it on the table. She then turned her heels and started moving out. But before she could open the door, his words halted her steps.

"Adab," He turned to look at her, "Is there someone else?"

🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸🔸

Zaroon, my love, don't think that I don't understand your pain. You will get all the happiness you deserve, I promise.

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