Love for Rent

x Take Care x Shahzaib's POV

Death is such a weird thing. It is the only thing that is certain. The minute someone dies, we end up forgiving the soul. After spending most of my life hating and seeking revenge in my head, the minute I got a text from my Kumail that my stepmother had died. I called right away to talk to him. I didn't like the thought of him texting me. I wanted him to contact me. Despite all the hate, I wanted to speak to him. I tried to tell him I was here. Because I knew what it felt like. I learned how horrible the world felt when my mother passed away. I didn't want to be in a world where she wasn't with us.

'Hey,' I felt a soft touch on my shoulder, and I looked behind me to find Seher standing with her bag, ready to leave.

'I really don't want to leave...' I began, but she stopped me by touching my lips with her fingers.

'I know...you have to go...I want you to go' She nodded in my direction, and I felt relaxed. I held her hand and brought her around the sofa to sit on my lap. She brushed the side of my eye to wipe the tear.

'You are a good man,' She told her.

I shook my head to deny that. The pedestal she was trying to put me on. I didn't belong there. She probably saw me as good because she had it worse than me, but that didn't make me a saint.

'You are crying for the woman who hurt you' She pulled my chin up to make me look into her eyes.

'When I was a little kid, life seemed so simple...I wanted to grow up so bad. Wanted to be an adult. I am not so sure anymore. I just know one thing,' I told her while keeping my eyes locked into hers. Her gaze questioned me to answer.

'I like it here' I brought her closer to me and kissed her neck, and she made a warm noise that made me never want to let her go. But the storm stopped, her Ma was waiting for her, and I had to see Kumail. I had a lot of work pending in Islamabad.

'Everything will be okay. I am with you,' Seher tried to ensure me. I hope she was right. Now that the storm outside finally settled, I was worried about the storm that was bound to occur in Seher's life once her Ma's operation was done.

'I wanted to be here with you during her operation,' I told her, and she moved her head back to look at me again.

'I can handle it,' She said to me.

'I know you can, but now I am here' I told her and smiled so beautifully that I couldn't but mirror it.

'You can only come back if you leave' She joked and tried to move back but little did she know, I was not done.

'You need to give me a token,' I told her once she settled back into my lap and rolled her eyes at my comment.

'You are such a flirt' She hit my shoulder but took me by surprise when she pushed me back into my seat and straddled me.

'What do you need?' She asked in a low voice that made me grab her thighs. She lightly laughed at something, and I pulled my eyebrow up, wondering what she thought was funny. I was restraining myself from touching her, moving her closer to me, taking her back inside the bedroom, and here she was laughing so lightly.

'Are you always this intense? Or is it just with you?' Her laughter from seconds ago got replaced with her parting her lips and the sound of breaths getting uneven when I grabbed her waist, moved her closer in my direction, and pushed her hands around my neck so that she was almost laying on top of me.

'I am not intense,' I told her and moved her hair to the side so I could kiss her neck. I wanted to hear that sound again.

'Then what do you call this?' She shivered in my embrace.

'This is me kissing my wife, and this is me loving her' I left a trail of kisses from her neck to her jaw until I reached her lips and took them as if my life depended on it. She moaned softly and gripped my hair, making it almost impossible to leave her. Luckily or not, so luckily, her phone rang, and she aggressively pushed me away before answering her phone and talking to her Ma.

'Yes, I am on my way. I will see you soon' She sighed in relief after ending the call. I could see her panicking as she talked with her Ma. She was feeling guilty for lying, and I didn't blame her. I was feeling guilty too, but I was also in love. Hard in love. I just wanted this lie to end so we could normally live without all the hiding and the lies. I owed my side of the family the truth as well. However, at least in their eyes, we were already married. However, in her life, Seher was still considered an unmarried woman. I knew the moment her Ma got better, she would try to find a match for her. The thought left a sour taste in my mouth. Her Ma would like me. I was sure of it.

We were in front of Seher's house. Seher was quiet during the entire ride, she nodded, and made little comments but didn't say anything after speaking with her Ma. The look on her face was starting to worry me, or maybe I was overthinking. After being so close to her, I was dreading this moment to leave her and maybe that was the reason I wasn't thinking straight. I dreaded this part the entire day, and it was happening now.

'Is everything okay?' I couldn't help but ask. It seemed like I pulled her from her thoughts when she turned my way and asked me to repeat what I said.

'Yes, everything is fine,' She answered quickly when I placed my hand on hers and asked her again.

'If something is wrong, you would tell me, right?' I asked her to make sure. She nodded gently and smiled at me.

'I should go' She removed her hand from me and opened the door to leave. I felt strange.

'I love you' I blurted out right before she got out.

'Take care' She faced me again with a sad smile. Before I could ask anything further, she got out of the car and ran upstairs to her apartment. I was getting late, so I started the engine and headed to the airport but kept thinking about Seher and the last look on her face the entire time.