𝐒𝐔𝐊𝐎𝐎𝐍 - rewritten | ✓

EIGHT

Shahnaz stormed towards the two and broke them apart. Terror was fear in Maham's eyes and then Shahnaz slapped her, continuously.

"Mere bete ko bhi nahi chora tune! Apne maa baap ko toh kha gayi, mera sukoon bhi kha gayi, ab mere bete ke peeche parhi hai!" Shahnaz yelled, creating havoc.
(You didn't leave my son alone either! She ruined her parents, she has also eaten away my peace, and now she is after my son.)

"Ammi!" Zayan yelled, getting between the two women as everyone rushed out of their, some half asleep and some preparing to sleep.
(Mom!)

"Shahnaz! Aadhi raat ko kya tamasha lagaya howa hai?!" Arafat yelled, this gave Maham time to fix her blurry vision and touch the bruise on her cheek.
(What play are you performing at this hour?)

"Tamasha nahi hai! Mai kehti thi na. Mai kehti thi ik din apni maa jaise rang kheleigi yeh larki. Aur aaj wohi howa! Manhoos ne mera bete ko hi phasaya," Shahnaz said.
(It is no play! I used to say. I used to say, didn't I, that one day this girl would show her true colors like her mother. And it has happened! The curse has captured my son,)

"Ammi, bas kar jayein! Kya oul foul keh rahi hain aap!" Zayan said, raising his tone. It shocked everyone. Zayan was never the one to yell or raise his tone even an ounce. 
(Mom, stop it! What rubbish are you saying!)

"Zayan, tum chup kar jao. Andhe hogay ho tum. Tum- tum is haramzadi ke liye mujhpe chila rahe ho? Hat jao mere raaste se, mai aaj isko ghar se ghar se nikal longi bohut hogaya!" Shahnaz yelled.
(Zayan, you shut up. You have become blind. You- you are yelling at me for this bastard? Get out of my way, I am kicking her out!)

"Ammi!" Zayan shouted, like a thunder's roar and everyone went quiet. The atmosphere became quiet and no one dared speak up.
(Mom!)

"Mai andha nahi howa hoon. Balke meri ankhein khul gayi hain," Zayan said and then reached behind him towards the vulnerable girl trembling, grabbing her hand.
(I have not gotten blind! Instead, my eyes are opened.)

"Bachpan mai toh chup rehta tha. Magar ab nahi," He said before dragging Maham downstairs and towards his car.
(I used to be quiet in my childhood. But now anymore.)

Maham sat in the passenger seat, still shaken up. She pressed the sleeve of her white Anarkali against her lesion. It was a simple cream-coloured Anarkali, with palazzo trousers and a see-through dupatta.

( play the sound now! )

When Zayan started driving and racing away, she realized she was in the car. She kept asking him, continuously where he was taking them but he ignored her. After an hour of trying, she stopped asking and looked out the window as he drove to the outskirts of the city and to a beautiful Masjid. The architecture was cultural and opulent, her mouth parted as she stared.

"Bahar chalo," He said and got out. She did as well, putting the dupatta on her head.
(Let's go outside,)

They stood in front of the masjid, his eyes on her and her eyes on the door before she turned her head and looked at him.

"Ham yaha kyun aayein hain?" She asked, her voice soft and quiet.
(Why are we here?)

"Nikkah karne," He replied, nonchalantly, watching as her eyes widened.
(To get married,)

"Tumhe jitna time chahiye sochne ke liye le lena. Mai yaha par subah paanch baje take rukne ko tayyar hoon. Mai masjid ki dosri side par hoon ga. Mujhe tumhari haan aur na dono manzoor hai. Mujhe koi shiqwa nahi hogi agar tum mujhse shaadi karne ke liye raazi nahi. Mai har jawab mai tumhe mehfoos rakhonga." He spoke with such softness and determination that she felt as if she was melting like a puddle on the floor.

(Whatever hours you need to think take it. I am ready to stay here till 5 am. I will be on the opposite side of the masjid. I accept both your yes and no. I won't complain if you aren't ready to marry me. I will protect you with every answer.)

And with those words, he left. She gulped, looking around before stepping into the masjid after removing her shoes. She sat down by the wall, leaning against it. And in the darkness of midnight, and she started thinking about everything.  

He did protect her in the months he was here. Stopping his mother whenever he could. he defended her -- he yelled at his mother in front of everyone for her. He fought for her. And the most important part, she felt safe around him. She felt safe with his touch, being in the same room alone with him, and with his touch.

She thought of every single time she was abused. Thinking continuously about it, until tears ran down her face. She was completely and utterly alone in the world. With no one to care for her, to defend her, to love her. But now he was here. 

He used to act blind too before the abuse his mother and others inflicted on her. She remembered that. She remembered the eye contact she would make with him while she was being beaten and how he would turn around and walk away.

She wouldn't ever forget how everyone looked away. 

But he had changed. 

Tears were streaming down her face when an old woman approached her and weakly sat down.

"Kya howa, beta? Pareshaan lag rahi ho," The woman said, her voice frail yet comforting.
(What happened, child? You look stressed.)

Maham wiped a tear before responding, "Ik aadmi ne mujhse shaadi ka poocha hai. Woh ache hain. Badal gaye hain. Lekin... unki walida bohut zaalim hai. Hamesha mujhe pe zulm kiya hai. Mujhe us shakhs se pyaar toh nahi... lekin woh izzat karte hai aur ifazat karte hain," 
(A man has asked me for marriage. He is good. He has changed. But... his mother is very cruel. She has always treated me with cruelty. I do not that man... but he respects me and protects me.)

The woman listened, attentively.

"Aas paas ke log jaise bhi ho. Ik aurat ko hamesha apne wale ka saath chahiye hota hai. Chahe woh walid ho, walida ho, ya shohar ho. Agar yeh aadmi waqai tumhari ifazat karta hai, toh tumhe haan keh deni chahiye. Mohabbat toh kabhi bhi ho jati hai, ghalat insaan se bhi hojati hai. Auraton ko ik humsafar chunna chahiye, aesa shakhs nahi joh unhe hi dard de," The woman spoke.
(Whoever the kind of people are around us. A woman always wants someone who is her own. Whether it is a father, or mother, or a husband. If that man really protects you, then you should agree. People fall in love anytime, even with the wrong people. Women should choose a companion, not the kind of person who inflicts pain on them.)

Maham kept listening with attention, thinking deeply about it. 

"Magar, intekhab tumhara hai," the woman before weakly standing up and bidding goodbye before leaving.
(But, the choice is yours.)