It was destiny ✨

Chapter 13

Azlan and Haya had spent the 2 weeks attending the long list of post-wedding dawats, only conversing when necessary. They were not like the usual arranged marriage and instead they had a huge communication gap. The awkwardness and the misperceptions in their minds had created a huge gap between them.

Azlan's father and Sana had to go back because of their commitments in London, whereas Tehmina was staying for another week or two to help Azlan get comfortable and settled down with Haya and to attend the wedding of her sister's son.

Because of all the wedding festivities, Tehmina had to leave early.

"Haya tum or Azlan baad mei tiyaar ho kar aajana. Or HAAN! woh jo saree meine gift ki thi who pehna aaj." Tehmina instructed while she was practically running out of the house.

Haya gave a sheepish "Jee", but Tehmina had already left by then. The only problem was that Haya didn't know how to wear a saree because she had never tried one on before.

'I mean... I can watch tutorials on YouTube. It shouldn't be a big deal.'

Well, little did she know, it was a big deal.

Haya had done all her makeup and slightly curled her chocolate-caramel hair. She just had to put on her saree now.

She took out a burgundy velvet saree from her closet and started trying to put it on after watching a dozen of YouTube videos.

It had been over an hour and she was still standing in the dressing room, trying to understand where the extra piece of cloth was supposed to go. She let out an exasperated sigh and dropped the saree on the floor.

Just then, the door to the dressing room opened, and it was Azlan. An audible gasp grabbed his attention as he was on the phone. He found Haya in a petticoat and blouse, with a maroon cloth all over the floor. He hurriedly closed the door, muttering countless "Sorry" with a flushed face.

Haya's face was almost as red as the saree itself, but there was no time since they were getting late already, plus the velvet was heavy to work with. She knew there was no choice.

She dragged the velvet across the floor and twisted the knob of the door.

"Azlan?"

"Uh, yes?"

"Could you come inside? It's fine. I'm already covered,"

"Umm, is everything fine?" Azlan asked while entering the room, but the sight made his heart race at an abnormal speed.

"yeah. NO! I mean, no, it's not." Azlan's silence gave her a signal to start the conversation.

"Phuppo told me to wear a saree, but I don't know how to. I even watched so many videos, but nothing is making sense."

"Um, can you help me with this?" Haya finally asked him with her eyes stuck on the floor.

When Azlan saw her looking down at the floor, he could not help but smile. He knew it required a lot of courage to ask, so he was kind of proud of her.

Haya felt Azlan move towards her and she looked up to find him hanging his coat in the closet beside Haya. He was so close to her she could smell his woody cologne. It made her heart erratic; she was already dreading this.

Azlan rolled up his sleeves first and took out his phone to learn the art of draping the saree.

"May I?" He started. They both had worked all out within 30 minutes and Haya turned around to look at herself in the mirror.

"Oh wow, it looks like the work of a professional," Azlan exclaimed proudly, and they both chuckled at his remark.

Haya turned around to face Azlan and gave him a bright, genuine smile. "Thank you,"

He did not reply. He was bewitched. This was the first time Haya gave him a genuine smile. The way those red lips curled up into a smile. They distracted him. He leaned in slightly, and in that moment Haya's smile disappeared. Haya wasn't expecting this to happen at all, but for Azlan, it was just a reminder that all this was forced.

"I should get ready now." Without even meeting Haya's eyes, he dashed into the washroom.

He leaned against the door, keeping one hand on his racing heart.

When he came out of the dressing room, Haya was sitting on the other side of the bed. He noticed how long her curled hair was. Just then, Haya caught Azlan's stare, and to break the silence, she asked if he was ready.

"Need a minute."

The distance and awkwardness between them were back.