Always Her

X

♪♫ Sun mere humsafar,

Kya tujhe itni si bhi khabar,

Ki teri saansein chalti jidhar,

Rahungi bas wahin umarr bhar,

Rahungi bas wahin umarr bhar, haaye...♪♫

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Hey!"

Inaya glanced at the door where Zain was leaning on the doorframe. "Hi!"

It's been two months since their first kiss and they have been living in Zain's former house in New York for the last month because of the project.

Today they are going to a fundraiser event for charity.

"You look..." he walked towards her but seemed like he couldn't complete his sentence.

"Nice? Good? Beautiful?" Inaya suggested playfully when he stood in front of her.

He wrapped his arm around her waist, pulling her closer. "Breathtaking! You look breathtaking, amore."

She put her hands around his neck with a grin. "Thank you, Mr. Mallik! You don't look half bad yourself."

"Why thank you, Ms. Khan."

"Why don't you guys get married already?" Came Ahana's voice from the door.

They hurriedly untangled themselves from each other.

Ahana came a week ago to finalize the designs with her and Zain. She was also coming with them for the event as Zain said it would be beneficial for them to make the connection in the business world.

"Learn to knock!" Zain exclaimed.

"Learn to lock." Ahana mocked. "Besides the door was open ajar. Not my fault."

Zain was about to say something when Inaya gestured for him not to.

"You look nice." Zain said. Ahana looked at herself and then at Zain in disbelief.

"Please tell me he gave you a better compliment." She asked Inaya.

Inaya chuckled. "He did! Much better."

"Well, then I can do with nice." Ahana told no one in particular and turned to Zain with a sickly sweet smile. "Why thank you. You look ok-ish"

"You-"

"I'm suddenly feeling very thirsty. I want something to drink." Ahana told Zain.

"You can go get yourself something to drink."

"Well, I'm the guest and you are the host so..." Ahana trailed off.

Zain rolled his eyes at Ahana and went to the kitchen probably.

"You really needed to do that?" Inaya asked.

Ahana chuckled. "He gives me a reaction and besides it is really easy to irritate him."

"You say that like you're any better."

"Fine, sorry. But I can't promise that I won't irritate him any further."

She shook her head at Ahana.

"You look stunning, sugar!" Ahana exclaimed. "Saree really suits you."

"Thank you. You are looking gorgeous. Black really is your colour." Inaya said referring to Ahana's long-sleeved mermaid gown.

"Thanks."

"So..." Ahana trailed off.

"So?"

"You like him, don't you?" Ahana wiggled her eyebrows with a mischievous smile.

She let out a whisper of a chuckle. "I'll tell you all about it but not now."

"What, no! Tomorrow is my last day here and I know after that you won't tell me anything. Please tell me."

"No, not now. And I know it's your last day tomorrow that's why we are going to have a girl's day out tomorrow. I'll tell you then."

"Fine. But you have to tell me everything."

"Sure. Now let's go or we'll be late."

"Okay"

◅▫▻

Zain has been greeting people and introducing her to them for a while now. Ahana found a solitude corner after a few minutes they stepped into the venue, from where she has been observing the room without having everyone's eyes on her.

Throughout the night, Zain hasn't left her side even for a second which gave her much-needed comfort.

"Zain?" both of them turned to the female voice which came from their left. "Hey!"

"Hi!" Zain smiled but she could tell that it was forced.

The woman in front of them was beautiful—gorgeous even. Her ginger hair was smooth and shined whenever light hit them. Her eyes were sparkling but she was only looking at Zain. Inaya wondered if the woman even noticed her presence because if she did then she was royally ignoring her.

"This is Inaya. Inaya Khan. She's-" Zain introduced her but was cut off by the woman

"Your date?" her voice had an undefined edge to it.

"Yes, that and my girlfriend. She's a successful CEO of her clothing brand." He told the woman then glanced at Inaya. "She's Natasha, amore. One of the few female vice presidents in the tech world"

Inaya smiled at the information. "Hi, nice to meet you."

"Same." Natasha returned a fake smile and turned to Zain again. "I have been trying to reach you for months now, you know. Where have you been?"

"I have been busy."

"Doing what?" her voice was sharp almost accusing.

"You don't need to know that."

The whole evening they mingled and talked with different people but Inaya's mind was stuck on Natasha—she was beautiful and smart and Inaya couldn't understand why but she was feeling insecure. At some point, Ahana too joined both of them but she stick to Inaya, not leaving her alone. Ahana may not know the reason but she understands Inaya way too much and maybe that's why she stayed with her even though she hates crowds and mingling with people because she sensed Inaya's disturbed state.