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"Isn't that Shahzain?" Falaq's urgent whisper broke through the chaos, her hand tightening around my arm.
I turned, my gaze following hers, and my breath hitched at the sight that greeted me. There, just a few feet away, Shahzain was on his knees, his face a picture of devastation. He was beside a woman's lifeless body sprawled on the pavement, her chest unmoving and eyes closed, as if frozen in her final moment. Blood stained his hands as he gripped her shoulders, his hoarse voice barely audible as he pleaded for her to wake up.
The sight of him-so broken, his shoulders trembling under the weight of his grief-sent a sharp pain through my chest, as though my heart was being wrenched apart. I had never seen Shahzain like this. It was as if all the strength he ever had had seeped out of him, leaving behind a man who was unraveling before my very eyes.
"Shahzain!" I called out, my voice trembling, desperate to reach him. I took a step forward, then another, unable to look away from his shattered form.
At the sound of my voice, his head jerked up. His eyes-wide and unfocused-scanned the crowd frantically until they locked onto mine. Recognition dawned, and he sprang to his feet, his movements frantic as he stumbled toward me, like a drowning man reaching for a lifeline.
As he reached me, his trembling hands cupped my face, his fingers icy against my skin. His eyes, filled with a wild blend of relief and terror, roamed over my face and then down my body, as if needing to confirm that I was really there, that I was safe.
"Sobia... are you okay?" he choked out, his voice thick with emotion. His hands tightened on my cheeks, as though afraid to let go. "Tum thik ho?" (Are you alright?,) His voice broke on the last word, raw and desperate.
"I'm fine," I whispered, my own voice unsteady as I reached up to grasp his wrists, trying to steady the trembling in his hands. "But Shahzain, what happened? Who-"
Before I could finish my question, he yanked me into his arms, clutching me tightly against his chest. His breath was ragged, and I could feel his heart thudding violently against my own. He was shaking so badly it felt like he was the one who had been hurt, not the woman lying motionless on the road.
"I thought..." he murmured, his voice muffled as he buried his face in my hair. "I thought it was you, Sobia." His voice cracked as he spoke, and I felt him shudder as though every ounce of strength had left his body. "I thought that woman was you." His grip tightened, desperate and fierce, as if the thought alone was unbearable.
"Mere rooh kaap gaye thi, Sobia," (My soul was trembling, Sobia.) He confessed, his words barely a whisper. "I've never felt such fear... such pain, not like I did in that moment."
