Shiddat

fourteen

Taha's POV

I am not able to sleep the whole night; my mind is engrossed with lots of things.

Where will I go with Rubab and Taniya? I don't have any home except this.

And how could I arrange money? I am just a commander who works under Baba Jaan's orders.

He'll definitely not give me a single penny if I tell him that I am leaving this place.

But I can get some money through the selling of weapons; that will be enough for some days.

I step down from the bed and go to Baba Jaan to tell him the whole situation and my decision to leave this place.

When I reach his room, he is sitting there with a cup of tea.

"Salam Baba Jaan," I walk to him and bend down to kiss the back of his palm.

"Walekum Assalam, sit, my son," he says, tapping the place beside him. I nod and sit there.

"Shafiq, chai laayi jaye Taha ke liye," he orders one of his servants.

"Baba Jaan," I say, looking down.

"Hn..." he hums, sipping his tea.

"I want to leave this place," I say with a pause of a few minutes.

As soon as I say this, I feel his gaze on me, but I don't have the audacity to look into his eyes. He is the one who gives me and my sister a shelter to live and food to eat, and here I am leaving him in his most needed age. I feel ashamed.

"Ye Ishq aapko le dubega, Taha," he says in his heavy voice.

I lift my gaze to his eyes, and he puts his hand on my shoulder and continues.

"Hum jante hai aap us ladki se Ishq karte hai, aur ye bhi ki wo koi aam ladki nhi Abraham Ahmad ki bhanji hai," he says, looking at me with a smile.

But I get shocked hearing him. Is he happy? Doesn't he have any problem?

"Baba Jaan, Ishq ka to pata nhi, lekin ab wo mere nikah me hai," I reply to him.

And he chuckles.

"Barkhurdar, aap nikah se pehle hi unse Ishq kar baithe the. Maan lijiye," he says.

"I don't know, Baba Jaan, par uske chhin jaane ke khayal se hi meri rooh kamp rahi hai. Please mujhe ijazat de dein jaane ki," I say in an emotional voice.

"Aap hamare bete jaise hai, Taha. Humne aapko aur Taniya ko apni aulad jaise pala hai. Agar aapka yahi faisla hai to hame manzoor hai. Dophar tak aapke jaane ka intezaam ho jayga," he says lovingly.

I immediately hug him tightly.

"Shukriya, Baba Jaan, hamari fiqar aur jazbaat samjhne ke liye," I say while hugging him.

He taps my back and says, "Aap hamare ghar chale jaeeye," pulling out from the hug.

Confusion clouds my senses. His home? Where?

"Atarib mein hamara ghar hai, jaha ab koi nhi rehta, lekin ab hamare bachche rahenge," he says in an emotional voice.

Tears come to my eyes.

"Baba Jaan," I put my hand in his.

"Allah aapka Ishq kamiyab kare," he says, smiling.

I smile and hug him again. I will take him there too once I get settled.

Rubab's pov

I woke up really late.

When I woke up, all the things from last night started rolling through my mind.