FEAR OF FONDNESS

Chapter 11 THE STUNT

Wassal's POV:

As I returned to Lahore after resolving the match issue, I felt a sense of relief wash over me. Surprisingly, it hadn't been as difficult as I had anticipated. With the help of Arham, who hailed from a powerful family in our tribal areas, we managed to find a solution.

Together with Mustafa and Zaram, we took matters into our own hands. We kidnapped the father of one of the boys involved in the incident, a man who held sway within the private school board. I made it clear to him that I wouldn't hesitate to resort to extreme measures if he didn't comply with my demands. 

I instructed him to ensure the sports events were postponed for a month, allowing Shinaya's arm enough time to heal properly. However, he argued that such a lengthy delay wasn't feasible due to impending exams and the reluctance of other directors to agree to such terms. He had some valid point, exams were also near so I had to settle on a compromise of two weeks. 

Once I received confirmation of the match being postponed, I released him unharmed. Despite the gravity of my actions, I knew I had no other choice but to take matters into my own hands. 

Speaking to Baba or Taya Abu about the situation wasn't an option I could afford, they would not take action unless they inquired me about my interest in this issue and I dodn't want to answer any of their questions right now.

 It was a decision born out of necessity and one that I hoped would ultimately erase her sadness. 

...........................................................

At night Baba told me that we had to attend a lunch at Phophu's house. I dreaded these visits to her house. Phophu(father's sister) was only interested in maintaining appearances and flaunting her status. I can't forget that how she distanced herself from us during our business losses, only to reappear once the situation improved. Well, I shouldn't criticized her for it as our closest people left us at that time.....Despite my irritation, I couldn't refuse, as Sania Api insisted me. So, I agreed to go.

 The lunch went as expected, with Phophu focusing on societal norms. I made an excuse to leave early, eager to escape the superficial conversations and avoid spending more time with Abeera. Although she seemed a little frustrated, I could guess that it was because of her championship. She must have lost it from Shinaya. But still, her constant presence irked me, she was a shameless woman, she was really cheesy towards me which irritated me a lot and especially considering what she had done to Shinaya, Her actions only fueled my frustration towards her, I hated her now......

As I was preparing to leave, the loud music and singing voices of some girls caught my attention. The presence of such funky girls always annoyed me. I ignored them and made my way to my car.

Just as I was heading towards my car, I heard Abeera's voice shouting commands to her guards"Get in the car!". I initially ignored it, but something she said made me pause. Abeera approached my car and yelled, "I'll kill you, Shinaya!" 

My heart skipped a beat, and tension gripped me. Without thinking, I grabbed her arm firmly and demanded, "Where are you going?" Her response only increased my tension as she gritted her teeth and declared, "I'm going to kill Shinaya." With a sense of urgency, she hurried into her car. Did this mean that Shinaya was outside? 

I stepped outside to investigate, and what I saw momentarily stunned me. There was Shinaya, surrounded by her friends, singing along to the loud music. How could she act so recklessly? As Abeera rushed out, she quickly reversed her car, but not without catching a glimpse of me. My expression was a mix of anger, concern, and surprise, I guess which got her beautiful eyes wide.

 As Shinaya glanced at me, she almost collided with a side path but managed to correct her course and sped away. Maybe she got confused watching me...

I hurried to my car and pursued Abeera. I can't let her hurt Shinaya once again. Eventually, I caught up and stopped my car in front of hers. Abeera looked astonished as she got out of her car and exclaimed, 

"What are you doing, Wassal? She'll get away with it!" I maintained a stern expression. 

"Watch your tone," I cautioned her. I didn't liked anyone talking to me in such a tone.

 After taking a deep breath, she questioned, "Why did you do it? I was just about to catch her."

"You will not do any such thing," I said. 

"But why? Didn't you see what she had done to me?" Abeera protested. "Yes, I did, but you don't need to escalate the situation. Just leave it," I replied."But why? Why should I? Didn't you see she teased me, she slapped me in my place!" Abeera argued. A surge of anger washed over me as she asked another question again, I didn't like to answer many questions but I knew I had to handle the situation with tact. I softened my tone and said, "Because I'm asking you to." Abeera's demeanor changed instantly. I didn't want to take that tone, but I had to, for that احمقه نجلۍ(ahmaka najli) (foolish girl)

I'll ask her later about that stunt...

As I arrived home, I couldn't shake off thoughts of the incident. I considered calling her, but then I had a better idea. I decided not to call her; instead, I would engineer circumstances in such a way that she would give me her number herself. 

The thought made me smirk. Judging by her stunt earlier, she seemed to be quite adventurous. I hadn't realized that about her before. It intrigued me, and I was determined to learn more about her.

The next day after dinner, Baba informed me that we were invited to Iftakhar's Uncle's place for a celebration party. It was to celebrate Shinaya's basketball championship victory and Atif's admission to university. I found it quite thrilling to have this opportunity so soon. I was excited to visit their house. I knew Shinaya must have been feeling a constant fear that I might tell someone about what happened. Even though she did tell everything to her parents, but I doubted she shared this interesting adventure.

Despite that, for some reason, the idea of going sounded like fun to me.