Where Shadows Reach

The Encounter

"Meeerab.... meerab"
She was woken with a jolt by the voice in her ear. Her eyes sprang wide open as she sat up quickly in bed.

Her sleep deprived eyes tried to focus on the surroundings of her own room, there was no one else, nothing moved except a single curtain seemingly stirred by the strong breeze blowing through her window.

After switching on her lamp, she secured the latch of her window, shutting out the breeze. In the stillness of the night Meerab wondered what was it that had woken her up.
She was sure she had heard her name being called but the whole house was silent at this hour.
Nothing moved inside her home that she shared with her Mama and Baba.

She would have preferred to be curled up in her parent's bed but she did not want to disturb them at one in the morning.
She switched on her laptop,placing her phone beside the laptop she opened up her assignment folder.
It was not due for a couple of days but Meerab figured since she will not be able to get back at that to sleep at that instant she might as well finish her work

Her phone pinged.

Murtasim -
"Meerab, when are you coming to visit?"

With an irritated sigh Meerab turned her eyes back to the assignment, ignoring her lit up phone screen.

Her phone pinged a few more times before she finally saved her work and closed her laptop.

Unlocking her phone she checked to see how many messages he had left this time. There were six already.

Murtasim- "Meerab, Meerab....Meeeerabbbbb!!"

"I know you are awake"

"Reply karo, Ma is making me do all sorts of preparations for your family's visit. So just confirm a date."

And his messages went on and on asking the same question.

"Over Insaan!" Meerab muttered to herself while reading the messages.

He was doing this just to irritate her.

She knew he had endless workers at home to do their bidding, but he always made a fuss every year before and during her visit.
As if he was doing her a favour by being at home when her family visited.

Her parents Aneela and Waqas Ahmed, his parents Salma Begum and Shahnawaz Khan along with his uncle Anwar Khan had been friends from way before they were born and this special bond had continued after his father passed away.

Meerab's family had moved away from Karachi to Hyderabad due to her father's legal work when she was just a child. They still made it a point to meet at least once a year at the Khan family Haveli.

Murtasim's sister Mariyam and their Anwar chacha lived with them at the Haveli.

Mariyam was only two years younger than Meerab at just nineteen years old. Murtasim was almost twenty six.

Their father had passed away when Murtasim was just turning eighteen , Anwar Chacha became the Khan's father figure. The Khan family thrived with a mixture of Ma Begum's strict upbringing balanced by Anwar Chacha's lenient parenting.

Murtasim had taken over the reigns of the Khan family lands and farms once he turned twenty. With Anwar Chacha's help Murtasim quickly learnt to deal with all the problems related to his family businesses.