Drabbles with the Khans- EBY- verse

The One at the Party

Murtasim Khan had a ruthless reputation that struck fear in the minds of most. And yet this man had a very sore spot in his heart. A spot that had festered since he had first seen his Mehr.

Mehr Murtasim Khan was born three minutes fifteen seconds after Maham Murtasim Khan and in those three minutes and fifteen seconds as Murtasim held precious chubby little Maham he had fallen in love, irrevocably and completely. He had honestly believed that nothing, absolutely nothing could compare to the feelings Maham had invoked in him.

That was until, three minutes and fifteen seconds later, Mehr came into this world. She was half the size of her twin- a mere 1250 grams- which caused a flurry amongst the doctors. She was rushed to the NICU by the nurses and a small oxygen mask over her perfect little nose- with Murtasim running after the nurse. It took half an hour for the doctors to declare her healthy but too small to go home. And in that half an hour Murtasim had developed a soft spot for the tiny little survivor who, stretched and bridged at the little box in which she was kept.

Maham was his princess and Mehr was his blessing. And blessing she was.. from a young age, she was compassionate and giving. Too giving. She was ready with a kindness and generosity even when her siblings took her toys away. It didn't help that she had speech delay and spoke much much later than her twin. As her development milestones were delayed, they were much more anticipated by her parents and each were celebrated like a small victory.

From a young age, both Meerab and Murtasim knew that their Mehr was different. And it was five years after her birth- that her preference for quiet solitude, her delays in speech and her adorable flapping before she said anything- was categorized and defined. Mehr was autistic. On the high functioning end of the spectrum. And with early intervention she will be normal.

That night Murtasim Khan had cried in the shower. Not because Mehr was autistic. No, it was because they were all striving for her to be normal, while he knew from day one that Mehr wasn't meant to be normal or ordinary. She was extraordinary, from the start. And yet the world would choose to ignore her uniqueness anf try to fix her to fit the box of normalness.

When he had stepped out of the shower, he had felt his Meerab wrap her arms around him. She was quiet for a long time, as they reveled in each other's presence. He didn't say anything but she knew.. and she vocalized it as only his Meerab- with her beautiful poetic words- could.

"Mehr hai woh. Aur Allah ki Mehr toh har roop khoobsoorat hoti hai .." she had whispered " She is our blessing"

And blessing she had been, for twenty two years. Their Mehr.. beautiful, kind, graceful and compassionate. She grew up like a string of poetic couplets that she had started to form as a child. The compassionate core of the Khan family.

Murtasim was adamant he would only marry his Mehr to the one who understood her worth. Ma Begum was adamant that someone be Usman Zaroon Ali- the eldest son of Mariyam Khan.

It was no surprise to anyone present at Maham's birthday party that Ma Begum was loudly proclaiming her wish yet again.

" Usman aur Mehr ki nikaah ke baare mein socha hai kuch?"

Not surprising but extremely embarrassing. Especially for Mehr, who was sitting in that group which boasted of her Mariyam phuppo, Haya Phuppo and Maaz.

" Meerab aisa kuch hone de tab na.. Dekha Muntasir ke liye bhi aapni asal ki ladki le aayi." Haya phuppo whispered bitingly.

Mehr frowned and Mariyam phuppo made a non commital sound. Ma Begum scoffed at it, completely ignoring Haya and turned her attention to her daughter.

" Mariyam.."

Mehr tried to make a silent disappearance from the scene but it was difficult as she was right in the center. Instead she looked down hoping to make herself as small as possible.