THE END OF LOVE

"The End Of Love" (part 05)

EPISODE 05

Many moments passed, days went by, and countless nights slipped away. She became increasingly lost in thought and troubled. An hour of the night had already passed, and she was driving. Despite Ibrahim Sahab's warnings, she was late tonight (she had gone to meet Humaira and Kinza). Suddenly, she slammed on the brakes. The place was deserted, with no one in sight. She got out of the car and realized that the tire was flat.

"Oh no, what should I do now?" she muttered, worried. She looked around, but there were no open shops, and no one was nearby. Just then, she heard a sound. She looked around again, but no one was there-maybe it was just her imagination.

"Who should I call? What should I do?" she thought, panicking. Suddenly, Hammad's name flashed in her mind. She quickly dialed his number, but it was powered off. "Why does no one pick up the phone in times of trouble?" Tears welled up in her eyes, and she was on the verge of crying. Then she felt a deep sense of dread. She looked around again and saw three or four men walking towards her.

"Oh God! Please don't put me through a test," she muttered, trembling with fear. The surroundings blurred as she began to cry. The men were getting closer. One of them spoke up, "Do you know why I've come here with such preparation?" He laughed as he continued to approach her.

"Please let me go, don't come near me," Laiba pleaded, crying and shaking.

"I'm here to remind you of all your sins, Laiba," he said, now standing right in front of her, clearly intoxicated.

"Hammad, it's you... I haven't done anything wrong... please let me go," she begged (what she feared had come true-the incident from a few years ago had deeply ingrained itself in Hammad's mind; a man never forgets a wound to his pride). She was pleading, begging him.

"Shhh! Laiba, just like you laughed when you saw those boys beating me, why don't you laugh now? But this time, laugh at yourself," he said, burning with rage.

"So, was everything you did during the engagement just an act?" she asked, her voice full of anger.

"Yes, hahaha... The day you told your mother about it, and she hit me, I decided that I would first tie the knot with you and then humiliate you in a way you'd never forget," he said with a loud, sinister laugh.

"Hammad, please let me go. My father is waiting for me..." She looked up and saw him swaying, his companions lying on the ground.

Then she heard a voice in her ears, "Whoever does good will receive good in return," and she jolted awake (It was the same old man whom she had given a food packet to, now walking towards her). "Whoever does good will receive good in return," he kept repeating the same phrase as she ran away, just like in her dream...

Suleiman was sitting at a roadside tea stall, sipping tea. His friends were with him. "Suleiman, it's getting late. My wife will kill me," said Ateeb, Suleiman's school friend.

"Aww, can't you even forgive your wife?" Suleiman teased him.

"Come on, let's go. It's really late now," Saad interjected.

"Fine! Whenever I want to enjoy myself, you guys do this," Suleiman said, annoyed. The three of them headed towards the car. After dropping off his friends at their homes, Suleiman was driving back when he suddenly slammed on the brakes. He quickly got out of the car and knelt down.

"Ahhh!" She was crying. Blood was oozing from her head, her hands were badly injured. She was crying, her eyes swollen. She was trembling. He gently tapped her face, "Laiba, please don't close your eyes, please open your eyes." But she kept repeating, "He'll kill me, he'll kill me." Suleiman quickly picked her up, put her in the car, and drove straight to the hospital. He was frantic, worried. They rushed her to the emergency room. Lost in thought, he wondered who to inform. Then he remembered that her purse was in his car. He ran back to the car and noticed five missed calls from Ibrahim Sahab on her mobile. "Ibrahim Sahab? Laiba is Ibrahim Sahab's daughter? Oh God!" He had seen their profile picture on her phone. He quickly called them on his own phone.