Hamza had been quietly observing the growing bond between Divangshi and Anuj. It wasn’t just the comforting anymore—Anuj was now a constant in her life. They were hanging out after school, laughing together, sharing inside jokes that Hamza knew nothing about. Worse, Hamza had spotted Anuj gifting Divangshi things: chocolates, small trinkets, things that made her smile.
Each time Hamza saw her smile at Anuj, it was like a dagger twisting in his chest. She was happy. And not just happy—she was glowing. But not with him. With Anuj. That realization killed him.
He found himself drifting in the hallways, watching from a distance as Divangshi laughed with Anuj, her eyes sparkling, as if Hamza didn’t exist at all. Every time she walked past him without a glance, it cut deeper. She was ignoring him, pretending like he was invisible, and it tore him apart.
It wasn’t long before Shahaan and Adil noticed how miserable Hamza had become. Both of them tried to get him to talk, to pull him out of the brooding silence he’d been wrapped in, but he wouldn’t budge. Until one afternoon, they cornered him.
"We’re done watching you mope around like as awara ashiq, Hamza," Adil said, his tone firm. "Believe me or not, you like her, and accept it! Like a man!"
"You need to talk to her," Shahaan added. "This has gone on long enough."
Hamza ran a hand through his hair, frustration bubbling beneath the surface. "You don’t understand. She’s... she’s happier without me. I don’t want to mess that up."
Adil narrowed his eyes. "You seriously believe that?"
"Yes," Hamza snapped, but his voice wavered.
Shahaan crossed his arms, unamused. "We’re not giving you a choice. She’s going out with her friends today and you're coming with us to there."
"Which friends exactly?" Adil asks, raising one eyebrow.
"Maisha and the Mother of my children." Shahaan says, like it was the most normal thing to say with straight ass face.
"Mother of your children?" Hamza scoffs, despite himself. "Dude what--"
"That'd be me," their heads turn and Saysha walks into the class, effortlessly taking a seat next to Shahaan. She flicks him on his head once that made Shahaan flinch, but not too hard. "How many times have I asked you to stop blabbering cheesy shit?"
"Can't help it."
Shahaan's attempt at being cute goes unnoticed as Saysha turns her head to Hamza, before speaking in a firm no-nonsense tone, "Honestly speaking both of them are idiots. That woman thinks he's better off with Jiya", she jabs a finger in Hamza's direction. "and this man thinks Diva is happy with Anuj. When none of them really are and they're both just suffering in silence like what, dukhi aatmas."
Saysha shot Hamza a glare which, strangely enough, had some sympathy laced in it, her hand instinctively reaching for Shahaan’s, their fingers interlocking in that seamless, unspoken way they always had. No one ever needed to ask if they were together—it was obvious in the way Shahaan would adjust Saysha’s scarf if it slipped, or how she’d brush a stray hair from his forehead. No declarations, no showiness. Just the quiet kind of love that spoke through action, louder than words could.
"Come on," Shahaan said, getting up and pulling Hamza along. "If we can survive months of pretending we aren’t in love, you can survive a conversation with Diva."
