Ishq-e-Junoon

32. Ilzaam

-Yeh sang dilon ki duniya hain, yahaan sunta nahi fariyaad koi,
Yahaan haste hain log uss waqt, jab hota hain barbaad koi

☾

Dilara sat in her mother's room, sharing a quiet moment with Aina over a cup of steaming tea. Their peace was abruptly disturbed by the loud voices echoing from the living room.

"Ab kya tamasha laga diya chachi ne?", Dilara said with a groan.

[What spectacle has chachi created now?]

Both of them hurried downstairs, their hearts racing as the shouts from below intensified. Zaakir sat on the couch, watching silently, while Wahida, standing in front of Wahaj and Zayan, was holding a phone in her hand with a triumphant gleam in her eyes. Asfiya lingered behind her, clearly enjoying the scene unfolding in front of her.

"Maine kaha tha tumse, iss ladki ko zyada azaadi mat dena," Wahida snapped, her voice dripping with venom. "Dekho ab iska nateeja!" She thrust the phone towards Wahaj.

[I warned you to not give this girl too much freedom. Now look at the results.]

Wahaj hesitated for a second before taking the phone. His eyes widened as he scanned the images — pictures of Dilara, laughing with a guy, hugging him, and in one of them, their faces were too close for comfort. The way the pictures were framed made it look as if Dilara had crossed a line, portraying her in an entirely wrong light, as if she had betrayed him.

Wahaj's hands tightened around the phone, his pulse pounding in his temples. Rage surged through him, his jaw clenching as he fought the urge to punch the guy in the pictures.

He couldn't believe it — not because of the photos, but because his Dilara, the woman he knew inside out, would never do something like this. He was torn between anger at the situation and the overwhelming desire to protect her from the disgrace Wahida was trying to inflict.

Dilara looked confused, unaware of the gravity of the situation. "Wahaj?" she asked softly, her eyes searching his face.

Wahida smirked, sensing the tension. "Dekho Wahaj, tumhari biwi ka asli rang. Aise hi muh utha kar ladkon ke saath ghoom rahi hain."

[Look at your wife's true colours. She is roaming around with men freely.]

Wahaj turned toward Dilara, his fists still clenched, but his eyes softened just a little when he saw her innocent face, completely oblivious to the accusations being thrown at her.

His heart pounded in his chest, a storm of emotions swirling inside him. The images in front of him painted a bleak picture, but the woman standing in front of him, trembling, seemed worlds apart from what those photos suggested. His eyes darted from the pictures to his mother, whose words were like venom, and then to Dilara, whose innocent face was etched with fear.

"Tumhe sharam nahi aayi yeh sab karte hue? Mere bete se nikkah karke uski zindagi tabah kar di aur ab uske peeth peeche jaake kis kis ke saath muh kaala karogi?" Wahida's voice dripped with malice, each word like a slap across the room.

[Aren't you ashamed of doing all this? You've ruined my son's life by marrying him, and now behind his back, with whom will you tarnish your honor?]

Aina stepped forward, her face pale but her voice steady with a mother's desperate love. "Bhabhi, bas kar dein! Meri beti aisi nahi hain. Zaroor koi ghalat fehmi hui hain."

[Bhabhi, stop it! My daughter isn't like this, there must be some misunderstanding.]

Wahida laughed bitterly, holding up the phone with the damning photos. "Kaisi ghalat fehmi, Aina? Dekho inn tasweeron ko! Tumhari paak beti ke kartoot sab ke samne hain."