His City ( اُس کے شہر )

Six

The days seemed to pass in a lull and already two weeks of her attending the academy had passed. Arya had officially gotten a hang of things and fallen into a familiar routine. Her days passed with the academy and homework.

The day of the "get together" was looming dangerously close and Arya wished she could find a way to not go. But every time she saw Jasmine, the girl expressed how happy she was that Arya was coming.

Asad no longer drove her to the academy which she couldn't be more thankful about. The driver was always waiting for her in the morning and at the time she was done with her classes.

Arya didn't know what to make of Asad Shah. He was all types of bad and it seemed like whenever she was around him, she always ended up committing some type of sin. Her mother always used to say that the most dangerous things were always the most beautiful and Asad was a living example of that. She couldn't deny that Asad was beautiful. But that was it.

Everything else about him was terrible.

Arya sighed as she watched the thick rain drops hammer against the kitchen window. She had filled a cup of chai for herself and took a sip from it contentedly.

Stop thinking about Asad, she silently scolded herself.

Letting out another sigh, she decided to go and enjoy her chai in the den when she almost collided against someone.

"Woah there," Two hands gripped her arms to steady her and thankfully the scalding liquid didn't spill.

"I'm sorry," Arya apologized as Rafe stepped back.

He shook his head. "No, it's my fault. I wasn't paying attention."

Arya still couldn't believe this guy actually had a British accent.

"Waaait," Rafe grinned, eyeing her cup. "That's not chai, is it?"

Arya smiled, nodding. "Would you like some?"

"I would love some." Rafe rubbed his hands together like a little kid.

Arya grabbed another cup and deftly poured him some.

"Thank you," He took a sip and his face formed into a pleasant expression. "Do you mind if I join you?"

Arya should probably say no and just head for her room but the hopeful look on Rafe's face made her nod. "Sure, I was just heading for the den."

They both walked to the den together which was decorated in warm colors. The electric fireplace was on.

"How has the academy been so far?" Rafe asked. Arya noticed how he took the sofa across from her rather than take the seat next to her, which she was thankful for.

Asad would've probably sat right next to her.

For god's sake, stop thinking about him, she scolded herself for the second time in less than an hour.

"It's great," Arya shrugged. "I've gotten the hang of things.until someone starts speaking French, of course."

He laughed. "Maybe you should start taking a French class."

"Hmm," Arya mused. "That's actually a great idea."

Rage gave her a grin, taking a sip from his cup.

A few minutes passed in comfortable silence. Arya couldn't believe how at ease she felt with him. He may have shared Asad's good looks but the similarities stopped there.

"Do you mind me asking," Arya looked at him with a small smile. "Where you got your accent from?"

Rafe laughed, putting down his cup. "I studied at Oxford for what seems like half my life for business. It stuck with me, I guess."

"Oh wow," Arya was impressed. "An Oxford graduate..."

Rafe gave a crooked smile, eyes twinkling. "Every desi mom's dream."

Arya couldn't help but laugh at that. "And what about Asad?"

The question slipped from her lips and Arya wanted to kick herself. Why did she have to bring him up? What did she care about his personal life?

Rafe's smile seemed to waver for a second. "Aaah...that's a sensitive story. Ami allowed him to go to America to study. He studied and was about to get his degree when Dad died...He stopped, and came back. Doesn't want to do anything anymore."

A sad glint appeared in his eyes as he talked about his younger brother.

Arya didn't want to ask personal questions but the curiosity was killing her. No matter what, she wanted so bad to learn more about the mysterious man.

"Is that why he's so..." She tried to find the right word. "Detached?"

Rafe nodded. "It may be hard to realize, but Asad used to be the golden boy. Dad's death seemed to affect him the worse out of all of us."

Arya thought of the way he acted, the hooking up with girls and who knows what other haram things.

"I know that look," Rafe nodded. "He may not know it, but I know what my brother does in his free time, Arya. I wish I could change him but he's wounded himself up in a tight bubble. He won't let anyone in. It hurts me, and it's hurting Ami even more."

Rafe's grief was evident on his face and Arya's heart ached for him. She had heard that deaths did horrible things to a family, and these people were living proof. They were all suffering and somehow Asad was on the worst end of it. She was actually feeling sorry for him.

Rafe shrugged, running a hand through his hair. "Asad used to be Father's pride and joy. He did his haafizi and got good grades-"

Arya couldn't help but gape, cutting him off. "He's a haafiz?"

Rafe nodded, smiling at her reaction.

That man was full of surprises.

When she said nothing else Rafe spoke up. "Well." He stood. "I should probably go finish some files that I left incompleted. Thank you for the chai, it was refreshing."

Arya also stood. "You're welcome. And thank you for keeping me company."

Rafe gave her a grin before leaving

Arya was alone again, left with her thoughts and chai. Her mom had been correct, she realized. It was always the beautiful people who were the most dangerous. But, she concluded, it was also the beautiful people who were the most broken...

***

I know it's been a while but I was horribly busy! Don't forget to leave a comment and vote.

Much love <3