Obscured Affection {ON HOLD}

11

"By the way, I also had something to tell you," Mahnoor smiled as she spoke.

"What was it?" Safoora asked curiously.

"My internship is about to start on Tuesday, and guess which law firm I chose?" Mahnoor asked excitedly.

"Which one?" Safoora asked, pretending not to know, even though she guessed it.

"SI Law Firm," Mahnoor said with a shy, happy smile.

"You’re going to work under my brother?" Safoora practically screamed, as if a storm had hit.

"Speak softly! I haven’t told anyone about this yet," Mahnoor replied, trying to calm her.

"Then quickly choose somewhere else. Don’t you know how strict he is about work? I wouldn’t even send my worst enemy to work under him," Safoora said, remembering her brother’s tough attitude at work.

"I know he’s very serious about his work, which is exactly why I couldn’t learn from anyone more dedicated than him. I truly want to be a great lawyer, just like my role model—your brother," Mahnoor replied proudly.

"Of all the firms in the world, you picked SI? I studied with him, and his strictness… oh, it still feels like a nightmare to me. May Allah help you, my dear!" Safoora reminisced about the nights when Ishaq used to tutor her.

"Just pray for me. Insha’Allah, I’ll work hard and win his heart," Mahnoor said, confident in herself.

"All the best!" Safoora said with a smile.

"What are you two chatting about here? The turmeric ceremony is in the evening, and you’re here wasting time?" said Zeenath, Mahnoor’s aunt, as she entered.

Mahnoor didn’t like her paternal family and didn’t want to argue with her, so she quietly went downstairs with Safoora.

***

"Should I order anything else for you?" Arsal asked.

"N… No," Sara replied with embarrassment.

"I brought you here today because I wanted to tell you something important," Arsal said, gathering his courage.

"Yes, go ahead," said Sara, looking up at him for the first time after staring down for a while.

"I’ve known you for a year now. You probably don’t remember, but we met at a charity event," Arsal said with a smile, recalling that moment.

"Charity event… oh yes, I used to go there every year with boss," Sara remembered.

"When I first saw you—" Arsal’s words were cut short by Sara interrupting.

"I’m getting a call. It’s important. Can I take it?" Sara asked, checking her phone, which was on silent.

"Of course," Arsal replied, and she walked outside with her phone.

After 20 minutes, when Sara still hadn’t returned, Arsal started looking around, concerned. The guard outside informed him that she had taken an auto and left. Arsal had planned extensively for his proposal at the restaurant, but Sara had left without hearing anything.

Arsal couldn’t understand why she did that. She had taken her bag with her, and he wondered if something he said had made her uncomfortable, causing her to leave so suddenly.

Driving back to the office, his mind swirled with unanswered questions. He felt regret, thinking he should have given Sara more time, but she hadn’t stayed to hear anything. Maybe the call was just an excuse; she had said her phone was on silent, after all.