ishq lost & found

47; Begging and Pleading

Maybe it was all in Saad's head, or maybe life had just been gloomier since Ranya left. Maybe it was the weather, the fact that it was always freezing, the fact that the sun disappeared earlier in the day- something that never bothered Saad til now.

Days began to blend together, and life felt as it did before he had married her. Saad felt like the life, the purpose of his being, had been sucked right out of him. Everything seemed so futile and pointless.

"Saad, are you alright?" His coworker asked as the two walked side by side, heading to another meeting since the huge case was still very much ongoing.

"Yeah, why do you ask?" Saad lied, trying to sound as convincing as possible, clearly to no avail.

"You look...." His coworker paused, searching for the right term, "Tired...? Depressed? You just don't seem to be yourself lately. Is it because of the case?"

"Hmm?" Saad asked, once again lost in thought of what he could do to get Ranya to hear him out. "Uh- yeah, the case." Saad replied, snapping himself out of his train of thought.

The sleepless nights, the refusal to eat, the constant worrying of Ranya- it was all evident in his appearance, his demeanour, his focus, his work ethic. The sudden decline he showed left everyone baffled, confused as to what changed since the night he was awarded. But nobody knew, not even Sana.

Saad had kept everything quiet, because why would he want anyone to know he was having problems in his marriage or at all? He never believed it necessary to delve into each others lives, especially as that's irrelevant in the workplace. But now that he knew Sana had much more information that she had led on, the last thing he wanted to do was give her another detail.

As soon as the meeting had ended, Saad headed straight for his office, checking his phone just incase Ranya decided to text him. It had been days and days of waiting to hear from her, not a text or a call yet and he was starting to lose his mind. He was beginning to wonder how he kept this up for years, how he had become immune to her absence to the point where he was able to live without her. Now it didn't seem feasible.

Sighing when it was confirmed, once again, for the thousandth time that day that Ranya had indeed not contacted him, he put his phone to the side in the hopes that maybe he'd get more work done. Still, even while reviewing the files and documents, his mind wandered off to Ranya. He didn't even need her to hear him out, he just wanted to know how she was.

Was she okay? How much did she hear? it was obvious that whatever she had heard, hurt her enough to push her so far. Still, he just needed the reassurance that even if she was angry at him, hurt by him, upset with him, whatever it may be- that ultimately she was holding up.

Suddenly, the buzzing of his phone caught Saad's attention, the moment he heard the vibration. Nearly leaping for his phone, he turned it over, hoping and praying it was Ranya- vowing he'd do whatever he could to bring her back and if not that, at least talk to him. His hopes were shattered when it was just his mom.

With a huff of dissatisfaction, he answered, greeting her. "Everything okay?" He asked, unsure why she'd be calling him when she knows he's working.

"What's going on with you and Ranya? Why is she at her parents!" She asked, her voice increasing in octaves. It was clear she was upset.

Sighing, one of the few things Saad seemed to be doing repeatedly, he rubbed his temple, "Why?" Unable to muster the energy to ask further.

"Are you two fighting?" She asked, ignoring his question and instead asking her own, a habit of hers that drove Saad insane.

"Something like that." Saad mumbled, the headache between his eyes growing more and more painful as his mother kept talking.

"Saad, I didn't tell you this earlier because I was worried it would upset you but it seems like Ranya still has something for Salman." She began, firing off without taking a moment to pause and breathe, "What if her living there is her way of secretly staying in contact with Salman! He's still in town and might end up staying permanently. I know I pushed you to marry her but now I'm thinking she's not that great of a girl and maybe I made a mistake so-"