Truly Madly Deeply

Chapter 19

"Abbu gee Salam o Alaikum!" I said as I spread my arms apart to envelop my father in a hug. He was sitting on one of the luxurious velvet sofas in the lounge of our villa while smoking a cigar and talking to my Chachu, Kamran's father. My father smiled as he saw me and got up to hug me as I hugged back. I then moved towards my Chachu and bent my head in his direction so he could pat my head and give me his duaen (blessings).

"Asalam o Alaikum Chachu." It was a common term of respect and affection to let an elder place a hand on your head in order to get their blessing. "How are you gentleman doing today?" I inquired as I sat down on one of the sofas after picking up a cigar from the box on the side table. Kamran and Fahad also greeted my father and Chachu and took seats beside me.

"We are doing good, son, but you want to tell us why you didn't feel like coming back from Lahore? It's true I had sent you an errand over there but I recall it was completed a month ago. You had been gone for nearly two months now." My Chachu questioned me as he eyed me carefully. He treated me like his son so I could understand his concern, even when I went to a different country to tour, I would usually be back by the third week because Karachi completed me so it was odd for my family and friends to accept that I was gone for so long. Even I found it odd now that I thought about it.

"Koi bachi shachi tou nahi pasand kar aya tu? (Did you end up liking some girl back there?)" My father joked and I looked at Fahad giving him the look which he knew all too well. It was an SOS look that meant distract my father so he doesn't find out anything.

"Uncle gee, menay bhi is se yehi poucha tha k isko koi pyar wala chakkar tou nahi par gaya lekin phir yeh khudi mukar gaya. Aisay hi Lahore ki hawa achi lag gaye hogi. (Uncle Dearest, I also asked him the same thing that he didn't end up falling in love or something did he but then he denied it himself. Maybe he just likes Lahore's vibe)" Fahad interjected and I gave him a grateful smile. If father finds out, I am into some girl back in Lahore he is going to want to know details that I am not ready to give or want to give for that matter. And if I don't give details, he would find them by himself, even if that means dragging that person in front of him and asking the questions while they are at his mercy.

My Chachu stared at me for a while in silence, he always had keen observational skills so I could tell he was trying to figure out what was going in my head. I decided to return his suspicious look with a smile as to not give away anything. My father on the other hand knew me even better than my Chachu or anyone else, one look was all it took. He narrowed his eyes while inhaling and exhaling the smoke and then gave a diplomatic statement like a true politician would.

"Well, if he has someone he likes, I am sure he will tell me eventually." I could sense the underlying pressure in it, it was a promise for answers later on. I gave him a smile to assure him that I would comply with his demands and he relaxed visibly.

"Definitely. Ammi kidher hen, abbu? (Where is mother at, dad?)" I said as I tried to change the topic to something else.

"Woh apni doston k sath dinner par gaye howi hai. Ab tou Karachi hi ho, so jab marzi mil lena. (She went to have dinner with some friends of hers. You are going to be in Karachi now anyway so you can meet her whenever.)" I felt a slight ache in my heart at the idea that I was not going back to Lahore. Chachu was right I had done what I had gone there to do and it would raise questions if I go back tomorrow. I am sure Misha would be ecstatic to know that I have gone back to Karachi. She had been trying to coerce me into going back so I would stop with the threats of showing up to her place. I let out a small smile as I remembered her horrified face when I had showed up in front of her house. It was pretty cute. But right now, I felt this odd pain in my chest at the idea of not going back to Lahore and to her but I decided to put it behind me, it's not like we met every day anyway, I can talk to her from here as well though my threats won't be as valid.

I snapped out of my thought process when I realized I had been spacing out for quite some time. I then reentered the conversation about whatever they were discussing while keeping my calm façade on. The conversation went on for a little while and then we excused ourselves because we had to get in that party mode.

During the car ride, I was rather silent. Fahad was driving my Lexus now to his penthouse. Kamran had stayed behind to talk to his father about the business since he was running it along with his father and said he would join us at the main party directly. When I stayed silent for a little while longer, I guess Fahad couldn't take his curiosity any longer and asked the question.

"Ibraheem, what is bothering you? You have been distracted ever since we met with the uncles." Fahad questioned as he gave me a look before turning back to look at the road. Fahad had been my childhood friend since we were practically in diapers, our friendship had been going on for a solid nineteen years now and he knew everything about me so I decided to tell him what was going through my head at that very moment.

"Fahad, there is a girl. Back in Lahore." I paused, I didn't know what to say next. How do I explain the situation to him? What do I tell about her? I was at a loss of words.

"What about her? You like her or something?" The think I liked about Fahad was his sharp intuition, he would know what was going on in my head even if I wouldn't say anything, and my expressions would give it all away to him. We could read each other like a book and right now Fahad was doing exactly that.

"No, it's not that. It's just, I don't know man. She is different." I said as I looked out of the window, her words, expressions and everything poured into my head like lava, burning me from the inside.

"You sure you are not in love with her or something?" Fahad said as he cast me a glance, giving me a serious look before he slowed the car. I noticed that we had already reached the penthouse.

"No, bro, it's not love but I don't know what it is. I hate it when she ignores me and I had expected to go back to Lahore to meet her again but then I realized I am not going back. It makes me feel kinda empty." I just said whatever was coming to mind. "I don't know bro, I don't know what to think anymore." I said exhausted at my thought process. I was confused and upset and I didn't even know why.

"Well, how about for now, we down some shots, get high and see if some of the girls at Kamran's party can make you understand this better? If it stays like this tomorrow or the day after, we will think of something else. Yeah?" Fahad suggested as he parked the car in his garage and got out.

"Yeah, we could do that." I agreed, he was right, maybe I just needed to get over this. Replace the feeling with another one I was more familiar with. And so I did exactly that. I downed the whiskey at Fahad's place and we both headed out to the party.