Levirate [Haniaal/Zarry]

Chapter 7

It is already lunchtime when he wakes up. He rushes to the bathroom to pee and sloshes mouthwash before making his way downstairs. He is still in immeasurable pain but it feels better now after the visit from Daniaal. From where he is standing at the staircase, he can see a group of people that bare a slight resemblance to Daniaal. He experiences a rush of adrenaline and shock when he realises that the Maliks are on his couch. Retreating back to his room, he calls Fahima on the phone and requests her to come to his room.

"Fahima, what are those people doing in my house?"

"They said they are here to discuss the passing away of...." she trails off and does not complete the sentence. Harry knows that she is struggling with the loss just as much as he is but he can see that she is trying to stay strong for him.

"Have you been home today Fahima?"

"Harry-"she starts but he interrupts her

"Have you been home today Fahima?" he asks again

"No. I was about to when the Maliks arrived and I thought that I need to stay with you while your mother fetches your family from the airport"

"I understand and appreciate your support immensely but who is taking care of Paul, Alessia and James while you are here with me?"

"Paul is able to manage. They came in the morning while you were sleeping and all is well. Trust me. I am needed here more". That shuts up Harry and he crawls back into the blankets. They sit in comfortable silence with each thinking of their own things. After a while Harry silently says "I am not ready to deal with them. They abandoned him, all of them. He loved and missed them so much and they abandoned him. How did they find out about him? It has not even been 24 hours. How did they know?"

"I called them. Daniaal has kept their contacts in the office since forever. I am sorry if I have offended you in any way but I know that he would have wanted them to know that he is..". Seeing that she will not continue Harry tells her that he is not mad at all. He also thought about them last night but did not have a way to contact them and the police had not returned Daniaal's things as yet.

"Were they invited to the wedding? and please be honest with me because I saw how Daniaal kept looking at the door on our wedding day. I didn't raise it because I did not want to hurt him but I noticed"

With a loud sigh and a brief nod she says "Yes they were. I sent the invites to their home address and also the mobile invitations to the phone numbers we had on record" and Harry's heart breaks a bit more at that. "They hurt him so many times. How will I face them?"

'You need to baby. They are his family and by relation yours and the baby's as well. You need to let them in for the sake of the baby. You might need them in the future for your child as he or she is a Malik, not a Styles. I am sure you understood our culture when you married Daniaal. I am here for you, I will support you"

"I know. Thank you for your support Fahima. I will come down shortly. Let me find a jumper"

As he enters the living room, he greets the guests calmly with a fake smile and Fahima calls him over to the two-seater couch that she is sitting on.

There is an awkward silence as the group looks him up and down, from his ring to his bump. He shifts uncomfortably at the intense stare and pulls his legs on the couch and pulls his jumper to cover up his bump.

Fahima clears her throat and signals to the group to talk.

"Harry, is it?" asks the older gentleman with a scoff. Harry nods and looks back down at his hands

"My name is Yaser Malik and I am Daniaal's" - he hesitates a bit before continuing - "father. This here is my wife Patricia and these are our daughters Doniya, Waliyha and Safaa" he points at the different members as he speaks. He then stares at Harry as if he is expecting a response of some sort. Harry simply nods to acknowledge them because Anne has always taught him not to lie and keep quiet when he has nothing nice to say so he definitely couldn't say nice to meet you all because it was not. It was far from it. He needs to be grieving his loving husband, not dealing with people that never had any interest in him.

Yaser gives him a dirty look and clears his throat loudly. At that, Harry snaps his head up and looks at him, challenging him to continue. To try and reduce the tension and awkwardness, Fahima reintroduces herself even though she already told them her name in the 4 hours they spent together earlier. "I'm Fahima Khan and I am Daniaal's assistant - uh I mean was Daniaal's assistant". A lone tears escapes Harry's eye at her correction and he quickly wipes it away as Fahima pulls him in and lays his head on her shoulder.

"Nice to meet you Fahima and thank you for the warm welcome" says Yaser as he glares at Harry. "Now can you please excuse us, we need to discuss our family affairs and we would not want to do that in front of people that are not family"

Harry wants to scoff and roll his eyes but the gentle tap on his shoulder from Fahima's hand that is resting on the couch tells him otherwise. "It's okay Harry. I will go prepare lunch for you. I am in the kitchen if you need me" says Fahima as she stands and makes her way to the kitchen.

His attention is brought back to the living room by Yaser's voice. "We are here to fetch Daniaal's body. The funeral preparations are already set in motion at home in Bradford"