Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Aaj se mera…ghar tera ho gaya

The sunrise slowly lit up the room of newlyweds. Asad looked at his bride’s sleeping form, her chest heaving with uniform breaths, her face peaceful…a beautiful mess of hair tangled on the pillow…she smelled like a rainy breeze on a sun-kissed evening…so mesmerising.

She had held him captive all night with her antics. Even in her sleep she was a treat to watch!

He smiled now as he saw her sprawled across most of the bed in what he can only explain as a starfish really. He looked at the jeans sticking out where her lehenga had rode up and shook his head.

His dulhan was surely special.

But he didn’t care. The only thing that mattered was that she was here…she was close. Who cared if she kept attacking him with her karate moves all night. It all seemed surreal…the intimacy…her thick lashes…high cheekbones…and those lips.

Asad tried slipping out of bed, and his fantasy world. His Ammi had told him they were all going to the dargah today, so they were supposed to be ready by 11.

He blushed thinking why there had been a little bit of a late morning-time set, but then sobered up as he looked at his sleeping beauty.

Maybe his Ammi knew of her bahu’s ‘sleeping like a log’ tendencies.

He couldn’t blame her though; it had been a very tiring day. They were both constantly pushed around for pictures, stuffed with barfi and stamped several nazar ka tikka’s.

He looked at Zoya’s suitcase at the edge of his closet as he headed to the bathroom and felt his lips curl again. It was all worth it!

He was ready to do this a thousand times if it meant her by his side.

xx

Zoya woke up rubbing her eyes, slightly disoriented trying to notice her surroundings.

Asad?

She looked at his half of the bed made pristinely and found herself getting distracted with the sound of shower being turned off.

Uh oh!

She instantly shot out of bed – dramatically, frantically trying to find a mirror.

Don’t wanna look like the lead heroine of ghost stories on my first wedding day. Allah miyan! Where in the world is it? What was wrong with men? Can’t keep a mirror in sight.

She resorted to use her phone as one and chugged down the glass of milk to get rid of her morning breath.

Yuck! Yuck! Should have invested in that mouth freshener. I knew it!

She heard the knob turning and practically flew to her side, trying to run in her heavy lehenga – like all that action hadn’t just happened.

Asad opened the door to find his wife sitting gracefully on the bed fiddling with her hair. She looked up at him just in time and he tried to smile back brightly.

Zoya saw Asad smiling at her meekly and chose to ignore it, heading for the bathroom instead

What was that? Did she not see him making an effort? Infact, he had been all past week!

Seconds rapidly changed to minutes as they both got ready for the day ahead. Asad looked at his watch again and waited for Zoya to make an appearance.

What was this girl doing?

He was about to knock on the door when she opened it up in his face, gave him a strange look, and awkwardly moved away.

“I was just about to knock” he said as he lowered his fisted hand.

“um hmm” she said stoically

Um hmm? That’s what I get. He was about to retort when…

xx

“WHAT DID YOU DO IN HERE?”

“Allah Miyan! What’s wrong with you? Subah Subah kya chilla rahe hain”

“Main chilla raha hoon? Apne bathroom ki haalat dekhi hai” his horror-struck voice squeaked as he took in the condition of his once lovely bathroom. Did she just bathe a cow in here?

He slipped on the wet towel that graced the floor and caught himself just in time, but not without dropping the army of products as he blindly tried to grab onto the counter.

“No! my anastasia palette…Mr. Khan” she yelled

“Ms. Faaroqui” he yelled back

She rose his eyebrows up at him daring him to continue. His eyes suddenly softened.

“Mrs. Khan” Her pulse jumped.

“Can you please clean this up?” It didn’t sound like a plea at all.

“No” she simply said and walked away

Asad stared at her retreating form incredulously, attempting to follow suit, stepping on a bottle cap on the way and trying not to rip his hair out.

He grabbed her roughly by the shoulder and turned her to him. Agreed she looked gorgeous in the baby blue suit, but she still needed some explaining to do.

“What is this Zoya? Why are you acting like this?”

She looked at him coolly grinding his nerves all the more.

“I am not acting like anything. I think you are imagining things.” He held her gaze then, his own narrowing at her bogus coolness.

Fine! Yes, she was mad…she was stomping mad!

He had taken so long to come into the room last night that she had actually fallen asleep and when she had woken up there was no trace of him anywhere beside her?

Did he choose to sleep on the settee instead? Why did you marry me if you didn’t want me?

Hell yes she was mad, and she had to feed her anger before she crumpled into a sobbing, weeping mess at his feet.

So, she trashed his bathroom.You signed up for this compulsively cleaning emotionally challenged Jahapanah!

She was too afraid to touch anything before, careful not to move a thing out of place. But the raging heartbreak got the best of her. How could he not show up on time and ruin her plans of faking sleep...Allah miyan the nerve!

His narrowed eyes became wider as she stepped closer to him.

“What the hell is your problem?” she spit out acidly. Her fury couldn’t be feigned now. His fingers dug into her skin. She was sure it would leave marks.

“What the hell is yours?” he said matching her tone.

“What even took you so long last night?” she screeched into his face on the verge of tears, but her face turned somber as she realized what she had said.

So that’s why she was acting like a brat?

Hope bloomed inside him. “I mean…woh main…” A stunned Asad smiled lovingly seeing her nervously stutter. 

“Ayaan aur baaki sab baat karna chahte the, aur sabke saamne toh…isliye main ruk gaya” he answered truthfully.

“Oh” She felt stupid all of a sudden. You moron gadhi zoya! Why can’t you control your monster mouth. She happened to look at the bathroom…and your monster instincts.

“I…umm…will clean it up”

As Zoya shook free of his loosened grip moving towards the site of her messy crime, she felt him stop her. She turned to find his fingers curled around her wrist.

Asad moved closer, her scent intoxicating him. The disarray behind him lay forgotten as he stared back into his wife’s kohl lined eyes. He felt her shiver as he tucked some wet strands of hair behind her ear.

She could hear her heart drumming…his intense gaze stuck to her trembling lips ignited something feral inside her…it scared her... excited her. The other thing that had kept her up for the last two weeks…his damned stares.

As she stood there with her nerves stretched and breath tangled, for the first time she wished her phuphi would just barge in abruptly.

xx