I'll be there for you | MJHT | Chapter 12 Page 47 - Page 31

continue soon apas

N pm me when ever u will update

love

sana

I hope you get things sorted out and continue soon !!

Luv,

Vandu

Here's an extra-long chapter with everything I promised...The dance AND a car ride to Boston. Thanks for reading! Please do comment and/or hit the like button. I really appreciate it!

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Recap

The entire group plans a trip to a hand gliding club. Before they leave, Samira admits to Zaid her previous medical condition is returning and she needs help to tackle it. Zaid recalls that she was diagnosed with anorexia nervosa at the age of 11, shortly after the death of their cousin, Aamir. At the hang gliding club, Zaid, Hina and Samira discuss their plans to take a trip to Boston over Thanksgiving break and introduce Hina's brother, Yusuf, to Samira and Zaid's cousin Aisha. At their request, Rehaan agrees to come along for the trip. Deepali and Aditya get into an argument which leads to them playing pranks on each other. Neelam surprises everyone by pouring water on Aditya. Aditya, Hina, Rehaan and Neelam go skydiving while the other's stay back to watch. Hina gets injured on her landing, which scares Zaid. With a little push from Hina, Zaid finally admits that loves her. Everyone is happy for the new couple and make a toast to them.

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Chapter 11: Unexpected Interactions

Karan awakened early on the Saturday of the South Asia Society culture show. Eager to prepare for the impending performance, he washed up, got dressed in record time and quietly left his dorm room. After buying a donut for himself from a shop on campus, he headed directly for the Performing Arts House to get in a couple hours of practice before the dress rehearsal, which Rehaan had scheduled for 11AM. As he walked into the dance room, Karan was surprised to find Deepali asleep in a chair in one of the corners of the room.

Entering the room, Karan stopped for a moment and watched her. There was something very innocent about Deepali as she slept peacefully, unaware that anyone was present in the room. Not wanting to disturb her, he decided to leave and walk around campus for a bit. As he turned towards the door, however, it flew open loudly and Rehaan appeared in the doorway, exhaustion evident on his face.

With a jolt, Deepali awakened and snapped her head up. After taking in the scene in front of her, she relaxed into her chair and rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Hey, you're here already?" Rehaan said to Karan as he walked into the room.

"Just got here a few minutes ago," Karan responded. "Did you know that you just disturbed Deepali's slumber?"

"Oh." Rehaan finally noticed Deepali on the chair. "Sorry Deepali. I didn't know you had fallen asleep. Where did Gaurav go?"

"He went to get some breakfast for all of us," Deepali answered.

A concerned look came over Rehaan's face.

Deepali sighed. "Don't worry Rehaan. He's got the routine down."

Karan finally decided to speak up and clear his confusion. "Gaurav? Isn't he one of the alternates?"

"You missed a lot of drama this morning," Deepali told him as she stood up from her chair and joined the two guys. "Varun fell from the top bunk of his dorm room bunk bed and sprained his ankle."

"Ouch," Karan reacted. "Is he okay?"

"He's fine," Rehaan answered. "No other injuries, but obviously, he can't dance tonight. That's why Gaurav is taking his place. Deepali and I have been helping Gaurav perfect the steps since before dawn, and I just went to drop off his costume with Neelam. She's going to tailor it for him." He turned to Deepali. "You think he'll be as good as Varun?"

"Relax Rehaan. We have another ten hours to finish working with him," Deepali said, exasperatedly, "but at the moment, it's more important for us all to have some nourishment. Especially you." Addressing Karan, she continued, "Do you know this guy didn't get any sleep last night and he hasn't eaten since lunchtime yesterday?"

Karan shook his head. "You are taking this performance way too seriously," he said to Rehaan. "Here, take this. It's a donut I bought on the way here." He handed Rehaan the paper bag he was holding.

"I can't take your breakfast," Rehaan told him, trying to push the bag back into Karan's hands.

"I'll just have whatever Gaurav brings back," Karan insisted. "You, on the other hand, need to go back to your dorm room and get some sleep."

Rehaan opened his mouth to protest, but Deepali took his arm and began pulling him towards the door. "Kuch kehne ki zaroorat nahin hai," she ordered. "Karan is absolutely right. And besides, we don't need you here."

Stopping at the door, Rehaan stared at them imploringly. "But what about Gaurav?"

"We can handle it Rehaan," replied Karan as he started to close the door. "And we better not see you back here before noon. Deepali and I will oversee the first hour of dress rehearsal."

Rehaan finally gave in with a smile. "All right. Thanks guys." As he left, they closed the door behind him.

"Nicely done partner," Deepali said to Karan, holding her hand out.

With a grin, Karan shook her hand. "It was necessary. He looked just about ready to pass out." He raised an eyebrow as another thought entered his mind. "How long have you been here?"

"Let's see. Rehaan called and woke me around 5AM, so I would say almost four hours."

"You should get some rest too," Karan said to her, concern in his expression. "There's still some time until dress rehearsal. I can finish training Gaurav until then."

Deepali considered it for a moment. "I'll have breakfast with you guys first. Then I'll go into one of the other dance rooms and take a quick nap."

Karan was content with this plan. The two of them walked over to the chairs and took a seat to wait for Gaurav. After a few moments, Karan noticed Deepali gazing at him intently.

"Kya hua?" he asked.

"You know," she replied with a tone of exaggerated wonder, "you can really be a nice guy when you want to be."

"Well, don't get too used to it," Karan answered, trying to revert to his frosty demeanor but unable to conceal a slight smile.

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It was one in the afternoon, and Samira was wondering where to grab lunch from before heading to the library to revise her midterm paper for the Indian American Identity class. Before she could make up her mind, Aditya came into view, walking toward her from the direction of his apartment.

"Hey Munchkin!" he called. "How's it going?"

"Not bad," Samira responded with a grin. "Where are you headed?"

"The gym. I'm meeting up with a couple guys to play ball."

"Bhaiya nahin ja rahe aapke saath?"

Aditya sighed. "Nahin. He is otherwise occupied this afternoon."

"Let me guess. Hina?"

"You got it. Apparently, they have a study date."

Samira smiled. "They are just too cute." Aditya made a face at this statement. "Oh come on, admit it Adi," Samira urged him. "Woh ek doosre ke liye bilkul perfect hain."

"Yeah okay," Aditya responded. "Lekin Zaid Hina ke saath itna waqt guazaarta hai ke usko basketball khelne ki bhi fursat nahin. He might start to lose those toned muscles soon. We'll see how much Hina likes him then."

"Hina is not that superficial," Samira insisted.

"Not that superficial, huh? So you do think she's superficial."

Samira frowned. "Be nice Adi."

"I'm just kidding. Khair, yeh sab chhodo. Where are you off to?"

"To the library. I was just watching Rehaan's dance group practice."

"Oh yeah," said Aditya. "It's finally D-day. Kya khayaal hai? Are they ready to kick some HFD butt?"

"Well, I haven't seen the Hindi Film Dance yet, but no one can match Rehaan's choreography."

"Great! And how's the dancing?"

"Karan may not be the friendliest guy around, but the boy can move," Samira answered. "Aur humaari Deepali to hai hi 'Queen of the Dance Floor'."

"Matlab aaj ka show bahut yaadgaar hone waala hai?"

"Is mein koyi shak nahin."

"Looking forward to it," Aditya said. "I'll see you tonight."

"Bye Adi!" Samira replied and headed toward the nearest campus cafe.

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There was nothing Zaid looked forward to more than his study dates with Hina, and today was no exception. He was practically skipping as he made his way to her building. He knew Hina had a lot of work to do and probably would not be able to spend much time conversing with him, but he didn't mind. Just the opportunity to be in her presence and steal glances at her every so often was enough to excite him.

Entering the nearly empty student lounge, he found Hina seated at one of the tables in the far back of the room, stacks of books and papers around her, furiously typing on her MacBook. He walked over and placed his backpack across from her on the table.

"Hi Hina," he greeted her, as he walked around the table and gave her a quick hug. To his surprise, Hina completely stopped her work to return his hug.

"Hey! I'm so glad you're here," she said.

"Achcha?" he replied. "I thought you would find the interruption to be undesirable."

"Of course not Zaid," she told him with a smile. "I like studying with you. By the way, do you have your Electrical Engineering textbook? I forgot mine in my room and I didn't want to go all the way up to get it."

"Sure," he answered, and pulled the book out of his backpack.

"Awesome. Main ise thodi der ke liye borrow kar loon? I just need to finish the last few questions in the problem set."

As he handed it to her, Zaid's smile faded. So, that's why she's so glad to see me, he thought to himself. Because I have the textbook she wants. A moment later, he silently scolded himself for being so unreasonable. Hina had three exams and two papers to submit within the first three days of the upcoming school week. It was understandable that her mind would be focused on school work. Taking a seat at the table, Zaid got started on his own work.

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Aditya was one of the first audience members to arrive at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. He was hoping to find Rehaan and Deepali beforehand to wish them luck in their performance. However, the first person he saw as he walked into the theater was Neelam who had claimed a seat in the first row. She looked up just as he approached her.

"Hi Adi," she said. "I saved us all front row seats." She glanced at him discreetly a couple times. He looked even more handsome that usual in his dark green button-down dress shirt and black slacks, his hair neatly gelled.

"Great!" Aditya replied. He was just about to sit down next to her when he stopped abruptly. "Ek second. You don't have a water bottle behind your back, do you?"

Reminded of her unexpected prank from the previous weekend, Neelam couldn't help but giggle. She lowered her gaze and put her hand over her mouth to suppress the laughter. Aditya grinned as he took the seat next to her.

"I hope you're not still mad about that," she said.

Aditya shook his head. "I never really was. I totally had that coming. Just came as a bit of a surprise."

Just then, Samira dropped down beside Aditya. "Hey guys. Main abhi backstage se aa rahi hoon. Sab apne costumes mein bahut achche lag rahe hain. And Rehaan and Deepali are super excited. Go check it out!"

"Have you gone yet?" Aditya asked Neelam.

"No," Neelam responded, shaking her head. "Deepali was supposed to call me when they arrived, but she probably forgot."

"You guys go ahead," Samira told them. "I'll save our seats. Bhaiyya aur Hina abhi aate hi honge."

As Neelam stood up from her seat, Aditya and Samira finally got a full view of her outfit. She was clad in a stylish pale blue knee-length dress with a white cardigan over it, and white ballet flats. Her hair was curled at the ends and fell loosely on her shoulders. Feeling Aditya's eyes on her, Neelam suddenly felt self-conscious and started to run her fingers through her hair.

Aditya's eyes widened. "You look..." He didn't complete his sentence, but just stood there for a few seconds appearing tongue-tied.

"Gorgeous!" Samira interjected. "That color looks amazing on you."

"Thanks," Neelam replied with a grin. Turning, she headed toward the door to the backstage area. Aditya followed her, still appearing slightly dazed.

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Two hours later, as Rehaan stood backstage, he felt his heart pounding in his chest. Any minute now, the performers on stage would finish their routine, and it would be his group's turn to shine in the Fusion Dance. Following them would be the Hindi Film Dance. It was the moment of truth.

Applause from the audience pulled Rehaan out of his thoughts. He turned to his group. "Good luck guys! Make me proud." He grinned cheerily, trying to appear less nervous than he was.

After the previous performers had returned backstage, the Fusion Dance group walked out onto the stage and got into their starting positions. The girls were wearing wine red lehngas, while the guys had on matching red shirts with black pants. In center stage were Karan and Deepali, their outfits styled slightly differently than the others to make them stand out.

Positioned in front of him, with one of his arms around her waist, Deepali turned to give Karan a meaningful look. "For Rehaan," she said, softy. Karan nodded in agreement.

A magnified voice resonated through the auditorium. It was Karan's voice, prerecorded to narrate the story about to unfold.

"Do you believe in love at first sight? I know that I didn't...that is, until I met her. I knew life would never be the same again. Those moments are still fresh in my mind, including the contentment and elation I felt whenever I was with her."

A soft melody started to play, and the dancers began the routine. The first part of the dance was a fusion of salsa and classical Indian dance. This was the most passionate part of the performance and gave Karan and Deepali the perfect opportunity to flaunt their chemistry.

Not a single move out of sync, they all began with a basic salsa step.

The men lifted the women into the air and held them up in an elegant pose as they spun around slowly. Bringing them back down, they dipped them toward the floor.

As the passion and romance built up, the attention was focused on Karan and Deepali. A spotlight shone directly on them, while the other performers just swayed in the background. After completing a few steps side-by-side, Karan and Deepali came back together with him taking her hand and spinning her.

The song ended with the men getting down on one knee and offering a single rose to each of their partners. They women happily accepted the roses, and the stage became dark.

Karan's amplified voice rang out again. "It wasn't long before these happy times came to a sudden end. Our initial attraction may have been fueled by common desires and feelings, but our dreams and goals were as different as can be. And now, they were taking us away from one other. As difficult as it was, it didn't take us long to come to terms with the situation. Afterall, our lifelong dreams were more important than a few month old relationship, right?"

The lights turned back on and the dancers returned to center stage with dandiya sticks. The second part of the dance was a fun and lively number, with some elements of a Country Two-step and tranditional Raas.

They began by tapping their dandiya sticks together during the words, and skipping and spinning while exchanging positions during the melody in between.

During that last line, the group impressed the audience as some of the dancers repetitively threw their dandiya sticks back and forth across the stage only to be caught perfectly by their partners each time. While this was going on around them, Karan and Deepali danced in the center in flawless coordination with a jubilant and carefree attitude.

By now, most of the audience was clapping along, with the front row being the most exuberant in their appreciation.

As the dance continued around them, Deepali and Karan waved goodbye to one another and turned to walk slowly in opposite directions. As they headed towards the sides of the stage, they each turned to look back multiple times, always missing each other's gaze by a few seconds. Once they disappeared behind the curtains, the stage darkened once again.

"Do you ever wish you could go back in time? Within days, I realized that I had made a huge mistake. Despite having everything else I could ever ask for, her absence made this the worst time of my life. Many times, I thought about finding her and telling her that I could not live without her, but something always held me back. I knew what I was feeling, but was she feeling the same way?"

Karan came onto the stage first and began the next segment, a slow Western contemporary dance.

tere bin main yoon kaise jiya, kaise jiya tere bin

Watching Karan's poignant portrayal of a man in distress, the audience became completely silent. With grieving and pining expressions, he danced, displaying surprising agility and flexibility. Just as these first two lines came to an end, Deepali ran onto the stage and came to a stop in her position, behind and slightly to the right of Karan.

They swayed in harmony, similar emotions on their faces but both appearing as if they were in their own world, lost in their desolation.

tere bin main yoon kaise jiya, kaise jiya tere bin

The song ended with Karan falling to the ground in despair as Deepali disappeared into the background and the lights dimmed.

The narrative continued. "Months later, I was invited to return to my hometown for a wedding of two of our common friends ' a request which I accepted at once. I couldn't help hoping that perhaps she would be there, perhaps I would get one more opportunity to make things right."

The next segment, a typical Bollywood wedding dance, started with everyone except Deepali on stage. As the music began, Karan danced with everyone else, but his eyes wandered as if anticipating a glimpse of the woman he loved. Finally, Deepali entered and their eyes met. Silently and in a daze, they walked towards one another and met in the center of the stage, where Karan's character finally expressed his emotions.

The romantic dance began slowly, as the reunited lovebirds stared into each other's eyes. Pulling a rose out from his shirt pocket, Karan held it towards Deepali, who accepted it with a shy smile.

Rehaan had added some difficult stunts to add spice to his typical wedding number, which came into play during these lines. After a flip and two lifts, the music ended and the lights dimmed with Deepali and Karan in an embrace.

"So ultimately, we were reunited, confirming the age-old belief that love conquers all. It took some sacrifices, but we vowed never to be separated again. How does our story end, you ask? Well, see for yourself."

The final song was another energetic number, this time the dance being a fusion of Bhangra and Hip-Hop.

With smiles lighting up their faces, Deepali and Karan danced with the same energy that they had started the performance with. Now with the routine almost complete, they were relaxed enough to enjoy the dance. As they moved to the beats, the entire group almost forgot that they were being watched, as they had a blast on stage.

The performance came to a close with some spectacular stunts and a dazzling ending. Karan spun Deepali one final time, and she did the splits directly in front of him, still holding on to his hand, while the other dancers surrounded them in dramatic poses.

The response from the audience was thunderous, drowning out the voice of the emcee who was unnecessarily requesting them to "make some noise for the Fusion Dance team." Waving to her friends in the front row, Deepali followed the rest of the group off the stage.

As soon as they were backstage, the group began hugging and congratulating each other. Deepali could barely contain her happiness. Everything had gone smoothly and everyone, including Gaurav, had danced exceptionally well. With an elated grin on her face, Deepali turned to find Rehaan, but instead, found herself face to face with Karan. The excitement of such a flawless performance caused her to completely forget her enmity with him as she reached out her arms to embrace him. But before she had touched him, she caught herself and pulled back.

With a smile and a slight nod of his head, Karan indicated that he didn't mind a truce. Returning his smile, Deepali threw her arms around his neck and felt his enclose around her waist. Moments later, as they pulled away, Karan leaned towards her ear and said, "Nicely done partner." Then releasing her, he stepped back and disappeared into the crowd of performers.

Deepali stayed frozen in place for a few moments staring after Karan. For reasons that were unknown even to her, she wanted to catch another glimpse of him. Her trance was broken as Rehaan appeared next to her and engulfed her in a grateful and elated hug.

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Four days had passed since the performance, but Rehaan still felt on top of the world. He had been congratulated by countless performers and audience members who all maintained that they had never seen such a flawless, picture perfect dance performance at a college event. Even the South Asia Society board members seemed highly impressed, and he had overheard a rumor that they were planning to ask him to choreograph the University of Pennsylvania performance at the annual Best of the Best Bollywood dance competition next semester in Chicago.

To make his week even better, Thanksgiving vacation had finally arrived, which meant time for his road trip to Boston with Samira, Hina and Zaid. Immediately following his afternoon class on Wednesday, he grabbed his luggage from his dorm room and headed toward Hina's building. Hina had offered to drive during the trip there, so they were planning to go in her car. Arriving at her building, Rehaan found her standing against the brick wall looking ill and quite miserable.

"Hey Hina," he said as he walked up to her. "Is everything okay? You don't look too good."

"Thanks a lot," Hina replied with a hint of sarcasm. Rehaan opened his mouth to say that he didn't mean it that way, but before he could say anything, she apologized. "Sorry. Actually, I'm really not feeling well. Pulled an all-nighter yesterday to complete a research paper."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that. In that case, shaayad aapko gaadi nahin chalaani chaahiye . I can drive." Hina appeared unsure. "I've been driving for three years with no tickets and no accidents," Rehaan assured her.

"All right. Actually that sounds perfect. I'll sleep in the back."

"Great. I guess Samira can sit in the passenger seat, because I'm sure, Zaid to aap ke si saath baithna chaahega." Rehaan gave her a smile which Hina retuned half-heartedly. "Hina, can I ask you a question?" he subsequently inquired.

"Sure. What's up?" Hina rubbed her eyes sleepily.

"Do you really love Zaid?"

She looked up at him, stunned by the question. "What?"

"I don't know..." Rehaan hesitated for a moment. "Sometimes it just seems to me that his feelings are a lot stronger than yours. Aur agar yeh sach hai, to use bahut takleef hogi jab yeh baat use pata chalegi. He'll be devastated. And the later he finds out, the worse it will be."

Hina stayed silent for a moment as if planning how to respond to Rehaan's allegation without losing her cool. "Look Rehaan," she finally said, "tumhen is baare mein fikr karni ko koyi zaroorat nahin hai. Let me make one thing clear. I don't intend to sound conceited, but before Zaid and I got together, I had guys asking me out on a daily basis. But, none of them cared about me the way Zaid does, aur yeh baat main achchi tarah se jaanti hoon. I have no intention of breaking up with him or hurting his feelings."

Rehaan nodded. "That's what I was hoping to hear. I'm sorry if I offended you. It's just that...Zaid's a really nice guy, and I didn't want him to get hurt."

"It's all right. I'm just glad you came and talked to me instead of telling Zaid what you were thinking."

"I would never do something like that."

They both became quiet as they saw Zaid and Samira approaching them, pulling their suitcases behind them.

"Ready to go guys?!" Samira asked them, excitedly. "I brought tons of snacks for the trip." She held up a large paper bag.

"Slight change of plans," Rehaan informed her. "I'm driving because Hina pulled an all-nighter last night and needs some rest."

"Are you okay?" Zaid asked Hina with concern, as he put an arm around her.

She leaned her head against his chest and sighed. "I'll be fine. Just glad that the week from hell is over." Pulling her closer, Zaid gently kissed her forehead.

Samira and Rehaan watched the tender moment between them and exchanged smiles.

"I better go get the car out of the garage," Hina said pulling away from Zaid. "Be right back."

She walked into her dorm building, and a few minutes later a sleek black BMW pulled out of one of the parking structure exits. Parking it in front of the building, Hina got out and handed her keys and a print out of the directions to Rehaan.

"Wow," Rehaan said with wide eyes. "No wonder you were hesitant about letting me drive. Nice car."

"Sure is," Samira said as she opened the passenger door. "Was it an 18th birthday present from your parents?" The four of them got into the car and Rehaan put the key into the ignition.

"Actually, I bought it myself a couple months ago, from money I earned from jobs and internships," Hina replied, appearing slightly affronted at the suggestion that she needed her parents to buy her a car.

"You earned enough money to buy a beemer?" Zaid asked in surprise. "Kitne saal kaam kiya?"

"I've been working part time since I started high school. I have expensive taste," she admitted with a shrug, "but I understand that I have to work hard to get what I want. Chalen Rehaan?"

"Oh, yeah. Sorry." Rehaan had been distracted by Hina's story, but now he started the engine and began driving towards the nearest freeway entrance.

"Hina, is it okay if put on some music?" Samira asked, with her iPod in her hand. "I'll keep the volume low."

"Yeah, no problem," Hina replied. "I can sleep through anything right now." As the trip began, she leaned back in her seat and closed her eyes.

"Hina?" Zaid said from next to her. She opened her eyes and turned to him. "You should lie down," he continued. Hina looked down at the seat and then back up at him questioningly. He smiled. "Aise." He took hold of her shoulders and pulled her downwards until she was lying on her back across the seat, with her head on his lap. "Ab aaraam se so jaao."

As the song Samira has just selected began playing, Hina glanced up at Zaid with a smile, and softly touched his cheek. "You are very sweet," she said. Zaid immediately felt his face get warm as he beamed at her.

With a slight smile still on her lips, Hina slowly closed her eyes. Zaid watched her with wonder, still finding it hard to believe that she was so close to him.

Catching sight of Zaid's expression in the rear view mirror, Rehaan turned to Samira with a grin, and gestured toward the back of the car with a tilt of his head. Samira took a furtive glance at her brother and smiled to herself.

Hina turned her head slightly to one side, and her curls fell across her face. Zaid gently put them back in place, brushing her cheek with his fingers in the process.

As Hina drifted into a deep sleep with Zaid eyes continuously on her, Samira finally started a quiet conversation with Rehaan.

"I still can't get over that performance," she said. "I have never seen anything like that before. It was absolutely flawless."

"Thanks," Rehaan replied. "I couldn't have done without the dancers, especially Karan and Deepali."

"Those two were on fire. Great chemistry and perfect sync. It must have required hours of work. Maine kabhi nahin socha tha woh itne din ek doosre ko bardaasht kar paayenge."

"Mujhe bhi yaqeen nahin tha," he replied," but I took a risk. Sometimes people who seem completely incompatible end up being perfect for each other."

"Really, Mr. Psychology major? So you think Karan and Deepali belong together?"

Rehaan shrugged. "Ho bhi sakta hai."

Samira suppressed her giggles. They may have completed a performance together, but Samira couldn't imagine Deepali and Karan ever falling in love - especially not after Deepali had spent the past two months finding every opportunity to criticize or complain about him.

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The rest of the trip passed by in a flash, with Hina asleep, Zaid daydreaming and Rehaan and Samira enjoying their conversation. Just as they entered the neighborhood where their destination was, Hina sat up suddenly and looked around.

"We're almost there!" she said eagerly, clearly refreshed from her nap.

With Hina navigating the rest of the way, they finally pulled into the driveway of a nice two-story house in a suburban neighborhood. Waiting for them on the porch were three young people, two men and a woman.

The moment the car came to a complete stop, Hina jumped out and ran straight into the open arms of one of the young men. Zaid, Samira and Rehaan got out of the car and quietly stood behind her as everyone else talked excitedly.

"Oh, sorry guys," Hina said, finally noticing them again. "I'd like you to meet my brother Yusuf." She gestured toward the guy she had just hugged.

"You must be Samira," Yusuf (Rajeev Khandelwal) said, extending his hand towards her. "We talked on the phone after your roommate's accident. It's great to finally meet you."

"Nice to meet you too." As Samira shook Yusuf's hand, she was taken aback by the sparkle in his eyes and the warmth in his voice. There was something about him that convinced her right away that he was one of the most genuine people she would ever meet.

After Yusuf had shaken hands with Zaid and Rehaan, Hina introduced them all to the other two, whose house they were going to be staying at. Junaid, a childhood friend of Yusuf's, was an architect, and his wife, Isra, was working on her MBA at Harvard.

A two or three year old boy came racing out of the house and ran straight into Yusuf's arms. "Chacha, meri gaadi," he said, showing Yusuf a toy racecar in his hands.

"And this is my little nephew," Yusuf explained. "Shaz, dekho kaun aaya hai."

Shaz turned to Hina and his face lit up. "Hina!"

"Hina kya tumhaari umr ki hai jo tum use naam se pukaar rahe ho?" Isra scolded him. "Beta, kitni baar bataaya hai-"

"Koyi baat nahin, Bhabhi," Hina said, pinching Shaz's cheek.

"You guys must be tired from the trip," said Junaid. "Chalo, andar baithke aaraam kar lo."

As they all followed Junaid into the house, Samira could feel herself becoming excited about introducing Yusuf and Aisha. Perhaps this guy really would be a perfect match for her cousin.

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Please give me honest feedback! After such a long gap, I really need it.

Alll in all great work on the chapter and really hoping to read the next one soon :D