I don't whether I've mentioned this here before or not but I write as a stress buster and as my exams are going on, I feel like writing a lot. So this chapter is a product of that. Nothing much happens, just light-hearted stuff as I didn't think it through 😃 But since I wrote it so thought it should post it as well 😉 Moral of the story is that while reading this chapter keep your expectations low 😆
NOT PROOFREAD! (Like always😆)
Happy Reading! 😛
Chapter 3
The ring of the doorbell resonated shrilly within the house before Arzoo's Daadi answered it, her face breaking into a genuine smile on seeing him standing there in his uniform with his loosened tie and bag slung carelessly over one shoulder.
"Assalaam-o-Alaikum Daadi." He greeted her instantly with his warm, eye-crinkling smile.
"Walaikum Assalaam beta. Come. Come inside." Patting his back gently, she ushered him inside the house with the hurriedness that accompanies the elderly when they are happy. "I knew you would come."
"I came in the morning but no one opened the door so I had to leave. Is everything alright?" He inquired slowly with concern coloring his tone. He had stopped at Arzoo's house on his way to school so that they could walk together like every other day but no one had opened the door so he had to go by himself.
Daadi sighed softly. "Beta, ever since Arzoo returned from that hiking trip yesterday, her foot was paining her. She woke up this morning to find out that the pain had gotten worse so I had to take her to the doctor's." She shook her head slightly in worry. "Did she have a bad fall yesterday?"
"She said it didn't hurt that much." Sahir responded truthfully, a look of uneasiness crossing his face.
"I don't know when this girl will learn to take care of herself." She sighed before looking up at him; she smiled. "She's in her room. You go and sit with her. She'll be delighted to see you... Was just complaining to me how bored she has gotten sitting in bed all day." She laughed lightly. "I'll get you both something to eat."
"No Daadi, I'm afraid I don't have time to sit for long. I only came to see how Zoo was doing."
"Beta now that you're here, sit for some time." Daadi persisted.
"Actually Daadi, I came here straight from school. I have to go back home. Otherwise my Chachi won't be so... ah pleased with me." A slight hint of discomfort crossed his politely smiling face as he talked about the people he was forced to call his family.
"Oh." Daadi's face fell a little. "Okay beta, if that is the case then I won't stop you."
"Sorry Daadi, maybe next time?"
"Why not. You go and sit with Arzoo and if there's anything you want, let me know." She patted his cheek lovingly and Sahir smiled at her in gratitude. She returned to the kitchen and Sahir made his way to Arzoo's room. He knocked on the door softly and Arzoo's voice came floating outside. "Come on in."
He pushed the door open and stepped inside, witnessing the look of unrestricted happiness on Arzoo's face on seeing him.
"Sahir! What a surprise!" She let out genially, sitting up straighter instantly.
"How are you?" He asked with an accompanying jerk of his head as he moved inside the room, leaving the door wide open behind him.
"How do I look?" She asked him cheerfully.
"As annoying as ever." He retorted without hesitation, stuffing his hands deep inside his pockets as he came to stand by her bed.
"You rude, unsympathetic person; show some consideration for the unwell." Arzoo chided mockingly.
"The unwell should answer questions directly then." He smiled slightly. "How's your foot?"
"A sight to behold."
"I'm sure it is." He agreed derisively.
Arzoo stuck out her tongue at him at his mocking tone and then moved the blanket aside for him to have a look. Her foot was swollen to almost twice the size. Sahir shook his head slightly and had just opened his mouth to speak when Arzoo cut him off warningly. "No making fun of my foot!"
"Why would I make fun of it? It looks perfectly normal." His speech was accompanied with a casual shrug of his shoulders.
"It looks perfectly normal to you?" Arzoo repeated incredulously in a shrill voice, ringing with disbelief.
"Yes. Aren't all balloons supposed to look like this?" He remarked innocently and Arzoo threw a cushion at him in annoyance, which he caught easily with an accompanying laugh.
"What? Did I say something wrong?" He asked with the same artificial innocence.
"I asked you not to make fun of my foot!"
"I'm sorry Zoo but I think this 'thing' has lost the right to be called a foot." He sniggered.
"Urghh! Is this why you came? To make fun of me?" She grumbled.
"I don't have that much free time at my disposal, alright?"
"Yeah yeah we all know how terribly busy you are."
"Did I detect a hint of sarcasm in your tone?"
"Probably. I wasn't exactly trying to be subtle, you know." She rolled her eyes.
Sahir looked at her carefully in reply with unmasked amusement on his face.
"What?" She demanded.
"Hearing you speak, who can tell you're sick?"
"I'm not sick, my foot is hurt."
"In other words you're unwell."
"Yeah. So?"
"So act like one and stop fighting with me." He told her in an admonishing tone, his lips lifting up in a smile.
"Can't do that. You know I can't. Plus it's my foot that's hurt so I can't kick you I guess... but I can fight verbally." She grinned.
"Well you do need to keep talking to stay alive."
Arzoo glared at him with narrowed eyes, which didn't have quite the expected result, as Sahir remained unfazed as he rocked on his heels slightly.
Sighing lightly Arzoo gave up and instead moved her feet aside slightly, making space for him on the bed. "What are you towering over me for? Sit down."
"I can't."
"Why?"
"Because then you'll be tempted to kick me and your foot can't take that."
"Well that's true. But how about you sit down and try not to get on my nerves?" Arzoo suggested sarcastically.
"If you had asked me to get the moon for you I would've done that but THIS... is impossible."
"Of course what was I even thinking? Just sit down!"
"Can't. Have to go home."
Arzoo's face, which was glowing with liveliness just moment ago, fell instantly. "You're joking."
"No I'm not."
"Oh come on Sahir! Stay for some time at least! You just got here."
"And I came here straight from school. You know it doesn't take my Chachi much time to start fabricating all sorts of negative stories behind my absences. Last time I got home a little late, she asked me whether I had been busy smoking behind her back... So I should be going now if I don't want to be accused of drug charges." He had meant to say it jokingly but as usual, a hint of bitterness crept into his voice.
"Her own son stays outside till so late!" Arzoo projected heatedly.
"Her own son... This differentiates between him and me, you see."
"But... but this is so unfair!"
"Since when has the world been fair to me?" He stated quietly with a sad smile. He shook his head to get back to his usual self before asking, "So what were you saying before this depressing topic of my life came up?"
"Don't call your life depressing. It's... depressing to hear." Arzoo frowned.
"Well it's the truth." He shrugged helplessly.
"Before this topic came up, we were happily talking right? Your life wasn't depressing then, was it?" Arzoo tried to make him see sense.
"I never said my life felt depressing with you around." He corrected her in a quiet voice and Arzoo's face broke into a blissful smile as his words sunk in making a warm fuzzy feeling envelope her heart. It was seldom, very seldom, when Sahir said something like this. Acknowledged her like this. He wasn't good with words or expressing his emotions for that matter so he avoided it as much as he could.
"Okay so you're going to turn down a cup of hot chocolate with the girl who makes you less depressed? Has it occurred to you that it might leave HER depressed?" Arzoo asked dramatically to cover up that silence that had prevailed for a moment, knowing Sahir easily got uncomfortable after such impulsive confessions.
Sahir, who was staring at his feet after the acknowledgment felt his face break into a smile. "You're an idiot," he told her, knowing without looking up that she was grinning widely.
"Of course I am. What else would explain my friendship with you?" Arzoo replied impertinently.
"Good luck." Sahir whacked her on her head playfully as he said it. "Sheer good luck made you find a friend like me."
"Yeah maybe." She agreed thoughtfully. "I haven't heard of many people who have a clown for a friend."
"People don't have a walking-talking disaster for a friend either, like I do."
"I'm not a walking-talking disaster, alright?" Arzoo glared at him in mock annoyance, which was returned by a beaming, eye-crinkling smile from the other end, which somehow made her remember what she had left off. "Please Sahir! Just a cup of Daadi's special hot chocolate in the garden." She begged him with wide imploring eyes.
"Please na. I've gotten so bored sitting in bed all day that I could murder someone!" She let out with gritted teeth to express her aggravation.
"How about making that someone yourself?" Came the innocent suggestion.
"Sahir Azeem Chaudhary! You keep your mouth shut if you don't want that person to be you!"
"You know Zoo if I go away or something, your stupid death threats are honestly going to be only thing I'm going to miss."
"Why would you go away?" Arzoo asked instantly with a frown.
Sahir threw his hands in the air exasperatedly. "And the girl completely misses the point of the statement! Okay, I'll stop for a cup but we'll have it here. In this room."
"What? No! There's no point in having it here. The whole point is to leave this room!"
"I think you're missing the point that your balloon-like foot is screaming. You. Can't. Walk!"
"I can!"
"That's what you think."
"What do you mean by that?" Arzoo asked annoyed before softening her tone, she added. "Sahir, it only looks bad, it doesn't hurt that much."
"Well tough luck because I don't think I believe you anymore."
"What? But why?" She whined.
"Arzoo Nausheen Khan, had you told me TRUTHFULLY yesterday while hiking that your foot was hurting, this could've been avoided."
"It wasn't hurting that much then."
"Well genius, if it was hurting, it meant that something was wrong and you shouldn't strain it any more, least of all with a hike. Anyway you should know this; the pain always gets worse the next morning."
"Done with the lecture? Can we go outside now?"
"No."
"Please Sahir. Please. Don't make me beg for such a small thing." She added miserably.
"Zoo, it's like I like making you beg or something but the doctor advised you complete bed rest."
"How do you know that?" She narrowed her eyes at him. "Daadi told you?"
"No, I guessed it. Trust me, it wasn't that hard."
"Sahir!" She whined again.
"Okay lemme go and ask Daadi and if she says yes, then we can go."
"But-" Arzoo had just opened her mouth to speak when Sahir got up and left the room. A while later he was back.
"Daadi said no." He informed her with a helpless look on his face.
"Really?"
"Yeah."
"What was Daadi doing when you went to her, by the way?" She asked inquisitively.
"She was umm... In her room watching TV."
"With her eyes closed? That wasn't very smart of her." She remarked offhandedly.
"What do you mean?"
"It means that you're lying, Mr. Sahir Azeem Chaudhary! Daadi goes to lie down for her evening nap sharp at 3 and its 3:10 now."
Sahir tried to hide his sheepish smile as he sat down at the end of her bed again. "Hmm smart. Anyway there's no one to make hot chocolate now, so no point going to the garden."
"Are you sure about that?" Arzoo asked slowly with a mischievous smile.
***
15 minutes later, Sahir was busy in the kitchen pouring out two cups of foaming hot chocolate, that he had just finished making with the help of Arzoo's instructions, who sat perched on the counter nearby.
"Done. That wasn't that difficult." Sahir announced with a look of self-satisfaction on his face.
"Let's go now." Arzoo made to hop down when Sahir's loud stop made her freeze.
"What do you think you're doing?"
"Jumping from Mount Everest, what else?" She rolled her eyes. "You don't have to freak out. I have enough sense not to land on my bad foot."
"I don't trust your reflex senses, to be honest. You might up landing on the exact foot you were trying to avoid." He told her as he went up to her and holding her by the waist, lowered her down steadily on to the floor before backing away nonchalantly.
"I could've done that myself." She grumbled with her pinks glowing slightly pink.
"Not with that much grace though." He pulled her leg again. "Okay so let me walk you to the garden and then I'll bring the cups."
"I can walk myself." She told him irritatingly.
"Oh!" His face fell. "It's just that I really felt like walking with someone's support today. Can't you indulge me please? Just for now?" He said it with such innocent, imploring eyes that Arzoo burst out laughing.
"You're a jerk! Come here." She told him and wounding an arm around his neck, allowed him to lend his support and lead her to the garden.
***
"So what did you do today? Got bored without me?" Arzoo inquired cheekily as the duo sat in the garden, slowly sipping hot chocolate, relishing the feeling of the sun's warm rays on their backs.
"You wish. I sat with Zak today. I wasn't expecting it but he's a great guy." He told her casually.
"Zak? Zak who?"
"Zakariyya. You know that new guy in our class?"
"Oh yeah that hot one." Arzoo nodded in understanding and Sahir's eyebrow rose incredulously.
"Excuse me?"
"That's what all the girls in the class are referring to him as." Arzoo shrugged lightly. "So he calls himself Zak?"
"Yeah since Zakariyya's a mouth full I guess."
"So I skipped one day, one day Sahir Azeem Chaudhary and you made new friends." Arzoo scolded him in good humor.
"Well I saw it as an opportunity and grabbed it."
"Are you this tired of me?" She shook her head in sadness playing along. "That's sad but you know what? I'll be skipping tomorrow as well and maybe you'll realize how lucky you are to have me." She narrowed her eyes at him towards the end.
Sahir settled more comfortably in his chair, stretching his legs before him. "I doubt it."
"A good friend is a man's greatest treasure." Arzoo told him.
"And you just made that up. Wit beyond measure is a man's greatest treasure. It's a quote from Harry Potter."
"I know that but it can't be applied on you and neither on the situation, so this one's better."
"I see. So you're the good friend who's my greatest treasure?" Sahir questioned amusingly.
"Uh huh!"
"I wish this treasure was cashable then. I would've made some money." He remarked, fighting a smile.
"Sahir Azeem Chaudhary-" Arzoo had just started indignantly when Daadi's voice reached them faintly. She was calling them, looking for them inside the house.
"Wait here. I'll tell her we're outside." Sahir heaved himself to his feet and went inside. He was inside for quite a while, before he came back out.
"What took you so long?"
"Got talking with Daadi. Okay Zoo, we should get back now. We've been here for more than half an hour."
"Really? It didn't feel like it."
He shrugged lightly. "But it has been."
"Can we sit a little while more, Sahir?"
"If you want to keep sitting, then by all means, do. But I'm going home now." His words were firm.
"Fine!" Arzoo grumbled as she pushed herself to her feet, forgetting in her irritation that her foot was hurt and placing weight on it absentmindedly; a small gasp leaving her mouth as pain shot through it making tears spring in her eyes.
"Zoo?" Sahir asked worriedly.
"I'm fine." She assured him, smiling slightly through the tears that had brimmed in her eyes.
"Let me help you." He offered and she didn't protest as she let herself be led in. By the time, he had helped her to her bed; his expression was stoic.
"Why are you so serious all of a sudden?" Arzoo inquired. She could feel him going into one of his silent moods.
"I'm not... I should be getting home now, it's quite late."
"You think you'll get scolded?" Arzoo inquired worriedly.
"I'm used to it, don't worry." He smiled briefly. "Okay bye."
"Bye. Sorry I can't accompany you to the door."
"No problem. I know the way out." He smiled at her again as he made to walk out of the room but it was strained. She could see that it wasn't reaching his eyes.
"Sahir?"
"Yes." He turned to look at her from the doorway.
"Come again tomorrow?"
He smiled slightly before nodding. "Sure."
He disappeared out of the doorway and Arzoo was left looking at it longingly before she shook her head. "Daadi, Sahir just left. Can you please close the door since I can't?"
"Yes yes beta. Doing it." Daadi answered as she shuffled to the main door. Arzoo lay back in bed listening to her footsteps absentmindedly. In a while, Daadi came back in her room and asked with a frown, "Didn't Sahir say he was going home?"
"Yes."
"I saw him going in the opposite direction."
"Really? That's weird. Maybe he had some work or something?"
"Yes maybe." Daadi agreed and then brushing it off as something trivial, she got busy with her work. As Arzoo lay in bed, she frowned wondering where he had gone to, after saying he was going home.
He didn't come the next day.
***That's all for now! Don't forget to tell me whether you loved it or simply liked it or hated it. And if hated it then how much would you rate it on the crap-o-meter 🤣
Love,
Fari ❤️
So guys basically its getting difficult for me to manage my PM list as I have over 200 people from my previous forum there and I don't want to send PMs to the whole list because that way people will be receiving PMs for this SS which they don't even read it... Urghhh life why you so complicated?!
But at the same time, it's difficult for me to send out PMs to you guys who aren't even on my buddy list. So please everyone who wants PMs, ADD ME TO YOUR BUDDY LIST! PLUS MAKE SURE YOU HIT THE LIKE BUTTON ON THE FIRST UPDATE OF THIS FF i.e. The Prologue 😳
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CID
Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
