AsYa SS-A Walk Back Home-NOTE- Pg153-updating soon - Page 24

A Walk Back Home

PART 2

Zoya's POV

I checked the time. It was 3 PM and I still had one more hour in my hands for the driver to come. I decided to put my time to some good use and right now, packing some of my stuffs seemed to be the perfect thing to do. I took out some clothes from the wardrobe and spent some extra moments in folding each of them neatly. I could sense the unwillingness of my heart in doing so, but the mere thought of the already taken decision was firm enough to dismiss my hesitation.

"All set...??", I heard Ammi's voice.

I have always respected Ammi and considered her as my own mother, and hurting her emotions in any way was a fact that was bothering me the most. I nodded my head in a simple 'Yes', without looking at her and concentrated back on keeping my already folded clothes inside the suitcase.

"You really want to do this?", she asked me again as she knew very well that I would only avoid looking into her eyes when I am at some unease. Once again I nodded my head, but this time I was turned around by her. Holding me lightly by my shoulders, she asked what I was fearing the most.

"What about the love that you both had for each other? Nobody had forced you into this marriage.. It was your own decision.. Then why aren't you both ready to give it another chance now... Think about Meher, Zoya...!"

"We have thought well about what to do about Meher. She will be staying with me as she needs her mother the most at this age. But she will spend quality time with her father and you as well!", I answered her politely, ignoring her question about giving a chance.

"Meher will get her mother, her father and her grandmother as well, but not all of them together! She isn't a piece of any bread that you both will tear her up too pieces! Stop being so unfair to her! And what happened yesterday, is all known to you both very well.."

I remained quiet, as I knew what she was saying was true, but I could not tell her the truth from my side as well.

"Think about it once again.. You are not doing this right!"

She said and left the room and I got busy in folding the last of my clothes again that were strewn on the bed. "It's too late now Ammi...", I said under my breath.

Asad's POV

It was 3:30 pm and the driver was already on his way to my home. I thought of giving her a call, and let her know about it, but ended up doing nothing. At that moment, I realized how much the distance has widened between us. I looked at the wall to the left of my work table where a frame hung in all its glory, displaying a photograph of me with my 'Happy Family'. Now, neither there was a family, nor were they happy.

I kept glancing at my phone every now and then. Finally after a lot of reluctance, I called up in the land-line that was picked up by my little princess.

"Hi Princess... You are back from school?", I asked her.

"Yes Abbu.. It's almost been an hour..", she answered me as if that was the most obvious thing for me to know, but I didn't. She was right, it has been long since I had called her when she was back from school.

"Oh..yeah Princess... Abbu was busy..so he forgot..." A feeling of guilt slithered up as I said this.

"Okay Abbu.. No problem!", she replied in a chirpy voice that amplified my guilt.

"My Meher seems to be really happy today! Is there something that she wants to share with her Abbu too?", I asked her when I sensed excitement in her voice.

"Yes!!! I have got the first prize in the drawing competition that we had last week. Our teacher announced the results today and gave me a new color box as a first prize as well!!!"

Her enthusiasm over the matter did make me forget about the complications of life at that moment. I wished I could visualize life in the way she did, I wished if I could use her new colors to paint my life as effortlessly as she did in her coloring books. I sighed at its impossibility and then congratulated my princess on her success.

"Meher...baby..where is your Ammi?", I asked her before hanging up the call.

"She is getting ready.. Daadi said she is going out somewhere with you.. Abbu, can I and Daadi come along too??", she asked me delightfully and I could comprehend how much she expected me to say Yes.

"We are going out for a very important work Princess.. But I promise, I will take you out tomorrow. It's a weekend anyway!", I promised her and this time I made up my mind to not break my promise.

"Okay...", she answered in a low voice. "But only if you promise to give me ice cream... Double scoops!!", she said the latter half mischievously. I chuckled at her naughtiness and smiled at the extent to which she resembled her mother.

"Done deal Princess...Of course I will!!", I said in agreement to all her demands, dreading that it would probably be the last time when she was wishing for a family outing.

I called my assistant, Prasad to come inside and handed him the responsibility of all the pending work for the day. I also asked him not to keep any meeting on this weekend as I had planned to commit all my time to my princess. I called up the lawyer to finalize the appointment once again, before I finally walked out of my cabin.

Zoya's POV

The appointment was scheduled at 4:30 PM and I was just there in time. I saw Asad waiting outside, with his arms folded across his chest, but his eyes did travel back and forth towards his watch in his right hand. I increased my pace as I reached up to him.

"I thought I had sent the driver for you..with a car of course..", he said in his sarcastic tone.

"I just left the driver and the car in the other lane, because I did not want him to know where was I going exactly.", I replied back in the same tone as his.

In all these years, Asad could still not trust my driving skills and had appointed a driver for me who would drive me anywhere I wanted to. But he was on a holiday, and the one whom he had sent was from his office. Owing to the wide range of communication among his office employees, I thought it would be wise enough to leave him a few meters away from my actual destination.

"Hmmm...", that was all he said.

"Let's go in.. It's almost time."

I nodded and followed him inside after closing my eyes for a while and calming down my increasing heartbeats.

Asad's POV

We were finally here for what we were determined of last night. I pulled out the chair for Zoya and took my seat beside her in the lawyer's office. There was a moment of awkward silence and edginess when Rajat, our lawyer was preparing himself to make points that he would have to add up in the 'Divorce Deed'.

"You had called me up last night and told me about your mutual agreement for the divorce. Are you sure you want to do this?", he questioned us.

After a few seconds of silence, we nodded our heads together.

"Fine... and you want this in spite of having a daughter of six years, Meher?"

"Yeah.. We do.. and considering her age, Zoya would get her custody." I answered as I knew this was the next thing that he would have asked. He nodded his head and finally proceeded to make a note of all the personal and financial information that he would require to make our Separation Agreement.

I could feel Zoya's hands trembling a little under the table as our lawyer asked her further details. I too felt repulsive and the thought of making Meher going through all this filled me with loathing. My hand instinctively reached up to hers and held it in a firm grip. Her eyes darted towards mine, and I gave her an assuring look.

I did not know for how long, but I did keep my hand attached to hers till the time it was all over. Our divorce deed would be ready by next week and we would have to be here again for signing that. At last, after discussing all the formalities, we got ready to take a leave, and it was only then when we realized that I still had my hands clasped with hers. She slid them out of mine in a speedy motion as I loosened my grasp.

"Asad...", I heard Rajat's voice calling me from behind when Zoya had already left the room in haste.

"Yes..." I turned back.

"What the hell are you doing?? And mind you, I am not asking this as your lawyer, but as a friend of yours since years!"

"But I was here to talk to my lawyer only and I believe the meeting is over." I replied as I felt urgency for something else right now.

"No.. It isn't over yet... Asad...Buddy... Please think about it again.. Try to sort out things with Zoya Bhabi once again.. and think about Meher... Please.." Rajat pleaded.

"Rajat...I know what you are trying to say and do.. But please, don't make it more difficult for me.." I stated and left his cabin as I had some other serious things to bother about now.

Zoya's POV

"What did you just do inside?", he came near me and spoke in his dangerously low anger filled voice. "What were you thinking when you had simply walked out of the room like this??", he asked me again, this time holding my arm tightly.

"And what do you think you were doing when you had held my hand there?", I questioned him in equal rage.

"I was just trying to help you then. You were shaking in fear while talking to Rajat."

"And you thought, why not make it worse for her?" This time I jerked out my arms out of his tight grip.

"You know very well that my intention was nothing like that! And even if it was, you did not make any effort to draw yourself back!" His voice clearly said that he was infuriated now.

"And that was because; you were almost successful in what you were trying to do. I was almost on the verge of reconsidering this all over again. But now, I am sure that I want this!!" My words spit out anger.

"I was also equally tormented by all this, but now I am glad that I did not mess it up and we are done with it. One more week, and you will be free! I pity my daughter who will be staying with you."

"She is my daughter too...", my voice was choking now, not in grief, but in fright as I would be able to do very little if he got determined to put his powers into action.

"And I am not that ruthless too... You can have her custody! I had said that before too and I don't turn back from my words when it comes to my daughter Meher..." I breathed a sigh of relief.

"Yeah... You only do that when it comes to me!" I said in a pained voice and put forward my hand in a gesture to end this conversation here, and walked out.

Asad's POV

"Zoya...You are still my wife.. And unfortunately, we are going back to the same house tonight. So I will really not mind if I have to take you along." I called her back when I saw her walking out.

"No thanks... I can manage it by myself.."

"I didn't ask if you could, I just told you to get inside the car..", I said in a no nonsense tone.

She didn't argue with me any further and went towards the other side of the car to get seated. I believe it was because of the appointment and then our verbal squabble that had made her unusually quiet. But nevertheless, we had hardly ever had a proper conversation in the last one year.

Sitting side by side, just some fifteen inches apart yet in complete silence, that was so unlike us! I remembered the previous times when we had several such car rides in the middle of the night where she had the hardest time keeping her hands off me.

Flashback starts

"I can't believe I am actually doing this..!!", I said while I drove past few other cars at 1 o' clock in the night.

"Believe it or not.. you are doing this... for me and for this little one..", she said while she rubbed her hands over her swollen tummy.

"Yeah.. I wonder what else you are going to make me do in these next three months of your pregnancy!", I said in disbelief as I was already at her beck and call since the last six months.

"Ummm... I haven't thought of it though...But it's going to be fun..Isn't it??" She said with a sly smile.

"May I know what fun you are getting by forcing me to take you on a drive at this odd hour?? I mean..look at the streets.. They are empty!! "

"That's good.. We can have it our way then!", she said and winked at me, while her finger traced the length of my face.

"Shut up Zoya.. And stop doing this!! I am driving!" I said in mock anger and her enchanting laughter echoed inside the car. But she was Zoya after all, and did exactly the opposite to what I said.

"Get your hands off me, Woman! Or I might just end up doing something that you will regret!", I said mischievously.

"Really.. Then..I would love to know what you would do?", she said biting her lower lip and tracing her finger again along my jaw line. I took this as an opportunity and bit her finger hard and she yelled in shock as well as pain.

"What the hell Asad!!!", she shouted at me as this was my turn now to laugh at her.

"I told you.. I would do something that you would regret!!", I said in between my crackling giggles.

"You are so mean Asad!!!!", she yelled and landed some blows on by arms which only inflated my roars of laughter. I clutched on to the brakes, and held her hands abruptly and took her in a quick kiss that eased down her punches.

"I can do this too..", I said as I broke the kiss and removed a loose strand that obstructed the delectable view of her face.

"Not like I would mind..." And this time, it was her turn to initiate another passionate kiss.

Flashback Ends

As that memory came afresh, my eyes shifted their gaze on her who was sitting in perfect silence, fidgeting with one end of her 'dupatta'. She had rolled down the windows and was looking outside, like she always did when she sat inside the car.

And then, a screeching sound and a sudden jerk of my car broke my trance.

A/N: Thank You all for the immense support that you have given me in the first chapter.. That truly means a lot to me!! 🤗

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