ASYA SS : Together.... A Compromise No More Epilogue added 23/2/15 - Page 20

Originally posted by: mimadima

merci ma belle 😉

Originally posted by: aman1605

Choco di when r u updating

Originally posted by: ChocoBerry

Hey Yumna, good to see you're back. Hope you're well and had a good time😊

Thank you dear am glad you liked it. Lol will try asap😆

Originally posted by: nilusoni

eagerly waiting for update

Originally posted by: kabhi_asya

Hey Chocoberry...😊

Its an awesome story...👏👏👏 I loved it...

Description of their feelings is brilliant...

It kinda hurt to see zoya like this...😭

It was good to read asya again...

Thnk you...

Chapter 2

As the sunrays fell on his face, Asad opened his eyes blinking several times to register the change in his surroundings. His head shot towards the couch and saw it empty. The only thing that struck him hard was that it looked absolutely untouched. He sat up straight on his bed looking around the room and found it empty; Zoya was not in his room. Except for the floral decorations that still hung on the walls and the fragrant flower strings that hung around his bed, every other thing was back in its place. Even the couch that Zoya had occupied last night was made the way he liked it. The duvet and the extra pillow that she had pulled out from the cupboard was nowhere in sight.

He quickly got off the bed and walked up to the cupboard and opened it, there, neatly folded and stacked were the beddings she had used. It all seemed so unreal to him. For someone who couldn't even eat a bag of crisps without littering, who couldn't even open a can of her favorite diet coke without spilling it, had suddenly become a cleanliness freak like him. He felt his heart constrict at the thought that the Zoya he had fallen in love with was a changed person overnight and he instantly took a dislike to the change in her, he didn't like it. All he wanted right now was His Zoya to behave just the way she used to, not the way he wanted her to.

He got into the shower and got ready for the day. He walked out his room towards the dining table and saw her in the kitchen with his Ammi, helping her like the perfect daughter in law. As his eyes moved over her, he saw she was dressed in a pale blue anarkali suit and the dupatta was very neatly draped over her head. The mere site of her in his favorite attire warmed his heart but he knew she didn't like wearing it. It was too much of a hassle for her to manage it. As Asad moved closer to the table he cleared his throat to gain their attention. They were so engrossed in their conversation that didn't even notice him. Looking at them both Asad smiled and greeted them a good morning.

Dilshaad looked at him dressed in his casuals and raised her eyebrow. Asad rolled his eyes at her, understanding what she was saying. Dilshaad looked at Zoya who was aimlessly stirring the pot of kheer. She immediately understood that the two had still not said anything to each other. She sighed thinking how long were they going to keep their feelings locked up? She looked up closing here eyes silently praying for their happiness. She noticed the two stealing glances at each other and shaking her head she tried to lighten the atmosphere in the room.

"Asad, aaj office nahi jaaoge Beta?" Dilshaad asked moving towards him.

"Ji Ammi. Hafte bhar se function ke baad function, phir kal nikah, mein bahut thak gaya hoon." He said looking at Zoya. Zoya immediately looked at him and their eyes locked for a few seconds before she looked away. She really didn't know what to feel at the mention of their nikah, where on the one hand her heart would flutter and beat faster with excitement, her mind on the other hand would repeat in a loop his words of the nikah being nakli. She really didn't know whether to be happy to be married to the man she loved or to feel sad for herself. Whenever she felt her heart and mind pulling her in different directions she would just want to scream because of the anguish she felt within. But all she had been able to do was shed a few silent tears.

Asad saw the pained look on her face and then the quick movement in which she had wiped away the tears that had rolled down her cheeks. He felt a lump forming in his throat too, knowing the reason that had been bothering her ever since their nikah. He wanted to comfort her but knew he had no right. He kicked himself mentally for putting her through torture when all this could have been so beautiful for both of them. Sighing he looked away not able to see the pain in her eyes.

"Agar office nahi jaa rahey ho, toh kyoun naa tum aur Zoya lunch ya dinner ke liye bahar chale jao?" Dilshaad beamed at him. His eyes twinkled with happiness but fell again when he heard Zoya reply "Ammi. Iski koi zaroorat nahi hai. Vaise hi Mr. Khan bahut thake huey hain. Mera bhi mann nahi kar raha." She trailed off looking only at Dilshaad. Asad's face fell but as soon as he registered her calling Dilshaad Ammi instead of Phoophi, he smiled again feeling a warm rush within. He had liked his Ammi's idea and wanted to go out with Zoya alone but her mention of not feeling up to it pinched his heart. He looked at her looking in the same pot stirring diligently. He took in a deep breath to ease the pain he felt within seeing her like this.

Dilshaad tried insisting again but Zoya didn't want to go, so they dropped the idea. Soon breakfast was served and a smile tugged at his lips seeing that even though they were emotionally and physically not with each other, at least the table was laden with a mix of their favorite dishes. As soon as this thought crossed his mind he mentally face palmed at his childish thoughts. No matter what, he couldn't keep this thought out of his mind and kept smiling. As they finished breakfast, Dilshaad served them all with a generous helping of kheer.

One after the other Asad gobbled down bowl after bowl of kheer, praising his Ammi to have outdone herself. After stuffing his stomach with the delicious kheer he was just about to excuse himself from the table when his Ammi spoke.

"Kheer Zoya ne banai hai, meine sirf instructions diye they." Asad's head shot in her direction and saw her still looking in her plate. He cleared his throat to get her attention but she didn't lookup. He did it again and then Zoya looked in his direction reaching out for the jug of water to pour some in his glass. As soon as she looked in his eyes he said "Kheer bahut achi bani hai. Ammi se bhi behtar" As these words left his lips he saw a burst of happiness in her eyes and a small smile on her lips. She lowered her eyes and whispered a shukriya. Asad finally strode towards his room to lie down for a bit. Meanwhile Zoya had helped Dilshaad in clearingup and even helped with the preparation of lunch.

When Asad woke after a much needed nap he looked at the couch thinking Zoya would too have come in to rest, but he found the couch empty. He got up and checked for her beddings thinking she went to the guest room to sleep. But they were where she had placed them in the morning. He looked towards the bathroom and found the door to it open, indicating she was not there either. He sighed thinking maybe she was avoiding coming into the room since he was sleeping. The change in Zoya was slowly eating him up. How he wished to hear her non stop chattering, her lively laughter and her oh so famous couplets? As soon as he remembered that a smile broke out on his face remembering the first time she had said one in front of him. It was the first morning after her arrival. His eyebrows furrowed trying to remember it word by word. Fiddling with numerous words and after trying very hard he finally remembered it and said it aloud.

" Ruhani sukoon aur dil main chain hona chahiye
Ruhani sukoon aur dil main chain hona chahiye
apka naam Asad nahi Chairman hona chahiye"

He felt his cheeks hurt with the wide grin on his face. How he wished she would say it all over again to him and this time he wanted to enjoy it and laugh over it like his Ammi and Tamatar had done. All these memories from their past made him smile and pinched his heart making him realize that she had changed herself overnight. Was this change for him or was it because of him, he still needed time to understand that.

He stepped out his room and again found her in the kitchen with his Ammi. It was becoming difficult for him already to understand why Zoya was keeping herself so busy. Did she not feel tired too after all that had been happening for the last week? He called out to his Ammi for a cup of coffee. Asad had been pacing his room trying to understand this drastic change in Zoya when he heard a knock at the door. He quickly opened the door expecting his Ammi at the door. He thought she would be able to help him understand the change in Zoya. As soon as he opened the door his eyes locked with hers. There stood his Zoya looking like the perfect new bride, a tinge of red on her cheeks and her eyes that told him how nervous she was.

He stepped aside and let her through. As she entered his room he let the door shut behind him and stood there watching her every move. She went upto his couch and placed his coffee mug on the side table and didn't forget to place a coaster under the mug. She then walked upto his bed and neatly placed the pillow just like he would do and gently smoothed every crease on the sheets. She neatly folded his duvet and placed it at the foot of his bed the way he liked it. All this while where Asad's eyes didn't leave her even for a fraction of a second, she seemed oblivious to him, she looked more like a robot to him, as if she had suddenly been programmed to perform certain things in a certain way and it pained him to see her like this.

As she finished her work, she looked up and found him staring at her. In a trembling voice she said "Mu... Mu...mujhe laga ki aap ab nahi...mera matlab hai ki yeh sab aapko sab cheezen jagah mein hi rakhna pasand hai toh meine..." she trailed off. Asad took a step towards her and she immediately felt conscious of his intense gaze on her. Asad stopped a few feet away from her still holding her gaze he said "Shukriya. Par aapko yeh sab karne ki zaroorat nahi hai."

As Zoya heard what he said her heart sank and again his words echoed in her ears and literally pounded in her head "Yeh nikah nakli hai." She remembered him saying this a zillion times in the last 10 days. Her eyes pricked with tears but her heart kicked in, pulling her in the other direction claiming this to be his concern for her. She didn't know what to understand of all that was happening around her. She lowered her eyes so as to avoid him noticing the tears building in her eyes and with a soft "Ji." She left his room. It was becoming difficult for Asad to handle her changed behavior and he decided to talk to Dilshaad about it.

Once at the table for lunch Dilshaad again informed him that most of the food was cooked by Zoya. She told him that since till now Zoya had never stepped foot in the kitchen she was too eager to learn how to cook and so they had been busy in the kitchen all morning. Asad who had already been feeling at edge not able to make sense of the sudden change in her behavior answered "Toh aaplog apni saari cooking classes aaj hi khatam karne ke mission pe lag gaye" The sarcasm in his voice didn't go unnoticed by either of them.

Dilshaad smiled inwardly taking in the real meaning behind his words; he was feeling bad that Zoya was doing so much work in the house. For someone who was not capable of taking full responsibility of herself was trying to take over the responsibility of running the house. He closed his eyes and sighed audibly and then looking at his Ammi he apologized for his reaction. His Ammi nodded her head telling him she understood his concern.

Zoya who had again thought otherwise of his reaction spoke in a soft voice "Ammi, ki galti nahi hai. Mein hi insist kiya tha ki vo mujhey cooking sikhayen. Unho ne to kaha tha ke apke room mein jake rest karloon" She finished in a soft voice. Dilshaad immediately caught on to her words and said "Zoya, beta vo karma ab tumhara bhi hai" Zoya looked at him with hope in her eyes but again there was no response from him. She lowered her head remorsefully scolding her heart to be giving her all these false hopes all the time.

As soon as he registered his Ammi's words, Asad felt his heart flutter and then her hopeful eyes looking at him for approval. But being the emotionally challenged person that he was he just couldn't respond to her questioning look and then her eyes fell with regret in them. He wanted to kick, bang and beat himself for being the reason behind the sorrow in her eyes.

Asad remembered his Ammi's words and felt his stomach flip. He repeated the words in his mind again and again and couldn't help his heart swelling with happiness "It is no longer My room. It is OURS." He looked at Zoya with eyes shimmering with happiness but she was too busy looking in her plate. He noticed the little quiver of her lower lip and realized he had missed his opportunity again. How she had looked at him with expectation and he had failed again to take that first step towards her. He lowered his eyes finding it difficult to swallow his meal due to the lump forming in his throat. Without finishing his meal he excused himself and walked into their room without giving anyone a single glance.

Zoya looked at his retreating back and let her tears roll down. She didn't need to hide them from Dilshaad. As soon as Dilshaad heard a faint sniff she looked at Zoya crying silently into her palms. Dilshaad immediately got up and engulfed her in her arms. Breaking down in her Ammi's arms Zoya said what she felt "Am...Ammi. Yeh nikah Mr. Khan ke liye ek compromise ke alava aur kuch nahi hai... Aur kuch nahi... aise kaise chalega aur kab tak aise chalega Ammi... mein aur nahi kar sakti yeh sab... I can't take it anymore...it has already become too emotionally draining for me Ammi... Unhe bilkul acha nahi laga jab mein unke liye coffee leke gai aur jab meine unka room theek kiya...unhone kuch nahi kaha jab apne kaha ki vo karma ab mera bhi hai...ammi I can't force myself on him...kuch samajh nahi aa raha ki mein kya karoon." She cried to her hearts content and then finally drew herself away from Dilshaad.

Dilshaad ran a loving hand through her hair and wiped away the tears that were still flowing down her cheeks. Zoya looked up to see the tears on Dilshaad's cheeks and wiped them too. She said a sorry to Dilshaad and then was about to get up to clear the table when Dilshaad almost pushed her towards their room and told her to take some rest as she was mentally, emotionally and physically very tired and it all showed on her face and in her eyes.

Reluctantly Zoya walked towards their room and knocked. Asad called out to let the person enter the room and as he saw Zoya he stopped typing on his laptop. He looked at her and saw her puffy eyes and knew she must have been crying again. He took a deep breath to steady his voice "Aapko baar baar knock karke aane ki zaroorat nahi hai... Ammi theek keh arahi hain... Yeh karma aapka bhi utna hi hai, jitna mera."

Zoya looked at him in shock but then immediately lowered her eyes so he didn't notice her puffy eyes and said "I don't want to walk in on you uninformed Mr.Khan. I have already made that mistake so many times and put both of us in an embarrassing situation" She waited for him to say something rather, agree with what she said but there was complete silence. She looked up at him and saw him looking at her waiting for her to continue "Ammi sent me in...to take some rest" He nodded his head and she walked to the cupboard and taking her beddings settled on the couch for a much needed nap. She could feel her body ache due to the excess work she had done since morning and her head was almost bursting because of all the stress and crying she had been doing since last night. It hardly took her anytime to fall into deep slumber.

From the corner of his eyes Asad saw her settle on the couch once again and soon heard her soft snores. He smiled sadly looking at her sleeping form. How he wished he could tell her what he really felt for her but just couldn't muster up the courage to do so. 10 days he had been telling her that the nikah was nakli so how could he just walk upto her and change his stance that this all was real and that he loved her. He shook his head in the negative as if telling himself that he couldn't do it right now. He had to wait for the correct opportunity to express his feelings to Zoya. He had to give her time to adjust in her new role and maybe realize his love too.

After a few minutes he walked upto her and kneeled down next to her face and gently pushed back her hair away from her face. Softly caressing her cheek with his fingers he bent closer and in a whisper said what he couldn't say to her when she was awake. "I Love You Zoya...aur yeh nikah nakli nahi hai... Balki issse badi sachai aaj mere zindagi mein aur kuch nahi hai...KUCH BHI NAHI." He bent down to place a kiss on her forehead but immediately moved away. He had confessed his feelings to her while she was asleep, but he wanted to give her her first kiss when she would be wide awake. Thinking of that he looked at her one last time and moved back to his bed. Shutting down his laptop he too lay down facing Zoya and kept his eyes on her beautiful face before sleep took over.

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