AsYa FF ~ Mere Jazbaat ~ T#2 ~ NOTE PG. 123 - Page 74

Chapter 29: Karma is a B*tch

"Jammy," Tanveer began desperately. "Jammy, meri baat suniye. Jaisa aap soch rahe hain, waisa nahin hain. Yeh, yeh ek galat feimi hai. Aap, aap in dono ki baaton mein mat aaiye. Yeh jhoot bol rahe hain," she tried again. Ya Allah, Asad ko meri baat par yakeen karne do, she silently prayed.

The sweet voice that once soothed his inner demons, and reminded him of the few happy moments he had as a child, had now turned sickening. Asad's head was racing, the recording Ayaan played echoing incessantly in his mind on a loop. She wanted to harm Zoya? But why? What could she possibly have against her? Wasn't she his friend? Didn't she want him to be happy?

"Tanveer," Asad looked her in the eye. She swallowed hard. The fear in her eyes was all he could see. "Sach kya hai. Batado. Kyun ki mein jaanta hoon ki Ms. Farooqui is tara ke behoodha aur bewahaja inzaam nahin lagaye gi." Tanveer's eyes widened slightly, and she realized he wouldn't fall for her honey laced pleas.

Zoya's eyes welled up with more tears, her emotions conflicting. On the one hand, she was happy, that Mr. Khan finally and truly trusted her. But on the other, she was scared; of what this new revelation might do to him. How it might affect him as a person.

"Jammy, yeh dono jhoot-"

"BAS!" bellowed an impatient Asad. His cry caused everyone to jump, and Tanveer to close her eyes in terror. Dilshad and Najma came out of their respective rooms, positive they knew the source of Asad's booming voice.This is it. He doesn't believe me anymore. Well then, fine. So be it.

"Haan." She admitted finally, venom dripping from her eyes as she glared at Zoya with an incinerating hate. "Meine aisa kiya. Kyun ki iss kambhakhat Zoya ne, mujhse woh china hai, jiska mein hak dar hoon!" Tanveer's eyes fixated on Zoya, as she broke free of Ayaan's hold and lunged as Zoya. Asad, Dilshad, Ayaan, and Najma all gasped as Tanveer lifted her left hand. In it, was a silver dagger, and it was aiming directly as Zoya.

Despite the shock, Zoya had anticipated this from Tanveer. She moved to the right, and skillfully avoided Tanveer's attack, grabbing her dagger holding hand. With one swift movement, she yanked her down on the floor and straddled Tanveer, the dagger falling out of her hand.

"Chodo mujhe! Tumhari wajese mein na kaam hui! Agar Asad tumhare peeche peeche New York nahin gaya ho tha, toh sab theek ho tha!" continued, a derraged Tanveer. Her eyes bore the look of a disturbed lunatic who hadn't slept for century. Zoya slapped Tanveer across the face, and silenced her. She got off her, as she felt Asad's hand on her shoulder.

"Mr. Khan, I'm sorry. Mujhe unne haat nahin lagana chaiye tha, lekin mujhse raha nahin gaya." The words tumbled out of Zoya's mouth while Ayaan got a hold of Tanveer again. This time, with both hands behind her back. But Asad simply held Zoya's hands in his, and shook his head lightly, reassuring her that she did nothing wrong. He turned his gaze towards Tanveer, and everyone in the room noticed her cringe.

Asad took measured, but determined strides towards her. His eyes were seething with anger, his heart full of pain from her betrayal. This woman, who had been his safe haven, his example of morals for years, had turned out to be the biggest fake he'd come to know in his life. And given the life he'd had, that was saying a lot. He grabbed her by the arms, gently at first, his grip tightening around them by the second. Tanveer winced a little, her head burrowing into her neck.

"Aisi konsi cheez hai, jiski tum hakdar ho. Konsi cheez, jiski wajhese, tumhe Ms. Farooqui ko, itni taqleef dene ki ijazaat di." His questions came out more as threatening dares, his voice a menacing whisper. She shivered in his grasp, and her breathing became heavier, more desperate.

"Mujhe aapse nikaah karna tha," she admitted, utterly frightened. She'd seen the tail end of Asad's temper when they were growing up, but never had she seen him so enraged. Particularly, at her. Tanveer mentally wished to be far away from here, over and over again. But her pleas went unheard, and all she saw was the fire burning behind Asad's chocolate orbs. "Kyun ki, mein ma banne wali hoon..." her voice trailed off as she noticed his eyes widen.

Asad let go of her arms, as if she were a hot potato. "Nikaah? Ma? Tanveer, tumhe ho kya gaya hai? Meri dost..." Asad's words dropped to a sad whisper now, his eyes moistening. "Meri bachpan ki dost, kahan gayi..." he trailed off, a tear streaming down his chiseled cheek. But Tanveer simply smiled sarcastically.

"Tumhein kya laga, mein hamesha aise hi rahoon gi? Bholi bhali, bewakoof, aur kamzor? Ha! Zindagi ne mujhe badal diya, Asad. Aur ab jo mujhe chaiye, mein usse khood le leti hoon. Chahe kisi aur ko lage ya na lage, ki mein uske hakdar hoon."

Her empty words rang in his ears. All he heard was pain, and anger, and greed and lunacy. He had a difficult life. She'd seen it herself. But he never tried to harm others to make himself feel better. Then why did she turn out this way? What had he ever done to her? Did she never even care about him? He realized, it didn't matter. That girl he knew, the sweet, innocent, polite and friendly little girl was a vague memory. And in her stead, was this, person; full of hate, and who had no room in her heart, for any love.

"Agar tum zindagi, aur apne mukkhadar ko doshi tehra rahi ho, to tum bohot kamzor insaan ho Tanveer. Jis aurat ko mein jaanta tha, woh ache aur bure mein farak dekh thi thi. Allah ka shukar hai, ki kamse kam, kisine," he continued, turning his gaze to Zoya, who smiled back at him, "meri aankhein khol di." He paused, closing his eyes, regaining his composure.

"Tum ma banne wali ho, issi liye, mein tumhe jail nahin behjoonga. Magar tumhari jaga, iss ghar mein bhi nahin hai." His teeth ground once again, the very thought of her being the reason Zoya might not have been able to come back into his life infuriating him. Despite his mistakes, her visa problems had begun long before she chose to leave the country. And the person behind those difficulties, was Tanveer. Asad moved away from Tanveer, unsure of what his anger was capable of making him do to her.

"Ayaan, isse yahan se leh jao. Magar pagal khane mein," he said, turning his gaze to Tanveer. Her eyes widened as the reality of her punishment began to settle in. Her head whipped in every direction, as she started begging.

"Jammy, nahin. Please, mujhe, mujhe chordo. Mein yahan se door chali jaaongi, mere bache ki kasam. Magar mujhe pagal khane mein mat daliye. Please Jammy-"

A resounding crackle echoed in the Khan Villa as Asad's hand flew across her face. Zoya, Najma and Dilshad all covered their mouths in shock, and Ayaan's eyes widened in surprise.

"Mera naam," began Asad quietly, "Asad hai. Aur aaj ke baad, agar tumne Zoya ko haat lagane ki koshish, ek aur baar bhi kiya, toh bakhuda, Tanveer. Mujhse bura, koi nahin hoga," he seethed. His withering stare made her fall silent, and Ayaan dragged her out of the villa, where the police were already waiting, to take her into medical custody.

**********

Asad paced back and forth in his room, burning holes in the floor. His mind was racing with thoughts and regret. He had retreated to his room soon after Ayaan had taken Tanveer away. He didn't have the heart to face Zoya. He had trusted her, when she tried to open his eyes, yes. But before that? His very morals were being questioned today. The picture of morality and respect he had carried around with him for years had been torn into tiny little pieces by the very person he held on the highest moral pedestal. His best friend.

She poisoned Humeira physically, and poisoned his mind against Zoya. Despite knowing she'd never use poison on any one, no more than she could ever hurt a fly, he still blamed her for what had happened. And none of it would have happened, if it hadn't been for that wretched woman he had so blindly trusted, over the woman he was madly in love with. He caught sight of Zoya sitting outside in the garden, on their bench. What must she be thinking, he wondered.

**********

Zoya looked up at the stars, admiring the beautiful night sky. She'd missed this bench, this place, so much more than she'd realized. It felt so utterly familiar. Even more familiar, than her own home back in New York.

An equally familiar turquoise mug materialized in front of her, and Zoya couldn't help but smile. Looking up at the source of the mug, she felt herself get lost in the chocolate orbs she's come to read like a book.

"Coffee," came Asad's deep voice. He sat next to her, and smiled inwardly when she didn't move away from him, as she had once before. They exchanged a knowing look, both of them wondering who would utter the first word to break the silence surrounding them. Looking away from each other, they both thought of what to say.

"Ms. Farooqui," came Asad's terse voice. Zoya looked up at him curiously. "Mujhe lag tha tha ki tehzeeb, aur lihaaz ki ek tasveer hoti hai. Jo har ladkhi resemble karti hai. Lekin, aapne meri aankhein vakaei kholi hain." He gazed at her intently, gauging her reaction. Zoya looked at him quietly, stunned. "Chahe ladkhi jeans pehne, ya salwar kameez, insaan ki pehchan, sirf or sir unki niyat se pata chalti hai. Yeh baat, aapne mujhe sikhaya." Placing his hand over hers, he entwined them together, interlacing their fingers. Zoya smiled, admiring how her hands fit perfectly into his.

"Aapne ne bhi mujhe bohot kuch sikhaya hai, Mr. Khan." He smiled at that. He never thought his stern and serious demeanour could teach someone as bubbly as her anything she didn't already know. "Aapki mohabbat ki gherai, meine aaj tak nahin dekhi. Mujhe to yakeen hi nahin aata, ki aap mere liye, New York tak aaye the." Her eyes gazed into the empty space next to him, as she pondered the lengths to which he went to show her how much he loved her.

Asad tightened his grip on her hand. "Vaada kije. Aaj ke baad, aap aisi harkat, kabhi nahin karengi..." he warned, his voice pained and thick with emotion. Zoya's eyes moistened, and she put the coffee mug down next to her on the bench. She reached for their entwined hands with same hand, and placed it over them. They shared a look, before she spoke.

"Mr. Khan, aap jaante hai. Woh pura waqt, jo meine New York mein guzara, mujhe iss ghar ki yaad aati thi. Mera room, Phoopie, Najma, yeh bench, yeh garden," she paused, looking down as she bit her lip. "Aur, aap. Aap fikar mat kije, Mr. Khan. Ab mein kahin bhi nahin jaoongi." Her dimples flashed him with her biggest smile, and he felt himself sigh in relief internally.

"Waise, Mr. Khan. Aap New York bare romantic ban rahe the. Pata nahin aapko Bhopal hi aakar kiya ho jata hai. Kitne boring ho jaate hain." she teased him. He just smiled at her. So she likes it when I'm romantic, huh?

"Oh really?" he asked, imitating her sass. She giggled and nodded exaggeratedly. Asad couldn't help his lips curving into a slight smile. "Phir to dekh the hain, Ms. Farooqui. Aapko New York ki, ya Bhopal ki romance zyaada pasand aati hai," he whispered, leaning into her ear. Zoya's eyes closed of their own volition, the feel of his warm breathe so close to her wreaking havoc with her sense. Asad got up, and walked around the bench until he was right behind her. Leaning down beside her, he gently feathered her cheek with his lips, causing her eyes to widen instantly. Zoya turned her head slightly to meet his gaze, and found herself smiling. He winked at her and bid her salaam, before turning on his heels and retreating back into the villa. Zoya turned to face the garden in front of her again, and found herself smiling like a fool.

What had New York done to the Akdu she once knew?

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How was it? Bad? Good? Terrible? Brilliant? 😆 Do let me know 😳

Any guesses as to what Mr. Khan intends to do to show Ms. New York how romantic he can be? 😉

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