wow ! finally i made it here. didnot think i would what with all the power cuts. sorry for being late. but now iam back with the next updt. hope you like it.pls do comment.
PART 5- "WHEN PATHS CROSS..."
Asad was restless as he drove home. he went to that club with the purpose of trying to wash away all her thoughts by proving it to himself that she was nothing different or special. but he got the feeling of having let down someone and he was angry at himself for that. she still haunted him. her beautiful voice calling out , her grace unforgettable as she danced but more importantly the unshed tears in her eyes that said there is more to her story than what he can see. asad shook himself out of the thoughts." no, what you perceived was untrue",his mind argued." no, it isnt," his heart argued back. asad was so lost in thoughts that when his car lurched to a stop, he was startled . he impatiently got out of the car to check and saw that the fuel was almost over. luckily for him he was quite near to the fuel station, so asad with the help of some people, pushed his car to the fuel station and paid for a refill and waited for his car to be refuelled.
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she was running. she didnt remember for how long she had been . she had stopped taking note some while ago. she was running ,where, she had no idea, her sense of direction lost. the only thing she perceived was the sound of fast running feet behind her. she felt like a deer chased by a pack of hounds sent by the hunter. after a while, zoya began tiring. after all she could run only so much, she thought. "zoya hoon p.t.usha nahin" she thought. she needed a place to hide and that too fast. and she found her answer in front of her in form of the busy fuel station. zoya rushed in to it, hoping she would be able to hide there.
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asad was washing his hands in the mens wash room when two men burst in . asad saw them and spotted that they looked like ruffians. both men looked around as if searching for something or someone. one of them told the other"maine bola tha na, woh yahaan nahi hogi. ladki hai toh mens loo mein kyun hogi? abhi chal uss taraf dhoondte hain" saying this both men left. asad was a little bewildered. then he dismissed the matter as unimportant when he caught a whiff of perfume- a ladies perfume. alerted he looked around but found no one. again dismissing the whole matter, asad left.
zoya slowly peeked out from her hiding place in the mens loo. once both pascals men and that guy whose face she couldnot make out at that moment left, she quickly changed in to her normal simple attire discarding the revealing outfit she had worn the whole night. she slowly slipped out away from prying eyes,and in to the fuel station. there everyone was busy owing to an unexpected rush of people despite the late hour. zoya thanked allah for the unususal busy rush which kept everyones eyes away from her and she looked around for a safe place. that was when she got the idea.
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asad took out his car and began driving home. all the while he drove something kept nagging his mind. something felt different. asad tried to shrug it off but couldnt. it was then he noticed that his car was filled with perfume smell. the same kind he smelled at the washroom. it felt vaguely familiar. asad tried to remember where he had smelled it before. and that was when he remembered with a jolt that he had smelled the same perfume on her. the girl. asad then noted that what felt different was the presence of another person in the car with him. faking casualness, he continued to drive. slowly without giving away anything , he changed the angle of the mirror in front of his seat and saw her. the nerve of her. of all the cars out there, she just had to climb in to his!but he also knew he just could not stop the car and leave her stranded. so he drove.
zoya struggled to be inconspicuous in the backseat of the luxurious car. the task was difficult considering that even though the car was spacious it was nowhere spacious enough to hide a person, especially if the person she was trying to hide from was the one driving it. but she kept trying. being silent and trying to be small. all she needed was some accountable distance between her and pascals men which can be achieved better with a ride than a run.
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the car screeched to a halt startling zoya. and then there was a heavy silence. zoya did not understand what was going on. for a moment she thought may be the owner had taken ill.
his cold voice with barely suppressed anger said," i think the ride is over , madam" with a sarcastic stress on "madam"
zoya gulped. how long had he known she was in there? she wondered. slowly she got out of the car.
asad too got out and watched her. if he had thought she was beautiful before, he was even more mesmerised now. in the simple salwar kameez she wore, she actually looked her age- young and innocent, not the siren he saw in the club. and some how that pleased and irked him at the same time.
zoya squirmed under his penetrating eyes. they seemed to strip her soul bare. there was for a moment, the same kind of desire in his eyes that she had seen on many other mens faces but before she could see if it was true, it was replaced by the cold anger that dominated his face now. as she dared to look at him, zoya noted three things at once- one, he was the guy who had seen her the night she helped aslam and nadira run away. two, he was also the same guy who had stopped her falling today night while she was performing against her wishes. and three, he was very very very and veeery angry .
asad could see he was scaring her, especially when she looked already scared of something else, but he did not care. here he was trying to wash his memories of her and she keeps popping up challenging him. in his heart and mind, he knew that this was nothing but a big fat coincidence but he was too angry and he lashed out.
"who the hell are you? and how dare you get into my car without my permission?"
his tone scared zoya but it also angered her. and the anger gave her courage.
" who the hell are you to talk to me like that? and aap koi santanat ke shehenshah hai ki permission leni hai aapse?"
asad thought" the nerve of her!" aloud he said, "if you are taking a lift in my car, yes you should"
zoya was a little bit aware of that too. so she said" i did not have the time, woh actually hua yeh tha ki..."
asad stopped her " stop your stories. i know girls of your type. so your lies wont work on me."
zoya was actually stunned at the man. how dare he! before she could say the same to him he said" girls like you always say sob stories to win people over. but iam not one of those whom you can fool. i know exactly who and what you are and what girls like you do."
zoya was sooo angry. minutes before she had been scared of the man. now her own anger dissolved that fear.
she said" enough! how dare you! how dare you judge me?! me , of whom you know nothing!! oh, you may think you do but you dont! and by the way if iam a liar then what are you? let me tell you ,youre a hypocrite and i too know something of people like you. "
asad was rapidly loosing his cool and so was zoya. both glared at each other and asad said "get out of my car"
zoya replied smartly"iam already out of your car, your highness!"
asad ignored the jibe and said" then get out of my way and stay that way!" he got back into his car and drove off, leaving her there, alone, bag and all.
zoya was angry and frustrated and the conversation with the guy did not help. she was close to tears. she knew what people thought of her, especially those who knew what she did for a living. she had seen it in their eyes. but somehow the words of this stranger managed to hit the truth home and hard. to hear it from a stranger actually made it true even if her heart knew it was not true. she hated the guy for doing that. she hoped she never saw him again.
" to think that i was about to thank him for the lift after i got out. allah miyan! whats wrong with you?! aajkal acche log banane bandh kardiya kya?! dua yehi hai phirse uss se mat milao"
it was then zoya looked around. she had covered quite a distance with the hitch hiking and hence pascals men were not at her heels, which was the entire point. now if only she could find a shelter somewhere, somewhere safe. it was then that zoya spotted that she was not really far away from civilisation. quite nearby within walking distance, she found a dargah. a place of sanctuary, she breathed in relief. what a stroke of luck. she was thanking allah and then she understood something. the guy whoever he was, had known she was in the car for sometime. and yet , instead of stopping the car rightaway , he had stopped it here. that thought made everything she thought about him change. he did not acknowledge it but he had helped her all the same.
zoya proceeded towards the dargah and said in a soft voice to herself" thank you, mr. hypocrite, wherever you are" .
somewhere ahead, driving , on the road, asad looked around as if someone called out. he then dismissed the thought. but somehow suddenly, his heart felt lighter .
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Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2
Kumkum Bhagya
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