Asad walked out of his apartment, his body tensed, his mind mixed with different thoughts from which he understood none. Pumping his fist against the elevator's button's, he made his way some towards Ayaan's apartment, his other fist balled up, his jaws clenched.
'Hurry the fu*ck up!', he yelled at the machine, kicking the elevator wall.
As the elevator stopped on Ayaan's floor, he ran out towards his apartment, pressing his door bell impatiently.
Four bells and no response. Asad had had it. He didn't want to scare her again. But the anxiety inside him to know if everything was okay over took him. He kicked the door firercly.
'OPEN THE DAMN DOOR, AYAAN!', he screamed.
Nobody's in there, he realised. Sh*t. She's not in there.
Once again jumping into the elevator, he fished out the phone from his pocket. On hearing Ayaan's phone number busy, Asad cursed him under his breath of not understanding the urgency.
He threw his head back as he rested his exhausted body against the elevator wall, letting out a deep sigh as the conversation he he had had a few minutes ago reverberated in his head.
'What?', he barked into the phone, picking it up.
'We refuse your offer. We want the girl back', came the menacing voice of a woman.
Asad who had his head thrown back on the couch, quickly sat up straight alarmed.
'Excuse me?', he said into the phone. 'We are reasy to pay you whatever money you demamd'.
'We.want.the.girl.back', Giselda said pausing after every word for obvious emphasis.
Her frightened honey brown orbs that produced tears uncontrollably, came in to his mind. Her shivering body, her fainting in his arms, her hysterical outburst.
He ran his fingers into his hair, frustrated.
'The girl doesn't want to be there!', Asad barked into the phone. 'You can not force her!'
'That is none of your fu*king business!', Giselda said with an equal vigour.
Asad stood up from the couch, pacing in his lounge, the phone glued to his ear.
'Listen woman, you do realise I can get you into jail, right?', Asad threatened.
'Try me, boy', she challenged, a hint of amusement in her voice. 'I will get the girl ome way or the other. Its your choice if you want to make it easy for yourself'.
'Zoya is not going anywhere. She doesn't belong there between you wh*res!', he barked.
'Aww somebody is being protective', Giselda mocked as chewed her gum and rolled her hair around her fingers. 'Listen Khan, I will get her anyway. But now you have landed yourself in the mess that has nothing to do with you'.
Her hair that flew behind her as she sat on the floor, her legs spread wide, crying and pulling at he hair. Her shoulders shaking with her sobbing while her eyes seemed lost and etched with pain. The pain he had mastered himself in over the years.
'Why do you want her?', Asad asked, his voice barely audible now.
'None of your business', Giselda spat over the phone. 'Now just wait and see how I drag the girl back here, and I will not hesitate doing whatever it takes for this'.
Asad was about to answer her back when he realised she had hung up on him.
The elevator stopped at the ground floor, and Asad ran towards the parking lot. Getting himself into his SUV, he drove towards Purple Oak.
The place he had introduced Ayaan and his sister to when he had brought him here in Bhopal. Though Asad never showed it, he very well was aware that Ayaan had grown a sudden liking for that place. He knew why too. He still remembered how his younger sister had loved the food there and had eaten like a free bird. After years he had felt proud of himself that day.
If his assumption was correct, Zoya was with him right now, in Purple Oak.
**
'Stop the car here, Salman Bhayyia', Noor told her driver.
'What?', Najma said confused. 'Why are we stopping at a restaurant?'
'Well Dhoni can wait, but my tummy can't, so hurry up babes', she said pulling her best friend out of the car.
Najma fixed her dress as she got out of the car, annoyed as ever. She didn't want to be at some restaurant named 'Purple Oak'. She wanted to be home, locked in her own room, all alone. But who could ever explain that to her annoying friend, Noor.
Linking her arm with Najma, Noor happily dragged her into the restaurant screaming, 'Hola Bhopal!', to no one in particular.
**
She looked around the place, so beautiful and fresh. The soft purple lighting in the restaurant, the black wooden interior, it all made Zoya marvel the place. She never thought she could be someone normal again.
'This place is wonderful', she sighed.
Ayaan had been looking at her ever since they had entered the restaurant. For the first time he felt like someone important. Someone who could make others happy. Glimpses of Zoya and her hysterical outburst came in his mind as flashbacks as he saw the natural smile on her face now.
He looked at her as she looked around the place, ordered her chicken steak so naturally and easily. But what made him feel proud of himself was that smile.
If Asad Ahmed Khan had a heart, this was probably what he had felt years ago when he had brought him and his sister here, he thought.
'So, hows work?', Zoya asked, not liking the awkward silence at all.
'Work is, well...exhausting', Ayaan said and was amazed how this made her giggle.
'Can I ask you for a favour, Ayaan?', he heard her say, ever so politely.
'Yeah sure, anything', Ayaan found himself saying.
He just wanted her to be comfortable around him. He could not handle uncomfortable women.
'Can you help me find a job?', she asked, fidgeting with her dress. 'I don't know much about this place'.
'Sure. Just tell me what you speacialise in', he said as the waiter placed their orders on their table.
Zoya's horrified expression made Ayaan slap him mentally. Oh hell, he didn't mean it that way.
'No, no. I meant your degrees', he said quickly. 'You went to school?'
Zoya stared at Ayaan. She was not like she is now since forever. She had a life. She was normal too. She knew it wasn't his fault, but right now she felt a lump in her throat refusing to go down. She couldn't cry in front of him.
'Yes I did', she replied in a small voice.
'Okay, so before you went there, what did you do?'.
Ayaan wanted to kill himself for what he had just asked. Oh Allah, he knew this would happen. This is how he was around pained women. Nervous.
'Excuse me, I'l be right back', Zoya said before excusing herself.
Ayaan saw as she conversed with a waiter who pointd towards the bathroom. He saw her going towards the washroom. He felt like an idiot.
Finally she was growing comfortable around him and he just had to spoil it. Why couldn't he have asked her all this in less hurtful words?
**
'I hate you', Najma said to Noor as she saw her applying her lip gloss.
'I love you too, babes', Noor cheerfully replied, checking herself in the mirror. 'Hurry up, fix yourself'.
'I'm fine, just hurry up', Najma groaned.
The last thing she had wanted was her best friend to drag her straight into the bathroom to fix them up. It wasn't like she didn't do all of this. She did. But she couldn't today. She just wanted to be alone.
She stood there, her arms folded across her chest when she saw the bathroom door open and a young girl, in a red pretty salwar kameez walking in. Najma noticed how she had been crying.
'Come on, babes', Noor said linking her arm with her friend again. 'Lets go'.
Najma saw how the girl washed her face. Curiousity got the best of her.
'Why don't you go and find us a table, while I fix myself up', Najma said removing her arm from her best friend's hold.
'I'l stay too-', Noor began when Najma pushed her out the door telling her she'd be out in a minute.
Walking towards the girl, she carefully placed her hand on her shoulder.
'Hey'.
**
Asad parked his car at the side of the restaurant and sped in. He searched the place, restlessness taking over him as every minute passed.
And finally he spotted Ayaan.
He was alone? Where was Zoya? Was she not with him?
He quickly went forward and noticed food for two people on the table and sighed with relief.
'Ayaan, I need to talk', Asad said tapping Ayaan's shoulder, looking around to see if Zoya was nearby.
He wished she wasn't. He didn't want to scare her again. Specially here in front of so many people.
'Sir?', Ayaan stood up, shocked to see Asad there.
'Is Zoya with you?', Asad asked impatiently.
'Yeah but-', Ayaan began only to be cut off.
'Next time make sure you answer your f*cking phone, okay?', Asad hissed.
Here we go again. Asad Ahmed Khan dictating him how his phone should be used, Ayaan thought.
'Listen, as soon Zoya comes back to her table, make an excuse and come outside, okay?', Asad told Ayaan.
'But-', Ayaan began, once again only to be cut off.
'Just do it!', Asad said through gritted teeth.
'Okay', Ayaan said knowing this was the only answer that would make him go away.
Asad was about to turn and leave when he saw her. He quickly walked away and stood behind the pillar knowing if he walked out right now, she might see her.
He had no idea what made him stick his head out from behind the pillar. He was mesmerised. He looked on as she walked towards the table, wearing the dress he had given her. When he had picked it out for her, he had no idea it would look this beautiful on her. He saw how it hugged her curves perfectly, her black hair cascading down her shoulders making her look even more beautiful.
Her smile, he noticed. It did not reach her eyes. Definitely a fake smile. He knew those so well. Afterall, he had mastered that very well too for his clients and the foreign delegates he had to meet.
No jewellery, no make up. And yet, she looked like the most beautiful woman there. She stood out from every woman in the restaurant.
**
Najma was stunned by the girl's personality. She was such an amazing girl, she thought as she walked out the bathroom to find her friend. The covnersation with her replayed in her mind.
'Hey', she had said.
She saw how the girl quickly wiped her face with the tissues before facing her.
'Hi', she had replied with a smile.
So fake, Najma noticed. She knew how fake that was very well.
'What's wrong? You okay?'
'I'm fine', the girl replied, smiling.
'Let me guess. A Fight with your boyfriend?', Najma guessed.
This made Zoya chuckle, as she shook her head negatively.
'You saw your crush kissing another girl?', Najma guessed once again.
This made Zoya chuckle once again, shaking her head negatively.
'Okay, I got it', Najma let out. 'You definitely got proposed and you don't want to marry him, right?'
'Oh my, no!', Zoya said, as she laughed. 'You know, you won't be able to guess my pain. But thankyou so much'.
Najma was shocked when the girl came forward and gave her a light hug.
'I'm one of those who just want to be normal', Zoya had said before leaving the bathroom.
She knew that feeling. To want be a normal girl. With a normal family. A complete family. Where her father, she and her bro-. Her thoughts were cut off instantly as she saw the one man she had wanted to see all her life.
She saw him standing behind a pillar. The same eyes and the same nose she had seen in the newspaper. The same muscular built she had seen on tv. Her eyes filled with tears as she looked at him. For the first time since she remembered.
'Bhaijaan', a voice escaped her lips.
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