Hellooo!!! I'm back! Before i start i just wanna clarify one thing about the previous chapter. When I read through the chapter, i realized that the part where asad was screaming at the receptionist and the manager was not specified. I know, I'm being confusing again, what i meant is I didn't specify the place. It was actually a sim card company. I guess most of u must know that u can track the location of a sim card when the phone is switched on, but only certified ppl can do it aka the sim card company itself or authorities. So in this update, there is a new entry and yes, this is considerably the most important chapter in the whole story. So asad and zoya will finally meet, but what happens after that, u'll have to read and find out. Basically, the aim of this story is to see if Zoya will forgive Asad after what he'd done to her. I've nearly got to that part, but u'll have to wait a lil more to find out. Before you start reading, lemme just warn u, this- update is gonna be flippin huge, since this is the most important chapter of the story I decided to make it really long to add some kind of effect, if u know what i mean. Basically, like the written version of a mahasangam, i know that makes no sense but it will soon. And the writing in italic are flashbacks. Here's a lil recap: Asad is offered a deal by coral enterprises, he doesn't accept right away(its the company that Zoya is working in). Ileana finds out that Zaafira is actually Zoya, by looking at her diary. Asad goes to the sim card company and threatens them into giving him the location of Zoya and after a lot of persuading, they agree. When Asad finds out that Zoya's number was last record ed in Coral Ent., he accepts the deal and the rest is coming down to this chapter. So, here goes chapter 4:
The Darkest Hour
"Asad Ahmed Khan." "Yes sir, this is the key to your room.", said the receptionist, handing the key over to him, "We hope you'll have a good stay at the Blue Diamond. Asad nodded at him and made his way to the elevator. He got in and hit the button illuminating the number 12. He leaned against the walls of the empty elevator and sighed. He was extremely close to finding her. To finding Zoya. Even then, he was scared. He was afraid at facing rejection by the only woman he'd ever loved. After all, he was the one who'd made both their lives pitch black. He was ashamed of himself, there was no fault of Zoya in whatever which had took place. He'd basically killed her, he flinched as he remembered her pain stricken face on the night of their sangeet. He broken her heart and ripped her soul with just a mere sentence, "I hate you and I'm ashamed of the fact that I ever considered you as someone important in my life." That was enough, more than enough to make any woman hate him, let alone Zoya. If he'd bowed down to his ego and pride just that once, he wouldn't have had to face the tornado which was slowly swallowing every single part of his soul into the realms of darkness. But no, prejudice was the one thing he could never let go of and he'd paid a big price for that, the price of losing Zoya. His chain thoughts was broken as he heard a bell, he realized that he'd reached the 12th floor. He stepped out and made his way towards his room. As soon as he got in, he shut the door and fell back down to his knees, a lone tear made its way down his face. He was scared, heart - broken, terrified and everything else in the world that he usually wouldn't be. He stifled a sob and picked up his phone as he heard it ring, "Salaam waleekum, Ammi." "Asad, have you reached Delhi, yet?" "Yes ammi, I'm actually in the hotel now." "Oh, ok. I just called to check whether you've reached. Take care, then. Allah hafiz." Asad put the phone down and made his way to the washroom. He might have had a meeting to attend in just an hour, but he had a whole life to attend to after that. If Zoya was working there, as he'd presumed, he knew he might even be able to meet her the same day. But if she wasn't...he didn't want to think about that. He had to hope that she was there and he didn't know why, but he felt that she was definitely there. He didn't where he was heading, maybe destiny held a better life for him, in the future, but it could also be that it was to be more miserable. But at the moment, he couldn't take any of that into consideration, he had only aim and that was to find Zoya. Whether she forgave him, or not, he couldn't lose this opportunity. He would find Zoya. :~:~:~:~:~:
"Ileana, just listen to me! I had my reasons! Yes, I know I lied, but I had to, do you eve-" She heard Ileana swear at her on the line, before she cut the call. Zoya threw her phone across the bed, frustrated. Her only friend had turned her down. She knew she'd told her a big lie and she also knew that Ilena had every right to be angry on her. But she could have at least given her a chance to explain herself. "If only, she knew.", she muttered to herself angrily. Her eyes brimmed with tears, as another bitter realization dawned upon her. There was not single person left in the world whom she could lean on. At first, she was the Zoya with a family and then she deprived to the Zoya with one friend. But now, she was Zoya. Just Zoya. No one else to stand by her, she was completely alone midst all of the cruel people residing in this big, scary world. She'd lost her mother and father. She'd lost the one family she'd considered as her own and she'd also the lost the only true friend that she had ever had. There was nothing left to lose. She fell to her knees and cried, cried at her wretched fate. She was angry, angry with God, angry with everyone she knew and above all, she was angry with herself. For, if she hadn't been born, she could have saved the heart break of many people. Her father, her aapi and jeeju, her phuppi and Najma's. She didn't dare include Asad in that list, because he was the sole reason of everything that had happened. She squeezed her eyes shut and sobbed, "Ya Allah, why is this happening to me? What did I do to deserve this? Please, show me a way." Her head shot up as she heard a familiar song ring in her ears. She looked around and found the TV blaring, she realized that she'd left the TV on. She walked towards it and stared at the screen, she smiled as she heard the song.
Ajnabi mod hai
Khauf har aur hai
Har nazar pe dhuan chha gaya
Pal bhar mein jaane kya kho gaya
Aasman zard hai
Aanhein bhi sard hai
Tan se saaya juda ho gaya
Pal bhar mein jaane kya kho gaya
Saans ruk si gayi
Jism chhil sa gaya
Toote khwabon ke manzar pe
Tera jahan chal diya
Every word of the song suited her situation. She flopped down on the sofa and smiled sadly, a few tears sliding down her cheeks. She took a deep breath and continued listening to the song.
Noor E Khuda Noor E Khuda
Tu kahan chhupa hai humein yeh bata
Noor E Khuda Noor E Khuda
Yun naa humse nazarein phira.
Noor E Khuda...
Nazar-e-karam farma hi de
Deen-o-d**** ko jaga hi de
Jalti hui tanhaiyaan
Roothi hui parchhaiyaan
Kaisi udi yeh hawa
Chhaya yeh kais sama
Ruh jam si gai
Waqt tham sa gaya
Toote khwabon ke manzar pe
Tera jahan chal diya
Noor E Khuda Noor E Khuda
Tu kahan chhupa hai humein yeh bata
Noor E Khuda Noor E Khuda
Yun naa humse nazarein phira.
Noor E Khuda...
She turned off the TV, sighing. True enough, her world survived on broken dreams. Every single dream of hers was shattered. The only man she had perhaps even loved, had pushed her away. He'd ripped her soul into thousand pieces and thrown it into the depths of darkness. He'd rubbed the bitter truth that she was an orphan, right in her face. He'd treated her like a speck of dust on his pristine shoes. He'd shown what he'd thought of her, a mere orphan who could not respect others and didn't deserve any either. When she thought she'd finally found a home, he stepped on it and crushed it into debris. Her beloved Mr. Khan was also the man who's shattered her dreams, her trust, her heart, her soul and above everything, he'd shattered her completely. She'd found solace in the arms of an arrogant man, she had rejoiced that she'd finally captured a place in his rock hard heart, she'd even thought, she'd finally cracked the hard shell surrounding it. And every single one of those dreams were shattered, before she could even touch them. But one dream remained, no, actually one came true. But it became too true, that it broke her whole life... :~:~:~:~:~:
"Her name is Zoya Farooqui. Can you please check if you have any employees working under that name, in your company?" "Just a minute sir, I'll look through the list and tell you.", said the receptionist. Asad bit his lower lip nervously, as he anticipated the answer. The receptionist looked up at him after a minute, or so, he stares at her, waiting for the answer. "No sir, there is no with name, who's working here." Asad felt his knees buckle, he was wrong. She wasn't working there, he'e been so confident that he'd find here, he swallowed the lump in his throat and asked, "W...What?! That can't be! Can you please check again, properly?" The receptionist nodded and went through the list again and looked up back up at him, "No sir, there is definitely no one here, who is called Zoya Farooqui. :~:~:~:~:~:
Ilena's eyes grew wide, she clasped her mouth in shock. Zoya Farooqui. She watched his desperate face crumple up in agony. She stared at him for a few more seconds, trying to decide what to do. True enough she was angry with Zoya, but there was definitely something going on with her and she needed to find out and her biggest clue was standing right just a few meters away, in the form of Asad Ahmed Khan. He was the same guy from the photos that Zoya had in her diary and he also happened to be the one who was signing the deal with their company. She took a deep breath in and muttered, "Here goes nothing." She slowly walked towards him, getting nervous by the second. Now, it was clear that this guy was somehow connected with this Zoya-Zaafira fiasco. She could clearly tell from the way his face was drooping, that he and Zoya had a dark past and she needed to find out what it was. She didn't how this man was related to her, or in what way he'd hurt her to make her run away from her home, but at the moment she knew one thing, he was the only one who could help Zoya. :~:~:~:~:~:
Asad turned around, defeatedly. He'd lost possibly the only chance that he could get to find Zoya. He looked up and found a girl staring at him questioningly. Without any addressing, or respect, she asked him directly, "Why do you want to see Zoya?" Asad stared at her, shocked. He swallowed hard and asked, "D...Do you know her? Do you know where she is? Can you tell me where she is?" The girl looked at him straight in the eyes and said, "Before that, tell me why you want to meet her." The girl had made it clear that she knew Zoya and she'd also made it clear she had just as much as attitude as Zoya. Even when he had possibly found her, he couldn't fight his mannerisms, he gritted his teeth and snapped back at her, "That is none of your business. And show some respect, do you even know who I am?" The girl raised and eyebrow and replied, "Yes, I do know that you are Asad Ahmed Khan, the guy who is signing the deal with our company and also, it unfortunately happens to be my business. I'm the only one who can tell you where she is. Asad stared at her, his jaw dropping slightly at her guts. She probably had more attitude than Zoya and she'd also referred to him as 'the guy who is signing the deal'. He had a good mind to yell at her and get her fired, but he clenched his fists and controlled himself, for after all, she knew where Zoya was. He rubbed his creased forehead and spoke, "Listen. I'll pay you as much as you want, can you PLEASE just tell me where she is?" Ileana stared at him, he'd thought he could bribe her with money, but he was talking about her best friend. He was probably the reason why Zoya was so reserved and hurt and here he was, trying to bribe her with money. It was her turn to clench her fists, "Excuse me, mister. I don't get bribed that easy, nor do I care for those who try and bribe me. Here's the deal, tell me why you wanna meet Zoya and I'll tell you where she is. Do I need to announce that on a loud speaker to make you understand?" To say Asad was shocked, would be an understatement. No one had ever spoke to him in such a way, apart from Zoya and he was holding himself from screaming at her, but it was becoming increasingly difficult with the attitude she was showing. He tightened his jaw and said, "Listen, I can get you fired right this second if I wanted to. No one speaks to me, this way. If you wanna keep your job, just tell me where Zoya is." The girl sighed and replied, "Ok, thought I could help you but Mr. Proud Khan doesn't seem to want it. No probs, I'm off. If you ever change your mind, I'll be right here. Bye then, Mr. Arrogance!" She turned around to go but stopped as he heard him call out hastily, "WAIT!" She turned back around and folded her arms, "Yes, Mr. Arrogance, how can I help you?" Asad's eyebrows furrowed, as he tried to get his around what he was gonna say, "Look, there's around fifteen minutes before the meeting starts and if you could get your face outside, it could really help." She smiled and replied, "Ileana Davidson at your service." :~:~:~:~:~:
Ileana knew that she was close to crying. The girl she had thought as someone who never smiles, talks, or enjoys life much, was the complete opposite. If she was, who she was now, it was solely because of the man standing in front of her, narrating everything that had happened between them. She felt a surge of anger pass through her, she had been insulted so much in the past and all because of Asad Ahmed Khan. She swallowed the lump in her throat and asked, "Why did you do this to her? Do you even know how she is now?" Asad stared at her, he didn't have the answer to her questions. He looked down at the floor instead, unable to face her. Ileana could feel her face going red with rage, she clenched her fists and yelled at him, "ANSWER ME!!! Why did you do this to her?! What did she do to deserve this?! She doesn't even talk to anyone properly! She doesn't smile, or laugh! The complete opposite if the person you are describing to me! Oh wait! You know what?! She was so hurt that she was living as a girl called Zaafira all these months, just because she didn't wanna find you! And your surname is Khan right? She told everyone her name was Zaafira Khan! I didn't even know until yesterday!" Asad stared at her in shock, he'd forced her into such a situation that she couldn't even reveal her identity to anyone and all because she didn't want him to find her, "Y...You're lying." Ileana gritted her teeth and spoke in hushed tone, partly because she was choking on sobs, "I'm lying? We'll see. You want to meet her, right? Well, you will and that will be today." She cast him a glance of hatred before walking away. Asad watched her walk away, she'd said he will meet her on the same day, but she was walking away. He wanted to call out to her and ask her about the same, but he stood rooted to his spot. He wasn't able to move, every muscle in his body tightened, he felt his heart race and his brain whizzing. "I'll see Zoya, today?", he asked himself. :~:~:~:~:~:
Zoya hurriedly grabbed her handbag and ran to the door. She stepped out and shut the door and ran out of the corridor. Just when she stepped out of the apartment, she realized that it was raining. She looked at her watch, "Damn it! Its 4.50 already? The meeting is at 5!" She cursed herself for dozing off on the sofa. She brought her handbag up to her head and held it above it, to stop herself from getting drenched. She ran out of the compound and saw an auto rickshaw approaching her, she called out "Auto!!!" But the auto went straight past her, she cursed the man and continued running down the street. She didn't wait for the signals, she ran past the vehicles, earning several curses from the angry people driving the vehicles. She finally reached the entrance to Coral Enterprises and she came to a halt. She bent down and clutched her knees, breathing heavily. She looked at her watch, "5.20?! Allah miyan, please help me." To make thing worse, she just happened to realized that she was soaking wet and she couldn't do a thing about it now. She took a deep breath and walked into the building. She found everyone staring at her a little confused, but disapprovingly. She gulped and made her way towards the conference room. :~:~:~:~:~:
Asad sat in his chair, irritated with all the questions being fired at him. He stuck to answering in monosyllables and sighed irritatedly, every time he was asked something, before answering. He couldn't bring himself to concentrate on anything which was being said in the meeting. Every time he tried to focus, he found his mind wandering away. He could only think of Zoya, Ileana had told him that he would meet Zoya on the very day, but he wasn't able to figure out how. He turned his head to look at Ileana, who was on the other end of the room, it just happened to be that she was also staring at him right that moment. She muttered something agr,ily, under her breath, before turning away. Asad sighed and turned his head back around. His heart and mind had made it clear that they would not help him in taking his mind off, Zoya. He was petrified, he didn't know what to say, or do when he saw Zoya. He didn't know what Zoya would say, he knew those horrible memories would resurface again. But he had to face it, it was the biggest test of his life and if he failed, the meaning of his whole life would vanish. It was the ultimate test of acceptance and forgivance. But Zoya was the decider of this test. He knew more than well that Zoya would hate him, now. He'd intended to give her happiness and joy, he'd wanted to see her smile, every second of his life and gain happiness from it, but no. Everything had turned upside down. In the wake of starting a new life, he'd destroyed both of their already damaged lives. He had insulted Zoya to a point where she broke, just because of his pride. He knew Zoya more than well, to guess her condition, at the moment. She might look cheerful and chirpy, but she was as fragile as a porcelain doll. She didn't have the guts to face what people call 'the real world'. For it was cruel and selfish, people don't care about anyone else, but themselves and he had proved that he was one of those cruel, selfish people. He wanted to scream and crouch on the floor, bracing himself, but he couldn't. His soul had been ripped apart, yet it didn't find a reason to leave his body. It tortured him with the memories of Zoya, he squeezed his eyes shut as her horrified face hallucinated in front of his eyes, yet again. He didn't want to remember that night, that night was the reason why Zoya had had to leave. That was the night when he'd insulted her, that was the very fateful night, where betrayal, pain, bitter revelations and separation had took place. He could only wish that he could go back in time and revoke everything that had happened. He wanted to go back and start from the beginning and ensure that everything went right. But alas, what had been done, was done and there was no way he could change anything at all. He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard the door slam open, a girl falling flat on the floor, right after. The girl cried out in pain and stumbled back up clumsily, rubbing her face with her palms, covering it completely, in the process. He kept his eyes on her, waiting for her to remove her hands from her face. He saw her hands slide off her face, slowly. He heard the people murmuring things about her, but he didn't why, but it bothered him. He wanted to yell at every single one of them and tell them to be quiet. But he couldn't understand why. He stared at her, confused at first, but then it hit him. She was there, Zoya was right there, in front of his eyes. He rubbed his eyes to make sure he wasn't hallucinating, but she stayed. He'd finally found Zoya. :~:~:~:~:~:
Zoya stood there, trying to make sense of the situation. Firstly, she was extremely late, secondly, she was completely drenched and to add to that, she'd just ran into the room and fell flat on her face, they day couldn't get any better. She cleared her throat, embarrassed and straightened her wet hair, out. She bit her lower lip hard and squeezed her eyes shut, getting ready to explain herself. She opened her eyes again and took a deep breath in. "I am extremely sorry for the delay! I got caught up in the traffic and it wad raining so I...", she stopped herself when she realized how stupid she'd just been. She looked back at the people who were giving her stares of disapproval, except for one person. A tear made its way down her cheek as she felt that same piercing gaze fall upon her after such a long time. She stood there, rooted, unable to move. Every muscle in her body refused to corporate, every cell in her brain ceased to function. She found herself at standing at the edge of a break down, the tears which were steadily flowing down her cheeks were masked because of how drenched she was. She found herself drowning back into time, the horrifying memories flooding every part of her. She gulped, trying to remove all those memories but nothing changed. Those deeep wounds had finally started to heal into a scar, but now they were as fresh again, probably even worse. The pain of being stabbed in the stomach would not be able to equalize with the inner torment she was going through, right that moment. All those pent up emotions, resurfaced. She'd hidden them deep inside her heart, but now they were as exposed as a new born baby. She saw him staring at her, with a myriad of emotions being dispayed on his face. All she could do was stare at him, she wanted to drag her eyes away from him, but her eyes seemed to have a brain of their own, they refused to comply to her pleas. She was broken out of her thoughts as she heard someone call out to her, "Ms. Khan, please come take a seat." She cringed as she heard them address her as 'Ms. Khan' in fornt of Asad. Out of the corner of her eyes, she caught Asad smiling at her, sadly. She turned her head slightly and shot him a grimacing look and turned back around and nodded at her boss. Her seat happened to be right on the opposite of Asad, she cursed her fate and walked towards her seat. She sat down, hesitantly and made sure that she didn't look at Asad, in any way. She knew more than well that Asad was staring at her and there was no way he would take his eyes off her, she but her lip, trying hard not to burst into tears. The rest of the meeting went past in a blink, both Asad and Zoya found no reason, whatsoever to try and concentrate on a single sentence being said in the meeting. They were already in a waging war, battling their emotions, but they were on the losing side. They couldnt' hold for much longer. At the moment, nothing else in the world mattered to them. Both of them, needed to get this over in their own way. They couldn't afford to lose anything else, in their life :~:~:~:~:~:
Asad grabbed her by the elbow and pulled her towards him in a split second and her first reaction, was to scream at him, "WHAT DO YOU WANT?!?!?!" Asad stared at the squirming girl trapped in his arms. He swallowed hard, trying hard not to break down, he spoke choking between his words, "You know what I want." She looked up at him, her own eyes flooding with tears she spoke, gritting her teeth, "I hate you, just leave me alone." Asad didn't know where to start, there was so much he wanted to say to her, yet he wasn't able to get the words out. She broke away from his grip and turned around to walk away, but Asad grabbed her by her wrist again and pulled her back, towards him. She struggled against him, trying make him free her from his grip, but he didn't budge. He pulled her closer and bent his head a little, so that his fore head was resting on hers. He placed a finger under her chin and pushed it up gently, in order to make her face him. She looked into his deep chocolate brown eyes and found herself drowning, yet again. Asad took a deep breath in and started, "Zoya..." Another tear slipped out of her eyes as she heard her name coming from his lips, after so long. She squeezed her eyes shut and sobbed, she was standing exactly where she had tried keep herself away from. Asad sighed and began to speak, "I know you hate me, but can you just listen to me for a minute?" Zoya didn't say anything and he took that as a yes and started to speak again, "Whatever happened that night...that was completely my fault. I know I hurt you for something which was in no way your fault. I know I don't deserve you even the slightest bit after everything I said and did to you that day, but I need to say this, even if this will not compensate anything. I'm sorry, Zoya." "Sorry is not good enough!", Zoya screamed back at him, "Do you think I can forget everything with your one stupid sorry?! Do you think that anything can change with your damn sorry?! And when you know its not gonna compensate anything, why did you bother telling me?! Because, you thought I'll forgive you and come back to you? Well, you're wrong! I hate you and always will! And there isn't a s*** you can do about it! Do you get me?!" At this point, Zoya had grabbed Asad by his collar and was shaking him vigorously. Asad was trying hard to hold back his tears, but he was failing miserably. He watched Zoya let go of his collar and fall down to her her knees, sobbing. He nelt down and geld her by her shoulders, she didn't push him away, Asad brought his hands up to her face and caressed it. He spoke in a hushed tone, "I needed to tell you this, because I...I love you." Zoya's head shot up, hearing that, she clasped her mouth in horror and got up to go away, but Asad held on to her, firmly. She knew there was no point in struggling, because he wouldn't let go of her, anyway. She stared at him, her eyes filled with tears. She spoke, choking on her sobs, "If you do, then why did you do that to me?" Asad kept mum, he didnt have an answer to her question. Zoya grabbed him by his shoulders and yelled in to his face, "I asked you something! WHY DID YOU THAT TO ME?!?!?! You insulted me, just because my father happened to be Gaffur Siddique!" :~:~:~:~:~:
"I would have never let any of this happen, if I'd known who you were. You are the daughter of the man, who had caused my ammi so much pain and I wish I'd never met you." Zoya stared at him, shocked beyond her wits. Her whole world had come crashing down. Everything had turned upside down in just a matter of minutes. She didn't know what to say, or do, she was completely lost. Before she could react, Asad spoke again, "Don't even imagine that things could work out, again. This is over, we're in no way related anymore and if you are in any way subjected to your self respect, leave before I make you leave." Asad stared at her, he felt no remorse at his hostile act, even if he'd loved Zoya, he couldn't just ignore the fact that her father was an abominable beast. He'd ruined his and Najma's childhood and for that matter, he'd destroyed his mother's whole life, he found no reason to mercy anyone related to him, let alone him. He knew he'd just stabbed Zoya, right in her heart but at that moment, he couldn't possibly care less. He watched her crumble up, like a piece of paper. His stone heart did seem to feel a prick, when he saw her in that state but he continued to ingnore it, even when it became constant. He stared at her with hatred illuminating from his eyes. Zoya looked into his eyes and she knew that he wasn't just saying it, but that he actually meant whatever he said. She knew she'd lost, the biggest dream of her life had come true, but shattering another. She squeezed her eyes shut, he'd broken her heart in just a minute. He'd betrayed her when she needed him the most, all because of the father she'd never known. She had heard people say that children have to face the brunt of their parents, she'd never really taken much notice to that, but today she was one of those unfortunate beings, herself. He'd ripped every single part of her, for the sins of her father. She couldn't thank God more, for her ironic life. She may have found her father, bu she had practically lost her life. There was no way she turn herself in to the arms of a man who didn't give a hoot about anyone's feelings and that was exactly the man who turned out to be her father, but Asad have proved that he was in no way different, the most important men in her life had turned out be hateful beasts. She hung her head, a few tears making their way down her cheeks. She looked back up at Asad, who was still looking at her with the same hatred. She stared at him, determination radiating from her whole body. She would show him that she wasn't someone who whimpers over wounds, but someone who fights them, she promised herself that she would stand on her own and in no way rely on anyone else. There was no way she could bow down to anyone after all the insults that had been fired at her. She would show the world that she was not a weakling. :~:~:~:~:~:
"You remember all of that right?! Answer me! Why did you do that?!", Zoya screamed at him, tears streaming down her face. Asad stared at her, tongue tied. He didn't have any reasonable answer at all, yet he knew she deserved an answer, at the least. He wished that everything just turned out to be a but horrible nightmare he knew more than well that he was standing right in front of reality. What had happened, had happened and he'd have to accept that, but he had no idea how to make things right. Zoya slowly loosened her grip on his shoulders and clasped her mouth in attempt to stop herself from crying. Asad slowly brought his hand near her waist and wrapped them around her, gathering her back in his arms. She looked completely broken and his heart shattered seeing her in that state. She looked exactly the way that he'd once promised himself, that she would never be in. He pulled her a little closer and stroked her head, trying to calm her down, Zoya didn't rebel so he pulled her into a complete hug and tightened his grip around her waist. Every moment he'd spent away from her, he'd been losing his mind, begging to God for just one glance of her. But now, she was right in his arms, sobbing into his chest and he was clueless of what to do next. He knew he could never make up to everything that he'd done to her, but the least he could do was try and apologize. He pulled back after what seemed eternal, he caressed her face again and made her look at him, he slowly whispered, "I'm sorry, Zoya. I love you and always will." Zoya starred at him for a few seconds, she didn't know what to do. There were so many things she wanted to hate him for, yell at him for and hurt him for, but at that moment, none of that seemed to reach her mind. She had no idea what destiny had in store for her, she found her head buzzing and her vision blurring, before she blacked out. :~:~:~:~:~:
Asad felt panic rising through ever inch of his body, he looked at the girl laying motionless in his arms. He opened his moth to scream at her, to try and wake her up, but nothing came out. He was panic stricken, the same image of the lifeless Zoya he had seen in Mangalpur, came back to haunt him. He was brought out of his trance, as he heard a shrill scream ring in his ears, he turned around to see where it was coming from, Zoya still hanging behind his arms. He found Ileana rushing towards them clasping her mouth in horror. She grabbed Zoya and pulled her away from Asad and yelled at him, "What did you do to her?!" Asad stared at her in disbelief, she'd just accused him of harming Zoya. He gritted his teeth and snapped back at her, "I didn't do a thing! Now, if you don't mind can we get her to the hospital?" He pulled Zoya back, away and picked her up. He turned his head and looked at Ileana. "This way.", she said. :~:~:~:~:~:
To say that she was scared, would be an understatement, because she was petrified beyond a point where any human could explain themselves. Black, that was all she could see. She didn't know whether her eyes were open, or not, but darkness was the only thing she could identify. She struggled a little more, to see any sort of light at all. She kept struggling until a few rays of light entered her vision. She was relieved, after around 20 minutes of pure darkness, she finally was able to decipher everything surrounding her. She slowly opened her eyes and found Asad smiling at her with bloodshot eyes. "Zo...Zoya, are you ok?" She still hadn't realized how she had landed up there. She stared at him blankly, unable to understand what was going on. Asad sighed and held her hand, on que, he answered, "You fainted." Zoya squeezed her eyes shut, trying to remember what had happened, then it hit her. How Asad had confessed to her, how she'd screamed at him and then blacked out. She managed to pull herself up, with the help of Asad. She looked around her, to see if anyone else was present. She looked back at Asad, who was still gazing at her. He took a step forward and sat beside her and grasped her hand a little tighter. He didn't know what else to say to her, if at all there was anything left to say. He kept staring at Zoya, waiting for her to initiate the conversation, but she stayed silent, as well. Just then, the room door flung open and Ileana walked in. She shot a death glare at Asad, before going and sitting on the other side of Zoya. She smiled at her and asked, "How're you feeling?" Zoya stared at her, confused again, unable to understand how Ileana made up with her. Ileana knew what she was thinking and answered, "Long story, I'll explain later." She glared at Asad once again, before helping Zoya up. Ileana motioned Asad to leave them alone for a while, by turning her head to the door. Asad gritted his teeth and walked towards the door, without saying a word. He turned and looked at Zoya again, before leaving the room. :~:~:~:~:~:
Asad walked out of the ward, rubbing his forehead. He still hadn't got any answer from Zoya. True enough, he'd apologized but ultimately, it was Zoya's choice whether to forgive him or not. He snapped out of his thoughts as he heard someone shouting out his name, he looked around to find the source and found a girl running towards him, grinning like a maniac. At first, he couldn't recognize her, but as she came closer, he started to realize, "Sakina?" She sprinted towards him and enveloped him in a bear hug. Asad was taken aback, he usually didn't appreciate public affection, he patted her shoulder and quickly pulled away. He smiled at her and asked, "Sakina? What are you doing here?" The girl smiled at him broadly and asked, "First, you tell me. You live in Bhopal, right? Asad smiled at her, sadly and said, "I was looking for someone." "Who?", she asked. Asad bit his lip, nervously and replied, "Umm...my fiancee." Her jaw dropped in shock, "You're engaged?!" Asad stared at her, confused by her reaction, she quickly pulled herself back together and asked, "So...umm...she ran away, or something?!" Asad glared at her and she understood, she was quick to correct herself, "No, what I meant is, did you both fight?" Asad hung his head, in shame, unable to answer her. Understanding the situation, she said, "Achha, leave it. So tell me, how's life?" There, she'd again asked him a question that he couldn't give any proper answer for, he muttered under his breath, "Couldn't get any worse." "Sorry?", she asked him. Asad quickly replied, "Nothing. So you tell me, how are you?" "Good!", she replied smiling. Asad smiled at her, she was one of his closest friends, after Tanveer, but of course, over time he'd come to know of her true nature, so there was no way, she could possibly fall in to that category. His eyes slightly watereda and he wasn't sure why. Sakina noticed this and took him another hug and this time, Asad actually hugged her back for a few seconds, before pulling away. She smiled at him and said, "Everything's gonna be fine. :~:~:~:~:~:
to be continued...
Precap: "I HATE YOU!!! You heard me right?! Leave me alone!!!", she screamed at Asad. Asad caught hold of her by her shoulders and yellled back in to her face, "Just shut up! Can you stop screaming for a minute?!" Zoya pushed him away and fell to her knees and sobbed, she slowly whispered, "Please. Just leave. Never come back, because there is nothing left. Just go away."
Phew! That was a whooping 6502 words! And I'm gonna feel extremely bad if you found it boring coz I took 3 days to type it up, but I'm not gonna stop u from criticizing me. Please do leave ur reviews behind. The next chapter is gonna be the last, but there'll be an epilogue after that. I finally got to the asya confrontation and please do tell me if u liked it! By the way, the song I used was Noor E Khuda, from My Name is Khan. I really love that song and it also suited the situation of the story really well, so I thought I should use it. Please don't get too scared by the precap, I know I haven't reassured u guys saying that there'll be a happy ending, I still won't but I'm not saying that its gonna be a sad ending either. You just have to wait for a few more days to find out! Please don't forget to leave ur comments behind! Till then, adios!😊
Indian Idol 15
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