Chapter 14
"Aahil Raza Ibrahim kya aapko Sanam Ahmed Khan se ye Nikkah Qubool Hai?" maulana sahab asked again and waited patiently for a reply. But Aahil was way too shocked to answer. He looked at the girl sitting opposite him, hidden behind drapes. He was almost hoping it wasn't Sanam.
"Really was Nikkah a joke for her? Was it really her sitting on the other side? What made her do this? Weren't Rehan and Sanam supposed to get married? And where was Nida? What was going on here? " the rush of questions in his mind made him slightly dizzy and he turned to look at Rehan, hoping that he'd confirm that maulana sahab had made a mistake with the name. But his teary eyes gave it all away.
The bride was indeed Sanam. And if the situation was different, Aahil would not have any doubts about his answer. But the truth was that he had realized that Sanam was off limits for him and Rehan was a love-struck puppy after her...
"Kya aapko ye Nikkah Qubool Hai?" this was the last time he'd be asked. Aahil looked at Rehan as if asking for help.
"Bolo na beta. Ke tumme Qubool Hai," Tanveer pressed.
"Ammi yeh to Sanam keh rahe hain," Aahil whispered.
"Jaante hain. Nida bhaag gayi, tum haan kar do," she responded.
Aahil glanced at Rehan one last time, his eyes asking for forgiveness. Things were about to get messy. Rehan turned away from his stare.
And Aahil, shattered by Rehan's gesture and pressurized by his so-called mother, finally voiced, "Qubool Hai."
Everyone clapped as Sanam disbelievingly shut her eyes at his words, a fresh set of tears rolling down her cheeks. Her actions were still veiled by her dupattaa.
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She didn't know when everyone left and the hall emptied. Aasma and Naziya hurried over to escort her over to Aahil's room.They gently helped her sit on the lavishly decorated bed and spread her ghagra around her, adding to her already divine appearance.
The girls whispered something in her ear which she didn't hear, and made their way to leave the room. They shut the door gently behind them. The soft click of the lock jolted her senses and she realized for the first time that night that she was married to Aahil Raza Ibrahim.
She blinked and looked around the room, which was almost unrecognizable beneath all the decorations. It looked heavenly, but Sanam still felt suffocated. This marriage had happened all in a blur. She could not recall any of it, apart from Aahil's "Qubool Hai"; which on it's own seemed so out of place. She knew that this nikkah was for her Badi Ammi but she hadn't even seeked Badi Ammi's permission. Even Haya didn't know that she was now married to Bhopal's most eligible bachelor.
How would she explain this to them?
She paced the room and came across a picture of Aahil. And Aahil? She had forgotten that he was to enter the room any minute now. "How was she supposed to talk to him? What would she say? How could she share this room, this bed with him? What if he claimed his right on her? What if he... No he couldn't, he wouldn't..." Sanam was not ready for this.
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Aahil didn't know how the bride swap had happened but he figured his Ammi played a role in it.
"But how did Sanam agree to it? Isn't she in love with Rehan?"
Aahil clenched his fists at his side; the thought of Sanam and Rehan together drove him wild.
"What was it in Rehan that made him more appealing than himself?"
Aahil was clearly confused. Yes he loved Sanam with all his heart but she reciprocated no such feelings for him. And the embrace she had shared with Rehan had crushed him. But now, she had accepted him as her husband and she was in his room right this moment. "How would he face her, with all this fury? What was he to say? Maybe he should begin by asking what her motive was for marrying him?..." Aahil was so not ready for this.
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Sanam sat down on the bed, exhausted from crying her eyes out. She was clenching the bedspread underneath her, her eyes glazed, seeming less like a bride and more like a corpse. She stilled as she heard footsteps. Aahil stepped into the room, gently shut the door behind him, and locked it. Then he turned to face Sanam, who looked stunning in her bridal look but something was amiss. She was lacking emotion. Aahil looked at her and hesitated to start a conversation. He still didn't know what to say.
After five minutes of complete silence, he realized that Sanam would not speak, so he broke the silence.
"Sanam," he addressed her; and she stood up as if it was a command.
"Aaj humara nikkah ho chuka hai. Tum jaanti ho ke iska matlab kya hai? Ke humme aaj se ek doosre se life share karni hogi. Aur jis jald bazi main yeh nikkah hua hai main iss sab ke liye tayyar nahin hoon aur main jaanta hoon ke tum bi nahin ho." He waited for Sanam to say something but she was still standing like a statue.
"Sanam kya tum sun rahi ho?" he held her by the arms and shook her.
"Tumme dekh kar lag raha hai ke tum is nikkah se bilkul khush nahin ho. Tumne is nikkah ke liye kyun haan ki?"
Still no response.
"Bolo Sanam. Kya soch kar tumne haan kari? Kyun kaha Qubool hai?"
"Aapne kyun kaha Qubool hai? Aap bi toh na kar sakte thay? Aapne kyun haan ki?" she finally looked him in the eye.
"Maine toh haan issliye ki kyun ke main tumse...just forget it. Tum nahin samjho gi." He turned his back to her.
"Haan main nahin samjhoon gi. Main aapko bi samaj nahin paoongi. Kyun ki aap bilkul paheli jaise ho. Kabhi kuch hote ho toh kabhi kuch. Jitna mushkil ye aapke liye hoga usse kahin zyada mushkil mere liye hoga," she screamed.
"Agar main halaaton ke samne majboor nahin hoti to shayad ye nikkah nahin karti. Waise bi ye kuch hi mahino ka nikkah ho ga. Uske baad aap aapne raaste aur main aapne,"she finished.
Something clicked within Aahil and without thinking he grabbed Sanam by the arm.
"Kuch hi mahine kyun Sanam? Aao, main tumhari mushkil abhi aasaan kardeyta hoon. Baghair kisi intezar ke," he smirked mockingly and dragged her out of the room.
He let her go forcefully and her hand banged on the side of the door shattering some of her bangles.
This was unnoticed by both. Sanam stared at Aahil in shock, but before he could regret what he'd done, because he knew he was going to, he pressed a button on his remote and the bedroom door shut, literally shutting both of them out of the other's territory.
Sanam sank to the ground sobbing. This was a horrible start to her nikkah. And she was just as responsible for it as Aahil was. Although right now she felt it was majorly her fault. She stared at the closed door and knowing that it wouldn't open for her again tonight, she gathered herself and walked to her old room before someone could spot her.
Aahil threw off his sherwani and walked into the shower. The cold water hit his face and calmed him down a little. But his heartbeat was erratic as ever. He closed his eyes in pain, as he remembered how he had just thrown Sanam out of his room. This wasn't completely her fault either. He was also to blame. She had told him that she didn't love him after all. He should have respected that and should've said no for the nikkah but his Ammi was pushing for a yes and so was his heart.
He punched the wall in anger. "I hate that I love her so much," he murmured to himself.
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10 minutes later, Aahil was standing in front of his mirror, fully dressed for bed, towel-drying his hair, when he heard a knock at his door.
He put the towel around his neck and unlocked the door only to come face to face with his Ammi. His eyes widened in surprise, "Ammi aap sohi nahin?"
Tanveer stepped into the room and indicated that he should close the door.
"Aahil beta mujhe abhi Lateef ne bataya ke Sanam apne kamre main soh rahi hai. Ye sab kya hai?" she demanded.
"Ammi woh.." Aahil started, fumbling for a legitimate excuse.
Tanveer put up a hand to stop him.
"Ammi kuch nahin, Aahil. Wakil sahab khud keh ker gaye hain ke woh check karne aate rahen ge ke sab kuch theek tak hai is nikkah main ya nahin. Unhe yeh nikkah ki jald bazi se hum par shak hai. Aur unka yeh shak yakeen main na badlay, iske liye tumme aur Sanam ko miya biwi ki tarhan ek hi kamre main rehna hoga. Miya biwi ki tarhan batein karni hongi.."
"Haan Ammi lekin..."
"Aahil...humme wasiyat ke liye wakil sahab ko manake rakna hoga. Abhi bardasht karlo. Phir theen mahine baad Sanam ko paise dey kar talaaq dey dena," she smiled.
"Ammi talaaq?" Aahil stared at her incredulously. It was true that he did not believe in marriage before but ever since he'd fallen for Sanam, he'd begun to believe that marriage was a commitment, made to fulfill, not to break.
"Haan! Phir tum bhi azaad aur woh bhi. Ab please usse kamre main wapas lao. Subah shayad wakil sahab aajayein."
Aahil nodded, still in shock from what his Ammi had said about divorce. He watched her leave the room and sat down on his bed to clear his thoughts before heading to Sanam's room.
His heart beat faster with every step. He didn't know what he'd say to her. He wasn't very good at sorrys. "And what if she didn't accept his apology? What if she refused to stay in his room? What would he do then?" he thought furiously.
Lost in his train of thoughts, Aahil did not even realize that he had reached her room. He raised his fist to knock on the door and then thought better of it. He was her husband after all! He barged in without knocking and braced himself for an earful from her end. But none came. He scanned the room for her and found her fast asleep in her bed.
Of course he walked up to her side and stared at her. Her beauty had been enhanced by make-up and jewelry tonight, and she looked just like an angel, heavenly. He reached out to shake her shoulder in an attempt to wake her up and then changed his mind. She was in deep slumber and he didn't want to ruin the little bit of sleep that she managed to get. He walked back to the door, thinking about leaving her there for the night, but saw his Ammi pass by and remembered her words.
Confused at what he should do, he turned back to face her and reached out to wake her, again. But he couldn't bring himself to do it. He saw her tear-stained face upon closer inspection and knew that she wouldn't agree to come with him.
After another few minutes of dilemma, he made up his mind. He bent down and scooped her up in his arms. She felt so good in his arms, just as if she was destined to belong there. He then walked gently to his room, careful not to wake her, and all the while staring at her alluring features.
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Aahil opened his bedroom door with the click of his remote and placed her on the right side of his bed. But he felt a sudden tug at his chest and realized that her earring was stuck to the front of his shirt. He sat down next to her, at the edge of the bed and carefully took the earring out of her ear first so as not to hurt her. Then he tried to pry it off of his shirt. He had it with the fourth attempt. He took off her other earring too and put it on the bedside table. As he stood up from the bed, he saw the edge of her dupatta dangling towards the ground and picked it up placing it next to her. He noticed that her dupatta was quite heavy, partially from the jewels on it, and thought of unpinning it, but quickly decided against it. "What if she thought I had misbehaved with her while she was asleep?" It seemed like something she'd do. In fact it would seem that way to any girl who had been married in the situation Sanam was.
Aahil picked up his blanket and draped it over her. He caught a hold of her left arm and placed it at her stomach. As he grabbed her right arm, he saw a dried up blood stain and bent down to examine it closely. He saw a few cuts on her arm where blood had also trickled down from. He wondered how she had cut herself. They didn't look like cut marks that she would have inflicted upon herself.
He thought back to when he had pushed her out of his room. He had heard a faint shattering of glass. He had done this to her! His eyes widened in shock as realization hit him. And the next minute he was hovering over her with a first aid box. He cleaned her cuts, bandaged them, and then held her hand in his.
He kissed it as a tear fell from his eye. All the burden of that day had fallen off him with the help of that tear. "I'm so sorry Sanam. For this...for everything," he sighed before kissing her arm a second time and then gingerly hopping into bed beside her.
long post..for all you avid fans! keep loving an keep reading <3
Edited by arshi_luver - 11 years ago
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