AsYa TS - Message in a bottle, EPILOGUE, Page 25 (17/11) - Page 9

Hey never thought to read something with this concept .

Originally posted by: aarzoo50

mai sapna dekh raha hu kya??

I m pinching u 😆

Originally posted by: aarzoo50

ab to mai b res karta hu n that too gowtu ka G capital letters mai

Bttr for u 😆
Awe I love you so muchhh 🤗

Originally posted by: gowtu

I m pinching u 😆

bas dard de sakti hai tu 😔

Originally posted by: gowtu

Bttr for u 😆
Awe I love you so muchhh 🤗

😛
but i hate u kiddo 😭
bewafa sanam

New TS

Originally posted by: aarzoo50

vn vl u update kaussar

Heenu, you still around? sorry i got busy with some work.. will update now..😃

Hi Everyone,

Here is PART 3... heartfelt thank you to all who commented and 'liked' the story so far.. i am really overwhelmed by the response you all gave... never thought that so many will like this story so much as it's a very different concept... thanks everyone... will reply to everyone who commented after Second update tomorrow... i think i have replied to all who commented after first update.😊

Hope the ending is not too abrupt... if i can think of a proper Epilogue for this story will write a short chapter again.😃

PART 3:

It had been three days since Asad returned back to Mumbai. He had work to do which was related to the case but his heart wasn't in it. He was thinking of Zoe all the time. He desperately wanted to meet her but he did not know how he could find her. And he did not know how many times he read Zoya's letter within those three days. And the more he read it the more he felt sure that Zoe was Zoya and finding that letter in a beach in Goa was his first connection with her. And he did not understand why he had this feeling but he felt that meeting Zoe in Goa might be his last connection with her unless he did something and somehow found her. He felt that he should no longer leave everything to destiny. Destiny had guided him and even made him realize his feelings and it was up to him now to do something about it.

And as Asad was driving through the heavy Mumbai traffic towards his home that afternoon he suddenly remembered the first time he saw Zoe and then he remembered the orphanage. And he wondered if she was still going there or not. And suddenly Asad turned back his car and drove towards the beach area where that orphanage was situated. He knew that he was clutching at straws but he was desperate.

He went to the orphanage and asked them about Zoe and whether she was still visiting there or not and to his relief they said she did. And an elderly woman who looked like a matron told him that Zoe still visited them on every Sunday unless she had duty at the hospital and that since next day was Sunday she was expecting her to come. Asad sighed in relief and thanked her and went out thinking of coming and meeting her next day. But when he reached his car he had another idea. He was suddenly nervous about coming and meeting her and he felt that this idea was better than coming and suddenly meeting her there.

*****************

The next day Zoe reached the orphanage at around mid afternoon. And the first thing that she did was going and meeting the kids who were waiting for her eagerly. And she was sitting with the kids and laughing at some things they said when the matron came and told her that she had something for her. She gave Zoe a packet and she looked at it with curiosity.

"What is this Aunty?" She asked the matron bewildered.

"I don't know Zoe. A handsome man came asking about you yesterday and then he came back again few hours later and gave this to me and asked me to give it to you... he looked distinguished and appeared to be a nice person so I thought there is no harm in accepting it and giving it to you... now you see what it is." Saying this matron left from there. And Zoe told the kids that she would come back to them soon and taking the package she went and sat on a bench in the small garden outside.

She turned the package once again and looked at it. But there was just her name "Zoe" written outside and nothing to indicate what was inside. And wondering who brought it and what it was, she tore the package open. And what she saw inside made her even more bewildered. It was a capped bottle which was inside the package and when she took out the bottle she could see that it had a piece of paper inside it. And seeing it her heart leaped and with trembling hands she removed the cap and held the bottle upside down. The piece of paper was folded many times into a thin strip so it immediately fell out of the bottle when she held it upside down.

She took the paper and tentatively unfolded it and when she did her fingers were still trembling and her heart was beating wildly. She was suddenly desperate to know what was on that paper and when she finally completely unfolded it she was shocked to see that it was a letter addressed to her.

And she wondered who could have written her a letter and then gave it in such a manner, enclosed inside a bottle. Suddenly she was more nervous than ever and she was afraid to read the letter. But then she realized that she should read it no matter what and she held the paper in front of her and started reading it.

Dear Zoe,

Hi it's me Asad. I do not know how to write to you regarding everything I have been feeling since we talked at the beach that day and left each other. Actually I am not good in this type of things and I do not know how to even describe my feelings, but I do know that I have a lot of feelings regarding you and I want to tell you about my feelings but I want to do it properly when I meet you.

I am not someone who believed in things like destiny but ever since we parted at the beach that day, I have been feeling as if I did not make use of a precious moment that destiny had offered me. And I have been feeling as if I have let something very precious slip through my fingers.

Zoe, I could still remember the first time I saw you 5 years back at the beach here. Your innocent face, your laughter and your zest for enjoying the simple things in life and giving joy to others like those kids arrested me even on that day. And deep down I think I wanted to get to know you even on that day, but I never acknowledged it. I was too busy being boggled up by other realities of life and even though our paths had crossed again and again and each time you had left a mark on me, I still never made an attempt to stop in the track of my life and wonder whether it was a sign that you kept crossing my path...that too whenever I was most disturbed due to the harsh cruelties of life that I was desperately trying to conquer.

And then we met at the beach that day. The beach always relaxed me and gave me peace but I have never known the kind of peace I felt that day when I talked to you there. Actually we had not talked much but just your presence there with me was enough to make me feel calm and relaxed. And I think it was not just me but even you felt the same. We both felt the same connection, we were drawn to each other but still we parted. And after we did, I felt so restless...when I saw you going away from me at the beach I wanted to call out to you and ask you to stop, but I couldn't... I did not want you to go away but I let you... and then I was thinking about you that whole evening and while doing it I realized something else as well about which I would reveal to you later. And then everything that has happened made me realize that our path had crossed for a reason. It was meant, we were meant to meet. It was written in our destiny... but after our last meeting, I am feeling as if destiny had played its role for us and now it is only up to me to do something about it. And that is the reason why I am writing to you today.

Zoe I wanted to get to know you more. Actually I feel as if I already know you and the kind of woman you are, but I wanted to know each little thing that makes you who you are and I want to confirm whether everything I feel I know regarding you are really correct or not. I know that what I feel in my heart cannot be wrong but I want to confirm it by meeting you.

And Zoe I wanted to tell you something else as well... that is I believe I have something that belongs to you but is meant for me only. I want to return it to you and then if you would give it back to me with your own hands, I would consider myself as the luckiest man in this world.

So Zoe, will you meet me tonight at my home? I am enclosing my address with the letter and I would wait for you. I am sure that you know in your heart that you could trust me, but still I want to assure you that you have nothing to fear from me... please come and meet me tonight.

Love,

Asad.

Zoe did not understand why but she had tears in her eyes when she finished reading the letter. It wasn't a letter in which someone had described his undying love towards her in poetic language. But it was a letter written in simple terms by a man whom she knew had crossed her path for a reason just like he himself had said in that letter. And she knew that he was a complicated man leading a complicated life, but in simple words he had tried to tell her how much she had come to mean to him. He had not even said he loved her but she knew he did. Just like she knew that what she felt for him at the beach that day was love.

************************

And that evening she rang the bell of Asad's front door at sharp 7 and waited nervously for him to open the door. She was happy and smiling to herself all the while she was driving to his home. But now all of a sudden she was feeling nervous. At the prospect of seeing him her heart began beating erratically, her hands felt cold and she wondered if she should turn back and go.

But the moment he opened his door and their eyes met, she felt as if she had come home. She was sure that this was the man for whom she had been waiting. She had finally fallen in love just like she had always dreamt. She had found her Prince charming. He may not be perfect, he may be carrying a lot of baggage; nevertheless he was her prince charming, he was her knight in shining armor and he would be the person who would hold her hand even when her hair turned all white and she had no tooth once again.

"Hi" she whispered still feeling a bit nervous.

"Hi... please come in." Asad smiled and moved aside to let her in.

And when Zoya entered the house she was surprised to see that he had decorated it with lighted candles and flowers. Asad stood behind her, he himself nervous of not knowing what her reaction to it would be. He had wondered whether it was too much to do all that on their first proper meeting but then he had felt like making the evening special in every way and he went ahead and did it.

"This is beautiful." Zoya whispered softly still looking around.

"So you liked it?.. it's not too much?" Asad asked with a nervous little laugh and she understood that it wasn't only her who was nervous about this meeting.

"It's not... I liked it." Zoe looked at him and smiled and Asad smiled back at her and they stood staring at each other with that half smile still playing on their lips.

"Umm I've ordered dinner... would you like to have it now or wait for a while?" Asad asked not knowing what else to say.

"Dinner sounds good... I'm actually starving." Zoe laughed and Asad laughed along with her and gestured her to follow him to the dining room.

"Actually I was busy with work even today... otherwise I would have prepared dinner for you myself." Asad said while warming the food in the microwave.

"That's alright... oh you mean to say you can cook?" Zoe raised her eyebrow and queried with a mischievous smile.

"I definitely can...when I started living alone I learnt to do it and now I love to do it... next time I will definitely cook for you so that you can judge for yourself." Asad said and looked at Zoe to see what her reaction was for saying there would be a next time.

"Then I would definitely look forward to it and I hope that the next time comes soon." She said teasingly and he laughed with relief. And he was happy to know that she wanted a next time with him.

And during dinner Asad asked Zoe about her life. She told him that even her parents were no longer alive and she lived with her Daadi and Asad was surprised to know that they even had similar family backgrounds. But unlike with Asad, her parents did not pass away together. Her Ammi died of cancer when she was 5 years old and she could barely remember her. Her Abbu used to work in Mumbai then and she was sent to Goa to live with her Daadi. But when she had to go to college she along with her Daadi had shifted to Mumbai again and had started living with her Abbu. Her Abbu never remarried and then while she was in her 3^rd year at college he died of a heart attack.

Asad then told her about his own parents' death and how he grew up and how he became a lawyer. They then discussed about their own inspirations, dreams and hopes for the future and by the time the dinner got over they knew each other much more.

After dinner they went back to the drawing room and sat on the sofa.

"Thanks for coming tonight Zoe... it really means a lot to me." Asad reached out and held Zoe's both hands together and looked deep in to her eyes.

"How could I not come when you wrote to me such a beautiful letter?" she answered softly and lowered her gaze but Asad continued to look at her and hold her hands.

"So you did not mind what I wrote in the letter?" Asad asked her while caressing her knuckles with the pad of his thumbs.

"Why should I mind?.. I mean...I mean when I also have feelings towards you, how could I mind it? But I want you tell me face to face what you really meant when you said you have feelings towards me." She lifted her gaze and looked at Asad's eyes searchingly.

"What I meant was I like you Zoe... I mean actually... actually it's much more than just liking... I have fallen in love with you Zoe... and I realized it that day after parting from you." Asad brought her hands forward and kissed her knuckles tenderly.

"But I know that all this is so sudden for you and you may not reciprocate my feelings. But you just said that even you have some feelings towards me... And Zoe, right now that's enough for me." Asad said tucking a strand of her hair that had fallen across her eyes.

"And Asad, you have written that you have something that belongs to me... that was so strange and I have been thinking so much about what it could be that you have and that belongs to me... can you now tell me about it... please...I'm dying to know about it?"

"Ok.. I will just get it and come... wait for a minute." Asad said smiling.

Asad returned back in no time and sat down beside her once again and Zoe looked at him questioningly. He then looked back at her carefully and then brought his right hand forward and gave her a folded paper. She looked at it bewildered and looked back at Asad, her eyes full of questions.

"Open it." Asad whispered.

And she opened the paper and started reading it. And by the time she finished reading it she was too overwhelmed to even speak.

"Asad, how?...i mean how did you get this?" Zoe asked with tears in her eyes.

"So it's yours isn't it? You wrote it... And you are Zoya right?" Asad's questions were more of a statement as he was already sure of what his heart knew.

"Yea it's mine... and I wrote it... but I still don't understand how you got it." Zoya said bewildered. she had thought of the letter in the initial few years after she wrote it and threw it into the sea and had even hoped that someone found it and that person would come and meet her but then as years passed and she grew up she started feeling that may be what she did was a really stupid thing. And anyway since they had moved from Goa she had no hope of the person finding her.

"You had meant for someone to find it isn't it?... and I guess I'm that someone." Asad replied softly and reached out and held her hand which was still clutching the letter tightly.

"But how did you find it Asad?... I still could not believe this." Zoya said.

"I was in Goa 7 years back and I found it while I was in Agonda beach... it was quite a distance from where you had thrown it to the sea near your home and the sea had carried it around safely for almost 5 years and then it was washed off shore and I found it... and Zoe it's hard for even me to believe all this, especially the way our paths had kept crossing and how we came to know each other, not knowing that we were connected through this letter even before we met for the first time."

"Asad,this... this... I can't even describe what I'm feeling right now... all this is so strange... yet so right... you and me, we both are really connected by fate... and this is kind of a miracle." Zoya was still too overwhelmed to speak coherently.

"I know Zoe... it's a miracle and I guess we are two souls really blessed by God and I can't thank him enough for the way he brought you in to my life... I love you Zoya."

"I love you too Asad."

"Are you sure of it Zoe?"

"I am sure Asad... I actually knew that on that day on the beach... I have never felt those emotions I felt when I was talking to you that day and I knew it... and now I am sure of it."

"Why did you then leave so suddenly that day?"

"I don't know... I guess even on that day I was too overwhelmed and even a little scared of what I felt... even though we had met on several occasions I hardly knew you and at the same time I felt as if I knew you... and I felt as if you were the man for whom I have been waiting all my life.. and my thoughts were so confusing to me that I decided that the best thing to do was to leave from there so that I could get a grip on myself."

"I wish you had not left... but I guess this was meant to happen this way because I really accepted my feelings only after you left."

"And you came back to Mumbai and found me... so everything is Ok now isn't it?"

"Yea everything is OK now." Asad moved close to her and drew her against him by winding his arm around her waist and when Zoya rested her head on his shoulder he bent down and kissed her forehead lovingly. He then rested his cheek on top of her head and they sat together savoring the moment and still marveling at how they have found each other in life.

Heyyy...Kaussar...well was just waiting for your update...and what a beautifully and excellently written update it is...I think Asad did the right thing by giving her the letter first to know her reaction on this...Zoe's reaction to it and the dinner date at Asad"s house were beautifully written...i really liked the content of the letter very much so simple yet so touching...waiting if there is a epilogue to it...continue soon...with your SS also...pm me if possible.

after reading 2nd part i was eagerly waiting for last part