Posted:
"Zoya, please can we just go home?"
"You are so boring, Asad!" Zoya scolded.
"I'm old, okay? This music is way too loud, and these kids' dancing out there is giving me a headache" he said, eyeing out the youngsters dancing to music he could just not bear.
"But we're supposed to be out on a date, in a nightclub to feel young again" Zoya yelled over the blaring dub step.
"I think we've established that neither of us is that young anymore..." Asad smirked as he watched Zoya massage her tired ankle after dancing crazily.
"Okay, fine. You're right..." she grudgingly admitted.
Asad's company had had a hand in building the hotel that housed the club they'd decided to go to. Zoya had thought it was a fabulous idea to go out drinking and dancing. She'd wanted to "go on a date" with her husband. Relive the days before they'd got married and had kids.
Asad seeing her excitement reluctantly agreed to go, just knowing that he would regret it.
He held her hand as she hopped off the barstool. He couldn't help but smile. Years of marriage and a pair of grown up twins later, and the woman could still make his heart skip a beat when she smiled at him.
Asad put his arm around his beautiful wife and she snuggled into him as they walked past the dance floor and to the exit of the club.
"God, look at that girl" Zoya halted and exclaimed, seeing the back of a girl dancing with a handsome young man. Well, what little could be seen of his face through the dimly lit club.
"Oh to be young and in love..." she sighed. Asad pulled her closer. "Old and still in love is just as good, right?" he smiled, making Zoya nod up at him, and then look back to the dance floor.
"But... it's slightly indecent, don't you think? The way she's shaking her stuff out there?" Zoya asked Asad.
Asad was barely paying attention to the hipsters he was surrounded by. He just wanted to go home. It was dark on the dance floor, bar a few strobe lights. "Yeah. Shall we go, please?"
Zoya and he started walking again, only for Zoya to say, "You know... if that was my daughter..."
Asad turned to the dance floor at that precise moment, and suddenly the smoke machine and strobe lights weren't playing tricks on him anymore.
"Uh-oh..."
Zoya turned to him as he stopped walking. "What?"
Asad pointed out to the girl, and the guy he now recognised. "That is your daughter"
"Oh my GOD! I am going to kill Seher. For real this time, Mr Khan!"
Despite the situation, Asad wanted to laugh. Whenever Zoya got upset at him or the twins - or anything - she'd revert back to calling him Mr Khan, like she did when they'd first met.
"Zoya, wait! That's not..." Before he could stop her, she was out of his reach.
"... Seher" he sighed.
Asad knew it couldn't be Seher; she was already engaged to Rehan and was madly in love.
And he recognised the boy... Aahil Raza Ibrahim - The son of Asad's long time business partner, Tanveer.
He scratched his head confusedly, watching Zoya approach them.
"Thought she said she hated him? Hated him since they were kids...?"
"Seher!" Zoya called out, holding her daughter's hand.
Sanam turned back and her eyes widened. Aahil let his hands drop to his side, his eyes fearful too.
Zoya looked between the two. "Aahil? You and... Sanam...?" Zoya realised with utter disbelief.
"Aunty, I can explain everything" Aahil said.
"You will explain, Aahil. Tomorrow at home"
Zoya turned to Sanam. "You also have some explaining to do. Say goodbye, and then let's go"
Sanam turned back to Aahil quickly. He smiled reassuringly. "Go. I'll take care of everything" he whispered to Sanam, who looked like she was about to burst into tears.
Sanam turned back to Aahil, looking at him helplessly as she followed her mother towards Asad.
Aahil blinked at her, motioning for her to go on. "I love you" he mouthed.
Zoya was rambling on and on all the way to Asad. "I expect this from Seher. But you? Sanam, I can't believe this"
Blah blah blah...
"It's Sanam!" Zoya said as they got to Asad. "I knew it was. I tried to warn you" he said.
"Unbelievable. I thought Seher was the rebellious rule-breaker" Zoya huffed as they reached the car.
Asad wasn't pleased that Sanam lied, but he had to admit, he was kinda proud of her. She was so much like him - it was nice to see a little streak of rebellion. And it wasn't anything too serious. It was obvious that she was being taken care of.
"Abbu...?" Sanam whispered, fearing the wrath of her father, who had always been so proud of her nature, which was so much like his.
Asad smiled at Sanam. "I thought you hated him?" he asked as he opened the car door for his daughter.
"I did"
"And now?"
"Uhhh..."
"Oh Asad, you are not seriously encouraging this kind of behaviour are you?" Zoya asked as he drove off from the club.
Asad chuckled. Zoya and Sanam were both confused. How come Asad wasn't raging mad?
"I always thought Sanam was all me, but seems she's got a bit of you in her, too" he smiled.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard right. I always thought she was too much of me" he said.
Sanam stayed mum in the backseat, wondering what was going to happen tomorrow when Aahil came to their place.
"Let's just hope she's not too much of you... I don't think my heart can handle two more Zoyas" he exclaimed, clutching his heart dramatically, making Sanam giggle.
Asad turned to face Sanam at a red light, and they hi fived. Zoya glared at them.
"Mr Khan!"
**********
The next morning:
"Aahil, what are we going to tell them?" Sanam asked her love on the phone the morning after the night at the club.
"Baby relax... I told you I would sort it out, and you know that I will. Now... stop stressing, okay?"
Sanam sighed. "I know you will. But remind me again why we didn't tell them in the first place?"
Aahil chuckled. "Because you were embarrassed!" he teased.
"I was not!"
"Baby, you were... You didn't want to admit that you finally gave into my charm and fell in love with me, despite supposedly hating me since we were kids" he laughed.
"You know what, Aahil? I hate you now, too. Goodbye"
"Sana-"
Aahil chuckled to himself once again when his fiery girl disconnected their call abruptly. It happened so often. Her fierce temper was as strong as her love for him.
He started typing out a message.
"Baby, I love you. I will set everything straight. Today, at lunch"
Sanam smiled when she read the message. She knew he would. And she also knew he was right. She was embarrassed to admit she'd fallen for the one boy she swore she hated.
"I know, and I love you, too"
She remembered how he and Seher had annoyed her when they were kids. He especially, was always troubling her. Always taking her books from her and running around with them, holding them out of her reach.
They were the fun two and she was the nerdy one. When they played cops and robbers, she read instead. When Seher convinced Aahil to play with her Barbies... Sanam watched on, refusing to participate.
Barbies were an unreal version of females, manufactured for a male dominated society that depicted their ideas of what women should look like. Blonde bimbo never did it for Sanam.
When they decided to play house one day, Sanam stopped it immediately. No way was she going to let Seher and Aahil play house!
He was always over at their place. His mother and her father travelled a lot for business in those early days when they'd started out, and his father had passed on. Sanam's mother always offered for him to stay over at their place during the times his mother travelled.
Sanam was the outcast when Seher and Aahil were together. Secretly, she longed to be part of their team, but whenever she did join, Aahil would annoy her to death. Eventually she'd just given up and left them to their devices.
Seher would beg her to join them, but Aahil just made fun of her for not wanting to. As they got older, Sanam noticed Aahil becoming more and more distant. By the time they'd hit thirteen, they barely spoke.
He'd also decided by then that he was old enough to stay by himself when his mother travelled for business. Seher and he drifted apart somewhat when they started high school. Seher discovered boys and a whole new set of friends - the "it" girls of high school.
It suited Sanam just fine. Those girls were not her cup of tea and she and Seher had a bond that didn't rely on spending every single waking moment together.
Sanam remembered how Aahil suddenly started hanging out with the wrong crowd in high school, too. The boys he hung around with barely went to class most days and there were rumours abounding that they indulged in drugs and alcohol, not to mention that one of the boys was rumoured to be a father soon.
Sanam didn't want to admit it then, but she worried about him hanging out with those guys. She didn't want him mixed up in the trouble they were thought to be. But... they weren't friends and he didn't even talk to her. It was like their entire childhood was a lie.
By the time they were sixteen, all they managed was a curt nod to each other as they passed each other in the school hallways.
"What are you doing?" he texted her.
"Thinking about how all of this happened"
"All of what?"
"You and I..."
"Hmmm... I don't like thinking about that. Was so long ago"
Sanam smiled at Aahil's last message. He hated thinking about that day, and what followed. But to her... that marked the beginning of their relationship.
One day, Sanam was going to class through a shortcut on the field, when she noticed a lone figure beneath the bleachers. She tip toed, wondering who the shaking figure was.
"Aahil!" she called out when she'd approached close enough to recognise who it was. He looked up abruptly. "Sanam, what are you doing here? Go away!"
"But Aahil, what's wrong? Why are you sitting here like this? Why do you look so, so... scared?" she whispered. "Sanam please. Go away. I am begging you. I don't want you in any trouble" he pleaded.
"Oh, I'll be in trouble? Like you seem to be? Aahil, cut the crap and tell me what's going on?"
"Why do you care?"
Sanam opened her mouth but she couldn't form a coherent sentence in her mind. Why did she care? "I- I don't... know..."
"Then please. Just go! If they... Sanam... go" he whispered desperately.
"Oh, I see. It's your little crew. What have they done this time, Aahil? Oh my God... you haven't done anything bad, have you?" she asked, quickly stepping towards him and kneeling down in front of him.
"No, what are you-"
"What do we have here? The coward and his little girlfriend?" Ritesh, the ring leader of Aahil's' gang asked, walking up to them surrounded by a few more.
Aahil got up immediately and stood in front of Sanam who was suddenly cowering behind him. "Leave her out of this!" he said coldly.
Ritesh started walking around them slowly. "I will... if you do what I asked you to, earlier"
"Fine. Just let Sanam go"
"Aahil, no! What is he asking you to do? Don't-"
"Shut up, and get out of here!" Ritesh bellowed. Sanam put her hand on Aahil's shoulder. He turned back to face her, and discreetly took her hand in his, squeezing it gently. "Go!" he ordered... but it sounded like a plea.
Sanam nodded and started walking away, but her heart hammered in her chest. No matter how much Aahil had annoyed her and how much they'd fought, he was still a good guy and he was family.
Whatever they were asking of him was obviously something he didn't want to do... Why else would he be hiding like that? Also, his plea for her to leave told her that it was also something bad.
"I have to do something..." Sanam thought to herself as she walked to the main building, forgetting that she was on her way to her next class.
***********
"Sanam! What the hell is wrong with you?" a furious Aahil grabbed her wrist as she walked to her last class. "Aahil, what are you doing? Let go!"
"What did you think you were doing going to the principal?"
"I did the right thing, okay? You looked like you needed the help. A thank you would be appreciated"
Aahil stared at her, and Sanam couldn't explain why she felt uncomfortable under his stare for a while. "You really don't know, do you... how much worse you've made things. I could've handled it. I didn't need the help"
"Aahil, let go. You're... hurting me"
He looked startled and let go of her wrist. "I'll walk home with you today. I haven't seen your Ammi in a while"
"Aahil, have you forgotten that she accompanied them on their trip to Holland this time?" she asked him, referring to Tanveer and Asad.
"Oh right, that's right. I'll walk home with you anyway"
"Oh please. Just leave me alone Aahil. I tried to help you and you're busy shouting and manhandling me. Just. Leave. Me. Alone. Got it?" she shouted before walking off in a huff.
"F***ing hell, Sanam..." he muttered as he watched her walking away.
**********
"Hey, have you seen Sanam?" Aahil gently pulled Seher away from her group to ask her after school. Seher frowned at him. "Since when do you care where Sanam is?" she asked. "Seher come on. Not now. I'm being serious" he said.
Seher could see he wasn't messing around but all she could do was shrug. "I don't know. She texted me to say she'd see me at home when I told her I'd be out with the girls"
"Damn, okay" he said frustratedly and started walking. "Aahil, what's the matter?" Seher called. "I'll tell you later" he called back, already halfway out the school gates.
**********
"You stupid girl... Did you really think reporting us to the principal was going to save your precious friend? Now you've just gone and made things worse - for both of you" Ritesh said calmly as he walked behind Sanam, who had upped her pace incredibly, but to no avail. Ritesh kept up quite easily.
"I'm talking to you!" he yelled, prompting Sanam to turn around and face him. "Well, I don't want to talk to you, okay. And stay the hell away from Aahil. He's not like you lot!"
Sanam was quaking with fear but defiant nonetheless.
Ritesh stepped closer to her. "Shut up and listen. Watch your step or you'll be really sorry"
"You don't scare me. You're nothing but a teenage street thug that pushes his way around because you need to feel powerful"
Ritesh's temper flared. He raised his arm and struck out at her right across her cheekbone. Sanam fell to the floor, holding the right side of her face when...
"What the hell are you doing, Ritesh? Have you lost it" Aahil screamed, as Sanam blocked her face. "Oh here's lover boy, to save his damsel in distress" Ritesh said, jerking his hand from Aahil's.
"You better tell the stupid b**** to shut her mouth and look the other way next time... or I'll show her how I can shut her up" he said in a low voice.
Aahil didn't know what came over him hearing Ritesh talk about Sanam that way and after seeing him slap her, but the next thing he knew was that Ritesh was on the ground with a bloodied nose and Sanam was crying and pulling at him to stop.
"Let's go, Aahil. Please. Now..." she pleaded. He allowed her to pull him back and away. He looked back to Ritesh who was writhing in pain.
"Don't you ever talk about her that way... And if I see you near her again, I swear Ritesh..." Aahil threatened before Sanam pulled him along.
**********
"Did you know about them?" Zoya asked Asad as she prepared his breakfast. "Of course not. I honestly thought... I mean, if you even mention him, she goes on about how she can't stand him"
"I wonder how long... I mean, why wouldn't they tell us?" she asked.
Asad shrugged. "He's like a son to us... I guess, this is a good thing, right?" Asad asked. Zoya nodded. "Of course it is, but I can't understand why the big secret. I mean, it's not like we don't know they're all grown up"
"Let's wait and hear what they have to say at lunch, okay?"
**********
A knock at her bedroom door broke Sanam from her reminiscing. She looked up to see Seher smiling triumphantly, leaning against the doorframe. "So... clubbing with the boyfriend, eh?"
Sanam groaned. Here was another reason she didn't admit anything to her family about Aahil. "Sanam and Aahil sitting in a tree, k-i-s-s-i-n-g..." rang in her ears for years ever since she was a child. Seher had always teased her about it... and now, she would be saying "I told you so"
But her smile vanished soon enough and she sat next to Sanam on the bed. "I can't believe you didn't even tell me..." she said, sounding a little hurt. "Awww Seher... It's... It's been a bit complicated. We didn't want to tell anyone just yet"
Suddenly Seher clapped her hands in delight. "Oh my GOD! I am going to love watching Mr Cool squirm it out in front of Ammi and Abbu at lunch" she laughed. "Don't be mean" Sanam scolded half heartedly.
"Sticking up for your man, over me, huh?" Seher asked, raising an eyebrow. Sanam blushed profusely. This was going to be much worse than she ever thought.
"Hey, where are you going?" she asked Seher who just got up and started walking out of the room. "Oh, I'm going to call Aahil and make him all nervous" she said playfully. Sanam laughed. "You two are crazy" she said, shaking her head.
Seher and Aahil had rediscovered their friendship a few years ago. Sanam knew he half did it for her and half because he really missed his crazy friend.
She had lots of time before lunch and so she lay back on her bed, once again thinking of that day.
**********
"So... are you going to tell me what that was about?" Sanam asked Aahil as he held an ice pack to her face, while she cleaned his scraped and scratched knuckles.
"Don't want to talk about it" he muttered. "Aahil... you're not like them, please... don't hang around with them anymore" she pleaded. He slowly removed the ice pack from her face and put it down.
Reaching out, he stroked her face. "You really think after he did this to you, that I could go anywhere near him without wanting to kill him?" he asked softly, slowly; all the while looking into her eyes.
Sanam gulped. The emotion in his eyes... the gentle touch on her skin, made her heart beat wildly. She shook her head slightly. "Good..." she whispered.
"But I need you to be more careful, Sanam. What was that out there? Why'd you go to the principal? Why'd you stop and argue with him?"
"I could see... how scared you were. I... it, it made me... worry"
"I'll be fine. Don't worry about me, Sanam. Just... be careful"
Sanam nodded, and Aahil got up. "I should get going and pick something up for dinner" he said. "Uhm, wait. Seher is going out with her friends for dinner tonight. Why... why don't you stay here and have dinner with me?" Sanam asked, also getting up off the couch.
Aahil seemed reluctant, but Sanam didn't want him out and about... not with Ritesh and his crew probably out looking for him right now.
"Please? I don't want to be alone"
Aahil nodded and sat down again. Sanam smiled at him. "I'll cook"
He smiled then. "I'll help"
"It was kinda nice" Aahil said out of nowhere while chopping some veggies as Sanam stirred the sauce on the stove.
"What was?" she asked distractedly. "You... being concerned over me, standing up for me. I thought you hated me?"
Sanam stopped stirring and looked at him. "I don't hate you..."
Aahil snapped out of the daze, looking at her and went back to chopping. "I mean, it was dumb... But still nice"
Sanam hid her smile as she went back to stirring. "Idiot" she thought to herself.
"So, what did Ritesh want you to do?" she asked when he'd handed her the vegetables. He leaned against the counter next to her and folded his arms. "I already told you, it's not important"
"But I want to know. I mean... It was something illegal? You wouldn't do that, right?"
Aahil rolled his eyes. "Of course not. But yes... it was something illegal"
Sanam stopped cooking and again looked at him, trying to find something in his eyes. His face was calm, devoid of any emotion, but his eyes showed a storm of darkness in them.
"Are you scared...?" she asked softly, not being able to stop herself from cupping his cheek gently. He leaned into her touch but shook his head a little.
He stepped closer to her, and titled her chin upwards. "You're still worried... about me?"
Sanam nodded, moving closer to him.
"Don't be..." he whispered, running his finger lightly over the slightly purple bruise on her cheek. "Just promise me... If Ritesh comes near you again, you don't argue. You tell me. Immediately. Okay?"
"I promise"
They were so close, he could feel her breath on his face. He wanted so much in that moment to kiss her... but no. He couldn't. Not now. He stepped back and Sanam jerked slightly as he pulled away.
"Ready yet? I'm starving..." he murmured as he walked away, seating himself at the small kitchen table. "Uhh... almost" Sanam responded, feeling mightily confused at what just happened. Was Aahil about to kiss her? Did she... want that, too?
They ate in silence for a while, until Sanam realised that Aahil was really struggling to feed himself with his bandaged hand. Setting her plate aside, she shifted her chair a little closer to him. Aahil looked up at her, shocked that she took his fork from him.
"Here. Let me"
"Sanam, what are you...?"
She quietened his question with a dismissive wave of her hand and started feeding a very pleasantly surprised Aahil. He couldn't remember the last time, if any, that Sanam had been so nice to him.
"Thank you. For earlier..." she said. "I just wish I'd gotten there sooner... before he" Aahil said, shaking his head. "I'm okay, really"
He nodded as she fed him another forkful. She wanted to ask him again what Ritesh had wanted him to do, but she knew he wouldn't budge. In any case, with all that happened today, the less she knew, the better it seemed.
"Okay, are you feeling any better? Any less... scared?" he asked as he started getting ready to leave. "Yes. You?"
He nodded again, but it was obvious he couldn't tear his eyes away from Sanam's face, which had turned bluer by the minute.
"I'm so sorry you got mixed up in all of this. I'm going to make it better, I promise...You just need to keep that in mind, okay?" he whispered to her as they stood at the front door.
Sanam sighed. "It was my fault. I should've just listened and let you handle it, like you said you would, but I was so-"
"Worried. I know" he smiled. "Yes" she conceded.
"That was impressive though... I was far off, but I saw the way you turned to Ritesh and man... the look on your face..."
He was thoroughly impressed and he even sounded a little proud of her. Sanam smiled and then winced almost immediately. "Careful Sanam!" he scolded, reaching out to touch her bruise but stopping just short.
"Your fault. I could've sworn you sounded proud of me" she said, smiling internally at the care and concern that Aahil was suddenly showering on her.
"Remember what I said earlier... about you being careful, okay? And..."
"And...?"
"That I'll fix things - my way. Got it? No more heroics" he smiled the cutest lopsided smile at her, setting her heart a flutter.
All Sanam could manage by then was a quick nod, confused at her sudden racing heart, and why she was looking at Aahil in a different light.
He stepped out of the front door but then looked back at her. "Keep the ice pack on. It will help with the swelling"
"Yes, sir!" she teased, making him smile and shake his head at her. It was like he was seeing her for the first time. His heart sank as he walked off, knowing that tomorrow... it would be like this night never happened.
Sanam leaned against the front door once Aahil had left. "What the hell...?" she thought to herself, a hand over her racing heart.
Hindi TV Shows
Anupamaa
CID
