SaHil FF : Remember me ...? *Part 5 and 6 page 15* - Page 8

Part 4 :

He woke up late the next morning to the smell of coffee. Sanam was awake and making breakfast. She made eggs, toast and other stuff and made a pretty arrangement on the breakfast table. He smiled at her sunny disposition, sharp in contrast to the horrible nightmare she just experienced last night.

"Good morning Aahil! Did you sleep well? Come, have some breakfast.."

He sat down, pleased to see she had made eggs to his liking. Watching him eat heartily, she asked him.

"Aahil, did I cook for a living? "

Aahil choked on the mouthful of food and hacked severely. Sanam jumped up and thumped his back as he cleared his windpipe of food particles. When he settled down, he realized she was still waiting for his answer.

"You used to have your own dhaba, Sanam. In Punjab"

"A dhaba...? in Punjab.?.. no wonder I speak different..."

"But how did I end up here, married to YOU? A rich man?"

Aahil swallowed. The flood of memories assailed him. I burned your dhaba Sanam, you came to Bhopal after losing everything, ended up a cook in my house...

"Love is blind, Sanam. You took pity over a lonely bratty jerk..."

Sanam watched his face quietly, trying to figure out his riddle.

"Fine.. eat up! You promised to take me to the market today. I'm going to cook today! No more expensive tasteless food !" Aahil grabbed the reprieve and ate quickly.

The visit to the market turned out to be a big discovery for Aahil. He never knew Sanam was such an accomplished bargainer at the marketplace. He watched her amusedly as she picked and fussed with shopkeepers over vegetables and meats, getting the best price for everything, shocked when she argued sternly with cheating peddlers.

All he had to do was follow her and help her carry the purchases, but he thoroughly enjoyed this chance to know her better. He knew now that, he knew very little of her, and what she went through in life before meeting him.

She thought she saw someone familiar, a man. Slight and skinny, his form reminded her of someone. "Anwar... he was supposed to marry me. But he said "Qubool nahin hain" and ran away with my money and my jewelry... we had nothing left..." she said wistfully. "Maybe that's how I ended up in Bhopal..."

Aahil was shocked. Sanam was about to be married, to someone else ! He never knew that. And the bas***d jilted her in such a humiliating way! He made a mental note to find the rat and bury him. But thank Allah she didn't marry him...

Another thought struck him. Someone who was jilted at the altar is unlikely to do that to another person, would they? What happened to Sanam? Where was she the whole time the twin was posing as her? He remembered her nightmare. That must have been when it happened...

She was held hostage by someone the whole time! Waiting for him to rescue her. And he was busy piling punishment on her !

Sanam recovered from the bad memory quickly, the fresh air having done her good. They got back to the house and she started work in the kitchen. He was assigned to cutting vegetables, happy to just be around her. She struggled with lighting the stove when the lighter didn't work.

He found some matches tucked away and lit one. The lit match cast a shadow over his face and she was struck with a sudden flashback.

He lit the stove and turned to her, surprised to find her staring at him angrily.

"You burned down my dhaba Aahil?"

Aahil swallowed. His guilt showed in his face.

"Did you know that dhaba was ALL we had? I was saving up for Badi Ammi's heart surgery and Haya's ear surgery ! Just like that, you burned it down to ashes ! I lost everything !! And then Anwar found me completely unsuitable to marry!! He stole the land from us and RAN AWAY!! Yes, he ran, but YOU! YOU burned my dhaba for what? For calling you rude? For not catering to your high class taste? For not bowing at your feet??"

Sanam's breathed in gulps and heaves, her anger licking at her. Aahil just stood there, knowing he deserved this. She magnanimously forgave him once, but this felt more fitting. She walked around him, not wanting to talk to him anymore. She took the knife and chopping board away from him, effectively banishing him from her kitchen. He left her alone, while she angrily went about her cooking.

Later she came and arranged the table with lunch, putting plates for two persons. She came and stood by him at the sofa and put her hand on his shoulder. He looked up in surprise at her small smile.

"I am guessing you already apologized for this before and I had forgiven you, right? I can't punish you again for that. I'm sorry. Please come and eat" she said mildly. He followed her to the table and saw the feast she had prepared, smiling at her apparent return to her domain.

"Besides, I must say sorry for burning your car too..." she said with a mischievous twinkle in her eyes. He laughed helplessly and pulled out a chair for her to sit.

"I'm sorry you got jilted at the altar Sanam... I'll strangle him if I ever find him"

"Don't bother Aahil. It's a good thing I didn't marry him. We'd have never met..."

Aahil smiled and took her hand. "Yes, thank Allah for that...".

"But how did we end up married Aahil?? You hated me so much !"

"I promise i'll tell you everything Sanam... But let's enjoy this fabulous meal first okay..? My God, this smells heavenly!"

Sanam had cooked a sumptuous meal, which Aahil appreciated aloud. She was really impressed with how he was so generous with his compliments. He was obviously still upset about the Dhaba-burning memory but he hid it valiantly.

That question of Sanam's had filled Aahil with dread. He had wanted to delay telling her the awful truths of their marriage as long as he could. How I didn't trust her. How she was kidnapped and I didn't even know... How she came back and found him married to another woman... Especially the fact that Sanam had left him...

After lunch he had wandered frustratedly down into the store room, looking for something to hammer or hit or something. Normally laps in the pool would cure that need for an adrenaline rush, but he really felt like breaking something. He wanted Sanam to rediscover him slowly at her own pace, but he can't help but feel like a fugitive sensing impending capture.

Why is life so difficult for me?

Other people get married and love and fight and suffer with their wives for 20-30 years. I can barely hold on to this one, the one I really want to "suffer" with the rest of my life.

He found the old industrial size washing machine. The one he had rescued Sanam from. He felt ridiculously angry at it and started hitting it with a stick nearby. He hit it with so much anger and vigour that he felt a little crazy. At least this one object that hurt Sanam he can punish, the identity of the unseen danger lurking about her still evaded him.

He hacked and hacked at the hulking metal appliance, hardly causing any damage except exteriorly. But his hand however, suffered the blows. Splinters cut into his palm and fingers of his right hand. Pain took over from anger and he sat dejectedly on a bench.

"WHAT ON EARTH IS GOING ON HERE !!" Sanam thundred on to scene.

"Aahil !! What are you doing, banging that thing like that? Have you gone mad or something?" She quickly found a first aid kit, and fussed over his hand.

She carefully pulled out each splinter out one by one, wincing at his every hiss of pain. She lectured him angrily, while he sat watching her.

"Aahil, that's a washing machine. People use that to wash clothes, not target practice! Why were you so angry with it!? Did it ruin your shirt or something? "

Hearing her admonishment, he started to laugh. Hearty, self deprecating laugh at the reversal of roles today, from a similar incident sometime ago.

Sanam looked worried and stood to check his forehead.

"Aahil, you're worrying me..." Aahil reassured her and they walked back upstairs together, his frustration spent for now.

Sanam brought him dinner later. She sat down in front of him with a tray and started to spoon rice into his mouth. Aahil quietly ate every spoon, looking intensely into her eyes. Don't you remember this, Sanam? This was a turning point in our relationship...

She brought up a hand to wipe some spill away and noticed his eyes. They were glistening with tears as they stared at her. She gestured with her face,What happened?

"Chilly hot..?"she asked.

That wrung a reluctant laugh as he blinked back tears.

"No, Sanam. You once fed me like this when I hurt my arm. I fought you then but you won me over..."

There was a silence, as Sanam processed this. In a sudden movement, Aahil pulled her in a crushing hug.

"I love you Sanam. I tested your patience too many times and you persisted. Now it's my turn to be patient... It's frustrating, but I can bear it..."

Sanam said nothing but just hugged him back.

That night she woke up screaming again. This time she thrashed about as though gagged and bound. Moaning his name out over and over. Aahil held her fast as she struggled with the dream, his heart breaking as he presumed, again he had not come to her rescue.

"Aahilll... I'm right here... please don't let them take me! ... I'm right here... look back !"

"Who are they Sanam? Tell me?? " Aahil asked the thrashing Sanam. She suddenly clutched his shirt and whispered urgently, giving Aahil goosebumps.

"Aahil! Don't marry her Aahil... She's my twin! She's making a terrible mistake! She doesn't know..."

Aahil held her in his arms, rocking back and forth until she finally settled back into calm sleep.

Who took her away from him? When? So the one who ran away was Seher... and he was about to marry her...

He paced the room as she slept. He knew who had the answers, Seher. But if he brought her here everyone would know where they were. No... he's not ready for that. All the wrong things will come out and Sanam will completely freeze me out...

He didn't know when he fell asleep. But he was nudged awake in the wee hours by Sanam.

"Aahil...? You're falling off the chair. Come.. sleep on the bed." She pestered him up and he crawled into bed and went right back to sleep instantly... Sanam smiled ruefully and tucked him in. He looked so adorable with hair floppy like this. She went back to sleep watching him, with a sense of dejavu...

Aahil woke up with a start, trying to recall how he got on the bed. He saw Sanam lying so primly next to him. She even slept so politely, he thought. Her beautiful face peaceful, and bathed by early sunshine. He was struck by how much he missed her, even when she was right there in front of him.

Remember me Sanam...!

Chapter 5 & 6