CHAPTER FOUR
This chapter is dedicated to Shravani, my cute friend who pestered me no end to give the update today...😆
And Sonu...the hyperactive Alzia romance lover ,with whom I shared similar thoughts of possible Alzia romance😳
Flashback, Four months ago...
The palace of The Subedar of Bhatinda
Midnight
It was a noisy full moon night. The palace was decorated like a bride with colorful flowers hanging from it and the circumventions were lit up with orange dancing flames in beautiful torches. The ceremonies were over. The celebrations rolled throughout the day. The guests had all left. The servants were running helter-skelter around the palace, cleaning it up. He was on his palace's rooftop. It had been a long, tiring day, but full of joy for him as today in the true sense, his prayers had been finally answered.
His eyes didn't leave her for even a nano-second today. Only wished that she had glanced back at him in the same way. But she remained quiet behind those translucent curtains, with her eyes low at all times only exchanging a few words with her close ones and the guests congratulating her. Shamshad Begum, Shazia and Fatima had been hovering over her all day.
Altunia stood there on the edge of his palace's terrace looking at the moon. He was still in his wedding Shervani. He was recalling Nani-jaan's words before she departed. The first and last words she exchanged with him ever since she had arrived for their wedding.
"I may not have forgiven you just yet for what you did to us and her, but I know one thing Mirza, only you could ever handle her and only you will be able to in future. Take care of my Razia, Mirza. She loves you, she is only a bit upset with you. Take care of her."
"Mirza !" called out Zaroon, breaking Altunia's deep thinking. "Ek baar phir se soch lo yeh sab karne se pehle. Bhabhijaan ne abhi tak tumhe poori tarah se muaaf nahi kiya hai, abhi abhi toh thoda sambhli hai, kahin woh phir se apna aapa na kho baithe."
"Ama Zaroon Miyan" said Altunia reassuringly. "Tumhari Bhabhijaan ko sambhalne ke liye hii toh hum abhi tak zinda hai. Aur waise bhi, ab woh apna aapa nahi khoyengi. Jabse unke saamne humne Dilli wapas jeetne ka samjhauta rakha tha, unko zyada der nahi lagi thi Nikah ke liye haan kehne mein. Iss hisaab se unke aape ko ab humne apne kaabo mein kar liya hai. Rahi baat muaafi ki, toh woh din bhi door nahi hai. Hamari mohobbat unki narazgi ko muaafi mein zaroor badal dega, bas humein sabar se kaam lena hoga kyunki hai badi ziddi woh..." he said with a smile as if breaking her zidd and convincing her was his most favorite thing to do.
"Allah kare aisa hii ho Mirza" said Zaroon "ab tumhe iss tarah tadapte huye humse aur nahi dekha jaata"
"Iss tadap mein bhi ek sukoon hai Zaroon Miyan" said Altunia smiling dreamily. "Ishq badhta hai mera unki na-na se" he said looking at the moon.
Few meters below the rooftop, in the majestic bedroom of the Subedar, she stood looking out of the balcony at glowing full moon whose light fell on her face making her look exactly like the most beautiful angel. Her jewelry glittered more under the light of the moon. It had been a while since the ceremonies were over and all the guests gone, yet she had not removed her bridal attire or a single jewelry. She was thinking about how fate had got her here. She got married to the man she loved all her life, but she had not expected it to happen this way. She looked at the tiny gold ring on her finger which she hid below a gigantic ring. He had put it on her finger the day she said yes to his proposal. Strange, she had not hinted that she was going to tell a yes and in fact she did so two days after he had put forward the proposal of being bound by marriage in return for help, for winning Delhi back. Yet he immediately put his hands in his pockets and removed the ring, like he had been carrying it for days, maybe months, maybe for years with him, craving to hear a yes from her. She did not feel like removing the ring. She herself did not know why, but she covered it with a giant ring, for she did not want to reveal her sudden soft corner towards him after being furious with him for almost a month.
"Shehzaadi !" said Fatima. Razia turned and saw Fatima standing behind her with a huge tray of fruits and juice.
From her journey of a Shezaadi to Sultan, to a prisoner and now a wife, Fatima was one person who stood by her side throughout, like a true friend, like a backbone who Razia always needed especially after her Mirza had turned a bit cold towards her, during her Sultan reign. She was the only person, apart from Altunia who was not part of her family, who addressed her just as they used to normally without having to change the name to Sultan.
Ever since she was taken prisoner by Altunia, her initial days were horrible. She felt suffocated. Though Altunia never threw her into the dungeons and had given her the personal room meant for his royal consort, she would scream day and night to be thrown into the dungeons. Altunia had to face her wrath of even sometimes attacking him with her Royal Shamsheer or throwing things at him. Considering this reaction as something that was expected, he did not worry and thought it would heal with time. It was only a worry when she had become painfully quiet after a week of all the yelling and tantrums, and not responding to even Altunia bellowing on top of his voice to her to say something. Fearing that she had given up on life from the inside and not beingable to bear seeing her live like an alive corpse, he decided to call for Fatima from Delhi. He begged her to help him get the old Razia back. After leaving her in Fatima's company her wounds finally began to ease but not heal. It took a lot of efforts and patience from Altunia to get her to slowly talk mere few rude words also to him. But that was still progress, which continued to sarcastic talks and taunts and finally, because of being in the shade and comfort of her best friend and the unconditional love and patience from him ,she started conversing with him a little politely and calmly.
And today during her wedding, Razia gave Fatima the place of that best friend who sits next to the bride, not that of a baandhi who stands behind the bride.
"Nahi khaana hai humein, humne kaha tha na ki humein bhookh nahi hai." Said Razia turning her face away from Fatima. "Kya Shezade Yaasir so gaye ?"
Yaasir, the youngest sibling of Razia who was aged nine now had arrived in Bhatinda today morning from Delhi with Shamshad Begum and Shazia. As per to Altunia's official announcement of adopting Yaasir right after his and Razia's Nikah, Yaasir henceforth had to stay with the two of them in their palace. Yaasir was more than overjoyed to be with his favorite sibling and best friend who was also a father figure to him.
"Jee Shezaadi, woh so rahe hai. Badey thakey huye thay." Replied Fatima.
"Shehzaadi, subah se rasmo aur dawaton ke beech mein aapne kuch jalebiyon ke alawa aur kuch nahi khaya hai, kya abhi tak bhookh nahi lagi ? Kamzori aajayegi Shehzaadi, kuch toh kha leejiye" pleaded Fatima.
Razia chose to ignore the requests and said without looking at her "Kya Subedaar Sahab ko hamara farmaan mil gaya?"
Fatima hesitated, remained quiet. Razia turned her head looked at her with suspicion for not answering immediately.
Fatima was quick to wipe off her suspicion "Jee Shehzaadi, humne bhijwa diya tha, abhi tak unko mil gaya hoga."
Razia's face lightened, and she continued to look at the moon.
"Kya soch rahi hai Shehzaadi?" said Fatima joining her in looking upwards.
Razia spoke calmly "Bas yehi ki hamare saath kismat ne kaise sitam kiye hai. Jiski wajah se Sultanat gawayah, aaj ussi se nikah karna pada Sultanat wapas paane ki umeed mein."
"Chalo apni Sultanat wapas paane ki umeed mein hii sahi, hamari jaan ne humse nikah toh kiya" said Altunia, announcing his presence with a broad smile.
Razia and Fatima turned around. Razia frowned at the sight of his presence while Fatima gave him a bright smile.
"Aap yahan kya kar rahe hai woh bhi raat ke iss waqt ?" she said a bit annoyed
Altunia, taking the tray from Fatima and giving her a smile and the you-know-what-to-do look, signaled her to go.
Fatima blinked her eyes as an answer and scurried off. Razia did not stop her but continued to glare at Altunia.
"Ama kamal karti hai aap bhi Mohtarma, ab ek Shauhar ko uski Begum se milne ke liye waqt ko bhi dekhna padega ?" he said with a heavy grin and gleam of mischief in his eyes. He came in front of her blocking her view of the huge doors of his room.
"Kya ek Shauhar raat ko uski Begum ke paas nahi aa sakta" he said playfully.
Razia didn't say anything but continued to sulk at him.
He kept the tray on the small table near them and looked at the door from the corner of his eyes. Yes it looked like it was locked but he had to give them more time to instruct the necessary people about a few things. He then looked at Razia and stared at her with deep affection and the same eyes of mischief. Razia could not help but feel the soft corner again for him. To divert her mind from that she spoke out, "Lagta hai aapko hamara farmaan nahi mila, koi baat nahi hum dobara dohra dete hai. Aaj se yeh Khwabgah hamara hai...sirf hamara. Aapse nikah karke, humein itni izzat toh mil hi sakti hai na Subedar Sahab."
Although her words hurt Altunia and his eyes had lost the mischievous gleam, he continued to smile and said "Aapki izzat mein humne waise bhi koi kami nahi chodi thi Mohtarma, khair aapko iske liye farmaan bhejwane ki zarurat nahi thi. Aapse nikah hua hai hamara, Begum hai aap hamari, iss naate se aaj se iss Mahal ki har badey se lekar choti si choti cheez par, aapka hum se zyada haq hai."
"Toh phir aap yahan pe kar kya rahe hai ? Zara bahar tasheef lekar jaayiye." Said Razia scornfully, turning her face in front of the edge of the balcony again, looking at the gardens.
Altunia grinned, he had longed to catch her alone since morning in her bridal attire. He came and stood by her side. She looked drop dead gorgeous and the anger was the cherry on top for him. " Arrey humein kya pata tha ki aap yahan par hai, aapke baandhiyon ne zara der kardi humein farmaan bhejne mein. Khair hum yahan par hamarey raat ke kapde lene aaye thay. Hum waise bhi yahan par sone nahi wale thay. Koi bhi khwaabgah mein hamara kya kaam jahan par hamari Begum hamarey saath nahi ho ? Isiliye hum chatt pe sone jaa rahe thay."
Razia suddenly looked at him with amusement. Really ? He wasn't going to convince her to stay in the same bedroom as him ?
This was so unlike him. Noticing his grin appearing again, Razia quickly made her expressions indifferent and said "Toh phir lekar jaayiye jo lekar jaana hai aur yahan se chalte baniye"
"Hum subah se dekh rahe hai aapko" he said grinning as Razia looked at him with a frown as though her words had no effect on him. "Jalebi khaate khaate toh thakti nahi, magar dawat mein khaane ki bas mehek le-lekar aapne apni bhookh mitayi hai."
Picking up a sliced peach from the tray he said "Leejiye, ab kuch khaa bhi leejiye."
"Humein bhookh nahi hai" said Razia curtly.
"Naa sunna Mirza ko pasand nahi" said Altunia a bit dangerously.
Razia stared at him expressionlessly as though trying to figure out how to overrule this order of his. Whenever he spoke like that, like it was his final word, she knew her attempts will go feeble to overrule him.
Altunia spoke as though answering the questions in her mind "Pehle aap kuch khayengi, uske baad hii hum yahan se jayenge."
And flashed his eyes at the door again for a second.
Razia looked at him thoughtfully and then at the slice of peach in his hands. "Fine just eat away Razia then he will be gone from here" she thought to herself. As she moved her hands forward to take the peach slice from him, Altunia suddenly moved his hand away. Razia looked up and frowned at him.
"Shauhar apni Begum ke paas itni raat ko nahi aa sakta, uske saath ek khwab gah mein nahi reh sakta, magar kya usko apne haathon se khila bhi nahi sakta ? Kitna zulm karenge aap hum pe ? Thoda toh reham kijiye Begum Sahiba " He said playfully.
"Just eat Razia then he will go" she thought to herself again, tired of arguing with him.
She looked at him and gave him a tiny nod as a consent to feed her. Altunia smiled affectionately and stepped forward closer to her, making her nibble the peach. The moon shone on their faces as he continued to pick up pieces of various fruits cut in the tray and feed her. If anyone happened to see them in their balcony like this from the gardens below, it would look like a beautiful couple descended from heavens, sharing a cute moment.
Finally he took the glass of fresh orange juice and closed in a little bit more and made her drink it. When she was done, the droplets of juice on her lips were visible to him. Altunia was pulled like a magnet towards her, he automatically put the glass back on the table and went closer to her and touched her lips with his finger and tasted the juice on his finger. Razia had started turning crimson. She lowered her eyes and head quickly as she sensed Altunia's seductive gaze on her.
"Woh hum..." she began but Altunia put his finger on his lips silencing her. She closed her eyes. A part of hers was surprised that she was not putting up a fight this time, and a part of her wanted Altunia to continue what he was doing. Her mind felt fuzzy. She could not think straight. She started getting butterflies in her stomach. His affectionate touch always did strange things to her.
"Aapke chehre par yeh chand ka noor, aapko aur bhi zyada khoobsurat bana raha hai Mohtarma." He said softly and seductively while slowly removing his fingers away and descending his face towards her. She could feel his breath on her face now, she got nervous and without opening her eyes moved her face away. Altunia affectionately and slowly moved her hair that was covering her face and held her chin bringing her face in position. Razia froze on spot and clutched the corners of her dress. She wanted to run but her legs felt jammed in that place. He slowly took her lower lip and ran his tongue over it as though trying to taste the juice. His hand left her chin and was now placed on her waist while his other hand was tracing her hair at the back. A spark rose inside Razia, her hands automatically went upwards to hold his shoulders as she opened her mouth on his upper lip. She felt as if she had lost connection with the outer world. Razia's touch and response pleasantly surprised Altunia and he began to caress her waist. This kiss could have gone on for hours if they wouldn't have been interrupted by a hustle in the gardens below.
She opened her eyes in fear and broke the kiss. She turned her head to stare at the source of the sound as she couldn't face Altunia after the moment they had just shared. He stared at her for a second or two and then looked out towards the garden as well. A few guards were seen walking towards the gates.
Taking advantage of his distraction, Razia lifted her heavy attire a little from down and ran outside the balcony and stopped a bit away from the doors which were now closed.
"What just happened ?? How did I let this happen ?? Why did I lose control ? No god why...why do I still get weak in the knees for him ?? What is this effect that he still has on me ? After all that he did.. No ! Why did I show him this weak side of mine ?"
Altunia looked around. The sudden whoosh of Razia left the air a bit scented with her sweet aroma. Altunia sniffed in the air closing his eyes, and then followed her into the bedroom stopping right behind her. There was a little guilt but a sudden beam of joy inside his heart.
"I did not even realize I was losing control with her. I shouldn't have done all this so fast, its hardly been a month since she's here, her wounds are still fresh. God ! She has the pull of a magnet and I am the nail. And how did she allow that ? This is definitely some progress."
She was looking at the doors. Sensing him standing behind her she tilted her head on the side without turning around and said "Woh humne phalon ko kha liya...ab aap...woh...bahar" she closed her eyes tight and took a deep breath to stop stammering.
"Hum aapse kal milenge Deewan-e-Aam mein, abhi hum so jayenge...aap bhi jaake so jayiye bohot der ho gayi hai."
Altunia's heart sank, even though he had seen that coming.
"She's gesturing me to leave. She is not angry but she is still hesitating. Why ? Why can't she accept what she still feels for me ? No ! I am going to stick around and find out what's going on inside her mind. It's time to put my plan into action."
"Jhoot aap bolti nahi aur sach aap bol nahi sakti Mohtarma" said Altunia with a stiff voice. "Khair, aapka hukum sar aakhon par" he said going towards the door and trying to open it. It did not open...he pulled it a second time and then a third.
"Brilliant ! Its locked so tight that even an elephant like Zaroon wont be able to open it unless the lock outside is not broken"
Razia stared at the door with eyes widening in horror, she was hoping what she was thinking is not true.
"Mohtarma yeh darwaza nahi khul raha hai" Said Altunia trying to put in some tone of worry in his voice without turning to look at her due to the fear that he might not be able to control his laughter by looking at her obvious expressions and give away the secret by doing so.
"Nahi khul raha hai matlab kya ??" Razia almost half screamed, rushing forwards to pull the door.
"Arrey nahi khul raha...matlab nahi khul raha hai Mohtarma !" said Altunia in the fake tone of shock fighting the burning urge to laugh. He threw his head on the other side to avoid being noticed by Razia.
But she was too busy banging the door. "ARREY KOI HAI KYA BAHAR ?? ISS DARWAAZE KO KHOLO !!"
"Lagta hai kisine bahar se tala lagwa diya hai Mohtarma" said Altunia trying to reason with her.
"Arrey aise kaise ? Koi bina dekhe ek Subedar ke kamrey mein aise hii tala laga dega ? Woh bhi bina aapke ijazat se ? Kaun itna gustakh ho sakta hai ...Arrey FATIMA...kahan ho...darwaza kholo !!! " said Razia in utter disbelief
"Scream...scream as much as you want on top of your voice. Today even Fatima isn't on your side"
"Ohhh !!" he said smacking his head with his hands as though he did a terrible mistake.
Razia stared at him, still struggling to open the doors.
"Arrey humein ijazat se yaad aaya ! Hum ne hii hamare khaas kaneezo ko kaha tha ki aaj raat, darwaze par taala lagakar bandh kar le kyunki hum chatt pe sone wale thay, aur humein aapka woh farmaan nahi mila tha." Said Altunia still smacking his head.
Razia was seriously alarmed now "Kyaa ?? Aap...Aap pagal toh nahi hai na ? Kaun apne kaneezo ko aisa hukum deta hai...aur kaise kaneez hai aapke bina dekhe darwaaza bandh kar diye ?"
"Dekhiye Begum Sahiba yeh Subedar ka khwab gah hai, ise yun khulla chodna munasaf nahi hota, hamari kitni keemti cheezein hai yahan par, jaise ki aap ! Ab aap bhi hamare liye kitni keemti hai...aur aap yahan par hai...ab talaa lagakar hamarey kaneez ne aapko bhi mehfooz kar diya subah tak" He said playfully
Razia stared at him blankly. She had just grasped the words "Begum and Keemti". She tried to sum those two words up and hearing this from his mouth gave her an odd sense of satisfaction and security.
"what is wrong with you Razia ?" she snapped out of her trance.
She ran towards the balcony. "ARREY ! BAHAR KOI HAI ?? SIPAHIYON !! KOI HAI KYA ?? FATIMA !! "
Altunia came forwards slowly in and stopped right in the middle of the room watching her in deep amusement.
"No answers from anyone ? Im surprised at Zaroon's ability to help me make my plan work so well. Shame ! I always underestimated him."
She came back running in the bedroom and started banging the door again screaming and ran towards the balcony again. This process was repeated again and again until Altunia could hold it no longer.
Just as she had crossed him again to go towards the balcony, he caught hold of her hand and moved his way slowly upwards towards her wrist and gripping it, feeling her bangles fall on the edge of his grip.
"Chehre pe thakaan..." he said and pulled her in his arms, putting his left hand on her waist while the right still held her hand,
"Aur aakhon mein neend, aur Begum jhoom rahi hai yahan wahan. Arrey ab bas bhi kariye, aisi bhi kya hichkichahat hai aapki kii humse itna door bhaag rahi hai ? Nikah hua hai hamara, Shauhar hai hum aapke. Ek kamre mein raat guzarenge toh log kuch ulta nahi kahenge...fikar mat kijiye " he whispered in his usual seductive tone to her, bringing her close.
Razia was nervous, trembling, trying to break free. She could feel his warm breath again on her face. A part of her wanted to remain there caged in his arms. She suppressed it. "Nikah se zyada ek samjhauta hua hai hamarey aur aapke darmiyaan...isey samjhauta hii rehne de toh behtar hoga Subedar Sahab."
Altunia felt as if someone had deeply pierced his heart. His grip on her waist loosened. He looked at her with piercing eyes that were slowly turning into rage. Razia feeling the loosened grip and noticing the rage in his eyes quickly tried to run away, only to find his grip on her wrist more tightened, stopping her from escaping.
"Agar aapke liye yeh Nikah sirf ek samjhauta hai toh phir hamari dii hui anghooti (ring) ko aapne kyun pehen rakha hai ?"
Razia froze and her eyes widened with shock. He had not even held her left hand, it was her right hand in his grip, then how did he realize ? With her back facing him, she slowly tilted her head as little as possible towards the left to see her ring finger, yes the tiny gold ring was still hidden below the large ring she wore. How did he notice it ?
Altunia's sharp gaze did not let her attempt to make sure of something' go unnoticed. He spoke as though he had just read her mind leaving her more bewildered " Mirza ki nazron se naa kuch chupa hai, naa aage chupega, khaas kar tab, jab hamari nazrein har waqt aap hi pe rehti hai... itna toh aap hamarey bare mein jaanti hai na ?" he said dangerously.
Razia remained frozen even as she felt him slowly closing in from behind reducing the gap in between them. He lift her left wrist up and brought his right hand towards her ring finger from the front, removing the big ring covering his tiny gold one and kissed her ring finger.
Razia shut her eyes tight as Altunia's fingers and knuckles began tracing her cheeks from the back. She felt ticklish and smiled. His fingers slowly found her left ear and he began unscrewing her earning. Razia's mind went into a frenzy again. She wanted to run away, shout out loud at him to stop what he was doing to her, but some unnatural force was stopping her from doing so.
"What is this feeling ?" she thought desperately as Altunia proceeded to unscrew her right earing. His touch was as soft as a feather. His hands were suddenly on her shoulders, this made her open her eyes and then shut them slowly again as his hands traced her arms slowly downwards, catching both her palms in his placing them on her belly, locking her in his arms. She could feel his warm breath on her as close as ever now. He slowly got his face forwards to kiss her on the cheeks. Razia blushed and trembled at the same time. Sensing her trembles, Altunia tightened his arms around her.
"Itna ghabra kyun rahi hai aap ?" he whispered softly in her ears, "Abhi toh puri raat jawan hai"
Hearing this Razia slowly began to break free of her frenzy and started coming to her senses.
Altunia was removing her bangles now, dropping some and causing them to break and keeping some on the small marble table next to them. Razia had started trembling more and was putting up a struggle to break free of his clutches. She herself couldn't
figure out why she was doing this when all she wanted was to continue having those wonderful pleasures he was pouring into her just a few seconds back. Perhaps, due to the recent turn of events which had happened just 25 days back and now her Nikah all of a sudden was a bit too fast for her.
"Time. I need some time. I need to figure out what I exactly feel for him. This rush of sudden mixed emotions...and this feel of being in his arms and then wanting to run away from him, I need time to settle down."
Her struggles confused Altunia. It was not hesitant struggles. It was as though she really did want to break free. He wasted no time in loosening his arms around her, though he was still filled with a desperate desire to hold her in his arms. He let go of her, not uttering a single word. He waited for her to speak first.
"She will have to tell me what is in her mind today. I want to know. I want to understand. I want to be there for her. What is still stopping her ? Perhaps she hasn't forgiven me completely ?"
The silence was too long. Razia was unsure of how she should explain her anxiety to him. Finally she turned her head to the left side and without turning to face him fully she said nervously " Humein bohot neend aarahi hai"
"Dikh raha tha aapki aakhon mein, toh phir chaliye, so jaate hai" said Altunia, smiling.
Razia was quiet again for a few seconds, then she spoke, stammering, as she couldn't find the right words to explain things to him. She was scared of his anger and even more scared of her words hurting him, "Woh ...hum dono ...yahan...ek saath...theek hai... bahar taala hai...kuch kar bhi toh nahi sakte...magar...woh...ek hii bistar pe...sona..."
Altunia chuckled. Razia was surprised because this was a reaction she certainly did not expect from him.
"Bharosa nahi hai hum par ? Nikah kis buniyaad pe qubool kiya phir aapne ? Aapki marzi ke khilaaf hum aapke saath kuch nahi karenge, Nikah izzat dene ka hukum deta hai, zabardasti karne ki ijazat na hii Nikah deta hai aur naa hi hamara zameer. Humpe itna toh bharosa kiya hota aapne Begum Sahiba, Mirza ko itna bhi nahi samajh paayi aap." he said with a faint smile but heavy heart.
"Waqt ke saath insaan ki fitrat bhi badal jaati hai, Subedar Sahab, aur inn chaar saalon mein..." She suddenly stopped talking as she sensed his hands on her again, this time removing the dupatta from her head and letting her hair fall loose completely.
"Hum aaj bhi wohi Mirza hai, jissey aap deewano ki tarah mohobbat karti thi. Humein Mirza' se Subedar Sahab' bulakar, aap hamare aur aapke darmiyan jo mohobbat thi aur hai, usko badal nahi sakti" he said running his fingers through her long hair.
Razia was listening to his every word carefully though getting a tingling sensation with every touch of his which was a bit distracting. He put her hair forwards and traced the nape of her neck with his finger. She responded to this with a twitch as it tickled her a bit.
Smiling at her twitchy movements, he began to undo the knot of her heavy necklaces and continued "Aapki hichkichahat ko hum samajhte hai Begum Sahiba, itne bure Shauhar bhi nahi hai hum. Hum jaante hai yeh sab aapke liye bohot jaldi se ho gaya, yeh bhi jaante hai ki aapne humko theek se muaaf bhi nahi kiya, lekin hamari pak mohobbat aur iss nikah ke pakke dhaage ki khaatir, humko ek mauka toh de hii sakti hai na aap ?"
Having said that, he found his hand on the dori of her attire. He hesitated for a few seconds, not knowing how she would respond, but decided to give it a try as he wanted to see how far she would let him go tonight. He opened her first dori. He could feel her back twitch and then stiffen. He smirked and began to undo the second one. She took one step forward away from him. He closed in again, and just as he touched her third n last dori she lifted her attire and moved quickly behind the netted dresser.
Altunia watched her go with deep affection and a little sadness. She was not ready to let him go this far yet. He understood she needed time. He slowly walked towards the netted dresser and turned his back on her, "Bharosa rakhiye humpe Mohtarma, hum aisa kuch nahi karenge jiski aap humein ijazat na de."
Razia, for the first time in ages, felt relieved and felt a sudden rush of respect and affection all over again for this man who she once loved dearly, still loves perhaps and who was her husband today. She was smiling, yes actually smiling genuinely after ages. She looked around and saw a long narrow stool in front of her on which Fatima had kept her night clothes, and she was a bit surprised to find Altunia's night robes right next to hers.
"Ohh well this is his room, his servants must have definitely kept them there."
She picked up her clothes and began changing. She turned her face and glanced at Altunia for a moment. His back was still turned yes, but to her utmost shock he was without his shervani. She froze. She had no idea he too had removed his clothes.
She forgot she had only half-changed and was still in her undergarments. Clutching her night clothes to herself, she was staring at his back, his strong physique and muscles. She wanted to move out of the netted dresser which was preventing her from seeing his strong body properly.
Suddenly Altunia's voice made her snap out of what she was doing. "Aapka humko yun bina shervani ke dekhne ki kasar poori ho gayi ho toh, hamarey kapde zara wahan se de dijiye na Mohtarma" he said grinning broadly and turning his head a bit towards the right. Razia got a shock. She quickly turned and wore her clothes, without tying the doris from behind she hurried forwards and took his night robes and handed it over to him from the side.
He pulled her by her hands and took her in his arms. It happened so suddenly that it took Razia a few seconds to figure out what had actually happened, but before she realized it she was locked in his arms again, this time facing him. The only thing coming in between the two of them physically was his folded night robes which was still in her hands. He was topless and this made her shy so she lowered her gaze. As she struggled to come out of his cage again, Altunia smirked and said " Apne shauhar ko yun chori chupe dekhne ki zarurat nahi hai aapko. Khulle aam bhi dekh sakti hai, poora haq hai aapko."
"Chodiye humein" she said.
Because of the struggles, her night dress which was not tied from behind began to fall off slowly from the shoulders. Altunia noticed this and immediately caught hold of the corners of her dress from the shoulders, preventing it from falling right on time. He wrapped his arms around her neck to tie her upper dori. Her head was almost on his bare chest. She wanted to snuggle in it, she was feeling more and more affectionate towards him by the second. He could feel her warm and heavy breaths of relief on his chest. Smiling to himself, he tied her second and then her third dori. Before breaking their almost hug he gave her a kiss on the cheeks. Though she felt extremely shy and was blushing deeply now, she looked up at him, her eyes expressing her gratitude of thanks. Her huge nose ring was still on. He could not help but stare at her intensely, for with that nose ring on, and her hair loosely open, and in her night clothes, she looked gorgeous, heart breakingly gorgeous.
His intense gaze on her made her lower her eyes, which broke Altunia's trance. He smiled and turned around raising his hands from the sides signaling her to put his robes on.
"Lo ! Shauhar-giri karna shuru bhi kar diye janaab ne." she thought to herself with a faint smile. She put on the robes on his hands and brought it upwards to his shoulders.
"Shukriya Begum Sahiba ! Apne Shauhar ke liye yeh pehla nek kaam kiya hai aapne" he chuckled happily.
She blushed slightly. Altunia turned around to look at her expressions. He suddenly noticed her eyes were becoming red due to the sleepiness. "Amaa humein toh laga tha kii aap hamare changul se aazaad hone ke liye neend ka bahana bana rahi thi, humein kya pata tha kii aapki khoobsurat aakhon mein yeh kambakht neend waqayi badh rahi hai" he said with a note of concern in his tone. "Humein muaaf kijiyega Mohtarma, humein aapko yun rok ke nahi rakhna chahiye tha."
Before Razia could reply, or even react, Altunia had carried her in his arms. She looked at him with a gaze that was half annoyed for his audacity and half amused for the genuine concern for her, which was very much evident from his eyes. He smiled widely at her, reading her expressions which could not decide how exactly to react, as he walked towards their huge bed.
He put her down carefully and came from the other side to lie beside her. He leaned towards her and whispered "Waise batana toh bohot baar chahate thay magar mauka hii nahi mila...aap itne saare logon se gheri huyi thi."
He saw Razia's forehead forming the lines of confusion. Smiling seductively he continued "Itni khoobsurat lag rahi thi aap, log keh rahe thay kii maano aap ho chaand ka tudka... Naa ! Mirza ko lagta hai ki chaand hai AAPKA tukda." He came closer to her face and whispered "Bhari mehfil mein chup chupke apni nazron se nihaar rahe thay hum aapko, kishton mein qatal ho rahe thay, iska badla aapse bohot jaldi lenge." Saying so he slowly removed her nose ring. Now she was left with no jewelry on her except the tiny gold ring. He kissed her eyes one by one softly to close them. After putting the covers on the both of them, he ran his fingers in her hair, caressing her to sleep.
Almost two hours later.
Altunia was sitting upright on his bed, with his back resting on the edge. He was more tired than ever but the anxiety wasn't letting him sleep, at the same time he felt oddly peaceful. He was in deep thoughts, deep thoughts about her, about them.
Occasionally his eyes glanced at Razia, who was now sleeping soundly next to him. Finally she was his. Officially his. It had taken a lot of efforts, sleepless nights, tensions, rage, begging, love and patience to make her his. His thoughts were going back on how their journey had started and how their relationship and equation for each other had changed over the years. For him, his love had insanely increased by the passing days, months and years. He had got more possessive than ever about her. About her actual feelings one thing was clear to him today, they had made progress ever since he had got her here...and she still loved him, but she was still hesitant. Hesitant to surrender herself to him completely. Hesitant to let out her inner desires for him. Hesitant to confess she still loves him. He had controlled his burning urge to crush her underneath himself today.
"One step at a time Mirza, one step at a time."
There was no way in hell he would force her. He wanted her to surrender willingly. He wanted to shower all his love on her. He wanted to hold her in his arms, kiss her, crush her, complete their marriage, but with her permission. Whenever she would be ready.
"There will be a day...a day that will come very soon, when you will surrender yourself to me completely. You won't be hesitant. You will trust me, like you trusted me before. You will love me, like you loved me before. My love will melt you again Razia, I will do whatever it takes and no matter how much time it takes."
Smiling slightly at the success of his plan which was just to be with her at the beautiful night of their wedding, he closed his eyes and thanked God for giving him Razia, finally.
He opened his eyes at the sound of the sudden stir next to him. She was talking in her sleep restlessly, as usual. Altunia would stand next to her and watch her sleep for hours together sometimes almost everyday. The initial days were full of shrieks which would end up in tears, making Fatima come running to her. He would watch helplessly, for he knew it was him who was responsible for this state of hers. The shrieks reduced to restlessness accompanied by occasional crying.
But today what came out of her mouth surprised him pleasantly. "Mirza ! Humein chod kar mat jao. Jee nahi sakte hum tumhare begair" she muttered, stirring restlessly. "Mirza ...Mirza !" she called out again, slowly coming towards his side. He opened his arms and closed in to her, giving her head the access of his chest. Once her head was rested on his chest, he held her and whispered "Hum yahin hai Mohtarma, aapke paas, Mirza aapko chodke kabhie nahi jayega." Saying so, he kissed her forehead affectionately. She stopped stirring as though she was able to hear what he just told her. Having her in his arms made him forget his anxiety leaving space in his heart only to be filled in with immense peace and joy. Closing his eyes, he too fell into a deep slumber along with her.
The sun came up the next day, bringing in a bright new morning in their lives. The sweet chirrup of the birds made Altunia open his eyes slowly. It had been ages since he had slept so peacefully. His eyes fell on her who was still locked passionately in his arms, fast asleep.
Ah ! How he loved this sight, of an angel, his angel resting her head on his chest. He smiled down at his wife, staring at her with deep affection. She looked peaceful, as though she too hadn't slept like that in ages. He stared at her for a few minutes before she too slowly opened her eyes. She looked around, then looked up at him, who was still smiling at her. She smiled back and asked softly and sleepily "Subah hogayi kya ?" Altunia gave a soft chukle and said "Aap toh aise pooch rahi hai, maano kos rahi ho subah ko...kii subah kyun aaya, humein Mirza kii baahon se door karne."
It was only then when she realized she was locked up in his arms. "Na na !" he said guessing her next reaction, "Ismein hamari koi gustakhi nahi hai, aap khud hii neend mein hamari baahon mein aagayi thi, ab bhala hum apne aap ko rokte bhi toh kaise ?"
Razia quickly sat up, glaring at him and then suddenly at the door. Altunia turned his head to see what she was looking at, and when he realized it he could not hide his smirk.
"Ab toh kaneezo ki shamat aane wali hai" he chuckled to himself.
Razia threw her part of the covers aside and pulled the door open. The lock had been removed. She stormed outside.
"KISKI HIMMAT HUYI DARWAAZE PE BINA ANDAR DEKHE TAALA LAGANE KI ??... FATIMAA !! "
Altunia sat half upright, watching her go, delighted with himself. Zaroon came running inside
"Miyaaa kaha tha na humne. Ab utho jaake sambhalo Bhabhijaan ko"
Suddenly they heard more of Razia's yells, much more loudly this time.
Altunia started laughing. Zaroon looked at him bewildered "Arrey Miyan pagal toh nahi ho gaye ho ? Jaldi chalo, issey pehle Bhabhijaan kisi bechare nirdosht kaneez ka qatal kar de !" and ran outside.
Altunia, still laughing to himself, removed the covers, and walked outside happily to handle his newly wedded wife, the love of his life.
Precap - A passionate horse stable night in flashabck
Extremely sorry was the delay guys. Was held up. But here you have a looong update of their much awaited Nikah night. To those who are disappointed of their romance not going on in full swing, major apologies, the next update will be about them finally 'completing' their marriage. I had to be a bit realistic about Razia's thoughts and feelings here.
Note - Please excuse me for the grammatical and spelling errors and the mix of Urdu-English
Edited by arshia200 - 9 years ago
Indian Mythology
Hindi TV Shows
