.:.Manzil.:. MOVED (Read 19) - Page 2

cool story! 👏 keep it up! looking forward to the next part! 😉

just finished reading ur story

you've done a great job!! please continue soon! 😃

Thanks guys! Glad you like the story so far. You will soon find out a lot more about all of the characters. But for now, please wish me luck on my final exams which begin tomorrow! 😲

I'm so not ready yet!!!

Originally posted by: coolniyu

hey!! well its wonderful n if u call this introduction boring i can hardly wait for the next chapters 😉
so its luv at first sight for samira 😳 i like her a lot 😃
n its so sweet of you to include translations 😆

well yea... i read it all and wanna review but my dad is bugging me to go to sleep... so ill edit this tomorrow and do the homors of a proper review for this one great story!!!!!

well i told u i will edit it 😆😆😆 so far i really like it... and the love at first sight thing is too cute.... and thanks a LOT for the translations cos i find it diff to read in hindi tho i understand it... and samira seems a nice kind of girl... i think ill like her a lot... and looking forwanrd to knwing more bout rehan...

great story and very very very rarely i dont complain about short chapters and this is one time... cos the chapter was the perfect length!!!!!!!

lovely story yaar and please continue soon 😃😳

-❤️Ysh❤️-

Thanks guys! Looking forward to your review Ysh.

wow.....i love ur story.
eagerly waiting 4 da next part 😊

Wow, that is a lot of characters!!😲

But I love how each one of them is so unique!!👏

The story is great so far and your introduction has me very curious!

Good luck on your exams sweety!!👍🏼

Will be waiting for more!!😉

Okay, I lied. I couldn't stay away from writing more. Whenever I took a break from studying I wrote a couple paragraphs and now, I'm actually done with another chapter! My final exams are going okay. I have my last two on Wednesday and Thursday. Chapter 3 will definitely not be done before Sunday since my graduation is on Saturday, but I hope you can enjoy this until then. Please let me know what you think.

Chapter 2

Rehan looked out the window of his room at his neighborhood. It was a beautiful, sunny Saturday morning, and the park across the street looked inviting. Rehan made a mental note to plan a family picnic there before the weather became too cold. The neighborhood was one of wealthy residents, which was apparent from the sizes of the houses and the expensive cars. The maintained lawns and clean streets reminded Rehan of scenes from movies and TV Shows depicting the lifestyles of the rich. His old neighborhood in L.A. certainly looked nothing like this.

As he watched a group of teenagers play basketball at the park, Rehan thought about how nice his first week in Fremont had been. He and his sister Sabah had spent the last three evenings exploring the town with the help of Imraan and Samira. They had been to the mall, the bowling alley, and three different restaurants. Having the Rehman family next door had really made everyone in his family feel welcome.

Rehan looked at his watch and realized it was fifteen minutes to ten. He decided to head over to Samira's place for his first singing class with Mrs. Divya Sharma. Rehan had been taking Hindustani vocal lessons in L.A. for the past eight years and he was glad that he could continue his training. Now if only he could find out where he could observe Bharat Natyam and Hiphop classes on weekends, he would be entirely content. Rehan was an aspiring choreographer and he loved experimenting with different styles of dance.

He stopped in front of Sabah's room and decided to ask one final time whether she would like to join him. Sabah enjoyed singing too, but had never been interested enough to take a class. Plus, she always had other things that she was busy with. Rehan knocked on her door, and she told him to come in. She was sitting at her desk with her Princeton Review SAT book in front of her.

Rehan: You sure you don't want to come, Baji. Ek baar dekh len, shaayad aap ko achcha lage. You sure you don't want to come, Baji. Just try the class once; you might like it.

Sabah: Nahin, tum jaao. Mujhe SAT ki tayyaari karni hai. No, you go. I have to prepare for the SATs.

Rehan: Lekin test mein do mahine hain. Aap agle hafte se padhaayi shuru kar lijiye. But there are still two months until the test. You can start studying next weekend.

Sabah: Rehan, abhi school se kaam zyaada nahin mila hai to humaare paas thoda time hai. Jab ek baar projects aur exam shuru ho jaayen to SAT ki tayyaari kaise karenge? Meri maano to tum bhi jaldi hi padhaayi shuru kardo. Rehan, we haven't been assigned too much homework from school yet so we have some time. Once projects and exams begin, how will we make time for SAT preparation? I think you should start studying soon too.

Rehan knew not to push the issue any further. Once Sabah's mind was set on something, she wouldn't change it for anything.

Rehan: Theek hai. Aaj raat se hi shuru kar doonga. See you later. Okay, I'll start tonite. See you later.

Sabah: Bye.

Rehan walked down the stairs and outside through the front door. He didn't even bother asking Amaan. Amaan barely spoke in front of anyone he didn't know well. Singing was out of the question.

Seconds after Rehan knocked on the door of the Rehman residence, three year old Shamyl opened the door.

Shamyl: Hi Rehan bhai! Aap kis se milne aayen hain? Hi Rehan Bhai! Who are you here to se?

Rehan (entering the house): Jab Shamyl Sahib ghar par hon, to aur kisi se milne ki kya zaroorat hai? When Mr. Shamyl is at home, who else do I need to see?

Shamyl: To aap humesha mujhse milne aate hain? So you always come to meet me?

Rehan: Aur nahin to kya. Of course.

Shamyl: To aap ne abhi tak mera kamra kyoon nahin dekha? Then why haven't you seen my room yet?

Rehan looked at his watch. There were still ten minutes until ten.

Rehan: Chaliye, abhi dekh lete hain. How about you show it to me now?

Shamyl took Rehan's hand and led him up two flights of stairs to his room. Like everywhere else in the house, not a single thing was out of place in Shamyl's room. Unlike most kids of his age, he had very few toys, and those that he did have were educational. His walls were lined with shelves of books and posters of wildlife animals. Shamyl introduced Rehan to all the books in his collection, specifying those he had read and those that he planned to read soon.

At 10 o'clock, Rehan tried to think of some excuse to go back downstairs. Just as he was about to say something, Shamyl's mother peeked inside.

Najma: Arre Rehan, tum kab aaye? Oh Rehan, when did you come?

Rehan: Hello Aunty. Abhi dus minute pehle hi aaya. Shamyl ne mere liya darwaaza khola tha. Hello Aunty. I just came ten minutes ago. Shamyl let me in.

Najma: Achcha. Samira aur Maryam basement mein tumhaara intezaar kar rahi hain. Mere khayaal se Divya Ji aa gayi hain. Oh, I see. Samira and Maryam are waiting for you in the basement. I believe Divya Ji has arrived.

Rehan went downstairs after promising Shamyl he would play Scrabble with him after the class. The basement of the house was nothing like any basement he had ever seen before. It consisted of a large sitting area, bedroom, bathroom and small kitchen. In the sitting area, Samira and Maryam had laid out three cushions and were sitting on two of them. Across from them in a low chair was a middle-aged woman with twinkling eyes and a warm smile, tuning her harmonium.

After Samira had introduced Rehan to Divya Ji, they began warming up their voices. Since they were all singing the notes together, Rehan did not discern whose voice was which, but he could tell that Samira and Maryam, like him, were not new to this. It was not until Divya Ji asked Samira to sing "Naina Neer Bahaaye" from Water, a song she had been practicing for some time, that Rehan really heard her voice.

As soon as the first word left Samira's lips, Rehan was entranced. Her voice was so beautiful and her rendition so perfect that Rehan was sure it was at least as well sung as the original. When the song ended, he wanted to tell her to sing it again, and keep singing it until he got tired of it, which he was certain would never happen. But instead of saying this, he just smiled and whispered "wow" when she looked at him. Samira returned the smile and looked down shyly.

They spent the rest of the class time learning a classical song based on Raag Bahaar. He discovered that Maryam also had a nice voice, but not nearly as enchanting as Samira's. When it came time for Rehan to sing individually, he became very self-conscious. He hoped that his voice sounded as nice to Samira as it sounded in his head. From the look on everyone's faces, it seemed that they were impressed, which increased his confidence.

At noon, Divya Ji immediately left for another class she was scheduled to teach, and Maryam went to get ready for her friend's birthday party. Rehan helped Samira put away the cushions and they sat down on the sofa in the room.

Rehan: Your voice is beautiful, Samira.

Samira: Thanks. Tumhaari bhi kuch kam nahin. Thanks. I like yours a lot too.

Rehan: Thanks. Kab se seekh rahi ho? Thanks. How long have you been learning?

Samira: Paanch saal ki umar se. Aur tum? Since I was five. And you?

Rehan: Kareeb aath saal se. About eight years now.

Samira nodded and smiled at him. At that moment, Rehan felt a strange connection with her, as if he had known her for years. Ever since he had met her, he had been having these strange feelings on and off. Maybe it was because she was so much like him. She was ambitious, friendly, in touch with her heritage, had a passion for music, and seemed to enjoy living life to the fullest….all the qualities that those who knew Rehan credited him for.

Samira suddenly stood up.

Samira: Tumhen bhook lag rahi hogi. Chalo mein tumhaare liye lunch banaati hoon. You must be hungry. Let me make lunch for you.

Samira made turkey sandwiches and they ate them with Imraan and Shamyl. Afterwards, Rehan kept his promise to Shamyl and played a couple games of Scrabble with him in his room before returning home. After going to Samira's room on the second floor to say goodbye, he walked down to the living room and saw Imraan there. Just as he was about to tell him that he was going home, the phone rang and Imraan answered it.

The way Imraan smiled and became nervous as soon as he realized who he was talking to caused Rehan to wonder who it was. Sure that it must be his girlfriend (though he couldn't remember Imraan mentioning a girlfriend), Rehan turned to leave, but Imraan stopped him.

Imraan: Rehan, Sabah ka phone hai tumhaare liye. Rehan, it's Sabah calling for you.

Imraan gave Rehan the phone and went into the kitchen, still smiling. Sabah was just calling to tell Rehan to come home immediately. After studying all morning, she was tired and wanted to watch a movie with him. After hanging up, Rehan sighed. Typical impatient Sabah. He said goodbye to Imraan and returned home.

Thanks for reading!

Another wonderful chapter!👏

The descriptions of Samira's voice and her personality through Rehan's eyes really stood out!!