'We were a Moment'
.
He was everywhere
She studied chemistry after Haya went, she needed to tighten her concepts, Mirha, Haya and she solved past papers on a conference call. They were going to have their second year boards this year. She was exhausted and with a major headache at the end of the session. She laid on her mother's lap for a while, when she raked her fingers in a oddly soothing way through her hair.
"Everything alright? You seem so zoned out lately," Her mother said.
"It is only exam stress nothing more mom,"
She lied, although, it seemed so wrong, but since that day she had been obsessing over him, when he came near her that day, it didn't feel like two strangers meeting coincidentally, it felt like he knew what he was doing, he knew what he was looking at, it disturbed her to the core, and then she had to tell Mirha and Haya about the kick as well, and then again, the paranoia of him telling her brother was there as well.
"Mom? I am alright trust me," She said getting up, and holding her hand, trying to reassure her.
"I don't know what is really troubling you, since you won't say, would you like to make some lasagna with me, it our favourite thing to do," Her mother suggested. Although she was tired to the bone, she couldn't refuse her mother.
"Always," Ayat smiled, she slipped into her slippers and made her way to the kitchen, when the main door of the house clanked open, it must be one of her two brothers
"Ayat in the kitchen? Must be the end of the world," He commented putting his keys in the little tray on the table. Ayat scowled.
"Bhai, grow up,"
"You are about to get married," Their father came out of his room, where he had been taking a little nap after coming from the clinic.
"Yeah, dad about that," Ahsan scratched his neck anxiously approaching his father. "I was thinking, actually, Anaya's family was thinking if we conduct the wedding this month,"
"The planned dates are next month, why are you so eager for this month?" Sara reasoned as she dished out the lasagna strips from the drawer, the kitchen was open style so they could easily converse from the living room and the kitchen.
"We have been engaged for two years mom," Ahsan complained.
"Desperate times call for desperate measures," Ayat muttered under my breath.
"Help me," Ahsan muttered back.
"Mom its only a matter of days," Ayat spoke trying to convince her parents, Sara shook her head.
"That's what I am saying," Sara spoke, "Let's see what we can do but me or your father can't promise anything alright?"
Ayat shrugged her shoulders at her brother as a sign that she tried. After that Ayat helped her mother make lasagna, after it was safely tucked inside the oven, she sat on the couch. The door clanked open again, Arsalan must be home, he is the only one left with keys in the house.
"We made your favorite dish," Ayat jumped towards the door, without thinking twice, somehow the excitement to tell Arsalan getting the better of her.
Although Arsalan would have greeted her matching her energy, but he seemed focused on something else right now. "I brought home a friend,"
Ayat's heart had almost stopped beating, and her vision had almost been lost in clear sight when she saw the person standing beside her brother, before her eyes. His razor sharp eyes taking her in one go, his eyes, the color of flowing chocolate fountains, with some burning lava inside them tucked away, ready to unleash on the world any time, that wizard had come to haunt her again, for the third time now. She couldn't help but think the world was playing a cosmic joke on her.
"Salam," His voice was velvety, but rugged, it broke her out of the trance, it reminded her that she hated his guts, she could see that his face was recovering from the marks of pure hatred she had given him on the game night.
"This is Maaz, my friend," Just the way Arsalan introduced him, it felt unreal, it looked like Maaz had made him his friend on a gun point, from her knowledge she knew that his brother hated him, and suddenly they were friends? And he was over for dinner?
Although Ayat was trying to distract herself by extracting Arsalan's feeling about bringing his friend, on the contrary his eyes were fixated on her and her only. There was something so disturbing about him, just the way he scanned her she knew, he knew her more than she knew him.
"Ayat," Ahsan smiled stiffly looking at Ayat. Desperately trying her to stop acting like a dim wit statue. "This is our sister,"
Maaz dove out his hand to shake, Ayat realized everyone else had greeted him except for herself, and this family didn't take it easy for people who were rude to their guests, but more than anger she was baffled right now. Her throat dry, and her body stiff, she still took out her hand to shake, but Arsalan caught Maaz's hand in his own before it could reach her sister, see, that is what Ayat was talking about Arsalan didn't like Maaz.
"She just talks a bit less," Arsalan tried to cover up, something needed to kick start her ability to speak any time now.
"It was a pleasure anyways," Maaz smirked. He will be damned, he took too much joy seeing her confused. In all his grand scheme of entrances in her life, he never could have in his wildest imaginations thought he could pull out such adorable expressions from her. How the hell did he go from killing her on the road, cornering her on the game night, to smiling like a maniac all knowing that he was clearly pissing her off, she thought he'd be pissed after the incident at the game night, but he seemed in a perfectly good mood.
"She feels the same," Ahsan covered for her majorly awkward behavior.
"I wont stay for long if your sister is displeased by my presence,"
"I am not displeased, I am sorry if I gave you the impression," She said maintaining her constant expression. Of pure shock. She might have thought that they met coincidentally but the way he looked at her, and now with all his fake gestures and acting, she knew something was up.
Sara looked at Maaz, and then shook her head. "I am sorry, beta, have I seen you before somewhere?"
"I am afraid we have met for the first time," Maaz replied indifferently, he could act to be respectful to her parents, but right now he was too focused on her, she looked like she could easily put a man to their knees with just the way she looked, which she had done with him.
The most horrendous of the small talks went around on the dinner table, it was not comfortable at all.
"I like animals, majorly cats," Maaz wasn't smiling but his eyes meaningfully searched hers as he spoke, he wanted to know that she recognized him from the accident day, she retained her poker face, although her insides were burning to find out what game he was playing, was all that anger on the game night a façade? What was the real face of this man. "I have an animal shelter open, only if any one in your family is fond of some," He said. He was one cunning player this one.
"Funny you brought it up, I am fond of cats, wild ones especially," Ayat looked straight into his eyes. If he was trying to play her by standing in her own house, she too had a nerve wracking attitude of her own.
"Then perhaps you should visit sometime, I am always free on Sundays," He offered. Was he for real hitting on her in front of her family?
"But sadly she is allergic to them," Arsalan deflected his attempts. She understood where her brother was going he didn't like his haughty captain hitting on his little sister, she didn't know what kind of spell he put her brother in to have been sitting on the dinner table with them.
And on the worst possible timing Ayat managed to stare at him a little too long than needed. His dressing was impressive. He had a crazy choice of hair, they were longer in the center and shaved at the sides. She knew footballers tend to experiment with trends a lot. But his thick beard gave him a rather complex look, although he was the same age as his brother he seemed much more mature than his age.
"So beta, what do you do?" Sara interrupted the full scan Ayat was doing on the man, and from the peripheral vision he was enjoying her staring him down. (son)
"I am making my way into the national team and I plan to join our family business," Although he was now attentively answering the question her mother had posed but he didn't seem one bit humble about it.
"Impressive," Sara smiled acknowledging his confidence.
"Your mother must be really proud of you beta," Sara said smiling, his fork hung on the plate as he became numb. His face contorted soon after turning into a smile. (Son)
"Unfortunately, I never had that pleasure,"
Sara's eyebrows drew together in dubiety.
"She died in my adolescence,"
"I am very sorry for bringing this up," Sara seemed embarrassed.
"I am used to it," He replied which sent Ayat wondering that did he mean he was used to his mother not being around or people's sympathy?
After dinner the family bid their farewell's to their guest, while Ayat stood like a statue again on the side.
"It was so nice to have dinner with you all, never knew how it felt like to have a family, not before this," He said smiling at Sara. Ayat was still judging his every gesture. He had triggered her, and she was yet to find out what kind of game he was playing because no one on earth could come and tell her now after all his strange advances that he wasn't at something, maybe he was trying to take revenge from her, and something in his demeanor told her she wouldn't like what he would do.
"Any friends of my sons are our family," Her father tapped Maaz's back, he must be an inch or two taller than her father.
"I am sure," he said sweeping his burning gaze on her. Was no one seeing the way he was staring at her all night long?
Ahsan had already excused himself and so had their parents, only Arsalan, Ayat and Maaz were left in the room. She couldn't bring herself to leave the room, not until he left her house. She had so many questions. Arsalan's phone rang.
"Please keep him company for a bit, I will be back soon," Arsalan rushed before Ayat could protest. He seemed comfortable enough in looking at her without any words, just there, casually staring like he did it everyday.
"I know what you are doing," Ayat spat, blunt and venom laced.
"What?" He asked precisely.
"Trying to get inside my life and telling me how powerful you are, I get it okay? I know this is some kind of plan to make me regret that...that kick, but listen, I am not sorry, you deserved it, and you cant threaten me in my own house, or even try, because it is twentieth century and...and you just can't do this, and the accident day, it was your fault,"
"You are done?" Her words didn't seem to have touched him an ounce. Ayat's mouth opened and closed like a fish, before he started to speak.
"I save..."
"Because you put me in danger and I am thankful for you saving me one time, but what were you doing the second time?" She cut him off, although if it were someone else they would have been 6ft under right now, but it was her, and he was bound by an unnatural feeling to just stand there and listen to her.
"There was an unearthed wire on the wall you were so willing to get into when you thought I was coming to prey on you, I was trying to save your life," He replied calmly.
"I don't believe you, and how well do I even know you to trust you?" She spat back. "And what was 'you are going to pay for this one day' about?"
"Did I really scare you with that?" he chuckled, he hadn't planned this night to be so amusing as it was turning out to be.
"I am not scared of you, just answer me,"
"I never intended for you to fear me,"
"Don't ever intimidate me like that, coming into my house like that, I get that you can do whatever you want? But I am not afraid of you, you hear me, and I am not afraid of whatever revenge you are planning because I kicked you," Ayat was only pretending, he seemed like someone no one should mess with but she didn't know why she was acting like she could kill him, when she was over whelmed by him.
"Look at me," He said making her dive right back into his eyes, which felt like they had seen her so many times before. "The day of the accident and the game night, both were coincidences and I did save you both the days, you caught me off guard when you kicked me in the balls... but Ayat I would be damned if I ever hurt you,"
Her heart skipped a beat, goose bumps formed all over her skin, a mix of fear and something else coursed through her, no one had ever made her feel like that, the amount of intimacy his each word had.
"You owe me now, Ayat," Maaz whispered in a meaningful undertone.
"Do you know me from before?" She couldn't help but ask, she had never felt such knowing eyes on her before.
"More than you know yourself,"
He wasn't out there to take revenge from her, all that anger on that day was because he was shocked, he would never hurt her, and that knowledge disturbed her more than if he was trying to take revenge from her, because that was understandable, what he meant by all that, she didn't know, and you hate all the things you don't understand.
"Good to go man?" Arsalan patted Maaz's back. Maaz gave her a one last glance and winked.
A gasp left Ayat's mouth as she saw a little part of his t shirt lifted and his waist band showing. He had a freaking gun handing out from there. Perhaps, a revolver. He seemed suspicious but not suspicious enough to carry a gun with him. Who was he really and why was he after her?
And since that day, he was everywhere.
...