09. Bol do na zara

*****

The one thing that Marwan didn't expect to go through as he agreed to Aliya's invitation/ threat was to roam around as the waiter boy in black while the rest of the females enjoyed themselves, giggling and laughing at his misery every now and then.

His eyes narrowed at the petite female who sat beside Aliya, laughing her heart out as she took in his condition.

Ziah was experiencing the best day of her life as she looked at Marwan wearing an armani suit, excluding the thick black coat and the tie with a tray of cold drinks in his hand, standing in front of her, Aliya and Parizad (Daiyan's wife) with a cute frown that showed how much he hated the idea and them at the moment and the glare in his eyes! Oh, the glare was murderous.

"Haan haan, haso ge hi. Dil hai toh hai nahi tum sab ke paas."

"Dil hai aur dimaag nahi. Warna tujhe dost banaya toh banaya kyu?"

Aliya fired back and Marwan's scowl deepened at the fact that she didn't necessarily insult herself but him.

"Daiyan, tu toh mera dost hai na?"

He shifted his look of helplessness to his best friend who stood beside his wife, sipping his cola with a casual look.

Daiyan looked up from his smiling wife and gave a once over to his 'best friend' before shaking his head in denial to Marwan's question.

Marwan watched with a look of horror and betrayal as Daiyan got back to staring at his wife who was now blushing red due to the attention of her majazi khuda. Seeing the look on Parizad's face, a wide smile took over Daiyan's lips while Marwan could only gag at their interaction, though he swallowed the voice as soon as it came when the cold glare of his best friend met him.

"Na karo meri madad tum sab. Dekhna kaisa badla leta hu main."

"Humari cold drink pi ke ya phir pura time hamare samne reh kar?"

Ziah laughed out loud at Aliya's words and Marwan had now had enough of the playful beizzati.

Huffing at the group of 4, he placed the tray on the nearby table and gave a mean look to each one of them who sat laughing at his misery. He made a move to walk out of the place but was stopped dead on track when Aliya yelled for his mama.

"Madiha aunty! Dekhe na Marwan kahi ja raha hai!"

To Marwan's utter misfortune, his mother was nearby and had heard Aliya loud and clear. Her narrowed eyes met his and Marwan gulped at the intensity in them.

A mother's glare was not something to be messed with!

"Kaha ja rahe ho?"

Madiha asked her son, her hands resting on her hips as she looked at her son with a look that clearly dared him to lie and see the consequences.

"K-kahin nahi. Bas thodi exercise kar raha tha."

His lame excuse made his friends snicker behind him but his eyes set themselves on a certain someone who was enjoying his condition more than the rest.

Ziah tried to control her bubbling laugh when Marwan's eyes shifted to her form. Biting the insides of her cheek, she tried not to make fun of his misery but the situation looked too hilarious to be taken seriously.

A commando fumbling on his feet just by his mother's glare!

Allah, if that wasn't a sight to see then what was?

"Zyada bahane na banao and move your limbs a little. It's your best friend's wedding, Marwan!"

"Haan toh unko bhi kuch karne ko bole!"

"Are you sure that you're 29?"

Marwan gave a stink eye to Daiyan who found his best friend's misery as a means of entertainment. The glint in his eyes made Marwan glare harder at him and with a scoff towards Marwan, Daiyan removed his phone from his pocket and in seconds was scrolling through it rather than helping a struggling Marwan.

Madiha walked away after giving a peace of mind to her son and now Ziah felt bad upon seeing him sulking and shifting the tables and chairs. They did have workers for that task but Madiha considered Aliya as her daughter and rather than barking orders, the old woman decided to take matters in her own hands and much to Marwan's horror, she dragged him in it too.

"Main bas thodi help kardu unki? He's been working for 2 hours now."

Ziah's worry-filled voice amused Aliya and Parizad as the two women shared a look of mischief. Aliya nudged Ziah lightly, the teasing glint in her eyes was clear as day and Ziah didn't know what wrong she had said.

She just wanted to help him!

"Fikr ho rahi hai uski?"

"Arey, Aliya, she's just being considerate."

Parizad reprimanded Aliya lightly but by the tone in her voice, Ziah clearly knew who she was siding with. Scowling displeasing-ly at the two women, she got up and walked up to where Marwan was.

The guy was glaring at each chair that he was arranging and if they were humans, it'd have taken seconds for them to shrink or disappear from his sight.

Dramatic, but the guy seemed annoyed as hell.

"Main help karu?"

She asked softly and watched how he paused his actions and gave her a look over his shoulder before rudely rolling his eyes, picking the tray filled with empty glasses and passing it to one of the workers who was walking by, he walked away to look into the other arrangements near the stage.

Ziah gaped at his retreating back with a look of disbelief but it didn't last long as a frown appeared on her features. Huffing under her breath in annoyance, she walked up to where he was with determined steps.

Marwan felt her presence behind him but didn't acknowledge it as he tied down the rope around the pink and white curtains more tightly. The mandap was set for the wedding and looked magnificent.

The silence around them lasted for a good two minutes after which Marwan heard her coughing lightly to gain his attention. His annoyance had flown out of the window long back but the thought of what she'd do to make it up to him made him a little curious, hence, the act lasted for a good 10 minutes.

"Marwan, sorry na. It was just for fun. Itna kya naraaz ho rahe hai?"

Marwan bit the insides of his cheek to stop himself from smiling on hearing her sullen tone. Turning around, he came face to face with the young woman who now wore a look of guilt on her face- guilt for laughing when he was clearly struggling to do all the harmless work that was dumped on him.

Marwan felt his heart melt at the mere sight of her concern and worry and keeping his mischief aside, he smiled brightly at her, a way of showing that he was perfectly fine.

-but then why was his heart thudding at an abnormal speed in his chest?

"Nahi hu naraaz. Now, come on, help me with the flowers."

Ziah's once remorse-filled look vanished in thin air and was replaced with a bright smile as she tagged along Marwan to look into the flower decorations. The latter found the company of the squealing woman more than amusing and relaxing, as he kept quiet and let her arrange the flowers to her choice.

Blood red, blush pink, pure white roses were arranged in rows, looking beautifully enticing and fresh. Long chains of marigolds sewed together hung from the ceilings, giving it a typical Indian wedding look.

Nearly 45 minutes later, Ziah smiled in glee as she took in the flower arrangements that looked beguiling, set in the right place, in the right order. Marwan watched her smile with a fond one of his own. The look of accomplishment on Ziah's face warmed his heart.

Marwan didn't have the time to process his thinking when Ziah turned her smile his way. His mind almost gave up on its sane mechanism for the noor of happiness on her face tugged his heart strings in ways even a musician could not identify.

Was a check up with a good cardiologist on its way?

His ridiculous thoughts came to a halt as his mother yelled his name from behind. Shaking his head to remove the haziness that had covered his eyes, he gave Ziah a smile before turning around to listen to his mother's call.

Madiha's mind went haywire upon seeing the emotions in her son's eyes. The eyes that resembled emotions unsaid. It would have been nothing to a normal person but she was his mother.

When words fail, eyes speak.

The situation looked more troublesome than Madiha would have wished for it to be and before any of them could end up being broken in ways she didn't want them to, drastic measures should be taken.

*****

Clad in a sheen green sharara with heavily embellished neckline and border paired with a waistcoat and blush pink silk dupatta, Ziah looked a sight to behold. Her hair was made in a simple bun that looked nonetheless elegant.

Her face was easily kept bare of any make-up apart from the winged eyeliner that Aliya had practically forced her to wear.

"Masha'Allah, should I be looking forward to seeing some rishte-wale outside the doorsteps of the Qureshi estate?"

Parizad teased Ziah with a sly smile and the latter blushed shades of red that looked simply beautiful. Aliya chuckled at the two as she put on her earrings. It was her mehendi and she couldn't believe that in a span of less than 36 hours she was going to leave the premises she called her home- only to build another one with her partner.

"Aliya?"

Ziah called out the to-be bride with a look of concern. Aliya didn't realise when tears had streamed down her face, tears that resembled equal amount of sadness and happiness.

"Hmm?"

She replied with a smile, wiping her tears as if they were a common occurrence and they were- since the day her wedding was fixed.

"No more rona dhona. Chalo abhi, mujhe mehendi lagani hai!"

Parizad whined at the two, trying to lighten the mood since she knew what it felt like to be a bride- though hers was more dramatic than what one could call normal.

Ziah smiled at the woman that she had gotten close to in less than 24 hours and putting the veil on Aliya's head, the three women walked out of the room and into the backyard that was bustling with life.

Aliya sat on the white sofa, the mehendi artists being quick enough to take their seats on either side of her and before Aliya knew it, her hands were being covered with designs that resembled untold love.

"Ziah, idhar aao! Let's get our mehendi done too!"

Parizad squealed in glee as she patted the seat next to hers. Ziah smiled at her and quickly did as she was asked too and couldn't contain the childish grin that took over her lips as the mehendi artist started covering her hands with the beautiful ministrations. It had been more than a while since Ziah saw the dark hues of alluring burgundy on her hands and her heart couldn't stop itself from beating in anticipation.

As her eyes got fixated to the designs that were swirling on her hands, one of the tunes that her ears found pleasing resonated through the air. Looking up, she wished to gaze at the moving clouds but half way through her sight, brown met brown in the rawest of forms.

And then came the words that made her heart stop it's rhythm and play with the one around.

Itni mohabbat karo na

Main doob na jaun kahi

Vaapas kinare pe aana

Main bhool na jaun kahi

Marwan didn't look away. No, how could he? Her eyes stared into his, as if trying to memorize something embedded deep in his soul and how could he say no when his heart and mind refused to look away?

Dekha jabse chehra tera

Main toh hafton se soya nahi

Ziah always had the ability to block all sounds around her and focus only on what she liked and at that moment, the world was nothing but a blurry image and the one that stood rooted in his place was what her eyes, heart and mind focused on- as if he was the most important of all.

Bol do na zara

Dil mein jo hai chipa

Main kisi se kahunga nahi

Main kisi se kahunga nahi

Marwan's eyes widened at the words that hit his ears with full force. An emotion like nothing he had experienced before swallowed his heart whole and he found himself gulping at the shudder that ran down his spine when the inkling of what his heart was going through finally registered.

Mujhe neend aati nahi hai akele

Khwabo mein aaya karo

Nahi chal sakunga tumhare bina main

Mera tum sahaara bano

Khwab? Dreams? Could they ever be real?

The thought struck Ziah hard as she looked at the man who had saved her at her worst. Dreams for her were either non-existent or filled with a dark hollow but could it be replaced with hopes of something tantalizingly real?

Ik tumhe chahne ke alawa

Aur kuch humse hoga nahi

Bol do na zara

Dil mein jo hai chipa

Main kisi se kahunga nahi

Main kisi se kahunga nahi

And before Marwan's heart could whisper it aloud, he found himself turning his back like a coward at the woman that had finally moved her gaze to the green surface of the ground filled with a softness that she craved- apart from the one that she found in a certain someone's eyes.

**********

I know it is wrong to praise myself but this encounter between the two has to be the most intense of all things that I have ever written! Uff! Just something like that with someone and I'll say 'qubool hai' on spot! Chalo abhi, fast forward ka zamana hai yeh🤷‍♀️😌....

Lekin lekin lekin, the silence might be the one before the storm? Now if it's a storm of heart beats or hardships, yeh toh baad mein pata chalega!

P.S. Look forward to regular updates from now on! I am finally free! (even if it's just for a month or two.)

************