chapter 26

Chapter 26MishalDaniel was going back to Australia. He was going to leave me behind. I could have never known if it weren’t for Khadija. She went to see him in the evening, and he told her he was leaving soon. I could not imagine being apart from him. I could not imagine living without him. Watching him almost every other day across the terrace had become a habit for me. How could I even process my entire day without seeing him? How could I live without him?As soon as Khadija broke the news to me, I was devastated. The minute she walked out of the room, I started crying. I did not go downstairs and sit with my family for dinner. Khadija was also leaving for Karachi the next day, and knowing it was her and Hamza’s last day with us, I could not spend time with her. Rather, I chose to spend time in solitude. I did not go to the balcony for fear of coming across him that night. I could not see his face for fear of crying in front of him. If he just walked in front of me, I knew I would lose it and cry a bucket of tears. I could not fall weak in front of him. Watching him leave will break me forever. I could not watch him leaving. I did not have that much courage. Instead of going to the balcony, I went to the top terrace of my house. On the terrace, it was eerily quiet and dark. I strolled for a few seconds and stood on the edge of the terrace, taking in the scenic view from the top. A few seconds later, I felt someone’s presence behind my back. I turned around to find Daniel making his way toward me, a wary expression on his face. I know I was determined not to come face to face with him, but now I could not escape the situation—I had to face him. I turned around instantly, my back on him. When a few seconds passed, I noticed he stood beside me, silent. Either of us did not speak anything. Instead, we stood in silence and watched the view—the skyline ahead of us. All I could hear was the sound of his heartbeat. Though it was barely audible, I could also hear the sound of his breathing. After what felt like ages, Daniel broke the silence. ‘I’m leaving tomorrow. I have a flight to catch in the morning.’I sighed slowly and deeply. His face was turned towards me, but I looked in the front. ‘I just wanted to see you one last time.’From my peripheral vision, I could feel his eyes on me. As much as I wanted to turn to his side and look him in the eye, I could not. I knew the moment our eyes locked, I would break into pieces and cry. I did not want to cry in front of him. I did not want him to see me in a vulnerable state. ‘Won’t ya look at me, Mitchelle?’ he asked, and I literally felt so much pain in his voice. My eyes became moist as I tried to hold back the tears. ‘Please?’ he asked, pleading.I shook my head as I fought back the tears. ‘Just say me goodbye.’ With my eyes still moist, I turned towards him and looked him in the eye. A tear spilled out of his eye and dropped on his cheek as soon as our eyes were locked. ‘Goodbye, Daniel,’ I said with a heavy heart, keeping my tone as resolute as possible. Teary-eyed, he bit his lower lip and slightly shook his head. Just when I was about to walk away from him, he held my arm and dragged me closer to him, holding me by my shoulders. His reaction shocked me. ‘Why couldn’t you tell me the whole damn truth, huh? Why?’ he asked, his eyes depicting anger and hurt. He forced me to look in his eyes, but I looked away. ‘Why couldn’t you tell me how Fariya compelled you to give false testimony against me? I swear to God I would have understood your reasons and never left your side.’I looked back into his eyes, unable to hold back my tears anymore, and they spilled on my cheeks. Suddenly, his expression softened, and he caressed my face with his both hands, slowly wiping away the tears from my face tenderly. ‘I swear to God I would not have left you alone…’ he said, bending his neck a little lower to reach my eye level and leaning closer to me. ‘You know why? Because I love you, Mitchelle, I love you so much.’As soon as he uttered those words, he crushed his lips against mine and kissed me deeply, affectionately. I broke all the barriers and kissed him back with almost the same passion and intensity. He had held my face gently as he kissed me. This kiss was different from the one we had shared before—it was much softer, warmer, seeking, as though we were both discovering altogether new. As if we were both devouring each other. A few seconds passed, and we broke the kiss, gasping for air. With our eyes closed and our foreheads pressed against each other’s, we stood closer for a long time as our breaths intermingled and our heartbeats thumped together. ‘As much as we want to be together, the reality is we can’t be…’ I opened my eyes and whispered against his lips‘But why not?’ he whispered back, looking at me.  ‘You live in Australia, and I live here… in Pakistan.’‘I promise we can make the long-distance work until the time you move to Austalia.’I beamed. ‘I can’t move to Australia, Daniel.’He furrowed his brows. ‘Why not?’I shook my head. ‘I can’t leave my family behind.’He bit his lower lip, considering my response. ‘We can’t make this work, Daniel… We can’t…’ I took a few steps back, withdrawing myself from his hold. He cast his eyes downwards, disappointed. ‘It’s impossible to think we can have a future together. Maybe you and me, we weren’t meant for each other.’He looked up at me and sighed. ‘My family has already considered a proposal for me… I am gonna get married soon.’He frowned. ‘Will you be able to spend the rest of your life with someone you’re not in love with? Will you be happy with him?’I gave out a hollow laugh. ‘I don’t know…’‘Will you be able to love him like the way you love me?’I shrugged. ‘Sometimes love is not enough.’He shook his head, disagreeing with my response. ‘Love is enough.’‘Love alone is not enough.’‘I won’t be able to love anyone as much as I love you,’ he said as he took a step toward me. I surrendered my hands in the air, asking him not to come near me. ‘Please do not make me weak, Daniel, or I will break.’‘Please…’ he pleaded.I shook my head. ‘Do not make things harder for us…’He looked away, tears welling up in his eyes. ‘Maybe you and me… we weren’t meant for each other.’‘Maybe,’ I said. He looked back at me and smiled at me weakly. ‘Maybe.’I turned away from him, hiding the tears in my eyes. When he realized I had turned my back on him, he took it as a cue and decided to walk away. Just when I turned around to see him, he was gone. So this was how our story ended. Maybe you and me were never meant for each other. Â