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"Hey, big guy. Come here, have some water!" Safa plopped open the cap of the water bottle as she called Ayyan. She could see him running out of breaths due to all the rides he had been taking on the slides.

"No, I'm fine. It's okay." Not wanting to give her an impression that his health was deteriorating, he lied. And it was true, he was getting better but still he did not want to worry her with his quick exhaustions.

"But I'm talking about water here, not about you being fine, my love." She knew what he was trying to pull off. Guess, being a teacher had its perks or maybe it was the bond she had developed with him over the course of this time. "It's scorching in here. I'm thristy, too, you know."

She beckoned him with her hands as she sheepishly scrunched her nose. Retiring from yet another slide, he finally ran towards her and hopped on the bench.

"Easy there, strong boy!" She teased his hair.

As he chugged down the water, she pulled out tissues from her bag and extended them towards him so he could wipe the sweat away from his face.

It'd been quite a few days since she and Azlan had stopped feeding him themselves or doing minor of the tasks for him. He needed to be able to do them himself. They didn't want him to feel as if he was just existing and not living.

"I talked to Mansha Api yesterday." He divulged as he capped the bottle and splayed the rivulets of water away from his lips with the back of his hand.

"Oh really?" She grinned.

"Mhm. She told me she has exams." He nodded. "Can you believe it? Few months ago, even the meagre thought of going to school felt unrealistic to her and, now, she's having exams!" He giggled, flashing his teeth.

Safa smiled, seeing that glint back in his small eyes as she silently prayed for his quick and sound recovery.

"I just pray that I get recovered soon so I can gather all the happiness of the world and put it on her feet." He raised his small frail hands in a dua (prayer)."

"Ameen!" Safa hugged him sideways as she inhaled the smell of his baby shampoo.

******

Once the meeting was over Azlan ordered two steaming cups of tea for himself and Arham as they sat down in his cabin.

Azlan's phone pinged and as he pitcked it up to see who it was, Arham squinted at him.

"I know I'm pretty but I'm straight, too." He said on catching him.

Arham just rolled his eyes. "I'm just trying to read something." He hunched his face a bit forward to get a better look.

"From my face?" Azlan raised both his eyebrows as if he doubted his sanity. "Yeah, well, what else can I expect from someone who had spent over a month around that crazy woman's friend." He narrowed his eyes as he interlaced his fingers, proppoing his elbows on the ebony top as it made his biceps prominent, the sleeves of his pristine white shirt rolled up.

"Why do you always have to bring her in every conversation?" An amused snicker played on his lips.

"Come'n, don't be so sulky! This was the first time."

"I'm not talking about Asmara. I'm talking about Safa." He leaned back in his chair and twirled the file on his forefinger he had scooped from the table.

"That's the first time, too." He scowled as he put his laptop in front of him and turned it on.

"Oh really?" The same itching tone again. The same mirth curated in his umber orbs. Azlan ignored as he typed away in his laptop.

"You know what?" He twittered and Azlan threw a glance at him to go on.

"Be quick. I don't have all day. Can't you see I'm busy?" He said with his eyes glued to the screen where spider solitaire was on display.

"There's something weird about you these days. Something strange."

Azlan didn't look at him as he pretended to be busy in his work.

"But this time, good strange."

Now this was the time he couldn't resist from ricocheting a sharp look at his way. "What do you mean? You're indirectly calling me bad?"

"I don't need to go indirect to tell you that." He snorted and Azlan pushed the lid of his laptop down.

"Please, say whatever the hell you're suggesting clearly! I don't like to play riddles."

"Of course, you don't! You have to have a brain for that." He snickered.

"Spill it or get out!" Ignoring the jibe, he gave him phoniest of the smiles.

"Okay, alright!" He straightened up in his seat and placing his forearms on the table, leaned forward. "You know, there used to be this forlorn look in your eyes that isn't there anymore. You know what I mean?"

"Not really!" He smiled plastic. Arham huffed.

"I mean, I can see the light in your eyes for the first time. Something's different with you."

"And what's that if you know so much?" Sarcasm was dripping from his voice.

"That's for you to figure out." He stood up and turned around to leave.

"But you just said I don't have the brain for riddles." He sneered, his eyes stretched in fake smile.

Arham turned his head towards him. "Oh, but this, my friend, you have to figure out yourself. Otherwise there's no point." He said before striding out.

Azlan rolled his eyes, shaking the gibberish Arham had just spilled, out of his mind.

"Moron!"

******

"He's improving, Alhamdulillah!" Azlan said as he stopped the car at red signal. He had spent an hour with Ayyan before going back home even though he was tired as hell.

"Yep, Alhamdulillah!" Safa nodded, looking straight towards the road. She was still mad at him because of that dry clean thing.

A silence ensued for a minute with their breaths doing the talk only.

He glanced at her from the corner of his eye. "You know, you're the only person who wears a shawl in this weather." He chirped, decreasing the temperature of the AC.

Abruptly, she threw him a deathly glare with a frown decorating her suddenly sweating forehead. She fixed her cashmere in jittery as she swerved in her position.

"Yeah, so what? Have I ever taunted you for wearing those socks in this weather?" She snarled at him with full force.

Not ready for this kind of attack he hunched back. "Alright, relax. Jeez!" Raising his hands in air, he narrowed his eyes.

"Then, stop acting like a next door nosy neighbour auntie." She snapped, this time her eyes fixated on the road only.

"Alright, Larka Aurat! (Fighting woman!)" He said before turning the engine back to life as the signal had gone green. She stared at him with haw.

Three times. Three freaking times from there freaking different people.

She slumped back as she folded her forearms on her chest with ire quite lucid on her face.

******

A/N

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