"Hashim please...please open the door...!"Asmara pleaded wiping her tears.

"Hashim please...its been two hours...Hashim!"Asmara banged the door.

After a while the door opened but Hashim didn't came outside...

Asmara entered the room...it was dark inside...all the lights were off...curtains closed...the room was as dark as their life now...

Hashim was facing towards balcony and his back was towards Asmara

"Haash..."

"I want truth."Hashim said plainly cutting Asmara in between.

"Umm..."

"No stories...no lie,just the truth!"

Hashim spoke again.

"I...I...."

"The pictures were real,I know!"

"Hashim..."

"Hashim k aagy bhi kuch bolo,time nhi hai mere pas!"

Hashim spoke rudely.

Asmara sobbed...

"Agar tum nhi btao gi,it will be difficult for me then...as I don't want to involve anyone else in this matter!"His voice was breaking.

"Hashim...!"

"Damn it...I know my name is Hashim...I am asking something from you...answer me and dare you cry!"Hashim yelled.

Asmara flinched at her place...

"Tha...that d day someone p pushed me into the po pool...I got dr drowned...I was unconcious...then Hash...!"

"Stop...don't take that bastard's name from your mouth."

"Sorry."

"Sorry?"Hashim chuckled sadly.

"When I got concious...he was giving me artificial breathing...I didn't know anything else!"

Asmara told flinching her eyes.

"That's all?"Hashim asked with a defeated voice.

"Believe me please!"Asmara pleaded.

Hashim let out a hollow chuckle...

"I don't have trust issues unlike you!"

"Hashim...please!"Asmara was on the verge of crying...she needed him the most...his arms,her safe place.

Hashim turned towards Asmara and picking his phone...keys and those photos...he headed outside the room...Asmara ran behind him but he went out of the Apartment.

"Where are you going?"

Asmara asked.

"None of your business!"

He answered slamming the door moving away from apartment.

Asmara sat there all numb...even her tears dried up...she was lifeless but there was a little hope in her heart when she reminded Hashim's words

"I don't have trust issues unlike you!"

"Means he believes me...he believes me,he believes me..."

Asmara was continuously chanting this sitting on the floor near to the main door.

After a while she got up from the floor...heading to bathroom,she took a bath,did ablution and started praying nafal...she has no one to talk to except her Allah...she didn't want to disclose this situation to her mother or family because Hashim had said that he didn't want to involve any third person in this matter.

She offered the prayer and sat on prayer mat talking to Almighty Allah...pouring her heart out...presenting all her sorrows in front of her creator.

"Allah...please make him forgive me...please Allah,I have hurted him deeply...I have made the most beautiful soul sad,I have done so wrong...please give me strength to make all things alright...please Allah...you know I love him...I can't betray him...I love Hashim,only Hashim!"

Asmara cried her heart out infront of Allah and her heart felt a little at ease.

Asmara was still sitting on the prayer mat when The door opened and Hashim came inside...their eyes met...

Those two pairs of eyes depicted thousands of emotions to Asmara.

And the most visible emotion was hurt...she can read his eyes speaking volumes...all red as if he had cried for a long period of time.He averted his eyes away from her and went to bathroom throwing his phone on the couch.

When he came out...water droplets were there on his arms,his face,his feet...he had done ablution.

Asmara was folding the prayer mat...he came forward taking the prayer mat from her hands,spreading it on the floor and started offering Isha Prayer...

Asmara smiled a little with tear filled eyes staring at him all the time while he was busy in the prayer...

Hashim completed his prayer and went to bed but Asmara was still standing at her place.

"Your fever must be gone by now...sleep,you have to go to university tommorrow!"

Hashim said with closed eyes.

A lump of tear formed in Asmara's throat...she was not understanding Hashim...is he not mad at her,is he fine now,where was he all the time and why he is asking her to go to university.

Asmara slowly went to bed and laid at the far corner of bed,closing her eyes tightly...tears rolling down on her cheeks wetting her pillow...she was muffling her sobs...

"Hashim is on the same bed...he is not angry,he didn't beat me,he didn't scared me,he is just quiet means he believes I am innocent...means he will not leave me,means he thinks I am pure...but his silence is so scary for me...I haven't experienced it...how will I initiate a talk with him."Asmara kept thinking to herself and sleep consumed her.

___________________________________

Hashim's POV...

Asmara was acting weird from past 1 week...whenever I go near her,she just shove me away,the chatterbox all the time was gone mute,my sweet little titli was lost somewhere....I tried to engage her in talks but she just give a single word answer...and all this was making me restless day by day.

Today I came early from the office but as my wife was in no mood to talk or sit beside me so I grabbed my laptop and started working on it...

The door bell rang,I went to open the door...and then that parcel and envelope which made all my senses shut as soon as I saw those images...I went numb...I was angry,I was mad...mad beyond limit.Asmara came and I showed her the pictures...her face turned pale...I went inside the room shutting the door because I don't want to do anything bad to her by loosing my temper and as I was not thinking straight so I need sometime alone to digest all this information...

I saw the photos again and again...I was sure that these pictures are not edited...so I just came to the conclusion that this guy has trapped Asmara because she is the most innocent human on earth...the night she yelled in her sleep saying stay away...then always running away from me as if she was scared...and not attending the university...I got to know the reason behind her behaviour,the reason was she was suffering all alone from this bastard's act...but still I need to know what's the real story...

I was in my own thoughts when I heard Asmara banging the door...

I went to open the door and came near balcony...

"Haash..."Asmara spoke

"I want truth."I said plainly cutting Asmara in between.

"Umm..."

"No stories...no lie,just the truth!"

I spoke again.

"I...I...."

"The pictures were real,I know!"

"Hashim..."she again called my name.

"Hashim k aagy bhi kuch bolo,time nhi hai mere pas!"

I spoke rudely.

Asmara sobbed...

"Agar tum nhi btao gi,it will be difficult for me then...as I don't want to involve anyone else in this matter!"I told her the truth because I don't want to put my wife's dignity at stake.

"Hashim...!"

"Damn it...I know my name is Hashim...I am asking something from you...answer me and dare you cry!"I yelled in frustration.

"Tha...that d day someone p pushed me into the po pool...I got dr drowned...I was unconcious...then Hash...!"Asmara was telling but she was going to take Hashir's name and I don't want to listen that.

"Stop...don't take that bastard's name from your mouth."

"Sorry."she replied.

"Sorry?"Hashim chuckled sadly.

"When I got concious...he was giving me artificial breathing...I didn't know anything else!"

Asmara told and I know she was telling the truth...she have water phobia and that Hashir used her weakness.

"That's all?"I asked with a defeated voice.

"Believe me please!"Asmara pleaded.

I let out a hollow chuckle...

"I don't have trust issues unlike you!"

"Hashim...please!"Asmara was near to cry.

I turned towards Asmara and picking my phone...keys and those photos...I headed outside the room...Asmara ran behind me.

"Where are you going?"

Asmara asked.

"None of your business!"

I answered slamming the door moving away from apartment.I was angry at her because of hiding the truth and suffering alone.

I went to Hashir's house...as I have searched his address...

"Oh Mr.I have seen you somewhere!"Hashir said opening the door.

"Yes...you know me...I am Hashim Ahmed Khan...!"I replied.

"Yes Mr.Hashim?"

"I came here to thank you for saving my wife from the pool!"

I said through gritted teeth.

"Oh...that was my duty to save her!"That Bastard smiled.

"Yes...you are a great human!"

"Thank you!"

"Mr.Hashir...If you think by sending these photos and trapping Asmara in your dirty plans...you can make my trust shatter then you don't know me,you don't know us so stay away from her and I am warning you last time dare you put any stunt on her now and you will be behind the bars...no,not behind the bars,I will kill you with my own hands...so stay away from my wife btw you won't be attending university from now on...I have talked to principal...he will tranfer you to the other branch soon...see you tommorrow in the university...

Dean's office.

I warned him...his face turned pale...I got a bit relaxed...and went back to the house...

But I am not gonna talk to her,she has hurted me deeply...she proved that she doesn't believe me...if she believed me a little...she would have told me...I am so much angry on her but still I do care...

Entering my room I saw Asmara sitting on the prayer mat...her eyes were red...our eyes met but I just averted my gaze away...

I offered prayer while she kept staring at me all the time...I went to bed but she was still standing lost in her thoughts so I said

"Your fever must be gone by now...sleep,you have to go to university tommorrow!"

Asmara slowly went to bed and laid at the far corner of bed,she was muffling her sobs...I so want to hold her in my arms but I didn't do this...

When she slept I placed a lingering kiss on her forehead...I missed her...I missed us...but I need sometime to get back to normal....

Dated 11 May,2020.