20th Feb, 2021

Unlike he should be in this cold and snowy day where wind is blowing all around the whole atmosphere outside turning everything icy with it's low temperature, he sat on a chair shirtless, showering at 10 O'clock of the night with cold water.

Droplets of water rained down from his hair and beard to the muscular bare chest as he continued staring out of the window, enjoying the night snow fall.

His red eyes turned redder due to cold but he's senseless enough to realize his shivering situation. With silence around, he breathed heavier with his heart beating louder, busy with it's thoughts.

In this season where leaves even fall off the tree out of cold, he felt warmness covering his body.

Face displayed with a beautiful yet incomplete smile, he blinked his eyes only to see his wife's face.

Though he's upset for leaving his family and his beloved wife behind, his heart won a peace that he felt alive after all these years.

"Oh come on, our boy is not that 'wifey' type."

Entered 3 boys as they pulled off their t-shirts together.

"I bet he changed, at least a little."

The other friend said sitting in their respective places gossiping about Tanveer.

Accordingly to them, no doubt, Tanveer is someone never interested in a feeling known as love.

"Tanvi?"

Wali, his friend called raising his eyebrows at Tanveer as he noticed him lost in something else ignoring their presence.

"Umm hmm. Hey newly and rightfully married husband of your wife, listening?"

Milhan too questioned wearing his hoodie.

Three of them stared at him confusingly seeing his body alone present here, unknown to the area where his mind is busy in.

They three exchanged glares waiting for his attention.

"Why's he naked?" Wali asked rolling his eyes witnessing Tanveer only in his trousers in this cold might while he's here shivering getting freezed.

"Tanvi?"

Wasim stood up making his way towards Tanveer.

With his ice cold hand, when he touched Tanveer's arm he felt fire rising up there.

"Tan...Tanvi.."

He then grabbed his arm and nervously touched his forehead, that's when Tanveer's attention was caught.

"Aah heyy, guys."

"Bro are you not feeling co...."

"YOU HAVE FEVER TANVI!"

Wasim yelled in worry and immediately pulled a hoodie from their closet and threw it to Tanveer.

The other two tensely stared at him with the intention to guess the reasons of his expressions and state.

He's smiling, yet there's something missing.

"Yea.. yeah...fever of love!"

Tanveer busily murmured as he slipped the hoodie down his neck.

Three of his friends clearly heard him which made their glances wider at him in shock.

With few seconds of gaze at him, three of them looked at each other with questioning eyes and then again attended to him.

"What did you just say?"

Milhan asked raising his brows at Tanveer as he pulled his chair near to him.

Wasim walked towards the table to bring medicine and water for Tanveer when he decided to drink a glass of water himself.

"I fell for her."

As soon as the words slipped out of his mouth, water blasted out from Wasim's mouth as he coughed hard from this sudden shock.

"You?"

"Fell?"

"Wh...a..tt..."

Three of them together voiced out while Wali ran to Wasim to caress his back seeing his uncontrollable cough.

"I love her..."

He again whispered, running his fingers in his chest which is continuously aching him because of the desperate heart present inside.

After a minute of silence that Milhan, Wasim and Wali kept for assuring themselves of what they've heard from their friend, they three burst out laughing crazily.

Tanveer closed his eyes in embarassment as he knew that their reactions surely won't be any less than this.

"2...2 ..weeks.......love..love...Tanveer...aah..hahahaha."

"Is she any country that you won it's nationalism and now..you love her???"

Wali spoke in between his laughter as he fell on the floor unable to control.

Until they finished showing their reaction, Tanveer quietly stayed with his eyes out of the window and heart out of his chest, flying to his wife.

Wali and Milhan almost begin getting breathless as it became quite hard for them to end their laughter.

Wasim brought medicine and a glass of water to Tanveer while having a very cheering smile dancing in his lips.

"Thanks."

Gulping down the water, he moved his gaze to both the friends who are still laughing.

He smirked and turned his face to Wasim who showed his teeth to him teasingly.

"For serious guys! What's there to laugh?"

"The.. there's..no.. nothing to laugh.."

Milhan yelled falling on his back in the bed as he wiped his tears.

"Yeah bro! Nothing to laugh! It's usual to love ...love a girl."

Wasim said as if taunting him seriously signing that girls are no stuffs to love.

Tanveer smirked at him as he stood up and walked to the bed.

"Stop laughing you both."

"You...love..."

"For Allah's Sake! Why Are You Guys Behaving Like I Said That I Love Any Gorilla?"

Tanveer kicked Wali in his leg as he jumped on the bed covering his body with blanket.

Two of them finally stopped laughing as they sat towards Tanveer asking for more to share in details through their eyes.

"Don't give me that look."

He warned turning his face away.

"You seriously fell in love?"

"Yeah."

"How do you know?"

"Wallahi I'm saying right?"

"Yeah but you weren't supposed to love."

"Why? Am I a jin? Ohh Jins also love. Why can't I?"

He questioned murderously glaring at them to which they didn't mind and continued teasing him.

They spent the whole night talking about this topic, even though Tanveer enjoyed his friends company after long months, his heart craved to listen to her voice, gawk at her shamelessly and touch her...lovingly.

••••••

The thing that she fears the most is to have him hurt because of her. The way he found out that she had a terrible past which is still haunting her present, what if he also anyhow gets to know what actually the matter is that murdered her soul so bad.

She cares for him, from the first night of their Nikah till now, and that surely will last till eternity. She cares to not hurt him, to not have his rights lessen over her.

She knows that she entirely belongs to him, only him. She has NO right to have herself shared with anyone else but alone him.

Despite of this maturity, why's she unable to unlove his brother?

And maybe it would have been easier for her to settle her heart peacefully to her husband's, if only Shahveer could be happy in his life.

Alas.......she knows the bitterness of his life, that he neither tries to solve nor cares it's affect.

Shahveer extended his hand eyeing to the gift in his hand half smiling.

Her lashes shivered as she looked down at the rectangle box in his hand.

"Umm...that wasn't needed..."

She said slowly taking it from him. He chuckled and immediately backed off and walked towards the bed to his son and father.

Thanzia removed the wrapping paper revealing the best words written in the box that she always desires to see whenever anyone gifts her.

"Hershey's Bars"

Shahveer gifted her chocolates as her Nikah gift.

She turned around finding him admiring Nahiaan with kisses while her father in law looking at her with a warm smile.

"Thank you Veer."

"My pleasure, Bhabi."

He sweetly said, but the word which came out the most sweetly felt to be the most bitter to her heart.

Why does the heart always expects everything opposite to the reality can allow to give?

She tightened her Niqaab keeping the chocolate box in the table. Her eyes travelled to Shahveer finding him chuckling. His bright smile, juicy laughter and high joy, everything is fake and she is aware of this very well.

He let out a chuckle when Nahiaan bit his earlobe.

Her heart ached wanting to talk to talk to him, to know what's going inside him.

But at the same time it pained for the thoughts of her husband. She never for a time alone thinks of Shahveer, everytime Tanveer occupies half of her thoughts, though she has no single complain about it.

Coming back to her senses, she made her way towards them as she spoke,

"Can I shift Nahiaan's stuffs to my room, please? I wanted him to stay with me at night also."

Shahveer's smile dropped hearing her. His eyes shined as he forced a smile keeping Nahiaan down.

He looked at his father who raised his eyebrows at him with a warm smile, wanting him to agree for it.

"Bhabi....let..let it be... I'm already burdening you whole day...."

He guiltily spoke.

"It's nothing like that.... please? And..and he's comfortable with me...."

She pleaded.

"I can handle him...at night..."

"I know....yet.."

"No bhabi...thanks for the concern."

He looked up at her for a second and then turned his head away to the right.

"Mummum." Nahiaan whispered with excitement as he extended his hands asking her to take her up.

"Please Veer....I promise I'll not give you any chance to complain...."

Thanzia softly uttered, highly craving for Nahiaan's presence next to her at night.

The last mid night she found Shahveer's room's lights on at 2 O'clock. Even she had noticed that when Tanveer was here. This made her sure that he studies late night.

She didn't want him to worry about Nahiaan besides being so busy with his studies and work.

"I wish his mother would cared for him the way you do."

He whispered looking at Nahiaan in her lap.

Disallowing them to response, he ran out to not show his weakness to her.

"Abbu......"

Thanzia pulled down her Niqaab and looked at her father in law with a helpless pout.

Finding her face open, Nahiaan immediately attached his lips to her cheek and begin sucking there.

"Mum mum mum mum mum mum. Mmmmm mum mum mum....."

"Now what can I do?"

His grandfather questioned Thanzia as she signed him to request Shahveer for that matter.

"You could interrupt too."

"Let him keep Nahiaan, Zia.... He's busy the whole day and at the end of the day he only wants his son beside him."

Thanzia nodded smiling.

"Did Tanveer call?"

"Mm no...."

"Don't be worried, he might be busy."

•••••

Thanzia immediately jumped on the bed and grabbed her phone. It unintentionally got answered having her finger's touch. When her gaze fell on the screen, she found out the call to be on video mode from an unknown number. Immediately she turned it away from her face before Tanveer showed up.

"Assalamu Alaikum, wifey."

Hearing his voice her eyes widened as she turned the phone back to her to have a look of her husband's face displayed with the very known smile that he always gave her.

"Umm...you..you? Walaikum Assalam." She sat on the bed taking a pillow on her lap as she looked at him confusingly.

"Am...I..not allowed to call..my wife?"

He joked raising his eyebrows. His lips parted unable to control the chuckle that he let go seeing her nervous denial at this.

"How are you?" She softly uttered giving attention to his features as her heart jumped with joy telling that he looks even more handsome smiling with his teeth visible outside.

"I..am well....you in..Hijab.. Were you awaken? It's 3."

"No..umm I was praying...why..aren't you sleeping?"

She hated that she couldn't utter a single sentence without shuttering.

Feeling uncomfortable, she loosened the Hijab and found him staring at her with the same toothy smile.

"Hmm....."

"You..aren't sleeping.."

"Yeah I'm sleepy yet I can't sleep, that's why I called you."

She understood the meaning behind his words that made her slightly blush as she covered her lips with her hand.

"Zia......."

As he whispered, she felt her heart smiling in pleasure. He takes her name so attractively that it feels like thousands of emotions are built there. Whenever he calls her name it seems as if he has poured all his admiration in it for her.

"G...?"

"I miss you...."

She lowered her gaze biting her lips. Now this didn't make her happy nor blush. It somewhere pained her heart.

"Are you done praying? Won't you sleep before Fazr?"

"I will...."

"Then sleep....but mmm don't cut the call. Keep it beside."

She nervously nodded and laid down. Adjusting the phone with the help of a pillow that made it stand towards her face, she settled in an comfortable position from where he can see her clearly.

"Thanks...."

He muttered as he laid down too, with the storm forming in his heart as he enjoyed looking at her till he slept, the fear rising up in him saying that he won't be forever near her, he'll lose her, or maybe she'll lose him.

•••••

After a week.

Thanzia slowly opened the door of Shahveer's room as she peeked in to have a look at his bed. He laid in an uncomfortable state horizontally in the bed with his hands reaching at the end of the bed and legs dangling out of it.

Her eyes widened when she noticed Nahiaan's position. Naked with only his pampers pant, he laid his half body on top on Shahveer while his legs spread like wings.

She couldn't control giggling softly as she closed the door back and walked few steps away from the room.

"Ziaa dear. Have you done breakfast?"

Suddenly she jolted hearing Tanveer's Chachi's voice.

"G..g Chachi...."

"I'm going out. I've prepared Nahiaan's food. Feed him, okay?"

She said coming hurriedly towards her way.

"Sure Chachi...mmm Veer didn't wake up yet....won't..he go to work?"

"Ohh..he didn't?..it's Tuesday..he's supposed to.... Okay Zia I'm leaving. Allah Hafiz."

She flew away keeping her in confusion.

She went back to the kitchen and helped her sister in law with the household chores. Seeing the time to click 8.30 AM, she thought to check on Shahveer's room again as other days he leaves for work around 8-15.

This time when she opened the door, the bed only rested the little prince on it. She looked around finding for Shahveer as her ears then heard water falling sound coming from the washroom.

To come in or to not come in, confused, she decided to enter as her legs led her near the bed where Nahiaan laid on his back in sleep.

"My baby..." She sat near him and bowed down to his face.

"Wake up baby boy..."

Slowly caressing his back, she pulled him up in her lap as he snuggled in her chest wanting to sleep more.

"Iaan..."

"Mmm Dadda..." He whispered in sleep.

"Dadda's boy...get up...come on.."

"Oh Thank Allah! Is it you Bhabi?"

Her eyes widened in shock as she jumped on her place and looked behind. Before she could see Shahveer, the washroom door closed making her confused.

"I...u...I..."

"Bhabi I'm late for work. Please don't mind taking out my towel and clothes from the closet....please."

She heard his busy voice. Keeping Nahiaan back on the bed, she stood up and ran to the closet.

Having so many shirts, t-shirts, hoodies and trousers made her little late to choose any one from them. She grabbed the towel from the chair with a white shirt and black khaki pants for him.

"Mm...take..."

She knocked on the door.

The door opened as he extended his hands to take his clothes. Her face was turned to the other side when he snatched them making their fingers slightly touch. She closed her eyes tightly so he did the door with a thud having her heartbeat rising up.

"Thank you! Can I trouble you little more? Please bring my breakfast in room. Please don't curse me."

She chuckled at his words replying,

"Don't worry I'm not cursing. I'm bringing that in 5 minutes."

And that's how days passed.

Tanveer became busy with his works but never did his heart forget to remember his wife.

His late night calls and chats with her grew the seeds of love in her heart. She felt peace seeing him, hearing him, slowly making her heart own him.

Again she became dutiful towards her in laws. She takes care of her father in law like his own daughter, loves her husband's nephew like her own son, helps her brother in law like his......sister, from his sense. But only her heart knows the place that he holds on it.

••••