"I am not aware Abu," Ahmed replied. "I was shock on discovering it and I told the same to Farya."

"During their first meet she offered her candies so maybe," Farya was trying to shove off the topic.

"But she hadn't mustered a word before..." Mumtaz argued, her orbs glanced at Faizal. "Other than... Mamu..."

As if those words felt in Azia ears, she repeated. "Mamu..." and others ended up laughing. "Mamu..." she giggled along with the rest.

"Aww..." I couldn't help myself from pulling her cheek due to her adorable features. She smiled at me; a tiny-tooth visible as her small palms reached to my cheeks. "Candu..."

"She calls her Candu," one from the crowd observed. "Maybe she likes her..." another spoke and soon everyone got busy in their respective things yet I found two orbs fixed on me. One of Farya's and other of her mother. There was slight difference in the way they were staring at me. Mumtaz behavior towards me had changed and I could feel it in my guts, she was attempted to accept me or curious to understand me. Why? I wasn't still known to that!

I was trying to ignore the gaze and concentrate on playing with Azia. Her orbs started getting heavy as she was attempting hard to keep it open, "she is feeling sleepy." Farya muttered walking towards me to grab her child. I smiled and extended it to her. Due to being exhausted without showing much tantrums Azia went to Farya. I smiled as I looked out of the window, enjoying the beautiful-peaceful night before me.

Children had a very heart-warming effect on us. Maybe that was the reason that after marriage couple wanted to have children. They had the power to lift our mood, to shift our mind from stresses the world provided.

"What's making you smile so much?" I heard a familiar voice, I ignored his presence as I sensed him grabbing the seat next to mine.

"Don't you have work to do rather than disturbing my peace?"

"I disturb your peace?" He mocked, "I can show you all those messages where you're pleading me to talk to you because you can't handle my silence."

I opted not to answer back, "you really have bonded well with Azia." Faizal mumbled but I wasn't going to respond. "Come on! You're not going to be mad at me because I didn't allow you to have those stupid ice-creams." He was annoyed, he can't bear my silence. "You would have gotten sick." He was glaring at me.

"One ice-cream won't had done such a harm."

"But the climate condition where we are proceeding would have been cherry on top." He fumed in exasperation, his orbs straight on the road.

"Why you changed the seat?" I inquired, faking a glare.

"Because Azia is sleeping." He pointed the seat opposite where Azia was sleeping on Farya's lap while Ahmed had moved towards the front seat. "You had unfortunately grabbed his seat but just to be gentleman and not to trouble you, he grabbed mine." Faizal rolled his orbs at the end, "advantage of being a girl."

"Haha... very funny," I rolled my orbs back at him.

"What can I say?" He raised his collar, "I am a funny man."

"That's the reason I call you joker," I showed my tongue while he chuckled at my antics.

"Was that a joke?" He muttered in such a cute voice, I wasn't able to handle my giggling.

"Yes," I was trying hard to suppress it.

"But I don't like jokes," he completed.

"And I don't like you." And we both ended up laughing like two mad humans. As we had enacted one of my favorite Bollywood characters. "You have seriously gone mad." I muttered in between my laugh.

"Anything to get you smiling like that," he whispered. Very softly as if it wasn't intended for my ears to listen but as we were so close, I did. I stared at him, my orbs widening in surprise but he looked away as if realizing the blunder, he created.

His orbs widen as he stared behind us averting his gaze in front. "What is it?" I inquired. He kept quite not uttering a word.

I could feel Farya's gaze on us, she was staring at us with questioning-suspicious orbs. I couldn't help myself from asking him. "Why does they dislike me so much?" It was getting unbearable to receive so much hate.

"They have their mind corrupted due to some past incidents and old belief."

"Past incidents?" I inquired.

He shook his head, "we will have the discussion for some other day." He slides it off!

°°°

They decided to stop in a lodge for the night. I was informed that Faizal had planned every single thing on the journey. Where they would have lunch, where they would stay for the night. I had seen him planning for things and becoming highly disappointed if nothing worked on the ways he wanted to.

I was completely different human. Planning gave me headache! I went with flow, having next to no clue what my future had store for me. I drive through my intuition and my feeling, logic was hardly part behind the decision I made where else he was practical, very practical.

"Come," Siddhi muttered as we got out of the bus and in front of the lodge. It wasn't some grand-one but normal enough for us to stay at night. He had chosen the location wisely, in the city so if things turned out wrong, we had other option to look upon. He was someone whom you could label responsible.

That was the quality I admired in him. I had bunch of cousins, males. Some younger while some older but none of them process that quality. Of holding the responsibility! They were much busy in their respective life's and I am not against enjoying life but I do believe that after a certain age children should act responsible enough, they should know how much to spent and on what to spent. If they can't remove the fanancial burden from their parents at least try not to add unnecessary demand on it.

Coming from not that fanacial stable family I had learnt those lesson very early in my life and I often found it unbelievable that even after growing into an adult some couldn't learn it. That maybe was the reason I started admiring him or maybe the fact that he was my first male-friend, thanks to my introvert nature.

We had walked inside and he had booked enough rooms for us. It was upon us to decide with whom we were going to share our rooms. Couples were sharing as well as singles. We were discussing sitting in the couch placed at the entrance of the lodge.

"Four of us will be together," Zara's father muttered, earning a groan from Zara.

"I want to stay with them," she muttered quietly.

"There won't be enough space, kiddo." Zain tired to pacify her. They shared a sweet-bond. I felt as if Zain considered Zara as her sister than he behaved with Aahana. Those were like enemies, hardly getting along.

"We are there, Zoya..." one of Zoya's friend complained. "You have ignored us," Zoya was pulled in a dilemma, she was staring at us and back at those.

"Fine," she decided to go with her friends.

"I am coming along with you," Aahana wrapped her arms around Zoya.

"So, there is only one room left," Zain mumbled. "Are we sharing our room," he winked in a playful manner at us only to receive a hit on his head by Ahmed.

"Be careful what you speak up," Ahmed glared at him. "If Abu or any of the elders had heard it, they would have killed you."

"I was just joking..." Zain tired to defend but was rewarded with a glare to shut up.

"What's going out there?" The stern voice spoke grabbing our attention and making Zain shiver. No matter how cool he acted, he was scared of Mr. Qureshi as much as the rest.

"We have decided with most of the rooms," Ahmed informed. "It would be better if remaining two be divided on basis of male and female."

My orbs enlarged in horror. Male and female. The only two females remaining excluding me and Siddhi was Farya and Mumtaz and I wasn't sure if they wanted to share the room with us.

"That's not a good idea," Faizal muttered to Ahmed.

"We don't have any option left," Ahmed was glaring at Faizal opposition.

"They won't..." Faizal kept it incomplete.

"I will see to it," Ahmed attempted to assure. "You need to trust us," he was pleading. Faizal sighed, his orbs glancing in my direction. He seemed so concerned at the moment, so scared. His orbs spoke so much which his mouth often kept concealed. He was so worried at the thought of us sharing the room with his mother and sister.

I felt the need to assure him, no matter that I was dying in anxiety. I blinked at him but he shook his head, walking away. As things were getting out of his hand, it wasn't in his control. Maybe he had felt it from the moment we arrived. Nothing as worked out as he planned.

°°°

"Can't we just book an extra room?" Siddhi muttered as we were walking towards our room.

"Only if we could," I mumbled.

We got inside the room; our companion was already present. Farya was trying to console crying Azia. "What's the deal?" I couldn't help myself from asking on seeing those beautiful orbs brimming in tears. She had created a special place in my heart, way-before I met her and it was due to Faizal.

"Often if being awake in middle of her sleep, she acts gloomy." Mumtaz answered on Farya's behalf. I offered her a friendly-smile as we looked around the room. It wasn't much big in size, enough for two individuals but as we were four, it seemed small in size. There was a king-size bed which could accommodate more than two individuals. A cupboard at the corner and beside it a door that led to washroom. Two armchair and a table with enough magazine on the ride side of the bed. We kept our suitcase at the corner next to cupboard.

"You're from South?" That sudden question made me conscious, I turned to the lady. Mumtaz had seat on the corner of the bed, her orbs fixed on us. "Come, have a seat..." she pointed next to her. I and Siddhi shared a look of anxiety. We had anticipated a lot of things about the night but not an interrogation-session.

Through we wanted to avoid it yet we were forced to walk towards her and sit next to her. Mumtaz passed a smile at us, her orbs having a slight-brown color into it or maybe it was just the light yet she was trying to make us comfortable in her presence.

"How do Zoya knows you both? From how long?" She sounded curious, "it might look awful that I don't have a clue about you..." her orbs moved from me to Siddhi. "But she never mentioned about you."

"You're asking the wrong question, Ammi." Farya interrupted her mother's interrogation-session. "How long not Zoya but Faizal knows you both?"

My orbs widen in shock as I turned to glance at her stern orbs fixed on us. "Hayee... Allah!" Mumtaz exclaimed in shock. "What rubbish are you speaking! They aren't Faizal but Zoya..." she stopped in mid as if revaluating her theory. "Is that true?" Her orbs were fixed on us, she was urging for truth.

I was staring at her in anxiety! Faizal would want us to lie but lie won't end up good. But in this case truth wasn't going to help us as well. Siddhi muttered before I could open my mouth.

"Yes, we know bhai...Faizal." Siddhi nodded, "but don't be mad at him for this." She requested, "he just wanted us to be part of his sister's wedding."

"How could he do such a thing?" Mumtaz was horror-stricken. "How would..." her thought was fixed on the consequences Faizal was going to receive in upcoming future.

"Abu don't need to know the truth," Farya muttered as the matter of fact.

"What you mean by he doesn't needs to know the truth?" Mumtaz was scolding Farya. "You kids have hide things..."

"He doesn't need to know about it until the wedding," Farya glanced at us. "Till than Zoya will be happy wedded and they will leave to their respective homes, we can deal with it later."

"But Faizal..." I regretted the minute that word came out of me as both those orbs were fixed on me. They both stared at me for a minute longer, one with softness while other with displeasure. Deal with it later? That would mean the entire anger would be blasted on Faizal!