I was sleeping peacefully on the bed when the knock on the door forced me to open my orbs, I groaned in disappointment as I reached for my cell to glance at the time.

It was just 6 in the morning and I was allowed to sleep till 8 on Sundays. Had mom forgotten that it was a Sunday? I groaned at the thought as I pushed my face into the pillow to grab few more hours of sleep.

"Nivi, get out of the bed!" She yelled, knocking desperately on the door. "Get ready and walk downstairs, we are having guest for the lunch so I need your help in arranging things around the room."

Could my Sunday turn any worse? Why she had to invite guest on Sundays? Why they can't come during weekdays? I wouldn't have mind their presence in my house as I would be occupied in my office.

The thought of office brought back yesterday incident. I had never seen Faizal's anger before, he used to get mad at me and used to claim that he won't talk to me but it wasn't anything like yesterday. And I preferred not to witness it again!

I had yet to decide what I was going to do? Those officers weren't going to stay in our office for long. They had came just for a small period yet their presence were annoying. I shook my head as I pulled myself from the bed. I could stress about them later, I had a guest to attend.

I didn't even realise when the clock striked one. It was already time for the lunch and yet there were various preparation left. "Why you had to prepare so many dishes?" I groaned at the list of it.

"They are coming for the first time," mom shushed me off. "I don't want them to have bad impression about us."

I choose to shut my mouth, why should I waste my energy on arguing with her. After almost an hour and half, we were done with the lunch.

There was knock at the exact moment, "I will go in my room."

"Why? They have arrived for you." Suddenly my mood had a shift.

"Mom, not again!" I groaned at the thought of it. "I have told you so many times that I am not ready to get married. Stop wasting your and theirs time," I was pleading with her. "I am not interested!"

"There is no harm in glancing at them for once," mom narrowed her orbs at me. "What if they change your decision?"

"I am not going to change my decision," I was on the verge of walking towards my room but mom grabbed my wrist, offering me with her pointed look.

"I have welcomed your guest with warm smile, now it's your turn." She eyed me to walk towards the living area.

With a burden filled heart, I forced my legs to walk out of the kitchen. My orbs casted downward as I kept moving towards the living area. A familiar voice forced me to raise my head. That couldn't be true! It couldn't be Zoya, I shook my head but the minute I got a glimpse of Farya, my orbs enlarged in shock. What was she doing here?

"Nivi," she passed a smile and soon each orbs were plastered on me. The entire Qureshi family was present in the living area.

"Nivi," Zoya passed me a warm smile as she rushed towards me. "I am so happy for you," she wrapped her arms around me. "It's finally, happening!" She pulled herself from me, her lips brightening into a wide smile. I stared at her in confusion. What was happening? Why was she so excited?

Aunt Mumtaz walked towards me as she asked her daughter to slide off so she could talk to me. "I never thought that it will happen like this but I always wanted to do this with my would-be-daughter in law," my orbs widen in shock.

I stared at her in horror. My heart beating anxiously as hope was making a place in my heart. Was my ears ringing? Did I took her words in a wrong manner? Did she meant me when she uttered the word daughter in law?

She cupped my cheek, she leaned as she pressed a kiss on my forehead. "Welcome to Qureshi family, Nivi."

I felt as if I was dreaming, I wasn't understanding a thing happening around me. I felt as if I was pulled into my dreamland. Zoya dragged me towards the center of the living area, making me stand beside Faizal. He was staring at me with concern but I was stunned to react. I was scared to accept the reality! What if it wasn't a reality but a dream? I couldn't raise my hope high!

"Sit..." Faizal eyed me to seat beside him on the couch. I obeyed not daring to open my mouth. "What's wrong?" He inquired, seeing my quite behaviour.

"What's happening?" I expressed my worry to him. "Is this for real or one of my stupid dream?" I was staring at our family happy faces. How could this be real? They were happy about the arrangement.

"Maybe God heard your prayers," Faizal whispered in my ears.

I stared at him for confirmation as he gave a slight nod. My orbs were brimming with tears, I sighed, I closed my orbs as I mummered thank you to the creator of the world. 

"Thank you," I had closed my orbs in prayer as a drop of tear descended from my cheek. I felt a slight squeeze on my knuckles by Faizal.

"They are going to exchange, rings?" Zoya sounded excited as mom brought a tray which had boxes of ring. When did she prepared it?

"We usually celebrate it in a grand manner but as it was suddenly decided so it going to be in very plain manner." Mom sounded disappointed at her conclusion. "Engagement is moreover a promise of you both making to eachother that you both are going to marry eachother." She passed a smile, "Nivi, you really want to marry him, right?" I could glimpse a slight hint of fear in her orbs as if she still was unconvinced than why had she planned the engagement?

I nodded trying to blink at her in assurance. Dad patted my head as he offered me the ring. "Why didn't you mention about the ceremony last night? We would have brought a ring along with us." Aunt Mumtaz expressed her displeasure as mom handed Faizal a ring.

"It just a small gift from us to them," dad nodded at us.

My heart was beating anxiously as Faizal extended his hands towards me. I was still trying to register things happening around me, still in the confusion. The cold-metallic ring got wrapped around my finger. Loud cheers surrounding the hall.

I still couldn't believe it! I glanced at the ring, a smile shaping on my lips. Like any girl, I had dreamt about my marriage. I had planned lot of things about that day. One among it was the ring. I had expressed my fantasies loudly to my parents especially to Shruti, she was my best friend in childhood.

I wanted my ring to have a heart engraved on it. According to me heart was a sign of love and I wanted it engraved on my wedding ring.

I caressed the gold ornaments on my finger. A smile appeared on my face as I raised my orbs and glanced at my parents. Why they were so beautiful? How often they had fulfilled my wishes without me uttering a word! As they were doing at the moment. I wiped off the tears as I slide the ring in Faizal's finger.

The loud cheers filled the room, those happy wishes surrounding us. He grabbed my hands in his, providing a squeeze. His brows frowning in worry. I attempted to pass a smile at him but it ended up in tears.

"Nivi," he groaned as he was on the verge of moving his arms towards me but Zoya's voice halted his action.

"Bhai, don't you dare make her cry!" She glared at him, wrapping her arms around my shoulder.

"He didn't..." I attempted to defend him. "He didn't made me cry," I mumbled as I wiped off those tears. "It just, it just..." I choked at my words.

"She is just feeling emotional with things happening around," Faizal completed on my behalf.

"I still can't believe that you both are engaged!" Zoya exclaimed, hugging me tightly.

•••

I weren't provided with enough time to have a proper conversation with him when it was already time for them to leave for Meerut. There were so many things to be said as I waved my hands in a gesture of saying him bye. I saw longing in his orbs as well, as he stared at me from the window. He wasn't in a mood to go yet he had to.

I sighed as I was staring at the pictures Zoya and Zain had shared with me. I hadn't thought that their trip would end with our engagement. How? When? Those changes took place I was yet to discover but I allowed myself to be happy at the moment. To accept that it had happened! We were engaged! For real!

"Miss me..." His message popped on my screen as a smile appeared on my face.

I was missing him, he had gone just a hour back but I was missing him. I longed for his presence. His warm hands in my cold ones. Those beautiful black orbs staring at me with so much love and adoration.  Why he had to be born so far from me? I pouted at the thought.

"I have more important things to do than miss you," I responded back. I was adamant not to confess it to him.

"Like glancing at my picture and smiling to yourself? Yes! Very important things to do."

I scanned my room in horror. Was he present here? Had he hide a camera in my room? How did he knew that I was staring at his picture and admiring his beauty?

"How do you know?"

Before I could even give a second thought, I typed the message and sent it to him. I groaned the minute I realised my mistake, he had already seen it. He was going to grab the opportunity and make fun of me.

"Because I know you," his reply was unpredictable. Instead of teasing or boasting, he just typed those simple words. Those words which had the power to melt my heart.

"I miss you," he typed after a minute. "I wish if we could stay a day long." He confessed my thoughts. Only if they did!

"How did you convince your parents for this?"

"I didn't!"

"Than who did?"

"No one had to."

I didn't understood his answer but I didn't inquire further as mom called me for the dinner. I typed a bye, informing him that I was going to grab my dinner and kept the phone on charger as I walked towards the kitchen.

I saw her preheating the lunch. She had prepared extra and now we had to finish it, I rolled my orbs at the thought. "Mom," I asked as I started washing the dishes. "How did you..." I kept my question incomplete, I wasn't comfortable talking about the topic with them. I was afraid of their answer. What if they agreed for my sake? What if they weren't happy with the engagement? It would spoil my mood. I won't be able to enjoy knowing that their happiness doesn't lie in it.

"We were taken aback as well when they paid us a visit last night." Mom started narrating the incident.

"Last night?" I was stunned with the news, "who visited?"

"Faizal's parents," she mumbled sparing a glance at me. "You informed that you will have dinner with Faizal's family and will arrive late. They weren't included in the plan and their children had no clue that they came here. They informed us that they would leave tomorrow and Mr. Qureshi wanted to visit us before leaving."

"He was praising you the entire time," mom mumbled. "He apologized for behaving in that manner and even informed about the incidents that you kept hidden from us." Mom offered a glare in my direction, "we were stunned on knowing the things happened with you."

"I have always consider you as my small kid, a girl that cried over small things. I was stunned on knowing that you didn't back off. You handled it so well, you showed to them that your kindness was your biggest strength. You win him over due to your kind spirit and pure heart. They had come here to ask you for his son. They wanted to make you daughter in law of their house?"

"But why? I am not that great," I was finding it so hard to understand. "They wanted someone else for their son. Someone who is more mature, responsible than me. The one that can manage their family. The one that knows their culture."

"Because they understood that their son wants you to be beside him," dad's voice made me to turn in his direction. "Male knows the other male, very well. You can see in his orbs, Nivi. The love he holds for you can be seen in the way he stares at you. He almost forget about the existence of a the entire world when you're beside him. He can't help it," he shook his head as a smile was playing on his lips. "You grab his entire attention!"

I couldn't believe, I was hearing praises about Faizal from my dad. What more would a girl need?

°°°

Finally! The engagement! They worked so hard for it! Like so hard!