~Hooriyah

Burying yesterday's events under the soil of my heart, I tried my best to convince myself that it was merely a nightmare. His existence, his sudden arrival after all these years, his tears and painful pleads, everything! Considering everything as another miserable nightmare, I stopped thinking and giving a damn about his thoughts.

After all, I was habitual of having nightmares every now and then. Perhaps, this was also another one!

As I entered inside the school, ready to welcome a new hopeful morning with my lifelines, I started to sense something different in the air.

Layers of laughter, storm of innocent giggles and lots and lots of screams full of excitement.

I smiled joyfully as I heard numerous giggles and laughter from the other side of the school's garden.

My kids were playing and having fun, perhaps.

The only thing which could make me feel joyful was their laughter. And I could even die for their happiness. Curious to know that what made them laugh so madly and that too, so early in the morning, I slowly walked towards the garden which was beautifully blossoming with new flowers of the season, all of them planted by me and my students, something which I was fond of back in my house.

Out of all the flowers, hibiscus and white roses were my favorite. Chrysanthemum used to be my favorite too , but my love for them faded five years ago, so I stopped planting them after leaving my house.

Because, they were 'his' favorite !

Tiny dew drops sparkled upon the beautiful flamboyant petals of the flowers as if they were determined to make them look as gorgeous as a bride. The internal peace which I used to lack at night, would be magically restored in the morning whenever I ran my fingers through the soft and wet petals of these flowers. I was in love with them and it was the only thing which never changed in these five years, while every other thing did!

The giggles started becoming louder thus bringing me back to my senses. A huge grin danced across my lips as I walked towards a willow tree and decided to silently peep across the garden, in order to have a look at my munchkins.

What happened next was enough to snatch that smile and happiness from my face. The eyes which were once twinkling with joy, immediately started to burn with flames of resentment and fury.

"Now if you guys defeat me this time, I promise you all that I'm gonna take you to the movies!"

Everyone shouted excitedly and chirped with happiness as he prepared for his turn to do the batting and one of the boys juggled the ball in his hands.

The little boy tried his best to run professionally and swayed his arms just like a cricketer and then threw the ball towards the batsman.

Playing foolishly, the batsman tried to hit the ball as awfully as he could which ultimately ended up hitting the wicket instead of the bat.

"OUTTTTT!" The kids shouted in unison.

"Well, I would have done better but I made you guys win this match, intentionally!" He smirked in that same usual way.

"NO ! NO! NO! You are lying, you are cheating , we won the game and you lost!"

The kids laughed and shouted with excitement, unintentionally making me giggle too, which unfortunately alarmed him of my presence.

"Oh look kids! Someone was secretly watching and enjoying our match!"

He smirked devilishly as his piercing gaze landed upon me, making me feel uncomfortable.

After a brief pause and little hesitation, I gathered up some stamina to walk towards the garden.

"You are not allowed to enter the premises of this school without taking the permission!" I glared at him with anger.

"Oh really? I beg your pardon Miss Hooriyah! But I have already asked the sports teacher and she had allowed me to play with these kids!" He feigned innocence.

"But did you ask the principal?" I narrowed my eyes, ready to pour my lava out any second.

"I am sure she would also allow me! After all who would say no to a handsome man like me?"

He smiled confidently, while his gaze never averted from my face.

"I am the principal, and I would like you to leave this school immediately!"

I crossed my arms and watched his confident expressions turn into pale ones.

"And this village too!"

I rudely emphasized on my last sentence and after giving him one final anger-filled glare, I turned to leave.

"Glad to know this, Miss Hooriyah, but I have promised your students to take them to the cinema. I'm afraid I have to fulfill the promise!" He smiled slyly.

I turned and looked at him with surprise. After all, this man was full of surprises!

"Oh really Mr. Shahveer Ali Khan? Since when did you start fulfilling your promises? As far as I remember, you loved to break them, isn't it?"

His smile immediately disappeared while his gaze lowered with embarrassment, as if my words have caused him immense pain.

"Come on students, we are getting late for the class!"

I instructed the kids while my anger-filled eyes were still glued on his pale face.

As I turned and started to lead the kids towards the classroom, he grabbed the corner of my dupatta and came closer and started whispering something very slowly in my ears, raising goosebumps all over my body,

"Mein Usi Waadey Ko Nibhany Aya Hun, Jo Mein Ney Tum Se 23 Saal Pehly Kya Tha! Aur Mein Usey Nibhaye Bagher Yahan Se Kaheen Nahi Jaun ga! "

He continued to look deeply in my eyes as if trying to drown in them, making me feel weaker than before but I still managed to strengthen myself which I had been doing since five years, and finally broke the eye contact with him, released my dupatta from his grip and left without saying anything else.

"Oh My Beloved !"

I heard him mumbling to himself while shaking his head and laughing crazily as if he was successful in roasting me after so many years.

x-x-x-x-x

~Shahveer

Something which seemed to be impossible, actually turned out the way I wanted. All thanks to the combined efforts of these adorable kids.

As soon as she started teaching, the kids started to beg her with innocence to let them go and watch the movie with me. She continued to refuse until the most adorable and her favorite one stood up and started emotionally blackmailing her.

"Miss Hooriyah! It's okay if you don't wanna let us go. After all you are our teacher. You have all the rights to refuse even if we are dying to watch a movie for the very first time. But its okay, you don't need to let us go. I know that we have never watched a movie in a cinema before, but so what? Its okay as far as our teacher is happy, we are happy!"

Raniya blinked innocently and tried to wipe her tears which were actually invisible, thus melting her teacher's heart away.

"It's okay teacher, we won't go!"

The whole class mumbled unanimously, lowering their heads with dismay as if they were the saddest creatures on Earth.

"Let them go Hooriyah, don't you see how sad they are?" An elderly woman dressed as a nun, who had been watching the whole scenario, came inside the classroom and requested her.

"But Sister, they haven't completed their classwork yet!" She gave an annoyed look to the woman.

"But if you let them go, they will promise you to complete their work on time!" The woman looked at the children as they nodded while agreeing with the deal.

And their innocent faces were enough to let their teacher give up as she looked at them with sympathy and allowed them to go. After all, she was an owner of a heart as soft as a feather, and as pure as crystal.

"Thank you so much Miss Hooriyah. I'm very grateful to you."

I immediately entered in the classroom thus making the kids chuckle with happiness, while she rolled her eyes with frustration.

"Well, can I ask you for another favor?" I shifted my gaze towards the Christian woman.

"Yes sure, son!" She patted my head with affection.

"I won't be able to handle so many children on my own. I would like to be accompanied by one of your teachers, if you don't mind!"

I smirked while looking at Hoor, to which she gave me an angry stare.

"Ofcourse Ofcourse. After all, someone have to look after their safety too! Hooriyah, you should go with them!"

The old woman instructed her, making her eyes widen with horror, to which I chuckled satanically.

"No sister, I can't go, I have lots of chores to look after____"

"Its okay, if her chores are important than the safety of the children, I will go alone!" I feigned innocence once again.

"Absolutely not! Hooriyah, there are lots of people here who can look after your chores. Go with the children please!" The woman instructed her and forced her to go with me.

"Yeah but there are lots of people who can go with the children, why only me?"

She barely whispered in the woman's ears.

"Because you can handle them more perfectly than anyone else can. They would be more comfortable with you, I guess!" I intervened and raised my eyebrows while teasing her and the students started laughing while enjoying this mini argument.

"Yes of course you are right my son, but how do you know?"

The woman asked me with her suspicious eyes.

"Well I know everything about her!" I smiled confidently.

"Oh Jesus! Do you both know each other?" The woman looked at me with amazement as I nodded.

"Since Childhood!" I smirked.

"No, we don't!" Hoor intervened angrily.

"Well, that's kind of rude to pour anger on a guest in front of your little and adorable students. Is that what you want them to do once they grow up, Miss Hooriyah Jahangir Khan?"

I tilted my head while examining those rapidly changing cute expressions dancing on her angelic face as she heard me call her full name.

"Why didn't you tell me Hoor, that he is your friend? We would have welcomed him properly . Anyways, you are going with him right now, no more arguments! "

The old lady announced her final statement.

"But Sister___" She tried her best to avoid going with me.

"No more arguments angel!"

The woman interrupted her and patted her cheeks with affection and left the classroom.

"You have to pay for this Shahveer!"

She glared at me adorably while gritting her teeth with anger.

"I have already paid, my love!"

I smirked while looking at her with an intensity which shook her to the core.

"Never call me that, again!"

She gave me a final glance full of anger and left the classroom with frustration.

"Sure, my love!" I replied back loudly while laughing hysterically.

x-x-x-x-x

"I never knew that you would use such cheap tactics to gain my apology!"

She glared at me as I joined her outside the cinema while the students continued to enjoy the movie.

"Oh really? How ungrateful you are Hooriyah! Instead of thanking me for arranging a visit for your students to the cinema and let them get rid of that boring mathematics class of yours, you are actually being rude to me!"

I continued to munch my leftover popcorns, while my gaze was glued on the dark grey sky.

"Why don't you go back to where you came from? Why are you disturbing me like this?" She asked with annoyance.

"Am I disturbing you?" I blinked my eyes like an innocent child.

She remained quiet as I continued to read that painful story in her dreamy eyes.

"Please go back Shahveer!" She barely whispered.

"Give me one reason!" I continued to stare at that beautiful face.

"I was really happy in this own world of mine. I had been living a peaceful life here, far away from all the tragedies and sorrows of the rest of the world!"

Her gaze was lowered while her voice was quivering with pain.

"Don't you miss your sister? Your mother?" I looked at her with sympathy.

She remained silent while trying to search for answers.

"They don't need me!" She sighed with pain.

"Is that what you think? Iman begged me thousand times to bring you back. She keeps on cursing herself for what she did to you. She is dying to meet you!"

"Too late for her to realize!" Hooriyah laughed sarcastically.

I remained silent.

"And what about Mama? Did she ever ask about me?" She looked straight in my eyes.

"Yeah...Yeah she did! She did...multiple times!" I stammered as I lied to her.

"No she didn't. You are lying! Why would she? After all, I wasn't even her daughter!"

She smiled to herself while my eyes widened with shock upon hearing another disastrous news. How much pain was this woman bearing and since when?

"She is my step-mother. My mother left me when I was ten. Baba re-married due to the pressure of his relatives."

She answered my unasked questions within few seconds.

"And Iman is not my biological sister! Whatever she said to me and accused me for, is something only a non-biological sister can say!"

There was extreme bitterness in her words.

"But I had no complaints with them. Mama took care of me very well, and I considered Iman more than a sister. But what she did to me, was unbearable!"

Her voice was as cold as the snow which had stopped falling a few seconds ago.

Such deep were her words.

Such deep was her pain.

Such unfortunate was her destiny.

But still she was the strongest woman I had ever seen.

We continued to look into each others eyes, both of us lost in the feeling which had grown stronger despite of the distances and separation of five painful years. I wanted to hug her and envelope her with the embrace of my love which had been brutally overflowing from my heart. I wanted to kiss all of her tears away and tell her that what she meant for me. She was so near, so close, but still unreachable.

"And what you did, was unbearable too!"

The fury in her once moistened eyes returned as she gave me an unapologetic look, thus trying to remind me of my cunning reality.

"But I want to compensate each and every loss of yours, caused by me!"

I looked at her painfully while my eyes glistened with tears.

"Your words seem as useless to me as my feelings used to be, for you! I hate you more than anyone else in this world Shahveer!"

Her words were enough to spread poison within my veins and arteries, while my blood started to boil with anger and frustration. I grabbed her arm with anger and pulled her closer to me as I looked at her with my fearsome eyes which were boiling with lava, making her tremble with fear.

"You can take my life Hooriyah, kill me as mercilessly as you want to, but never say that you hate me, again!"

She stared at me with fear and wept like an innocent child.

"I did not spend those years full of agony, pain and torture while hallucinating and dreaming about you day and night, crying like a mad man, dying with pain each and every second, always wishing for death, only to end up hearing from you, that you hate me!"

I madly looked in her beautiful hazel brown eyes while my forehead gently collapsed with hers.

After a brief silence, and an eye contact which seemed to be inevitable, she finally uttered something which was enough to break my soul into uncountable fragments.

"I hate you! And always will ! I don't care whatever you have been throughout these years. I am glad that you suffered and I am more than happy that if not my rightful prayers, then at least my evil prayers and the curses which I had denounced upon you on the night of my humiliation, were fulfilled!"

Tears started to flow like a waterfall from those dreamy eyes as she looked into mine with hatred and anger.

"And I believe that whatever you have gone through, would have been nothing in front of what you made me go through! You deserved whatever happened to you, and I want you to keep suffering for the rest of your life!"

Her words were so poisonous and filled with hatred that my anger started to accelerate, making me feel scared of what would I end up doing with her.

She wept innocently while testing my patience as I tightened my grip around her arms, breathing heavily, and pulling her dangerously closer to myself, leaving just a few millimeters between us.

"I hate you Shahveer, I hate you, and always will!"

She continued to repeat those words mercilessly, making my mind go wild with pain, anger and frustration simultaneously.

"HOORIYAAH!! STOP SAYING THAT AGAIN AND AGAIN !!"

Knowing that her delicate soul and sensitive bird-like heart won't be able to bear the intensity of my anger, I still shouted and burst at her wildly, like a thunderstorm, only to realize that it was too late as it had already started raining heavily from her mesmerising eyes.

Her watery eyelashes started to drown as she tried to blink twice or thrice but unable to maintain her balance, she slowly closed her eyes and allowed the unconsciousness to embrace her fragile soul as she felt dizzy.

"Hooriyah, open your eyes Hooriyah!"

I patted her cheeks and tried to shake her shoulders but her face immediately went pale and lifeless. She finally surrendered herself to the unconsciousness. Her head gently fell upon my shoulder as I tightened my grip around her waist, trying to stop her from falling on the ground.

"Hooriyah!"

I whispered in her ears as energy started to drain out of my body due to fear and when there was no response, I finally realized that she had fainted.