....

Dahlia Ahmad was leaning against her grandmother's stuffy old bathroom.

She nervously bit her lips, watching as Faizan Iqbal crouched under a mosaic sink, twisting a nut or bolt of some kind.

It was a sight she never thought she'd see - Faizan Iqbal on her grandmother's anciently designed bathroom of all places, fixing a leaking sink. She knew if she told Shifa, the girl would never let her hear the end of it.

Dahlia's grandmother was snoring on the room right next to them. Nargis was staying in her own house, despite everyone's rigorous begging. The stubborn woman remained firm on the fact that she would rather die on her own bed than live somewhere else, so to everyone's despair, she was back into the old house.

The rest of the family decided to take turns to stay with her, feeling uncomfortable to let her stay alone in that house. So they all took shifts to ensure there was at least one family member staying with Nargis at all times.

Dahlia had been calling Ibrahim for the past thirty minutes, but there was no answer.

She was starting to regret putting herself in this situation. Them, actually. Dahlia peaked under her lashes and gave the handsome guy fixing her grandmother's sink another glimpse.

His presence affected her more than she could imagine. And she did not like it one bit. Also, the sudden thought of having to explain why she had brought him into this house made her regret her decision even more. She should have known better.

Now she couldn't wait for him to finish, or at least find out where Ibrahim was and if he was bringing any of the parents along. That was a situation she wasn't ready to deal with.

She let out a sigh and shifted her weight from one leg to another, agitatedly looking at her phone again to see if she received a message from her brother.

"You know, you're the one who asked me to come here," he spoke up, startling her as he broke the silence between them.

"Yeah, I know," she stated, feeling more unhinged with his gaze on her, wondering where he was going with this.

He was on one knee crouching under, his back to her. "Then why are you so impatient to throw me out of the house?"

Dahlia lowered her phone to face him. "I'm not," she replied briskly. "That's not what it is. I just can't wait for Ibrahim to arrive so I can go home."

"You're a terrible liar, Dahlia Ahmed." He looked over his shoulder and smiled, eyes sparkling playfully.

Her grandma's nurse, who was watching television with unusual intense interest, pretending like she couldn't see the young man working in the next room and the girl watching him work, discreetly increased the volume so that the commercial jingles reached them now.

Dahlia widened her eyes with disbelief. "I'm not lying."

Faizan shook his head hopelessly and went back to working. "Just admit you don't like being this close to me."

The butterflies in her stomach erupted again, and with full force. She straightened up. "I don't know what you mean."

"You've rejected me every time I have asked you out, or even offered to drive you home. You even refuse to look at me directly," he asked, eyes at the sink and his back facing her again. "And always using your family as an excuse too."

Her heart raced against her ribcage. Dahlia always had an inkling, but this was the first time he actually admitted to his intention. "You know what, I'm not having this conversation," she spewed out, crossing her arms over her chest and stepping back from the door frame. "Not here."

"Of course," he stated obviously, looking over his shoulder. "Now you can't even stand to be in the same room as me."

She scoffed at him and walked away from the bathroom, her heart still threatening to jump out of her chest.

Feeling slightly flustered and short of breath, Dahlia walked out into the porch, as far away from Faizan as she could, and into fresh air.

Two beams of headlights flashed afar, and Dahlia's sigh of relief turned a little shaky. Even from the distance she recognized her brother's car.

Dahlia was already skipping down to the bottom of the steps by the time the car stopped in front of the building, her patience wearing thin.

"Where were you?" she cried as soon as the doors opened, before Ibrahim even got out.

"Sorry, we were stuck in traffic for two hours."

The voice froze the blood in her veins, and she knew the bearer of it had eyes which could do worse. A new wave of nerves washed over her and Dahlia stilled. Kaveh emerged from the car.

Seeing her, he didn't say anything. She looked at him once and then swept her glance towards the car again. There were no greetings exchanged between them. But she knew he was gazing at her like he always did, she could feel his piercing eyes on her skin without even looking.

"Where's Ibrahim?" she threw the question out, her tone firm and demanding, the exact opposite of what she was feeling.

"He got down at the convenience store to get something. I drove his car here because there were no parking spots."

The tension between them was thick. Like it always was.

She took a deep breath and finally faced him after what felt like forever.

"Do you want to wait inside?" she asked, taking him by surprise. "I could have tea served while we're waiting."

Despite everything, and what Dahlia was actually feeling, he was a guest. She was raised to be polite to guests.

"Thank you," he replied, voice mellower than she had ever heard. "You're kind to offer, but I'm good."

Shuffling of feet were heard from inside the house. The main door squeaked open and within seconds, Faizan walked out.

She could feel Kaveh tense besides her. Faizan's eyes flitted between them and he slowed down the steps.

"Hey," he started, unsurely. "What's up?"

Kaveh was quiet, but his presence was anything but. Dahlia felt like a child caught in a mischief. She knew it was unreasonable, but she couldn't help it.

She took a hold of her emotions and forced a smile at Faizan. "Are you done?" she asked.

"Yeah, pretty much," he answered, focusing on her. "The sink shouldn't give you anymore trouble. I'll still send a professional to get it checked tomorrow."

"That would be great," Dahlia said, her smile warming. "I can't thank you enough."

After bidding her good bye, and nodding at Kaveh one last time, Faizan left the porch and walked past them.

Kaveh hadn't said a word so far. But from the stillness in his eyes, Dahlia could tell he was nothing short of furious.

"What was he doing here?" he asked, voice sharp enough to cut steel.

"We had a leaky sink, I called him for help."

"And it didn't occur to you to call for a plumber?"

Anger rose to her chest. How dare he reprimand her like that?

"I did!" she cried defensively. "Our local plumber was busy. I called Ibrahim next, but his phone has been on silent for the past hour. Faizan was the only person I could think of to ask for help."

"If any of your neighbours saw that-" He pointed to the stairs, indicating to the time Faizan got down from there. "Do you have any idea what they would say?"

The accusation in his voice boiled her blood. She turned to face him fully.

"He was here to just fix a sink," she bit out. "There were other people in the house too! Why am I even explaining myself to you?" She shook her head after a while, letting out a scoff. "Please don't turn something completely innocent to something so ugly."

The fury in her eyes took Kaveh aback. "I'm just trying to look out for you. He's not who you think he is."

"You saw me around a guy and immediately assumed there is something between us," she spat. "You constantly look down on people of this society, but you're no better than them. Your mentality is just the same."

His shoulders slumped. Hurt flashed across his face. Dahlia's anger simmered. She squirmed with unease, guilt peaking in her heart.

Maybe that was too harsh. Maybe she crossed a line. But Dahlia didn't say anything. She folded her arms and looked down at her feet.

They heard Ibrahim humming. "Dels!" he cried, spotting them. He quickened his pace. "Sorry for missing all your calls. My phone was on silent because I was driving."

She looked up to meet her brother's gaze, exasperated. "I've been calling you for an hour, Ibi."

"That's how long we've been on the road! Even longer. Just ask Kaveh."

That was the last thing she was going to do. The air between them turned even more uncomfortable, if possible. "Just let's go inside," she mumbled. Kaveh was completely quiet. She shuffled in her feet and headed towards the house, barely meeting his eyes.

"Look, it's Salman."

"See, there's your fiancé."

The girls giggled. Farrah rolled her eyes, trying hard to hide her smile. "You girls are so silly," she remarked.

"We're just so excited," Malika squealed. "I can't believe you two are finally together."

"It was painful watching you secretly pine after him for all those years," Layla said.

Farrah was astonished. "You knew?"

"We all did, Fari."

Embarrassment colored her cheeks. "Oh no."

There was a fluttering of laughter from the girls as she hung her face to cover it with her hands. "At least you got him," Dahlia consoled, still chuckling.

The guests were still arriving at the five star hotel. The lavish engagement party was going on at full pace. The roof top was decorated brilliantly. Because of the chilly wind blowing occasionally, fur and velvet shawls were wrapped on the shoulders of each lady.

With Autumn nearing to an end, and Winter hinting to begin, their wedding season was starting.

Farrah lifted her head and peaked over her shoulder, where her fiancé actually was.

He was surrounded by his group of boys. He was at the center, with Kaveh by his side. But as the other guy only smiled and occasionally nodded his head, Salman was talking animatedly, making everyone laugh constantly. Like he was the life of the party.

The engagement ceremony began. Rings were exchanged by the parents since the bride and groom weren't married yet.

The food was served and aroma of spices filled the air. As she sat to eat, Salman dropped into the seat besides her.

Her heart soared. There were eruptions of teasing whistles and laughter.

Their neighbouring seats soon filled up by their friends. Fardin took the chair exactly opposite to her.

The sick smile on his face swept away all traces of happiness she was feeling. Even before he said anything, her insides twisted uncomfortably. A few of the other boys soon joined him.

"Never thought we would witness the day when Salman Bashir would settle," he spoke in his infamous drawling tone. "Settle down with a girl, I mean," he added with a wink.

The boys guffawed. Farrah stiffened. She hopelessly looked over to the neighbouring table to see most of her friends there.

"When you find the right girl it just makes sense to do it," Salman answered cheerfully. Farrah couldn't tell if he had completely missed the innuendo or chose to ignore it.

"So tell us," Fardin started again, folding his hands together over the table. "How did it happen?"

Salman shrugged and glimpsed at her fondly. "It just did." The nerves in Farrah's stomach twisted tighter.

"C'mon," he pushed. "Give us the details. How did Fat Farrah end up bagging our sweet boy Salman?"

She felt sick to her stomach. Years of anger, resentment and grudge towards these boys rose to her chest. She shot him a hardened glare, which Fardin ignored gleefully.

From across the table, Kaveh opened his mouth to say something, but then closed it again. He ended up just casting her an apologetic look.

They were still laughing. Her future husband chuckled. "She always kind of had my heart, I guess."

There were coos around the table. But unlike the last time, it just made her more nauseous. Farrah pushed away her half eaten plate, appetite completely lost.

The guys quickly diverted to another topic, and just as fast they moved from the main course to dessert. Farrah barely spoke a work through out. And as soon as she could, she jumped away from the table.

The rest of the party was a blur to her. Salman, her friends, her parents all laughed, ate and chatted away around her. When it was time to leave, she half-heartedly exchanged good byes and as fast as possible got out of the venue.

She was standing by the gate, waiting for her car, and her mother who was still busy bidding farewell to their beloved acquaintances.

Salman expelled out of the building, frantically looking around. When his eyes landed on her, he strode towards her. "I've been looking for you. You left without saying goodbye," he complained.

Seeing the angry look in her eyes, the sparkle vanished from his. "What's wrong?" Salman asked.

"Are you serious?" she spewed with derision. "Were you at the same table as I was?"

His mind seemed to reel back. "Is this because Fardin insinuated that I was a womanizer?" he queried. "You know that's not true." He shrugged casually. "Those guys are always exaggerating my previous history with girls."

"Oh my God, no!" she cried with ridicule. "He commented on my body. He insinuated that I'm not good enough for you. He keeps doing that. You all do as if its acceptable to do so."

"Oh." Realization dawned upon him. Then he smiled at her affectionately. "Of course you're not fat anymore. He didn't mean those things. I mean look at you." He beckoned at her. "He was just teasing."

She lost her temper completely. "Are you actually so dense that you don't understand how offensive it is to use a body shape in a derogatory manner?" Her voice was a whisper to avoid unwanted attention, but her tone was aggressive. "It doesn't matter whether I'm still overweight or not! You can't say things like that!"

Salman stared at her, completely taken aback. "We were just having a laugh, Farrah," he explained, any trace of humour completely lost. "I don't understand why you're reacting this way."

"You think I was overreacting?!"

"That's how Fardin is with you always. How we treat each other all the time. You've never been offended before."

She stared at him dumbfounded. "In which world do you live in?" Her voice was as cold and sharp as steel. "Do you really have no idea about how miserable you and your friends made me over the years?"

The look on his face told her he was starting to get annoyed. "What do you mean?"

Farrah let out a scoff. "You are so self-absorbed. Each and everyone of you." Her voice was raising now. They were starting to attract some attention. Salman was occasionally glancing around self consciously. "I hated myself for years because of the years of bullying. I developed social anxiety." Her voice was getting strained with emotion. "My God, I almost got an eating disorder."

Salman gaped at her with disbelief, struggling to comprehend her words. Farrah was heaving, completely overwhelmed with emotions.

Her mother came towards them, surrounded by a few of her friends. "What's going on? Is everything okay between you two?" she asked, her concerned eyes darting back and forth between them.

"Are you two having a sweet couples' fight?" one of the aunties asked, and rest chuckled along with her.

Farrah wanted the ground to split so the earth could bury her. Salman regained himself somewhat and shot them a half clueless and half courteous smile. Their car came around, and with a few unintelligible words to the group, Farrah quickly left the scene.