" When will she regain consciousness? " , Saajid asked anticipatingly.

Shaahid was sitting on a chair a little away from the bed. Munching potato chips.

" By tomorrow morning. She's not unconscious. Just asleep. "

Saajid looked terribly sad, as he settled at his sister's feet.

" I feel like such a failure as a brother. I cannot even stand up to my sister's needs. "

" It's not like that. Her needs are sky- high. " , Shaahid chuckled.
" And I know it's difficult to watch her sickeningly hallucinate. I'll heal her, and things will be fine.

By the way, did Salman often stop talking to her, or coming over, for petty things? "

Saajid took sometime.
Then said,
" I never interfered in their relationship. Also I stay in the shop mostly. I cannot know who is coming and who isn't. "

" Was she always distant from you? "

" No. But she never much disclosed her love life to me. " , Saajid coughed.

" I see.

Anyways, I'm retiring to sleep. You too do. She'll wake up on her own when time comes. "

Shaahid got up, and left the room.
Saajid kept sitting, staring at his sleeping sister.

___

" I know you'll read this letter a month after receiving it. Hence, by the time you read it, I'll be amongst the white cold snows of Shimla.

After deliberately failing my boss in various projects and making them realise that I'm a human, not a machine, I managed this vacation of twenty long days.
Not only a vacation, it's a rejuvenation. The art of finding myself.

Are you asking whom I brought along? A bagful of loneliness. You know how much I love 'her'.

Remember, you always asked me, why I consider each feeling a 'she' ?
Because men are stone hearts. Look at you! 

By the way, these days I do strange things.
Like I make tea, then deliberately let it cool, then watch it go stale, lastly feel a pleasure when I see a fly sucking it in. At least I fed a fly, if not a beggar on road.

I have felt many a times I'll feed beggars. But the ones below our house, look more like fakes, impersonating beggars. I don't know why, I just feel so.

I am growing extremely stubborn these days.
That evening, the entire family was invited on a wedding. I too got rid early from the office, dressed myself as beautifully as I could.

Then when time came, everyone was getting into the car, I felt a strong urge to stay back. I kept sitting in the living room.

After a long time of my brothers trying to persuade me, and going back unsuccessful, father came. He was burning.

'Why are you behaving like a child?'

'Because I keep alive the child in me.'

'Shut up! Everyone's getting late because of you!'

'No need. Get going. '

'But why are you not coming??? '
By now he was screaming.

'I just don't feel like.'

He walked away thumping in rage.
They left, I stayed back.

Alone at home later, I felt, how good it would have been if I had gone.

That day Zafar came home. He informed me you'll have to leave the mess soon.

I know it's useless saying, come back to Nawaabganj. You ain't making millions in Fareedpur. What's wrong with your birthplace then?

I know you are still angry with.....  "

Shaahid stopped reading.

Because he was feeling terribly sleepy.
He folded the letter back, and placed it under the pillow. He eyes refused to stay open any longer.

____

Sakina slowly opened her eyes, to find sunlight flooding her room.

She sat up instantly. Her head felt as if she had drunk gallons of liquor last night.

All she remembered was she screaming on that terrible tenant.

What happened next... was blank.

Salman.....

She pulled the receiver from the bedside table and dialed his number.
No one received the call.

Once again.

Sakina broke into a sob.

Things were so beautiful between them for the last eight months. Just, so beautiful!!! 

Now, once again, it was going down. And she could not bear these phases at all.

_____

Shaahid jumped two steps at a time, crossed the dining area and entered the kitchen.

The kitchen looked like a furnace, covered with thick smoke. No one was visible except for a chorus of coughs and sneezes.

Shaahid tried sweeping away the smoke while coughing hard.

After a long five minutes, it cleared.

The cook was visible.
She had covered her head with a shower cap, her face upto the eyes with a mask, as if she was in an operation theatre performing a surgery.

Actually, the way she was murdering people around with her 'chhownk' into boiling oil and producing clouds of irritating gases, was nothing less than cutting guinea pigs on operation tables.

Two other women, and three men helped her. Bloody so many, to prepare food for two, and themselves.

They too had shower caps but no masks. Poor them. They had to face this smelly torture now and then. Subordinates, of course.

" Good morning people!!

Just felt like introducing myself to you all. "

They threw a glance at him, and got back to work.

Shaahid was used to such insults. He walked over to a beautiful girl who was chopping brinjal, as if it was her long awaited prey at hand.

" Hi, I'm Shaahid. And you? "

She did not look at him and continued chopping.

" Your eyes are so beautiful! " , Shaahid shot.

Immediately, everyone in the kitchen stopped their respective jobs, and stared at him.

He was startled, and stared at their faces. Each one of them looked like zombies. Expressionless, but about to kill him.

" Err, I'm not trying a chance on her. I just appreciate beauty, as it is. "

Surprisingly, everyone got back to work. But the girl in question had a soft smile on her lips.

" Rubina. " , she uttered.

" Oh wow, Rubina. You have a very beautiful name. "

Once again, everyone stopped working and stared at him.

Shaahid grew angry now.

" Seriously? Don't I have the liberty to appreciate good things?
Rubina, if you understand my worth, come to the garden with a cup of tea for me, please. I cannot stand these bodyguards of yours. "

Shaahid walked away. He knew she'd come. The more he got to make a rapport set with people in this house, the more he'd know about the exact picture between Sakina and Salman.

That was the need of the hour.

_____

Adnan Sami's one storey house was being converted into a four storey castle now.

He chuckled as he watched the construction works in progress.
A Sunday, worth spending, staring at the lavish lifestyle he was stepping into.

" Aaaaaaa....... " , he heard a noise from behind.

He turned around in his chair.

Mansoor Sami was lying on the divan, staring at the ceiling and singing. Poor guy, he could only sing 'Aaaaa.... " .

" My dear uncle, we also have Sa Re Ga Ma Pa etc in the octave.
But you choose only the Aa Aaa Aaa Aaaa part! Seems you need a music teacher. "

" Eeeeeeee........ " , Mansoor uttered now, his mouth deviating to one side with effort.

" Don't worry uncle!! I'll get you a female music teacher, in good shape. Your life will be colorful again. "

" Oooooo.......  " , his uncle was screaming.

" My god!!!
Are you uttering vowels one by one? 
I think you need an English teacher as well. The one who can assure, that you don't jump from vowels to consonants, and start speaking again.

And snatch away my property, transferring it to some NGO.

I did so much hard work for this day.
Already you were going to ruin it all.

Allah Meherban Hai. "

Adnan Sami lay back on the rocking chair, that let out a shriek with his weight, while he smilingly watched the progress of work.