"Dear! How are you feeling now? We just came half an hour before and Sahir told me

about your knee! "

After sleeping for two hours, she went toward the washroom. When she came out of the

washroom, Sahir and Mrs. Amna was standing in the room.

"I am fine Mom! It is not hurting much! " She said with a smile while limping toward the

bed.

Mrs. Amna and Saba sat on the bed and Sahir sat on the couch.

"Mom, Is everything ok?" Sahir asked as he could see flashes of worry and anxiety in his

mother's orbs.

"No! I am really worried. I went to my sister's house because she got a panic attack. '' Mrs.

Amna said in a gloomy tone.

"Ohh! Is Aunt fine now? Why did this happen to her? '' Sahir asked her.

"Vaniza is getting divorced. This fact is killing her and also me! "

Saba and Sahir made brief eye contact at this.

Amna continued to speak without noticing.

"Can't understand today's generation! They give no importance to this sacred relationship.

You can get married and then get a divorce whenever you want! No tolerance and no

maturity is there regarding this matter!"

There was remorse and pain in Mrs. Amna's tone.

Embarrassment and fear hit Sahir's being while gazing at the anxiety and pain in his

mother's expressions and sadness in Saba's orbs.

"How can I give them pain?" This thought ran through his mind.

"But why did her husband want to give her divorce? There should be a solid reason behind it. "

Saba asked her. Mrs. Amna sighed heavily at her words.

"I don't know yet dear! But I believe that the matter should be of no big importance that a

divorce occurs between them! In nikkah, you are taking a vow by making Allah and His

Prophet (P.B.U.H) your witness. You are engaging in that relationship that Allah called

His one of the signs in the universe. How can you just take it easy? " Mrs. Amna said with

grief.

Saba and Sahir again looked toward each other. There was a complaint in Saba's orbs at

which grief settled in Sahir's veins.

...............................

Darkness encapsulated the whole city. The sky was pitch black, deprived of any moon or

star. This pitch darkness was peeking into the room where Saba was lying on the couch,

binge-watching the Netflix movie "Look Both Ways".

Seeing the struggle of heroin in two different realities makes her wonder how she can

manage her career and family duties. Beinga female, it is difficult for her to skyrocket her

career and have a successful family.

Meanwhile, the door opened and Sahir came inside, holding a tray in his hand.

"Why are you sitting on the couch? He asked while a furrow settled on his face.

"I wanted to be on my couch." There was a bit of rudeness in her tone at which Sahir sighed.

He was understanding her state of mind, so quit saying anything. And moved the tray toward her.

" Eat some food, so you can take medicine after that," he said.

A small table was in between the couch and bed, and on that table, a tray was present. She

lazily sat on the couch and started eating the food in a grumpy mood.

At last, dinner finished and Sahir went back with a tray. Saba sighed in relief.

Sahir came after some minutes and saw Saba on the couch.

"Saba! Please go to bed and have a complete rest. I don't want you to catch a fever due to pain!"

"No! I am fine! " she said in an emotionless tone.

Fear of divorce and Mrs. Amna's words were the reason for this mood and Sahir was

understanding this fact.

"Please, dude! Go there. I will be worried for you all night."

He said in a friendly tone and gently grabbed her upper arm.

"I don't want to." There was a bit of resistance from her side, but she stood from her place.

A bright smile etched on Sahir's face as she took her toward the bed.

........................

Evening hues covered the whole city while the silence was in Sahir's house. Only Mrs. Amna and Saba were there as both males were in office.

Saba was sitting in the lounge, sending cold pitches to different content writing and social

media marketing agencies.

She was typing the tenth email of the day when she saw Mrs. Amna took out the meat

from the refrigerator.

Taking a decision, she set aside the laptop and went toward her.

"Auntie! Today I will make dinner and also a sweet dish."

She said with a bit of hesitation.

"Are you sure?"

Uncertainty seeped into her nerves at Mrs. Amna's question. It was her first time cooking

here, and she was a lot nervous about it.

"Yes, aunty." She tried to smile.

"Okay then! Mutton Karahi and Kheer are Sahir's favorites. Do you know how to cook them?"

There was affection in Mrs. Amna's tone but Saba's heart was getting constricted.

"Yeah. I know." She nodded her head while replaying the whole recipe in her mind.

Mrs. Amna smiled, gave some instructions to her, and left the kitchen. Saba took a deep

sigh, murmured "Bismillah" and started cooking dinner.

Later on, when dinner was served, anxiety kicked in Saba's nerves. She was unsure about the family members' reaction and was anxiously waiting for their positive remarks.

"Today, my daughter made dinner and also a sweet dish."

Mrs. Amna said at which every pair of eyes set on her, skyrocketing her anxiety. She

managed to smile at them, but her heart was thudding.

Mr. Sikandar happily took the first bite and praised Saba for such a delicious dinner.

Tension was released from her being and a smile was etched on her face. She

unconsciously moved her eyes toward Sahir who was just gazing at the plate and was not

saying anything to anyone.

Seeing him eating made Saba relaxed but she was disappointed that Sahir said nothing to

her.

After dinner, everyone started the sweet dish.

Again Mr. Sikandar and Mrs. Amna praised her but Sahir remained silent. A bit of

disappointment settled in Saba's heart, but she shook it.

.........................

In the room, they both were laying in their places. Saba was busy watching a podcast when Sahir's voice echoed in the room

"Thank you so much for the delicious dinner."

His words first amazed Saba and then happiness encapsulated her heart. This short comment made happiness flood her veins.

"Thank you so much! " she replied in an excited tone at which Sahir smiled.

The small plant of love in his heart gets watered at seeing the glinty orbs and smiling face of its beloved.

.............................

"He was standing in the hall of that lavish house with a red face and a knot of tears forming in his throat. Struggling with gulping that knot of tears, he tried to keep his expressions nonchalant. Though he was from a lower social class, he couldn't let an elitist snob ruin his self-respect as it is the only precious thing he owns. His gaze went toward the peanuts of money in his palm for which he had to suffer a lot while elites were partying without any worry in the world."

His fingers started aching, and his mind got numb, so he put down the screen of his laptop.

Resting his back against the back of the chair, he yawned and turned his head toward the

couch where Saba was sleeping.

Gazing at the sleeping face of her, sparkling orbs flashed in his inner eyes.

The orbs that sparkled when he praised her cooking!

A big smile capped the happiness that was running in his veins like blood. The love of plants that was in his heart teased him, reminding him of its presence.

From the window, the moon was peeking into the room, watching Sahir's sparkling face with a knowing smile.

It knew the plant of love was soon going to bloom, spreading its fragrance in the lives of two innocent souls!

.......................

The usual hustle and bustle were in the cafeteria where Saba was sitting all alone.

Irritation was etched on her face, while she kept gazing at the clock of the cafeteria now and then.

"Iqra, Fiza! This is so late!"

She murmured while reigning in her anger when the voice of two girls snapped her out of her furious state of mind.

"Sir Sahir is such a decent and knowledgeable teacher that I have not seen such a great teacher in my life."

A girl said in an exciting tone at which Saba turned her face toward the table near her.

"Yes.. And he is also so handsome. In class, I just focus on his personality, voice, and facial features."

The other girl commented at which all unrest concentrated in Saba's soul.

"Aww!! Meerab is having feelings?"

The first girl commented with a mischievous tone at which both girls burst into a fit of giggles. But, worry swirls inside Saba's soul like unsettled flakes in a snow globe.

"Girl! I want to marry anyone like him, or yes if I can get him then I will be the luckiest girl in the world."

Meerab said, and Saba's being was seized by irrational fear. She gazed at Meerab's face

which was way prettier than hers.

"What nonsense! Why am I getting anxious?"

She said to herself while averting her gaze from Meerab's face.

"I am his wife and he is present in my life at this moment! And that is the reality!"

She thought but then flashes of his rude behavior came in front of her eyes. A pall of gloom hit her being, and a knot of tears developed in her throat.

"Dude, I can't understand how I will survive this mid-term?"

Fiza and Iqra came near to her table while discussing the exams.

"Mid-term? The half-semester has gone?"

"When are the midterms?" Saba asked with wide eyes and trembling lips which shocked both girls a bit.

"After a week, Saba! What happened? Are you not well prepared?" Iqra asked her with concern at which her shoulders slumped.

"Yeah, I am not prepared for the exams." She said in a low voice while gulping the tears.

"It's okay. We will help you with it." Iqra and Fiza sat in front of her, worry flitting their eyes.

"Yeah" she nodded her head while shooing away all the negative thoughts, and struggling

to calm down her thundering heart.

Later on, in the evening, she was sitting near the window, while her gaze was on Sahir

who was sitting on the bed, doing work on his laptop. Her mind was replaying girls' words

and was accessing the situation of her married life.

"Is there any issue, Saba? Do you want to say something?"

He asked after feeling her gaze on his face for a long time.

"No, nothing" She stuttered when he asked her.

Averting her gaze toward the gloomy evening of Islamabad, she felt herself succumbing to

the sadness she held at bay the whole day.

"Mids are coming."

She said while turning her orbs from the window to him.

His eyebrows got lowered and pulled closer together.

"Hmm," he hummed without gazing at her.

"There are only 3 months left, and I will graduate." She said with hints of sadness in her tone.

"Hmm"
He again hummed and stood from his bed.

"I am going into my home office. Kindly don't disturb."

He said with a small smile and went toward the office, leaving her alone with her scrambled mindset and gloomy being.

Gazing at his retrieving form, she instantly knew that she had to struggle with her gloominess alone. No person can rescue her but her being only.

So, she stood from her place and went toward the washroom to do wudu.

.................