Tara carefully maneuvered her body among the bustling crowd trying not to touch anyone. 

She was especially conscious of keeping her hands safe from any contact as the intricately designed mehendi was still fresh on her palm and fingers. 

She had just finished applying the mehendi when her cousins arrived and dragged her along with them to the Chand Raat celebration going on the open square market. 

Even at 11 pm at night, the whole city seemed to be alive as people walked underneath the starlit sky doing their last minute Eid shopping. 

The crescent moon shone its soft silver light bathing everything in its glow. 

Fairy lights and lanterns hung from the branches of trees surrounding the various stalls where accessories and food were being sold. 

From salwar kameez , bangles , mehendi to jalebi, fuchka and flowers. There was something for everyone. 

Groups of friends and families roamed around eating, talking and buying whatever their heart desired. 

You could hear the chatter of people talking over the music as " Ramjan er ei rojar shesh e elo khushir Eid played in the background"

Tara was tired of walking around, she had already finished buying what she came for which was a pair of bangles to match her Eid outfit. She had also purchased a cute bracelet but unfortunately it felt quite loose on her wrist. 

Her cousins were far from done though and hence ran around the stalls while they haggled with the shopkeepers. 

As Tara's gaze sweeped the perimeter, she suddenly stopped as her eyes fell upon a young guy. 

He was clad in a simple white shirt and black sweatpants and was busy pushing a stroller with a toddler sleeping in it. 

He had a nonchalant, tired look on his face which was a stark contrast to the busy, smiling face of all the other people surrounding them. 

Midnight black hair fell over his tan forehead in a manner as if he had just gotten out of bed.  But this just made him look more attractive. 

Tara watched as a pretty woman in a designer pink salwar kameez walked towards the guy and said something to him before bending down and checking on the toddler. Then she went back to shopping while the guy followed her with the stroller. 

Is that his wife ? Tara thought as her heart sank. 

She shook her head to stop with her weird thoughts and continued walking around the stalls. 

But coincidentally wherever she went she somehow found herself near that guy with the stroller. She really was trying to avoid him. But fate seemed to have other plans. 

The fifth time they crossed paths, the stroller was blocking Tara's path so she paused for a second while the guy in white maneuvered the sleeping toddler to the side. 

Tara kept standing as they walked away from her. 

After a few minutes she once again found the guy near her right. She didn't realize she was staring at him until he turned around and caught her gaze fixed on him.

Tara's eyes widened and she immediately looked away. 

A few seconds later she dared to turn around. The guy was standing bored and rocking the stroller back and forth.

Once again he looked to the right and their pupils clashed.

This time Tara blinked at him a few times before giving an awkward smile and looking away. 

She paced back and forth between the stalls for a while but her mind seemed to be fixated on that guy. 

She knew she wouldn't be able to stop thinking about him and would regret it if she didn't even try talking to him. What's the chance she was ever going to come across him again in her entire life. Thus she made the bold decision that was clawing at the back of her mind. 

The only thing making her hesitate was that she wondered if the guy was the kids father. If he was a married guy she would instantly back away and never look back. But how to know whether he was the father or just some relative ?

The guy looked relatively young as if he was in his early twenties. But the lady she saw with him previously also looked not much older. 

Tara was going crazy thinking about all these so she took a deep breath and started her mission. 

When she walked in that direction and looked at the guy , this time he instantly locked their gazes and stared back with scrunched eyebrows as if silently questioning her behavior. 

Tara just smiled and continued walking forward. 

When she reached the stroller she looked at the sleeping baby and her lips naturally curved upwards. " Ma Sha Allah he's so cute. I've been noticing this cutie for a while now. " Tara  started the conversation with an upbeat tone. 

The guy just nodded and gave her a formal smile.

Tara noticed the slight trace of stubble surrounding his mouth indicating he hadn't shaved for a while. It enhanced his face in the perfect way.

" Yeah , I've been noticing you looking this way for a while now. " The guy in white finally spoke out loud. 

Tara's heart skipped a beat hearing his alluring voice. It was better than what she had imagined. 

But she reminded herself not to get carried away unless she was sure about how he was related to the kid. So she continued with her plan.

“Sorry if I was being weird ! I promise I only have good intentions. I love babies. And this one especially is so cute. He seems to have taken after you." Tara bravely uttered but when she saw him raising his eyebrows at her statement she realized the intensity of her words which made her shift her gaze anywhere but at him. 

" Thank you." The simple words made her heart sink. Why was he not elaborating and saying more. Was this his child after all ? 

"Although people say he mostly takes after his mother." That enchanting voice finally blessed her ears again. 

Tara looked at him and gave a short laugh, " Oh! Your wife must be beautiful. " 

This time the guy looked shocked and blinked a few times before bursting out in chuckles. 

When he finally composed himself he said, " This is my nephew."

Laddoos seemed to be cooking in Tara's heart as she finally heard the words that reassured her soul, " So you're not married"

The guy's lips curved into a small smirk, " No. " 

" Oh- I'm so sorry for the misunderstanding! I don't think you're old or anything. You look pretty damn young. I mean - I'm sorry please excuse my words." Tara blabbered on. 

"I'm genuinely sorry for the misunderstanding. May I treat you to some chai to make up for my blunder ? " She asked, hoping his answer would be in the affirmative. 

He didn't reply immediately so she added, " I might be a stranger but you can trust me ! I'll have the chai too na ? " 

The guy shook his head while an amused expression played on his lips , " There's no need , I seriously didn't mind. " 

" I insist. Mr -? " 

" Raiyyan. And you are ? " 

" Tara. "

" Ah. Star."

Tara smiled and looked up at the sky and Raiyyan's gaze followed. 

The sharp noise of a phone ringing cut through the air and burst the enchanting bubble they seemed to be in. 

Raiyyan held the phone to his ear, "Ah okay. I'll meet you at the entrance then. " 

Tara waited for him to say something as he cut the call.

" I'm feeling pretty sleepy so I would've taken you up on that chai offer but unfortunately I gotta go . But it was nice meeting you, Tara." 

Raiyyan finally gave a genuine smile as he turned around to leave. 

" Wait! "

He looked back at Tara's sudden exclamation. 

She looked anxious as if she was scared of losing something. 

Tara knew that there was a very slim chance they would ever meet again in the future. She could ask for his number or insta ID but would he just randomly give it to a stranger ? She didn't want to take any risk of rejection. So she decided to take a chance at fate's game. 

" The day after tomorrow at 5 pm, I'm going to the Crimson Cup cafe with my friends. And Raiyyan - I think you're really cute ! "

Tara spit out the words as fast as she could and didn't bother looking back at Raiyyan before she sprinted away from him, mentally praying he would understand her riddle-filled sentence inviting him to the cafe. 

She thought if he's interested in keeping in contact he might come to that cafe at that time. If he doesn't show up - well Tara would consider that a sign from fate telling her they weren't meant to be. 

On the other side Raiyyan watched dumbstruck as Tara ran away after dropping a bomb on him. 

She thought he was cute ! But now she's gone. 

And what did she mean by the first sentence? Crimson Cup at - what time did she say again ? 

Raiyyan was brought out of his thoughts as his phone rang again. 

He didn't bother picking up and got ready to leave but the stroller got stuck on something on the ground. The jerky movement woke up his nephew who started crying. 

Raiyyan checked under the wheel of the stroller to find a bracelet. 

He looked at it quizzically before searching around him to see if somebody was looking for a lost item. When he didn't find anyone like that he decided to take it with him as it looked quite precious and thought about discarding it in the lost and found box. 

But when his phone rang again, urging him to leave the fair, he completely forgot about the bracelet tucked in his pocket which is how it ended up at his home. 

Meanwhile Tara was back home thinking about today's events. She was feeling panicked and anxious by her actions and on top of that she had lost her newly bought bracelet!

★★★

A/N

Mini glossary:

Chand Raat - Chand Raat is a term used in South Asian cultures, particularly in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh, to denote the eve of Eid-ul-Fitr or Eid al-Adha.

Feel free to message me if there's any other words you don't understand.

Eid Mubarak! I just randomly got the urge to write a story related to Eid so here it is -

If this part gets enough attention and likes them I'll try to publish the next part soon. But otherwise it'll be updated on Eid UL Adha after my exams.

This is a very risky time to be publishing even a short story because there's not even a month left for my board exams 😭

( Update - alhamdulillah I got outstanding results!! )

Please keep me in your prayers ! And hopefully you'll get the rest of the story soon In Sha Allah.

Lemme know your thoughts on the  story and tell me if you think I can improve in any part - whether it's about the plot or the writing.

UPDATE :

the next part of this oneshot shall be uploaded in my book The Eid We Met In Sha Allah. This is because Raiyyan is one of the side characters there (:

Do check out that book!

Update :

Raiyyan and Tara's future ( ahem maybe wedding) will be shown on that book so if you want to read more about them go over to that.

If you want to just read about them let me know somewhere by commenting and I'll let you know the chapter numbers from that book where Raiyyan and Tara's story is.