Meera- We don't have to do this Haider. I mean are you sure about it?

Haider- Of course Meera!

Meera- See, I think ye sab bohot jaldi ho raha hein. Main mana nahi kar rahi hu par I think humme aaram se baithke isske baare mein ek baar sochna chahiye.

Haider- Are you unsure about us? (He says getting up)

Meera- See Haider, I love you, aur mujhe apne pyaar par pura bharosa hein.

Haider- Toh phir mere pyaar par aapko shak hein?

Meera- Nahi. Mujhe aapke pyaar par nahi iss timing par shak hein.

Haider- Meera, saare kasme, vaadein karne ke baad jab main hamare rishte ko ek naam dena chahta hu,  you are backing out?  Aap mujhe ek wajah toh de dijiye...

Meera- Bas thoda time chahiye Haider, abhi bohot kuch sort nahi hua hein. (She turns)

Haider -(suddenly remembering all the gossip between the two helpers) Do you...do you think we’re not of the same standard? (His voice breaking)

Meera-(turns to face him) What!? Omg, where did that come from Haider? Standards?! Hamare beech mein ye sab kab se aa gaya.

Haider- I don't know, you tell me. Kya sort karna hein?

Meera - Look Haider, it's not that easy. I need time.

Haider- So, we are back to keeping secrets? Maine aapse ek simple sa sawal pucha hein Meera aur main ek simple sa jawab expect kar raha hu.

Meera- Haider please, ek baar meri baat samjhiye. (She tries holding him)

Haider- (steps back) You know what the sad part is Meera? Shayad main aapko kabhi samajh hi nahi paya.

Meera- Haider! Haider listen to me!
(Haider leaves)

Bani and Veer had heard their entire conversation. They look at each other perplexed. Bani had no idea why Meera had said all that. She knew Meera wasn’t scared of commitment but then...what was all that just happened. The question kept popping up in Bani's mind.

Veer was worried about Haider. He had seen how excited Haider was for everything today. He tries following Haider but Bani stops him.

Bani- Ruko Veer, Haider ko thodi der akele rehene do.

Veer- Par...

Bani- Trust me Veer, it's for the best. Raha sawal Meera ka toh usse main baat karungi. Woh bina wajah kuch nahi karti. Main manti hu Haider ko bura laga hoga par Meera ke aise bolne ke peeche zarur koi wajah rahi hogi.

***

Meera comes out. Except for Veer and Bani, there was another person who had heard the entire conversation. Asad.

Asad- Meera...

Meera- Asad...

Asad-Aap ab bhi us par bharosa karti hein... (He asks in a heartbroken tone)

Meera- Asad dekhiye...

Asad- Kya aapko lagta hein ki maine jo kuch kaha woh jhuth tha? Aapko abhi bhi mujh par, meri niyat par shak hein?

Meera- Mujhe aap par koi shak nahi hein Asad. Main bas wapis woh purani galati, galati bhi nahi shayad gunaah. Apni mohabbat pe bharosa na karna gunnah hi mana jayega. Main wapis uss galati ko dohrana nahi chahti.

Mujhe maaf kar dijiye...(she says, not able to face him) Meri galati aur galatfahami ki wajah se maine hum dono ko hi bohot chot pohoucha di. Maaff... (she says, choking on her tears) Please maff kar dijiye...

Asad- Maafi?? (he forces out a laugh)
(Meera keeps looking at him)

Asad- Kis kis cheez ki maafi? Mera dil todne ki? Hamare rishte par bharosa na karne ki? Ek baar bhi palat kar mujhe na dekhne ki? (he says with anger, his eyes filled with tears). Ya phir uss insaan se mohabbat karke ki jiski wajah se hum aaj iss manzar par hein.

Iss jagah mein saath toh khade hein par ye dilon ke faasle abhi na bhare ja sakte hein. (He says softly)

Meera- Asad please... meri baat samjhiye, mere gunaah ki maafi...

Asad- Mujhe aapki maafi nahi, aapki mohabbat chahiye thi Meera.

Meera- Asad, you deserve somebody jo aap par aakhen mund kar bharosa kare, somebody jiski wajah se aapki aakhon ko kabhi tanha na hona pade, koi aesa jo aapko saari khushiyaan de, par main woh nahi hu Asad...Kyunki tanhaiyon ke siva main aapko aur kuch nahi de paayi...(a tear rolls down her eyes)

Meera-Par Asad, mujhe wakai aesa lagta hein ki hum teeno ki zindagiyon ke saath khelne wala koi aur hi hein, koi toh hein jisne ye sab kiya hai. Janti hu aapko Haider par bharosa nahi, par bas ek baar...meri khatir main aapka saath chahti hu. Uss insaan ko dhundhne ke liye, jo iss sab ke piche hai.

(She extends her hand)  Kya aapko ek aakhiri baar mera saath dena qubool hai...?

(He looks at her)

Asad(holding her hand) - Qubool hai.

***
Meera rushes back immediately to check on Haider. She looks around everywhere but doesn't find him. She sees Veer and Bani.

Meera-Guys, Haider kahan hein?

Veer- Woh Ruqsar khala ke yahan chala gaya hein...Usse bohot roka par...

Meera- Ammi ke pass...par... mujhe bhi jana hoga. Abhi.  (She starts leaving)

Bani-Meera bohot late hogaya hein...tu kal chali jana.

Meera-Tu samajh nahi rahi hein Bani...Haider naraz hein...mujhe unse baat karni padegi. I have to go. (She turns)

Veer- Meera, Bani sahi keh rahi hein. Abhi bohot der hogayi and trust me Haider ko bhi accha nahi lagega, if you leave at this time. Please apne bhai ki ye baat maanlo.

Meera-Thik hein Veer.

(Meera goes to her room and starts calling Haider. She calls him a million times but he doesn't pick up.)

Meera- Answer the phone Haider!!

(Haider was at his home. He glances at the phone beeping with Meera’s name flashing on it.   Haider was hurt. It wasn’t like he didn't want to give Meera time but whatever she was going through, he wanted to be a part of it. He wanted to help her out, he wanted to take all her pain away. Although it was the fact that she still was not open with him completely and maybe she wasn't sure about him that was hurting him. All these thoughts were continuously bothering him.

Meera on the other hand was really worried. She knew he was hurt but she didn't want to take any decision irrationally.)

Meera(in mind) - Jab tak main iss mamle ki teh tak na pohouch jau, main aapko aur pareshan nahi karna chahti Haider.

***

*Next morning*

Meera quickly gets ready and starts to leave. She sees Veer and Bani at the dining table.

Veer- Bani kuch toh khalo, kal raat se tumne kuch nahi khaya hai.

Bani- Mujhe abhi bhook nahi hein Veer.

Meera- Aese kaise bhook nahi hein?

Bani- Meera, tu thik hein na?

Meera- Main thik hu Bani, tu meri itni chinta mat kar.

Bani- Accha? Toh bata tune kuch bhi khaya hein abhi tak?

(Meera lowers her eyes, admitting that she hadn't.)

Bani- Pata tha. Abb tu khana khake hi jayengi, samjhi.

Meera- Par Bani...

Bani- Thik hein. Phir main bhi nahi khaungi. (she says pouting like a child)

Meera- Accha baba...thik hein. Mujhe juice de de.

Bani- Tu chup reh! (Bani takes a piece of the paratha and feeds it to Meera) Abb kha chup chap.

(Meera smiles and feeds Bani as well. Veer looks at the two friends bonding like sisters and smiles. That's when he gets a call. He leaves the table and goes to the corner to attend to it. )

Veer (on-call) - Kyaaaa!?! Woh parson aane wale hein?? Omg!  I still can't believe it, dad.

...Thik hein dad main preparation karwa dunga. (he cuts the call)

(Veer goes back to the dining table.)

Meera- Accha main abb chalti hu. Aur tum dono fiancés yahaan ghar par kyun ho? Bahar jao, ghumon phiro!

Bani- Mera man nahi hai.

Meera- Veer isko lekar jao. Aur tum Ms. “mera man nahi”, I am telling you I am fine aur sab thik hojayega. Samjhi?
(Bani nods and Meera leaves)

Veer- Ready ho jao sweetheart! (he smiles)

Bani- Par hum jayenge kahan?

Veer- Woh aap mujhpar chod dijiye madam. (he bows and leaves to make arrangements.)

(Bani smiles.)

She comes back in sometime in a bright pink and white floral dress. It was a full-length dress and looked even more beautiful on Bani.

Veer was wearing a dark blue button-down t-shirt with khaki pants.

*he somehow always looks like a model;)*

Veer- Kiski jaan lene ka iraada hein sweetheart?

(Bani blushes)

Bani- Ye sawal toh mujhe bhi aapse karna chahiye Mr. Singhania. (she smiles at him)

Veer- Hum jaan lene nahi, dene walo mein se hein soon to be ghar wali.

Bani- Uff...abb chale warna ek dusre se baat karte karte hi din dhal jayega.

Veer- Waise that's not a bad idea sweetheart. (He says pulling her closer)

Bani (smiling)- Abb chalo tum!

(Veer and Bani reach the spot. It was a  place filled with greenery. )

Bani- Yeah hum kahan aaye hein Veer?

Veer- Iss sunsaan ilaake mein tumhe kidnap karne ka program hein madam.

Bani- Very funny.

(Veer laughs)

Veer- Chalo sweetheart, itna intezar kiya hein thoda aur sahi.

(Bani follows Veer deep into the trail. They finally reach the ‘actual’ spot. It was a beautiful lake. The lake had a wooden pathway leading up to some distance towards the lake. The water was pure blue with no one around. It was a simply mesmerizing view.)

Bani- Wow Veer! this is sooo incredible, so beautiful!  (She looks at Veer and smiles)

Veer- You are welcome.

(Bani smiles).

Bani- Ye jagah?

Veer- Meri favorite jagah hein. Jab bhi sukoon ke kuch pal bitane ho toh main yehi aaya karta tha. Iske baare mein Haider ko bhi nahi pata.

Bani - Toh am I the first person who you have brought here? (Bani goes and sits on the edge of the bridge)

Veer - Guess so. (he winks at her and sits beside her.)

Bani- Ye wakai bohot khoobsurat jagah hein Veer. (She puts her head on his shoulder)

Bohot sukoon hein yahan. Aesa lagta hein manlo sab kuch tham sa gaya ho. Yahaan koi uljhan nahi, koi taqleef nahi, bas sukoon.

Veer(kissing her forehead) - Tum abb thik ho? I mean ghar mein bohot pareshan lag rahi thi.

Bani- Main thik hu Veer. Kya karu, Meera ki fikar hojati hein. Woh pehele bhi iss sabse guzari hein aur abb dobara kahin...

Veer- Kuch nahi hoga sweetheart. Don't worry, thik hein.

Bani- Tum thik ho?

Veer- Absolutely.

Bani- Bilkul nahi! Janti hu pareshan ho Haider ko lekar, par bas dikhaoge nahi.
Pata hei Veer kabhi kabhi dar lagta hein. Matlab do log ek dusre se itna pyaar karte hein par phir bhi unke beech itne problems, itne jhadge, kyun? Sab kuch perfect kyun nahi ho sakta.

Veer- Being perfect is a myth. Na koi insaan perfect ho sakta hein aur na hi koi cheez aur na hi koi situation, har cheez ko perfect banana padta hein. Kabhi kabhi toh hum khud bhi nahi jante ki hamare liye perfect hein kya.

Yahaan har roz hum apne barein mein kuch naya jaante hein, par kisi aur se ummed lagaate hein ki woh hamme puri tareeke se samjh jaye. Yeh toh unfair hai na? Problems aana zaruri hein  kyunki ye problems hi hein jisse face karte waqt samjh aata hein ki kon aapka kitna saath dega. Kon aapke liye aur aapke saath ke liye kitna lad sakta hein...

Humare beech kitni problems aayi thi, Haider aur Meera bhi ussi phase se guzar rahe hein. Par tum dekhna sab thik ho jayega kyunki jahan mohabbat ho wahaan shikayaten zyada dino tak tik nahi pati.

(Bani looks at Veer and smiles. She loved how he had just explained all these difficult situations in a simple and beautiful way.)

(Bani suddenly pecks on his lips. Before Veer could react she pulls away.)

Veer- Kya sweetheart, aese khule aam mera fayda utha rahi ho.

(Bani hits his shoulder.)

Veer- Accha abhi ek interesting cheez karna toh bacha hua hein.

Bani- Kya?

Veer- Swimming!!

Bani- Swimming...abhi? Yahaan?

Veer- Yes sweetheart!

Bani- Par...

Veer- Khambakht iss 'Par' ko kis zaalim ne banaya hein.

Bani- Accha thik hein. Par mere kapde...(She says shyly)

Veer- Bas main hi toh hu, tumhara hone wala ghar wala, toh phir tumhare ye gaal itne lal kyun ho rahe hein. (he teases her while cupping her face)

Bani- Veer (she gives him the “seriously” look)

Veer(smiles) - Ek kaam karo, meri shirt pehe lo.

Bani- Tumhari shirt?

Veer- Abb toh bas yahi option hein. Haan tum agar pehele wale option ke saath jana chahogi toh bhi I dont mind. (he winks at her)

Bani-Veerr! Accha do apni shirt.

Veer takes off his shirt and gives it to her. Bani glances at his toned body for a while and then looks away realizing what she was doing. He was indeed gorgeous.

Veer- Ahem sweetheart, aur kitna taadne ka irada hein?

Bani- Mai...main kyun tadungi tumhe...

Veer- Tum nahi toh aur kon sweetheart?

(he whispers in her ear, his hands on her waist while.)

(Veer dives into the lake.)

Veer- Jaldi aao sweetheart!

(Bani looks at him and gestures him to turn around.)

Veer- Kya?

Bani- Mudo!

Veer- Zaroori hein?

(he says like a childlike voice.)

Bani- Yesss!!

(Veer rolls his eyes and turns. Bani changes and calls out to him.)

Bani- Veer...

(Veer turns and as he looks at her, his heart skips a beat. She was wearing his t-shirt, looking drop-dead gorgeous. Veer couldn't take his eyes off her. )

Veer- Beautiful...

(Bani blushes and enters the water. Veer holds her hand to make sure is balanced and then pulls her closer. The cloth was sticking to her body giving him a view of her perfect figure. Bani's hand was on his naked torso while her heart was beating rapidly. )

Veer- Mujhe nahi pata tha...

Bani - Kya? (She says slowly.)

Veer- Yehi ki ye shirt mujhse zyada tum par acchi lagegi. (He says slowly)
(Bani giggles)

(Veer moves his fingers through her hair while holding her waist below to balance her. They move closer to each other, both of them breathing hard.)

(They finally ease the tension and kiss each other passionately. He pulls her up and on his lap, while Bani moves her legs around his waist and locks them.)

(Later, they move away from each other, still breathing rapidly. They continued holding each other and were not ready to leave each other’s embrace. They finally come out of the water. Veer holds her from behind and traces his fingers on her hands.)

Veer-Bani...

Bani- Hmm? (she says controlling her rapidly beating heart.)

Veer- Kal ye jagah meri favorite place thi par abb meri favorite jagah ye hein. (he says pulling her in a hug)

(Bani and Veer melt in each other's embrace)

***

Meera reaches Haider’s house. She desperately wanted to talk to him. As she rings the bell, Ruqsar opens the door.

Ruqsar- Meera bacha, aao andar aao.

(Meera hugs Ruqsar.)

Meera- Ammi...aap itni jaldi yahan aagayi. Woh bhi mujhe bina bataye... Main bohot naraz hu aapnse.

Ruqsar- Arre beta main toh yahan aayi thi taaki tum dono thoda waqt saath bita sako aur yahaan tum dono ne ladai kar li.

Meera- Ammi woh...

Ruqsar- Abb tum jhooth mat bolna, kal raat ko jab woh aaya tha tabhi main samajh gayi thi ki tum dono ke beech ladai huyi hein. Usne keh toh diya ki kuch nahi ammi par maa se kuch nahi chupta.

Meera’s gaze suddenly shifts to a few photos on the wall. Haider's college pictures, his childhood pictures, his pictures with his complete family. A smile forms on Meera's face.

Ruqsar- Apne honewale shauhar (husband) ki tasveere dekh rahi ho.

Meera- Ammiii!

Ruqsar- Arey trust me, main bohot modern sasumaa hoon, itna toh chalta hein. (She laughs)

(Meera smiles)

Ruqsar- Aao tumhe ghar dikhati hun. Haider bahar hein, jald aata hi hoga.

(Ruqsar shows Meera all the rooms and all her things that had memories attached to them. She shows her his childhood toys, clothes, his cute pictures, and all the prizes that he had won in singing since his school days.)

Ruqsar- Chalo beta.. Abb niche chalte hein.

Meera-(smiles) Haan Ammi chaliye...inn pictures ke saath Haider ko chidhana toh banta hein.(she laughs)

(As Meera starts going down the steps, she sees a room that Ruqsar had not shown her. She asks her about it.)

Meera-Ammi, ye kamra?

Ruqsar- Beta...Woh...(she turns)Firdous ka kamra hein.

Meera-Ammi...kya main dekh sakti hu?

Ruqsar- Haan beta zarur...tumhara hi ghar hein. Tum dekho...mai tumhare liye khane ko kuch lati hu.

(Meera nods and smiles. She enters the room. The room still looked new, everything was  perfectly in place. She could see all of Firdous’ pictures. She starts looking around the room, expecting to find something there. She checks the tabletop, drawers, etc. Finally, she finds a diary in the last drawer. It was Firdous's personal diary. Her name was written on top of it. Meera hesitates but still goes through a few pages.)

*13th November*
Main iss duniya mein sabse zyaada mohabbat apne bhaijaan se karti hu. Ammi aur abbu ki beshak laadli hu par mujhe himaat aur hosla humesha Haider bhaijaan se hi milta hein. Ye parivaar meri duniya hein aur iske liye main kuch bhi kar sakti hu.

Meera reads the entry and wonders how Firdous, who cared so much about her family, could do something so horrible.
(She turns few more pages.)

*16 February*
Abu hum sabko chod kar chale gaye. Samjh nahi aa raha hein ki kya karun, kya kahun, kaise jeeyun. Haider bhaijaan poore ghar ka bhaar utha rahe hein, main bhi unki madad karna chahti hu. Nivedita meri madad karne ko tayyar hein, shayad ye nayi naukri hamare kam aa jaye. Sab badal de...

*23rd March*
Mujhe lagta hein ki mujhe mohabbat ho gayi hein unse. Nivedita ki madad mere bohot kam aa gayi, yahan aana mere bohot kaam aaya. Bhaijaan ke baad aisa lagta hein ki shayad woh hi meri parwah aur uss tarah mera khyal rakh payenge.

Meera instantly knew that Firdous was talking about Asad. She had misinterpreted Asad's caring nature for love. Maybe she needed some emotional support after all that had happened to her father and Asad’s sweet behavior somewhere made her feel that he was the one for her.

(Meera immediately turned to the last entry.)

*25th May* (a day before the party)
Woh mujhse mohabbat nahi karte, unki zindagi mein koi aur hein. Par unke bina mein jee nahi sakti, samajh nahi aa raha kya karun...abb mere pass bas ek hi raasta hein. Mujhe “unki” raai manni chahiye, apne pyaar ke liye kuch karna chahiye.
(A/N: Who do you think is she is talking about?)

(Meera was confused, who was Firdous talking about? Who gave her such a suggestion? She was very confused. She comes out of the room and goes to the kitchen.)

Ruqsar - Bacha tum aagayi, dekho aaj tumhe ‘ammi special’ biryani try karne ko milegi. (She smiles)

Meera-Ammi, woh mujhe aapse kuch puchna hein.

Ammi- Haan Meera, bolo na.

Meera- Ammi bura mat paniyega...par kya aap mujhe bata sakti hein ki Firdous ke saath kya hua tha?

Ammi- Beta ye agar tumhe Haider hi bataye toh behtar hoga.

Meera- Ammi iske baare mein maine baat karne ki koshish ki thi par unhein abhi bhi taqleef hoti hein iss barein mein baat karte huye. Jaanti hu aapko bhi ho rahi hogi par please ammi, ye sach janna mere liye bohot zaruri hein.

Ammi-Beta...(She pauses for a minute) Haider ke abu ke intekal (death) ke baad sab kuch bikhar sa gaya tha, Haider aur main dono ghar ko sambhalne mein lag gaye the. Isi beech apni bacchi ko waqt hi nahi de paye. Shagun ke nikaah ke waqt humein pata chala...(She chokes) Pata chala ki Firdous ka accident hogaya... (a tear drops from her eyes) Hamari bacchi hum sab ko chod kar chali gayi. Unn dino woh bohot pareshan si rehti thi. Haider ne phir uski diary padhi toh pata chala ki woh kisi ladke se pyaar karti thi. Uski friend Nivedita se baat ki toh usne uss company ka naam bataya jahaan woh kaam karti thi, par woh pyaar kis se karti thi ye baat koi nahi janta tha.

Haider aaj bhi uss shaks ko gunhegaar manta hein. Par asal mein kya hua, iska usse koi andaza nahi hein. Sach jaan nahi paya isiliye uska woh zakhm abhi bhi nahi bhar pa raha hein.

Meera- Thank You Ammi, mujhe sach batane ke liye. Aur aapko wapis iss dukh se guzarwane ke liye maafi.

Ruqsar- Nahi beta, ye jaan na tumhara hakk tha. Abb tum bhi toh jald hamari family ban ne wali ho, aur raha sawal mera toh main thik hu. (She gives a small smile)

Meera (in mind) - Mujhe pata tha Haider, mera dil keh raha tha ki aap galat nahi hein. Aap toh iske baarein mein poori tarah jaante bhi nahi hein. Uss video main aapne kisi ka naam nahi liya tha isliye mujhe lag hi raha tha ki baat kuch aur hein. Iss sabke peeche koi aur hein,
kuch toh hein that we are missing out.

Meera-Ammi, Haider kahan hein?

Ruqsar- Wohi gaya hein, apni behen ke pass.

***
Veer and Bani reach Veer's mansion.

Bani - Hum tumhare ghar kyun aaye hein Veer?

Veer- You mean tumhara hone wala ghar? (They both smile.)

Veer- Bas tumhari iss muskuraahat ne hi toh iss aashiq ka dil chura liya hai. (he says putting his hand on his chest)

Bani- (smiles)Tum na...Accha abb batao bhi, hum yahan kyun aayen hai?

Veer- Sweetheart, mera ghar pass mein tha aur tumhe sardi na lag jaye isiliye.

Bani- Mujhe koi sardi wardi nahi lagi...Ve...Aachii! (she sneezes)

Veer - Haan bilkul nahi lagi, bas yunhi tumne mera naam Veer se veeaachi bana diya. (He laughs)

(Bani pouts like a child.)

Veer- Abb chalo andar...

He rings the bell, expecting one of the staff to open it, but someone else opens the door instead. He was surprised to see them there.

Veer- Aisa kaise ho sakta hein...?

***
Hello dear readers!
So how was the chapter?

Do you think that Haider being upset is justified?
Did you guys like Meera's character development and her trust on Haider?
What about Asad's emotional outburst?🥺

Did you guys like Vani's lake romance? 🙈
What about Veer's interpretation of all the  problems we face in our lives?
Who is this new person entering into our vani's life now?

Also, Haider doesn't know the entire truth!
Do you think Firdous did everything on her own or was she brainwashed to do so?
If yes, then who do you think it might be?
Will Meera and Haider be able to reconcile?

Also, I really don't want to stretch the plot by making the story toxic and would rather like to work on different character developments and the truth revelation.
Hence, we have only 5 chapters to go... Will you guys miss the story? 🥺

Love you guys!
Stay tuned;)