"Grief is only seen when its soft leaves dries and turns into the thorns of anger.

♤

Layla huffed out a breath and unbuttoned her burqa plopping on the sofa, exhausted with her day. First, the missing people and then that strange woman. She pressed her fingers to her burning fingers thinking, when life turned out this? When did she lost everything?

The door bell rang making her sigh as she pulled herself up to her real height and covered herself with her scarf, hiding her hairs.

"Who is it?" She questioned peeking from the small opening of door seeing a lady standing on her door.

"Hi, I am Hafsa. I am the one you agreed to lend me to stay in your house." Her words made Layla frown into confusion as she opened th door and leaned on it.

"Who agreed for which house?" She question with her eyebrows furrowed hard into a frown.

"I was told that this place is out for rent,"-

"There's no such place here, and mine is out of question." She cut her off harshly making Hafsa breath out loud. It was hard to stand on Nazreena's words.

"I am really sorry to disturb you, I think I just got scammed. I will leave you alone." Hafsa backed off waving her bye making Layla slam the door hard as she turned around only to find Baraq sitting on the sofa with his right ankle placed on his left knee, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

"I am not in the mood for your antics. Get out." Rolling her eyes she strolled to the kitchen fixing her scarf and took out a pan to make herself something but then kept it back. The urge to feel her stomach died as she felt the exhaustion creeping back into her bones.

Coming out into the living rook she found it empty, the emptiness startling her. Closing her eyes, she sighed feeling loneliness chilling into her spine. Slowly her shoulders dropped as she felt all her energy draining then she suddenly threw her head back laughing out loud and clapped her hands. The loud claps resonated in the empty living room as she clapped until she felt them stinging.

"My life. It turned out to be a joke." She stated trying to control her loud hysterical laugh which turned into her sobs. Her violent sobs which even shook Baraq's heart. He wasn't back to apologise to look out for her. The black georgette scarf was something he didn't wanted to see with her. He quietly closed the distance between them as he heard her loud cries tearng his heart apart he never cried like that maybe that's why he felt so drawn towards her pain.

Slowly, he turned towards her and palced his huge calloused hand on her head making her turn around and crash into his chest. He thinned his lips as she hugged him tight.

"Mazak bn gaya hai meri zindagi ka." She cried into his chest, fisting his thobe into her small fist as she circled her another hand around his neck. He didn't know when his own eyes blurred and when he hugged her back tightly. He just felt like if he didn't make her stop crying, he would explode with the kind of feelings he felt in his guts.

The words she said didn't made any sense, but he knew whatever she said was related to her life.

"It is going to be fine," he muttered gazing up at the ceiling and patting the crown of her head.

"Tell me, will they come back?" She stuttered her question and fell limp in his arms. Blinking his blurry sight he circle his other hand under her knees and carried her in a bridal style all the way to her room.

Laying down on her bed, he pulled himself to his full height and tucked her in a thin blanket. Seeing her own tendrils tickling her face, he bend down in his trance and tucked her hairs behind her ear, his eyes drinking in her features as he gazed at her, "what are you doing to me?" He whispered slowly standing up straight and stepping back.

Blinking his tears, he poke his tongue on his cheek as her cries echoed in his mind making his heart clench to the point it bled.

"The strange thing is you have been destroying me and the worse thing is, I am letting you destroy me." He muttered with his heavy grave voice and vanished into the thin air.

Founding himself back in his own village he laid down on the the empty cot of the baba, he kept it out for him. Baba knew him, he didn't like to spend his time in his room specially in nights. But, nobody knew how the dark nights chased him and how he chased the dark nights. Fixing his keffiyeh tightly around his mouth, he sighed with his eyes fixated on the twinkling stars.

He saw how th dark clouds covered the twinkling stars. He was the dark clouds in her twinkling life and he tried to stay away from her, from Layla. But, always found himself drawn towards her. It rained very occasionally in his village but when it did, it felt like the cloud was going to fall upon them.

The dark clouds rumbled, startling the youngs and the olds in their sleep but the thunderstrikes never startled Baraq. Instead, he enjoyed hearing it. He thought about it as his Creators voice, reminding people that no one is above Him.

"You guides everyone. Guide me too, please." The harsh wind carried his prayer to the higher of the skies. Fear blinked in his eyes but he didn't let the dark clouds witness it, instead he closed his eyes when he felt the soft pitter-patter growing heavier and loud. The cold raindrops calmed himself as he felt the cold bliss chilling into his bones. Baraq let himself sleep in rain, it felt like a thorn against his skin but to him the thorns were the only path he could walk on.

A/N: I really don't know what's wrong with me.