© All copyrights belong to StarsAndMoon1447 on Wattpad

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*WARNING: Some serious issues mentioned in this chapter.**

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Originally published: 12th August 2020

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<Jasmina: Come and have breakfast with us!>

I set my phone down after texting my husband. He might be asleep after his night shift, but if he wasn't, he might as well join us.

 I was still seething, just remembering the fact that Aliya and Laiba had thought that Laiba had more of a right to be here than Fawad. 

I still remembered my determination to talk to Laiba. I know that talking to her would probably be equivalent to banging my head against a brick wall, but I couldn't just let it go. 

Fawad messaged me back.

<Fawad: I would, but I have no intention or energy to get out of bed right now. Guess I'll just have to starve then ;)>

<Jasmina: Are you doing that on purpose to make me feel bad?>

<Fawad: Of course not. I'm actually starving, but I don't have the strength to make myself something to eat.>

I dialled his number immediately. "You better just be joking!"

"Assalam Alaikum, jaan." He sounded sleepy and amused.

"Walaikum Assalam." I frowned. "Are you hungry? Fawad, get your backside of the bed and get something to eat, otherwise I'll come over there myself and make you eat!" 

He laughed. "Is that a promise?" 

"Dr Fawad Ali, I swear, I..." I froze as Ammi appeared in the doorway, raising both eyebrows at me. "...am very concerned about you. Please eat something." My tone immediately changed to soft and loving.

"Someone walked in?" He laughed harder. "In that case, meri jaan, I don't think I'm going to eat anything. I'm going to sleep hungry." 

I clenched my jaw, knowing how much he was enjoying teasing me. And then I knew exactly how to counter that. "Fine, if you won't, I won't either, and that's a promise." 

"For the love of Allah, Mina." He sighed. "I'm teasing  you. I ate when I got back from work at seven." 

"Good. I have to go now, because Ammi owes me a lecture over how I was talking to you when she came in." I smiled at my mother, who frowned at me. "She's seriously mad. Oops. I need to fix this. Allah Hafiz." I hung up quickly. "Ammi!" 

 "When will you grow up, Jasmina?" She shook her head. "You have such a loving, caring, respectful husband. Why don't you respect him in return?" 

"Ammi, I do!" I gave her a hug, trying to get rid of her annoyance. "This is just our way of messing around with each other. If I felt like I was offending him, I wouldn't do it." Something dawned on me and I pulled back to look at her. "But you knew that already. You know us very well. What's going on?" 

"Seeing Ahad really gets to me." She sighed. "He's the tough, rebellious son, and now it seems like he's been completely brainwashed by his wife. She gives him zero respect, and he just does everything she says, no matter how insulting it is for the rest of us." 

"He's in love, Ammi." 

"That doesn't mean that he has no respect for any of us." She vented out to me. "We're his parents, and..." She looked so upset that I hugged her again.

"Ammi, Ahad Bhai has a good heart. He'll come around." I reassured her. "He always does." 

Everyone says that I look like Ammi, with those wide brown eyes, the way she smiled, and basically a lot of her facial features. I get proud when people tell me that because my Ammi is gorgeous, as Papa keeps reminding her. 

"You need to trust your children." I squeezed her hands. "We'll always find our way back to each other. Our family's too strong to break apart just like that." 

***

Fawad's POV

I woke up at around four thirty in the afternoon, when my phone started ringing. 

Swearing under my breath, I reached for it and answered it. "Hello?"

"I'm outside your front door, you pr**k." Arhaan's cheerful voice came through.

"Keep standing there and quit bothering me." I muttered, turning over onto my back. 

"Bhai, open up." He sounded serious now. 

"Fine. Give me a sec." I ended the call, got out of bed and pulled on a shirt before heading out into the hallway. When I opened the front door, Arhaan stood there, looking nervous. "Assalam Alaikum." 

"Walaikum Assalam." He brushed past me into the flat.

"Come in, why don't you?" I said, sarcastically. I frowned. "You didn't bring your sister with you?" 

He sighed. "Ammi needed her. I'll get to that in a minute. But first, there's something I need to tell you." He nervously began to pace the living area. 

"Wow, this must be something big." I smiled. "I haven't seen you this nervous since the day you had to deal with your first patient." 

"Dude, I seriously felt like that Uncle was going to punch me in the face." He shook his head. He took a deep breath. "But this is bigger." He paused, possibly to create more suspense. "I'm going to be a Papa, In Sha Allah." 

I grinned, genuinely. "Ma Sha Allah! Congratulation, Bhai." I gave him a hug. "I'm so happy for you." 

He looked worried. "Yeah, I've never been happier in my life."

"Really? You could have fooled me." I raised an eyebrow at him.

"That brings me to the part why my sister isn't here." Arhaan sat down on the sofa. "Laiba ended up staying the night, as announced by Aliya over dinner. Ammi's pretty upset because Laiba automatically causes a lot of negativity." 

"Laiba stayed the night?" My hands curled into fists.

"I have no idea how to deal with this, bro." He ran his hands through his hair. "As the eldest, I feel responsible, and I'm worried for my parents. They aren't exactly young anymore. This drama, this stress isn't good for them, but Ahad just doesn't get it." He looked at me. "I've decided to send Sadia to her parents' house for a while. I don't want her to face any problems, especially during the first trimester." 

"Wouldn't that just leave Aunty by herself to deal with Aliya?" 

"Ammi is going to Islamabad. She's taking some time off work." He said. "She doesn't think she should be dealing with patients while she's this stressed." 

"Look, no offence, but is that really the solution?" I asked, carefully. "Aliya's Ahad's wife now, so nobody can avoid her forever."

"I know it's not the solution, but it helps ease some stress from Ammi's mind." He replied. "And with Ammi gone, there's no damn way that I'm leaving Sadia there on her own. She goes to work as well, but our shift times don't match, and she's often home when I'm not." He sighed. "Sorry, Bhai, I'm dumping all my problems on you." 

"Don't be an idiot." I dismissed his apology. "We've been friends for longer than I can remember. You can always talk to me, you know that." 

"I just don't know how to talk some sense into Ahad." He looked annoyed. "He's blinded by love. How can he hurt his own family for a girl he hasn't even known for more than six months?"

"Is he home right now?" I asked.

He shook his head. "He left for work, pretending that everything is perfectly normal." 

"Is Laiba still there?"

"She was when I came here." He replied. "But Papa was home as well, so I'm not to worried about Ammi, Sadia and Jazzy." 

"It's Laiba, Bhai." I told him. "She has no limits. If she wants something, she'll go for it, regardless of who's present or not." 

He looked worried again. "I should get back." 

"I'm coming with you." I said. "I've some time before I have to get to work." 

***

Jasmina's POV

Papa had been urgently called in to work while Ammi had gone shopping for some essentials for her trip to Islamabad. It was just me and Bhabi at home, with Aliya and Laiba. For some reason, I felt protective of Sadia Bhabi, feeling like it was my responsibility to keep her safe from the evil sisters.

And I wasn't wrong to feel overprotective, because when I was coming downstairs, I overheard Laiba talking to Aliya in the living room.

"I think Sadia's pregnant." Laiba was saying, quietly.

My eyes widened. Laiba had turned our home into a daily soap, I swear. 

"So?" Aliya asked. "She's a married woman, it's not really a surprise." 

"You dumbo, she's already the wife of the eldest son." Laiba hissed. "Imagine if she ends up giving birth to a son! You'll have no value, your future kids would have no value!" 

"What do you want me to do? Harm an innocent unborn child?" Aliya snapped.

I put my hand over my mouth, feeling sick. How can anybody be this cruel?

"Look, babe." Laiba said, gently. "Since Mama passed away, we've realised one thing: we need to put ourselves first, because nobody else will. We need to prioritise our own needs, or own wishes first, otherwise we would be crushed and left behind by everyone else." 

"Appi, have some fear of Allah!" Aliya whispered. "Sins never result in permanent happiness. They might give us what we want temporarily, but in the end, we all have to face the consequences of our evil actions. You've made me do enough damage. That's it!" 

"This is a necessary evil, sweetheart." Laiba said. "Just help me out. I'll do the dirty work, okay? Just bring Sadia outside the gates in ten minutes, and let me handle everything." 

"And how do I do that?" Aliya asked. "She's not a child, I can't just tempt her with chocolates."

"Sadia is a sweet, compassionate person. You can think of something." 

I was trembling so hard that I almost fell over. They were going to harm my Bhabi and her baby. My Arhaan Bhai's child.

Over my dead body, Laiba. I thought with determination.

***

I followed Aliya and Bhabi discreetly.

"I thought that we were going to be dewarani and jethani, we should get along." Aliya was saying to Sadia Bhabi.

*Reminder: 

Dewar: Husband's younger brother. Dewarani: His wife.

Jeth: Husband's older brother. Jethani: His wife.

"Let's go for a walk down to the nearby park." Aliya gestured for the guard to open the gate, which he did.

"I'm not sure." Bhabi looked uncertain.

"Come on, Sadia Bhabi." Aliya smiled sweetly at her. "Our husbands are brothers. You can trust me."

As they exited, I stepped out after them. "What are you up to, Aliya?" 

They both turned to face me. Bhabi looked surprised, while Aliya just smirked. Something was wrong. It seemed like she had been expecting me here.

"Bhabi, we need to get back inside. Now!" I told her, reaching forward to grab her hand.

Aliya glanced towards the road and gasped dramatically. "Allah! There's a kitten on the road! I would go help it, but I'm allergic to cats! It's going to get crushed by a car!" 

Allah. No!

My caring, sweet Sadia Bhabi immediately rushed towards the road to get the kitten.

"Bhabi, no, this is a trap!" I followed, tearfully. 

My parents' house was at the corner, with a side lane coming from one side, joining onto the main road in front of the house. A lot of the times, people turned corners too fast, narrowly avoiding accidents with pedestrians. This had improved recently, after a large amount of the wealthy residents complained. Unfortunately, the sad reality is that the rich get listened to, no matter where in the world you are, and things get done when they demand it. However, there are still drivers who drive blindly and speedily around this corner.  

Bhabi bent down and grabbed the kitchen, just as a motorcycle sped around the corner.

"Bhabi!" I screamed, yanking her (and the kitten) out of the way, accidentally landing into the path of the speeding motorcycle myself, as I lost my balance. 

I saw the motorcyclist's eyes widened, and in his defence, he tried to swerve, but he had been going to fast, and he ended up knocking into me, sending me flying onto the ground. Fortunately, I landed on my shoulder and arm, somehow stopping myself from hitting my head. I don't think I would have survived another head injury. 

"Jazzy!" Sadia Bhabi screamed, running towards me, setting the kitten down on the ground.

The guy on the bike had stopped and had rushed over. "I'm so sorry!" 

"I'm fine." I muttered, even as I saw blood underneath me, spreading onto the ground.

The guards from our house rushed out and grabbed the biker, yelling at him for driving recklessly.

"Mina!" 

Fawad?

The next thing I knew, Fawad and Arhaan Bhai were leaning over me, faces etched with concern.

Unfortunately, the sight of blood was making me feel queasy. And as three doctors examined me for any broken bones or serious injuries, I blacked out.

***

"What the hell happened?" Arhaan Bhai asked, after we'd returned home from a precautionary check-up at the hospital.

"She saved me and our baby, that's what happened!" Sadia Bhabi looked emotional as she squeezed my unharmed hand. "This is all my fault! I went into the road to pick up a kitten!" 

It was just the four of us in the room at the moment, Bhabi, me and our husbands. 

"Come on, Bhabi." I tried to lighten the situation. "Just think that there's a grateful mother cat out there somewhere." 

"I risked your life!" Bhabi snapped at me. "What if you'd hit your head again? This accident could have been fatal!" She burst into tears.

"It wasn't an accident." I said, tonelessly.

"What are you talking about?" Fawad frowned at me. "Did that biker do this intentionally?" 

"Not the biker." I shook my head.

The guards had called the police, and hearing the address, Zafar Bhai had come himself, from what I'd heard from Bhabi.

I told them about the conversation I'd heard between Laiba and Aliya. "And the weird thing is that Aliya smirked when I came outside."

"Do you think this was all a trap to hurt you?" Bhabi suggested.

"I think they wanted us both to get hurt." I shrugged. 

Ammi and Papa rushed into the room then, looking worried.

"What happened?" Papa demanded. "A colleague of mine at the hospital told me that my daughter had been brought in. Jasmina!"

I held up my arm that was basically almost entirely covered with bandages. I winced as the action made my shoulder ache. "No serious damage, just some cuts." 

Ammi came over and she started reciting Ayaat-ul-Kursi and blowing it on me. This was a supplication believed to be one of the most power ones for protection. Bhabi moved aside and Ammi took her place, kissing my cheek.

"Papa, I've made a decision." Arhaan Bhai told him. "And when you hear what happened, you'll agree with me."

 "What decision?" Papa asked, curiously.

"If Ahad wants to live with his wife, he'll have to move out." Bhai said.

"What?" Ammi cried out.

We then explained the entire situation to my parents, leaving out Bhabi's pregnancy bit. We just said that they wanted to harm Bhabi because she was the elder brother's wife.

"Technically, we should be reporting them to the police." Bhai added. "And, we're certainly going to do so in regards to Laiba. But Aliya..."

"She was involved in this." Fawad told him. "She risked Bhabi's and Jasmina's lives." 

"And our unborn baby's." Bhabi said, softly, dropping her gaze to her lap.

"Allah!" Ammi said, putting a hand over her mouth. "You're...?" 

"That's actually why Laiba wanted to hurt Sadia." Bhai informed her. "Or so, that's what they made Jazzy think. We now think that this was a plan to hurt Jasmina." 

"Both of us, possibly." I said. 

Ahad Bhai walked in, looking pale. "Is that all true?" 

"Of course you won't trust us!" Arhaan Bhai said, sarcastically. 

Ahad Bhai looked at me and Bhabi. "They tried to hurt you both?" 

Arhaan Bhai rushed over to him and grabbed him by the lapels. "If anything had happened to any of them, including my unborn child, I would have killed you!" 

"Bhai, I...I didn't want this." Ahad Bhai was visibly trembling.

"I support Arhaan's decision." Papa spoke up quietly. "If you want to stay married to that girl, you must leave that house. She's a threat to our family members, and that's unacceptable." 

Wordlessly, Ahad Bhai left the room. My heart broke for him. No matter what, he was still my big brother. We couldn't all just leave him alone like this.

I got up and followed him out. "Bhai!" 

He turned to face me and I saw tears in his eyes. "Jazzy..." He threw his arms around me, hugging me tightly. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me." He shook his head. "I can't stay with her! She's toxic! She went after you and Bhabi...and their baby. She went after my unborn nephew or niece!"

"Bhai, you're hurting my arm." I winced.

"I'm sorry!" He pulled back. "I'll make things right now. I'll end things with Aliya." He put a hand on my cheek. "And I'll make things right with you. I owe you a truckload of apologies." 

"A chocolate glazed doughnut is enough." I smiled, weakly.

Ahad Bhai headed upstairs, and I went back into the living room, where my other brother half hugged me, making sure not to hurt my arm.

"Thank you, Jazzy." He whispered. "You saved my family today. I owe you my life for that." 

"Don't be silly!" I said. "We all would have done this for each other." 

I noticed Ammi chatting quietly with Bhabi, and Papa was on the phone with Zafar Bhai, it seemed.

"Fawad, can we go home? I'm feeling kind of tired." I said.

"Of course." He nodded, standing up. 

We said our goodbyes and left. 

"Weren't you meant to go to work?" I asked, sleepily.

"I called in to say that I couldn't come in." He replied, his gaze on the road.

I put my hand on his arm. "I'm okay, jaan." 

"I would have killed Ahad myself if anything had happened to you." He said. "He's the reason that this all happened." 

"I would blame Laiba." I said. "I don't even blame Aliya as much, because I think that she would be okay, without her elder sister's bad influence." I shook my head. "This is ridiculous! We're meant to be enjoying our newly married lives, me and you, and Arhaan Bhai and Bhabi. But there seems to be one problem after another." 

We drove in silence for a while.

"How about we go away somewhere?" He asked. 

"Like a honeymoon? Because you totally owe me one!" I giggled.

He grinned. "Well, a weekend getaway, because that's all the time that I can take off from work." 

"Murree?" I suggested. "That's literally the only place in Pakistan that I'm even the slightest bit familiar with, to go for a romantic getaway."

Murree is a mountain resort area, located around one and a half hour to two hours drive to the northeast of Islamabad. Funnily enough, our families visited there together, when I was around seven. I vaguely remember how Fariha, who had been eleven then, and I sat together in the minibus, scarfing down snacks, much to our mothers' disapproval. Eventually, Uncle Ali had to get the driver to stop the car because the winding mountainous roads, combined with the heavy snacking, had made both me and Fariha throw up.

"Just remind me not to eat any snacks on the way there." I mumbled.

He laughed. "Oh, I remember that! Ahad wouldn't stop pulling your leg about it." 

"That was disgusting." I wrinkled my nose. "I felt so bad that I was crying that I wanted to go back home."

"Shall we go there, then?" 

I nodded. "Yeah, definitely." 

***

I struggled to change my shirt, as my shoulder had started hurting really badly now. "Oww...Ammi." 

"You're married, meri jaan." Fawad came out of the bathroom. "You should call me now, not your Ammi." He teased me, speaking in fluent Punjabi.

I don't know if I've mentioned this before or not, but when he speaks Punjabi, it does something to me. It's so bloody attractive, especially when he's ranting in Punjabi, angrily. So. Damn. S*xy.

He stepped up right behind me and helped me out of my shirt. "You know what? I think you should wear a button-down shirt while you're injured." He reached into the wardrobe and pulled out one of his shirts. "Just a doctor's advice." He kissed my bare shoulder as he helped me put the shirt on. Gently turning me around, he chuckled. 

The sleeves were too long, covering up most of my hands. He grabbed me by the lapels and pulled me closer, buttoning up the shirt. 

"You were not wrong." I gasped. "Buttoning up a shirt can be s*xy when the right person does it."

He smiled, and as he met my gaze, I saw them shining mischievously. "Leave the top two buttons undone." He winked at me. 

"You're not as angelic as you act." I giggled.

He pulled me towards himself, using my good arm. "I'm so proud of you, you know? You risked your own life to save Bhabi."

I rested my head against his chest. "She would have done the same for me." I pulled away and grinned in excitement. "I can't believe that I'm going to be a Phupho, In Sha Allah! I can't wait to spoil my nephew or niece." 

"Yes, it's unbelievable. Arhaan, a father. Ma Sha Allah." He chuckled. He gave me a kiss on the forehead, before taking my good hand and walking us to bed. "Come on. We need to go to Ammi's for breakfast tomorrow." 

"Did she invite us?" I asked, trying to remember if I was forgetting something.

"No, I just miss her parathas." He shrugged. "I know for a fact that she'll be home, so I'm just going to drop by and demand parathas like a spoilt son." 

"There is no cooking like a mother's cooking." 

"Don't worry." He teased me. "Wife comes a close second." 

I shook my head at him, smiling.

***

Sadia's POV

"I can't believe what almost happened today." I pressed my hand against my stomach. 

Arhaan and I were sitting in the garden, late at night. He was drinking coffee and I was drinking warm milk.

"Alhumdulillah, everyone's okay." He stared up at the starry sky. 

I hesitated before I spoke again. "Not everyone's okay, Arhaan." I bit my lip as I glanced at my husband.

He glanced at me. "I know, Jazzy got hurt, but fortunately nothing major." 

"I actually meant Ahad." I said. "He's in a lot of pain, and I'm sure that he can really use his big brother's advice and support."

"He certainly didn't need it when he made the quick Nikaah decision." There was bitterness in his voice.

"He made a mistake, but he's your younger brother." I said, gently. "You need to be there for him right now. I don't think it's right to leave him alone right now. We can't all just completely abandon him! And I think Jasmina had the same idea when she followed him out of the room." 

"I don't really feel like dealing with him anytime soon." 

"Arhaan, he needs help." I set the empty glass onto the metal garden table. "He needs to see a professional, but before that, we need to show him that we're all going to help him get the support." 

"Why are you so forgiving?" He looked frustrated. "His wife and sister-in-law could have caused a huge tragedy today." 

"They did, not Ahad." I reminded him. "You saw how he looked when he heard everything." I reached for his hand. He took my hand in his, and we both stared up at the night sky. "You want our baby to have its Ahad Chacha around to play with, right? And I have a feeling that Ahad will be a great uncle, very loving, very caring. I also know that you want Ahad around, we all do." 

"Of course I do, Sadi." He took a sip of coffee. "I want to keep him and Jazzy fully involved with our kids, because I know they're both going to adore them so much." 

"Then you know what you have to do." I pulled his hand up to my mouth and kissed it.

***

Ahad's POV

"I have messed up, Zafar." I buried my face in my hands. 

He and I were seated on a charpai outside a dhaba near the older parts of Lahore.

*Dhaba: roadside restaurant. 

Zafar, who had just finished his shift, ate a morsel of tandoori roti and mixed vegetable curry. "Well, if it helps, Laiba's most likely going away for a long time, after everything that she's done." 

"I'm divorcing Aliya." I announced. 

He looked up, shocked. "Already? You just got married yesterday!" 

"She intended to cause harm to my family." I said. "If Bhabi had been hit yesterday, Bhai would have lost his entire family. And Jazzy could have been seriously injured, and we could have lost our sister!" 

A strange emotion clouded his face, and I had a feeling that I knew what it was. I'd known about his serious crush on Jasmina. I didn't mention it to him, because firstly, it was awkward. And then, Jazzy got engaged to Fawad Bhai, and her whole life took a completely different turn, eliminating any chances he had with her. Before she got engaged to Fawad Bhai, it had crossed my mind to suggest her marriage to Zafar, but it just wasn't meant to be, I guess.

"Do you wish to press charges against Aliya?" Zafar composed himself.

"I think it's enough that I divorce her." I said. "With Laiba not in her life, she'll be harmless." 

"You really loved her, didn't you?" He asked, sympathetically.

"Not all love is pure, bro." I said. "My love was toxic and harmful, and the sooner I end this relationship, the better."

"How do you plan on apologising to Jasmina and everyone else?" He asked.

I smiled. "I'll think of something. I know of ways to win back my family's trust." 

***

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