The girls were gathering for the morning assembly, Mahjabeen who just entered the building collided with someone. The cup in the girls splashing on her uniform, and once again her spotless pink uniform was dirty.

"I am so sorry...", she seemed to be in fourth grade and was genuinely apologizing.

Mahjabeen smiled, "areey koi na tum chai peeyo kapde toh dholungi mai", she was grinning, the little girl pouted her eyes turning teary as she took that as an insult.

"Mai sachme darauni dikhti kya?" She asked herself remembering Rania's jab, this was the second time a girl ran away. "Amma theek bolti hai, mai bolti bohot hu... "

She walked to the washroom while talking to herself, "Agar dost banane hai toh zyaada baat nhi krni hogi, pichli baar meri gareebi-"

She heard some sounds coming from the quite corner of the bathroom, "kon hai?" She asked apporaching the figures that had four hands, what kind of species was that?

She heard a foot shuffling and then there was silence. There was a boy.

There was a boy in a girl's school.

There was a boy in a girl's school hugging a student.

And that student was Ranya.

Her clothes were unruly, and they weren't in a proper state, "Ye kya hora?"

Mahjabeen asked her eyes wide, as she backed away, now she wished it was a monster instead of this. Her eyes, her mood everything was spoilt.

Ranya smirked, "Tum?" She walked closer to Mahjabeen who backed away, "Mai kisiko nahi bataungi"

She was scared, terrified as she saw the madness in Ranya's eyes, "You had chocked me infront of the entire bus. You humiliated me infront of my friends and I will humiliate you for life. Whenever you would look in the mirror, you would remember me", she laughed out loud and Mahjabeen tried to runaway, the boy stood at the corner watching the scene uninterested.

As she turned around, Ranya grabbed her by her chotti and slammed her head on to the wall. She heard the boy call out Ranya's name in panic, as she felt a searing pain engulf her. She felt ever vein inside her head, she heard every little voice, she tasted her wet salty saliva, while she fell on the disgusting floor.

When she regained conciousness, she saw three legs, everything was blurry but she saw the disappointment in the principal's eyes. She heard them talk, "I saw her with the guy... she tried to attack me and I pushed her she fell... ", Ranya was crying loudly, and Mahjabeen couldn't help but wonder, would she die in this nasty washroom.

She was taken to the hospital, her mother stayed by her side crying, not for her, but because of her. Because of the humiliation.

Bakhtiyar Khan soothed her with his words, "Shukar karo bacchi bach gayi".

She heard her mother whisper something that broke her heart into thousand pieces, "isse accha maar jaati... kaise jeeyegi... pura mohalla jaan gaya hai iske baarein mai"

She was in a comatose like state but she heard everything, her father's words, "Sahi keh rahi ho", he broke down, she tried to move her fingers but she couldn't. Her eyes shed tears as she looked at them, Adam who sat beside her, wiped it away, and tucked the hairs behind her ear as they stuck to her cheeks, "Bacchi hai, galti toh hoti haina", but there was a bitterness in his voice.

She laid there on the hospital bed, having lost half of her motor abilities, incapable of defending her name. The way Rania had presented everything, nobody would believe her.

___

Murtasim raised his gun aiming at the man who was running away, his one in his pocket, the shades hiding his eyes. The man's brother was pleading for mercy, "Khan maaf krde agli baar aisa nahi hoga".

A deer cried in the forest as a shot was fired, the man fell on the wet soil, Murtasim signalled to his men, "Le chalo isse panchayat mai"

The man who was shot, his name was Umar Farukhi, the son of the sarpanch. He was spoilt rotten by his father because he was the only son, after seven daughters. His every mistake was forsaken due to his father's position, and the small mistakes gradually became bigger. Umar made three young girls run in the vast field as to practice his shooting skills. He shot a ten year old.

They reached the panchayat and the Sarpanch who sat there laughed when he saw him, "Kyun? Mila nahi? Mera sher beta hai woh, Shikari hai woh, bachke rehna Khan kya pata aapkona shikaar banade".

"Shikaar aur Shikaari ka faisla tum khud krlena... Umar ko lau", he ordered his men who pulled out his body from the van and dropped it onto the ground.

He was alive, breathing but Murtasim had the urge to kill him, the Sarpanch was now shedding tears, "Mera aklota beta hai, maaf kardo Khan", he joint his hands.

"Apni zameen inke naam krdo aur ye gao chodkar chaley jao".

____

"Kya likh rahey ho?" Maheer asked the young man who wore a jersey with shorts, sitting on the bleachers and scribbling onto his notepad.

"Poem", he replied not looking up as Maheer tried to peek into his diary, "Shayar sahab moudhu kya hai?"

He held in a smile and turned to look at her, her eyes were filled with mirth as she gazed at him, the dimple at her cheeks peeking, "I am trying to find my muse".

He said flirting with the young girl making her heart flutter, "Usama!"

She exclaimed, "Not you, you aren't interesting enough to be a muse", he laughed dismissing her thoughts and feelings. He didn't see the heartbroken look on her face as she concealed it with a smile, "ofcourse, how could I be your muse?"

___

At the Khan haveli, Murtasim saw two figures, Usama and Maheer sitting on the swing as he played the guitar. Singing together in a melodious voice, he looked from afar, she had a beautiful voice.

Bashar Momin had protected her, coddled her since she was a baby, treated her like a princess. In her pink suit, she sat elegantly her eyes closed as she sang the song. He walked towards them, removing his shades and took in her beauty.

She was simply gorgeous. Her smile was still the same, it did something to his heart. As if he went back to his childhood. He could hear her calling his name, "Murtasimmm pakdo", in this very lawn.

"Assalamwaalikum bhai", Usama brought him out of his zone, and he looked away from Maheer, replying him.

"Aap gaana gayenge humarey saath?" He asked making space for them, the swing was large enough to accomodate three. But he saw how Usama shifted to the middle, closer to Maheer, he shook his head.

"Padhai karlo Usama, yahi krte reh jaogey toh hogye tumhare exams", there was a hint of jealousy, as Usama nodded his head respectfully.

"Ji bhaijaan, aap Maheer ko ghar chod de", Usama was aware of Murtasim's underlying feelings for Maheer, but his Badi Ammi had said to him, "Don't let Murtasim talk to Maheer", it was an instinct, years had passed but he still protected his brother from Bashar's wrath.

On the way back, the two remained silent, she was poised, had manners, maybe he liked how similar the two of them were. They didn't need to talk, because he felt calm, his headache lessened as he smiled to himself, humming a familiar tune, the one Usama and Maheer were singing.

Maheer heard him, but her mind went to the garden, to Usama. How he shifted in the middle? She wondered, did he actually had feelings for her?

__

"Shahnawaz Corp apne naam karwaliya?" Bashar gasped surprised, he couldn't believe that Gul Khan handed over half of her husband's assets to her second husband.

"Sirf wahi nahi, zameen bhi", Asif boasted as he picked up a match stick to smoke the cigar. His eyes shone, as Bashar laughed, "Wah Asif badi Kameeni cheez hai tu bhi".

He was impressed, "bas ek problem hai" Asif sighed, "Kya?"

"Ab gao ka Sarpanch Murtasim ka aadmi hai, zameen toh meri hai magar gao ke hisaab se sirf uska beta ya 'pota' hi zameen ke asli waris hai"

"Matlab tu bech nahi sakta?"

Asif shook his head, "Na fassal lagwaskta", Bashar laughed, "Mai wahi soch raha tha Gul Khan itni bewakuf kaise hogyi, Asif samajhle tujhe Bakra banaya usne".

He rolled his eyes, breathing in, "Chup baith".

____

They were at the school in the council meeting, her head was gauzed up as she sat on the chair beside her mother, "What do you have to say?"

Mahjabeen spoke up, "Madam uss din woh ladka Ranya k saath tha, mai usse jaanti bhi nahi".

The principal rolled her eyes, "Stop lying we all witnessed it. And even the boy confirmed it..."

"Ranya jhoot bolri-"

"Mahjabeen bass karde", the disgusted look in her mother's eyes as she pleaded with her, "Humari izzat mitti mai na mila".

Her mother was crying, "Ammi tu ro toh mat", she said unable to bare her mother's tears, her heart ached.

"Sach bol phir tu".

Her mother who had never raised her hands, slapped her, her cheeks burnt. Her eyes teared up, it wasn't just the slap, it was the hatred in her eyes.

"Bol sach!"

Mahjabeen shook her head, looking around as people looked at her with judgement, her reputation was soiled. But Mahjabeen didn't care about these strangers, her mother was the one who didn't believe her.

Nobody believed her. They reached home and her mother went to her closet throwing her books on the ground and reading her diary.

"Maa kya karri hai", she tried to snatch it away, "jo mujhe bohot pehle karna chahiye tha".

"Maa woh ladki jhooti hai", her words seemed to enrage her more.

"Jhooti tu hai Mahjabeen", her mother tore her diary, and picked up the bat smashing the TV screen.

Her head was aching, she touched the bandage and realised it was wet.

She sniffled, wiping away the tears and went towards her brother, but he didn't meet her eyes.

"Bhai?"

She called him, he was lost in his own thoughts, and suddenly spoke up, "Isliye tu fail hoti thi...", as if he just realised his sister wasn't  a weak students just distracted. It hurt her.

"Ye baat nahi hai. Bhai aap mujhe jaante ho", Adam bit his lips, "Nahi Mahjabeen, mai nhi jaanta tujhe".

"Meri baat suno-", he stood up and walked away, "Baba?" She asked Bakhtiyar Khan who sighed solemly, "Teri shaadi karani padhegi".

Nobody heard her. Nobody trusted her.
Mahjabeen had always believed her family would always stand behind her, they were her support her 'guroor'. But the reality was different, her own mother failed to realise her truth.

She picked up her diary and pen, the torn pages and got back to fixing them with a tape. "Mujhe itna rona aaraha haina mai kya karu... kiske kandhe pe sar rakh k rou?"

"Koi meri baat nhi sunraha", she wiped her tear, gulping down the saliva as more fell.

"Koi meri baat nahi manraha".