Saad's pov:

"Mama I'm taking Amira with me, we might head to some resort with bhai and bhabi. And... yeah, we will have our lunch out so don't worry about it." I informed her while entering the kitchen, a small smile threatening to break out on my lips.

"Oh, okay. Only you guys are going?" Turning around, she inquired with furrowed eyebrows.

"I don't know. Maybe." I replied uncertainly. I couldn't just tell her that we were taking her and Amira with us. She might get suspicious about why we would be taking her when she would get uncomfortable in spending time with me and bhai being present there.

"Then let's all go there together as a family, what say?" Her eyes lit up as she suggested that, making me internally squeeze my eyes shut. Now what was I supposed to say? 'No mama, we are going out with your younger daughter-in-law and we couldn't possibly take you with us because we wouldn't be able to fully enjoy and that, would get uncomfortable then.' My mind mocked, making me glare at it.

"Uh... let me ask bhai?" I said, which came out more like a question.

"What is the need to ask Maaz? I'm your mama here and I'm telling you, we all are going together." Narrowing her eyes at me, she told me, beaming by the end of her sentence. Ya Allah, what was I supposed to do now? We might just have to decline her and Amira, I thought.

"Okay, as you say." Gulping the lump in my throat, I forced a smile on my face. I was going to get killed if bhai and bhabi got to know about this sudden change in our plan.

"So when are we going?" Looking at me happily, she asked while joining her hands together in excitement.

"Now? I mean we were just about to get ready and leave." I replied, my mind still confused about what to do next.

"Oh. Then I should hurry and pack something for us to eat there." Turning back to one of the cabinets and opening it, she said.

"Are you ready Maria?" Just then, baba entered the kitchen, looking at something in his mobile.

"I'm going to get ready after packing something for us." She replied, getting busy in finding something.

"Huh?! What do you mean? What do you want to pack?" Pocketing his mobile, he looked at her, confused.

"Since we are going to some resort, I will just pack something to eat." She mumbled back, her mind not present here. Dejected, I was just about to leave and inform bhai when I heard baba's voice.

"Accha. And what about your appointment with that doctor which is today. And didn't you plan that we will be going to your friend's house after that? Who is going to go there?" He asked her while folding his arms and raising his brow.

(I see.)

"Oh yeah, I totally forgot about that. It is today?" Looking at baba worriedly, she asked him with furrowed eyebrows. Baba was actually my life saviour at times like these. I should thank him for that. A sigh of relief escaped my lips as I realised that this plan of her's was bound to get cancelled.

"Yes, it is today." He replied, eyeing her.

"Can't we cancel it?" She asked him hopefully. And there went my thought of her plan getting cancelled down the drain.

"No we can't Maria. Don't you remember how much we had to wait to get this appointment?" Sighing, he let his hands fall by his side as he shook his head while replying. Maybe, they wouldn't go with us after all. But what were they talking about? Was mama alright?

"Wait a minute. Which appointment? What happened?" I interrupted, confused.

"It's nothing important. Just a regular check up thing. We will tell you after coming back." He replied, dismissing my questions away. "Now go and get ready." Turning to look at mama, he ushered her.

"Uh... yeah. I'm going. Saad, keep Alayna with you. I'm sorry we can't go there together today. Maybe we can go there some other day?" Turning to look at me, she said apologetically, sadness clear on her features. And I felt bad for hoping otherwise. She looked so happy to spend some time with us but here I was, wishing for something else. How much bad could things get?

"Ya Allah Maria, it's already getting late. Time nikal jayega. Jaldi taiyyar ho." Shaking his head at mama, he told her, exasperated, while holding her arm and taking her out of the kitchen.

(We will get late. Get ready quickly.)

"Haa naa. Taiyyar ho rahi hu mai. Ab itni bhi jaldi kya hai?!" She replied to him in annoyance. "Saad, take care of everyone and come back home soon." She yelled behind her, making me chuckle. We would definitely go out together some other day. In Sha Allah.

(Okay. I'm getting ready. What's the hurry?!)

"Jee theek hai mama. You guys too take care." I yelled back with a small smile on my face.

(Okay mom.)

"Alayna get ready. We are going out!" Heading out of the kitchen and to Alayna's room, I told her when I saw her looking at her sketchbook.

"Where?" Turning to look at me curiously, she inquired with furrowed eyebrows.

"That's a surprise. You will get to know soon." Winking at her, I replied while heading out of her room.

"Bhaiii... okay, I'm going." I could hear her whining before agreeing reluctantly, making me chuckle slightly.

"Jaldi taiyyar hona." I said loudly, feeling excited and nervous. I didn't even know why I was feeling these things.

(Get ready quickly.)

"Jee bhai." She yelled back, giddiness clear in her voice. I smiled while shaking my head. Could this get any better?

(Okay.)

My smile dropped when I turned around and saw the person standing before me. My question should have been, could this get any worse? And let me answer it for you, maybe. But not unless and until the person standing in front of me decides to come with us. Shanzay.

But the main question was, what was she doing here now anyway? Was it not enough that we were going to their house tomorrow? Couldn't whatever she had to say wait? For God's sake, we even worked in the same office!

"Assalamualikum, what happened? Why are you here?" Quickly turning my gaze away from her, I asked her, my voice cold.

"Walikumussalam. Why are you are being so rude right now? Can't I just come over to meet my fiancé?" She replied sweetly, a frown taking over her features.

"No. I'm sorry but if you came here just to meet me, then I'm busy right now. And I'm not your fiancé!" I replied through gritted teeth. Why did people here want to ruin my mood today?

"Wow. How much ruder can you get? But it's okay, I don't mind. After all, I will have to get used to this soon anyway. And don't worry, I will teach you how to be sweet." Waving her hand, she replied giddily.

"I don't want to be sweet. Now, if you don't have any other work, will you please excuse me?" I replied, trying to control my anger. Who even called her here?

"You look in a hurry. Going somewhere?" Ignoring my request, she questioned curiously.

"As far as I know, that's none of your business." Closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, I replied.

"But it will be soon enough, don't you think so too?" I could hear the excitement in her voice. But was this woman deaf or was she dumb? Could she not see that I was trying to avoid her and get somewhere?

And it wasn't like I hated her or something. I just didn't like her because of her attitude and how she... carried herself? Her priorities and goals were different. It's just that she was different, very different from Atifa. Especially now that mama wanted me to marry her, my dislike for her had reached another level. I didn't know why. Maybe because I was finally noticing or accepting how she actually was? I wasn't sure.

"I don't know." I replied coldly, wishing I could just disappear from here. And where were people when we needed them the most?

"Come on, at least look at me. I came all the way here for you and you aren't even looking at me." She whined.

In the one glimpse which I had of her when I first noticed her here, I saw her wearing a top and jeans with her hair open and makeup caking her face. Now don't get me wrong, I didn't mind girls wearing all that. But only if they wear it at their homes and because of their own interest and not to show off to others or attract others. Because to be honest, a lot of these kinds of dresses nowadays were tight and revealing. And it is said in Islam to cover ourselves and keep our beauty only for ourselves and our spouses. Then why wear these kinds of dresses out when they could be attracting the opposite gender? It's already hard enough to follow the rules of Islam in today's world, why take part in making it harder for us and for others?

"Did I ask you to do that?" Closing my eyes shut, I fisted my hands.

"No but-"

"Then don't complain." I interrupted her rudely, my voice as cold as ice.

"But we are going to get married soon! Can't you just give me some attention?" She whined, clearly not getting my hint at leaving me alone.

"We are going to. We aren't yet. And don't you remember that we should lower our gaze? We are all Muslims and we have certain rules to follow." Getting irritated by her whining, I finally snapped at her.

"Ughh! How can you be so boring and old fashioned? And what is even wrong in just having a look at someone who we are going to get married to?" Okay what? What was this woman here even trying to do? Mama and baba were still here, in our home. And she wasn't even married to me yet.

"Yeah right, there is no harm in it. Now will you please leave my way?" Smiling sweetly, I replied, honey dripping off my words.

"Then look at me at least for once." Ya Allah, where did you leave me? Where was I even stuck?

"Ya Allah, don't you understand my simple sentence? I don't want to look at you. It-" I started saying when I realised that she wouldn't actually understand whatever I would try to tell her. Her mind was set on one thing and she would just follow it. "Just leave please." I muttered, exasperated and tired.

"Fine! Do whatever you want to do. But this won't work for long. I won't tolerate this later on." She snapped, most probably glaring daggers at me.

"Are you done now?" I muttered, closing my eyes shut while gritting my teeth.

"I just came here to give you this file. You have a presentation tomorrow morning, if you still remember." Composing herself, she told me with a forced fake smile.

"Okay. Thank you. Anything else?" I asked her, still looking down at my foot.

"No. I will be leaving now." She replied, but still didn't make any move to leave. Why couldn't she just leave? What was she waiting for?

"Okay. Assalamualikum." I told her, hoping for her to get the hint this time.

"Walikumussalam." Gritting her teeth, she replied before stomping away.

I sighed in relief while making my way towards my room. That woman ruined my mood and wasted so much of my time that I was certain about the fact that we were late. I just hoped this mood of mine would not remain for long because I really wanted to enjoy.

._._._.

We had just reached the resort and she had gone to the balcony with bhabi when bhai pulled me aside, into the kitchen. A scowl adorned his face as he eyed me weirdly.

"What happened to you?" He inquired, his eyebrows knitted together in worry.

"What will happen to me?" I retorted, shrugging his hand off my arm.

"Don't play dumb with me. Do you think we didn't notice your odd behaviour?" He questioned, narrowing his eyes while folding his arms, looking at my furiously.

"Honestly, I didn't expect you guys to notice it." I blurted out whatever came into my mind, instantly regretting the words as soon as they were out. But I cared less about what others were thinking at that time. I just wanted to clear my mind but yesterday's events combined with today's event kept playing in my mind.

"Are you being serious right now?!" He questioned incredulously. When I stayed silent and didn't reply for a while, he added, exasperated. "Ab bataoge bhi ke baat kya hai?!"

(Are you even going to tell me now what's the matter?)

"Kuch nahi bhai, leave it." I muttered, feeling guilty about my behaviour. Also not wanting to talk about it.

(Nothing, leave it.)

"Seriously? To tumhara mood kyu kharab hai? Kya tumhe yaha hamare saath nahi aana tha?" He inquired incredulously, his gaze narrowing at me.

(Seriously? So why is your mood so sour? You didn't want to come here with us?)

"Nahi bhai, aisa kuch nahi hai. I just don't want to talk about it right now." Shaking my head frantically, I murmured quickly.

(No, it's nothing like that. I just don't want to talk about it right now.)

"Accha. Whatever it is, I hope you sort it out soon. I don't want your bad mood to ruin anyone else's mood. You know what I mean, right?" Letting his hands fall by his side, he said, now looking away from me and towards the living room.

(Okay.)

"Yeah... I- I will try not to ruin anyone's mood. Just... just give me a moment to collect myself I guess." I mumbled hesitantly before closing my eyes shut, trying to clear my mind.

"Hmm. Okay. I'm heading out now, just clear your mind before getting out of here." He replied, glancing at me.

"Hmm..." Humming in response, I turned myself away from him, facing the window as I heard his footsteps fading away.

I wished life was as easy as we say. It is so much easier to talk about something, to tell someone something, to give out advise to others, but when it comes to working on it ourselves, do we realise how hard it actually is to do what we say. To act on our words. Isn't it said that it is much easier said than done?

._._._.

My heart had fluttered the slightest bit when her lips had touched my cheeks. I was surprised to say the least. And, I couldn't just let that precious moment just pass away without even returning the favour or having missed the privilege of watching her flushed face. That was the first kiss which she gave me. And I still don't know how was she so innocent that she actually couldn't understand the meaning behind my words. But she actually managed to make my mood light and bright. I felt so much better just after talking to her. Her giving me a kiss was a bonus for me.

And honestly, I wasn't actually expecting her to give me a kiss. I mean, I thought that she would just run away. But oh man, how wrong was I?! I mean, that's what any other girl would have done, right? I had forgotten that she wasn't just any other girl, she was my girl. A rare and precious one at that.

And I didn't think my small peck would have been sufficient for her. But stepping back, when I actually saw her flushed face, the warmest which I had seen until then, I couldn't help the warmth spreading through myself too. I couldn't actually believe I did that. It was just as shocking for me as it was for her, if not more.

And I couldn't help the nervous chuckle escaping my lips when I heard the kids giggling, reminding us of their presence. My gaze followed her as she rushed inside with wide eyes and a beautifully innocent flushed face. Oh how I wished I could just keep gazing at her!

"Ooyyee! Kaha khoye hue ho?" Bhai's voice brought me out of my dreamland.

(Hellooo! Where are you lost?)

"Huh? What happened?" I looked at him, confused.

"Is that your cheeks turning pink? And your face becoming warm?" He inquired curiously while coming closer to me and eyeing my face.

"What are you talking about? There is nothing like that." Turning my gaze away from him, I replied, hoping he would actually believe me for once.

"Are you trying to hide your face from me now? And why are you covering your cheeks?" He further questioned curiously, observing my every move.

"Bhai! Aisa kuch nahi hai. You are overthinking!" Finally turning to look at him again, I replied while removing my hand from my cheeks with a frown.

(It's nothing like that. You are overthinking!)

"Haa haa, deny all that you want, but the truth won't change." He replied mischievously, finally turning his gaze away from me.

(Yeah yeah,)

"Ya Allah bhai, let me live in peace for a while." I murmured with a pout, my gaze roaming around.

"When did I even disturb your peace? Or your romance?" He questioned, shrugging his shoulders.

"What do you mean?" I asked him, confused.

"I mean, I certainly didn't interrupt you while you were romancing so I definitely didn't disturb your peace." He replied with a smirk.

"Wh- what do you mean by romancing? When was I romancing!?" I asked him nervously. Did he, by any chance, see us together?

"Oh chote, don't play dumb. You think we didn't see you guys doing that?" He questioned mischievously while turning to face me, a smug look on his face.

(Younger one,)

"W- what? What are you talking about?" Flustered, I stuttered. And I realised that even if he didn't know anything before, my voice might have given away everything.

"Oh my God, calm down chote! I was kidding. That was just an example!" Laughing, he replied.

"Oh." A sigh of relief escaped my lips at his answer and I murmured quietly. "Alhamdulillah."

"What? Did you just say something?" He asked in between his laugh.

"No, absolutely not." I muttered quickly while shaking my head.

"Accha..." He eyed me suspiciously, not exactly believing my words.

"I- I'm just going to have a walk and come back." I muttered quickly while standing up when I saw her making her way here with bhabi. Our gazes met for a mere second before I averted them and headed out.

._._._.

"Chote, I feel like we are missing something." Bhai murmured as we were checking some of the snacks available.

"Yeah, even I'm having the same feeling from some time. But I can't exactly remember what it is." I replied back with furrowed eyebrows, trying to remember what it was.

"Hmm... Do you have any idea about what it could be?" He questioned, still lost in his thoughts.

"No idea bhai." I murmured while turning the packet around in my hand. "No Alayna! Don't touch that!" I told her when I saw her trying to take out something from the upper shelf.

"But bhai I want it." She mumbled while looking at me with a pout.

"Then you should've told me, I would have gotten it for you." I replied while shaking my head before keeping the packet in my hand back in its place and giving her whatever it is that she wanted. "Here."

"Jazak Allahu Khairan bhai." She chirped happily, now looking at the packet in her hands.

"Wa Antum Fa Jazak Allahu Khairan. What do you want Amira?" I asked when I saw her looking around curiously with knitted eyebrows.

"Umm... ice cream?" She replied while looking at me hopefully.

"Ya Allah, here comes their sweet tooth." I muttered under my breath before shaking my head. "Anything else?"

"No?" She replied, shaking her head.

"Fine. But we will have it while going back." I murmured, not even trying to argue with her.

"Okay." She agreed, a cheeky grin taking over her features.

"Chote! Mujhe yaad aa gaya!" Bhai exclaimed suddenly while turning to look at me happily.

(I remembered!)

"Accha. What is it?" I asked, curiously.

(Okay.)

"I think there was going to be a football match today, right?" He replied, his eyes shining brightly.

"Oh my God yes! How could I have forgotten about that?!" Suddenly realisation dawned on me, making me squeeze my eyes shut.

"I know right! I don't even know how I could forget about it!" He replied enthusiastically with a hint of disbelief in his voice.

"Oh shoot! When was it supposed to start again?" I asked quickly while checking my watch.

"At around two? Or maybe it was one thirty. I'm not sure." He replied uncertainly while furrowing his eyebrows.

"Allah! It has already started!" I groaned. How could I have forgotten such an important play? We had been waiting for it for so long!

"You are kidding me, right?" He said incredulously, not believing me.

"No bhai! Just check the time, it's already past two." I muttered, worried. Now what should we do?

"Ya Allah! Come on, let's get back to the resort, I think it will be going live on the TV there." He replied, keeping whatever it was in his hands in the trolly.

"But bhai..." What were we going to tell bhabi and her?

"Yeah?" He replied absent-mindedly.

"What about the ladies?" I asked the most dreaded question, the one which we totally forgot about for a while.

"Allah! I totally forgot about them!" He groaned, running his hand through his hair.

"What are we going to tell them now?" I questioned while biting my lips. I couldn't find any excuse to give.

"I don't know but we are going back now! So come on." He replied while making his way towards them.

"What do you mean I don't know. We can't go there without a plan, nor can we just tell them that we are going back to watch a match." Following him, I asked with a frown.

"Let's just say that there is an emergency and we will be back soon." He replied frantically while rushing toward them.

"And what if their shopping completes before our game?" I ran behind him.

"We will see about that." We were definitely inviting trouble our way, unaware of the fact that it was going to cost us too much, literally.

._._._.

▪ What are your thoughts about our new character? Do you like her? Is she going to create problems in Saad's life? Is she actually going to remain in this story for long? Let me know what you honestly think about her. 

._._._.