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*

Shaila

"You cannot be serious? Are you serious?" Faris blinked at me, surprised.

"I've never been so serious in my life. Not even about you." I winked at him as I laced up my roller skates.

"Shy, you're gonna fall. And then you're gonna hurt yourself. And then we're gonna have a second injured bahu of the Duraid family." He sighed.

"Have you seen the veranda? It's the perfect place for my skating!" I insisted. "Faris, don't be boring." I stood up from the charpai set out in the veranda, and smiled as I saw the wide space. I'd missed skating. I used to do it a lot when I was growing up and when I was a teenager. 

Faris watched me worriedly as I started skating, but it came naturally to me. Skating had always been therapeutic for me, and as I moved around the veranda, my pony ruffling in the breeze, I felt good. 

I skated over to him and took his hands. "When we worry too much, we lose out on precious moments of life. I skated away and grinned when I saw Syra Bhabi appear in the veranda. "Hey, Bhabi! Want to try?" 

Her eyes widened. "Of course!"

"Bhai ne tumhain to kuch nahin kehna, Shy. Meri kambakhti aajayegi." Faris muttered.

*"Bhai won't say anything to you, Shy. I am the one who'll get in trouble."

"I suggest you go horse-riding with him and Zeeshan Bhai then. You know nothing about this." I grinned cheekily at him.

"God, I haven't done this since I was seven or something." Syra Bhabi sat down on the charpai, as Faris walked off towards the stables.

I took the skates off and slipped my feet back into my sandals. "I think these skates should fit you." 

She put them on and laced them up.

"Okay?"

She nodded and stood up with me holding onto her arm. "Whoa." She laughed. "This is so cool." She moved forward and stumbled, but I held onto her. "It's okay, Shaila. You can let me go. I want to try this."

Now I felt worried. "Don't get hurt again. Please." 

She squealed as she almost tumbled onto her face, but I had to hand it to her. The girl was determined and the fear of falling was not going to put her off. Soon she steadied herself enough to skate slowly. "It's all coming back to me now." She laughed again. "I only stopped when I badly scraped my knees and Mum warned me never to do it again."

"And yet here you are." I smiled.

"Aren't girls always told to do whatever they want after marriage?" 

"Good point." I slowly followed her, ready to stop her from having a major fall, but she wasn't bad. "Nice."

"I grew up with cousins significantly older than me. I still remember watching them as they skated. I wanted to try to but I was refused. It was only when I was seven when I tried, but then I had a bad fall and I was forbidden from this." She smiled at me. "Thank you for giving me this opportunity." 

"You know, we have ample space back home. We didn't used to when we lived in the north, but know we have. We can buy you a pair of skates too." I suggested. 

"That sounds cool." She nodded. "But you brought you skates along? Wasn't it only meant to be a day trip?"

I laughed. "Well, there was a doubt that it would end up as a night trip, and I had noticed this veranda the last time, so I took the opportunity." 

"I'm like that with my cameras."

The two of us laughed and chatted as we took turns skating around. 

This was the most unique devrani-jethani relationship that I'd ever heard of.

*Devrani: husband's younger brother (devar)'s wife.
Jethani: husband's older brother(jeth)'s wife.

*

Aisha

"Menu saddi yaad andi ay, onhan no wekh ke." Lubna said as she glanced out of the window at the skating and giggling girls. 

*"Watching them reminds me of us."

I nodded. "Jaddon koi fikar na si sanu."

*"When we had no worries."

She smiled. "Menu lagda ay keh phiar o waqt agaya ay sadday laiy. Koi fikar nai. Bachay waday hogaye ne; houn assi aram nal zindagi bita sakde aan."

*"I feel like that time has come back for us again. No more worries. The kids have grown up; we can now live our lives peacefully."

"Hmm." I glanced up at the sky which had cleared up now. "Ki ki khwab takde si assi, aisi aasman de thalay."

*"What kind of wishes and dreams we had under this very sky."

"Teri khwaish siggi ke tu jaaz'ch jaawe." She spoke, reminding me of the picture books that she used to show me, of aeroplanes and beautiful worldwide destinations.

*"You really wished to go in a plane."

"O keh rahe si ke o mera pa...passport banwadainge. Phair o menu duniya dekhawainge, In Sha Allah." I sounded excited even to my own ears.

*"He [Farid] said that he will have my pa..passport made. Then he'll show me the world, In Sha Allah."

"In Sha Allah." Lubna looked genuinely happy for me.

"Menu sabton zyada shauk ay ke main o jagga waikhan jithay mera Musa wada hoya si. Jithay o school jaanda si. Jithay oda bachpan..." My voice broke.

*"I wish the most to see the place where my Musa  grew up. Where he went to school. Where his childhood..."

"Allah tumhari har dua puri kare, jo tumhari behtari main ho. Ameen." My friend prayed for me.

*"May Allah accept all your supplications, those that are beneficial for you. Ameen." 

There was a knock on the door, and we turned. I was surprised to see Syra in the doorway, whereas a few moments ago she had been downstairs with Shaila. 

"Aunty, main thodi dair ke liye tasveerain khainchne ja rahi hoon. Woh ek kamwali bata rahi thi ke ek khoobsurat sa bridge hai das minute ki walk pe. Maine woh dekhna hai." My elder daughter-in-law spoke almost sheepishly.

*"Aunty, I'm going out for a while to take photos. A maid of yours was telling me that there's a beautiful bridge nearby, ten minutes walk from here. I want to see it."

"Musa ko lejao saath, bachay." I suggested.

*"Take Musa with you, dear." 

"Woh...Zeeshan Bhai aur Faris Bhai ke saath hain. Ghodon pe." Syra replied. 

*"He's...he's with Zeeshan Bhai and Faris Bhai. Horse-riding."

Lubna turned to me, reassuringly. "Hamari bachi ko hamse zyada pata lag gaya hai Khwabpur ka. Fikar na karo tum."

*"Our girl knows about Khwabpur more than us now. Don't worry."

I nodded. "Dehan se jaana, bachay."

*"Go carefully, dear."

With an excited smile on her face, Syra left.

"Teri tarhan hai ay kudi wi." Lubna spoke, fondly.

*"This girl is just like you." 

I remembered my own curiosity when I was close to Syra's age. From attending the Sufi Music night at the haveli, to wanting to know more about the world outside the village, I had a passion to explore too, no doubt. I prayed that Syra never lost her passion for living life. I wished none of my sons or daughters-in-law did.

*

Syra

My midriff ached a little from the fall earlier this morning, but I walked towards the other side of the haveli, a part I hadn't explored before. My camera safely in its bag, which was slung around my neck, I headed towards the shallow forest. 

The storm had passed, the sky had cleared and birds now chirped on this beautiful chilly early afternoon in Khwabpur. After a lovely time skating with Shaila, I felt energetic enough to continue my exploring of the yet unseen parts of Khwabpur that I hadn't seen before.

But as I walked, my mind returned back to the protectiveness that my husband had displayed this morning, and automatically my cheeks turned pink. The fury on his face, due to his worry for me, made me super attracted to him. I was against violence, but this unexpected side of Musa had put me in some sort of a fangirl-mode. 

It's good that I'm going alone for this walk. I don't need to be swooning over him in front of the others, earning teasing remarks from them.

I stood at the edge of the shallow forest, staring up in awe. Autumn had painted the leaves of the trees in stunning orange and yellow shades. The brown dried leaves at the foot of the trees created a stunning contrast to the ones that still clung on to the branches, attempting to fight the law of the changing seasons and hoping to remain attached to the trees. I crouched down and lifted up my camera. The way the sun rays spilled through the gaps in the canopy of the trees, created the perfect lighting effect. It was so serene and peaceful here, in the heart of nature. 

I continued my walk. The forest didn't get deeper; in fact, I came across a clearing at one point and heard the sound of trickling water. I followed it, and there it was...the beautiful small stone bridge built over a trickling stream. "Whoa." I walked onto the bridge slowly, and from here I got the breath-taking view of the mountains, with the stream flowing in their direction, lined with rocks of all shapes and sizes. I climbed onto the wide stone railing of the bridge and sat on it, a smile on my face. Surrounded by the shallow forest, this was nature at its best. How did I miss this before?

I took so many photos that my arms started to ache. And then I just sat there, watching the view. Pulling out my small videocam from the bag, I now filmed the view. "Welcome to Khwabpur, a true place of dreams. How beautiful is this?" With my camera, I followed the flight path of a small bird flying overhead, disappearing into the branches of the gorgeous trees. 

I had no idea how long I sat there, but I felt so much at peace that I didn't want to leave. Breathing in the fresh mountain air, I closed my eyes. I had been to a lot of places in the world, but nowhere had given me as much bliss as Khwabpur, as I felt right nw.

"I was about to send a search party." 

I opened my eyes but didn't turn. "Why? Didn't feel like coming and searching for your wife by yourself?"

Musa stopped right behind me, his arm snaking around my waist. "Not really...but what can I do? This wretched heart forced me to come."

I turned my head to look into his eyes. "Since when are you so filmy?"

He sat on the stone rail beside me, facing the opposite way, but didn't reply as he gazed at the magnificence surrounding us. "We should move to Khwabpur." 

I leaned my head against his arm. "We'll definitely keep coming back here, In Sha Allah."

He turned so that he was facing the same direction us. The stream was trickling underneath us, and its sound was so soothing that for a few moments we just sat there and listened to it. I closed my eyes once again.

I felt him take my hand in his. When I opened my eyes once again, a few moments later, I saw a rock at the edge of the stream. "I want to go and film from down there." I pointed.

"Syra..."

I got up from the wall and jogged down the side of the bridge and toward the rock. Crouching down beside the rock, I took my videocam out and began to film. It was mesmerising to watch the water flow. Once I was done, I started afresh, raising the camera towards Musa. "And this is Dr Musa Duraid, and he's making a special cameo appearance in my video today. Do you have anything to say?" 

To my surprise, he jumped down from the bridge, straight into the stream. His boots splashed water, and he walked towards me. 

"You could have hurt yourself!" I gasped.

"Oh, really, madam? You're saying that?" With a mischievous look on his face, he wrapped his arms around me. 

I switched the camera around so that it was filming him and me. "We met in this beautiful village of Khwabpur. Our story started here. I'm making it official right here: this is my man." 

He nuzzled his face in my neck, making me giggle. I turned the camera off and placed it back into the bag, before turning to face him. 

"I feel like we're on our honeymoon." Wrapping my arms around his neck, I turned to look at the mountains.

He kissed my cheek. "Damn great place for a honeymoon." He pressed his forehead against mine, and we both smiled at each other.

We were surrounded by pure peace, pure bliss and pure contentment. No materialistic thing in the world could ever compare to these moments that we were spending together amidst this natural beauty. I didn't want a luxurious honeymoon. This was perfect for me.

*

Farid

"Kaday aana'ay tussi lokan ne waapis?" I asked Aisha on the phone as I sat on the living room sofa of my mother's flat with my legs stretched out. "Kal shaami da keh ke gaye se tussi loki, te doosri raat chadh rai'ay hunn."

*"When are you people coming back?"
"You said you'll come back yesterday evening, and now the second night is descending."

"Lubna keh rahi si ke kuch dinan laiy assi aithay rukh jaiye..." Aisha hesitantly replied.

*"Lubna asked us to stay here for a few days..."

"Dinan laiy?" I repeated in disbelief.

*"For a few days?"

"Tussi kehnde'o te kal saweray'i nikal jawange aithon..." She sounded worried.

*"If you say so, we'll leave from here tomorrow morning itself."

"Nai, koi gal nai. Jinna marzi rukna ay, rukho tussi loki." I sighed, unbuttoning the top buttons of my shirt as I started to feel sleepy. "Munday kudiyan theen nay?"

*"No, don't worry. Stay as long as you want."

"Are the boys and girls okay?"

"Ji. Sab theek ne. Allah da shukar ay."

*"Yes. Everyone is okay. Thanks to Allah."

I got up and started to make my way to the second bedroom in the flat. "Tera khayal rakhde paye ni saare?"

*"Is everyone taking care of you?"

"Ji. Thauda hukam na Musa taal sakda ay, na Faris." There was a hint of shyness that I detected in her voice, which made me smile.

*"Yes. Neither Musa, nor Faris can disobey you."

"Waise..." She began again after a brief pause. "Ik waari tussi keya si ke agar main Khwabpur aayi kuch arse laiy, te thanu wi aana payega aithay..."

*"By the way..."
"You once said that if I came to Khwabpur for a few days, you'll have to come here too."

As I closed the bedroom door behind me, I unbuttoned my shirt completely. And I suddenly missed having her in my arms, resting her head against my chest. "Mera othay aana aina asaan nai haiga."

*"It's not that easy for me to come there."

"Kyun?" Her voice came out almost in a complaining way... the imploring manner of a loving wife.

*"Why?"

"Amma Ji noun ais halat wich chadan da dil nai manda." I admitted.

*"I don't want to leave Amma Ji alone in this state."

"Aini kharab tabeeyat ay onhan di?" Now she sounded worried again.

*"Is she that unwell?"

I sat down on the bed, smiling at Aisha's compassionate nature. That was one of the countless reasons why I loved her so much. "Aisha, onhan noun tere kollon, te mundeyan kollon maafi magan da mauka chaida aye."

*"Aisha, she wants an opportunity to ask you and the boys for forgiveness."

She paused for such a long time that I thought that the call had ended. "Aisha?" 

"Koi lodh nai onhan noun mere kollon maafi mangan di. O maa hain thaudi." She spoke tonelessly, diplomatically.

*"There's no need for her to apologise to me. She's your mother."

"Is gall da ay matlab samjhan ke toun onhan noun maaf kitta?"

*"Shall I interpret this as you forgiving her?"

"Mere hawalay o jo wi kitta, mere andar onhan laiy koi gilla nai." She carefully chose her words, or so it seemed to me. "Par jo onhan di wajah nal mere mundeyan nal hoya...kaidi maa maafi dewigi?"

*"Whatever happened in regards to me personally, I have no resentment towards her."
"But what my sons suffered because of her...what mother would be forgiving?"

She had basically repeated what I'd told my mother. I would forgive for anything against me, but I cannot be forgiving for something done against my wife and kids.

"Main ohan noun maaf kitta." Aisha breathed out. "Jo onhan ne mere saath kitta, us sab laiy, main onhan noun maaf kitta."

*"I forgive her."

"Whatever she did against me, for all of it, I forgive her."

My head bowed, I ran a hand through my hair. Aisha was too good. It made me feel guilty, after everything my mother had done to her. I knew that her own mother also had a hand in this, but if only Amma Ji had shown her some mercy...

*

Syra

It was bright and early one morning, and we were back home in Islamabad. Our floor-to-ceiling window was open in our bedroom, and I lay underneath the duvet, on my stomach, taking the perfect photos from this angle on the bed.

Musa had gotten up earlier as he had to go to work, his first day back after our wedding. 

We had arrived late last night from Khwabpur, and Farid Uncle still wasn't home. He was still with his mother, which caused concern amongst the family as they worried about her health. While a part of me was awed by the selflessness of my new family, I also knew that their concern was for Farid Uncle, more than for his mother. Everyone knew he loved her, despite everything, and that seeing her unwell caused him pain. And knowing that he was in pain caused a sombre atmosphere within the household.

Suddenly, my phone vibrated. I turned and grabbed my phone before sitting up. It was an email from Rachel Fox, my former boss:

Subject: Hi Syra!

Hi Syra,

Hope you're doing well. I am writing to you today because I had a conversation with the boss, and he wants to offer you a remote position. We have signed an agreement with a Pakistan-based social media platform, StarLite, and we would like to offer you a position as our representative there. Your basic duties and responsibilities will remain the same as your former position here with us.

You are a very talented photographer and it had been a disappointment when you left, so we are pleased to offer you this position.

Do let me know if you are interested, and we will further discuss this.

I hope you accept this offer. It would be a pleasure to work with you again.

Kind regards,

Rachel Fox
Editor

For a second, I forgot how to breathe. StarLite was a huge social media platform, and being employed in a collaboration with them would be incredible! Plus it was the very same company which I was used to.

As much as I'd liked the idea of being self-employed, I missed going into an office and socialising with people. And if I had an opportunity like that again, I'd probably accept it in a heartbeat.

The bathroom door opened and Musa walked in, accompanied by a strong scent of shampoo and body wash. As usual, he only had a towel around his waist. I'd noticed this in the past days that he hated changing in the bathroom.

Ever since that night, our very first night, we hadn't gotten intimate again, but the damn attraction always lingered strongly around us whenever we were alone together.

"Yaar, I'm going to close the window." He said.  

I cheekily lifted up my camera and took a photo of him as he did so. 

"Syra." He looked at me, eyebrows raised.

I grinned. "A photographer's dream... at least certainly this photographer's..."

He came to sit down beside me on the bed, and pulled me into his arms. I sort of sat in his lap, my back against his chest, and I raised the camera to take our photo. I could see the pinkness on my cheeks and the brightness in my eyes. Anyone would be able to tell how genuinely happy I was. Alhumdulillah.

Setting the camera aside, I once again picked up my phone and showed him the email. "Read this." 

His gaze scanned over the words quickly, his lips grazing the side of my head even as he read. "Wow. Congratulations, Syra! What do you think? You want to take this offer?"

"I hated Jill, but I loved working in for this travel magazine. Besides, I won't even have to see Jill here." I shrugged.

"The Jill who always called you 'Sarah'?" 

"That's the one." I frowned thoughtfully, looking up at him. "I only mentioned her once, before we were even married. And you still remember this minor detail?" 

"I pay attention to everything you say, Syra. Don't underestimate me." He gently moved me aside. "And as much as I love this, I have to go." He stood up. "You want breakfast?" 

I stood up as well, grinning up at him. "Nothing on the menu." I blatantly eyed his well toned abs, his hard chest, his biceps, and my cheeks warmed again as I thought of his protective side.

*

Musa

Syra had no idea what she did to me. She stood right now in front of me in black and white flannel trousers, and a cropped black long-sleeved night shirt that exposed a fair amount of her stomach. Her hair was messy, hanging loose around her face, and her cheeks were pink, adding to her natural beauty. There was no doubt that she was s*xy, but what really awed me was this absolutely wonderful girl was my wife. That, even after thinking that we lost each other, here we were, married and falling deeper in love with each passing day.

I wanted to be late for work. I wanted to take her to bed right her, right now, and physically express to her how much I adored her. In fact, my body was urging me to do that, but with a clenched jaw, I turned away. "I can't be late for work, Syra. I'm going after so many days."

"Okay." 

I glanced over my shoulder at her, and I couldn't resist myself. Turning slightly, I grabbed her hand and tugged lightly. Surprised, she basically spun around, colliding against my chest with a gasp. Gazing deeply into her eyes, I brushed back the lock of her hair that was now over her nose and lips. "I love you, Syra Musa."

"I love you too." In an uncharacteristic way, she blushed deeply and snuggled into my arms, hiding her face away from me. Her arms wrapped themselves around my waist, and I felt her kiss my chest softly. 

I smiled to myself. It was amazing how, in such a short period of time, she had become my whole world.

*

Aisha

I heard the sound of the car and I rushed to the window. My heart pounded hard in my chest, almost as if I was a twentysomething newly married girl. Grabbing my dupatta from the dressing table stool, I headed out of my room. 

The tapping off my flat sandals echoed in the foyer as I got downstairs and rushed to open the front door. My cheeks burned and I was breathing fast. 

He was here.

Smoothing down my hair, I opened the door and stepped outside onto the car porch. But my warm and welcoming smile disappeared when I saw the forlorn expressions on his face. He looked dejected and defeated as he locked the car using the key fob. He was here, but his mind was miles away. He didn't even notice me until I walked up to him and placed a hand on his arm.

"Assalam Alaikum." I whispered out, blinking back tears as I felt his pain as deeply as if it was my own.

"Walaikum Assalam." With dark circles under his eyes, he seemed like he hadn't slept properly in days.

"Tussi theek ho? Bano Bi theek hain?" 

*"Are you okay? Is Bano Bi okay?"

He took my hand in his as we walked towards the house. "Mera zara dil nai kar reya si onhan noun chadke aan da."

*"I didn't feel like leaving her." 

I wanted to say that he shouldn't have come then; that he should have stayed with her. But the wife and the mother within me forced me to remain silent. I wanted him here with us, because we had spent too much time apart already. But seeing his state broke my heart to the point that I couldn't stop the tears anymore. "Jao tussi onhan de koll." I whispered out the words with great difficulty.

*"Go to her."

His eyebrows furrowed as he glanced down at me. His gripped tightened on my hand and he leaned down to kiss the side of my head, but he didn't say a word as we stepped inside our home.

*

It was only a few minutes later, when I was helping him unpack his bag in our bedroom, when I felt his arms around my waist. I straightened up, my back against his chest, closing my eyes as he buried his face against my neck. I reached up to tangle my fingers through his hair, wordlessly. For a while we just remained there, basking in each other's presence.

I turned and saw that he had unbuttoned his shirt. "Tussi kapde badalne ain? Main istari karke latkaye hoye ne thaude kapde."

*"Do you want to change your clothes? I've ironed and hung up your clothes."

He took my hands in his. "Tune jaanda te keh diya ay menu. Par dass menu, ki mehsoos horeya ay tenu ais baray'ch?"

*"You tell me togo. But tell me, how do you feel regarding this matter?"

I dropped my gaze. "Main nai dass rai."

*"I'm not telling you."

He chuckled. "Kyun? Dass de. Mere kollon kyun chupana?" 

*"Why? Tell me. Why hide things from me?"

"Tussi kawoge ke main halay wi bachpana dikha rayi aan." I felt ashamed.

*"You'll say that I'm still being immature."

A smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Dass de, meri jaan."

*"Tell me, my love."

"Menu ghusa aareya ay." I pouted slightly as I spoke.

*"I'm feeling angry."

He looked taken aback. "Meri Aisha noun ghusa bi aanda ay?"

*"My Aisha gets angry too?"

But by now, I had started ranting. "Menu patta ay ke o saday bazurg ne, aur onhan da ki kasur ke onhan di tabeeyat nai theek, par phair bhi! Saddi zindagi de aine saal onhan ne sadday kollon chinn littay, te hunn wi tussi onhan di wajah nal..." I felt terrible at feeling that way, but my heart felt lighter after venting it all out. I had been so frustrated that my whole family was together in Khwabpur, apart from my husband.

*"I know that she's our elder, and that it's not her fault that she's unwell, but still! So many years of our lives were stolen by her, and even now because of her..."

I'd bottled up my feelings for years. I certainly couldn't tell Faris about it because I didn't want to stress out my son even more. But now I couldn't hold back anymore. Knowing that my husband was here to hear me out and to take care of me, lightened the burden on my shoulders. It eased the guilt slightly that my Faris had given up so much for me. Now Faris was free to live as he pleased.

I sat down on the bed, unable to meet my husband's gaze.

He sat down beside me, taking my hand in his again. 

"Menu maaf kardo tussi. Main khudgarz aan..." I said, timidly.

*"Please forgive me. I'm selfish."

"Khudgarz hundi te tu menu kehndi ke main na jawan onhan de koll." He lifted up our hands and kissed the back of mine.

*"If you were selfish, you would have asked me not to go to her."

"Oday wich wi khudgarzi si meri. Main sirf thauday laiy kuch nai keya. Meri mohabbat si jidday layi maine thanu nai rokeya. Main thanu takleef wich nai waikh sakdi." 

*"Even that had my selfishness in it. I didn't say anything, only for your sake. It was my love because of which I didn't stop you. I can't stand to see you in pain."

He wrapped his arm around me now and pulled me against himself, kissing my forehead. 

"Tussi onhan noun aithay le aao." I spoke out after a few moments.

*"Bring her here."

He looked down at me, surprised. "Har giz nai."

*"Absolutely not."

I sat up straight. "Meri gal da ghalat matlab nai nikalna tussi. Main aini changi nai aan ke main ohnan noun apne khandan wich qabool karlawan. Par thauday sakoon layi, ay behtar rawega ke o aithay aajan. Thalay kamra ay. O othay reh lainge." 

*"Don't get me wrong. I'm not that good that I'll accept her in my family. But for your peace of mind, it's better if she comes here. There's a room downstairs. She can stay there."

"Aisha..."

"Bas meri ay shart ay ke o mere mundeyan te meri nouan kollon dour rawan." I spoke firmly.

*"My only condition is that she stays away from my sons and daughters-in-law."

"Ik kar wich o kaise mumkin raway ga, Aisha?" He asked, softly.

*"How will that be possible under one roof, Aisha?"

"Jo kam wali onhan laiy tussi rakhwai si, o aithay wi aasakdi ay. Par o koi aais umeed na rakhan ke meri nouan una laiy kuch karan giyan." I continued.

*"The maid that you hired for her, she can come here as well. But she better not expect my daughters-in-law to do anything for her."

"Aisha, nahin. Woh nai aa sakdin aithay." He shook his head.

*"Aisha, no. She can't come here."

"Te phair ki? Tussi roz unhan de koll jakae rawo ge? Tussi roz unhan laiy pareshan rawo ge?" 

*"Then what? You'll go and stay with her every day? You'll worry about her every day?"

He didn't reply.

I placed my hand on his. "Tussi mera haath thameya si. Menu Maqsood nal veya karan toun bachaya si. Main thauday laiy kuch wi kar sakdi aan. Ay vi. Par tussi fikar na karo. Apne bacheyan di hifazat karangi main. Onhan di khushiyan barbad nai karan dewangi main Bano Bi noun."

*"You married me. You saved me from marrying Maqsood. I can do anything for you. Even this. But don't worry. I'll protect my kids. I won't let Bano Bi destroy their happiness."

He looked at me, thoughtfully. 

I feared that woman, and I disliked her so much that if I had a choice, I would not even want her in the same city as me, let alone the same roof. But she was my Farid's mother, and this was tearing him apart. And my kids were now grown-up and mature enough to remain alert around her, as was I. I was not the naïve Aisha anymore. I had been through much to allow her to destroy me and my family again.

For Farid, I'd give her a chance.

But if she messes with my family again, I'd be the one evicting her from this place. We'd gained our happiness after a long time. No malicious person would ever be allowed to tear our life apart again.

May Allah protect the peace and happiness of our family. Ameen.

*

So... Bano Bi might be coming to live with them. But would she still resort to her old ways or has she genuinely changed?

Should Syra accept the offer from her previous employers?

Bonus points for those who remember StarLite.

And in this chapter, there was more about Shaila and the sort of a person that she is. 

Thoughts and comments?

Thank you for reading and don't forget to vote!