Zehra Hassan
She was robbed of her ordinary life, brought into the dirt turned into a profanity introduced to the vulgarity of the red light area. She was tormented by day and tortured at night, fighting to survive in a completely different world...
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ZEHRA
I felt the muscles twitch in his mother's face, her eyes wide open and both the sister's and mother's dropped open, as I watched Dev smirk in the corner of the room,
Daiwik standing right beside me, eyes carefully evaluating them. The tears welling up in his mother's eyes were the reflection of the hurt she felt in her heart,
I could understand the pain she underwent, her son married someone and couldn't even bother to tell her unless she appeared before them. Even if we aren't married, her misery is true.
I ducked my head down, in shame for whatever it is I should be feeling, I was completely red, the lingering fear in my chest and the awkwardness between me and Daiwik the tension overshadowing our body structure.
His mother took her steps toward me, "You got married? When? How? Why did you do it without us? Or didn't even bother telling us?" She said tears sliding from her left, eyes strolling down her cheek,
If she is hurt by the fact that he married me like this, how would she feel about the fact that I was truly taken as a reward?
Given, how much they love each other, and his image to them is of a good man. They would have felt completely shattered, rather than just feeling betrayed.
"I couldn't tell you, because she is..." He trailed off, meeting his mother's eyes, biting his lower lips, "Her name is Zehra Hassan." he completed, and she blinked surprised,
"She is Muslim?" Divya asked, and he nodded, taking a deep sigh, covered in dirt-filled clothes. I brought my hand, closer to my face, about to say salam, but Daiwik caught it before I could create the blunder, and he gestured at the feet.
Yes, a Hindu ritual, I bent down to touch her feet and came back up, Divya was still standing at the side,
We were just in the same coaching, never friends. Barely knew each other, I did because I was a keen observant, but her face was the implications of clarity that she had no idea who I was.
"When did-" The mother asked, but turned and stepped towards Dev, and caught his ear, he jumped,
"He did not tell me! But you called every day! Why didn't you?" She scolded him, turning to look at me, "What were you thinking Daiwik? A Muslim girl? Are you a blockhead? Think about it, will she change her religion for you? And your children? What religion will they follow? The cultural changes in your lives will always be so extreme! Either one of you will always have to sink for compromise always! And even with all the compromise something will always remain a problem!" He was screamed at,
She was not rude to me. She was not rude to my religion. She was just stating the facts. She didn't hate that I was Muslim, she was just worrying. Dev's ear is still in the grip,
"Nobody is changing religion. It's a matter of faith! She has her own and I have mine. And children are so far mothers. And they will follow whatever religion they feel content in. Cultural changes can be dealt with understand! Also, compromises? Isn't it part of the marriage deal?" He took the grounds for me, and he couldn't have said more right words than he did,
