Broken Boundaries #romancereads2019 #earlylover

17.

Saba's POV

"You're an artist right? " Zain asks me as he takes a sip of his coke.

"Sort of. " I tell him while eating my salad. "I paint but I don't sell them."

"Why not? "

"I don't know...  I never thought of it. " I reply and take a sip of water.

"I would love to see your paintings...  Haya once told me theres plenty of good stuff in them. " Zain's lips posture a beautiful smile making my heart melt but then again my inner self shows red alert.

"You can come to my place after dinner. I will show you. " I suggest him and he nods.

"I'd love to. "

"Did you speak to Haya lately? " Zain asks me and I look at him in surprise. I haven't called her since the night she left for her honeymoon. Neither have I replied to any of her messages. I am such a typical best friend. But what do I tell her? There's nothing left.

"I haven't talked to her since...she left." I tell Zain, feeling disappointed of myself. "Did you... Did you tell her?" I ask in confusion, wondering if he told Haya that her bestfriend was raped.

"Without your permission? Never. " Zain replies calmly and I appreciate his act of keeping that incident to himself.

"But your mother knows." I tell him and he almost jumps up.

"Damn! How could I forget that? " he wonders and takes a bite of the stake we just ordered. "Don't worry, she won't tell her. " he assures me.

"When is Haya coming back? " I ask Zain who is now staring at my hands, wondering what? I have no idea. 

"Zain? " I ask when he doesn't answer.
"What are you looking at? "

"Your hands are beautiful. " he says without tearing his gaze apart from my hands. My fingers tremble as I fail to hide the blushing. "Haya will be back after a week. " he adds.

"I see. "

" How much is the bill? " Zain asks the waiter who approaches our table with a card in his hands.

"Here, sir. " the waiter passes the card to Zain who looks at the amount and then bring out the money from his wallet and keep it in the card, handing it over to the waiter.

"Let's go. " he says and we both come out of the restaurant and walk towards his car.

"What kind of music do you like? " Zain asks me as he drives the car on the road.

"I listen to all kinds. " I reply with a smile.

"So do I. Pop, classic, Remix, hip-hop, old, new..  Everything! " Zain exclaims with joy and looks at me with a smile. His eyes shine bright making him look more handsome than he is.

"I've seen you a million times at my place. You were never this quiet. How does my sister get along with you? " Zain asks me curiously.

"What do you mean? " I ask him, still not understanding what he's implying.

"I mean look at you! I'm here talking and talking and talking and here you are, just answering shortly, as if your vocals have maximum words limit. " he replies and I laugh.

"Oh my...  You can laugh?" Zain jokes and I blush again.

"Hurrrayyy! Saba Arif can laugh! " he comments and I pat his arm slightly. My act makes him smile and blush. This is the first time I saw Zain Hassan Khan actually blushing in front of a girl.

"There you go. "  he says as we reach the entrance of my house.

"you're not coming? " I ask as I open the door to get out.

"I will, if you invite me. " he teases.

"Lol, of course I am inviting you! Come on in. " I say and we both head to our lounge.

My mother is sitting on the chair anxiously waiting for me but when she see us both coming through the doorway, she flashes a smile and stands up to greet us.

"Hey, Zain.. " she exclaims, "Good to see you again. "

"Thanks aunty, good to see you too. " Zain replies with a smile and shakes my mother's hand.

" He wants to see my paintings. " I tell my mother and she nods with a smile.

"Sure, sure.." she says and we both walk upstairs to my art room. "I'm not sure if you'll like them or not. " I say as we climb upstairs.

"We'll see. " he smiles. God I love the way he smiles!

I open the door after almost two months. The room is clean but a bit dusty. As I remove covers from my paintings, Zain's eyes go wide and bright.

"You made this??? " Zain asks as he points out to the picture of my mother that I painted a year ago.

"Yes. Why? "

"Oh my gosh, Saba! You should be a professional artist! I mean, come on! Just look at these.. " he points out to other painting of shadows and sceneries.

"It's not that good, but I'm glad you like them. " I say and smile at him. He is the third person to see my paintings. The first one is my mother and the second is Haya. Danish once asked me to show him my art, but I didn't get a chance. I'm glad I didn't.

"I absolutely love them! " he says and moves a little closer to me, moving his finger over my cheeks and chin. Shiver rises through my spine, making its way to my back. I close my eyes and feel the smooth pleasure his slightly moving finger is giving me.

"Your paintings are beautiful, so are you... " he whispers in my ear. I open my eyes and look at Zain who is now looking at me deep in the eye with love and kindness.

The feeling of him looking at me like that makes me shy, my eyes close automatically as I feel his breath brushing against my cheek, making its way to my lips.

"I want you to kiss me like you've never kissed anyone before! " Danish's words echo in my head and suddenly I jerk off. "No! " A cry escapes my mouth as I place my fingers on my lips and look at Zain who is now staring at me with confusion and sorrow.

"I... I can't do that, Zain... No. " I shake my head and Zain holds my hand, "Okay.. I'm sorry.. I won't come near you unless you want me to. " he assures me and I sit down on the chair. His face turns pale by my reaction and he somehow fails to hide it. I feel sorry for making him feel that way but what should I do...? Everytime I begin to feel the sparkle between of us, Danish's face pops up and my self confidence just goes dumb.

"Inspector Salim called me today. " Zain tells me, trying to finish the tension between us. "He said that you'll have to file a case against Danish in order to get proper orders for his imprisonment. "

I stare at Zain without blinking. Filing a case against Danish means keep reviving the unforgetable tragedy over and over again. And I've barely started to take things normally. I don't want to go back and keep the history repeating itself. But I also don't want someone phsyco and rapist like Danish to be set free.

"Its gonna be difficult for you, I understand. We can refuse to file the case if you ___" Zain begin to say but I stop him, " So that the monster comes out and rip apart more hearts and souls? I'm not gonna let him do that! " I tell Zain, meaning every bit of a word I said.

Zain holds my hand kindly, powering me with more strength when he says, "I'm with you. "

And I believe him.

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