REDEMPTIVE | ✔️

28. Playin' in the porch

It was now evening. Soft wind blew and the temperature had now fallen many degrees below the zero. It was getting super frosty. You could hear the wind when it ruffled through the pine trees and the snow that was ladened on leaves fell as the leaves wobbled. One could hear it fall. One could enjoy it by standing under a pine tree.

For others it was a pleasant evening- welcoming super cold weather in Canada but for that one person it was still the same one evening out of all those gloomy eves.

She sat in bed. Her legs were crossed. In her lap was her book that she was studying after guests had left. But who she was fooling? She was just escaping reality once again instead of immersing herself into these pages.

She shut the book and harshly slammed it aside on bed. She just stared at it in the dark as the lantern mini lighted the room. She leaned back on the headboard and shut her eyes tight. One thing that sure radiated off of her was anxiety as the frowns made their self noticeable on her temple. She took in a sharp breath and then exhaled as she heard someone stomping up the stairs. She knew who it was and what it brought.

As anticipated, she heard a knock on her room door.

Shaking her head she got up, wearing her scarf she proceeded to open the door. It revealed her Tayi Ammi's figure. She bursted in as Zalay shut the door behind her. "I need to talk to you" Aunty Samina spoke and Zalay nodded, following her.

She clutched her arm, "Zalay, didn't i ask you to stay out of this all? Didn't i?" she asked harshly, "Tell me! Didn't i?" She a little raised her voice at her.

"I stayed out of it. I don't know anything" Zalay answered in a dim tone, she was a bit shocked because she herself didn't know anything like this would happen. She had always admired 'em together. Why she was pointing the gun at her? She found no answer.

"You don't know anything yet everything is under your control" Aunty Samina jerked her arm away and she flinched, "how dare you do it, Zalay?" She asked as if she wanted answer right this moment.

"I swear, Tayi Ammi i don't know" Zalay was dumbfounded. She wanted make things clear to her because she knew there was a storm of negativity in her mind.

Next thing one knew was a slap that echoed across in this chilly cold evening. One could hear someone sniff. "Like your mother! Just like your mother you are. She too took Afnan bhai from us. Its in your blood on occupying others things" she spatted at her, "but how dare you snatch my daughter's right". Zalay could have answered anything but she was too dead mentally.

"My mother" suddenly she retorted, "My mother was never bad" Zalay fought back, this time for her innocent mother, "instead she was an angel"

Aunty Samina took a step ahead and cupped her jaw tightly, "meri baat suno. You better say No! Otherwise i will call your Mamu and tell him that how that innocent niece of him had been at parties"

"How can you do this?" Warm tears dropped down, "your own daughte-" she was shushed as Aunty Samina put her forefinger on her lips.

"I can defend my daughter but who will defend you?"

Aunty Samina had left minutes ago but still Zalay had been standing there. Very deep in her thoughts, she had dripped down many tears. Have i not this little right on my life?, she thought.

Sight in front of her blurred even tho she tried her best not to. She walked up to the door and shut it before anyone could come again and bruise the already wounded heart of hers.

How easy would it have been for her to say No. What was No? A word? Or dead feelings?. She was stuck in between breaking other's hearts or breaking herself in many pieces.

She sat on carpeted ground near her bed and leisurely started drawing random circles there as previous hours flashbacks filled her mind along with salty water in her eyes.

"Zalay?" Uncle Ahmed called her as she glanced up through her tearful eyes. "Don't force me, Mamu" she whispered. For one thing she was mad at herself, which was that she couldn't overcome her tears.

"Give me a solid reason! Is my son not worth marrying? Is there something wrong about him?" Ahmed asked as frowns made their way on his forehead.

"N-no" she blurted, "of course not! He is every girl dream. Its just-" she murmured through her dense eyes, "its just that I don't match him. Look at your son. He is complete and deserves to be bestowed with the best"

"He is incomplete without you" Uncle Ahmed held her shoulders,
"He would never had forced his mother to ask for your hand in marriage if he hadn't seen the best in you" he gently shook her shoulders to enlighten her mind with the reality, "even if his mother is still not accustomed to this decision of his son but she'd be fine and i guarantee you for this. And as far as it comes to me, i am extremely happy for him because i know my son has chosen the best life partner" Uncle Ahmed spoke through his watered eyes as he remembered something happened long ago.

Zalay stood with nothin in her mind. Still Uncle Ahmed's hands laid on her shoulders. Uncle Ahmed had come to her room excusing himself because he wanted to tell her every detail that he had buried in his heart for years, in solitude.

Uncle Ahmed let go of his niece shoulders and now turned to a side, tiding his hands on his back as if he was thinking about something painful very deeply. Zalay could sense it and waited until he says anything.

He started with taking in a deep breath, "Zumeer was the first ever child, this family was given with" he smiled and Zalay predicted in her mind that he was catching onto the memories one by one. "Your mother, his only phupho (Ahmed's Sister), was beyond happy that day"

"When Zumeer got 4. Allah blessed Anam with you" He smiled as memories crossed his mind like birds flying one after other through the sky, "you were the second child of this family and to be honest you were loved more because you were slightly more cute than my son", he slightly laughed as Zalay smiled numbly yet she found herself interested in knowing the past.

"Anam and Afnan loved you so much. You were no less than a princess for them", Uncle Ahmed felt like in a trance, "Zumeer and You grew up playing together. There were the times when we won't get your two years old being's language and then Zumeer would explain it as if he was your translator". Zalay smiled on that.

"One evening your mother came to meet us along you", Zalay looked up as a sore pain filled her chest. My Mother!, she recalled in her mind. "I remember it" Uncle Ahmed smiled faintly, his eyes stared at something through air, "i remember it clearly even if it had happened years ago" his voice held a grim for his sister. "It feels it happened months ago when your family came and it started snow falling heavily outside. I remember you were 3 and was wearing a red woollen jacket. I remember that rosy cheeks of your that were flushed due to cold as you and Zumeer played in porch"

Uncle Ahmed turned to Zalay, "You weren't weak like this before. You were the chubbiest one with that cheeks of yours for everyone to squeeze and then how would you cry afterwards because you hated someone cupping them " he laughed a little and so did Zalay but the ratio of her tears was more. She imagined things that she hadn't even seen.

"Anam held much love for Zumeer and when she saw you both play there and him covering you with his muffler because you sneezed due to cold was something that your mother liked"

"When she was leaving she said how beautiful it would be if they grow up and still care about each other the same way"

"I couldn't understand it that moment" his shoulders raised as he breathed in "it was a week after that i lost my sister and a good friend along", his shoulders slumped down.

Her insides turned and her heart twisted. Now her mind gave up on imagining.

Salam🍂
کیسا رہا چیپٹر❤️
Also i have disabled my Instagram account for some time due to some issues.
سدرہ🌹