Chapter 27: Chapter 27

Author's pov

" And, my husband! Let's not talk about him," Maryam said wiping away her tears and looking outside.

Mikaeel asked hesitating a little bit," Umm....Mr Shamsi..... I mean is he abusive to you? Does he raise his hands on you? That's why you wanted to divorce him, right?"

" He never raised his hands on me. He never hurt me physically," Maryam answered letting out a long breath and Mikaeel was confused by her answer.

Looking at his confused face Maryam replied placing a hand over her chest," Some words and some actions stab right here, Mikaeel."

Well, after the arrest of Maryam's brothers and father, Mikaeel asked her what's the matter. At first, she didn't want to share but in front of his continuous questions she gave up.

Then, she told him everything that happened ten years ago. How did she get married to Yardan, her family's continuous demands for money etc? She shared a lot of things with Mikaeel except for some matters about her & Yardan's relationship. She also didn't share anything about her mental problems fearing that Mikaeel will think of her as a crazy woman.

" I tried a lot to cope with the situations I was in. I sacrificed every single bit of mine but in return except for avoidance, humiliation and heartbreak I got nothing. There wasn't a single person with whom I could share my pain, my sorrow and my unspoken wishes!!! The person who should have taken the most care of me, hurt me the most. He only saw me as a substitute for everything!" Maryam finished saying having a blank expression and Mikaeel was silent completely.

Maryam continued saying," You told me that you suffered from depression because I left you. But, you can't even imagine what kind of depression I have gone through. Once I requested my family to take me back to them but their straightforward answer was 'I killed my sister and it's my duty to compassionate it for the rest of my life'."

After hearing everything Mikaeel was speechless and he wasn't finding any words to console her. He was feeling guilty as well thinking that she went through all this where he continued accusing her of leaving him. Her tears created a writhing sensation inside his chest making him guilty more.

" I am sorry, Maryam. You wen.............." Mikaeel couldn't finish his sentence when Maryam interrupted.

She replied sighing," Don't try to console me, Mikaeel."

" I won't. But, as a friend of yours, I can suggest to you one thing that it's not late yet. There is still hope and you should move on. We can't change the past but we can mould our future just the way we want," Mikaeel suggested and Maryam looked at him with emotional eyes.

Then, he continued motivating her," Just look at you now. Once you were a fragile woman who always thought about others well being but now you aren't fragile anymore. You are strong, independent and can take your own decisions. You learnt a lot from your past and it's time for you to move on and make your future just the way you want. As a friend, I will support you always."

Maryam was overwhelmed after hearing him and started shedding happy tears. She again took his words in the wrong direction or we can say her desperation to have a happy life forced her to believe that he is talking about them. She concluded that his every word was not just to motivate her but to have her hope that he still loves her. She missed the friend word or maybe she didn't want to accept it.

" You are one of the nicest people I ever met, Mikaeel," She said looking at him with overwhelmed eyes while Mikaeel only nodded his head.

Two days passed after all this and Mikaeel was worried about everything. At one side there is Maryam who went through a lot of pain because of her family and he couldn't do anything for her. Though she is his ex and he moved on, still deep down inside his heart he has respect for her. And after hearing her sacrifice for her family, Yardan & his children, the respect for her increased to another level in his eyes. Now, he just hopes that she will overcome her past soon and have a happy life.

And on another side, there is Aurin who doesn't talk to him. She only looks at him with angry hurtful eyes. He knew that she is desperate to talk to him but her ego wasn't letting her do so. If she is stubborn then he isn't less either. He is determined that he won't talk to her until she talks to him first. Both of the women have been messing with his head and now he just needs some peace.

Today was a hectic day for Mikaeel. He went to another city for a business deal and after returning home he isn't feeling his body anymore. He is exhausted and wants to sleep early. Since Aurin is angry with him so he isn't expecting anything from her.

Mikaeel just laid down on the bed when he noticed her taking out luggage and folding her clothes. It's like she is preparing to go somewhere and he isn't surprised at all. He has faced the same situation earlier but the thing that was bothering him was the time. He looked at the watch and its 1 a.m.

" Where are you going at this hour?" He questioned rudely.

Aurin shot back," To hell."

" Can I drop you there?" He asked out of nowhere and she looked at him so angrily like anytime she will eat him alive. She can feel the sarcasm behind his words but it just fueled her anger. She isn't in the mood to be sarcastic.

Throwing the luggage on the floor she questioned in disbelief," Do you think it's a joke? The relationship is just a joke to you, right?"

" Seems like you are talking about yourself," Mikaeel replied rolling his eyes and Aurin felt like smacking his head right now.

Without uttering anything further, she resumed doing whatever she was doing. She has no interest to talk to him further.

" Answer seriously. Where are you going at this hour?" Mikaeel asked seriously.

Aurin replied controlling her anger," I am going to my father's house and I won't return until you apologise to me in front of everyone. I haven't forgotten how you humiliated me in front of everyone."

" You asked for it," Mikaeel said loudly and Aurin looked at him in disbelief.

She asked nodding her head," You did that purposely because it has become a habit of yours to humiliate me every time."

" For your sake, I even resigned without hesitation and here you are!! You aren't a bit remorseful for your misbehaviour with me! For the last few days, I have been giving you time to realize your mistakes and kept my mouth mum. I thought you will apologise but you just proved me wrong!" Aurin shouted and Mikaeel frowned his brows hearing that she resigned already.

He replied rudely emphasising the word 'precious'," I didn't force you to resign your precious job."

" Don't force me to explain, Mikaeel," Aurin warned and Mikaeel stood up angrily.

He asked taking calculative moves toward her," The argument started when I told you to not work under Mr Hasan because he is a pervert, right? You worked with him for almost two weeks and I think you already got to know about his perverted behaviour, right?"

Aurin knew whatever he said is true so she tried to divert the topic. She isn't ready to admit that she should have listened to him.

" Don't try to divert the topic, Mrs Sheikh. I am not the only reason behind your resignation. What did you think I won't come to know that Hasan tried to touch you inappropriately and that's when you decided to resign. Am I right?" Mikaeel demanded an answer and Aurin gulped down.

She asked him shuttering," How do you know?"

" What did you think, you will go to work with that pervert and I will remain quiet? From day one, I hired a spy whose job was to follow you everywhere and report to me if you are safe or not. And, don't try to talk about trust issues again!! Mikaeel interrupted before Aurin could open her mouth.

He continued saying loudly," I trust you but not the others. That's why I hired a spy so that I can save you from any kind of difficulties. I care for you and am concerned about your safety because I love you and I have responsibilities towards you. But, according to you, I am just a selfish man and you are the only one who cares for our relationship!! Stop thinking of yourself as an angel."

" If you really cared for me then you shouldn't have humiliated me in front of your client, employees and the whole damn office!! If you cared for me the way you are stating then you would have apologized to me for your misbehaviour! But, what did you do in these few days? You avoided me like I don't even exist in your life!!!" Aurin yelled back and angry tears started flowing down her cheeks.

Mikaeel was tired already and now her crying & accusations were pissing him off. Letting out a frustrated growl he kicked the nearby chair.

" I demand an apology in front of everyone. That's it," Aurin spoke loudly and finished packing her clothes.

She was leaving the room when he apologised with great difficulty," I am sorry. See, I apologised. So, stop this drama and let me have a peaceful sleep."

Glaring at him she left the room but stopping her in the middle of the corridor he held one of her wrists and said," Fine. I am admitting that I was at fault. I shouldn't have poked into your matter and let you do whatever you wanted. I promise that from this onwards I will never poke my nose in your personal life! I am sorry."

Aurin's anger reached its peak after hearing his taunting words. She isn't a child who won't understand that he is taunting her. She is astonished that after all this he dares to taunt her at this moment.

" You know what you are a giant piece of shit!!" Aurin shouted at his face and Mikaeel lost his patience as well.

Leaving her wrist slowly he said with an intimidating voice," Stop this madness and return to the room. I already apologised."

" I will return that day when you will learn to respect me and my emotions," Aurin replied with the same intensity and forwarded her legs.

Hearing their loud voices Mikaeel's brother Miraz and his wife Amal came out of their room to see what was happening. Seeing Mikaeel & Aurin fighting, they rolled their eyes. It's not the first time they are seeing Mikaeel & Aurin fighting like that.

" I am telling you, Miraz. It's possible to write a 1000 page novel just on their arguments," Amal said nodding her head.

Miraz answered chuckling," They are newly married but looking at their arguments it seems like they are married for more than years. I wonder from where they get such topics to argue!!"

" Aurin, stop behaving like a child. What will your parent's things if you keep returning to your father's house after every single argument?" Mikaeel asked grabbing Aurin's hand again.

She snapped at him," What did your employees think about me that day when you humiliated me in front of everyone?"

Saying that she jerked away his hands and opened the car door. She will just get inside when Mikaeel grabbed her hand again.

" If you leave right now then I promise that it will be the last day of yours in this house," Mikaeel said very calmly.

Freeing her hand from his hold she answered," Then, so be it."