Chapter 61: Chapter 61

Shehryaar...

"Salam baba," He said and her face paled as she went breathless. The call cursorily ran in her mind as she quickly stood up from her position.

A smile sprawled on Haider's face upon seeing his son, "you came after alot of days," he exclaimed while sitting up properly as Shehryaar came and sat beside him on the bed.

"How are you?" Shehryaar asked.

"Good. Rather great. Was telling one of my infamous stories to my daughter-in-law," Haider pointed towards Sheharzaad who stood there. Her breathing slightly mingled.

As soon as Shehryaar's attention went on her, she took a small step back while staring at him with a paled face.

"Assalam-assalam alaikum," she managed to utter with difficulty as her eyes met his. And his gaze lingered on her for a while stealing her breath before atlast he gave her a nod of acknowledgement.

Did he come to know about the phone call?

It made her face pale further.

"Sheharzaad, daughter, sit down," Haider said and she looked at Haider and then at Shehryaar. Her eyes increasing in size.

"I-I-I," she pointed backwards with her thumb, her words strucking in her mouth as her mind got confused for a moment that whether she was suppose to leave or not, "I....I," she tried to pull some words out of her mouth but as if her throat has been grasped.

"Sit down, Sheharzaad," he uttered, and she quietly and quickly sat down as her lashes cascaded now, shadowing her cheekbones. Her hands forming tight fists as she clenched her shirt.

Fear overwhelming her completely as the father and the son got engaged in conversation. Whenever his voice would roll down in the atmosphere, shivers would run down her spine. Occasionally, her lashes would lift up and stare at him. His sharp jawline dusted with stubble would come infront her vision. He was wearing a white shirt with first few buttons, unbuttoned and sleeves rolled up as his hand held his phone and car keys. His legs sprawled wide while he was engaged in conversation with his father as they were discussing about a business tender.

Suddenly, silence prevailed in the room and when she looked up, he was looking at her with those piercing metallic eyes of his. Standing up from his position, he strolled towards the sofa where she was currently sitting and sat beside her.

Breathing.

Breathing become difficult for her.

As she held her breath in her throat. Her head already going lightheaded. She could feel heat radiating off of him. Her eyes cursorily went on his hand that lied on his knee. His veiny hand.

She wanted to run away from him now. She couldn't afford being this close to him. Her heart was throbbing erratically in her chest and she was failing to keep it all within her in front his father.

While he and his father continued with their debate on that same business tender.

"Okay Baba I will talk with my manager about your proposal," He replied in the end.

"It is so hard to convince you," his father stated, "rather let him have a meeting with me,"

"Okay. I will arrange that," He told.

"And you came after so many days? I hope you stay here for a long time now,"

No! Sheharzaad's inner self screamed.

"I will," he uttered, and proceeded to fix the ring in his finger as he talked, "here to make an announcement as well,"

"What announcement?"

"You will know but about Dua,"

"Dua?"

"I will tell you Baba," He said and suddenly his face turned towards Sheharzaad who was keenly listening to the exchange.

Immediately, she looked away as soon as his eyes matched hers and stared ahead instead. Her breathing become further restrained when she felt him entwining his fingers with hers as he held her hand.

"What were you guys talking about?" He asked his father while his eyes were on her small hand that was in his grasp. He moved her hand up and placed a kiss on her knuckle before moving his eyes towards his father.

Sheharzaad felt as if he maneuvered the topic of conversation.

"You remember once I encountered a jinn? I was telling that story to her," His father excitedly told and Shehryaar gave out a chuckle.

She was turning cold. Her hand in his hold was turning numb. He released his fingers, letting her hand go and turned towards her.

"You can go to your room, Sheharzaad," he said and she nodded before quickly scurrying away from there.

......

It was another night in the haveli. She was in a deep slumber. The air conditioner was on and she was cocooned in a blanket and a bear that she was hugging. A weird habit she had developed since she came back from the cell that she needed to hug a bear or a pillow to sleep.

She was breathing heavily and her whole body was drenched in sweat. Beads of sweat were popping near her temples as she tightly held the bear.

The chains.

The chains were grasping her tightly, slowly coiling around  her hands and feet. Her limbs were totally shackled. The metal would pierce her skin whenever she would try moving. Suddenly her breathing stopped and she tried breathing but couldn't only to realize a chain was now bounding her  neck. The other end of the chain was in his hand who was sitting proudly on a sofa.

He called her closer and without waiting, she stalked towards him and knelt down. Her body shivered as she joined her hands.

She was aware. She did a mistake but at the same time she was clueless of what crime she committed and it was shaking her to the core. Her breathing was getting harsh and rapid when his hand moved and he tightened the chain around her neck before making herlook up towards him.

"You were talking to a man who was not me," he said, stating her crime

She began to profusely apologize but not an expression twitched on his face.

Her deepest fear- his blank, void and emotionless face.

Her hands began to shake as she tightly joined them infront him, her eyes begging him not to punish her. But the ground slipped beneath her feet when he slowly reaches for her finger and takes the ring away. The colors on herface changed but he remained indifferent to her plight.

His hand moved and further tightened the knot around her nec that taking single breath took a whole minute.

"Take her to the cell. I will personally deal with her now," He said to a guard standing behind me and she couldn't help but let out a scream.

Her eyes opened in a flash as she sat up, breathing intensely.

"No. No," she shook her head to herself, "mei...ney...mei ney kuch nhi kia...meinay kuch nhi kia.." she said to herself while shaking her head left and right as her eyes were fixed on the wall.

(I didn't do anything)

Suddenly, she moved up her right hand and the struck breath in her throat released when she found the ring sitting there. "It's here," she whispered,  "the ring is here,"

"It was a dream. It was a dream," she reiterated to herself but it all seemed so real. She lived in that moment.

When she had calmed and assured herself that it was a dream that was when her eyes landed on a figure sitting on the sofa in the dark. A silhouette.

She turned on the lights and to her surprise, Shehryaar sat there.

Her eyes widened and she blinked twice to confirm it was true or not.

And it was true.

Immediately, she stood up and abruptly took her scarf before quickly fixing it around her chest.

She was breathing in rapid short breaths without even realizing.

Her foot tripped when he stood to his full height and took a step towards her.

She was aware that there was no running away from him.

She knew she was shaking. Her fear had completely overtaken her.

Sheharzaad didn't dare taking a step back from him. She stood there, still on her spot, thinking it would set him off if she stepped back as he kept on coming closer to her. Her anxious grey eyes walking his every step.

She found herself paling further when he held her arm and gently back her up against a wall. Their faces inches apart.

Her eyes, full of fear looking at him.

While his emotionless eyes staring back at her as she was struck between him and  a wall.

The air they breathed was the same but the way was different. Her shakiness and fear were apparent from the way she breathed in while his was a labored and calm breathing.

"Hasn't it been a long time since we saw each other?" he asked and caressed the smooth skin of her neck, "eh?"

Her heart lurched to her throat but she nodded, "j-j-jhee," she stuttered.

(Yes)

"So what you've been doing while I was away?" His eyes were fixed on her lips that were shivering, and then the orbs slowly rolled down to her silky neck and to her chest that was concealed by her dupatta.

"Noth-nothing much,"

"Nothing, Zaad," he whispered casually with a frown, when one of his boot cladded foot inserted between her feet and instigated her right foot to move to separate her legs apart.

"What is nothing?" he muttered and bend forward, as he nibbled the skin of her neck between his teeth. His one hand snaked around her waist and pushed her more closer to him while the other began to play with the hem of her trouser.

"Hmm Zaad?" he urged her to respond and she produced a shaky 'nothing' again

He chuckled.

"I heard you don't come for lunch," he said and continued kissing her neck as his hand moved and began to caress her thighs above her trouser. He was slowly drifting away into a world of pleasure where he wanted more and just more of her. When it came to her, he felt there was no stopping. It would become so hard for himself to control him when she was around him. And the way his mind, soul and body would react to her presence, nobody ever released those behaviours out of him.

In that moment, she felt nothing but blind terror not just because of his closeness but also because of his questioning.

"Why is that?" he asked again.

"I-I d-d-do," she replied shakily when he pinched her down there making her inhale a sharp breath. She jumped at her place and looked at him pleadingly.

The lust was visible in his eyes.

Her stomach clenched with fear as her breath reduced down to whimpers. She wished there was no wall behind her so she was able to create as much space as she could between them.

"What was the last time my lips felt yours?" his voice was nothing but just a raspy whisper as his hooded eyes stared at her and his fingers played with her lips.

She just shook her head, "please,"

"I want to feel you so much more, Sheharzaad Qureshi," Suddenly, he snaked both his hand against her waist and pushed her body towards him so not even the remnants of the space between them was left, "without any barriers," he said as one of his hands began to move around her back while the other pressed her more to him, "take you until you forget your name," he uttered and brushed his lips against her eyes followed by her cheeks.

"Your eyes stop me from advancing. They tell me I don't have a right on you. Is that so, Zaad?" he asked and then slowly created a space between them, titled his head before placing a kiss on her lips. A chaste kiss. His tongue caressed the seam of her lips and forced her to slightly part her lips and she did while their lips were connected.

Her heart beat rose when his finger found the zipper of her shirt and she began to wriggle against his grip when he was pulling down the zip.

She breathed heavily. Her heart, not in her control anymore. Her mind going numb.

Instinctively, she turned her head away from him and abruptly released herself from his hold by giving him a push. When his eyes met hers, the realization hit her immediately of the grave error she committed.

All the colors drained from her face. Now she couldn't differentiate which fear was more? The one that she experienced in the dream or the one she was going through with now.

She began to take heavy breaths as she abruptly retrieved her hand back that was on his chest.

"I will not do it ever again. I promise," she uttered sincerely to him as she began to shake, profusely. Her glassy eyes pleading him.

He took a step towards her and she shrieked before taking a step back and her back met with the wall again.

He came nearer and she shook like a leaf.

"I promise. I-I promise. I promise," She was repeating it like a broken record as tears were releasing from her eyes.

The cell.

The rules.

The chains.

And the darkness.

Everything was running in her mind.

He had the power to send her back there.

As soon as she saw his hand moving up, she shielded her hands infront her face thinking he was going to hit her.

"I will never do it (sob) do it- again," she cried and he flashed down both her hands revealing her face to him.

He placed his thumb in the dip between her clavicles only to find her heart racing wildly. He knew if he pressed further she would faint.

"Calm down," he uttered to her.

"It w-will....it w-w-will happen... as y-y-you wi-wish," she responded with the answer fed in her heart and soul.

His ring cladded thumb moved and ran against the seam of her lips, as if cleaning the kiss and his touch away from her lips.

"I'm sorry," she sobbed, "pl-please d-d-don't b-be upset," Her body was shaking with the thought alone. He stepped closer to her and she let out a shriek which stopped him.

Her breathing was rapid and fast as she was crying.

"I'm not upset. Shhhh calm down, little lady," he whispered as an assurance to the panic and fear dancing in her eyes. He let her cry as soon her sobs began to cease and was reduced to occasional sniffles as she looked up at him with big red eyes and a strawberry nose.

"I'm....s-sorry," she said again in her teary voice.

He so wanted to kiss those plump lips again, and let his lips graze those eyes. These desires were propelling him to take a step towards her but he took a step back instead and left her room.