The One Khizar Could Never Leave Behind
1670 Words
«"No comforting hand ever reached me within these prison walls.
So I embraced myself... and somehow learned to stand again."»
"So tell me, what exactly have you achieved by studying law?" Fayaz demanded coldly. "Nothing. Absolutely nothing. You're nothing more than an incompetent lawyer. You haven't won a single case to this day."
Fayaz had summoned Khizar to his office.
After picking Azal up from college, Khizar had come straight there. At the moment, Azal was sitting outside the office, quietly waiting for him.
The office reflected its owner's disciplined nature.
A large wooden desk stood at the center of the room. Neatly arranged books lined the shelves, while several certificates and awards decorated the walls. Soft lighting filled the office, creating a peaceful atmosphere where it was easy to focus on work.
But the moment Khizar walked in...
That peace disappeared.
Khizar's expression darkened at his father's words.
"I'm not asking you for money to survive," he replied, struggling to keep his voice steady. "So why are you so angry with me?"
"What makes you think our relationship is based on money?" Fayaz shot back angrily. "I'm your father."
Khizar let out a hollow, mocking laugh and slowly shook his head.
"Really... you're my father?"
The sarcasm in his voice was impossible to miss.
"You never cared about me."
His eyes slowly turned bloodshot as years of buried pain surfaced.
"You're a man who's always been consumed by your love for your other son... and for his mother. The two of them have done nothing but make my life miserable. You never gave me happiness—not even once."
"You've lost your mind!" Fayaz exploded.
"You adopted a child at such a young age simply because you wanted to. Did you ask for my permission even once? Have you ever made a single decision with your father's approval? No. You've always acted as if you were your own father."
His voice echoed through the office.
"Just wait, Khizar Qureshi. One day you'll realize that every decision I ever wanted to make for you... was the right one."
Khizar's eyes burned crimson with anger.
His fists clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white.
For a long moment...
He simply stood there, staring at the man who called himself his father.
A bitter smile slowly appeared on Khizar's face.
"The right decisions?" he repeated quietly.
His voice was calm...
But every word carried years of suppressed pain.
"You call them the right decisions?"
He took a slow step forward, never taking his eyes off Fayaz.
"If your decisions had really been right..."
"I wouldn't have spent my childhood feeling like a stranger in my own home."
"I wouldn't have grown up wondering why my father always had enough love for everyone else... but never for me."
"You never tried to understand me."
"You never stood beside me."
"You only ever wanted me to become the person you had imagined."
His jaw tightened.
"And when I chose my own path..."
"You called me a failure."
Silence settled over the office once again.
Neither of them looked away.
Years of resentment stood between father and son—too deep to be erased by a single conversation.
Outside the office, Azal remained seated quietly.
He couldn't hear every word...
But the raised voices coming from inside were enough for him to realize what was happening.
He lowered his head.
His fingers tightened around the strap of his backpack.
A trace of guilt crossed his face.
He knew...
Part of this argument was about him.
And that thought alone weighed heavily on his heart.
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The One Khizar Could Never Leave Behind
«"No comforting hand ever reached me within these prison walls.
So I embraced myself... and somehow learned to stand again."»
An accident happened...
A very small accident.
Yet it changed Khizar Qureshi's entire life.
He was eighteen years old.
At the time, he often visited the courthouse.
One of his father's closest friends, Ahmad, worked there as a lawyer. Ahmad had always been deeply impressed by Khizar. Despite his young age, Khizar possessed an intelligence and maturity that were rare to find.
Khizar would spend a few hours at Ahmad's office almost every day.
He loved the atmosphere of the courthouse—the lawyers in their black coats, the courtrooms, the legal arguments, and the stories hidden behind every case.
And thanks to his father's friendship with Ahmad...
He had the opportunity to witness that world up close.
One evening, the sun had already set.
It was time for him to head home.
Just as he stepped out of the courthouse, a little boy came running toward the crowd.
"Please... somebody help me! Please... help me!"
The child rushed from one person to another, desperately begging for help.
But no one stopped.
No one even listened.
Khizar turned toward the trembling voice.
The little boy couldn't have been more than twelve years old.
He had soft pink cheeks, golden curls that framed his face, and large brown eyes filled with terror. He wore nothing more than a simple shirt and shorts.
"Please..." the boy sobbed. "My family is in danger... They're going to kill them! Please... come with me!"
Something inside Khizar tightened at the sound of those desperate cries.
"Where is your family?" he asked as he hurried toward the child.
The boy froze for a second when he saw him.
Then, without saying another word, he grabbed Khizar's hand and started running.
Khizar had his backpack slung over one shoulder.
As they ran, the bag kept slipping down his arm, but he barely noticed.
The boy was running unbelievably fast.
A few minutes later...
The child suddenly stopped.
He stood there in complete silence.
"What is it?" Khizar asked, looking around. "Where's your family?"
There was nothing nearby except a small mud house.
Without answering, the boy let go of Khizar's hand and sprinted toward it.
Khizar followed close behind.
The moment he stepped inside...
His world came to a halt.
A young girl lay motionless on the floor.
Beside her...
Her mother.
Both of them had been murdered with horrifying brutality.
The little boy rushed to his mother first.
"Mom..."
He shook her again and again, calling out to her through his tears.
When she didn't respond, he crawled over to his sister.
He called her name over and over.
But the people he loved most had already gone somewhere far beyond his reach.
He kept crying.
And crying.
Time passed...
Yet his tears refused to stop.
Khizar remained rooted where he stood.
His heart simply wouldn't allow him to walk away and leave that child alone.
Eventually, after crying until he had no strength left...
The boy lost consciousness.
Khizar immediately caught him before he hit the floor.
That very night, Khizar arranged for the mother and daughter's burial with the help of a few local people.
As for the boy...
He admitted him to a nearby hospital.
But after that...
He had no idea what he was supposed to do.
Khizar sat motionless on the living room sofa, still trapped in the shock of everything he had witnessed.
The horrifying images refused to leave his mind.
Just then, Aryan walked over to him.
"What happened to you?" he asked, frowning. "Did you see a ghost or something?"
Khizar slowly looked up at him.
"I saw something far worse than a ghost, Aryan..."
His voice was heavy.
Pain echoed through every word.
The brutal images of the murdered mother and daughter flashed before his eyes once again, making his chest tighten.
Aryan's playful expression faded.
"What did you see?" he asked seriously. "Why does your face look like you've seen death itself?"
Khizar took a deep breath before telling him everything that had happened—from the frightened little boy outside the courthouse to the horrifying scene inside the mud house.
Aryan listened without interrupting.
Only after Khizar had finished did he ask quietly,
"Where's the boy now?"
Khizar bit the inside of his lip.
"I don't know what I'm supposed to do."
"For now... I've left him at the hospital."
Aryan leaned back against the sofa, pressing his lips together in thought.
He quietly picked up the guava lying beside him and took another bite.
But unlike before...
There wasn't the slightest trace of amusement on his face anymore.
---
The next morning...
Khizar returned to the hospital.
The little boy was sitting outside all by himself.
He looked even more neglected than the day before.
His clothes had become dirty, and his beautiful golden curls were hopelessly tangled.
Khizar didn't care about any of that.
He walked over and sat beside him.
Placing his backpack next to him, he reached inside and pulled out a packet of biscuits.
Then he held it out to the boy.
The child had become frightened of everyone.
But the moment he saw the biscuits...
He immediately accepted them.
He hadn't eaten anything since the previous day.
Khizar sat there in silence, simply watching him eat.
After a while, he unscrewed a bottle of water and handed it to him.
"Do you have any other family?"
The boy looked up at him.
For a few long seconds...
He simply stared into Khizar's eyes.
Then he slowly shook his head.
"No."
A wave of worry washed over Khizar.
If the child truly had no one left...
Then where could he possibly leave him?
After another long silence, the boy spoke again.
"They'll kill me too..."
His tiny voice trembled.
Then he broke down crying once more.
Khizar's heart ached.
He gently looked at him and said with quiet certainty,
"I won't let anyone hurt you."
The little boy slowly lifted his tear-filled eyes toward him.
There was so much fear...
So much pain...
In that single look...
That Khizar Qureshi made a decision.
A decision that would change both of their lives forever.
"I promise you..."
"From today onward, I'll protect you."
"I'll take responsibility for you."
"You can trust me.”
- Writer
