Addiction

Addiction -3

The dark night passed, and with the warm touch of day, the silent world regained its life. As the crimson glow of the sun appeared in the eastern sky, the darkness bowed down and took its leave. Sunlight sparkled on the dew-covered grass, and birds spread their wings to sing the song of a new day. It felt as if nature had awakened from a long slumber with the smile of a new life. The gentle sunlight fell on the glass windows of the building. As soon as Ava woke up, she sat up in bed. As her eyes scanned the surroundings, the events of yesterday began to come back to her. But she had been sitting in the garden last night—how did she end up in her room? Did Bir bring her to the room? No, he would never do that, because if something happened to her, Bir wouldn't care at all. But then who brought her here? Ava tried hard to remember the events of the night, but no—as far as she could recall, she had fallen asleep right there. She hadn't come to the room at night, so how was she here now? Ava couldn't figure it out. She got down from the bed and stood up. She thought of asking Bir, but the next moment, she thought that asking him would only mean inviting more trouble. It would be better for her to stay quiet instead. Whoever had brought her to the room at night must surely be someone she knew. Ava thought she would tell Rima about it later, since Rima was the last person she had spoken to last night. Her head was spinning; she couldn't think anymore. So, pushing all the thoughts aside, Ava headed toward the washroom.

Nivan hadn't slept properly tonight either. Again and again, that girl's face kept appearing before his eyes. Nivan stood on the balcony, intently observing the exquisite beauty of nature. The sound of a mobile SMS broke Nivan's concentration. Nivan picked up the phone and saw that Rameez had sent a text. He placed the phone back with irritation. His head had started hurting again, so he went to the kitchen to make coffee. The maids hadn't arrived yet, so Nivan made coffee himself and came back to stand on the balcony. If he didn't sleep at night, he would get severe headaches. After finishing his coffee, Nivan left the balcony and went to his room. He still had some office work pending, so he took his laptop and sat down to work.

Ava finished all her household chores, got ready for the office, and left the room. She was waiting on the road for the bus. Just then, one of her colleagues was passing by. The man saw Ava and rushed over to her. Since they were meeting after a long time, the two of them were chatting with each other. Meanwhile, the bus arrived. So Ava said goodbye to him and got on the bus. At the office, as soon as Ava sat at her desk, Rima rushed over to her. Ava told her all the events of yesterday in detail. Rima had no words to say to Ava, so she comforted her and said, "I pray that your husband returns to you very soon." Rima went back to her desk. Ava sat quietly for a while and then focused on her work.

Nivan was sitting in his cabin, absentmindedly staring outside. Then Rameez entered his cabin. Rameez looked at him carefully and said, "Why did you call me? Tell me."

Without looking at Rameez, Nivan said, "I want all kinds of information about that girl. I'm giving you two hours; make sure the work is done within that time."

Hearing this, Rameez was quite surprised. Still, without asking any questions, he said, "Okay," and left the cabin.

Bir was getting ready to go out. He took out his money bag and saw there was no money, so he called Ava. Despite not wanting to, Ava was forced to send him money. After receiving the money, Bir gave a crooked smile and left the room.

Just before the time given by Nivan was over, Rameez showed up in his cabin with some papers. Seeing Rameez, Nivan said, "What information did you get?"

As he handed over the papers, Rameez said, "The girl's name is 'Adeera Islam Ava.' She lives in flat number three of the building that is rented out as your building number two. She has been working in our company for the past six months. However, the girl is married."

As soon as the last sentence reached Nivan's ears, he looked away from the papers and stared at Rameez, saying, "Are you sure that the girl is married?"

"Yes, I'm sure," Rameez replied firmly.

Hearing Rameez's answer, Nivan muttered, "What is happening to me?"

Noticing Nivan's expression change, Rameez said to him, "As far as we have found out, the boy doesn't do any work. He roams around all day, spends time with various girls, and abuses this girl a lot."

Nivan said in a quite grave voice, "I want to know the boy's name and his family background."

Meanwhile, Rameez received a call. He answered it, finished speaking, put the phone back in his pocket, and said, "It has been found out that the boy's name is 'Kaif Hasan Bir.' He is from a simple family in a village. Their marriage was arranged by their families."

— Even though the boy is characterless, the girl is still with him. What is the reason...?" Nivan asked, quite surprised.

— As far as I've heard, the girl loves the boy very much, which is why she endures all his abuse and still stays with him," Rameez replied in a low voice.

— What...? Love...? What kind of love is this...?" Nivan said with considerable anger and irritation.

— The matter seems quite strange. The boy keeps cheating on the girl day after day, and the girl keeps loving him by sacrificing everything she has," Rameez said with a mocking smile.

Hearing this, Nivan looked at Rameez sharply and said, "You go now and focus on your work."

Without saying another word, Rameez left the cabin.

As soon as the office closed, Ava and Rima came out and were waiting on the road for the bus. Then Rima's eyes fell on Bir, who was standing at a distance. He was holding a girl's hand, standing and laughing while talking to her. Rima said to Ava, "Look, Bir is standing there talking to that girl. You wait here, I'm coming."

— Where are you going?" Ava asked.

— Just watch where I go," Rima said.

Ava understood that Rima was probably going to Bir. So she stopped her and said, "Please, don't say anything to him. If you say something now, the problem might get worse."

Rima said in a grave voice, "How long will this go on like this? You don't say anything to him yourself, and you don't let me say anything either."

— You know how much I love him," Ava said in a disappointed voice.

— This is not what love is, Ava," Rima said softly.

— Everything will be fine one day," Ava said slowly.