Flawed Hearts

Chapter XVI: The Lion and The Star (I)

Najmah twisted and turned in her sleep, muttering incoherently as she sat up in bed. Her head was still spinning from the night's event, and her sleep induced mind was finding it hard to get up from the bed.

She rubbed at her eyes tiredly, trying to get her bearings. She looked to her left and saw that Aslan's side of the bed was neat and tidy as if he hadn't slept on it or did he? Her brows creased with confusion as she tried to remember if he had come to bed or not. She shrugged then laid her head back on the pillow, drawing the duvet over her head and soon enough her breathes evened out into a slow pattern.

{••}

12 noon

She pried her eyes open and took in her surrounding, noticing that she was alone again. She sighed then threw the duvet off her body and climbed down from the bed.

She padded into the bathroom and took a shower, washing away any remnant of fatigue from her body.  When she was done, she wrapped herself up in her robe then walked towards her suitcase. She rummaged through it and brought out a set of denim jeans and a T-shirt. Just as she was about to look for her phone, her stomach grumbled. She stared at her it for a while wondering how long it'd take for her to find her phone before she got something for her stomach.

Food or phone? she debated mentally. Her stomach grumbled again and she sighed, settling for the former. She waltzed out of the room, singing a silent lullaby as she descended down the stairs.

The kitchen was vacant, only the head cook and a few other kitchen staff were present. They greeted her before setting out brunch for her. Not in the mood for eating at the dining room, she took her food back to the room with her.

She ate silently, wondering where everyone was. The house felt so empty and lifeless to her. Strange enough, she found herself missing the company of Afet. Even though they don't see eye to eye, at least their usual bickering made her feel less lonely. She wiped her mouth with a napkin when she was done then went in search of her phone.

Realization dawned on her when she saw the date on her screen; it was Monday, so everyone must be out for work.

She sighed for the umpteenth time, wondering what to do to kill time. A light bulb went off in her head and she smiled, rubbing her palms together. She glanced at the wall clock and realized that she had a few hours to set her plan to motion.

She grabbed her phone and a scarf then walked down into the kitchen, dismissing the staffs at once except for the head cook since she needed help navigating the kitchen and she could use an extra hand and she was too lazy to work the kitchen alone.

{••}

It was lunchtime and none of the occupants of the household had returned so Najmah decided to tend to the greenhouse. She changed into the work clothes Ferah had given her the first day she started working in the greenhouse then put on a cap on her head before proceeding there.

She transferred the blooming seedlings into various pots then planted new seeds in their place and when she was done, she checked out the other plants for any unusual growth. She plucked out the weeds that had began to grow then planted new seedlings there.

*

He watched her as she worked, wondering what it would be like to see her cater to the garden in their home.

He shook his head to get rid of his thoughts. With the way things were going, he wasn't sure there was a home for them together. During their stay in Paris, he had come to the terms that he felt something for her; a sort of attraction was it love? He had no idea, all he knew was that he genuinely felt something for her and that it was one-sided. Until he was sure of his feelings and hers, he wasn't ready to admit anything yet. After all, they still had two months left together.

*

Najmah stood up to remove her gloves when she caught sight of him. She let out an inaudible gasp, placing her hands on her chest, trying to calm her racing heart.

"Kill me would ya?" she rolled her eyes throwing the mud-covered gloves at him which he successfully dodged.

He chuckled, placing his hands in the pockets of his jeans before walking into the greenhouse, examining her work.

"You've done pretty much good job here," he gave her a thumbs up.

"I know right," she flicked imaginary dust off her shoulder. "I'm amazing."

"That you are," he smiled.

"You're back early today," she remarked, heading out of the greenhouse.

"Actually, I'm a little bit late. It's 6:45," he replied with a saccharine smile.

"Is that so?" Her brows creased. "Didn't know I was out for that long. I lost track of time. I better head back in and hit the showers. Got unfinished work to do."

He frowned at her words, wondering what unfinished work she had but before he could ask her, she was halfway across the lawn. Aslan let out a defeated sigh, his shoulders sagging down a little. The weekend they spent in Paris had put a lot of work on hold and even though Lale had helped him with some, he still had a lot to catch up with. Yet, here he was back at home instead of being in the office. Managing an empire and being married wasn't easy.

Although the work was tedious, he regretted nothing as he got to see a new side of Najmah and it was indeed a sight to behold.

{••}

It was dinner time and everyone had sat down, waiting for food to be served. Najmah opened all the flasks, asking each and everyone what they'd like to eat.

She had made cream cheese garlic Alfredo and lemony cucumber couscous salad as the main dish then prepared snickers chia pudding for dessert.

"You really have outdone yourself today Najmah," Ferah complimented, taking a spoonful of the Alfredo. "This food is really delicious."

"Thank you," she replied shyly, ducking her head down.

"You are an excellent cook," Lale complimented patting her on the shoulder. "I wish you could cook for us everyday."

"I'm lucky to have her as my wife," Aslan replied winking at Najmah, causing the insides of her stomach to churn. She blushed furiously, wishing the ground would open and swallow her up. She was thankful for her melanin pigments else she'd been as red as a tomato.

"Yeah," Mr.Faik replied. "I've made an excellent choice then. She is every bit the daughter in law I am proud to show off to the world."

Afet sneered at that, beginning to hate Najmah even more. She had stolen the spotlight from her again and now she had become everyone's favorite within the blink of an eye.

"Where's the chicken? I can't see any meat here. Don't you know that we Turks love meat? But how would you? You aren't one of us," Afet remarked rudely, staring at Najmah squarely.

"Afet!" Ferah gasped.

Najmah stood up and ran to their room, her heart constricting with pain.

"That was a low blow even for you!" Lale responded, dropping her napkin on the table.

"Congratulations, you just ruined dinner," Aslan dropped his napkin, running after Najmah.

Afet pouted, going after him. "I am so sorry Aslan I didn't mean to upset anyone, I was just trying to..."

"Save it for someone who cares," he cut her off, turning the doorknob.

She glared at the door he disappeared into, wishing she hadn't done what she did. She's become the villain while Najmah still remained everyone's beloved. Najmah won, again. She sighed then walked towards her room, thinking about the next step she was going to take in tearing the two apart.

{••}

"Hey, are you okay?" Aslan queried, walking towards her.

"Yeah I'm good," she replied avoiding his gaze.

He cupped her chin in his hands then wiped away the streak of tears than ran on her face.

"Why does she hate me?" she croaked, placing her head on his chest.

"Because you have everything she doesn't," he replied patting her back.

Moments of silence passed between them and when she felt okay again, she raised her head and walked into the bathroom to freshen up.

When she got out, she found Aslan talking on his phone utterly oblivious to her presence.

She ambled out of the room and went into the kitchen to get food for them. When she was done setting the tray with the dishes, she grabbed a bowl of the pudding for herself then grabbed chocolate mousse which she made specifically for him. 

Thankfully there was no one around so she got back to their room without being stopped to be questioned about her well-being.

"Hey drop that and come let's eat. The food will get cold," Najmah stated, dishing out the food for them.

"I'll call you back later," he spoke into the phone, padding towards her. He hung up the call then pocketed his cellphone before taking his seat.

They ate their food in silence and when he was done, he went back to the balcony and continued working on his laptop while placing a call to the associate he was on the phone with before. Najmah shook her head then took the dirty dishes down to the kitchen. When she returned, she took Aslan's dessert to him. 

"I made dessert for you," she said, placing the bowl on the table.

"Thank you," he smiled guiltily at her. "But I..."

"Don't take sugar," she completed his sentence, smiling at him. She took a spoon of it then brought it close to his mouth. "It has low sugar in it. I made it specifically for you."

He stared at her for a while before taking the offered dessert. "This is amazing, thank you."

"You're welcome."

He flexed his arms, rubbing at his neck tiredly. He was obviously tired but he wanted to finish work before going to bed. Najmah sighed then placed her hands on his neck making him still in shock.

"You're not going to choke me now are you?" he laughed nervously.

"I'm giving you a massage," she rolled her eyes, massaging his shoulders softly.

"Mmm, thank you," he closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of her skin on his.

"Done," she stated, retracting her hands. He pouted, wishing she could continue the massage.

"Thank you," he stood up from his seat, taking her hands into his.

"You're gonna run out of 'thank yous' very soon," she smirked at him.

"You wish." He placed a kiss on her forehead, whispering another thank you into her ears causing her to shiver.

"Good night," she stated weakly, walking back into the room.

He stared at her retreating form, smiling at himself. He could see the progress they've made and mayhap there was hope for them.

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