Ya Amar (My Moon)

Twenty three

Aside from painting, lying in bed and reading a book was also a kind of relaxation for me. After a very dramatic day, I had decided to retire to my room to sleep. Few minutes after drifting into wonderland, I woke up just to realise I had not been able to sleep for up to thirty minutes. I was too lazy to get out of bed and decided to read the novel lying under my pillow for days. I pulled it out. Its title was lethal seduction written by Jackie Collins.

Every writer has an amazing storyline. It depends on how he or she writes the story and makes the story flow. I was mesmerised by the book and loved it. Half way through it, my phone beeped. I grunted swiping through another page. The paper was soft and smooth at the tip of my finger. The neat fine pages had words in black ink written on them.

When Nani had told me to call Aaliyah khala, I had come across Shazia and Tubassum in the family room.

"You are my friend" Tubassum's broken voice said. I stopped to listen to what was going on. It seems I am fond of eavesdropping people's conversation. That's a habit I need to change. Curiosity really gets the best of me at times. From the opened door, I could see both ladies standing in the family room looking at each other in the eyes.

Shazia had her head raised in the air, a sinister smile on her face. Tubassum had her red face stained with tears a confused look in her eyes.

"Friend?" Shazia snorted laughing. "Friend?" she laughed again. "You were never my friend. You were just a handbag I needed and I think it is high time I toss you away"

"Shazia, what are you saying? I am your friend. Why are you doing this?" Tubassum went on, words leaving her trembling lips.

"You were never my friend. I knew my brother never loved you and he just wanted to take you to bed and dump you but it seems you were hell bent on not leaving him. Now that you are pregnant with his child and it is clear that he does not want you or the child, you have to live with your miserable mistake" Tubassum stood, her lips moving but no word came out of them. Her watery eyes darted around relentlessly with questions in them. "When you are talking about friend Tubassum, you are not my friend and you were never my friend. As I have said, you were just a handbag and now that the handbag is of no use, I just have to dump it one side"

"You are lying right?" Tubassum voiced out, her body slightly shaking. "You don't mean it" she grasped Shazia's shoulder, lone tears streaming down her cheeks. A loud mockery laughter came out Shazia's painted lips. "Answer me" Tubassum roared shaken by the revelation, her eyes wide with tears.

"You know the answer Tubassum. So stop questioning me" Shazia barked shoving her to the side then walked towards the door, her lips curled up into a wicked smile and her eyes shone with pleasure of what she had just done.

I moved away from the door and took hurried steps to Khala's room. I told Khala Nani requested for her before leaving. On my way back to the room, Aunt Caroline had practically dragged me to her room to show me the shopping she did the day before. Well I won't lie but I was mesmerized by the bags and shoes she had bought. They were designers and of good quality. At that moment, I realised I need to add to my bags and shoes but when. I was very lazy when it comes to shopping. Walking around the mall and looking for something tires me a lot. The last time I went for shopping with Mahira which was the day she had taken me to see London. It was tiring. I promised myself I will never go shopping with her.

After spending almost an hour with a very excited bubbly Aunt Caroline, I had returned back to my room. Just as I passed the partly opened door of Tubassum's room, wails came from the door. Curiously, I had tiptoed to the door and leaned on the wall where I could hear and see what was going on.

"Mama, I am sorry" Tubassum cried on her knees, her hand on her mother's lap.

"Sorry?" Khala cried looking at her daughter. "What will sorry do Tubassum? Were you so foolish to believe Aaban's deceitful lies?" she shouted slamming her hands at her daughter's back.

"It was a mistake. I never wanted it to happen. Emotions got into the way and I ended up making a mistake"

"Did you even think of me? Did you think about my feelings?" she slapped Tubassum's back again "Did you think about your father and I? Our feelings?"

Tubassum fell back grabbing her chest. In a jiffy, I felt her pain, sharp and agonizing. The disgrace, the pain and shame, I felt everything again. I slumped back against the wall gripping my racing heart. I had not known my child's father but she had known hers and it must be more heart wrecking to know the man you are in love with never loved you but used you. What is she going through?

And her mother, the pain, the disappointment and betrayal in her eyes. My mother, what would she have done when I had been pregnant? Would she have cried like Tubassum's mother? Ya Allah! Shuddering, I went back to my room

Another ding from my phone cut my trance. I hissed picking the phone up. Hubby popped on the screen. Why is he messaging me? I unlocked my phone and opened his message.

"Assalamu alaikum, how are you doing? Missing you already" the first message said. My eyes popped out of my sockets. He sent me a message. I sat up, the sheets beneath my body ruffled to my movement.

"This is a lie" I muttered staring at the message.

He messaged me to ask about how I was doing and tell me he misses me. He had never texted me from work to ask about my well-being and tell me he misses me except the day he wanted to tell me he won't come home. How much has last night changed? I jumped down from the bed to do a happy dance.

Panting from the little dance, I sat back on the bed and read the second message. How about a dinner with me tonight? It says. What? My eyes popped out again. He is asking me out on a date?

I wanted to say I would love to but a thought came into my mind which made me type No, I have better things to do with a poker face emoticon. He did not reply neither did I get any phone call from him. With a wide grin, I continued my novel.

The room door creaked as I laid back on the bed, the bangles rocking to my movement.

"Aunt Noorie" Yusuf's head came into the room.

He was wearing his glasses with big frame which made him cuter. His olive green eyes wandered around the room before falling on me. His pink lips curled up into a smile showing his small white teeth before he opened the door. I sat up to see that Reshma, Aaryan, Ihsaan, Farhaan, Zahra and Farhaana standing behind him. They smiled waving at me then walked into the room. I smiled at the sight of them.

"Wow, look who I have here?" I sat up grinning at them.

The kids climbed the bed. Reshma and her siblings sat around me while Zahra and the four year olds jumped on the bed. Not my bed. I wanted to stop them. I had cleaned the room, changed the bed sheet and arranged the bed. They will dirty my bed sheet. I grimaced.

They began to talk the same time telling me what was on their mind and I tried to give every one of them my attention. Reshma and Ihsaan told me to give away some of my bags to them. Luckily, Reshma and I wore the same shoe size so she had taken some of my shoes. Farhaana had played with my makeup and forced me to make her face up. When her pestering was getting out of hand, I was forced to. She had told me she had watched her mother doing makeup. Zahra wanted the same thing and I did it for her.

"Wow, I am going to show mama Aunt Noorie did make up for me" Zahra said staring at the mirror.

"Me too" her younger sister chipped in.

Farhaan and Yusuf were so sad I could not make their faces up but I drew whisker on their faces with eye pencils to make them look like cats.

Aaryan was angry I had nothing to give him so I had given him a box of chocolate in my bag. No one had liked it. I ended up sharing another box to them. We took pictures which was fun and ended up chasing each other around the room, their laughter filling the lively air.

I was happy, very happy which was rare. On a day when everything had been nothing but drama, I had a reason to smile. I was never good with kid. It was not that I don't like them. It was just that sudden happiness some people feel when they see kids never swelled in me. I would see a kid, smile but don't know what to say to make myself jovial and playful. Meeting the children in Shaheen's manor, I learnt to feel free with kids and the kids I met there would forever be people I will never forget. When they left, my room was a mess. I cleaned it and put everything in its right place afterwards, I left for the kitchen.