Chapter 1 - First Impressions

This chapter is the one that introduces the characters ;). Hence the different spindles of thread and then how they intertwine ;) xx.

~

We are stitched and sewn

And we are held together

With the thread of hope

- Tyler Knott Gregson

~

She sat with her legs out in front of her, her knees bent, her lehenga covering her feet, only the scarlet nail varnish out for show. She sat with her head bowed down, her duppatta over her head, covering her face.

Zoya was a nervous reck, she could literally feel the adrenaline pumping through her veins and had to bend her fingers several times as she brought them out of the awkward clasp she had them in. This was not what she had perceived her wedding night to be like.

No, she rolled her eyes, sighing, she hadn't seen a future of a wedding, at least not with such haste and definitely not to a man that she had never seen or met before. Speaking of which, where even was this Mr No-Show-Khan. It had been two hours, surely the pestering souls had left by now, or would it end up being like one of those Bollywood films where he would have gone to meet his girlfriend on the side, whilst she sat here with an increasing risk of developing deep vein thrombosis?

She lifted her dupatta to glimpse up at the clock. Yep it had definitely been two hours. She scrunched the material of the bedspread she was lying on and was just about to begin to slide herself off of the bed when she heard the door click, causing her heart to momentarily leap out of her chest. With her eyes wide, looking very much like a thief caught in act, she had to take several breaths to calm herself down. Then rapidly regaining her posture she looked down to her feet, sensing him approach, just as she had been told to by her Aapi. Not that she would otherwise have done so, but she was panicking and had no other ideas of her own.

He clicked the door shut in place, closing his eyes momentarily and drawing a deep breath in then out again. It took him several seconds before he could unwound his hand from around the cold handle of the door. He wasn't ready for any of this, he felt uneasy and completely out of place, because for once in his life after many years, he really didn't know what would happen next. He didn't know what to say or do or to expect of this relationship that he had undoubtedly been pushed into. Slowly turning around he began to walk towards her, his feet slowing of their own accord as she sat in front of him. She brought to his mind the impression of a beautiful flower, sitting in a pool of floating petals, her dazzling beauty, the simplicity with which she sat with her head bowed causing him to lose track of his thought process completely.

She waited for him to approach her, with her heart stuck in her throat. She was sure she had stopped breathing. She tried to listen for his footsteps but they seemed to have stopped.

He couldn't bring himself to move any further and just continued to watch her from the end of the bed. He was sure she was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen.

Her mind was getting the better of her now, why couldn't she hear him? Did he leave? She lifted her head slowly, cautious to whatever lay ahead for her.

She froze suddenly, her eyes almost popping out of her sockets as her eyes finally clashed against his.

He frowned suddenly, he recognised that face.

Her jaw fell open, the sculptured face, the set jaw, those soulful eyes, she'd scene them only hours before.

The gust of wind, her long black strands of hair as they had fallen against her face, he could remember it all but too clearly. He took a further step towards her but she was too quick for him.

Zoya flung the dupatta off of her head, springing up on top of the bed so that she was standing.

Asad's eyes widened as he took a step back, horrified at the audacity of the woman, and quite frankly disgusted at the mess that she was creating.

She was standing on top of the petals now, letting them scrunch under her feet. She had been right, she was being framed. All sorts of expressions began to pass through her face as anger bubbled up inside of her. She had been right, this was all a plan.

"Can you please get down from the bed?" He began to shout, quite clearly forgetting that they were even a newly married couple.

She narrowed her eyes at him then. She had been right all along, he probably had a girlfriend on the side and he probably married her so that he could kill her. But why would he want to kill her? He did! She finally decided, he did want to kill her. That's why he'd come after her in the car.

"Can you hear me?!" He shouted again, "please get down from the bed!" He told her once more, his voice stern this time.

She took a further step towards him, pointing her finger down at him, "excuse me Mr Murderer! But I don't think I need to obey any of your rules!" She argued pointedly.

"Excuse me?" He frowned, sure he would end up climbing on the bed if her absurdities didn't end. "I don't even know what you are talking about, but I'd appreciate it if you'd get down and talk this through like a sane person," he warned her, quite clearly pissed off.

"Oh is that right Mr Khan? I should get down so that you can easily kill me? Do you think I'm stupid?!"

"What?!| What is wrong with you?" He exclaimed, not understanding where this was going.

"Don't try to act dumb okay?! I know what's cooking on your mind! You... You murderer!"

He growled back up at her, this woman was impossible! What sort of mess had he gotten himself into? He folded his arms in front of him, "enough of this nonsense!" He finally barked, "I'm going to sleep on the couch. Now please have the decency to use some common sense and get down from the bed," he glowered then stormed off in search of a duvet.

She continued to stare at his back, her eyes and mouth wide open. The audacity of that man! Finally sensing that he was prepared to use other tactics she fell onto the bed and lay down to sleep. She knew what his plan was. He would kill her once she was asleep, but she was one step ahead, she would sleep with one eye open tonight.

****

A side of her lips curved up into a smile as she flicked the strands of hair obscuring her view away from her face, her perfectly manicured nails glistening from the beams of light that fell upon them. She stood there for a minute, at the entrance, looking at the interior of the office beyond the glass windows, the face of the man that she was here to meet today already flashing across her mind. She began walking then, in that slow, rhythmic motion of hers, where her hair swayed in perfect motion with her hips and her heels clicked to her liking upon the marble floor.

She ignored the many heads that turned her way as she walked past, each appraising the beauty that she was. But her eyes were reserved only for one man; Asad Ahmad Khan. So what if he was married to this new woman, even though he wasn't now, he would one day turn out to be his father's son.

The woman at the reception looked up as she approached, her expression changing before she quickly hid it, almost surprised at the beauty that the young woman in front of her displayed. "Yes ma'am, can I help you?" She questioned courteously.

"Yes I have an appointment with Mr Asad Ahmad Khan today," she replied back, equally politely.

"Sure ma'am," the receptionist replied, "can I take your name please?"

Her lips curled up into a pretentious smile, "Yes, the name is Humeira Siddiqui," she finally replied.

****

"Ayaan I want you to listen carefully to me," Asad sat facing the back wall of his office, sure to keep his voice low, it was necessary that they not let their relationship onto anyone.

"But bhai jaan, you do not understand. This stupid woman is driving me up the wall! I'm inches away from hitting my head and landing on top of her with a thud!" He exclaimed in exasperation, looking left, right and center as he spoke, making sure that Raziya was not in hearing distance.

Asad made a face, then shook his head, did anything Ayaan say ever make sense, "what are you even saying?" He questioned, obviously unable to grasp the ramble that was Ayaan's mind.

Ayaan sighed out loud, "bhai jaan I'm just saying that if I keep on agreeing with her I'll end up nowhere good," he muttered through gritted teeth, then scratched the mop of scruff that was his head.

"But Ayaan, we won't know what she's planning unless you pretend to be on her side," Asad tried to explain to him.

"Oh to hell with her! Can I just murder her? That will be the end of it!" He replied, infuriated.

"Ayaan, we need to get to the bottom of Rashid's plan, we can't do that without gaining Raziya's trust," Asad tried to explain to him once more.

"Fine! But it won't be long before she just you know dies. It will happen, it'll be an accident, on my part," Ayaan huffed then disconnected the line.

Asad sighed, would there ever be an end to his problems? As if that reckless father of his and Raziya hadn't been enough trouble now he had a new disaster to deal with. A disaster that came dressed in beauty and a mouth that seized to shut; Zoya. He rolled his eyes thinking of her, she had arrived at the breakfast table late then continued to make faces at him all throughout breakfast.

Was this even the way he had ever perceived his married life to be, Asad wondered frowning.

****

Her reddish, bonze hair swayed underneath the dupatta she had thrown over her head as she rapidly walked down the narrow lane, vary that someone may be following her. She tried not to worry too much as she looked back to see if anyone was behind her every few seconds.

Finally reaching that familiar door, Dilshaad Ahmed Khan rested her hands on the peeling paint of the old, sturdy door. She took a deep breath in as the relief of not being followed washed over her once more. Then quickly unearthing the small metal key out of her purse she pushed it into the slot and turned it, taking the key quickly back out before she turned the handle and quickly went in, shutting the door behind her.

Her eyes took their time to adjust to the darkness as she felt the other person quickly reach her.

"Is Asad suspicious?" The other woman questioned.

Dilshaad shook her head quickly, as the other woman's face came into view. "Not yet, but he probably will be as time progresses. Zoya isn't his type of girl, so sooner or later he will start wondering why she was proposed to him," she explained.

"Then Dilshaad we must hurry," the urgency and fear in the other woman's voice was all but too clear.

"Don't you think I know that?" Dilshaad questioned back. "It was your job to find out where he was, have you done that?" The annoyance in Dilshaad's voice was clear.

The other woman slowly shook her head, her eyes downcast. "Give me a few more days, I'm working on it," she reassured Dilshaad.

Dilshaad nodded slowly, understanding the situation at hand more than it appeared. "I just hope this one doesn't backfire on us," she finally commented before she adjusted her dupatta and walked over to the back of the room, to the other entrance and allowed herself out. 

The other woman quickly gathered her bag, fixed her thick curly hair then rushed off and exited through the door Dilshaad had previously entered through. 

****

Raziya stood at the entrance to the Siddiqui household, her arms crossed in front of her as she watched Shireen enter with her beady hawk-like eyes. She let them take in Shireen's form fully, from head to toe, not missing the faint smudge of mud on Shireen's shalwaar leg. 

She adjusted herself quickly before Shireen caught on and quickly ran to her side, hurriedly fixing a smile onto her face. 

"Arrey Shireen, where have you been? You had me so worried," she pretended as she placed her arm around Shireen, forcing her to not run away from the situation. 

Shireen was however, not the fool that Raziya imagined her to be, "Oho Bhabi I was just buying a few things," she tried to brush off, not quite making eye contact. 

"For two hours?" Raziya questioned, her voice slightly sharper this time, "and you had turned your mobile off as well," she added.

"Really? Oh God Bhabi, I don't know how that would have happened. See I saw this new dieting regime, where all these women were losing weight because of this special yogurt. And you know Bhabi, how I am on a diet right now..." Shireen began then, continuing with her show of pretending to be the biggest idiot in the world. 

"Okay okay!" Raziya nodded, interjecting quickly, "you go upstairs and freshen up, I'll get the salad ready," she quickly mumbled, then rolling her eyes walked off. Still not quite convinced the story matched the mud stain on her shalwaar. 


P.S. I have a thing for Humeira, I just feel she has the potential to be portrayed in so many different shades. So Humeria appreciation went into the formation of her character. I do toggle and turn positive characters negative and vice versa though... So you have been warned :P. 
P.S.S. I know there wasn't loads of Asya... But I had to introduce my characters :/... So there will be tub loads of Asya in the next chapter ;) xx

Prologue

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What you grow to love might be one of life's biggest surprises. 

- Charity Shumway, The Girls to Watch

~

"Zoya Farrukhi how can you be this careless? You are so late! You are so done for! Aapi is going to have you for dinner!" Zoya was obviously talking to herself as she half ran, half walked down the busy crowded street, her left hand around her precious iPad, her right hand gesturing out as she told herself off.

She finally got off of the street, stepping foot onto a dusty lane, it would only take her five more minutes from here to get to the hotel they were staying in; she'd only be twenty minutes late and if she was too late she could always just get married in her jeans and top, they were decent enough.

"Mr whatever it is Khan will just have to be content, after all he's getting married to me, not my clothes," she fumed as a gust of wind blew her hair into her face and she moved it out of the way, almost missing the large black four-by-four approaching her from the side. She half swayed, half turned to the right, only missing it by a narrow margin, kicking up dust and dirt in her efforts.

He brought the jeep to a screeching halt, his eyes already fixed on the long black hair and the side profile of an admittedly beautiful girl, yet another irritating event that just spelled the disaster that was already looming over his head.

She stormed off towards it, blowing her hair out of her face, "Allah miya what's..." Her words died on her lips as he clicked his door open and stepped out, removing his aviators to appraise her carefully. Her eyes widened and she was momentarily taken aback by the handsome man standing in front of her, his features were so sharp, so sculptured that she almost forgot to blink.

He glared back in response, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

She frowned back, she didn't like his attitude, it was his fault! "If you don't know how to drive then why do you?" She questioned, taking a step towards him as he appraised her with disbelief.

"Excuse me? If you don't know how to walk then why do you step out of your house?"

Her eyes widened and her jaw dropped at the audacity of this man standing in front of her. "If you don't know how to speak properly, then why don't you just keep quiet?!" She retorted back with equal intensity.

He raised an eyebrow, taking one last irritated glance at her, "I don't have time for this," he brushed off indifferently, then turning around got into his jeep.

Her eyes widened further, "excuse me?" She took further steps towards the vehicle but it was already moving away.

She stood rooted to the spot for several more minutes, her hands balled into fists at her side. "Allah Miya what's wrong with this county?! Rude, ignorant people!" She fumed then stormed off in her desired direction.

****

Asad Ahmad Khan took a deep breath in, making a last bid attempt to calm himself down. He regretted agreeing to this ordeal in the first place now, he wanted to take back his word that he had given to his mother, but he couldn't, he wouldn't. Asad was a man of few words, of principles and a life built inside the sanctuary of high walls. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine a blank, empty space, one where he didn't have to think or act. As he sat, with his legs crossed in front of him, an array of flowers hiding his face he let his vulnerable emotions flicker through his face one last time before the mask came on.

He opened his eyes slowly, as if he was coming out of deep sleep as his mothers hands caressed his and her kind brown eyes peered and smiled into his. She ran her hand over his cheek then stood up and walked away. His happiness lay in his mothers and even though that meant marrying a girl whom he had never known or spoken to before, he decided he would do it gladly.

He didn't dare turn his head however, he tried to ignore the golden, shimmering curtain, only centimeters away that separated him from the girl that he would inevitably spend the rest of his life with. He didn't think he could afford even a seconds glance.

****

Zoya placed her hand over her heart, trying to stop it from beating so loud that it drowned out the background noise, her Aapis reassurances. She was sure if it didn't end soon enough she would scream out loud, she had an image of herself just then, her hands at her ears as she screamed. That made her eyes pop open, "what's wrong with you Zoya? Calm down!" She tried to reassure herself. She tried to prevent herself from looking around through the curtain that separated them, to the side profile of the man that she would forever belong to from this day onwards. And to think that she had never heard his voice, seen his face before unnerved her.

"Aapi do you think this guy is right for me? Do you think I'm ready for marriage?" 

She remembered questioning her Aapi earlier, because her own answers to both of those questions was a big loud no, screamed out at the top of her lungs. But she would have to do this, because she could not deny her Aapi any longer and if she didn't get married to someone in Bhopal, she would never succeed in her quest to find her father.

She tried to block out the red heavily ornate dress that weighed her down, the crowd that hustled and bustled around her, the atmosphere, her life that was about to take a sharp turn, she tried to push all of it to the back of her mind.

"Zoya Farrukhi kya tumhein yeh nikha qabool hain?"

She scrunched her eyes shut and took a deep breath in, her fingers tight against each other as she held onto them as if for dear life.

"Qubool hai," she uttered, the words that would finally decide her fate and she heard her own voice as if from a distant land, the pounding of her heart too loud in her ears.

"Asad Ahmad Khan, kya tumhein yeh nikha qubool hain?"

He opened his eyes slowly, focused them straight ahead, determined to stick by what he had agreed to, sealing his destiny forever.

"Qubool hai."