"Can we go somewhere private? To talk. Mayhaps a restaurant?"

Sameer hesitated. He wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing, by deciding to give her a listening ear. Did she even deserve it? After all she had done to him? "I have somewhere important to be."

"It will only be for a while. Please don't say no, Sameer. Please." Unshed tears glistened in her eyes.

It took almost all of Sameer's willpower to be able to look away. If he had kept on looking at her, he feared he might start feeling pity towards her—which he didn't want. If at all he was to feel any emotion towards her, then it should be of disdain.

Just that.

"Get in."

Aaliyah didn't hesitate. She went to the other side of the car and settled on the passengers seat.

Immediately she did, Sameer began to move the car.

"Sameer." Aaliyah's thin voice reverberated in the atmosphere.

The same voice which Sameer had been head over heels in love with. It was one of the things he really loved about her; her dulcet voice.

Simply euphonious!

"Sameer." She called again.

This time, Sameer caught the slight quiver in her voice, but feigned ignorance.

"Why won't you even look at me, Sameer?" Aaliyah cried. "Do I disgust you that much?"

Sameer heaved a sigh and pulled over the side of the road.

Within him, he was burning with rage. The sight of Aaliyah angered him. The fact that he was still affected by her aggravated him even more.

"Damn it!" He punched the steering wheel, his patience slowly dissipating into thin air. "I think this was a bad idea. Please get out of my car."

"Sameer..."

The sound of his name emerging from her mouth made him angrier, for it made him feel some type of way.

"What is it you want?" He shook his head. "To cry or to talk? Whichever it is, make it fast and leave my car. I still have somewhere to be."

"You've changed, Sameer." Aaliyah wiped a tear from the corner of her eyes.

"You don't expect me to be the same person you left a long time ago." He made sure to lay emphasis on the word 'left'. If she had forgotten, then he'd be more than pleased to remind her of what she had done to him, on their supposed wedding day. "Do you?" He let out a sober chuckle. "People change. I did."

She shook her head in denial. "I know you're just putting on an act. You're still mad at me for leaving without prior notice, which I totally understand and would like to—"

"I have moved on." He abruptly cut her off. Although he had been reminded of that dreadful day, he didn't want to dwell into the memory any further. "I have moved on from my past." He repeated, not only to convince Aaliyah, but himself as well.

"But I haven't!" Aaliyah practically yelled.

Sameer shrugged. "Good for you. I don't think that concerns me."

"But of course it does! This concerns the both of us." Aaliyah attempted to place her hand on his, but he was quick to put his away. "I'm sorry, Sameer."

Sameer never knew something as genuine as an apology would irritate him that much. What he wanted to hear was an explanation, nothing else.

Not even an apology.

"Leaving you on our wedding day was the worst decision I had ever taken in my life. Believe me, Sameer, I didn't want to leave, but I was left with not other choice." She stifled a sob. "I left because..."

•

For the umpteenth time, Adhika took a look at the clock, hanging on the wall. She had been waiting for approximately two hours and Sameer was no where to be seen. He didn't even bother giving her a call.

She felt extremely disappointed, but she kept on convincing herself he might be stuck in traffic or something like that.

"He wouldn't just me like this." She forced a smile and shook her head. "I trust him."

The ringtone of her phone jarred her out of her trance.

Without even checking the caller ID, excited that it may be Sameer calling, Adhika clicked on the receive button and brought the phone to her ear.

"Sam—"

"Where are you, Adhika? I'm at your house right now and your housekeeper told me you haven't returned. Neither has Sameer."

"I'm..." Adhika's voice trailed. She didn't know how to tell her cousin that she was stuck in a cafeteria alone, for over five hours. The workers there had already started giving her eerie glances.

How embarrassing.

"Still out with hubby, isn't it?"

"The thing is—" 

"Don't tell me." Divija huffed. "I know you're out there having a good time with your husband that you forgot you invited me to your house. I'm leaving."

Tears welled up in Adhika's eyes. She quickly wiped the stubborn tears from the corners of her eyes before they could escape. "I'm on my way hom—" home? Would she be right to call Sameer's house a home? Why didn't she want to be there? Home is supposed to be a place you always want to be.

After the night they had spent in each other's arms—after Sameer had made her revive the little hope she had for their relationship, he left her stranded in the cafeteria. She knew something important might had gotten in the way, but the least he could do was give her a call. The very least.

As painful as it was for her to admit, she knew he didn't hold her in high esteem. If he did, he wouldn't have done that to her.

These little things may be trivia to him, but to her, it mattered.

"What? Come on, Adhika, don't be silly!" Divija chuckled. "I was only kidding. You should enjoy your date with brother-in-law. I will just sit around and watch TV while waiting for your arrival."

Adhika swallowed a painful lump that suddenly got stuck in her throat. She made sure to clear her throat before responding. "Sameer isn't here."

"Where did he go?" Her tone depicted nonchalance. "I'm sure he's going to be back soon. Hang up now."

"Don't you understand what I just said, Divija?" Adhika was starting to get irritated now. "Sameer is not here! He didn't come. He left me here all alone. Divija, Sameer didn't come."

"What?" Divija squeaked. "He didn't? Where is he?"

"I don't know, Divija. At this point, I don't even care. I'm tired." Adhika wiped more tears away from her cheeks. "I honestly am."

"Please calm down, Adhika."

"Do I sound like I'm not?"

"One hundred percent. Have you even tried calling him?"

"What do you think? I have done that over a hundred times already, but he isn't answering any of my calls."

Out of the blue, Divija gasped. "What if...what if he got into an accident?"

Adhika stiffened at the mention of accident. Her heart-rate increased in an instant. She could practically hear the frantic beat of her heart; it's rhythm like that of a drum in her ears. Her palms became sweaty. She opened her mouth to say something, but ended up closing then back, due to how violently her lips quivered.

"What if he got into an accident, Adhika? Oh my God!"

Adhika's fear heightened. How comes she never thought of that? "No!" She shook her head, fighting back tears. "Nothing of sure happened. I...I..." Her lips trembled. "I'd have felt it in my heart. Sameer is fine, Divija. I'm very sure of that."

"I hope so. Where are you? You should come home and wait for him. If he doesn't am return in twenty four hours, we will go to the police station and seek help, okay?"

"Okay."

Putting down the phone, Adhika felt a sharp pain surge into her chest. Intuitively, her hand clutched her chest. Even though she couldn't brag of having the best marital life, she certainly didn't want to lose him. She couldn't even bear the thought.

•

"Sameer! Sameer!!" Adhika's voice reverberated within the thick walls of the house.

In a matter of seconds, Divija came running out of the guestroom, located downstairs. "Adhika."

"Divija." Adhika rushed towards her. "Is Sameer back?"

Wordlessly, Divija shook her head.

"Let's go to the police station."

"Wait!" Divija was quick to grab her arm before she could make it to the exit. "It's not even twelve hours yet. Let's wait for a while."

"It's okay if you don't want to come with me." Adhika attempted to yank her arm away, but Divija's grip was quite strong. "Didn't you hear me? I said I will go alone."

"Come on, Adhika, this isn't about me and you know it. I'd gladly follow you anywhere, but this isn't the right way to go about it. We can't go to the police until after twenty four hours."

"Then let's go look for him."

"Alright, let's go to his office."

"He isn't there. I called his office and his secretary told me he left hours ago." Adhika paced to and fro. "Please let's go and look for my husband, Divija. I'm beginning to have a very bad feeling."

"But where else are we going to look for him?" Divija furrowed her brows.

"I don't know, Divija. Let's just go. I can't keep staying here, not knowing the whereabout of my husband. I just can't bear it." Her legs gave out and she dropped to the floor.

"Why are you acting this way?" Divija crouched beside her. "Please get a grip on yourself. Like you said, nothing has happened to Sameer. Where has your faith gone to?"

Adhika remained silent. Only she knew the fear she had in her heart—the fear that her husband may never return.

•

"Adhika, please sit down. You're making me feel dizzy already."

"It's almost evening and he isn't back yet. I can't stay here any longer. I need to go out there and look for him." Adhika began to walk to the door.

"Adhi—"

"No matter what you say, I'm not going to stay here."

Opening the door, she stopped right in time before she could bump into Sameer.

Her eyes dilated in surprise and she released a deep breath.

"Sameer!" She burst into tears and engulfed him in a bone crushing hug. "Are you okay?" She disentangled her arms from around him and began to search for possible injuries.

"What are you doing?" Sameer yanked her hand away from his face. "And what's with the tears?"

"What do you mean?" Divija approached and stood almost daringly in front of him. "Adhika has been so worried about you, yet—"

"Can you stay out of this?" Sameer deadpanned.

"Wh—"

"Please, Divija," Adhika beseeched. "I will handle this. Just go to the room, okay? Please?"

"Are you going to be okay?" Worry dripped off her voice.

Adhika gave a reassuring smile and nodded.

Sameer walked pass her and was about to go to their room, but Adhika would have none of it. She had so many things she wanted to talk to him about. So many questions she wanted answers to. "Where have you been?" She started.

"Can we just talk about this tomorrow? I'm exhausted."

"Exhausted?" Adhika asked in disbelief. "From what? Last I checked, you weren't at the office. I called and was told you left hours ago—not business related, so where did you go?"

Did he even have an idea how worried she was for him?

"Let's talk tomorrow." With that said, he walked away, without even sparing her a glance to see the condition she was in.

Heartbroken, she watched as he climbed up the stairs.

•

Hola!

So after a long time, I'm finally back!

How was this chapter?

What do you think about Sameer's behavior? 🤧

Any idea on what Aaliyah told him? 😁

Please vote and comment if you want me to update soon 😊

Share this book to as many people as possible 🙏

Lastly, follow me on Instagram @deey_jah