Two Years Later.

It has been two years since Hanan and Riaz have gotten married but their fairytales ended when they reached their first anniversary.

Riaz has never helped her with anything that needed to be done at home especially when they are living with his parents.

His parents would treat her like a slave than their daughter-in-law. Because in their eyes, she is no one but their bank account and that's all she will be.

Hanan is the only sole provider for everyone at her in-laws' house. In the first years, they used to treat her like a princess because of her parents, especially her mother who was always visiting her.

Ya Allah, why didn't I listen to my parents or even Azaan? All because I thought I was in love with him. Now I know he is just using me for my money and for taking care of his parents who would do nothing but stay at home doing nothing. Ya Allah, what do I do now? All I can do is pray to you, to give me the strength and courage to keep going but until when? That's the main question.

"Hanan, go and make mum and dad their tea and some snack," Riaz yelled at her while he was in the living room watching tv.

That's what he does all day.

Hanan couldn't help but sigh and then get up from her bed to go to the kitchen to make the tea and snacks for them.

Even if she was sick, Hanan didn't have the luxury to get some rest and get well too.

After making the tea, Hanan had to take it into their bedroom for them to have. Before going to work at her cousin's company as his secretary, this was a daily routine.

Hanan was thankful to Azaan for hiring her even though she was rude to his wife Saira.

Now she had understood what Saira was telling her about marriage and weddings.

As the saying goes ' Its too late, right? '

No, it is never too late for anyone to regret and to ask forgiveness from the people they love and care about.

"Riaz, I have to leave now. For work," Hanan tells her lazy good-for-nothing husband. "I already made lunch for mum, dad and you...."

She couldn't even finish what she was saying when Riaz came up to her and held his hand out meaning he needs money for something.

Hanan had no option but to give him the last note of money she had for the week.

Everything depended on her.

The bills include food, utilities, and medical coverage for her in-laws.

"You can go now", Riaz tells her after getting the money from her.

A tear fell down her face, but she harshly wiped it away knowing that all this is her fault and no one else.

She should have listened to her friends, family, and most importantly her best friends.

Saira, Iman, Hannah, and Shyra told her to pray before deciding to get married to Riaz.

This is all on me.

My fault.

Only mine.

A few months pass by when Hanan was sick again but this time, she knew that it was more than a sickness.

Rather than something else.

No one in her in-laws' house cared about her or even her health. All they wanted was things from her. For her to make food, and even clean the entire house.

Hanan wanted to hire a house help but Riaz and her parents didn't want that as they thought she wouldn't look at them as their daughter-in-law rather she would become lazy.

"Hanan, do you have the documents that I had requested....?" her cousin Azaan came into her office asking her but he couldn't even finish what he was saying when he saw her on the floor.

She fainted.

Azaan quickly carried her to the car and drove her to the hospital to be examined by the doctor.

"Azaan, what are you doing here?", his sister Iman asks him when she saw him pacing back and forth in the hallway.

Azaan then explained to her what had happened to their cousin Hanan who the doctor was currently examining.

"Iman, she didn't look good. I don't know what is going on with her. Because she looked weak whenever she would come to work. I don't know what to do, should I call her husband or even aunt and uncle", Azaan tells his sister Iman.

"Call aunt and uncle. Don't call her husband yet. She will need them more than them. As you told me, that she is weak, I think its better than you call them, Azaan", Iman suggested to her older brother.

He nods and calls his aunt and uncle to come and see their daughter.

Both Khalid and Laila came rushing to be at their daughter's side.

They always treated her as their princess as it was hard for them to have any other kids.

Laila's pregnancy was hard as she was put on bed rest for most of it. 

"What happened to her, Azaan?", Laila asks him while the doctor is currently looking at Hanan who is in the room.

Azaan explained to his aunt what happened to his cousin and how she was when coming to work.

"I don't know what's wrong with her? I think she is being....."

"I am sorry, excuse me", the doctor interrupted them making the three of them turn to face him. "Are you Miss. Hanan's family?", he asks them.

"Yes, we are her parents. Whats wrong with her?", her father asks him worriedly.

Then the doctor explained that she was malnourished and she was currently sick.

"And there's something else too," he says making the three more worried about Hanan. "She is two months pregnant and it's on a fragile state. Because of her weak health. She might end up losing her baby or even her life if this continues", the doctor explains to them.

"What do you mean by that doctor?", Azaan asks him.

Hanan and Azaan have always been closer just like siblings. He knew that Riaz wasn't the guy for his cousin but what could he do?

"She wasn't eating well. Plus, her immune system is weak. And she needs a stable and calm environment for her and her unborn baby. I advise you to make her comfortable and make sure she gets everything she needs for the remaining months", he advises them. "Excuse me, I need to go other patients", he added leaving them after telling them Hanan's room number.

"This is what I didn't want to happen to my daughter, Khalid. Why?...."

Before he could even answer her when they were interrupted by none other than Riaz who was at the nurse station looking for Hanan's room.

"Khalid, Azaan don't. Don't do anything stupid, please", Laila pleads to them as they all see Riaz approach them looking angry.

"Asalam Aleikum, how are you doing, mum and dad?" he greeted them and then turned to face Azaan with anger in his eyes especially when Azaan had something he always wanted.

A company.

Money.

In short, wealth.

"Azaan", he nods at him while Azaan does the same. This has always been their greeting whenever they meet.

"What happened to Hanan? I was in the middle of work when I received a call from the hospital telling me that my wife was brought in this hospital. I came as soon as I could", he says to them more like lying to them.

But Azaan immediately knew that he was lying to them. He knew that Riaz didn't work and only depended on Hanan.

He found out the day that Riaz had visited his office to see Hanan. He asked her for money for his gambling addiction. They both didn't know that Azaan saw everything but he never said anything to them.

He didn't want to cause any problems with her in-laws so he just kept quiet.

"She is fine alhamdullilah. And resting in her room. We are about to see her", Leila answers him while the two men just stared at him.

"Okay...."

"You go in first", Leila tells him while glaring at Azaan and her husband.

"Thank you".

He walked into the room to see his wife open her eyes to see him.

"Another bill to pile up. And who do you think will pay for it? I won't do it. So whats the drama about?", Riaz asks as he has already hurt her with his words.

"I am fine, alhamdullilah. It's just fatigue...."

"That's good you are awake. I am here to speak to you. I have spoken to your parents outside and told them what is wrong with you. You are about two months pregnant", the doctor interrupts them. "Congratulations. I am here to let you that you are to stay for two more days and then I will discharge you. But for now, rest", he added excusing himself.

But what he didn't know was that what he said angered Riaz as he didn't want any children as they are a burden.

Just like the one in Hanan's stomach.

"So, you are pregnant. Get rid of it and then come with me back to the house. I don't want that thing that's inside you. It has to go or else I will divorce you and denounce the rights to that thing you are carrying inside you, " he spat at her.

"I cant do what you want me to do. I have always listened to you in everything that you want me to do. But now when about my baby, I will never listen to you ever again. Send the papers and I will be ready to sign them", she tells him with hatred in her voice. "And one more thing, leave my house and don't forget that everything that you owned is mine and I will come and get them. Now leave and never come back", she added glaring at him.

"I will leave but remember what I said. That thing isn't mine and will never be mine. I will be waiting for you to crawl back into my life like a....."

He couldn't even finish what he was saying when he was met by Azaan's fist.

"Azaan, stop. Please stop", Hanan cried out to her cousin. "He isn't worthy, cousin", she added as she saw that he left Riaz on the floor with a busted lip that was bleeding.

"Get out of here and never come back. I am more capable of taking care of my cousin and her unborn child. So get lost before I call the cops on you", Azaan tells him pushing him out of the door while everyone who was outside watched them.

"Don't worry I will leave but remember that you will always come back to me," he says wiping his mouth with his sleeve and turning to leave the hospital.

"Why did you tell me anything?", Azaan asks his cousin as he approached her. "We are family, Hanan. Always remember that", he added taking her hand with his trying to calm her down.

"I didn't want everyone to see me as a disappointment and I cant bear to see that in our family's faces...."

"Hanan, never say that you are a disappointment. As your cousin just said that you will never be that. And you have all of us. Your mother and I plus everyone who loves and cares for you", her father tells her wiping the tears that have fallen down her face.

"Plus now we have another you to spoil. And you can't say no. I will deal with getting everything from that place plus the house. So you don't have to stress yourself and our little prince or princess", Azaan tells her making her smile.

"Thank you for everything, mamma, dad and especially you, my dear cousin Azaan", she thanked them making them smile.

Meanwhile, an angry Riaz arrived home and asked his parents to pack everything so that they can shift to their previous apartment which was a two-bedroom one.

"Why? Did that girl say anything to you?" his mother asks him.

"She is pregnant and I asked her to get rid of it but instead she wants to keep it. And you know why I married her in the first place, mum", he explained to her.

His mother was angry when she heard about Hanan's decision to keep the baby instead of coming home to them.

"What a shameless girl. Why did you just teach her a lesson that she will never forget?" she asks him.

"Her parents and that Azaan was there with her. I couldn't do anything, mum. I will send her the divorce papers and my parental termination papers....."

"But before you do that, you need to do this first", she started explaining to him how to exploit some money from them.

"We need the money, Riaz. And you know what you have to do, right?", she asks him after explaining everything that he is needed to do before sending the papers to Hanan at her parents' home.

"I know that, mum. I will do that right away. But for now, I think I will ask for this house too. What do you think?", he asks his mother who knew that Riaz would do anything for her.

In the coming days, Riaz planned everything his mother had told him to do. It was time for him to go where Hanan has been living and that is her parents' house.

Hanan didn't want to stay there but she had no option as the only one who can take off her is her mother.

A child no matter what age they are, always need their mother no matter what.

"Asalam Aleikum, is Hanan in?" Riaz asks as he looks around the house seeing as it was beautiful.

"Waleikum Salaam...."

As the maid was about to answer but they were interrupted by Khalid who asked the maid who it was.

"Sir, its Mr. Riaz, he is looking for Hanan", the maid explained to him while Khalid looked at Riaz with anger in his eyes.

"Tell him to come in. I will be waiting for him in the living room", he tells Asma who nodded.

"You can come in. Sir is waiting for you in the living room. Follow me", she tells him leading him to the living room where he finds Khalid waiting for him with someone who looked like a lawyer.

"Asalam Aleikum..."

"Waleikum salaam, take a seat", Khalid tells him without looking at him.  "Here read and then sign it", he added handing him some papers.

Riaz didn't need to ask anything when he saw the amount that was written on the papers. He couldn't help but smirk inwardly at what he had seen.

He started reading the papers and it was written that he will get the amount of money that Khalid has written in the paper as long as he doesn't come in contact with Hanan.

The next paper is about his parental termination. He was shocked to read that the unborn child will never get his last name on the birth certificate as he isn't its father.

"Where do I sign?", he asks surprising the two men that were there.

Khalid took a pen and handed it to Riaz who immediately signed it without reading the rest of the papers.

And this is his worse mistake as it would hurt him in the future.

"Azhar, give him what he really came here for", Khalid tells the other man who took an envelope and handed it over to Riaz who opened it to find the same amount that was written in the document was the same as in the envelope.

"You can leave now, with the papers that you brought here. I don't and will never trust you. I did that once and you nearly destroyed my daughter's life", he tells her as Riaz got up from the couch and walked out of the house feeling rich with the money that Hanan and her family had given him.

"Uncle, what did you do?", Azhar asks him.

"I did what it was needed for my daughter. She and her mother are my life. And now that she is pregnant and in a fragile state of mind, she doesn't need this. As soon as she had signed the divorce papers that I gave her, and that he signed them when he saw the amount of money he is getting. I knew that he was nothing but a gold digger", he explained to Azhar.

"I understand, and I will help you in any way that I can", Azhar tells him.

Azhar has always been closer to his uncle as Khalid helped him in becoming a lawyer like him.

Listening and thinking are two different yet so similar things in our lives. They are part of our lives.