Bismillah hir Rahman nir Raheem.

"Do you, by any chance get hurt through critics?", asked Jesima as she rubbed the countertop of their kitchen with a wet rug to make it shine.

"Most of the people do, but I am more scared of people judging me", Shabna replied doing the dishes.

"Yeah! That too",

"Why do you ask?", Shabna asked.

"People judging and criticizing us are both sides of the same coin we fear about Shabs. It's like their job, it's like they earn money for doing these",

"True. Some people's job is to put their nose on other's business",

"Exactly! People always say things, but that doesn't mean you should always listen. And do you know what I feel sometimes?",

"What?", Shabna asked turning around to face her.

"It hurts so bad when we are subjected to judgment and criticize, right?",

Shabna shook her head in affirmative and Jesima continued, "I think even our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) got hurt from those",

"Of course he would have! His blood relations judged him, tortured him so much, it would have caused him immense amount of pain and suffering",

"Yeah! And that's why Allah revealed Qur'an as a consolation to him. Allah consoles him almost over all the Qur'an. He was a Human-like us after all, and like we feel depressed on our tribulations, he did too and we can also head consolation from the Book of Allah as well

"For example, in Sûrah Duha, Allah says, 

Your Lord has not forsaken you nor does He dislike you!

So many times when we are tested we think that Allah has left us alone or we think that he does not like us anymore and we imagine that as the reason why he was testing us. And this verse is a beautiful consolation for those thoughts",

"Subhanallah!",

"Then comes my favorite verse,

And he found you lost and guided you. 

This means even our Prophet felt lost in his problems too and Allah (S. A. W) guided him to the straight path. These verses are so cute in their way. They show how much Allah loves our Prophet and us to the far extent",

"Masha Allah! Jesima. I haven't thought that way", 

"Allah is very Merciful Shabs, What I am telling you from this is, as Human beings we can feel insecure due to our trials and even feel alone, But Allah is there for us and Qur'an is his greatest of Sign that he is with us and will always be no matter how much astray we go. It's not only advice for our Prophet but the whole of the Mankind",

"Anyone who wants solace in his heart can seek refuge in it. The Qur'an is full of miracles and it is like magic because you can find all your problems already has been tested with the righteous ones and the Prophet's", 

"Like what?", Shabna asked, gaining more interest in the topic of discussion. 

"Like if your your own blood holds grudges against you, then the same would have Yousuf(A. S)  been felt when his brother's pushed him inside the well. When you think you are suffering from severe diseases, Allah speaks of how he tested Prophet Ayyoub (A. S), if your society points a finger at your chastity, Allah (S. A. W) held witness to Ayesha (R. A) in Sûrah Noor, that she wass indeed chaste. When you feel darkness encompassing all around you, think about what Younus (A. S.) would have gone through in the belly of a whale, when you are asked to sacrifice the most beloved possession you have, imagine how Ibrahim (A. S) agreed to sacrifice his own son, when your children/spouse/parents die in front of your eyes, reckon how Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him) would have felt when he was born as an orphan, his mother, six of his children, his beloved wife and so many died in front of his eyes, when you think your problems are immense and you don't see a way out, feel how Musa (A. S) would have felt when he stood with the people of Bani Israel in front of the red sea, if your children doesn't obey your ways, think how Nooh (A. S) would have felt when his son didn't accept faith, and the list goes on and on", 

"Allah is consoling you with his word's, making you feel strong and heal through the pain, and they are directed to no one but its reader, aligning in such a way that it makes us feel better", By the end of Jesima's small speech, Shabna's eyes were full of moisture, "All you need to do is open the book, and you will find peace", 

"Subhanallah! He discusses every type of problem and the reward we would achieve at the end of it", 

"Yeah! Having Sabr to reap Allah's rewards through our trials is very hard, that's why Allah says to hold on for some more, the rejoice is indeed near", 

"Indeed! It would be", Shabna replied with a smile. 

.... 

Shabna moved the cart through the aisle and turned towards a different section.

She was checking over the counters when her eyes fell on him.

But this time, he wasn't alone. He had company. A beautiful young lady clad in a black Abhaya and dark green hijab smiled at him, and his eyes beamed back at her.

Shabna gulped, for her mission went positive. He hadn't noticed her all the times they met, he has someone who he deserved, in his life. Someone who wasn't her. She didn't know why but her throat clotted into a knot, readying her for a sob.

She gripped the steel beneath her hand, hard. When she wasn't meant to be his, why did she even lay her eyes on him?

He laughed at something she commented, and it broke her heart in the process. Then he pinched her cheeks and she hugged him, he returned the gesture with all, but love.

When he withdrew from her did his face change. She blinked twice but the face didn't vary. She saw Armaan in him. Armaan hugging the other women and mocking at her. In the past, she found about his affair in a stupid supermarket and here she was seeing him, again.

Anger raged her insides. After ruining her world, he did not have the slightest of guilt, and here he was hugging the women like no tomorrow. Her vision blurred. This time, she would do what she should have done before.

Her hands left the cart and her feet marched towards them, she pulled him with all her might, she couldn't see his face for her eyes were filled with tears. She slapped him without even thinking anything.

"How could you do this to me? Why do you hurt me so much, when I don't deserve any of that?", her voice jumbled with heartbreak.

"Hey! What are you speaking about?", asked the woman turning her around, so Shabna could face her instead.

Shabna roughly wiped her eye's looking at her, she was beautiful would be an understatement, no wonder, why he chose her over Shabna.

"Hey! Who are you?", Fathima asked.

Maahi stood stunned, and he couldn't believe that Shabna slapped him across his face. "Shabna!", he whispered her name, his husky voice sinking.

"Wait! Maahi, you know her?", Fathima asked looking at him, shocked.

"Maahi?", Shabna gasped putting a hand over her mouth and when she understood what she had done, it was too late.

She felt slightly dizzy, her head pounding to no extent and she was about to fall, but Fathima held her before she fell on the floor. Fathima slowly dragged her to a seating and sat beside her, holding her hand. Maahi stood a few yards away from her, running a hand through his hair, worried sick.

He did not mind that she slapped him, all he cared about at this moment was that she would feel okay.

Fathima still held her hand and she gripped it tightly as she sobbed her heart out. What has she done? In order to push him away, she had pushed him too hard? Too far, out of her reach now. When finally the thought occurred to her that he was now gone, gone away from her, did she feel her heart break, the way she did not imagine it would.

"Are you alright?", Fathima asked with concern.

Shabna just nodded a moment later, her eye's still teary. She looked up at a tall figure standing away from her, and when her gaze fell on his face, she broke even more. She had done something so terrible in her life that she won't forgive her for the rest of the journey. How could she slap him?

Who was she to slap him?

He wasn't at fault. He wasn't Armaan.

"Are you okay?", Fathima asked slowly tapping her shoulder. Shabna turned to look at her and she realized that the lady looked almost similar to Maahi. Her eyes were the same shade of black and they were so beautiful.

She looked away, back to him, losing herself in deep regrets." You like him, don't you?", Fathima voiced her thoughts and Shabna immediately turned towards her.

"What? No!", She blurted a lie.

"You thought I am his wife or something like that, don't you?",

Shabna bit her lower lip, "No! In actual, I thought of him as someone else I was related to", this sounded reasonable.

But Fathima shook her head, "I won't agree to that. But don't worry! I am neither his wife nor his girlfriend, I am his sister",

This made Shabna's head snap at her again. That's how she looked an exact xerox copy of him, she thought to herself.

Shabna wiped her eyes again and pressed the hand which held Fathima's, "I don't get what you are talking about but I want to apologize for my impulsive behavior. I am sorry for what I have done. I didn't know what got over me. But please, I beg of you. Please.", she breathed with pain.

"Please let him know my deepest of regrets. I won't, I promise, I will make sure, I would never, ever cross paths with him again and hurt him in any way. Tell him I am so so sorry and ask him to forgive me if it was even possible, and Thank you, thank you for being kind", she cried still holding her hand and Fathima felt at the loss of words. With that Shabna got up and rushed outside. 

Shabna pressed the doorbell numerous times and Jesima opened it in a rush, "What happened Shabna?", she asked perplexed, as her eyes laid on her vulnerable friend.

"Jessie!", Shabna hugged her and started crying, 

Jesima was shell shocked to see her friend in this state, "Did somebody hurt you?", 

"No! But I did",

"You did what?", 

"I hurt somebody", 

"It's okay Shabna! You can always apologize", Jesima tried to console,  removing her head from Shabna's shoulder and looked into her face. 

"Some things aren't meant to be forgiven", Shabna let out, her eyes feeling groggy, due to the amount of crying. 

"First Come inside", Jesima pulled her inside and made her sit on the couch. She went to the kitchen and opened the upper cabinet and grabbed a glass and after filling water, she returned to Shabna and saw her zoning out. 

"Shabna!", she called out and the latter just hummed. Shabna felt pathetic, sick of her self. 

"Who did you hurt?  Did you scold someone?", 

"I slapped him Jessie, and that too for no reason", her eye's filled with tears remembering her stupidity. 

"What did you do?", Jesima asked, going in pure horror of the shock. 

"You heard me", Shabna replied, too tired to explain, too tired of her being. 

"Who did you slap?", Jesima asked, plopping beside her placing the glass of water on the table. 

"Maahi", Her voice was so low, that Jesima could barely decipher his name. 

"Who is he Shabna?", 

"The one who took us to the bus stop, when we first came here", 

"I vaguely remember him but why did you do something like that?", 

"I am asking myself the same thing", Shabna turned around, her eyes meeting her friend's, "He was hugging his sister in the middle of the shopping complex and I saw Armaan in him. Remember I found about Armaan's affair in the Shopping Mall too?", 

Jesima just nodded her head. She added two and two and concluded that her friend here, was being delusional for this person. She was feeling jealous, and she didn't want him to like anyone else other than her or even hug her in that sense, for the poor boy was hugging his sister. 

She finally understood that Shabna is falling for this person but little did she know that her friend has already fallen. 

..... 

Fathima interlocked her fingers into her brother's and he ran a hand through his hair, for he didn't expect the turn of events the day brought. 

They walked out of the Mall and towards the parking. When they neared their car, Maahi took the car keys from his pocket and placed it over Fathima's palm. 

"I am not in the mood of it", 

Fathima agreed and sat in the driver's seat and he groggily got inside the passenger seat and pulled the seat belt and locked in the side. Fathima eyed him and when he didn't meet her gaze, she started the engine and drove the car out of the Mall. 

"So?", she asked once outside. 

"Fathima! I am sorry but..", she cut him, "Maahi! I want to know, Okay?", 

"Who is she?", When he didn't reply she again asked, "Maahi! How did you know her?",

"She was the one I accompanied to the bus station a few months back", 

"Ya Allah! The Doctor?",

Maahi just shook his head in a no. "The one who was cute?", When he looked at her with clear annoyance, she smiled sheepishly, "Well! Mamma was telling me about them. And after seeing her today, I feel Mamma was right. Indeed she was cute". 

"Fathima", he groaned. 

"Okay! I must say you are very poor Maahi", 

"Why?", 

"Do you remember Ali did the same thing to you when the first time he met you,?", when Maahi looked up confused, she explained, "The time you visited us during your college holidays. When my friends Katie, Steve came over and Ali was Alan at that time and he was so angry with you because you loved me but refused to marry me", 

"Ya Allah! I remember. He was completely pathetic that time", 

"Pathetic over me", she smiled remembering how much her husband loved her back then and now. 

"Yeah, whatever! What do you want to tell with that incident by the way?", he asked getting frustrated. 

"He did that because he was jealous of me being with you.., because he liked me..", Maahi cut her now, "Fathima she wasn't jealous of me hugging you, or else why would she had a break down the next second and not to forget Ali did not slap me", 

"Yes! That's something to give a thought to", she said turning the car into the lane and slowing it down over the traffic. 

"Okay! Tell me something", and he hummed. 

"Do you like her?", she asked stopping the car completely on the red light and faced him, her eyes shining with a glint. Maahi was too tired to ignore the truth now. He was already so much hurt. All because of Shabna. 

He liked her but never forced her to reciprocate his feelings. He walked away from her, even though he did not like it a bit but when he was thinking that she wouldn't even notice him, out of the blue she came and slapped him. 

"So you like her then",  Fathima cut his chain of thoughts.

"Fathima! She was the first girl I have ever put my eyes on. All my life, I have ignored all the girl species like germs but she is someone who ignored me. The more she backed away, the more I fell for her. She doesn't like me Fathima! And when finally I started accepting that fact, she ruined it ", he ran a hand through his hair. 

"Ya Allah! Maahi! I finally get it", 

"You get What?", 

"She isn't ignoring you. She is purposefully pushing you away so that you won't fall for her but she did not know that you fell for her for the exact same reason", 

"How do you know?", 

"I am a girl, remember? I saw the way she looked at you and I even talked with her. I think something is bothering her and that's why she is persistent to not let you in or anyone in that sense to enter her life", 

"You girls are so confusing. What are you going to conclude from your thesis by the way?", he asked. 

"Dummy! She likes you", with that Fathima stopped the car in their driveway.