Saad's pov:

I looked at the woman crying in my arms, her sobs wrecking her body and making me worried. No, scratch that. I looked at the 'lady' crying in my arms. I still had my doubts about calling her a woman because I didn't want to get killed by her just yet. At least not when I just escaped ammi's shot at trying her gun at me.

Sighing, I rubbed her arm gently, wondering what ridiculous things I was even thinking about. This wasn't the time to decide whether to call her a woman or a lady!

"Accha ab bas karo. Aur kitna rogi?" Dipping my head down slightly, I quietly asked her in a murmur.

(Okay enough. How much more will you cry?)

"Until- I- I don't feel better." Sniffing, she croaked out before snuggling her face in my neck, her hands fisting my shirt.

"You need to rest too, Atifa." Running my fingers through her hair, I replied worriedly.

"I'm resting." She mumbled with a sniff while wiping a finger under her nose.

"Like this?" I asked her incredulously.

"Y- yeah. Do- do you have any problem?" Pushing herself back slightly and looking up at me through her moist lashes, she asked me.

"No, but-"

"Then let me be." Keeping her head back in my neck and tightening her hold around me, she continued to shed tears silently, making me sigh as I wrapped my arms around her, hopefully in a comforting manner.

Leaning my head back on her pillow, I let my tense muscles relax. It was a hectic day, no doubt about that, I was also tired and sleepy so it was just getting exhausting for me.

Soon enough, I could feel her body relaxing in my arms before she snuggled closer to my chest, her even breath tickling my neck, indicating to me that she was fast asleep.

Looking down at her, a small smile tugged at the corner of my lips, she was definitely a stubborn cute-

"Oh, she's asleep." A feminine voice brought me out of my thoughts, making me look up from her, startled.

"Y- yeah." Trying to adjust her slightly away from me, I replied to the nurse standing in front of us.

"I- it's okay. Let her sleep. It's the medicinal side effects." Smiling slightly, she replied while coming to stand on the other side of the bed.

"Yeah but it will be uncomfortable for her. C- can you help me lay her down?" Not being able to meet her gaze, embarrassed and suddenly feeling hot, I replied.

"Okay."

._._._. 

"You have got to be kidding me!" Bhai exclaimed incredulously, making me pull my phone away from my ear due to his high pitched voice.

"If I remember correctly, you have been using the same line every time I tell you something about us." Sighing, I told him once I was sure he wouldn't shout anything else.

"Yeah but I can't help it! Like you actually found them? Like-"

"God, aur kitna pareshaan karenge aap uss bechare ko? Wo already itna pareshaan lag raha hai. Laiye, phone mujhe dijiye." I could hear bhabi's faint voice from the background before she spoke cheerfully. "Assalamualaikum Saad!"

(God, how much are you going to annoy the poor guy? He already seems so tense. Give me your phone.)

"Waalaikumussalam bhabi. Aap kaisi hai?" Shifting from one feet to another, I replied while looking around at the hospital lawn.

(How are you?)

"Haa haa, tum hi baat kar lo ab us se. Waise bhi saari masaledaar khabre to tumhe chahiye hoti haina sabse pehle?" I could hear bhai's faint annoyed murmur, making me smile.

(Yeah yeah, talk to him yourself first. You want to know all the spicy news yourself first, right?);

"Kya kaha aapne?" Bhabi inquired sternly, and I could imagine her glaring at bhai.

(What did you say?)

"Maine kaha jab baat ho jaye to mujhe phone de dena." Hearing his hurried reply, I suppressed my chuckle. They were not going to change, were they? I wasn't complaining though.

(I said that when you are done talking, hand over the call to me too.)

"Alhamdulillah theek hu. Bas tumhare bhai se pareshaan aa chuki hu mai bhi." She finally replied, sounding annoyed.

(I'm fine. Just annoyed because of your brother.)

Letting myself chuckle slightly, I replied. "Accha. Aur Wali kaisa hai?"

(I see. And how is Wali?)

"Aawazein sun rahe ho tum uski piche se? Bas subah se cheekh cheekh kar usne mujhe kuch kaam nahi karne diya hai. Ab khud soch lo wo kaisa hai." At her reply, I heard his high pitched scream before he continued to blabber something faintly. "Ab aap kyu tang kar rahe hai use?" Huffing, bhabi asked bhai in annoyance.

(Are you hearing his voice? He has been annoying me by shouting since morning. Now think how he is yourself.)
(Now why are you annoying him?)

"Kyu kya hua use? Tabiyat to theek haina uski?" Getting confused and worried, I asked her with a frown, not being able to hear bhai's response.

(Why what happened? Is he alright?)

"Ya Allah Saad! Tum abhi tak nahi badle! Bhuddu ke bhuddu hi rahoge! Alhamdulillah theek thaak hai wo tabhi to mujhe subah se tang kar raha hai." Sighing, she replied in frustration.

(Oh God Sad! You haven't changed until now! You will remain dumb! He is fine, that's why he has been shouting since morning.)

"Oh accha. Alhamdulillah, acchi baat hai." Realising she meant it in a good way, I sighed in relief.

(Oh I see. That's good then.)

"Tum batao, maine suna hai ke tumhe Atifa log mil gaye alhamdulillah." Sounding excited, she inquired cheerfully.

(You tell me, I heard you met Atifa and everyone.)

"Jee bhabi. Alhamdulillah mujhe wo yaha kal mil gaye. Aur saath hi saath ek bada hadsa bhi ho gaya…" I replied hesitantly, not knowing how she might react.

(Yes. I met them here yesterday. And something else happened too…)

"Allah khair kare, kya hua? Sab theek to haina?" Sounding worried, she asked me.

(Oh God, what happened? Is everyone alright?)

"Alhamdulillah ab sab theek hai. Matlab hospital me hi hai lekin khatre se bahar hai." Checking my wristwatch once, I replied. Atifa and Amira had gone to meet ammi, so it was my time to talk to mama baba, bhai and bhabi. 

(Everyone is fine now. They are still in the hospital, but out of danger.)

"Accha batao to kya hua? Aur hum waha aa rahe hai!" She replied, sounding confused between concern and excitement.

(Okay tell me what happened? And we are coming there!)

"Jee nahi, aap logo ko aane ki koi zarurat nahi hai." Realising what might happen if they come here, I replied sternly.

(No, you guys don't have to come here.)

Ammi was already not recognising me, let alone them. And she had gone as far as pulling that stunt on me, so what could we do if she decided to do something like that with them too? Afterall, luck isn't always on our side. And now, I was kind of scared of both, of her and for her.

"Mai tumse puch nahi rahi thi tumhe bata rahi thi. Ab batao kya hua?" She insisted, a hint of curiosity in her voice.

(I wasn't asking you, I was telling you. Now tell me what happened?)

Sighing and squeezing my eyes shut, I proceeded to tell her everything that happened here yesterday.

._._._.

Opening the journal with a frown on my face, I wondered what could be written in it that she had started crying.

The reports which I found were from four years back, when she actually found out about her condition. The starting pages had creases on them, as if someone had crumpled them before realising what it actually had in it. I wondered why she would do that.

But I didn't have to think about it much because soon enough, all of my questions were answered when I started reading her journal. It felt a bit odd, reading someone else's thoughts, someone who had poured their heart out not for anyone but only for themselves.

I felt like I was breaching someone's privacy, but this time curiosity got the best of me and I couldn't stop myself. Afterall, it was the mysterious woman's journal, wasn't it?

17th March, 2015

My dearest Daniyal,

Oh my God Dani, can you believe it? God! I'm just so happy! Today is one of the best days of my life! Well, at least until now, it is. And I think this is the first time that I'm this happy after you left!

After you, feeling happy or excited for anything felt like a sin, until today. Even though I don't exactly know why I felt so happy or excited, but watching him today, especially after his small gestures, I just couldn't control the grin forming on my face, or the skipped beats of my heart due to excitement.

Ah, don't be jealous now, I don't like anyone else like that. You were, are and will be my only love, In Sha Allah. Oh that is until and unless I don't have a grandson, then I can't promise you anything. But there is a long way to go, so I shouldn't start thinking about it from now.

Anyways, would you not like to know who or what am I even talking about?

Oh, let me tell you about it myself.

I'm talking about Saad Ibrahim.

Ufff yesss, the same boy who helped me that day when… things weren't in my favour. I don't want to think about it right now so I won't linger around that topic much and just skip to today's incident.

You must be wondering how I got to know his name and stuff, right?

So yeah, I got this Staff manager's job at a company nearby and when I was leaving the office for coffee today, I first saw him with a little girl around Amira's age. And when I was returning back to the company, I saw her leaving with Amira to our house. I was quite surprised at how she knew her. But since I was getting late for work, I couldn't go and ask them anything.

At my workplace, I saw him at the reception, talking to someone from our company. Intrigued, I quietly asked one of my co-workers about him and got to know that he was here for some deal. Surprised and impressed, because obviously boys so young nowadays aren't as dedicated as him to their work, I grinned, my mind already devising a mischievous plan. On top of that, I somehow got my hands on his CV, which was a cherry on top.

But this wasn't the only reason for my happiness, the fact that he had helped me, a complete stranger, when no one was around and those who were there, had just resorted to ignoring my calls for help was one of the reasons for my liking towards him. Other than that, he indirectly proved himself when he helped out two people on his way back to the park and in the park.

You must be thinking what is going on in my mind, right? Or maybe if you would have been here, you would have already guessed it. Ahhh, I miss you so much Dani! It would have been so much more fun with you! I could imagine you shaking your head at my idea or maybe even scolding me for what I already did. But I know even you would have enjoyed it!

Okay hear me out, I think that my baby boy, 'The Saad Ibrahim,' is perfect for my daughter. Oh yes, my baby boy, now don't get jealous of him, I'm only thinking of him as my son-in-law and not anyone else, so shush!

And yeah yeah, I know, we should do a complete background check up, have proper information, get that person investigated through someone and bla bla bla, but yaar, I'm so sure about him! Like believe me, I'm 110% sure that he is the one for our daughter. He is so quiet, shy, cute and kind. The most attractive thing about him is his kindness, no matter what he might be doing or even if he needs help himself, if he is in ten position to help someone, he does. And he is understanding and patient too. Now don't ask me how I got to know about this too, his work ethics told me that.

Anyways, continuing to where I left- yeah yeah, don't worry, I will investigate him and get his background check done too. So where was I?

Yeah, so when I was returning back home from work, I saw him at the park, trying to find his sister. I realised that he didn't know that she left with Amira so that's why he was searching for her there. And although I was having second thoughts on my plan, watching him searching for his sister like that in the park just compelled me to go forward with it, no matter how ridiculous it might seem to anyone. Because maybe Allah Subhanahu Wa Taàla also wanted the same thing and He was giving me a chance to make him my son-in-law. And I'm definitely not someone who would lose such a precious chance, am I?

So calling a few of those people who I have helped before, and I knew they would help me out when needed, I told them to come to the park closest to our house, excitement and thrill running through my veins.

When I spotted them looking around in confusion, I jogged towards them with a grin on my face. I wanted them to kidnap him. Yes, kidnap him such that he wouldn't even know what happened and they would bring him to the basement of our house. I already had a chloroform spray in my bag, just for safety measures, which was going to be used now. Ah, I was so excited that I couldn't even contain my thrill! I most probably looked like a mental patient to them but I couldn't care less, this was my chance and I wasn't going to let it go, at any cost.

My original plan was to let them do their work but since I didn't want to miss any scene or make any mistakes, I went ahead with the boys, the chloroform spray in my hand. Once we were sure that there wasn't anyone around us except that boy, and since it was around 3:30 or something most of the people were already at their homes which was a plus point for us, I quickly sprayed the chloroform on his face, not before making sure to cover my face with a cloth. Those guys were beside him in a moment, ready to hold him and take him to our house. While we were taking him, it most probably looked like we were taking a fainted guy back to his house. It was so funny!

In the basement, they pushed him on a chair and tied him hands and feets. It gave me a villaino feeling, making me grin in contentment. Once they left, I waited for him to wake up, creating different scenarios in my mind about how I would talk to him once he wakes up. It was fun Dani, I enjoyed something in my life after a long time. And it was even funnier to watch his expression whenever I called him baby boy, and it has become my favorite thing.

Didn't I tell you that I would kidnap someone at least once in my lifetime? My original plan was to kidnap you anonymously someday, but since you aren't here anymore, I fulfilled my wish with my baby boy. Oops, I mean my future son-in-law. xD

Ahhh, today was such an eventful day, I don't think I would ever be able to forget about it. But… I can't be sure about this because of my Alzheimer.

By the way, he doesn't live here, he is from Savusavu, and he came here due to some business deal with his sister. But look what happened, my poor baby boy. Who would have thought something like this would have happened to him?

Also, I hadn't planned on blackmailing him with his sister, but I had to because he wasn't listening to me. I obviously hadn't kidnapped her or something, but I agree, I did take advantage of his vulnerable situation and now I feel guilty about it.

But oh well, jo hai so hai. Aur jo ho gaya so ho gaya, we can't change it now. And I honestly don't even want to change anything, I just want him to agree to marry Atifa so that I can be at peace with the fact that I chose someone good for her. Someone who would always be by her side, love her, care for her, understand her and never leave her side. In Sha Allah.

Chaliye now I'm sleepy, so I'm ending this here. But I will keep updating you about things In Sha Allah. xD

Yours truly,
Safiya.

Stunned; that's what I felt when I read this part of her journal. So she was the one who I helped when I came to Suva with my family while heading to Lautoka?

I could faintly recall that I offered to call the police but with shaking hands, she had covered herself while denying, tears streaming down her face uncontrollably. Her denial had gotten me so angry that I couldn't stop wondering why she would even deny getting him caught. And that was also the day when I realised how women were objectified in our society. After the incident, I had dropped her at the hospital with bhai as mama and baba had already left with Alayna for some restaurant and we were heading there in another car.

Sighing, I turned the page, curious to know what else had she written in it.

20th March, 2015

Dani…

Today was a big day. Today was a big day for our princess Dani, and I missed you so much. We all did. I- You don't know how I tried to control my tears by keeping myself busy all these days. Your presence was greatly missed by us. Especially by me.

Yes, Saad Ibrahim agreed to marry our daughter the day before yesterday and today was their nikkah. His bhai and bhabi came today morning to attend the nikkah but his parents didn't come. I don't know the reason, maybe they didn't agree or maybe he didn't tell them, I'm not sure. I wanted to meet them and get to know them but oh well, maybe some other time, In Sha Allah.

You know, our princess looked so good in that cream gown, and everyone surrounding her with light pink gowns? She looked like a fairy, an angel in disguise. Even if I tried my best to keep my emotions at bay, we still had an emotional moment today. I just couldn't stop myself from hugging her and expressing my happiness and sadness. Everything.

You know, all my hard work from the past yr went in vain since the day Saad entered our lives. I was being a good cold woman but he came and brought out the old me, the happy and excited woman. Why?

I don't know, but he is the one guy who had managed to move me other than you, and I just couldn't be cold to someone who had once helped me at such a time.

And because of him, I also let my guard down in front of Atifa and Amira and everyone else present today, surprising them. It was kind of surprising for me too, my sudden change of behavior with everyone. But oh well, I guess it's okay. At least for a few days? I don't know. You wouldn't have liked the cold me anyway so watching me since the last two days would have made you relieved. Actually, what am I even talking about? If you would have been here, I wouldn't have turned into a cold woman because things would have been different then.

Plus, the reason for me being cold isn't just your absence and my detachment with everyone, but also because I know that I don't have much time left in this world. And I don't want our daughters to get attached to me again just to get their heart and trust broken when… when even I leave them alone here…

So just being cold to them is going to make them hate me, and it would be easier for them to let go of me when I leave. I know you wouldn't have approved of this plan of mine but since you aren't here anymore I just… Don't even want to do something which might remind me of you again and again. But you know what the irony is? Whatever I do, wherever I go, something or the other always keeps reminding me of you. And then I miss you so much more.

Anyways, where was I?

Oh yeah, Atifa's marriage. She has grown so much. Although I agree that she's still young, seventeen to be more precise, but I just got her married. I pray that she always stays happy and blessed. Amira too. I pray that even she gets a loving, caring and understanding husband in future. Someone who is on deen and always does what's right, no matter what.

I can't believe it Dani, I can't. I can't believe that I just did something which Atifa has the full right of choosing for herself. I can't believe that I just… blackmailed someone into getting married to my daughter, although I did give him a chance to deny it when I realised how drastically it might affect his life and how I might be forcing him to do something against his own will. But that doesn't change the fact that I almost forced him to do something against his own will.

I just hope that he always keeps her happy. I already know that he is going to do it, but still, I hope that he is never the reason behind her cries. I hope that he proves himself to be a good husband, just like you. No actually, even better than you. Obviously our daughter deserves the best, right?

You know, when Saad's brother, Maaz, told me that they wanted to talk about something important, I honestly thought that they were going to cancel the nikkah. But when they asked about the Mehr, a sigh of relief escaped my lips.

Now as I'm writing this to you, Amira and Alayna, Saad's sister, went to sleep while I'm in our room and others are all watching a movie. Saad's family, as much as I got to know until now, are pretty nice, alhamdulillah. I'm glad that our daughter is a part of such a loving family. And I pray that they all love her like their own.

I'm not sleepy yet, but I know that I have to sleep, so I'm going to try to shut off my thoughts and rest now. It was a tiring day afterall.

Also, I can't notice much difference in me since I got to know about my Alzheimer's disease, maybe I will be able to stay here longer than I first thought. Let's see.

Once again, I missed you. And I love you.

Yours truly,
Safiya.

._._._.

• What would you like to see by the end of the story? Any loopholes which I forgot and should cover?

._._._.