Chapter 21: Strange feelings

"Nile is very beautiful. My lord. I have enjoyed the excursion very much." Asiya tells Pharaoh.

"I'm pleased to hear this." Pharaoh replies adjusting the pillow under his head. He watches the woman standing infront of him, holding Nefera, getting her to sleep. Nefera already fell asleep. So Asiya takes her to nursery where her elder children sleep.

All except Aziza sleep. Asiya takes Nefera to her bed. Then she tells her elder daughter, "Aziza, if any of them wakes up, then don't hesitate to call me." With that she kisses Aziza's forehead and leaves the nursery.

Asiya finds that Pharaoh is awake. He looks kind of tensed. "You look tensed, Pharaoh. Is everything alright?"

Pharaoh can see that this woman knows everything about his feelings. She can tell when he gets tensed, when he is happy, everything is memorized by her. Pharaoh knows that he must share his emotions with his wife. Because only she can understand him.

Pharaoh lets a shaky breath.

"Asiya!" He calls her. When she turns towards him he pat the empty space beside him indicating her to sit. She sits there.

The pharaoh tells her, "Though you are my wife, it seems to me that somehow we have a gap between us,that is why we can not accept one another easily. That you do not even talk with me properly. You always bend your head down whenever I am present there. Why are you so shy?"

"You are my lord, Pharaoh. Why should I keep my head high when you are infront of me? I am your subordinate. You told me that. After our wedding , you forbid me to do so."

With that she goes to her side of the bed. Turning her back towards Pharaoh she fell asleep leaving Anmatre in a state of anger.

Pharaoh lies in the bed folding his only hand over his chest. Silently he curses himself and Asiya. He curses Asiya for her true words and also for not telling him sorry. He curses himself because he once forbade her from geting closer to him. He decides he will do whatever he must to get this woman's attention. He will earn what should be his. No, he will win this woman.

Next morning Pharaoh wakes up to find Asiya standing on the balcony. He goes to the garden. From there he picks some fresh flowers. Binding them together very beautifully with the help of the gardener, he presents them to his queen.

But Asiya only tells him, "Did I ask you for this?"

Pharaoh's smile is faded from his face as if he is slapped by her.

"Here, give that to me." With that she snatches the flowers from his hands and then in front of his eyes, tears the whole bouquet of flower and then throws it away. It fells in the lake of the palace. Pharaoh is surprized by her strange behavior. He only stares at her, dumbfounded.

Now Asiya gets back to her chambers. Nina, her servant comes to her aid.

"Nina, I'm feeling sick. If anyone, be it Pharaoh or my parents, comes to see me, just do not let them enter." She tells her.

"I won't your majesty. You may sleep."

................ ......... .........

Asiya knows that she can not tell Pharaoh about the cause of her strange behavior. Though she feels the urge to tell him.

"But this will only hamper his works. And I don't want that. I will tell you, Anmatre, but not now. I know you are fond of children. You love them. This news will also make you happy. But I also know that you will get more upset. Because you can not leave your work. If you are by my side then your works will get piled up. And it will kill you. And I will never allow that. After you get some of the works done, I will surely tell you." She tells herself.

So she decides to wait. She takes care of herself. Sometimes she wishes that she gives birth to another girl. For she knows that Pharaoh loves his daughters more than anything. And he also loves Amir but he always scolds him in his own manner of showing affection. And he can not also tolerate the pain when his son gets ill and catches fever. He sits there all the time to give Amir some comfort. Sometimes he gets tensed and even refuses to eat because the boy can not eat.

So Asiya decides that she will not put Pharaoh under pressure. But in a few days when he will be free from all of his tensions, she will surely tell him.