Unflatering..

Chapter 34

I sat beside him playing with his beard with him being sound asleep…today was the first time I noticed how long his eyelashes were, how slim his lips were and the extreme handsomeness he possessed…I traced the shape of them with my finger before watching him groan uncomfortably waking up with my face close to his.

I flick his forehead smiling as I point towards the breakfast set beside him. He smiles kissing my forehead before covering himself with the duvet.

1 am, that’s when he arrived last night. He worked really hard. I leave the room set out for my productive day. I couldn’t imagine working a night shift and raising a family by day…no wonder marriages don’t work out for most doctors. I arrive at the meeting for my new catalog for the studio in Japan, that I had opened during the second half-year in Japan. The works displayed there would be shipped from here to there, from time to time.

Soon I'd have a low-key fan meeting with the people over there…After the conference, I headed over to Mutaq with a few sketches…we had coffee before I rushed over to the studio to get a bit of work done. Without realization and a yawn at sunset, I noticed how time flew by I packed up rushing out to find Zafar waiting on the outside of the studio to take me home.

“ What time do you leave for your shift?” i ask wiping my forehead.

“I don’t have an operation any time soon so I go in for consultations for a few hours only.”

“ interesting, by the way about your seniors offer.”

“ stop, ” he said placing his finger onto my lips, “ I genuinely admire her talent but I would never want to work with her.”

“why not?” i say trying to hide my smile.

“ she’s possessive and we have a messed up past.”

“ I see, ” I say

“ so do you want any details?”

“no thank you,” I say leaving.

Messed up past, equals to a special relationship, whatever honestly...i say ignoring the idea.

“ Please make sure that you add this price range to the old works as well, and yes I’ll be there in three months,” ending the call I rush over to eat the breakfast made earlier.

Zero appetite….with zero zees caught last night. Maybe I was a little bothered by the senior girl.

“ Nura,” Mutaq said entering the studio

“jee(yes), ” I say snapping out of my daydream

“ what are you staring at?”

“ I was just picturing something it’s not important, what's up?”

“ Yacob and Ameera sent their greetings as well as this invitation for their Aqeeqah.”

“ They have a kid?” I ask wiping my hands on my apron, before grabbing his phone.

“ Yup," he says waiting

“ I envy them so much…” I say scrolling through the pictures on his phone

“ I thought that’s far from what you wanted.”

“ that’s actually what I wanted after getting married, but not everything goes according to plan I guess…and I’m still processing Zafar as a husband sometimes.”

“ if I were beside you I would’ve promised and cherished you, fulfilled all your little dreams as well,” he said gently taking his phone, “ our time on this earth is limited, make sure that you use it wisely.”

He left the studio after his cab arrived, who would’ve thought the kid who played around with plastic spoons would be so wise…was I really wasting my time?

“ your still here, ” Zafar says placing a coffee beside me

“Hmm, thanks for the coffee.”

He watched me finish off before helping me tidy up.

“How was work, ” I ask trying to focus on small talk

“work is work…I missed you a lot today.”

“ no wonder, I had terrible hiccups. Call me next time, ” i say laughing… “ Zafar, do you think that we’re wasting our time?”

He looked up to the ceiling shipping his coffee, “I’ve always been ready, it’s you that I’m waiting for.”

“ I’m ready to, ” I say looking at him

“ ready to…drop this dream of yours and start a normal life, living under my sustenance…leaving behind your future ambitions, I don’t think any of us could ever sacrifice that much…especially an independent beauty like you.”

“ I don’t know if that’s a compliment or an insult.”

“ take it how it is, no matter what though…I’m always willing to support your decision.”

I don’t know if I should be grateful or afraid of that. Love is sacrifice, he was right…I wanted to live out my dream first before living a grounded normal life, I was the reason our relationship was so pathetic.

We were walking home, from the studio…silently beside each other. I was confused about what I wanted.

“ do you think of me as well?” he said taking a seat near the Park

“what do you mean?”

“do you think of my smile, my laughter, my embrace, my company, whether I’ve eaten? If I'm okay...stuff like that, you know Just as I think about you all the time.”

“ I’m not answering that question, ”I say before taking a seat beside him.

It was cloudy on that night, and this idiot was making me sit down in public away from shelter.

“ I’ll take it as a yes, ” he says shiting closer to me

“Psht that never came out of my mouth.”

With the sky suddenly pouring onto the earth he grabbed be covering the both of us with his jacket, as the rain poured I found myself smiling as I looked up to him trying to wage a war against the raindrops.

We arrive home minutes later taking a seat near the fireplace trying to warm up.

“ Someone’s a lot fitter then three years ago, ” I say handing him a cup of hot chocolate

“ took you long enough to notice.”

“ my bad, I was mainly focused on that new haircut and the whole beard thingy.”

He smiles covering me with the blanket he had, “ are you ever going to tell me why you left karate when you were younger?”

“ you still remember that, such an irrelevant topic."

“ of course I do, ” he says pushing me gently

“ well to cut everything short I had a really server knee injury…the doctors told me that it could be fatal…a while after I healed I still couldn’t practice or I'd be wheelchair-bound.”

“interesting, but how'd that happen?”

“a story for another day, I don’t like talking about it.”

“ I'll be waiting then...”

With the both of us being caught up in work drama again we only saw each other for meals and short errands. I was out on more business trips and he had to fill in at the hospital wherever he could.

“you again?” she said walking towards me

I roll my eyes trying to leave. Stopped at the exit, I stand patiently in front of her trying not to make a scene.

“ How can I help you?”

“ Why didn’t you allow Zafar to come over and work at my practice?”

“ Zafar’s choice of where he wants to operate has nothing to do with me, now if you’ll excuse me I have to go, ” I say pushing her aside.

How annoying. Elham stood behind her, interesting how she always makes these garbage friends.

Later that day i caught my flight to Japan and spend three days there for a fan signing and a stock take, before visiting my old dojo. I arrive a few days later exhausted with that weird toxic woman in my lounge laying next to Zafar. I ignore both of them as I rushed upstairs to rest.

The next morning with both of them awake I sat there watching Zafar rub his head as she looked onto the floor.

“ care to explain?” I say looking towards them,

Zafar looked around him confused before sitting up barely opening his eyes.

“ it’s not what it looks like, ” she says waving her hands around…

I look towards Zafar before leaving the house…if there are two things I hated the most, it was explanations and excuses, I didn’t want to see either of them after walking into such an obscene sight in my own house.

Zafar came over to the studio later that day stating that he was just as confused as I was about her being in our house…all he remembers is going to dinner with her then waking up the next morning.

“ I didn’t ask you about what happened, you just choose to tell me…so now I’m choosing not to believe you, ” I say turning away and back towards my plain canvas.

“Nura I didn’t do anything I promise.”

“How would you know, didn’t you say that you were basically blacked out after having dinner with her, in fact, why were you eating out with her in the first place.”

“ Nura…clearly I can see that even if I tell you the truth it’s meaningless, but I know that I didn’t bring her into my house or touch her, ” he said leaving

I was not in the mood for people who enjoyed sticking their nose in other people's business...

“ Why are you everywhere I am?" I ask paying for my takeaway.

“ Are you implying that I’m stalking you?” she said grinning.

“looks like it.”

“ interesting you don’t look that messed up after seeing your man wake up beside me.”

“ Even an idiot would know that you set him up darling, if you want to continue being childish then I’ll have to play even dirtier. So do yourself a favor and stay out of my way.”

I leave with my order rushing home. How the hell did I get so many enemies.

“Nura I..”

“don’t explain anything to me, Zafar. Don't talk to me.”

“ But I took a test and i was knocked out and dragged home by her.”

“Zafar, ”I say banging my coffee mug onto the table.” Why can you understand that this isn’t about whatever happened? Obviously, it looked hyper unrealistic, what bothers me is that agh, I don’t want to tell you who to meet or what to do. You're way smarter than I am how could you allow such an idiot to manipulate you!”

“ she asked me to check out the new technology she set up in her practice, then asked me to eat out with her. I don’t know what happened after that.”

“let's use your solution…lets split up for three years. With no contact or any visits!” I say banging the door of my room.

I rushed over to the dojo punching the bag set up at the corner of the class, none stop…a way I would vent out my anger...

“you're about to faint yet you don’t want to stop.”

“ Mutaq why are you here at this hour, ”

“ I left something here from today’s class. What’s bugging you?”

“Nothing special, I just miss class that all.”

“ your face tells a different story, why would you willingly let a punching bag eat the flesh of your knuckles?” he says grabbing both of my hands.

“ Caught red-handed, I’m just lost.”

“lost?”

“ yeah, would you say Zafar is the type to cheat?”

“far from that, he had you in his heart for year’s I heard.”

“ exactly. But I think I’m angry because that girl keeps on showing up.”

“Which one?”

“Kadija…anyways back to my bag,” he pulled me back towards him

“ I ah, not on my watch, it's getting late you need some rest”

“That’s exactly what I’m trying to avoid.”

I arrive home still dressed in my sweaty clothing and gloves, “ Nura forgive me. I won’t meet her again..”

I silently walk past him…forgiveness’ is earned not just given