บท 6: Chapter Six
Within a large airport, a family traveled with quick steps. They were frantic. Their eyes kept darting around the area, their heads turned rapidly. Sometimes they would drop a small bag because of their chaotic movements.
"Where is he? I can't see him!" The one in the lead was an old woman with wrinkles covering her face. Though she was old, her movements weren't like an old person.
"Calm down mom, he will be here." A young man spoke up to calm the old woman, but his movements weren't any less anxious.
"Shut up Maazi." The old woman growled at him, causing the young man to cower. "Aliya, do you see him? Dear, do you see him?" She kept asking the rest while looking around with even more anxiety.
"There!" Suddenly, Maya, who was closer to the back of the group, pointed towards their left. "Right there, he is over there!" She screamed, causing the whole family to look in the direction of her finger. The mother was the first to look, and when a certain face fell into her line of sight, tears filled her eyes. She dropped all the bags in her hands and ran with her fastest speed.
"Aaru!" She screamed so loudly that everyone in the surroundings looked over for a second.
"M-mom!" The person she was running to was of course Aarush. He had been waiting in the airport for an hour now. He was just as anxious as the rest. He pushed people aside just to be in the front, but he couldn't see them for a long while. Now though, seeing his mother, he couldn't help but leap over the metal railing and run towards her. "Mom!" He also yelled.
They finally reached each other. "Aaru, it's really you." His mom grabbed his face and looked him over anxiously, making sure it was the real deal. It was difficult to imagine what a mother would go through after not seeing her child for seven years. The tears kept streaming down her face as she touched his face. "Aaru, my love, I missed you so much." She gave him a tight hug, while the latter also hugged her back. His eyes were wet as well.
"I missed you too mom." Aarush then lifted his head and saw an old man approach him with similarly wet eyes. "Dad." Aarush pulled the old man into his embrace as well. He suddenly felt a lot more at peace. His parents were here, they were finally here with him.
"You stupid kid, vanishing so suddenly." His dad spoke silently. "You know this old man has a weak heart, how could you just leave?"
"Sorry, I know what I did was dumb." Aarush said in an apologetic tone which was filled with guilt. "But this won't ever happen again." He let his parents go, but his mom didn't release his arm. She held onto it tightly, as if it was the only thing keeping her up. Aarush smiled and let her do as she pleased. He slowly walked over to his siblings and hugged them one by one. "Maazi, Maya, Aliya. I haven't seen you three in so long." He hugged them happily, kissing their foreheads one by one.
"We missed you too." Aliya spoke with tears as well. She was there seeing her brother leave back then. She witnessed her brother's condition when his wife died in his arms. She saw it all. Ever since he left, she had been worried he would do something stupid, yet her prayers worked and he still lived.
"Wow, you got a new look." Maya spoke with surprise after everyone slowly calmed down.
"Woah, when did you pierce your ears?" Maaz asked while reaching out and touching his earrings. "Looks sick."
"I got them done a few years ago." Aarush said with a smile.
"You look very handsome my dear." His mom suddenly spoke up with a smile. Aarush was a little taken aback, He knew his mother was usually against these things, so seeing her compliment it surprised him. "Really, it looks nice." She said it once again seeing that Aarush had a questioning look on his face.
"Thank you mom." He planted a kiss on her wrinkly cheek. His smile became brighter. "Alright, let's quickly go to…"
"Aaru uncle?" Aarush was so distracted that he didn't even notice the little girl walking with Aliya. She was small, but familiar.
A little stunned, Aarush walked over to her slowly. "N-Noori?" Aarush got on his knees and touched her cheek slowly. Everyone watched this with smiles. They knew how much Aarush loved Noori. "You've gotten so big." The last time he saw her was when she was only four, now she was eleven.
Though Noori didn't recognize Aarush too much, she could see the love in his eyes. "H-how are you?" She was still a little unfamiliar with him, so she felt it a little awkward speaking to him. Aarush sighed when he saw this.
'I stayed apart for so long, she barely recognizes me.' He felt hurt by this the most. When she was a little girl, he would spoil her with no hesitation, getting her anything she wanted, taking her everywhere, and giving her as much love as possible. "I'm great Noori. What about you? You got so pretty, much better than your mom." Aarush spoke with a smile. "Here, let's go to my house." He was about to grab her hand, but he noticed that she instead grabbed Aliya's. He sighed even more. Back then, she would run to him for anything rather than her own mother.
Aliya noticed this and so did the rest, but they couldn't do anything about it. It truly had been too long. "Aaru, here let's quickly go. I want to see where you have been living." Aliya said with a sweet smile.
Nodding his head, he led them into a large car. He helped Aliya into the car and then helped his parents. Maaz sat in the front with him. They drove back slowly. Maaz asked Aarush lots of questions about what he was doing. Everyone else also asked various things, which Aarush answered patiently.
"Alright, this is it. This is my house." Aarush pulled up to a large house. The family opened their mouths and looked at it in shock.
"So big!" They all said collectively.
"Yeah." Aarush smiled. He parked the car on the side and everyone began to enter the house. "Everyone's rooms are already cleaned up." He smiled and led his parents to the sofa while his younger siblings began to explore with Noori. Aliya sat down with her parents.
"Aarush, this house is very nice. It is so big, how do you keep it clean?" His mom asked curiously.
"I have a servant to do that for me. He is very good and has been working for me for the past five years or so." Aarush turned his head and yelled loudly. "Bali, come here."
The sound of quick steps appeared and Bali came running. He had a smile on his face as he stood next to Aarush's chair. "Yunus sir."
"Mom, dad, Aliya, this is Bali. Bali, these are my parents and older sister." He did a quick introduction. "If you guys need anything, just ask Bali." Bali walked away after Aarush gestured to him to leave.
"Good, as long as you had someone to help you, that is good. I was worried you were handling this house all alone." His mom smiled and said with a relieved look.
"Actually…" Aarush looked at them with a bit of hesitation.
"What is it?" His mom asked curiously.
"Why don't you guys stay here from now on?" He asked with a hesitant expression. "I know you still have dada's house and all, but like…"
"Aaru." His mom stopped him. "Me and your dad were planning on staying here with you whether you wanted us to or not. After leaving us for so long, did you really think we would let you be here alone again? Not a chance." She said with a puff of anger, but there was a smile playing in her eyes.
"Great." Aarush said with a bright smile. "I have everything already set up." He got up and grabbed his parents hands, slowly taking them to the garden that Bali got set up. Aliya followed them from behind with a smile. "Look, this is the garden you guys can do whatever you want. I have fish and other small creatures here. All of them are harmless." He picked up a small turtle which was just slowly roaming on the side. He didn't have anything big since his goal was to avoid animals which could find it difficult to survive here or would scare his parents. "I also got a bunch of plants you guys can look at and smell. All of them have some similarity in smell so it won't be weird." He showed them the various things excitedly, like a small child. His parents smiled from the back and just watched him do all of this. Sure, the garden was beautiful and impressive, but they paid more attention to their excited son, who they hadn't seen in a long time. His mom suddenly felt her eyes become wet. "What's wrong?" Aarush walked over and asked with a bit of worry.
"Nothing." She quickly wiped her eyes. "I'm just happy to see you like this. I thought that you would still be…"
"Mom." Aliya quickly said. Her mom stopped speaking. Aliya then looked at Aarush and smiled. "Aaru, I'm going to be staying here for a long while too. Hafiz will join us later, but because of customs and all, I need to stay near mom until I give birth to this kid." She said with a smile.
"No problem, I have your room set up as well. I also made this place for you since you're pregnant, it will calm your mind. I also had Bali bring a bunch of groceries and little snacks you can eat while you're here. I put the snacks in your room for you." Aarush explained with a smile.
"Great, I'll just go to my room. Show me where it is." She said.
"Yeah Aaru, I'm a little tired too. Show us where our room is as well." His mom said with a smile. Although they were the most excited to meet him and even planned so much for the day, in the end they were old. The plane ride and the over-excitement made them exhausted. Before they could do anything else, they wanted to rest a little.
"No problem." He led his parents to their rooms first. It was a well decorated room. The bed was comfy and big. Although he got a few things, he didn't get everything just yet, since he didn't know what to put into their room. After settling his parents down, he led Aliya to her room.
"Aaru." Since they were finally alone, she spoke up.
"Yeah?" He asked with a smile. They got to her room and he led her inside. "This is it. What do you think?"
"It's beautiful." She looked around briefly and smiled, but she was more focused on Aarush. She grabbed his hand and led him to the bed, of course making sure to close the room door. "I want to talk to you a little."
"What is it?" He asked curiously.
"How are you doing these days?" She asked again.
"I'm doing great. Why?" He became even more curious about this.
"Look, I'm your older sister. I know you more than anyone in our family. You can tell me anything, right?" She asked while looking at him deeply.
"I'll tell you anything, what's the problem though?" He asked again.
"Aarush, I know you well, like very well. Everyone thinks that Dara and the rest knew you best, but even you know that things I know about you no one else does. I know your quirks, I know the type of person you are better than anyone." She said slowly. It was true that Dara and the other two friends knew Aarush more then anyone, but Aliya was Aarush's sister, so she knew some things about him that no one else did. After all, she grew up with him, all the things others missed, she picked up unknowingly.
"I know that. What's the problem though." He asked once again.
"Aarush, Dara and I know how you are. We know that you're what could be termed as an extremist to a certain extent." She began to speak, while holding onto his hands tightly. "When Aeleya died, you left suddenly and even threatened suicide. Others didn't believe you, but I knew you weren't bluffing. You yourself probably weren't too sure about it either, but I know you would have done it." She said. Aarush listened quietly, not saying anything. If his parents were the ones to start this conversation, he might have left the room already, not wanting to talk about it, but the person was Aliya, not his parents. No one knew this, but Aarush was actually very close to this sister of his. Out of everyone in his life, even before his friends, she was the one always supporting him. "You calling us back now means that you have accepted Aeleya is now gone."
"Aliya." He growled at her a little. Although he had accepted it, he didn't like talking about it so loudly. It still hurt him.
"Shut up Aarush, just listen. Dara warned us all about how you are now. Drinking, smoking, kicking people out of the house…" She glared at him. "You could do this to others, but I am sure you would never do that to us. And I know you won't be running away again, I know you. You only did that back then because of what happened. You drink and smoke because it is your way of punishing yourself for letting Aeleya die. I know you Aaru." She spoke with gritted teeth. "No one else knew where you were these few years, but did you think I was oblivious? Do you not know who Hafiz is? Even Adi can't hide anything from Hafiz and his family's connections. The only reason I never visited you was because I was waiting for you to call us yourself. I needed to know that you were finally accepting everything, and now I know you are."
"Why are you bringing all of this up now? What's your point?" He asked with a frown, but his face was paler.
"Aaru…" She gently stroked his cheek with a smile. "...do you remember that one talk you and I had after you got married? I told you that all mom and I want for you is happiness. Especially me. I know how you struggled in the past before becoming a doctor. I thought that Aeleya would be that relief, and she was until she died. Then, you had to go through pain for seven years again, you never got a break Aaru. Your life is a mess, it seems like everything is great on the surface, but you know as well as I do that nothing is going right for you."
"What about it? I'm happy right now, aren't I?" He said.
"You are happy, but I know you still feel lonely. Why would you call us otherwise? You felt lonely. Why is your schedule so packed? So you could avoid these emotions and busy yourself. Aaru, before coming, I warned mom and dad over and over again not to mention anything about Aeleya or you getting remarried. The reason was because I know you don't want to hear it from them, but Aaru, I want you to get married again."
"What?!" Aarush got up and glared at his sister. "Do you understand what you're saying?"
"I do." Aliya got up and looked at him with a sigh. "Aarush, before coming, I spoke with Aeleya's parents. They have been worrying about you for the past seven years. They wanted you to forget about what happened with Aeleya. Everyone was hurt by this, but who could stop it from happening? Me and her kept speaking about all of this and she always said one thing to me, 'Aarush needs to move on and remarry'."
"Why…" Aliya grabbed his hand and led him back to the bed. "How could I move on Aliya?" Aarush said with teary eyes. "Aeleya was my life, my everything. How could I just get married to someone else? How…"
"Aaru, you have to listen to me. We all loved Aeleya and we all knew how much you loved her. I would do anything to see her alive right now, still with you. I know how you felt about her, I saw how you treated her, but you need to move on now. It's been seven years, we don't want you to be alone, and neither does Aeleya's parents. We want you to move on and begin a new life. This place gives you that opportunity." Aliya said. "Listen, I won't force you to do anything, nor will I look for a potential girl. I just want you to know that moving on will not only bring you happiness, but it will make Aeleya's parents happy and Aeleya's soul happy too. Do you think she would be happy seeing you all alone even now? She would have wanted you to move on from all of this, after all she always wanted you to be happy."
Aarush got up from his bed and walked out of the room slowly. He felt his heart hurt. Aarush wasn't an idiot, he knew that Aeleya would have wanted him to move on, but how could he do that? Aliya was right about one thing, he was an extremist. This also came to his love. If he loved someone, it would be near impossible for him to move on from them. He couldn't move on from Aeleya as easily as others, she was his everything. Aarush walked outside of the house and pulled out a cigarette, lighting it up, he began to slowly smoke. It helped to calm his mind down. "My life is really a mess." He sighed as he continued to smoke quietly.
"Aaru bhai…" Suddenly, from the side, Maaz came running out. Aarush looked at his brother lazily, not even trying to hide the fact he was smoking.
"Yeah?" Aarush looked at his young brother with a lazy smile.
"Umm…" Although Maaz was a little surprised, he quickly pulled himself together. He knew his brother smoked now, plus he had seen it a lot in his life. Some of his friends smoked as well. "Well, I'm taking your bike to explore the city."
"Go ahead." Aarush nodded his head. "Also, what's your plan? Do you want to stay here with me? I can help you get a job…"
"I already got a job here…" Maaz said embarrassingly. "I had my work transfer me over." He had a childish expression, but Aarush smiled because of this.
"You're still a child, eh?" Aarush then dug into his pocket and pulled out a jumble of keys. "Here." He threw them to him with a slight smile. "There is a surprise in the garage for you."
Catching the keys, Maaz looked at Aarush for a second before running off with some excitement. He came back after ten minutes, dragging with him a polished, grey bike. It was polished nicely and the seats were very comfy looking. There was enough space on the bike for three people, making it quite large. "Wow, thanks Aaru bhai!" Maaz looked at his bike with excitement.
"You can do whatever now. Still, be safe, alright Maazi? Wear the helmet, and the gloves just in case." Aarush said with a calm expression.
"No problem." Maaz then wore the gloves and helmet. He got on his bike and quickly drove off. Aarush smiled seeing him like this.
"Aaru bhai, you're always getting Maazi something, what about me?" Maya suddenly appeared outside. She had a pout on her face.
"Do you think I would forget about you?" He smiled at her as well. "Here, follow me." Leading her to the large backyard, he pointed at a small shed. "Everything inside is yours." Maya first looked at Aarush and then back at the shed. Without waiting for a second, she ran towards the shed. Aarush walked behind her slowly, a smile playing on his face.
"Holy! All of this is mine?" He arrived at the shed and he heard this scream. He couldn't help but smile even more. He entered the shed and Maya was surrounded by various items. There was a white box with a new laptop inside, a few sets of various perfumes and makeup kits, lots of boxes of jewelry, and then a single key. "What's this key for?"
"You haven't checked the garage yet, right?" Aarush had a smile playing on his face as he saw her expression become more excited.
"No…" She said with a red face.
"Go and check." He said in fake nonchalance.
Maya quickly ran out of the shed with Aarush following her from behind. They arrived at the large garage. Inside was a single car. It was completely black, even the mirrors were tinted black. The design was sleek and shiny. "T-this is for me?" She looked at Aarush while almost hopping.
Aarush didn't say anything and instead gave her a deep hug. Maya was shocked. When Aarush released her, she looked at him weirdly. "I know that you always felt I didn't pay attention to you compared to the other two or that I loved you less, but know that I love all of you the same. Maybe I was a little neglectful, but I always knew the things you liked. I also know that you never got married because of me not being around. Many proposals came for you, but you rejected them all saying I have to be around too." Aarush sighed and gave her a kiss on her forehead. "I'm sorry, but now that you are here, I will make sure that you find the best guy. Just like in the past, you don't have to work if you don't want to. Both you and Maazi can stay home and do what you like. You have degrees, I'm happy you do. I'm proud you guys didn't laze around, especially you. A masters, wow." He spoke with a proud smile. "Now, we have so many people in our family with degrees. No one can ever say that we are uneducated again, alright?"
Maya hugged Aarush back and smiled. "Yeah." She suddenly sighed and her eyes became a little teary. She looked at Aarush with a bit of emotion. "Aaru bhai, I'm sorry about what happened to Aeleya bhabi. I know you miss her, I miss her so much."
"I know, I know." He gently rubbed her back. When he saw Maya like this, the one who was the least emotional one in the family, the one who never got hurt nor took things to heart, he felt somewhat guilty. He didn't know why, but he just felt guilty. "Alright, stop crying and go take your things inside. Yun is also inside so go and play with him if you want."
"Alright." She nodded and ran off. Maya needed to take all the things Aarush got her back inside.
Sure, everything that Aarush was buying was expensive, but for the past seven years, he didn't do any major payments other than the house. The clinic was given to him by Adi, Dara, and Harris pooling in money. The house was also cheaper than he expected, since the previous owner was someone Harris knew. Really, the only major payment he made was the various renovations he got done on the house. Other than that, he was constantly saving his money. Even now, he had lots left over.
"A-Aaru uncle." Suddenly, he heard a voice from the side. He looked down and saw Noori approaching him in a shy manner.
Aarush's eyes brightened as he walked over to her with a bright smile. He quickly threw the cigarette away and tossed a piece of gum into his mouth, trying to cover the smell as much as he could. He got on his knees and grabbed her little hands. "Yes Noori?"
"Umm…" She hesitated a little, her little face turning super red.
"C'mon Noori, say it. You know that Aaru uncle will do anything for you. Tell me." He asked again, persisting her to speak up. She was more outspoken in the past, asking for anything she wanted.
"Mom said she was going to take me to explore, but she is sleeping…" Before she could say anything, Aarush suddenly lifted her little body up. She was a little shocked.
"Here, Aaru uncle will take you. We'll go everywhere. We can eat lots of food, get a bunch of toys, and do everything. How about it?" He looked at her with a bright smile. She was heavier than before, but Aarush still found her to be very light. He couldn't help but hug her tightly. "Noori, you're so cute!" Although she was a lot older now, after all she was eleven, Aarush couldn't help but think back to her child days. To him, she was still the small kid he took everywhere with him. Changing her diapers, washing her hands, getting her food, and so much more.
"Ah!" She couldn't help but scream in shock. Noori never expected him to begin hugging her so tightly. It was weird to her, even her dad didn't act like this to her, and he was the most loving person she knew.
Aarush quickly put her on the ground and smiled embarrassingly. "Sorry, I forgot that you aren't a little kid anymore." He rubbed her head gently seeing her still look a little bit of shock. "Here, where do you want to go first?"
She snapped out of her daze and smiled embarrassingly. Though being hugged that way was weird, it felt familiar to her. "Umm… you tell me. I don't know what's here." She was new to the area, so how would she know where to go?
"Alright, what kinds of things do you like? I'll see if there is anything like that here." Aarush asked. Unlike in the past, she was older now. She probably had more interests than just toys and candies. Aarush didn't have kids of his own, nor was he able to see Noori grow up, so he didn't know what kinds of things a girl her age would like.
"I like animals. I also like chocolate and like…" She listed various things. Aarush listened with a smile, memorizing it all.
"Want to go to the zoo then? They have tigers." He asked with a smile.
"Yes!" She said instantly. Aarush smiled and then pointed at his car and bike.
"Pick, do you want to go on the bike or the car?" He wanted to dedicate the day to her, and do whatever she wanted.
Noori thought for a moment before pointing at the bike. "Let's go on the bike." Aarush smiled and nodded his head. He walked towards the bike with Noori. Lifting her up he placed her right in the front while he sat behind her.
"Alright, just grab onto the handles, alright?" Noori nodded her head and grabbed the silver handles. She rode on bikes with her dad many times, so she wasn't unsure on what to do. "Let's go then." He started the bike and quickly drove off.
"Inaya!" Back at Inaya's house, the situation was much more chaotic than Aarush's house. "Why the hell are you being so stubborn? What the fuck is wrong with you?! Amin is smart and handsome, why don't you just say yes to the marriage?" Inaya sat on a chair in her bedroom, while an older man kept shouting at her from the door. He had a trimmed beard and short black hair. Overall, he was a good looking man. "If it wasn't because Amin is such a good person that he is still waiting for you to say yes, I would have dragged you by the hair and threw you into his room!"
"Bhai!" Inaya looked back at her brother in tears. "I'm your sister, how could you say something like this? You want to throw me onto someone else's bed? Why?" She felt humiliated, but there was no way to fight back. Her brother never let her work, so she never earned a single dime in her life. When her parents were alive, they allowed her to go to school and get a degree, but after their passing, she had been living in hell with her disgusting brother.
"Don't speak to me in such a tone!" He growled at her. Walking forward, he grabbed her hair and yanked her up to her feet.
"Ah!" She screamed in a painful tone.
"Listen Inaya, I'm tired of this! I will give you until tonight to say yes to Amin, if I hear anything but a yes, then I will not only throw you onto his bed, but I will trap you into his room and make sure you stay with him from that day forth! Do you understand what I'm saying?"
"Why don't you kill me instead if you want to humiliate me like this?" She looked at him with her trembling lips and red eyes. She felt pain from her scalp, but she could only hold that pain in.
Her brother glared even more. "Trust me, I would have thrown you away long ago if Amin didn't like you. Mom and dad left only a burden to me, nothing more." Pulling her hair, he threw her to the ground. Walking towards the exit, he didn't forget to kick her stomach as he walked out. Inaya groaned in agony, but kept quiet, clenching her fists. Tears dropped from her eyes and soaked the wooden floor.
'Mom, dad, how could you leave me with such a brother? He isn't a brother, he is only a monster!' She rolled off the ground as she limped to the door, shutting it slowly. Inaya locked the door and slowly went to her bed, laying down with her tears still streaming. As her head rested on her pillow, she saw a book from across the room. It was Aarush's book. 'Why couldn't I have a brother like the one in the book? He was left with three siblings, yet he cares for them like his own children, while my own brother treats me like an item.' She felt more and more heavy hearted, thinking about the situation. 'No, I have to get out of here. If I stay, my brother will definitely let that perverted beast rape me. I have to leave.' She got up from her bed and grabbed a bag from the corner of the room. Inaya filled it with a few things: her phone, a few clothes, and whatever amount of money she had. She looked at Aarush's book for a second before picking it up and tossing it into the bag as well. Her room was on the main floor, while her window was able to open easily. Her brother never secured the room nor the area thinking that his sister would never run away. He thought he scared her enough to keep her in the room, but he was wrong. Inaya opened the window quietly and jumped out. She looked around carefully, making sure no one was around. 'I'll go anywhere, but here. I know of a girls only academy a bit further away from here. I heard they let teachers stay there.' She had always planned on running away if things got really bad, so she researched a bit. The problem was, the situation got much worse way too early. There was no time for her to collect enough money from her monthly allowance, nor time to prepare any other way.
Slowly, she left the area without anyone even knowing about it.
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