Khawabeeda

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"Let the party commence!"

Wali yelled and started pushing the kids car in which Badiya was uncomfortably sitting with her butt on the seat and legs laying on the bonnet. They were roaming the halls after dinner as all the preparations were completed for tomorrow's Qawali Night when they found the car in one of the store rooms and Wali decided to give Badiya a special tour of the first floor. They were both dressed in their pajamas, Badiya wearing a Winnie the Pooh tee and matching sleeping pants with a party cap on her head, her hair in a complete mess and Wali was wearing the white T-shirt with his age on the back and grey sweatpants.

The car zoomed through the hallways and Badiya was screaming her lungs out. Their laughs were resounding in the whole house. They had covered almost half of the special tour when Wali left the car abruptly standing straight with wide eyes and the car went skidding till it was stopped by a furious looking Shehryar dressed in his office clothes.

"Are you both out of your minds?" Shehryar stood up straight after stopping the car by placing his hands on the bonnet and glared at them both.

"Bhai, we were just having fun." Wali said sheepishly.

"Fun ka Abbu btatay hain tumhe. Aunty and Uncle are here. They all are all waiting in the living room." Shehryar said in glowering tone.

"Mere gifts!"

"Mama Baba!"

Wali and Badiya yelled at the same time and Wali ran towards the stairs excited to see what his favourite aunt and uncle had gotten him for his birthday. No one would believe he is turning twenty-three tomorrow as he still behaves like a three-year-old.

Badiya also wanted to run but she was stuck in the car and couldn't figure out how to get out of it. Shehryar was still standing there looking at her struggling.

"Ese hath bandhay kya kharay hain. Madad krain meri." (Why are you standing there like that? Come, help me.) She said with a pout. He groaned in annoyance and picked her up by placing his hands under her arms. Badiya would have swooned over the ease with which he picked her up if she didn't hear him mutter, "So freaking childish."

"I'm not a child!" She grabbed his sleeve to stop him for turning around and yelled looking up at him. She was very offended by this comment of his. He has no right to call her a child. She is a grown woman.

"Then stop fucking behaving like one, Badiya!" Shehryar grabbed her hand off his arm and yelled at her startling her. She had received scoldings from him before but he never cursed infront of her. Why was he so angry?

"Grow up and act your age. We are bloody engaged to be married and I don't want to wife a fucking kid who hasn't even come out of her childhood." He glared at her one last time before turning around and leave.

Badiya stood there stunned for a moment as a tear slipped out of her eye. He had never been so harsh with her and she felt deeply hurt.

She wiped her tear quitely and followed his footsteps towards the living room. She expected Wali to be jumping around with his presents or something but the atmosphere of the room was quite serious.

She went and hugged her parents saying her salam and then looked around at everyone.

"Where are Waliya and Umer?" She asked her parents about her siblings.

"We actually came here on an urgent notice so they couldn't come." Her father replied.

"Is everything okay?" She asked still in her mother's embrace.