She Is My Hayaat

Chapter 29: A Forbidden Loss

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE COMMENT! PRETTY PLEASE WITH LOTS OF CHOCOLATE SYRUP, ICE CREAM (whatever flavors you want), SPRINKLES, WHIP CREAM, and CHERRY ON TOP! Thank you! :) P.S. Please don't kidnap me and lock me up in a room by myself after reading this chapter. *meekly squeaks*

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"She didn't love easily, it took a lot for her to fall. But when she loved it was with such intensity it could be felt from a mile away. It shook the earth and made the ocean roar. And when he felt it, it made him question if he'd ever known love at all." -Unknown

Izhar: "Steady your hearts, for they might lose their beats to mine."

I mindlessly chopped the pepper and vegetables. The scallions were cut into thin rings smaller than the pad of my fingers. I looked straight ahead without putting my mind to anything. I was out of it, and my thoughts were scattered elsewhere. I stealthily moved my slender fingers with the knife against the thin body of the scallion.

The loose tendril behind the nape of my neck swayed with the kitchen air as it hung loose from its bun atop my head. The neckline of my mint green and pink kameez tickled my collarbone, but I didn't move the strand of hair or itch the spot on my tingling collar.

"Appi?"

Six days and seven nights. What would he eat? Was he getting enough sleep? Did he make sure to take his water bottle with him when he went on his morning run? Was he-

"APPI!" Sabr yelled in my ears!

"What! What happened?" I quickly turned around as my vision blurred.

Sabr stood by me with her doe eyes wide. Her hands were on her hips, and her head tilted to the side amusedly.

"What's wrong?" I asked worriedly.

She sadly sighed and looked down at the cutting board. She gently grabbed my hand that was on the scallion and held my left index finger in front of my eyes. It was dripping down with blood. My shoulders slumped as I took a deep breath. The buffed hyponychium of my nail was coated in red, holding a bubble of blood in its cocoon.

"What's wrong with you?" Sabr directed the question back to me.

I bit the edge of my lip and turned back to the sink, running cold water down my hand, the water turning a rusty red at the drain of the sink. "Nothing," I shook my head nonchalantly.

Without a word, Sabr threw away the last bits of scallion and put the knife and cutting board in the sink. She grabbed the first aid kit from the pantry and led me to the barstools at the kitchen island. I watched her as she used her medical skills that she'd picked up from me and Bhaiya. My baby was studying immunology at Harvard Medical School. She was keeping the legacy going, and we were all immensely proud of her.

The thick framed glasses brimmed her eyes in rectangles. She'd had a headache since this morning, and we knew better than to mention it when she came downstairs for breakfast in her bunny ear pajamas with her glasses on. After putting on a hot pink bandaid on the tip of my finger, she took off her latex-free gloves and looked me square in the eye.

I squirmed under her calculating gaze, and she gave me a tight-lipped smile as she placed a hand on the kitchen counter with her cheek in her palm.

"I'm ready to listen whenever you are ready to talk!" she said and flashed her pearly whites.

I flashed mine too as I shrugged and said, "There's nothing to say accept for the fact that I was just lost in thought," I got up.

"Appi! I know you were thinking about Izhar Bhai!" she said and followed me to the stove.