Chapter 47
Author's POV:
The silence of the corridor was heavier than air itself.
"Haan... mein karta hoon Aayat se pyar... bohot pyar karta hoon."
Those words lingered in the air long after they left his mouth.
They pierced through Aayat like glass - sharp, impossible to pull out.
She stood outside his cabin door, her fingers trembling over the handle.
Her mind refused to believe what her ears had heard. Nahi... ye sirf mera weham hain. Ayaan aisa nahi keh sakta...
But before the thought could complete itself, she heard his voice again, softer this time, filled with pain.
" Per Mein chah kar bhi usey ye nahi bata sakta... kyu ke wo kisi aur ke nikah mein hai..."
Aayat's breath caught in her throat.
Her heart pounded - not in rhythm, but chaos. She turned the handle slowly, her trembling hands betraying every ounce of calm she pretended to have.
The door clicked open.
Ayaan's eyes lifted - and froze.
The phone slipped from his hand, hitting the floor with a soft thud.
"Aayat..."
Her name escaped his lips like a confession in itself.
She stood there, eyes glistening, pain veiled under fragile calm.
"Tum yahan?" he stammered, trying to mask his shock with a nervous smile. "Tum mujhe batati to mein tumhare paas khud aa jata..."
Aayat's voice was low, but each word struck like thunder.
"Agar pehle bata deti tumhe, toh jo suna... wo kaise sunti?"
Her tears finally broke through, gliding down her cheeks.
Ayaan stepped forward, guilt written across his face.
"Aayat, aisa nahi hai jaisa tum samajh rahi ho. Mein-"
She cut him off sharply.
"Bas, Ayaan!"
Her voice cracked, but her anger burned steady.
"Tumne aisi baat sochi bhi kaise? Mein kisi aur ke nikah mein hoon ye tum ache jante thai, phir be...... aur ab tum mere saamne khade ho kar phir se jhoot bol rahe ho?"
Ayaan's shoulders fell, his head lowering under the weight of his own heart.
"Mein ne jaan bujh kar nahi kiya, Aayat... agar mohabbat soch samajh kar hoti, toh mein aisa kabhi na karta... mera yakeen mano , maine hamesha apni Mohabbat se zada hamari dosti ko ahmiyat di hain..."
Aayat's chest rose and fell, fighting between rage and sorrow.
"Tumhein pata hai, Ayaan... mein ne sab kuch kho diya tha apna.
Aur phir mujhe tum mile - tum mere wo dost the jisne mujhe phir se jeena sikhaya.
.."
Her lips trembled, voice fading as she wiped her tears.
"Lekin aaj tumne mujhse mera wo dost bhi cheen liya. .."
She turned to leave.
But Ayaan caught her wrist, his voice breaking.
"Aayat, please... aisay mat jao..."
Her tears spilled again, her tone trembling.
" Ayaan... mera haath chhodo."
He didn't. He couldn't.
"Aayat, mein ne jaanbujh kar nahi kiya... jab pehli baar tumhe dekha tha us resturant mein, tab se tum mere khiyalo mein thi, maine tumhe dekhte hi pasand kr liya tha. Phir wo pasand kab mohabbat mein badal gayi, mujhe khud nahi pata chala."
" Mein tumse bohut pyar karta hoon aayat."
Her hand finally slipped from his grip, like a final goodbye.
"Meri zindagi mein pehle hi bohot imtihaan chal rahe hain, Ayaan. Mere liye aur mushkil khadi mat karo tum... Mein tumhara dil nahi dukhana chahti.."
She turned to go, her voice barely a whisper.
He watched her walk toward the door - each step tearing something inside him.
When she reached the threshold, he finally spoke, quietly... almost to himself.
"Tumhe meri wajah se kisi bhi imtihaan mein padne ki zaroorat nahi hai, Aayat. Mein khud chala jaunga... tumhe kabhi dikhai bhi nahi dunga. Meri taraf se tumhein ab koi pareshani nahi hogy."
The door closed behind her.
And Ayaan - stood there, broken in silence.
~
Elsewhere, night had fallen heavy upon the Malik mansion.
The house that once echoed with laughter now carried only whispers of guilt.
Shagufta sat on the edge of her bed, hands clasped tightly around a photo frame she could barely look at.
Rashid Malik sat quietly beside her - his face pale under the dim light.
A memory replayed itself in Shagufta's mind, as clear as if it had happened just moments ago -
Sonia Khan's words when she'd visited them.
"Aap kehti hain aap uski maa hain? Lekin aapne konsa haq ada kiya maa hone ka?
"
Sonia's voice had cut sharper than any blade.
"Parents toh apni aulad k saath khade hote hain har mushkil waqat mein.
. lekin Aap dono ne usey tab chhod diya jab usey sabse zyada zarurat thi.
Us par haath uthaya, uss galti ki saza di jo usne ki hi nahi.
Aur ab keh rahay hain ke beti se milna chahti hain?
"
Her eyes had burned with disgust.
"Sharam aani chahiye aap dono ko.
.. Aap logo ne us say uska sab kuch cheen liya. .."
The words echoed now, cruelly, as Shagufta pressed a trembling hand over her mouth.
Her tears fell silently - each one a drop of regret years too late.
Rashid watched her rise abruptly and walk away, her sobs echoing down the hall.
He turned toward the window, the night sky stretching endlessly before him.
His voice broke in the quiet.
"Mein sochta tha aayat.
.. mein tumhari ki hui galtiyo ko sudhar raha hoon.
.. tumhara ghar bacha raha hoon..."
He swallowed hard, eyes glistening.
"Par haqeeqat toh ye hai, Aayat.
.. ke mein ne tumhara ghar barbaad kar diya.
Mein ne tumhare shohar ko dusri shadi ka kaha , mein ne tumse tumhare rayyan ko cheen liya.
Mein tumhara sabse bada gunahgaar hoon.. ."
A single tear escaped down his cheek.
"...aur ab mein tumhari maafi bhi deserve nahi karta. Tum mujhe maaf b kardo , mein khud ko kabhi maaf nahi kr pauga ab..."
~
The sun rose with a fragile calm - but peace was a lie that day.
Aayat stepped out of her car, files in hand.
But as soon as she looked up - she froze.
Rayyan stood outside the office building, a small, uncertain smile on his face.
In his hands - two flowers, one jasmine and one rose.
He remembered once, long ago, how her eyes had lit up at the sight of those two flowers.
"Mujhe ye dono bohot pasand hain rayyan bhai... jasmine ki khushboo aur rose ka rang."
He'd never forgotten.
Today, he held them again - hoping to bring back even a fragment of that old warmth.
But Aayat's face remained unreadable. Her eyes flickered - not with softness, but storm.
Because in that instant, Ayaan's confession echoed again in her mind.
" Mein tumse bohut pyar karta hoon aayat..."
She walked towards Rayyan, her steps sharp, her expression cold as frost.
"Yahan kya kar rahe ho tum?"
Rayyan smiled softly, trying to hide his nervousness.
"Tumhare liye laya hoon ye... tumhe yaad hai , tum bachpan se kitna ladti thi mujhse in flowers k liye? Aur phir jab b mein tumhare liye ye lay kr ata tha tum kitna khush ho jati thi."
She looked at the flowers - then at him.
For a heartbeat, he thought she might take them.
She did.
Rayyan's lips curved into a hopeful smile - until she dropped them to the ground.
And crushed them beneath her heel.
The petals scattered like wounded hearts.
" Meri pasand ab badal gaye hain... pehle wali har cheez se mujhe nafrat hain ab....
Her voice was trembling, but her fury burned through every word.
Rayyan's face fell, all color drained from it.
" Meri jaan... meri baat-"
"Bas!"
She cut him off sharply, tears threatening her eyes.
"Aaj meri zindagi mein jo bhi ho raha hai... uske zimmedar tum ho, Rayyan! Tumhari wajah se mein yahan khadi hoon! Tumne sab kuch barbaad kar diya hain! Ab pehle jaisa kuch be nahi raha..."
Her words hit him like blows.
He stepped closer, desperate.
"Aayat, please... maaf kar do yaar... tum jo saza do gy manzoor hain mujhe... uff b nahi karuga mein promise.. but khud se dur mat karo."
She shoved him back, her voice cracking.
"Dafa ho jao yahan se!"
Her shout drew the eyes of nearby staff - guards and employees frozen where they stood.
Rayyan didn't care.
"Aayat, please... ek baar meri baat-"
"Nahi sunna mujhe kuch be!" she cried, pushing him again, her tears finally breaking free.
"Tumhe samajh nahi aata kya? Har baar tum mujhe Naya zakham detay ho... Dafa ho jao yaha se. GET OUT."
The silence that followed was unbearable.
She turned away, walking toward the glass doors of the office.
And then, behind her, his voice rang out - cracked, trembling, raw.
"Tumhe jo karna hai karo, Aayat... lekin mein apni akhri saans tak tumse maafi mangta rahunga..."
She stopped for a moment - her hand tightening on the door handle.
But she didn't look back.
The door closed behind her - sealing the space between them like a verdict.
Outside, Rayyan bent down, his fingers brushing over the crushed petals.
He stared at them quietly - the jasmine and the rose - both broken now, just like them.
And for the first time, he realized...
Some wounds aren't meant to heal - they're meant to remind you what you destroyed.
---