The Stake.

1

"Shahwar!" Meher ran towards her friend who was busy making the sauce for her dish in the kitchen. "Your phone's ringing girl!" She held the phone up and showed the blinking screen.

"It's abba ji." Shahwar smiled and took the phone leaving the wooden spoon in the utensil, she answered the call. "Salam, abba ji. How are you?"

Meher was standing there, and continued the task Shahwar had dropped moving the spoon in the pan.

"Oh, is everything alright?" Dur e Shahwar tensed up while talking to her father. "I have my evaluations next week so—"

"Uh, right, okay." She ended the call looking strangely at her friend.

"What happened?" Meher was ready to find out what could've made her friend look so down after a short conversation with her father.

"He's asked me to come to Karachi." She sounded so low.

"All of a sudden, why?"

"He sounded weird Meher. I don't know but it's never been like that, he was so comfortable about me missing my evaluations. You know this is so unlike him. I don't like how it's making me feel." She looked at Meher with distress.

"Must be something important then? You're the only child he has so..." Meher tried to make some logical points.

"Yes, but my results will be affected and what's more important than that? He's always put me first, and he's asked me to come back tomorrow." Shahwar sighed, "I won't even get time to speak to the dean."

"It's okay, you can mail them your leave of absence. And maybe retake your exams next year?" She suggested knowing how difficult it would be.

"Yeah, I don't know. Anyway I'll go and pack. I don't feel good." She moved out of the kitchen.

Dur e Shahwar started packing her things, her mind began to wander somewhere else, she had spent her last two years in Spain working day and night to excel in her degree and to gain recognition from her supervisors for her culinary arts degree and when she was finally about to reach her goal her father had asked her to return.

It was making her feel uneasy. Her father had never been an unreasonable man and he had always supported her.

Dur e Shahwar was four when her mother had passed away.

Her father had remarried soon but her stepmother had never been the evil kind.

She'd been good to Shahwar. Never interfered in her life and not ever behaved like a jealous woman whenever Salman Nawaz would give his only child most of his attention and time.

Once done she laid down on her bed and closed her eyes forgetting about dinner.

She wasn't able to sleep after the sudden unexpected instructions she had received from her father.

Maybe it was too pertinent for her to be there she thought.

She wanted to believe that the reason must have been truly important.

···

It had been an almost fourteen hour journey starting from the flight to the end of it and then back to her house.

The moment she had entered the house help had taken all her luggage to her room and she was told to meet her father right away who had been waiting for her in his library.

The whole environment seemed weird that no one had come to welcome her, not even her stepmother, Farhana who always did.

Going towards the library, she looked around as everything was still the same in this house. She'd been overseas since college in Spain and then continued her higher education there too. Her visits back here were only for festivals. Her dream had been to open a restaurant.

She opened the door and saw her father sitting there with a few documents lying in front of him on his table.

"Abba ji." She smiled at the sight of him.

"Shahwar. Come sit." He gave her a small smile unlike his usual welcome hugs and gestured her to sit on the chair across his table.

She was feeling extremely anxious now, and sat down with hesitation.

"My friend and I have fixed a marriage alliance between you and his son. Your nikkah is on Friday, two days later this week." Salman was speaking to his daughter as if she was one of his employees, it didn't sound like a request or a question.

Shahwar sat looking at him in disbelief. She couldn't recover from the shock. "Abba ji? I don't understand." It was a struggle for her to speak.

"I'm not asking Shahwar. Your father is informing you. I expect compliance." He calmly stated.

"Marriage? In two days? To whom? And why?" Her throat was burning.

"You're of age to be married. Rehaan is surely a very suitable choice and that family can be relied on."

"Why does it have to be so soon? Why him? How can I marry someone I don't even know?" She didn't know what else to ask although she could sense that asking all this wasn't going to change anything for her father.

"It isn't soon. And I don't want you to say no Shahwar. Aap mujhe na nahi kahengi. If you say no, there will be serious consequences." This made her heart burn, why was he speaking like this with her?

(You will not say no to me.)

"You want me to marry a man who doesn't know me and I don't know either and what about my degree? My dreams?" Anger fuelled up in her voice.

"No, you will not behave like this Shahwar. I asked for compliance and that's it. I've provided every luxury every comfort to you all your life and now I need you to do one thing I'm asking you to." He was persistently calm and unmoved.

"Abba ji, what's wrong with you? A marriage and I have to sacrifice my life goals for that?" Her voice had died down and felt weakened because of the look from her father that was completely new. He had never spoken to her this way before nor ever asked her for anything all her life.

"It's your father's command."

"But it's ruthless." She cried, there weren't tears but her voice showed all signs of crying.

"I don't want to continue this conversation further." He stood up and left. She sat dumbfounded feeling like she wasn't in her own home, it felt too foreign. What was happening?

She slowly got up and went to her room. Her maid brought food for her inside.

It was like everyone knew she wouldn't be coming out of her room for dinner.

Shahwar had one person she had loved more than anything else in the world, it was her father.

And he was being like he didn't care about her anymore.

"Shahwar jaan, why haven't you eaten yet?" It was Farhana.

Shahwar had been sitting on her bed looking at the food thinking about other things.

"Not hungry." She plainly replied.

"I'm sorry I was out at the mall when you arrived. I have bought some things for your wedding." She smiled at Shahwar. "I think you're upset about it."

"Does it matter what I'm upset about?" Shahwar asked feeling empty.

"It does. But you know this is Salman sahab. I don't have rights to interfere between him and his daughter." Shahwar knew Farhana was right. Her father would never allow her to say anything when it came to his daughter.

"I feel like I'm being discarded." A tear rolled down her cheek.

Farhana hugged her, "No my darling, you shouldn't feel like that. Salman sahab hasn't really given me any space to talk about this but you know he's never going to do anything to cause you pain."

"Then why?" She pulled back and looked at Farhana, "Why this?"

"He told me to get the preparations done for your wedding, if he's so fixed on this then maybe it's for your good?" She gave a slight shrug.

"He could have done it when my degree was completed. Abba ji is being too heartless right now." She complained with a sob.

"Shahwar. I wish I could do something. But you have to eat. Please. I know it must've been a tiring travel." Farhana sat down. "I haven't met the young man who's going to be your husband but I hear he's very handsome." She suddenly gave her a big smile.

"Ammi ji. Please." She huffed looking away.

"He's asked for you to meet him tomorrow." Shahwar turned her head towards her immediately, "Salman sahab told me to send you there on time."

"Why does he want to meet when two days later he'll be sitting as my husband in front of me?

Bilkul bekaar admi lag rahay hain. Brain hi nahi hai inke paas.

Ab do din pehlay mil ke mere liye koi love confession likh ke dengay kya, ke itni jaldi kyun hai unko shaadi ki. " Her nose scrunched up in annoyance.

(Seems like a useless man. He definitely doesn't have a brain. Meeting me now, two days prior, is he going to write a love confession to me, about why he wants to marry with such desperation.)

"Whatever it is, you must come back and tell me about how dashing he looks." Farhana teased her.

"Itni hi achi shakal hai toh koi larki kyun nahi kar rahi unse shaadi? Meri hi liye museebat kyun?" Her nose rose up with her pout.

(If he's so good looking then why isn't any girl marrying him? Why this nuisance is for me?)

"Shahwar, chalien khana khayen." Farhana started feeding her.

(Shahwar, come on eat now.)

She left after making her eat the entire meal. Shahwar was still exhausted physically and mentally. Her father was the reason behind it. It was making her upset. Something she wasn't used to being.

This is my most favorite book of the entire series. Also the best one.

Rehaan Kazmi