Dear Love
Dear Love By Anoosha Aarzoo
(Originally Named Janam In Urdu)
Translated By Inky Whisper (Translated from Urdu-To-English)
Chapter One
“For love, I’ve walked countless roads…
If you turn away from me too, where will I go?”
He said that in a sweet tone while entering her room.
“Do you not have any manners? You’re supposed to knock before entering someone’s room,” she snapped, sitting on her bed with books spread around her ……performing her usual duty of scolding him with full dedication.
He burst out laughing, as if a memory had suddenly crossed his mind. Then, step by step, he walked toward her. She glared at him as if she could burn him alive.
“Don’t look at me like that,” he said abruptly, sitting down beside her.
She froze for a second. “Why?” The irritation in her tone was unmistakable.
“Well then, you would want to love me,” he said and laughed loudly. Whenever he laughed like that, he would tilt his head back. And he laughed beautifully.
She, who had been ready to lash out at him, suddenly melted. Completely unaware of her surroundings, she just kept watching him laugh.
“What happened?” he asked, stopping mid-laugh and turning his full attention to her.She was still staring at him……unblinking. His brown eyes locked with her deep blue ones.
“These eyes…” he said softly, “they’ve left me in such confusion. They don’t let me drown… but they don’t save me either.”
She snapped out of her trance when a sudden knock echoed at the door. Embarrassment flushed her face.
“Idiot…” she muttered under her breath.
Even that soft whisper didn’t escape him. Chuckling, he stood up. At the door stood Nina Bibi, who had come to call her for dinner.
She stood near the university gate with her friends, lost in light conversation, when a heavily built boy, almost like a wrestler…approached them.
He wore a red T-shirt, chains hanging around his neck, and a smirk that carried something unpleasant. The moment he came closer, an uneasy silence spread among them. Maham glared at him, her eyes sharp with anger.
“How are you, my dear?” he said in a crude, gangster-like tone.
Maham felt the urge to slap him right there, but stopped herself, thinking quickly.
He stepped even closer, his gaze growing more shameless.
Before he could say anything further, an arm suddenly came around her, pulling her slightly away.
She looked up.
Za’im.
He was smiling.
As if one problem wasn’t enough, another had to appear, she thought bitterly.
“What’s the matter, brother?” Za’im said lightly, though his eyes burned. “Why are you bothering someone else’s friend?”
For a moment, she found herself distracted by his smile.
God… save me from this man’s smile, she cursed inwardly.
The bulky man glared at her harshly. She felt uneasy in Za’im’s hold, but right now, he was the better option. At least his gaze didn’t disgust her.
The bulky man standing in front of her glared at her bitterly. He was staring at her with a harsh and intimidating gaze.
She was in the embrace of one man while another was staring at her bitterly. She felt nervous in his hold, but she didn’t want to scold him now because he was better than the man standing in front. At least his gaze was not like the gangster, so she tried to compose herself. She knew she was strong, but this kind of trouble was something she could not easily deal with.
“So who are you? A hero?” he said, looking at Maham with a filthy and disrespectful gaze.
Maham felt completely helpless, as if she wanted to tear him apart with her own hands.
“Maham’s sweetheart,” he said while staring at her intensely. He knew Maham was already half-mad with anger, and she was thinking that in times of difficulty, even an insignificant help matters. The gangster gritted his teeth in anger.
The next moment, Za’im turned with her still in his embrace and headed toward the university gate.
As they passed through the gate, Maham shoved him aside. She jerked his hand away, crossed her arms, and started glaring at him. Za’im raised a brow at her.
“Who are you to Maham?” she asked, as if she wanted to choke him.
“I am your childhood friend, Za’im,” he said in a soft, teasing tone, while Maham wanted to scratch his face.
“You little monster…” he murmured.
“What did you say?” Maham felt as if heat had risen straight to her head.
She didn’t even give him a chance to finish speaking.
“If you don’t know how to use your tongue properly, then don’t speak at all in front of me,” she said coldly.
She was burning with anger, her sharp gaze fixed on him.
“Monkey,” she muttered angrily.
She got into her car. Her driver had come for her. She sat in the back seat, and then the car drove off, leaving him behind staring at her disappearing vehicle.
One girl alone was enough to drive him completely crazy.
She was standing in front of the mirror, fixing her hair when suddenly a knock came at her room’s door. She turned in surprise and saw Za’im looking at her with a loving gaze. She immediately got mad at him.
“Mr. Trouble!” she murmured angrily.
“Janam (my love)…” Za’im called out softly, his voice filled with affection.
She had already heard him clearly, yet she turned and looked at him seriously. My name is Maham, she said, thinking he had said it by mistake.
“Janam (my love),” he repeated, this time more clearly and loudly, as if he wanted her to know he meant it intentionally.
“Za’im, I’m not in the mood for your nonsense,” she said, raising the brush toward him.
“I am not joking, janam,” he replied calmly. He seemed free, as if he had come only to bother her.
“Za’im, stay within your limits!” she shouted.
“I have never crossed my limits, janam,” he said with unsettling calm, crossing his arms and leaning casually against the door.
“Enough with the jokes now get out!” she shouted louder.
“I am not going anywhere, janam,” he said in a teasing tone.
“If you use that word again, I swear I won’t spare you!” she warned, stepping forward in a grave tone.
“What good things have you done to me before this, janam?” he said, raising an eyebrow with a faint smirk.
“Alright then…”
In irritation, she slipped off her heels, bending slightly as she picked one up like a weapon. Like an angry cat, she looked at him as if he were her prey.
Za’im watched all of this with an amused glint in his eyes. He uncrossed his arms, slipped his hands into his pockets, and placed his foot firmly on the floor. As she stepped forward, he instinctively stepped back….matching her pace.
“What were you saying?” she asked sweetly, though there was a clear threat hidden in her tone. She was trying to scare him.
Za’im reached the edge of the door while stepping back, then said mischievously, “janam…”
Before she could react, he turned and ran.
“Za’im!” she screamed and ran after him, heel in hand.
“Help! Someone save this innocent man!” he laughed as he ran, dodging the sofa and then the table. “Save me from this dangerous woman!” he kept shouting.
“I won’t let you go today!” she shouted, chasing him.
He ran up the stairs, and she followed behind him. But when he reached the top, he suddenly disappeared from sight. Startled, she paused on the first step, then moved forward and reached the room on the left side of the staircase.
“Za’im!” she called out loudly several times, but there was no response.
Her gaze suddenly fell on the large mirror beside the balcony. When she saw herself in it, she felt embarrassed. She looked at the slipper in her hand, dropped it, and quickly wore it again properly.
She had just adjusted her slippers when suddenly someone grabbed her arm with his right hand and pulled her toward his room, pinning her against the wall beside the door.
His left hand rested against the wall above her, while his right hand blocked her way below. For a moment, she forgot how to breathe. Slowly, she steadied herself, her eyes locked onto his….those intense, shining eyes that held everything for her, yet still made her want to stay away.
“Za’im…” she whispered softly.
“Janam…,” he murmured, leaning closer, his gaze filled with affection as he looked straight into her eyes.
Then, without warning, he gently brushed his lips against her cheek. The soft touch sent a shiver through her entire body.
A few moments later, she looked into his eyes again….this time wide open, staring at him in disbelief.
“You’re very ill-mannered!” she said, her voice firm but still laced with emotion.
“However I am… I’m only yours,” he replied with a teasing glint in his eyes. Slowly, he released her from his grip.
Without another word, he turned and walked away in long, steady strides.
She stood there, thinking that no matter how much she tried, she could not keep him away from her. In university, no one even dared to sit beside her, yet this man, living under her roof, had complete control over her thoughts and emotions.
To Be Continued….
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