The third chapter is here!

Brace yourselves for some surprises.

May I warn you, it's not the kind you'll be expecting!

|~★~|

"Doing all these works is not enough, now that we have to attend guardian meetings for you? Do you have any idea how humiliating it was, Humaira? " Her aunt was shouting at her on their way back home.

Humaira managed to get her aunt to meet Sir. Osman, that obviously didn't go well. Her teacher filled her aunt in on all her doings. She was failing in her test, reappearing for papers, and passing with average marks. Special mention was given to her manners, her bunking classes, and inviting ex-students to the college premises.

" These studies and all are not for you. I'm telling your Taya to find a suitable boy and be free of your responsibility. I cannot do it anymore." Her tone didn't feel like she was talking about a life-altering moment for Humaira, but a task that needed to be done, "You are of age now. This is not the age where girls lag in the second year of bachelor's. Get married, and if you have a pinch of interest in studying, continue with it through distance education, or however you or your husband prefers. "

Humaira was looking at the passing view, without glancing at her aunt, nor was she.

Humaira agreed to her suggestion," As you say, Tayi Ammi. Go ahead. Find me a boy. " She didn't sound excited, or dull. She sounded like she needed a break.

Her response surprised her aunt at first but later she had a smile that said she was waiting for this moment for a long time. Humair was 24 years old, and she had been staying with her uncle and aunt for the last 20 years.

"I've my tuition, please drop me there."

"What's the use of this tuition when you're going to fail anyway?"

She snapped, probably the only emotion she showed in their conversation, "It's not costing you a single penny, Tayi Ammi. And I'll be staying at Zoya tonight. Don't wait for me. "

" You're coming back home, there isn't gonna be any overnight stay. " Announcing that she dropped Humaira at her tuition.

She was waiting for her tutor to show up. He was late, which was unusual for him. He was never late.

Humaira was blowing her chewing gum when Umair entered the room with a pile of papers in his hand, "Go through the previous notes I've given to you. We won't be discussing any new topics today, I've these assignments to check. " He kept the pile on his desk. "Get rid of the chewing gum right now." His voice was stern.

Humaira rolled her eyes as she spat out the gum towards the dustbin.

" But I had some doubts to clear, sir. "

" That means you went through your notes, good. " He wasn't paying her his attention. Umair was aware of her bluffing to disturb him.

Failing to get any expected reaction from her tutor annoyed Humaira. It was natural for her to get on people's nerves, but with Umair, it was mission impossible. He always remained unaffected by her tactics. He would repeat the same topic three times if she asked him to, without any annoyance. Ignore her bluff, cut her slack for her mischief, and counter her wits

"Can I take a break, today?" She asked.

Umair shifted his attention from the papers to her, "It's Thursday, Humaira. Your off day. Why are you here?" He could read her. She wasn't her usual self. She tried to be but couldn't. She was looking tired and dull.

"I-I forgot. I'm sorry. I'll just..."

"Dad is in the study. If you wanna meet him." He suggested seeing her struggling, her fingers running through her hair at the same time she collected her belongings.

"Where's Saad?"

" I don't know. Haven't seen him. Is there something you wanna share? "

" Not with you. " She rejected him curtly, her voice low but stern, " Can I use the landline? My phone is dead. "

Umair nodded silently.

Humaira made a call to Zoya and asked about her day, to her surprise Zoya informed her that she had got a marriage proposal from her colleague.

" Your colleague? You never mentioned any colleagues. Who is he? "

" Umm... First, promise that you won't get angry. "

" Why would I be angry, idiot. Tell me na! Did you say yes? "

" Actually... " Zoya was hesitant.

" Actually? "

" I was seeing him for some months. "

Humaira frowned upon hearing that, " seeing? As in- dating? "

" Hmm... "

" And you didn't tell me? " Humaira was hurt rather than angry. She didn't know her best friend was capable of keeping secrets from her.

" His name is... Saad. "

" Saad? " Humaira was surprised yet again," Saad Mir? "

" Yes. "

" Baba's son, Saad? "

" The same. We are getting married in the next fifteen days. "

" I'll talk to you later. " She disconnected the call without waiting for her reply.

For some reason, Humaira felt hurt and betrayed. Betrayed by her friend and...

" Baba! " She called out running up the stairs that led to a small study room." Baba! "

"Slow down, Humaira. " Prof. Hameed looked up from the book he was reading," What happened. Is it Saad or Umair who punished you again? "

" It's you! " She accused, " You fixed Saad's marriage to someone and didn't even tell me? "

Hameed laughed softly, keeping the book aside," Oh, that. Umair told you? "

" Zoya did! How could you do that, Baba? "

Her glistening eyes didn't go unnoticed by him.

" Beta, " he rose up from the chair," are you okay? "

" No, I'm not okay, baba. " She confessed," I always thought that there were two people whom I could count on, who wouldn't hide anything from me but -"

" No one was hiding it." He was trying to pacify her, "You didn't come here yesterday and before I could share the good news with you, you found it out yourself. "

" They were seeing each other for months!" She screamed," right under my nose and I didn't know. "

" Calm down, Humaira. Stop shouting. " He was stern.

" Yeah, you guys can go behind my back and I'm supposed to maintain my calm. Sure, Baba! " Humaira was anything but calm.

" What are you even speaking. Who went behind your back? "

" You did! "

" Humaira! " A tight grip on her forearm moved her a pace back from her spot. She looked up to find the wrathful Umair staring at her, "That is not how you talk to my father or anyone. Apologise. Now." His voice was calm, but eyes raging– burning Humaira under his gaze.

"Leave me." She tried to free herself from his grip.

"I said- apologize."

"Umair, let her go."

"No, Dad. She cannot use your lenient behaviour towards her as her licence to do anything she wants. She has to apologise. And what is she angry about?"

"She's angry with her baba because I fixed Saad's marriage to her best friend without her knowledge," Hameed explained to his son. He understood Humaira's emotions.

"So, what is there to be angry about?" Umair asked, his eyes shifting between the two, "Do we need her permission to decide our family matter? Or inform her of all of our internal matters"

Humaira's stomach twisted listening to her tutor's words. He was right, they didn't need her permission to do anything. She wasn't their family. Just because she has been coming to this house for years doesn't make her a part of it. Her outburst seemed useless to her.

She blinked a few times, took in a shallow breath, "I'm sorry, ba- Sir. I shouldn't have done what I did." Humaira apologized to Hameed for her behaviour, she sounded different. "If you allow me," Umair's eyes follow her gaze that stopped at his grip above her elbow. He let go of her.

"See you tomorrow." She exited the room in a rush.

"Did she call me 'sir'?" Hameed wanted to confirm what he heard was right.

"Maybe it was for me." Umair shrugged.

"No..." He was staring at the empty passage that Humaira had walked on seconds ago.

" She behaved strangely, Dad. Haven't seen her like this before. She had never misbehaved with you before. " Umair conveyed his concern.

" She wasn't misbehaving, Umair. " Hameed took a few steps closer to his son." She was showing her unpleasantness. Apparently, her best friend hid the fact that she was dating Saad. "

" Zoya is her best friend? "

That was news to him.

" Hmm... Since school days. She was also a pupil of mine. "

" That still doesn't explain why she... Did she like Saad? "

" What? " Hameed scoffed," No, I thought that once too, but both your brother and she laughed it off. It's something else. Probably the feeling of being left out. "

A silent hum was his son's reply.

" And Umair, don't you ever dare to treat her that way. Next time you see her, I want you to apologise to Humaira for your actions. "

" But dad-" Umair tried to defend himself.

"I think I made myself clear." Hameed left the room, leaving his perplexed son behind.

"Saad is right. You're partial to her!" Umair complained, which made his father smile as he walked further away.

Humaira left her tuition but was in no mood to reach her home; the place she was trying to skip in the first place.

What was home, anyway?

A question to herself.

A place where you're loved and welcomed unconditionally.

She never felt that in her family. Her Tayi and Choti Ammi were busy with their kids; Humaira wasn't even a tag-along. She was just there. Like furniture. Even her cousin's pets were shown more affection than she was.

Would the situation be any different if her parents were with her? She shook the thought of it.

"Where am I supposed to go?" She looked around. Different signboards glowing in front of her; some of the stores, some of the eateries.

Walking through the lane her thoughts wandered: the place she considered home just reminded her that she's an outsider and will always be one. Doesn't matter how much time she spent there, or how much she loved them... In the end, they were a closely knitted family. By blood. The reason Umair, who was away from them for so long, had the strength to call her an outsider, even though she had spent more time with his father and brother than he ever did.

After walking a few distances, her eyes caught the signboard of a bakery.

"Kuch meetha hojaye." She smiled.

(Time for something sweet.)

She entered the bakery, ordered a chocolate pastry, and sat on the corner table enjoying her treat. Or was she?

"Happy Birthday to me. Happy Birthday to me. Happy Birthday... dear... Humaira. Happy Birthday to me." She softly sang the birthday song for herself, her throat felt tight, and eyes prickled.

Taking a small bite from her pastry, she forced a smile.

No one remembered her birthday. She had no complaints because she too wasn't aware of it until she was sitting in Mr. Osman's office with her Tayi when she noticed the date- 22nd March.

As a child, she saw her classmates bringing chocolates, distributing them in class, and everyone singing the birthday song for them. Some would also invite her to their birthday parties, but she couldn't attend those as her guardians wouldn't let her. This continued in her early years, but it changed in her late teens; when she started to defy them and do things as she pleased. After losing her grandfather, there was no going back.

Humaira never liked celebrating her birthday after her grandfather's demise. Not that she celebrated it when he was alive. A person of that age hardly remembers their morning chore, forget about keeping a tally of dates or someone's birthday. The other members of her so-called family barely considered her part of them and never enough to celebrate her or anything related to her.

Even after all these, she liked receiving two birthday texts from two of her friends, Saad and Zoya. The reason Humaira was asking for Saad was– to tease him for forgetting her birthday and putting up their regular nagging show, but he was unavailable. Then she called Zoya to do something similar, but the news she got, changed everything.

Her bestfriends not only hid their relationship for God knows how long, they also fixed their marriage without her. Was she living in delusion all these years, considering herself Zoya's closest? What could be the reason she didn't tell her about Saad.

Guess I'll never know.

Being forgotten by her kins didn't hurt her as much as being forgotten by her chosen people. Today she felt like, her whole life, each second she spent with the Mirzas and Zoya was a lie. Maybe she was overthinking. Maybe it was piled-up thoughts. But it was that moment for her when the tiniest scratch opens up the deepest wound.

Her friends' hiding their relationship was that scratch that made her feel she didn't matter to anyone, and Umair's words were the final blow.

Humaira tried to block those thoughts out of her mind and concentrate on her dessert.

|~★~|

So how was it?

Did you like the surprise, or were you as shocked as Humaira?

Thoughts on Saad and Zoya hiding their relationship from Humaira?

Can you think of any reason?Would love to know!

And ouch ...

Umair did hurt her, didn't he?Would he realise that?

Poor Huma celebrated her birthday alone. She deserves our love guys.

So please, show some love to her and her story.

Share it with someone if you think they'll like her story.