BACK HOME

The moment the airplane landed, Rafia felt a strange sense of relief.

She didn't know why.

Maybe because she was finally back home.

Or maybe because she was about to see her family after months.

As soon as she stepped out of the airport, her eyes immediately started searching through the crowd.

And then she saw him.

Arqam.

Standing with his hands in his pockets and looking as uninterested as ever.

A small smile appeared on her face.

"Arqaaammm!"

Before he could react, she hugged him tightly.

"Apko dekh ke lag raha hai ghar mein sab theek hai."

Arqam awkwardly patted her head.

"Chalo."

Bas.

One word.

Rafia narrowed her eyes.

"Bas chalo?"

"Haan."

"Hum itne mahino baad aaye hain."

"Haan."

"Daddy kaise hain?"

"Theek."

"Mumma?"

"Theek."

"Phir humko daraaya kyun gaya?"

Arqam opened the car door.

"Baitho."

Rafia stared at him.

"Allah kasam, tumse zyada boring insaan maine aaj tak nahi dekha."

For the first time, Arqam laughed.

A very small laugh.

But it was enough.

The entire drive home was torture.

Every question she asked received the same answer.

"Haan."

"Nahi."

"Theek."

"Pata nahi."

By the time they reached home, she was ready to throw something at him.

As soon as she entered the house, her eyes searched for her parents.

The next second she froze.

Her father was sitting comfortably on the sofa drinking tea.

Healthy.

Completely healthy.

No hospital.

No medicines.

No weakness.

Nothing.

Her jaw dropped.

"DADDY?!"

Her father smiled.

"Assalamualaikum beta."

"Waalaikumassalam?!"

She walked toward him.

"What do you mean Waalaikumassalam?!"

Both her parents looked at each other.

Uh oh.

That expression.

She knew that expression.

Someone was guilty.

Very guilty.

"Mumma..."

"Ji beta."

"Daddy..."

"Haan beta."

"Kis ki tabiyat kharab thi?"

Silence.

Arqam immediately disappeared.

Traitor.

Absolute traitor.

Her mother coughed.

"Beta..."

"No."

Her father tried.

"Rafia..."

"No."

Her mother smiled nervously.

"We may have lied a little."

"A LITTLE?!"

Rafia stared at them in disbelief.

"Aap logo ne bola Daddy ki tabiyat kharab hai!"

Her father looked away.

Her mother looked away.

Even the wall looked away.

Nobody was ready to make eye contact.

Finally her father sighed.

"If we had told the truth, you wouldn't have come."

Rafia crossed her arms.

"Obviously."

"Exactly."

"DADDY!"

Her mother started laughing.

"Beta hum tumhe miss kar rahe the."

"We could've done a video call!"

"It isn't the same."

For a few seconds, Rafia tried very hard to stay angry.

Very hard.

Unfortunately...

These were her parents.

And she could never stay angry at them for long.

Finally she sighed dramatically.

"Fine."

Her mother immediately smiled.

"Good."

"But I'm still angry."

"Okay."

"Very angry."

"Okay."

"Extremely angry."

"Okay."

Now she was annoyed.

How was she supposed to fight if nobody was fighting back?

A few hours later, she finally entered her room.

Everything looked exactly the same.

The same curtains.

The same bookshelf.

The same photographs.

For the first time since returning, she felt relaxed.

She threw herself on the bed and grabbed her phone.

A smile appeared on her face.

Finally.

She could talk to her friends.

First call.

Midhat.

No answer.

"Huh."

Second call.

Still nothing.

"Weird."

Then Anam.

No answer.

Again.

No answer.

Again.

Nothing.

The smile slowly disappeared from her face.

What was happening?

Midhat never ignored her calls.

Never.

Anam wasn't answering either.

She quickly opened WhatsApp.

Last seen unavailable.

Messages unread.

Nothing.

A strange feeling settled in her chest.

Maybe they were busy.

Maybe she was overthinking.

Maybe.

But something felt wrong.

Very wrong.

Little did she know...

This was only the beginning.

TO BE CONTINUED...

😭🍿💖🌷

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