BY ZEE ASLAM
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
“What the hell did you think you were doing”? Dr Hassan yelled at Bello. Get lost before I will be forced to hand you over to the police. ‘He added’.
At the mention of police, Bello pointed a finger at Farida saying, “let’s see how you deal with your mother’s hospital bills and again am not done with you yet”.
He left her there shedding tears….what has she done to deserve this from Bello, the person who claimed to love her, the one whom she once vowed to spend the rest of her lives with.
“Hope you are fine, did he harm you in anyway”? The doctor’s question jolted her back to reality.
“Thanks to you, am fine” she said using the duvet to cover her body.
The doctor knew she wasn’t comfortable having him around so he quietly left.
Some minutes later, the nurse maid came in alongside Sufyan. Farida gave her a bad stare before asking “who said you could just disclose my whereabout to anyone without my permission, do you know what your recklessness has caused”?
“Madam it was only your husband I told, I did not tell any other person”. The nurse maid replied in a confused state.
“Shut up………..as from today, I don’t want you to communicate with him ever again and if you go against my words, consider yourself off this job”. Farida ordered and went into the bathroom.
The nurse maid was shocked and calm. What could possibly be wrong? They used to be a happy and adorable couple. So the attitude Farida just displayed now is a bit awkward to her.
She came out and still met them the way she had left them.
“Why are you still standing here, am I supposed to remind you that we are going home now. Don’t just look at me, put everything together and meet me outside”. She said to the nurse maid and she swung into action immediately.
Farida picked up her torn hijab and wrapped it on her body like a veil and went to settle her hospital bills before leaving after checking on umma.
When they got home, she went directly to her room and locked the door from within.
Thunder roared, lightning flashed and rain fell heavily. She stood by the window and stared as rain fell relentlessly on the floor, her terrified eyes focused on the rain.
She didn’t understand why Bello did what he did, perhaps an explanation would have cleared everything.
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Boom…..!
Lightning flashed outside the window and a loud thunder cracked.
After 10mins, the nurse maid came knocking at the door, the rain outside had stopped.
Just then, Farida felt a burst of bloating pain in her stomach that felt like spasms.
Gosh! It’s menstrual cramps.
She gently went to the door and instructed the nurse maid to bring some ginger drink and two spoonfuls honey for her.
After taking the drink, she laid on the bed and massaged below her stomach. Soon tears filled her eyes, this was what her husband had taken as his responsibility ever since she got married but here she is massaging it by herself.
She wasn’t worried about the separation in the beginning but who would have thought she would feel the pain now.
Lying on the bed, fresh memories of their marriage life came running through her mind, the happy moments and even the sad moments.
She rubbed her stomach closing her eyes on the flash of pain.
**Meanwhile**
Husna had lost her baby. She passed her critical stage and was lying weakly on the bed.
She stared at the ceiling as tears rolled down her face. She clenched the pure white beddings in her fist, her eyes looked ruthless and were filled with certainty.
She took a deep breath regretting her actions, her selfishness had led her to kill her own baby. However what she regrets most is leaving that house with nothing to call her own.
Everything happened according to the plan but who knows the table was going to turn around this way.
She left with nothing, isn’t that the law of karma!..
A sinister yet pitiful smile appeared across her pale face.
As she have nothing to foot the hospital bills with, she made up her mind to sneak out of the hospital.
7pm.
She was lucky enough that a patient was rushed in from an accident scene, so the hospital was in uproar.
She sneaked out without anyone suspecting she was a patient, afterwards she found her way to her boyfriend’s apartment only to find out he has moved out.
Now she was back to square one, there was no way she could go back to mama and she has no family, mama had actually adopted her as a house help from the orphanage.
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Bello got home and headed to his mum’s room. She was on the bed making a call.
He clenched his fist and punched the dressing mirror in front of him. Fragments of glass from the mirror fell on the floor with thud clatter while the pain in his fist came fresh.
Blood dripped on the floor but he just stared absentmindedly, his eyes lacking focus.
Mama was startled, she quickly hung up and rushed to where he was standing. She grabbed some tissue to take care of his bleeding hand but he pulled his hand away from her.
“Don’t you dare touch me” he bellowed.
“You caused all this for me, you made me lose my wife and now am beginning to go nuts”.
“Why couldn’t you have just minded your business and not interfere in my marriage” he added furiously and left her presence.
Mama quietly went back and sat on the bed.
Indeed she shouldn’t have interceded in their marriage life.
Third party interference is deadly and harmful to a marriage. Stay out of people’s marriages and prevent your marriage from public glare.
The interference of a third party does more harm to a marriage than good. Leave them. Let them live their lives. And what goes around will surely comes around.
