HER POV

The days dragged on since the wedding talks began. Everyone seemed caught up in the whirlwind of preparations. And me? I left my own home.

I couldn’t deal with them anymore my family, their expectations, their plans formylife. I didn’t have the energy to argue or even pretend to care. So I did what I could avoided them as much as possible.

Today was packed.

A final meeting with Mr. Ahmed to finalize everything for the product launch loomed large on my schedule. Work had become my only escape, a distraction I clung to desperately. I threw myself into it, hoping the constant chaos would drown out the rest of my life.

By afternoon, they arrived.

I made my way to the conference room, my steps heavier than they should have been. My reflection in the glass door caught my eye. The same black abaya I wore the day I left home hung loosely on my shoulders. It felt like a reminder of everything I was trying to run from. Thankfully, I had spare clothes in my office a sample outfit from a previous collection and Sana had brought me some comfortable pajamas earlier in the week.

But even with fresh clothes, nothing could fix what stared back at me. My face, once glowing and full of life, was now pale and dull. The energy I used to carry so effortlessly was gone. My eyes, even after nights of enough sleep, still looked hollow, as if they carried the weight of a thousand restless nights.

I walked into the room and took my seat at the far end of the table, nodding at Mr. Ahmed and the others. The usual greetings felt mechanical. The meeting began promptly, voices filling the room as plans and projections were laid out.

I tried to focus, jotting down notes and nodding where appropriate, but I couldn’t shake the haze in my mind. I felt like a shadow of myself, functioning on autopilot, my mind split between the chaos of my personal life and the demands of my professional one.

This was my escape, and yet, even here, I couldn’t fully detach. My heart ached with the unresolved tension from home, the life decisions being made without me, and the weight of expectations I never asked for. I pushed it down, determined to make it through the day without breaking.

The meeting carried on, and so did I, barely holding myself together.

It’s been a while, but today, I’m finally going to meet her. I almost lost her, and I still don’t understand why. As I was deep in my thoughts, Zayn walked in.

“Boss,” he said, pulling me out of my reverie.

“What?” I said, pretending to be busy with work, even though I was just excited.

“We have a meeting with Miss Khan...” Zayn began, but before he could continue, I stood up and grabbed my coat.

“Let’s go,” I said, walking away from my desk.

“Kya baat hai, aaj kal Miss Khan ka naam hi kaafi hai boss ko apni chair se uthane ke liye!” Zayn teased.(“Wow, these days just the mention of Miss Khan’s name is enough to get the boss out of his chair!“)

I shot him a glare, but Zayn wasn’t done yet. “Aap toh bade hi lucky hain, Irfaz bhai! Pehle hi meeting mein dil se meeting karne ki planning hai kya?” he smirked.(“You’re quite lucky, Irfaz bhai! Planning to have a heart-to-heart in the very first meeting?“)

“Chup reh,” I muttered, shaking my head as I walked ahead, trying to hide the small smile tugging at the corners of my lips.(“Keep quiet.“)

Zayn, of course, didn’t stop there. He caught up with me, walking beside me with his signature mischievous grin.

“Waise boss, kya baat hai? Pehli baar aap kisi meeting ke liye itne excited lag rahe ho,” he said, nudging me.(“By the way, boss, what’s the matter? This is the first time you seem so excited for a meeting.“)

I tried to ignore him, but he wasn’t giving up. “Miss Khan ka jaadu hai ya dil pe zor chal nahi raha?” he added with a chuckle.( “Is it Miss Khan’s magic, or is your heart just out of your control?“)

“Zayn, if you don’t shut up...”I warned, giving him a sharp look.

He raised his hands in mock surrender. “Okay, okay, boss! Main toh bas keh raha tha. Par ye toh maan lijiye, Miss Khan ke liye excitement alag hi level ki hai.”( “Okay, okay, boss! I was just saying. But you have to admit, the excitement for Miss Khan is on another level.“)

I ignored Zayn’s teasing and walked straight to the car, leaving his comments behind. The drive to her office felt longer than usual, my mind running through all the possibilities of how this meeting might go.

-----

As soon as we arrived, I headed directly to the meeting room, my steps steady but my heart racing. Zayn followed, still smirking, but I didn’t pay him any attention. This was not the time for distractions.

I walked in, the room already prepared for the meeting. Taking my seat, I tried to calm the excitement building inside me. After all, this wasn’t just any meeting it was a reunion I had been waiting for.

I saw her again, but this time, something was different. She wasn’t radiating her usual aura of strength and confidence. Instead, she looked fragile, almost diminished, like a shadow of the person I remembered. Even though she was wearing an abaya, I could tell her wrist was thinner, her watch slipping down loosely.

She had lost weight, and it was painfully obvious.

But why?

The question gripped me, twisting into my chest like a knife. My heart ached in a way I couldn’t explain, a pang of concern that refused to let go. She seemed so far away, not just physically but emotionally, as though an invisible wall surrounded her. And for the first time, I saw her not as the woman who intimidated me, but as someone who was quietly falling apart.

This was a new feeling for me strange, overwhelming, and entirely consuming.I wanted to hold her so tightly that the world couldn’t reach her, couldn’t hurt her anymore.I wanted her to tell me everything, every single reason behind the pain that had dimmed her light.

Even if it was as small asa broken nail, a stubborn pimple, the elachi ruining her biryani, or the shock of finding a single strand of grey in her hair.

I wanted to know it all, every tiny detail, no matter how trivial it seemed to her. Because to me, it wasn’t trivial if it was about her. And I wanted to fix it, every little thing.

If she had a problem,

I wanted to be her solution, her comfort, the person she could lean on without hesitation.

The intensity of it startled me, but I couldn’t stop myself.

As I sat there in the meeting room, I just wanted to finish the meeting as soon as possible. Honestly, I couldn’t focus on anything happening in the room. My only attention was on her.

When the meeting finally ended, she walked out, greeting everyone politely before leaving her manager to handle everything from there. I was about to go to her, to speak with her, but just as I stepped toward the door, I was stopped by a phone call from my grandfather.

“Hello?” I answered.

“Come here to Gurgaon,” my grandfather asked.

I hesitated for a moment, torn between my grandfather’s request and the urge to speak with her.

“Dada, is everything okay?” I asked, trying to gauge the urgency.

“I found him, I need to talk to you,” he replied, his tone firm but calm.

I glanced toward the door, where she had just exited, feeling conflicted. I knew I couldn’t ignore my grandfather, but I also didn’t want to lose the chance to talk to her.

“I’ll be there soon,” I said, before ending the call and quickly heading towards the door.

TO BE COUTINUEEEEEE................