Jasmine opened her eyes. Hamza was still kneeling in front of her but his eyes were on a piece of paper in his hand. She froze, feeling very afraid all of a sudden. It was the note Rizwaan had given her.
"Hamza." When he lifted his gaze to her, she swallowed at the frost she detected in them. "I should have told you," she said softly. "I'm sorry."
He stood up and turned his back to her. "Get dressed,' he snapped.”Now."
Miserably, she did as he asked. There was no arguing with him when he was in that mood. Jasmine knew that he would not come around until he chose to do so. She should have known his shrewd eyes would land on that note at some point. Zoya was in so much trouble now because of her. She had to warn her friend.
To her surprise, Hamza turned and grabbed her to place an angry kiss on her mouth. She stared at him when he drew back, stuffing the crumpled note in her hands and sneering at her while shaking his head. "I should have fucked you when I had the chance instead of waiting for you to leave," he said bitterly and she frowned at his words. "Get out," he grated. "Get the hell out of my life, Jasmine."
She gasped at his words. "Let me explain," she begged, shocked by the hatred she saw in his expression. Surely he could understand that Zoya and Rizwaan were in love. He knew love, if nothing else. "Rizwaan is-"
"Don't take his name in front of me," he growled and she took several steps back. "Get lost. Leave now."
She brushed at the tears on her cheeks and fled from the room, not caring who saw her in that state. She ran out to the grounds and was surrounded by hundreds of students. Keeping her head down, she made her way to the bus stop, swallowing back her tears and gritting her teeth to keep the pain at bay. Only when she was home safely and had flopped down on her bed, did she allow herself to cry.
When Jasmine woke up, it was dark outside. She blinked at the ceiling for a while and then, her eyes widened as she thought of her best friend. Uncurling her palm, Jasmine looked miserably at the crumpled note in it. I'm so sorry, Zo, she thought sadly.
She opened the note and smoothed it out, then frowned at the single line written on the paper.
After what you showed me yesterday, I am more than ready to run away with you and to hell with Mr. Qureshi (Sorry).-Yours always, Riz.
She stared at it. Oh my God. What had Riz done? He hadn't included Zoya's name. Hamza must have assumed that the note was meant for Jasmine. She pressed a hand to her forehead, relieved that Zoya was not in trouble but worried about how much pain she had unintentionally caused Hamza.
"Oh my poor baby," she breathed and decided that she would have to set things straight, first thing in the morning. She would just lie that the note was meant for another girl in her class. She would do whatever it took to get him to forgive her and save their relationship.
When she went to look for him in his office the next day though, he was not there. She returned several times to check but found the office empty each time. Her worry increased tenfold and she tried not to panic. Things were going to be okay. They loved each other. They would get through this.
Jasmine returned home to find them all packing their stuff in boxes. "What's going on?" she asked Zoya and her best friend shook her head.
"Bhai has gotten it in his head to move into the mansion first thing tomorrow morning."
"What?" Jasmine moistened her lips and her eyes landed on Hamza and his wife, sorting through their belongings. He refused to look at her.
She turned back to Zoya miserably. "Am I going to remain here?" she questioned.
"Don't be an idiot. You're coming with us. I've already packed your stuff. We took the day off from college. My phone is playing up since this morning so I couldn't text you. Abbu says that you can stay as long as you like at the mansion."
Jasmine glanced at Hamza again and caught him looking at her strangely. When she entered her room, boxes greeted her everywhere. Letting out a sigh, she stepped into the shower without removing her clothes. The cold water contributed greatly towards making her feel numb.
She heard her phone ringing after a long time and walked back into the room to answer it.
"Jasmine?"
"Hamza," she breathed a sigh of relief, leaning against a wall for support. "You called."
"Yes. I came outside," he said curtly.
"I spent the whole day trying to reach you, baby. I have to explain-"
"There's no need," he clipped. "You're a young girl. You have needs. I can't fulfill them all."
"No, listen to me. I love you. I-"
"Jasmine, I don't want us to see each other again. Privately. It's over."
She gulped, suddenly finding it difficult to breathe. "Don't say that," she pleaded. "You can't just tell me it's over and expect me to be okay with it. I know you're mad at me but please just give me a chance to-"
"You need to move on with your life and forget about me," he interrupted calmly. "I'm not angry with you,
