Waleed arrived on time as promised. Hooreen, Amna, and the other staff teachers were standing near the Principal. Seeing him, Hooreen addressed the Principal: "Ma'am, tell both drivers to follow Waleed's car. Sir is not in the city right now, so we will stay at his house."
Her tone was commanding. Everyone looked at Hooreen with suspicion. Ma'am Nafisa and her favorites couldn't bear that Hooreen had made such a big decision without asking them and was now giving orders. The Principal spoke angrily: "Who did you ask before doing this…? And on top of that, you're ordering us? We would have resolved the matter here."
They were also worried that if this reached Sir Kayan, it would be a huge insult to them. Hooreen replied calmly: "Ma'am! You couldn't resolve the problem, which is why I was forced to intervene. And besides, I only gave you the same order that the owner of this school would give."
They fell silent. Besides, their money was being saved, which was enough for them, so they agreed. As Hooreen and the Principal were about to board the coach, Waleed approached them: "Ma'am! You will come with us, and the others will follow our car."
Ma'am, Nafisa thought Waleed was talking to her. She beamed with joy and said: "Yes, yes, definitely… let's go…"
He replied with a smile: "I didn't ask you; I asked my Ma'am Hooreen… Shall we go, Ma'am Hooreen…?"
Her face turned red with humiliation, while Amna and Hooreen barely suppressed their laughter. Hooreen took Amna and sat in the car. As soon as she sat, the guards closed the door and started the car. "Whoa,w Hooreen, such protocol…! And your style has completely changed. Sir's company is clearly rubbing off on you… You look much better like this…"
Hooreen glared at her and said: "Amna, if you speak another word, I'll leave you right here."
"Mrs. Kayan, look, have mercy on me. I won't say anything because I know you'd actually do it."
She spoke dramatically in fear. Hooreen burst into a laugh, unaware that this might be her last laugh, for a sigh from a heart is never ignored or rejected.
Kayan had an important meeting in half an hour for which he needed some details, and that file was in Islamabad. He had sent Waleed to get that file. He wanted to finish his work quickly and go to his Hoor. Having heard nothing from Waleed, he called him and spoke in a dominating tone: "Waleed, I sent you to get the file and you haven't arrived yet…? Where are you…? You know very well I don't tolerate negligence in work."
"Ji… sorry Sir… I am currently at the house... I mean, in Islamabad. Actually, Ma...'am…"
"What the hell…!"
"You are still in Islamabad? Why haven't you left? What work was more important than Kayan Zarrar's word? And what are these unusual noises in the house?"
Knowing his anger well, Waleed swallowed hard and said: "Sir, I couldn't leave because of Ma'am Hooreen's call. That's why I'm late…"
At Hooreen's name, he became alert. His anger turned into softness. "So, what was your Ma'am saying…?"
Waleed told Kayan everything Hooreen had said. Kayan smiled and said: "Fine. Do exactly as your Ma'am said. But along with that, do one thing for me as well. And yes, your Ma'am must not find out about my call."
"Ji Sir…!"
He ended the call and addressed Hooreen in his imagination: "You are very clever, Hoor. You remember my words well, which is why you first asked about me and then mentioned your arrival. Did you think you could come so close to me and leave without me knowing? But you forgot that I too am Kayan Zarrar. How could I let you go so easily, especially on this very important occasion today? And today, you are coming to our house of your own will. Let's meet face to face."
The car stopped outside a massive mansion. Its grandeur spoke of the owner's status. Everyone stared at it with open mouths. Before entering, there was a large, beautiful black iron gate. After that, cars were parked on both sides. The mansion looked breathtaking, bathed in lights. Hooreen was the first to step out and walked in with the guards without any hesitation, feeling relaxed because the person she feared wasn't there. Everyone had questions seeing her receive such protocol, and some were burning with jealousy, while she was content.
Everything in the house was beautiful and expensive. In the hall, there was a large curtain in front of a wall as if covering something. It wasn't there when she visited before, but she ignored it. After inspecting the rooms, she gave some rooms in the lower portion to the girls and female staff, and others to the male staff and boys. Seeing her move so comfortably and authoritatively through the house made everyone's blood boil, while Amna enjoyed it all.
She chose a separate room for herself and Amna, far from the others, so she could talk to Amna in peace. However, Samara also came into that room, saying the children were making too much noise in the other rooms. Hooreen didn't want to stay with Samara. Moreover, she was missing Kayan, especially after coming here. So, she took her small bag and went to Kayan's room. Kayan's scent filled the room; she took a deep breath, absorbing it. Her eyes fell on a showpiece on the side table, and she was stunned. She had liked the same showpiece in a Lahore mall for her parents while shopping for Amna's Nikah, but couldn't get it due to her injury. She hadn't seen it anywhere else because that shop's specialty was unique, single-piece products.
She put it back, freshened up, and came downstairs where everyone was at the dining table. Two more tables and chairs had been added to the large dining table. The servants hadn't served the food yet; they were waiting for their "Madam." As she sat down, Waleed asked: "Ma'am, shall we serve the food…?"
She nodded with a smile, and the servants immediately began serving. A maid was personally serving Hooreen, which made Samara feel like she might faint. They were just about to start eating when Kayan entered, greeting everyone loudly. Along with him came his scent that always signaled his arrival. Everyone stood up in respect, while Hooreen remained frozen in her seat, her spoon of rice stopping mid-air.
"There's quite a gathering here; in fact, it's a proper celebration. I've arrived at exactly the right time. Why are you all standing? Sit, eat your dinner. But before that, why don't we cut the cake?"
Saying this, he looked at Waleed, who understood the signal and left immediately. Then Kayan looked at Hooreen, who was sitting still, staring at him. Approaching her, Kayan took the spoon held in mid-air and put it into her mouth, kissing her cheek as he spoke:
"Happy wedding anniversary, my dear wifeyyyyy."
At Kayan's action and words, Hooreen lowered her head in realization, while everyone else was struck by a deathly silence.
At Kayan's action and words, Hooreen lowered her head as she regained her senses, while everyone else was struck by a deathly silence. Meanwhile, Shehar Bano, Maryam, and Amna listened to his words with great interest and felt happy. Hooreen hadn't even realized that today marked exactly one year since their marriage. She looked at the clock, which was striking 12:00 AM, signaling the start of a new day. Just then, Waleed brought in a trolley carrying a large heart-shaped cake featuring a picture of the two of them. She looked at Kayan in disbelief, and he spoke with a smile:
"Today marks exactly one year of our marriage; a celebration is definitely in order, right...?"
Saying this, he pulled the cord of the curtain on the wall. As the curtain slid away, a full-sized wedding portrait of them on the wall stunned everyone. It was the same picture where she was looking into Kayan's eyes and Kayan was looking into hers. The silence of the hall was broken by Ma'am Nafisa's voice, who spoke in disbelief:
"Sir, what are you saying...? How is this possible...?"
Even after seeing the wedding photo with her own eyes, she couldn't believe it. He replied seriously to her question:
"I am saying exactly what you heard. Even after seeing such solid evidence, you don't believe it...? That's strange."
She felt embarrassed at his remark, so Samara spoke up:
"Then Sir, why didn't you tell us before... and why so suddenly today...?"
Kayan spoke in a stern tone to her:
"I am your boss, not an employee, that you should question me like this. Nor do I give anyone the right to interfere in my personal life. But since this question is in everyone's mind here, I'll tell you: my purpose for coming here and taking over this school was only my wife. She wanted to enjoy her life right now, so she asked me not to tell anyone. I probably wouldn't have told you even now, but because of your increasing suspicions and baseless allegations, I had to reveal it today. If everyone has their answers now, let's cut the cake."
His response silenced everyone. They were all in shock that Hooreen was the boss's wife and the owner of the school. While some were happy, many were burning with jealousy—a fire capable of destroying everything. Hooreen lowered her head and accepted this decree of her Lord from her heart. Then they cut the cake together. Afterward, while everyone was eating and talking, Hooreen and Amna were with the girls from their class. Maryam and Shehar Bano were pestering her with questions about when and how she met the Sir. She was smiling at their talk when Kayan approached her and spoke:
"If you ladies don't mind, may I have a word with my wife...?"
His mood was quite pleasant. Hooreen's smile vanished; she knew what Kayan wanted to talk about. She signaled 'no' to Amna with her eyes, but a true friend never misses a chance to tease. Despite understanding the signal, Amna said:
"Yes Sir, certainly...!"
She took the other girls and moved slightly to the side. Kayan leaned toward her ear and whispered:
"Like a good wife, now fulfill the promise you made and go to the room to get ready. Khalida Maa has laid out your dress on the bed; you'll have to wear that one, there's no other option because the rest of the cupboard is locked, and I have the keys."
Hearing this, she lost her remaining composure. she remembered her words well, and today she had entered this house and Kayan's room of her own will. She quietly went to the room. She hadn't thought about what she would do if Kayan actually showed up. She didn't realize how heavily her assumption of his absence would weigh on her.
He was heading to the room when Shehar Bano and Maryam addressed him, both speaking excitedly at once:
"Sir, thanks a lot...!"
He asked in surprise:
"Thanks for what...?"
"You listened to us and didn't marry that selfish Aunty."
At Shehar Bano's words, he burst into laughter, and Maryam added:
"Yeah, and instead you married our teacher! We told you before that our teacher is the best for you."
"Oh... so the teacher you two were talking about that day was Hoor...?"
When they both nodded in affirmation, he mumbled to himself:
"I wish I had listened to you two back then; things would have been different today."
"Sir, did you say something...?"
"No, go and rest. Goodnight...!"
Wishing them goodnight, he headed toward his room.
When he entered the room, Hooreen was sitting in front of the dressing table with a brush in her hand, lost in deep thought. Kayan locked the door and stood behind her, looking at her reflection in the mirror; she looked breathtaking. She was dressed in a red nightie, and the waterfall of her hair was scattered over her back. When Kayan placed his hands on her shoulders, she startled and looked at his reflection in the mirror. He was gazing at her with eyes full of passion.