Ahan's PoV:

It was 8 o'clock in the evening when Mom and I reached Ashiya's house. Khala was thrilled to see us and kept ranting about how we should visit her more often now that Ashiya and I were going to get married. Ashiya wasn't home, she was at the hospital so I was a bit disappointed but then I reminded myself that we were at her house for a purpose.

We were sitting in the hall when Khala came with tea and some snacks for us. The ladies talked about some stuff for a while before Mom looked and me and then cleared her throat.

"We are here to discuss something important, Saba," she began as she kept her cup aside.

"Yeah, tell me," Khala replied, taking a sip of her tea.

"Ahan has found a house for himself and Ashiya, you know, the one where they will be living after their marriage," Mom said and Khala nodded. "It's a beautiful house, you can come and see it for yourself if you want. And, if you agree then we can get our children married by the end of next month," Mom looked at Khala with hope and I kept praying internally for a positive reaction. She looked surprised and confused.

"Umm...I don't know," Khala looked unsure, "I'll have to talk to Ashiya first."

"Talk about what?" we heard Ashiya's voice and turned to see her standing near the entrance to the hall. She was wearing a yellow tunic with black hijab and blue jeans. She looked tired but beautiful anyways. She had a curious look on her face as she came and sat beside her mother but not before greeting us.

"I was thinking to get you guys married by the end of next month," Mom answered and recieved a frown in return.

"But I... I think it's too early," Ashiya said and turned to look at me, "don't you think so?" NO, I wanted to say. If I could, I would have married you long ago, probably the day I realised my feelings for you, angel eyes.

"We won't be proceeding if you say no," I said and held her gaze for long after which she lowered her eyes and sighed.

"Bete, I have accepted you as a part of our family since a long time and now that you guys are engaged, I just want to make you ours officially. I promise I will try to love you just the way your mother does," Mom looked at her expectantly. Ashiya seemed to be in a deep thought. She looked at her mother, then at Mom and then finally at me. Her eyes were full of questions and I assured her through my gaze, promised her that I'll never fail her and always cherish her, her madness and her innocence, her aura and her personality and everything that she possesses. Her eyebrows relaxed as she looked away and nodded.

"Okay," she said softly.

"WHAT?" I almost yelled and she seemed taken aback. Mom and Khala laughed at me and I realised how stupid I looked right then. "I mean...what did you say?" I touched my ears which I felt were reddening.

"I said okay," she replied and I grinned at her to which she blushed. I could hear Mom and Khala exclaiming and then proceeding to talk about stuff related to the wedding but my eyes were fixed on her. She looked everywhere but at me and I smirked. She bit her lower lip as she tried to concentrate on what our mothers were talking about and I clenched my fists, trying to focus anywhere but on her lips. They looked sinful and inviting. Control yourself.

Finally after half an hour of happy discussions, Mom decided to leave and I mentally thanked her. Khala and Ashiya came to the door to bid us farewell during which Mom and Khala started talking, again. I took this as a chance and went closer to Ashiya. She got alarmed and took a step back, looking at me nervously.

"Relax," I whispered, "I'm not going to eat you," I lowered myself a little to match her height. She smelled incredible and her eyes looked mesmerising as she stared at me, "not until we get our nikah done." Her mouth dropped in shock as I stepped back and winked at her. I gestured Mom to get going and she nodded and exchanged goodbyes with Khala. Just as I reached my car, I turned back and saw her looking at me, a small smile playing on her lips which she immediately wiped off when she realised that I was looking at her. Cute!

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Ashiya's PoV:

I could still feel my cheeks burning with embarassment from the moment we shared outside our house. How could he be so... shameless! I face palmed myself and tried to divert my mind. I remembered that I needed to tell my pals about this decision of mine so I took out my phone and texted in the group.

Me: Can we meet on this weekend? I got something to tell you guys.

I waited for a ten minutes before I got a notification.

Sam: What is it about?

Shifa: Is this about your marriage?

Lucky: She's getting married?

Oh yes, apart from Shifa and Saira, none of my friends knew about Ahan. I need to explain a lot to them.

Me: Are you guys coming or not?

Lucky: Only if you treat us with pizza.

I rolled my eyes. These guys are still kids.

Me: Fine.

Sam: Great. Let's meet at Zuke Cafe.

Lucky: Cool.

Shifa: Okay, somebody inform Saira too.

Me: Will do.

Later that night, I dreamt of him. It was kinda weird. I saw myself in his arms as he caressed my face and whispered sweet nothings to me. His face was dangerously close to mine, our lips inches apart. I could feel his breath and as he was about to join our lips together, I woke up.

I drank an entire bottle of water trying to calm my heart down. It was so...ticklish. Is this what people call having butterflies in one's stomach? I tried to sleep again but failed. Only after fajr salah, I managed to get an hour of sleep in which I again dreamt of him.