Ashiya's PoV:

It was past midnight when Ahan and I returned to Khala's place with Ayan. Apparently a car full of drunk teenagers had hit Ayan's which made it hit a tree, which further led to a concussion in the latter's neck. He was fine now but the doctors advised him to take rest for two weeks. We informed Khala after we got him discharged. As expected, she wanted to come right then to see Ayan but we told her that we were getting him home anyway.

When we entered the house, Khala came rushing to Ayan whose arm was around his elder brother's shoulder. He could stand alright but it was just Ahan being overly worried and in his big brother mood.

"My baby," Khala grabbed Ayan's face and started kissing it. She blew a dozen duas on him as she took him from Ahan's hold and led him to the couch. Ayan winced.

"Let the guy breathe, Mom," Arhan, who was standing nearby, spoke, making Khala shoot a glare in his direction.

This agitated Ahan who took out his phone and dialled some numbers. "This is Ahan Rahman," his authoritative voice rang, "I would like to make a complaint regarding a group of teenagers whose car hit my brother's." The four of us looked at each other and waited for Ahan's next words. "Yes, tell your senior officer that I called and he'll know what to do." He cut the call without even hearing what the person on the other side of the phone had to say. He then went ahead and took a seat beside Ayan. "You won't be going out of the house for two weeks."

Ayan frowned and made a move to argue but was shut up with glares from the people seated on both sides. Defeated, he nodded slightly.

"Arhan, take your brother to his room upstairs," Ahan ordered and the younger one obliged. He then looked at me.

"We can stay here for a few days," I said to which he nodded. I then turned to Khala, "Let's get you to bed, it has been a long day for you." She touched Ahan's head as she continued muttering verses from the Qur'an and walked with me to her room.

Once I made sure that she was tucked in comfortably in her bed, I left her to go and be with my husband who I guessed was not in a very good mood. I stepped inside his old bedroom and saw the bathroom lights on. The room was still the same. The cupboard had some of our clothes which was a relief. I then heard the bathroom door being opened and closed. Ahan walked to the bed and laid down with his head on the pillow. He was wearing a pair of black trousers with his upper body exposed.

"Won't you be cold?" I practically shivered looking at him. It was December for God's sake.

He shook his head. "I'm not very much prone to the cold."

With a sigh I went and laid down beside him and he turned to face me."You should sleep," I said softly, touching his face. His dark beard, a contraction to his pale face, tickled the inside of my palms, and he eyed me lazily. Looking at his exhausted state, I let my fingers travel to his scalp and started massaging it. He seemed to relax at that.

"It's tough, you know," he said with his eyes closed, "to pretend to always be strong. Only I know how I feel whenever I see my family in pain. The fear of not being able to protect them when they need me, the fear of not being enough for them…it haunts me."

I tried to study the man in front of me. He looked so scared that I feared he would break if made even one wrong move. "But you do protect them," I whispered, wanting him to know that there was nothing he should be afraid of. "Always."

His eyes unclosed and stared at me. They were…unreadable.

"Ahan," I moved closer to him so that our foreheads could touch. "You're the strongest man I've met in the entire span of my life. You're protective, loving and you aren't afraid to show your vulnerabilities to your loved ones, which I think isn't an easy thing for men. You shatter the stereotype of being tough all the time. You help the women in your life by supporting them in every way possible. You have carved out an excellent path for your brothers to follow, both in career and character wise. They look up to you, Ahan, they see you as their role model. You're their inspiration. Do you think you could have done that had you not been enough for them?" I kissed his forehead. His eyes, a universe of love, were now fixed on me with his lips slightly curved. He was smiling.

"Thanks," his hand took hold over mine,"you never fail to cheer me up. You're my sunshine," I grinned at that.

"I know," I sang and hit his forehead with mine. He faked a painful expression to which I gave an evil smile.

"My violent wifey," he mused before pulling in for a long kiss, his mouth smiling as it met mine.

"Sleep," I tried to sound stern after pulling back, my heart still racing from the kiss.

"I'm cold," His eyes danced in mirth," why don't you keep me warm for the night?"

"Didn't you just say that you aren't prone to cold?"

He scrunched his nose like a kid. "Well, I'm a hypocrite." I giggled at that and he lit up. "I love that sound, your giggle."

"And I love you," I kissed his cheek and saw him brighten up.

"Wow," he looked at me like a happy child. "This is the first time you've actually said it." I smiled. It was so easy to make him happy. "Say it again."

I inched closer to his ear and whispered, "I love you…my jinnat," and pulled back to see his eyebrow raised. Uh oh.

"Jinnat ha?" His voice sounded deliciously low, "let me show you what this jinnat can do to you…"

He was about to launch his seductive attack on me but I stopped by putting my finger on his lips. He needed sleep. "It's past midnight, we should sleep."

He gave me a pout, maybe hoping to change my mind but I wasn't gonna bend. I gave him a stern look to which he rolled his eyes.

"Okay, ma'am," he whined and closed his eyes with me still in his arms.

"Goodnight," I gave him one last kiss on his cheek before putting my head on his chest and falling asleep listening to his heartbeat.

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Duas: Invocations; supplications.

Jinnat: spirit inhabiting the earth but unseen by humans, capable of assuming various forms and exercising extraordinary powers.