Chapter Five

Abdullah's POV:

Another employer stood up to greet me. I didn't spare him a glance and swiped my hand in the air to acknowledge him. He sat back down while I kept on walking towards my office, my polished shoes clicking on the shiny marble floor making a noise that filled in the quiet workplace.

I passed the long line of cabins aligned with each other on both sides. The walls of the great building strongly screamed 'success' which I knew was because of my efforts. Before my dad handed me the authority of the company, it was nothing more than just a normal textile company but at that time, it was one of the greatest companies in New York and it was due to my hard work.

I opened the door and entered my room, passing Stella, my personal assistant. "Don't let anyone disturb me. Tell them I'm not feeling well if they persist." I ordered her before going inside and plopping down on my office chair tiredly.

That girl had become the center of my thoughts and it was annoying. No one in my life had ever said such words to me and I couldn't let a random girl intrude in my life and insult me the way she did. The worst thing was that I had to please mom by taking her responsibility so my position wasn't under threat again.

I turned around on my chair to face the large window that was the size of a wall and looked outside. The other tall buildings that were once greater than us, were now eating the dirt under our feet. Honestly, it was my great achievement and I felt no hesitation to be proud of my work.

But that girl, Maryam.

Ugh!

I closed my eyes and rubbed my temples to get rid of the headache I had since morning. The events of last night were mentally tiring. Suddenly a rosy scent hit my nose and I felt slender arms wrap themselves around my neck. The chest of a girl met with my back and I quickly turned around to see who it was.

Reddish-brown hair and slightly tanned skin with narrow chocolate brown eyes, enclosed by long lashes. The beautiful girl that hugged me from behind wore a knee-length fluffy skirt under a white loose shirt with a deep neck.

"Noor," my face lit up at her sight and I removed her arms from my neck and brought them in front of me, taking her hands in mine. She had very long sharp nails that were painted an extremely eye-catching hot pink color.

"You look tired, Abdullah." she pouted at me, running her hands through my hair, ruffling it. "I am. My wife–" I was cut off by her when she put a finger over my lips. "Don't call her that. She's not your wife and I won't accept her as one." Noor grumbled, moving away.

I smiled at her, liking the jealous look on her pretty face. "Yes, she isn't. Only you have the right to own me as your husband." I pulled her cheeks and she grinned victoriously. "Get rid of her already, Abdullah. I can't stand the thought that you have to live in the same house as another girl." she huffed at me.

I took her by her shoulders and brought her close to me. "You know I can't do that. My parents will take away my position as the CEO. I wouldn't have had it any other way if that wasn't the case." I assured her, planting a kiss on her forehead. She rolled her eyes. "Ugh, this is so annoying."

I laughed at her a little because honestly, she looked so cute when she sulked like that but then I remembered something. "Speaking of marriage..." I started, turning a bit serious and looking at her straight in her brown eyes. "Why don't you consider my marriage proposal again–" before I could continue, Noor, cut me off by raising a hand in the air as if demanding me to stop.

"Not this again, Abdullah." she snapped, scowling at me and freeing herself from my hold. She turned her back towards me and folded her arms over her chest. "But why not? We've been together for two years now and we can't live without each other at this point. We'll get married secretly. No one will have to know." but she wasn't taking it.

"It isn't that simple!" she argued, her voice rising. "I'm not ready for such a serious relationship and besides, I don't think I'll be a good wife." I shook my head at her reply and stepped closer to her.

"It doesn't matter if you can't be a good wife or not. I'm not marrying you to take care of me or anything. I want to marry you because I love you and–"

"For God's sake, stop it!"

Her response got me angry as well. "You love me, don't you?" I demanded and at that, she softened. She faced me again, her eyes looking at me gently. "Of course I love you," she cupped my face with her hand. "But I can't do this. It's... It's not possible for me. My parents won't ever agree to this. And I'm still just eighteen and..." she trailed off, not knowing how to support her case. 

I scowled. "Noor, my parents aren't going to agree to it either. And now, I even have a wife. I'm willing to fight everyone for you. You just have to say yes." by the end of my sentence, I gave her a gentle look, stroking her arm slowly to convince her. Looking at the expression I had, she sighed. 

"I love you too. But really, I can't." I opened my mouth to say something else when she beat me to it. "You know how much I hate this topic. If you want me to leave, then I will." and she started walking towards the door but before she could go further, I quickly grabbed her arm. 

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry." I gave up, unwillingly. "I won't touch the topic again just don't go. Please." at that, she nodded finally and turned towards me again with a satisfied smile forming on her face and I was content with that. Her smile was the daily boost I needed to go about my day and work hard to make my company the best and the more time I spent with her, the more it felt like I wouldn't be able to survive without her. 

"Let's go grab something to eat? Your favorite?" I suggested to which Noor perked up. "Yes! Besides, I had to update my I*******m. A fancy coffee shop would definitely do the trick!" the cheerful look on her face gave me some sort of relief which made me completely forget about Maryam.

Noor always knew how to cheer me up. 

When we settled down in the coffee shop, the sweet aroma of coffee and sweets filled our noses. It was warm inside and looked exactly like the perfect place to sit down and relax. I wanted to talk to Noor and ask about her day but she was busy being live on I*******m so that went down the drain.

I pulled out my own phone after ordering and just then, I got a call from Rashid. I swiped the answer call icon and brought the phone to my ear. "Yes, Rashid?" my phone call interrupted Noor from her pictures and she looked up at me. 

"I wanted to tell you that the admission process has been taken care of. Ma'am–Madam can join school from tomorrow." at the mention of Maryam, I started feeling uneasy again. "Fine, I'm ending the call now." I cut the call and placed the phone back on the table. 

"Who was it?" I expected her to ask me that question so I quickly replied, "Rashid." Noor didn't look so convinced by my answer as the expression on her face told me clearly that she was suspecting me. "Why'd you look so annoyed then?" she inquired. 

I cleared my throat, not wanting to tell her that I was taking care of Maryam's needs. She would probably get mad at me and tell me to stop acting like her husband. As much as I loved her, I knew that she wasn't the type who would let go of her wish so easily. 

"Nothing, just facing a few problems at work. Don't let it bother you." I lied. "Okay, if you say so." I was surprised that she let go of it but I didn't dare say a word to make her get suspicious again. 

After spending two hours in the coffee shop, I decided to get back to work because I had a lot to do. The moment I stepped inside my room, Stella handed me a huge list of things that had to be done which included a dozen meetings and paperwork. 

Before I knew it, it was night already. I returned home to an empty mansion that was oddly lit up. A few servants ran up to me and collected my things before scurrying away. I walked straight to my room to change out of the uncomfortable tux I was wearing. 

When I was done changing, I sat down on my laptop again and started working on my presentation. The ringing of my phone snapped me out of my concentration. Without looking who it was, I accepted the call and said "hello" into the phone. 

"Hey, bro!!" the annoyingly loud voice made me understand in a second who it was. "Zain, don't scream into my ears like that again. This is the last time I'm warning you." I threatened. In reply, I received a wholehearted laugh from him which annoyed me even more. 

"Leave that, I'm right outside your house to have dinner with you." the news made me push my laptop away from me and I stood up. "Why so suddenly?" I asked, heading towards the door to receive the uninvited guest. 

"I just wanted to check out your new wife. Knew you would refuse me if I told you." he joked which made me roll my eyes. "Stop eyeing others' wives and get your own, you dirtbag." I threw back making him laugh harder. 

I opened the main door and we were both still on the call. As he said, Zain was standing right outside with his phone stuck to his ear, and a wide grin fixated on his face. Upon looking at me, he proceeded to grin wider. 

"You don't have to be so overprotective. I was just joking." that comment of his made me roll my eyes again and I cut the call. "I'm not overprotective and neither do I want to. Why do you annoy me when you know about everything?" I led him inside because no matter how annoying he was, he was my best friend of seven years. 

Once we were in my room, Zain grabbed an apple from the bowl of fruits placed on the side table and made himself comfortable on my couch. He took a bite and starting munching on it. 

"I don't see your wife, though. Where is she?" he ran a look at the room and asked. "She's in her room, probably," I replied in a monotone. He frowned at me, taking another bite. "She's your wife.  Your room is her room, stupid." but I shook my head. "She left. Didn't like it here, I guess."

My careless replies started to tick him off and his frown turned into a scowl. "Wait," he started, moving the apple away from his face. "You're telling me that both of you don't share the same room?" he asked as if it was the strangest thing ever. His eyeballs grew into the size of two footballs when I nodded my head in yes.

"The hell, dude!"

I looked at him with a poker face as I was expecting that kind of reaction from him. "It shouldn't be so surprising for you. You know that I love Noor and Noor alone." I reminded him which just made him get angrier. "What about your wife?! She's in this house because of you! You can't just ignore her."

"She isn't my wife first of all and secondly, I can ignore her and I do. She isn't my problem. She's mom's and dad's problem."

Zain couldn't help but gasp in disbelief. It seemed as if he had completely forgotten about the apple he had in his hand.

"You had your nikkah with her. Don't tell me she isn't your wife because you don't want her to be." he had calmed down a bit but it was still hard for him to digest my words. "She's just a wife by name. She means nothing to me." I told him, simply.

"She will if you give her a chance. How do you know that she won't mean anything to you even in the future when you aren't even trying to get to know her?"

"Close this topic, Zain. I don't want to talk about it." and I stood up to leave the room, pushing my laptop away from me again. "I'm going out for some fresh air. Order something. I'll be back in a minute." With that, I shut the door behind me without waiting for him to respond.

I couldn't stand the atmosphere in the room. Why was it that everyone saw her helplessness? Why was it that everyone looked at her like she was the victim and I was the oppressor? If anything, I was the one who was affected the most by it all.

I walked a bit farther to the end of the corridor where the balcony was. My room had a balcony too but I couldn't go there because of Zain. He was my best friend and he was precious to me but he always had to clash with me at some point.

I slid the glass door open and walked to the railing. The night was silent and cold but peaceful. The moon shone brightly as a cool breeze blew. I looked at the sky and took in a deep breath, closing my eyes.

After exhaling, I opened my eyes and shifted my gaze to the right, where the stars were shining brighter than usual. In the process, my eyes caught another sight.

Standing on the balcony of the next room, in a pure white kameez that showed her perfect figure right through the soft fabric, was Maryam. Her long open hair flew with the breeze and her eyes were closed, making her natural eyelashes pop out. She smiled at the sky, enjoying her time alone without the slightest clue that I was watching her.

The lining of her undershirt was visible even in the dark and I tried hard to control myself and look away but my eyes somehow found a way back to her, observing her slender, fair arms and figure.

She truly looked like an angel.

Remember Noor!

My inner voice made me snap out of it and I regained my senses. Almost as if on cue, Maryam's eye caught me and she looked at me with a frown. She was about to say something to me but slowly it was as if she had just realized what she was wearing. Her face turned completely red and she quickly covered her chest by hugging herself with her arms.

Without a word, she immediately ran inside to escape the awkward situation.

Unconsciously, I smiled to myself.