Chapter 47

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47| Nawal

Soon, as Ramadan approached, Ahad and I decided to temporarily move in with my in-laws for the month. It was only the two of us back home and I wasn't allowed to fast due to my pregnancy so it was ideal if we lived with a family. Other than that, the vibe of Ramadan just can't be captured in small homes and between two people.

Mom was more than happy to have us over as she often missed her kids around the house and dad welcomed us with open arms too. Not once did I feel the absence of my parents and brother as it was my first Ramadan away from them. It would be a lie if I didn't try and avoid visiting them as much as I possibly could. Rumaisa bhabhi's words had hurt me and still lingered in my mind everytime I thought of visiting them and I didn't want to feel unwanted or a burden to any of the members of that house, even if it was my father's house. I didn't mention what she said to anyone, not even Ahad, as I didn't want him to think bad of his sister. I truly understood where she was coming from but it was painful nonetheless.

In the evenings, mom and I prepared Iftar together, creating a strong bond as a mother-in-law and her daughter-in-law. Our respective husbands returned before maghrib to have iftar with us. I didn't fast but I was respectful enough to not eat openly as everyone else in the family was fasting, even my parents-in-law. It was good to see them not using their old age as an excuse to not fast, as most old people did even if they were perfectly healthy and capable of fasting.

My previous clothes still fit, luckily as I had no visible baby bump but it was still there and could be felt when touched.

Quickly, I set up the table as the last five minutes before iftar were left. Everyone joined the table as I sat opposite to mom and next to my husband as we all made our duas before the sound of the siren echoed in the streets and house, telling us to start eating. The table was quiet as everyone ate after a long fast and I respected that so I stayed silent as well.

"Beta, eid ki shopping karli? Ahad le jana Nawal ko. Pehli eid hai tumhare saath, ache se shopping kardena, there hai?" Mom said, making me smile and Ahad nod, obediently.

*Dear, are you done with the eid shopping? Ahad, take Nawal. It's her first eid with you, shop well, okay?

"I will, have some faith in your son." After the normal snacks, we started dinner and I served some to every member of the house. No one asked me to do such a thing, but out of love for my family, I did it.

"Since we've mentioned eid already, ammi invited us to Islamabad for eid. She wants to meet her grandson's wife as well." I hadn't met anyone from Ahad's relatives except his Asiya phupho and his cousin, Yashma. I internally rolled my eyes at the thought of her. But as far as I knew, dad had an older brother and sister and a younger sister, all who lived in Islamabad. They all had children but I couldn't keep track of all his cousins and their children too since most of them were married. Ahad said he didn't have a good relation with most of them so I had nothing to worry about. As for mom, she only had a younger sister, she too lived abroad.

I started collecting the plates and Ahad assisted. We didn't get time alone with each other except when we were in our room. He had work to do and we couldn't openly romance each other either though my hormones definitely disagreed.

"I'd love for you to meet my dadi jaan. She is very sweet, don't know what happened to her children though." He shrugged and I lightly elbowed him in the stomach, narrowing my eyes at him. "You shouldn't talk about your family like that!" I told him off and smiled and kissed my head.

"Leave all this, go and get ready. You heard your saas right? We have to go shopping." He put both his hands on my back and pushed me lightly to encourage me to leave the room. I smiled and went upstairs. My dress was good enough to be worn outside– a solid magenta pink shalwar kameez with a printed colorful dupatta. I put my hair back from my face using a clip and put on some sandals and went downstairs to Ahad. We both bade goodbye to my parents-in-law and left the house.

In the eid spirit, the market was all light up with lights around every corner as families and couples walked around the market, purchasing festive clothes, jewelry, shoes and accessories. As eid was near, the market was crowded so I tightly held onto Ahad's hand when he offered as we made our way through the people carefully. Often times, I found myself just covering my stomach protectively, ensuring nothing would harm my baby so my free hand rested on my belly. Shopping was fun and a crowd added to the spirit but it could be seriously uncomfortable and annoying sometimes.

"I'm planning to get whatever you choose," I whispered in Ahad's ear and a mischevious smile took over his face, telling me he was up to no good.

"Are you sure? I might not be very generous." But he still led me into a shop for clothes and rumagged through the racks of clothing, closely listening to the shop worker that was guiding him about the 'latest fashion'. Surprisingly, the first outfit he picked was totally my type and seemed comfortable too, despite being fancy enough for eid. When I approved, he placed that dress on the counter and moved to other racks, assessing every dress in detail before showing it to me. Some were just not my type so I rejected them but that didn't demotivate him as he paid for two dresses before going into the neighboring shop to pick out something else.

"Jaan, this is too hard. You can pick your dresses yourself and then mine too." He stood back this time and I rolled my eyes at how quickly he got fed up but still preceded to look for clothes. I picked out one last dress and as I told him to pay for it so we can leave, he asked me to get more than just three dresses. Despite my protests, he managed to convince me to shop more.

A total of six dresses later, we decided to go to a men's store before getting accessories to go along with what I got. After much work, I succeeded in convincing Ahad to wear shalwar kameez, at least on the first day of eid and he begrudgingly agreed. Shopping for Ahad wasn't much work as all we had to do was select a color for his shalwar kameez and I chose navy blue as blue suited him a lot. I even insisted we get the special kind of sandals that men wear underneath a shalwar and he instantly agreed because I would have my way anyway. My baby worked as good blackmail material and I used the mama-to-be card every time he was irritating me.

"We're shopping more for me than for you." He sulked in a corner as I chose the right kind of shoes for him. I turned around only so he could see when I roll my eyes. "The market is open all night, we'll get my things too. Unless you're going to run out of battery quicker than me, who is pregnant." I challenged him and he straightened up in place, silently proving he could stay up all night as well.

Once he was sure that the pair of shoes I selected for him was the right size, we left the store and went into a jewelry store. I was sure I would have something in my jewelry box, back at home, to go along with the dresses I had gotten but Ahad wanted to get me an entire new closet with matching accessories so I had to do as he asked, it was more bags to carry for him only.

I spotted gajrey hanging from a wire at the side of a stall and stared at them, remembering the time when he bought them for me and slid them onto my wrists himself. Ahad must've noticed because he wordlessly purchased those and put the bags down on the ground as he pushed the gajrey down my hand and onto my wrist, all the while intensely staring into my eyes, making my mind go to places that was highly inappropriate considering we were in a market and had to return to my in-laws place instead of our own home.

"What are you thinking?" He smugly smirked at me, telling me he definitely knew what was going on in my head. I slapped his arm earning a chuckle.

I took his hand in mine and went to our car where I relaxed back in the seat. I might have not realized in my frenzy but my feet and back were starting to hurt as I was still getting used to the weight gain.

"Tired?" He softly asked while turning on the car and I nodded. "Carrying another human is serious work."

"I know and that's why I respect you and all the other women in my life so much." Suddenly, he leaned down until his face was leveled with my stomach. His hand that was laying flat at the same place made me hold back a laugh because of how ticklish I was. "Don't bother my wife, okay baby?" He pointedly said as if he could actually be heard. I smiled at his behavior.

(A.N): Please vote and comment if you're enjoying the story <3


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