8. Way Out!

Both of them reached their workplaces and started the normal routine work. Wali had to start the shuttering of his building while farah had to finalize her drafts, so both of them were busy in their respective works.

Wali had a tiring day and about at his lunch time, he sat down, slowly rubbing his fingers over his left wrist, it was aching. He was pressing his fingers hard, he had to make the pain go, his shift was about to start in half an hour, and because of this pain, he almost forgot about the lunch.

Farah came out of her office; she was really excited to meet him again. Walking down the lane, she again came across the building she saw yesterday. She had met him near this building. She was standing by the building, again observing that the laborers had their lunch break. She kept standing there for a while, observing the progression since yesterday. After almost staring the building for 10 minutes, she looked her and there, in order to see him again, but he was nowhere.

"lagta hai aj destiny ka mood nahi hai", she felt very sad, and walked some more yards, and was about to turn when again she smelled the same BIRYANI!, she almost jumped to see that he was sitting again on a rock, but it was not as yesterday's. She was ecstatic, controlling her excitement she walked towards him.

"HIIIIII!" she almost shouted in his ear and he dropped his spoon, "What the..", he was about to utter something unethical when he stopped seeing her, closing his mouth and he got up from the rock

"I am sorry for this sudden excitement,", she said, she wasn't able to hold the jubilance in her voice even, and wali wasn't able to understand the twinkle in her eyes. Wali looked away, again sitting down and farah sat beside him, and as tomorrow, he had to move away, to avoid any physical contact.

"I hope mera lunch le k aye ho?" she innocently asked him, looking straight to his face, trying to find some assurance of her question, but found nothing more than a stern expression. "laye ho na?"

"hmm", he took out a similar tiffin from his bag and handed her, farah was again excited to see it, but before she could say thank you, she saw that he was rubbing his right hand's fingers over his left hand's wrist. "tumhare hath main dard hai?'

Wali raised his head, at the concerned voice, she was again trying to find some expression on his face, and he got up from the rock, holding his bag,

"Kahan ja rahe ho?'

"I have work, bye."                                               

He coldly said and turned ,started walking towards his construction site, which was a few yards away," thank you", she spoke up loud, making sure he heard, and he did, but he didn't know what to respond, so he kept on walking.

Farah kept on standing there holding the tiffin, she didn't feel nice seeing him in pain. His hands did hurt, and she could sense it. "I wonder kia kaam karta hai?', she sighed and moved towards her office, she wanted to eat her lunch away from traffic.

Meanwhile wali had reached his site, and he was standing on the second floor, opening the concrete blocks, when he saw her walking down the street. She had opened the tiffin and was taking bites. Although wali couldn't see her face, but he could judge that she was enjoying the lunch. He shook his head and moved to the second concrete block.

"BY GOD FARAH!", she sat down on her cabin chair, gazing at the empty tiffin!, "tujhe tu office main a k lunch karna tha, sara raste main hi khatam kar zarminey",she helplessly kept looking at the tiffin that may be it will re-fill again, but it didn't happen. She closed the tiffin and started her work again.

At off-time, as always, she threw all her things in her bag and rushed home.

She came home, ordered a pizza for her dinner, as she didn't know how to cook, all she could bake, that too if she really wanted, otherwise she hated cooking.

She saw her home in quiet a mess, she hadn't picked up her files, everything was lying as it is, and she was feeling too lazy to even get up from her sofa, moreover her head started spinning. After eating one slice of pizza, her mind had started signaling what she really wanted and that was ofcourse ' DRINKS! ALCOHOL!!

She helplessly gazed at the phone, she knew it would ring anytime, and shehna would start questioning, but she was becoming weak. Why should she leave drinks ' as shehna says for her own good!, but what would happened with her own good!. There was no one who could get some benefit from her good.

She got up from the sofa, completely ignoring shehna's pleading. She felt bad but she was helpless.

She  threw all the things out of her office bag, to find her wallet. All the contents fell on the bed and she reached for her wallet, when she saw the TIFIFN!

HIS TIFFIN!

"OH!, ye tu main ne wapis hi nahi kiya", she grabbed that, instead of her wallet. A strange smile graced her face. She sensed a chance of meeting him again and she was ecstatic.

"ab khali tu wapis nahi kar sakti", she re-called her childhood , like how her mother insisted that empty utensils should not be returned, "muffins le jati hon - my specialty!"

She headed towards the kitchen, jumping in excitement , completely forgetting that 5 minutes before her body was so badly craving for alcohol.

Next morning she was sitting in her office, working as usual. She re-checked the tiffin for the tenth time in her bag. After every half an hour a strange fear was taking over her mind that may be she forgot at home, so she looked in her bag to make sure it was there.

She had put a smilie sticker over the cover and attached a small thank you card and she was unconsciously  blushing, thinking what would be his reaction when she will give this to him.