Neglected by her husband, a woman decides to live on her own.
Maria Khushk
Life doesn’t treat anyone kindly.
Dr. Ahmed comes to the city to search for his sister, who had gone to the city a few weeks ago. After going there, she had no contact with anyone. Dr. Ahmed knew that his sister’s friend Sarah lived in the city. He reached Sarah’s house and knocked on the door. A little boy, around three years old, opened the door, speaking with a sweet lisp. Sarah peeked out from the kitchen, quickly wiped her wet hands on her dupatta, and walked over to the door. The moment she saw Dr. Ahmed, she recognized him immediately.
“Oh, bhai! It’s you! Please come in. How are you?” she said warmly.
Dr. Ahmed stepped inside and sat down in the drawing room. The room was spacious, beautifully decorated, and refreshing. Different types of paintings adorned the walls.
“Bhai, how are you? And how is Anbiya? After she left from here, she hasn’t been in touch with me at all,” Sarah asked.
Dr. Ahmed froze like a statue upon hearing this.
“Then where is she?” he asked.
“What do you mean?” Sarah asked, looking confused.
“She hasn’t come home either,” Dr. Ahmed replied.
“What? She hasn’t reached home?” Sarah asked in surprise.
At that moment, the three-year-old boy came running and climbed onto his mother’s lap. He sat quietly, staring at Dr. Ahmed.
“Where did she go? She left here just a week ago. She told me she was going straight home,” Sarah said.
“Then where is she? She’s neither here nor at home,” Dr. Ahmed said, lost in thought. After a pause he explained, “She’s nowhere to be found. But where could she have gone? Her phone isn’t connecting, and she hasn’t been in contact with anyone.”
“You should ask Dr. Arsalan. She must have gone to her own home. After all, she didn’t bring her baby with her.” Sarah asked.
Dr. Ahmed clarified immediately, “She didn’t go to her home either. She’s not there.”
Sarah sounded increasingly worried, “while Anbiya was here, she kept waiting for Dr. Arsalan. He would say every day, ‘I’ll come tomorrow.’ ‘Today I have surgery,’ ‘Today there’s an important case at the hospital’ that’s all he kept saying. Finally, Anbiya told me, ‘I’m missing my baby so much, I’m going back home.’ After that day, she never contacted me again.”
Sarah stood up and said, “Please sit comfortably. I’ll get you some water.”
She headed towards the kitchen, wiping the sweat from her forehead with her dupatta, lost in deep thought. Sarah returned from the kitchen carrying a glass of water and handed it to Dr. Ahmed. He gulped it down quickly and said, “I should head out now. I’ll go straight to the police station and file a missing person report. Nothing is making any sense.” With these words, he stood up and walked toward the door.
“Bhai, may I say something?” Sarah called out hesitantly.
“Yes, please go ahead,” Dr. Ahmed replied, turning back.
Sarah’s eyes welled up with tears, and her forehead was glistening with sweat. She spoke with visible discomfort, “Bhai, if you don’t mind… there’s actually something I need to tell you, but I’m finding it really difficult to put into words. I’m quite confused.”
Dr. Ahmed looked at her kindly and said, “Bhen, you’re like a sister to me, just like Anbiya. Don’t hesitate. Whatever it is, feel free to share.”
Taking a deep breath, Sarah continued, “Actually, a few weeks after Anbiya arrived here, she met a young man. She started spending a lot of time with him. They would often go out together. If you speak to that boy, you might discover some useful information.”
Dr. Ahmed froze in shock. “Who was he?” he asked urgently.
“I don’t know much about him,” Sarah admitted, “but I have his phone number saved. Once, when she didn’t have balance on her phone, she called him using my number.”
She quickly retrieved the number from her phone and handed it to him.
“You should call him and ask to meet this evening,” she suggested. “We can go together and talk to him.”
Dr. Ahmed nodded and at the same evening; he and Sarah went to meet the young man at a café in the mall. When he saw the boy, he was left stunned. The young man looked noticeably younger than Anbiya, he appeared to be 10 to 12 years younger than her.
Dr. Ahmed asked the young man very calmly, “Where is Anbiya?”
The boy remained remarkably calm and relaxed as he replied, “My last meeting with her was a few weeks ago. She told me she was going back to her home. When I proposed marriage to her, I came to know that she was already married and had a child. But honestly, that didn’t matter to me. Still, she suddenly disappeared. She said she was heading home, so I didn’t disturb her anymore.” The boy fell silent after saying this.
“How is this even possible?” Dr. Ahmed asked. “You met her so many times and yet you know nothing about her?”
“Sir, I’ve told you everything I know,” the boy answered. “If I were lying, I wouldn’t have come here to meet you.”
“It’s also possible that she is still with you and you’re lying to us,” Dr. Ahemd questioned sharply, sounding like a lawyer.
“Sir, if you don’t believe me, come with me right now. I live in a hostel, you can check for yourself,” the boy replied confidently.
Everyone fell silent after hearing this. The same question echoed in their minds: Where on earth has Anbiya gone?
Dr. Ahmed was worried about her sister a lot and he returned to his city and met Dr. Arsalan and told him the whole story without mentioning the story of a boy.
“I have some contacts. I’ll try to find out something,” Dr Arsalan said.
A few days later, Dr. Arsalan called Dr. Ahmed and informed him, “Anbiya is still in the same city, but living some other place. I’m sending you the address. Go and bring her back. I can’t come right now because I have surgery today.” Saying this, Dr. Arsalan abruptly ended the call.
That same evening, while Dr. Ahmed was busy packing his bag, his phone rang. When he glanced at the screen, he didn’t know how to react, it was Anbiya’s number.
“Where are you, Anbiya? Why aren’t you talking to anyone? Why didn’t you tell us where you were?” Dr. Arsalan asked anxiously.
“Bhai, just send me some money and a few things. I want to start my own business,” Anbiya replied casually.
When he reached the given address, he found Anbiya sitting quietly. She looked calm and strangely satisfied.
“What has happened to you? And why did you come here?” Dr. Ahmed asked. “Everyone at home is worried and waiting for you. Your baby is also there. Come back with me.”
“No, I don’t want to go anywhere,” Anbiya replied firmly and continued, “Dr. Arsalan is busy with his hospital and his life. My baby is getting everything he needs with him. He doesn’t need me anymore,” she continued in one breath.
“So, you want to marry that boy?” Dr. Ahmed asked directly.
“Oh, so you found out about him too?” Anbiya said. “No, I’m not going to marry him. He doesn’t even have a proper job or any security. What would I live on? Just give me some money and stuff so I can become independent and live my life on my own terms. If I had enough money to start a business, I probably wouldn’t have called you at all.”
“Log kia kahei ge?” Dr. Ahmed said.
“Should I sacrifice my happiness because of what people say? You know, society actually doesn’t care. The people who have meaningful work and responsibilities don’t bother interfering in others’ lives because they are busy and content with their own. The ones who keep talking and criticizing are usually those who have nothing productive to do. Yet, ironically, we are the ones who call them ‘society.”
“Let’s go to Dr. Arsalan. I will talk to him,” Dr. Ahmed said.
“No, brother. I have waited for him, not just now, but since our marriage. However, he has always been busy with his job and never had time for his wife and children. Arsalan needs money, and material things matter to him more than relationships. So please, now let go of this matter. And if you ask me about marriage again, that is not going to happen. I just want to live my life now”.
Anbiya neither desired divorce nor wished to spend her life waiting for someone. She simply wanted to live her life according to her own choices, with happiness, dignity, and independence, something that, unfortunately, is often considered unacceptable or even a social taboo in our society, it’s a decision that, in their world, was considered almost a crime.
Read: Unmade Destinies – A Short Story
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Maria Khushk is a freelance writer based in Hyderabad Sindh. She is author of a book titled ‘‘The Cage of Innocence’. She also contributes articles and stories to Sindh Courier.
