BECAUSE OF YOU

Broken vases and glasses,papers scattered on the floor and Suraj resting on the floor with his back on his desk. One leg crouched and his right hand was bloodied and was oozing out blood. It seemed to have been used to attack all the broken vases and glasses.

Leylah asked Martha to go get the first aid kit and bring the cleaner and Martha left immediately.

Suraj's mind and heart was in a turmoil,he felt rejected,cheated, useless,unworthy and undeserving. Even though he loathed Leylah for the last seven years,he hasn't stopped loving her. He was still hoping,that Leylah still loves him and they could try to fix their problems and be together again just like before.

But this new revelation he got today was just so heart shattering.

'Leylah even agreed that she'll be getting married to another man who's not me,that means I've been a fool dreaming all these years' he thought.

He felt suffocated and started throwing things around in his office,trying to subdue the pain he was feeling at the moment. He wasn't aware that he was making a lot of noise and only stopped when he had had enough. He rested his body on the floor,he felt exhausted and almost out of breath as he was now breathing erratically.

Leylah walked across the room and came to where he was seated,she felt a tear prick her eyes. She felt immense pain seeing Suraj like this. She could't stop herself as she reach out her hand instinctively to touch his face which he flunged furiously and tried to stand up from his sitting position.

Leylah tried to help him up and again he pushed her hands from him ,"don't you touch me again"he said furiously.

Martha returned with the first aid kit and the cleaner. The cleaner was quite perturbed by what she saw but she quickly started cleaning the room.

Martha went ahead to start cleaning Suraj's wounds but she was stopped by Leylah.

"let me do it". she told Martha.

Martha didn't object and gave the cotton wool to Leylah.

When Leylah held Suraj's hand to clean it,he withdrew his hand from her. he didn't make it such that the cleaner or Martha will notice anything odd.

Leylah tried the second time but he did the same thing and said, "its fine, I can do it, just leave".

Leylah been the stubborn person that she is,didn't listen and took his hand again. this time she grabbed his hand a bit forcefully and held on tightly which made suraj winced a bit as it was hurting him now.

When Leylah saw that he wasn't resisting again,she released the tight grip she had on his hand and held the hand lightly. She gently and carefully started cleaning his wounds.

The wound was a bit deep,he must have pierced his hand with the glasses unconsciously,she finished cleaning the wounds and bandaged it.

When she was done,she asked Martha to take the first aid kit and leave. By then the cleaner was already done cleaning the mess Suraj created.

After they left,Leylah picked a pain reliever,filled a cup of water and gave them to Suraj, "here take this,it will reduce the pain".

"Am not a child,I don't need it",Suraj replied.

Leylah wanted to feed him the pills by forced but he threw the cup of water and some of it poured on her.

Leylah became furious, "you are behaving like a child now,I only want to help you reduce the pain you are feeling now".

Suraj stood up and burst out laughing which was filled with pain and bitterness, "really,you want to ease my PAIN?".suraj said emphasising on the word pain.

"How will you do that when you are the reason for my pain?,How doc.Leylah maleek or should I say,doc.Leylah Ibraheem Omar mustapha", Suraj shouted.

" Wh....what are you talking about Suraj?"Leylah said a bit confused at his outburst.

Suraj was getting more and more infuriated,he didn't want to continue looking pathetic in her presence.

"You know what?",he grabbed Leylah's arm and headed for the door, "Just go,I can't and don't want to look at you right now", and immediately the words left his mouth he fling Leylah out of his office and banged the door.

Leylah was utterly confused and just stood by the door quietly,without leaving or trying to go back into his office.

she stood outside for almost 10 minutes and then she knocked on his door and without waiting for his permission to come in she opened the door and entered his office.

Suraj was trying to keep his emotions at bay but when she came in again,he became agitated and perturbed .

"Can I please have a word with you?" Leylah asked her voice trembling.

Suraj didn't say a word he just grabbed a pen from his desk and started going through some files on his desk. Leylah ignored his actions and asked again

"Can I have an audience with you please?". And yet again Suraj didn't say a word.

" please.....please Suraj",Leylah cried and this time she got Suraj's attention.

He couldn't ignore her anymore, the way she said his name,it felt so relaxing. and he felt his anger reduce a little but still he couldn't let her know the effect she had on him. So he said,

"I don't want to,maybe some other time". He replied,he was still angry and wasn't in the mood for any talks with anybody now especially Leylah.

"No Suraj,we need to have this talk now, please" Leylah insisted feeling desperate.

Suraj starting to get infuriated again,

'what! She is still as stubborn as before.I won't have this talk with her now or even today and that's final. why does she seem to want to control me and my life',Suraj thought to himself.

"And I said no,please leave already" Suraj said his voice a bit loud.

"Why are you been so stubborn?do you know how much courage it took for me to come here?do you Suraj?you've changed so much,and now all you want to do is hate me and keep hurting me?" Leylah shouted feeling frustrated already.

"Oh wow! See who's talking about change and been hurting. Goodness! Leylah you will neve cease to amaze me. have you forgotten so soon?".Suraj stood up now walking towards Leylah and with every word he said he walked closer to her.

" You broke up with me and left without a reason,I was left heartbroken and dejected because of YOU,I almost got withdrawn from school because of YOU,I ran away from home to go find you and beg you to take me back, my mum developed a high BP and had her first attack".....he sniffled and continued,"because of YOU,I lost my one and only childhood friend ALL BECACAUSE OF YOU".

He was now standing face to face with her and continued, "can't believe I almost ended my life because of someone who never really loved me.I should have known that you could do something so disgusting. i should have known better when you kept on talking about wanting to acquire affluence,class and fame. Living a life of luxury and all,I should have known that I wasn't the one for you and that you were thinking about someone else".

"Tell me,how do you feel now that you are getting married to a wealthy guy of class and affluence and finally living your dreams?"

"I guess i'll have to give him a piece of advise,not to put his all into this. so that when you find someone else more wealthy and famous than him and decide to leave him,he will be prepared and so we won't have another victim like me".

Leylah shrieked,hearing Suraj talk about her like this,was torture,uncontrollable tears started pouring from her eyes.

Suraj grabbed her arms forcefully exerting all his strength on her arm and said, "I should tell him what a selfish,self centered,egocentric,materialistic and disgusting woman you a....."he didn't get to finish his sentence,when a sound slap landed on his face.

"How da....dare you talk to me like that Suraj?" Leylah shouted and started crying soundly.

"I....I...know that I was wrong a...and am sorry.....am so sorry suraj.I.....it was never intensional. I thought I was doing the right thing at that time. I never intended to hurt or cause you so much pain",Leylah explained in between sobs.

" I know you don't believe me and you probably won't forgive me but am sorry,i really am.

"I've tried so many times since I got back, to talk and apologise to you. The first day I arrived here,at your office the other day,at your house but you wouldn't have it".

"I know that i don't have enough reason to treat you the way i have and its okay if you still hate me and do not want to forgive me. its fine,I'll accept that as my punishment. But please,please suraj,you must know that I never played with your feelings, I loved you Suraj"

"so much",she whispered.

"And I'll treasure and remember those moments we had together". She wiped the tears from her face and continued," once again,I am sorry for all the pain I've cost you. if I could turn back the hands of time,I would and right all my wrongs,because i.....I still...."she couldnt bring her self to finish what she wanted to say and she just left his office in a hurry.

Leylah cried for a very long time in her office,her cries were interrupted by her phone ringing.it was Ibraheem calling her,she wasn't in the mood to talk to him right now and so she didn't pick the call. She guessed he wanted to talk about the engagement party, 'I'll have to talk to Ibraheem about this' she thought.

She looked at the time and found out that it was already just few minutes to 6pm in the evening. she got up from the floor and went into the wash room to freshen up. Her eyes looked very red from crying, and she felt a slight headache too. she quickly rinsed her face and poured water in her eyes to reduce the redness and after that she applied some makeup and went ahead to attend to her patients.

Suraj also took some time alone to think through the events of the day,he felt he was too harsh to have called Leylah names and he felt stupid.

He remembered how hurt she looked when she was crying in his office. "I shouldn't have done that,I was too hard on her" he whispered to himself.he thought of going to apologise for his behaviour but he hesitated against it and just got on with his work.

It was raining heavily outside and Suraj couldn't leave work early but after a few hours of heavy rainfall, it gradually stop and was only drizzling.

"I guess that's my cue to leave now "Suraj said to himself seeing as it was only drizzling,he picked up his bag and headed out,he got into his car and drove off.

He hadn't gone far when he caught the sight of a familiar figure,as Suraj was speeding the figure disappeared in a blink of an eye. He frowned as he looked at the side mirror,it was drenched in rain blurring the reflection. Even though it was a blurred glimpse,he knew who she was.

Subconsciously,he slammed the brakes bringing the car to a halt.

Through the mirror he saw Leylah standing in the rain with an umbrella waiting for a cab.

Suraj thought for a heartbeat before turning back.

As soon as Leylah saw that the rain had stopped,she quickly picked up her bag,an umbrella and left the hospital.it was already 10pm in the evening,she ordered for a ride by there were no drivers available at the moment. She it was difficult get a cab when it was still drizzling around that area,so she just waited and prayed silently that she got lucky.

After waiting for long and trying again,she got lucky and found a rider,by then the rain was pouring heavier and thanked her God that the ride had arrived.

But just when she was about to wave for it,a grey Toyota Camry overtook it and stopped in front of her.

Due to the heavy rain,she wasn't able to recognise the car. she wanted to go behind the car and wave for her ride when the window of the Toyota Camry opened and a familiar voice cut through the rain "come in".

Leylah didn't expected that it was suraj's car,the moment she heard his voice,she paused momentarily.

" The rain is getting in already Leylah" Suraj said getting impatient, he opened the door through the inside and said "Get in".

Leylah couldn't object again,she slowing got in the passenger seat and closed the door.

Silence fell in the car,only the rain drops against the windows and the slow music playing on the radio breaking it.

Leylah didn't dare to look at suraj,so she turned her head slightly,observing him through the blurry mirror. She could tell that his mood has improved a bit from earlier but he still looked distant.