WHAT SHOULD I CALL YOU SWEETHEART?

"It's freaking cold today, George."

"Babe you're always cold, even in the summers."

We were at the hospital preparing ourselves to begin our tasks for

the day.

"Did your brother drop you off?" she asked me with a Chesire cat

smile.

I glared at her for a good minute.

"Shut up and stop eyeing my brother."

"You're so protective of your brother. Usually isn't it the other way

around?"

"What do you mean?" I asked her whilst wearing my badge.

"Like brothers are protective of their sisters and not sisters being

protective for her brothers?"

I rolled my eyes.

"Can sisters not look out for their brothers? Can they not protect

them from troubles?"

"Yeah, they can." She nodded and then stopped midway.

"Wait, are you insinuating that I'm trouble for your brother?" She

looked at me mortified.

I started laughing hardly.

"Yeah, that's what I am doing." I spoke between my laughter.

She sighed and sat down on the floor looking like a love sick

puppy.

"I am serious about him, Romi."

I looked at her and composed myself.

"I am sorry."

"I thought it was just a fascination in the beginning but..." she

closed her eyes and smiled.

"But? But what, George?" I sat down with her.

"It is love; I suppose."

"Love? And you suppose? You're not sure?" I asked her with a

raised eyebrow.

"Yeah, I am not sure." she let out a short laugh.

I smiled.

"I don't think love is real outside books and movies, of course." I

shrugged and got up.

"Oh, yes. It is." She got up too.

"Should I tell him?"

"Tell who and what?" she asked still smiling like an idiot.

"My brother. That you like him."

What? She shrieked out.

"No, Romi. Please don't." she took my hand in hers.

"Aww. Are you shy?"

"No, I am not. But I am scared."

"What is it that you are scared of?"

"Aren't you afraid for the ones you love, Romi. Afraid of losing

them."

"Gosh, you sound like a fool. Please stop." I motioned her to stop

dramatically.

"We are all fools in love, Romi."

"Stop, please. My poor ears can't take this cringy shit anymore." I

gasped and started laughing.

She laughed with me.

"You'll know when you're in love."

I stilled for a moment and smiled at her.

"I don't think that's possible."

"Why not?"

"I don't think I can handle a relationship. I'll mess up."

"Says who?"

"My mama. She says that I mess everything up."

"That you do. Now come we are getting late." she grabbed my

elbow and dragged me outside.

I straightened my jacket. I was wearing black leather pants, Black

boots, a maroon shirt and a black flat wool coat. I usually went

shopping with Daniyal. Using his great taste in fashion as my

advantage. Surprisingly he was so calm during our shopping

sprees not like other guys. I smiled as I thought of our funny

shopping trips. Daniyal was a blessing.

"Alright, so hold this and you will fill the radiology records of the

patients when I tell you." she handed me a clipboard with a paper

and a pen. At this point my mind was completely blank. I just

nodded."Okay, so his laboratory reports and imaging reports are yet to

come?" George asked the radiologist who was handling the night

shifts.

"Romi, just mark on the report."

I nodded and marked down.

"Alright, let's go we have to conduct a few MRI scans."

I nodded and trailed behind her.

"Here is the ball, you can squeeze it to call us via an intercom."

I handed the ball to the man in his fifties. George had given me

instructions on all of these and she was currently in the control

room conducting the examination. This was really intriguing me.

I was looking around while George was conducting the

examination when I saw a man pass by to the cafeteria. He looked

oddly familiar. I didn't think of it much and focused back to my

job.

"Hey, Romi. Would you bring a cup of coffee for me? Please don't

say no."

"Alright. I was going to grab one for me anyway."

I walked down the hallway into the hospital's cafeteria.

I kept the mug on the plate of the coffee maker and pressed the

button. I waited for a minute but I saw that the coffee maker

wasn't working. I frowned.

"Such a prestigious hospital and a damaged coffee maker. What a

shame!" I thought and walked over to the staff present in the café.

"Hello there, miss." I heard a familiar deep voice behind me. I

turned around.

He was standing there. The one with whom I shared an umbrella

was standing there. He was wearing a light bule shirt paired with

black pants and he had a dark blue wool trench coat on.

He came to stand in front of me. His dark brown locks fell over his

forehead and he pushed them back with his fingers. I was

blatantly staring at him. He snapped his fingers in front me to

bring me back from my reverie. I blinked and took a step back.

"Hey." he called out to me again.

"Hey there."

"It's nice meeting you again."

"Hmm...." I hummed and looked around not knowing what to say.

"Do you work here, miss?"

"I do actually. I am a healthcare volunteer over here working

under my friend who's a radiologist." I replied quickly wanting to

end this conversation.

"Oh, I see."

I turned around and walked over to the counter and placed my

order. I rested my elbow on the counter and looked at him. He

came to stand beside me and did the same with his elbow.

"Now that we will be meeting more often. I would like to

introduce myself."

I frowned. "Meet more often? What does he mean?"

He extended his hand towards me. I gazed at it unsurely. He

nodded at me and I carefully placed my hand on his warm palm.

He gripped my hand.

"Azaan. Azaan Ibrahim Ahmed."

I nodded.

He looked at me for a second. I was dumbly staring at him, not

knowing what to do.

He let out a short laugh. That's when I noticed. He had dimples.

He freaking had dimples. Involuntarily a smile made its way on

my face.

He stopped laughing and smiled. I smiled widely this time. His

dimples were really beautiful.

"What are you laughing at?" I asked him still smiling.

"You know how an introduction works, right?"

I nodded.

He shook his head.

"When a person introduces himself to you do the same. Meaning

when a person says you his name you do the same." he spoke

rapidly and I just focused my gaze on his dimples. They were

badly distracting me.

He looked at me for a second before he took a step forward. He

looked at me for a while and then leaned downward. He was so

tall and I looked so tiny on front of him.

"What should I call you, sweetheart?" he spoke his voice deep,

husky.

I smiled. This was the first time I was behaving like this with a

man. I had never felt it before. Of course, men had flirted with me

before and I had always found myself angry upon it. But. I didn't

feel like that this time. I guess I was enjoying it.

"Romaisa. Romaisa Rubab Khan." I replied gazing into his warm

brown orbs.

"Romaisa." he repeated my name, stretching each syllable.

I looked at my hand still nestled his palm. I tugged it. His grip was

firm.

He raised my hand to his lips and I stilled. I didn't want this. He

gazed at my face closely looking for any signs of discomfort. I

suddenly felt too shy. I was never shy of anything. No man had

ever made me feel nervous or insecure or shy. When he didn't

notice any signs of discomfort on my face, he kissed my hand

gently. His gaze didn't leave mine. His lips lingered there for a

while before he finally let go of my hand. I took a step back. And

without glancing back at him I walked away quickly.

"Romi, go call Doctor Leo for me."

I was sipping on my coffee, my mind swirling with a lot of new

feelings.

"Romi."

"Are you listening to me?" George shook me vigorously.

"What do you want?" I replied to her in and exasperated tone.

"I asked you to go and fetch for Doctor Leo."

"Fine."

I got up from the couch and walked outside her cabin.

This job was not as easy as I deemed it to be. It was tiring.

I got into the lift and pressed the number 12. Some people were

with me inside.

I was checking out myself in the mirror in front of me when I

looked at these particular black shiny boots. I followed the path

from the shoes to the black pants, the blue shirt and finally to the

face of the person standing behind me. His hands stuffed in his

pockets and his feet crossed.

He smirked and I facepalmed myself. I didn't want to meet him

again.

"Ah, you again." I spoke in an exasperated tone.

"Are you already tired of meeting me, sweetheart?" he spoke from

behind me.

The old lady standing next to me gave us strange looks. I forced a

smile at her. She made a disgusting face and turned away.

Azaan chuckled deeply.

"Azaan." that name sounded good to say.

"You are really beautiful, madame." he spoke in a rich French

accent.

I raised my eyebrow and looked at him from the mirror in front of

us.

"I am speaking to her not you." he pointed to the old lady beside

me. I looked at her. She smiled at him and let out a sophisticated

laugh.

"Do you speak French?" the lady asked him with a charming

smile.

I frowned. A minute ago, she had made a disgusting face at me.

"Yes, I do." he replied and they started conversing in French. I

was observing him closely in the mirror. To me it seemed as if he

was flirting with her. He looked at me and smiled widely.

Gosh.

His smile.

It was beautiful.

"Good day, madame." he bowed down in front of the old lady as

she smiled and walked out of the lift.

"Are you for real?" he asked me once she was gone. The other

people in the lift were minding their own business.

I smiled.

"Why?"

He just stared at me for a moment and I felt giddy all of a sudden.

The lift opened and I realized it was my stop. I got out quickly and

looked at him. He was still looking at me and the lift closed. I

sighed and walked away.

I was going to surprise Daniyal today. My working hours were

over and I was bored so I randomly made a plan to surprise him.

He used to do it all the time he would show up at my place

whenever he would be free. We would grab takeaways or go out

for shopping. There wasn't much distance between San Diego and

Los Angeles just an hour and 50 more minutes. I even got a box of

Fudgy cocoa brownies. It was his favorite.

"Excuse me. Is Dr. Daniyal available?" I asked the receptionist at

the hospital.

"You'll have to take an appointment, ma'am." the receptionist

replied rather coldly.

"Actually, I know him personally and do you think he might be

free now?"

"I will check with him." she made a call.

"Your name, ma'am." she asked me whilst speaking.

"Uh, George." I lied; I was here to give him a surprise.

"You have only 10 minutes, ma'am. That way." she pointed

towards the hallway.

"Thank you." I smiled at her.

I walked inside his cabin. He was seated behind his desk, his chair

facing the wall.

"Excuse me. Are you the handsome hunk everyone's talking

about." I let out a rather girly voice.

He turned around.

"What are you..., Romaisa!" he exclaimed with wide eyes and a

charming smile. I smiled and hugged him tightly. He laughed and

hugged me back.

"What are you doing here?" he asked me once I broke the hug.

"Making pasta." I replied with a serious expression.

"I am here to meet you, you dummy." I smacked his forehead.

"Here, I bought these for you." I handed him the brownies.

"How are you doing, dear?" he sat on one of the couches.

"Very well, though the volunteering is quite tiring?"

"Touche. Working at hospitals can be quite tiring."

"How are things at home?" he asked me sipping on his hot

chocolate.

"Uh, I have been avoiding all of them since Sunday."

"Good."

I laughed. I rested my elbows on his table.

"You are my favorite. Did you know that?"

"Yeah. I had an idea about it." he shrugged.

I rolled my eyes at him.

"Can we go shopping now?"

He checked the time.

"After an hour. I will be off duty by then."

"Alright, can I stay here?"

"Okay. But, do not be a nuisance."

"Fine."

"No, this is too flashy. Try this one."

Daniyal was selecting out clothes for me and I was blindly

following his lead.

"How does this look?" I got out of the changing rooms and stood

in front of a mirror. It was a red dress with some black boots.

He gasped.

"There's no way in hell you're wearing that outside."

I frowned.

"But it isn't something vulgar."

"Yes, but you look way to pretty in it, little one."

"Don't call me that. Wait a minute." I looked at him wide eyed.

"Did you just admit the fact that I'm pretty?"

"No, uh I didn't." he smiled and looked away.

"Yes, you did. You just admitted the fact that I'm not ugly."

"I didn't. You're not pretty. Get down from the 9th cloud, Romi."

he smiled and walked out of the store. I trailed behind him after

changing.

"Uh. I'll pay for myself." I stopped him when he was paying the

bill.

"It's alright. I can pay for you." he shrugged.

"No, I will pay." I tugged back his hand.

"No, Romi. Let me."

"No, I'll..."

"Oh, get done with your banter already. Just pay the bill and take

your banter elsewhere." the cashier almost yelled at us.

Daniyal and I exchanged a look and he paid quickly. We both

walked out of the store and cackled with laughter.

"Seems like he was having bad day." I spoke between my laughter.

"Yeah, let's go to that store."

I grinned and followed him.

Daniyal was trying on some shirts and I was waiting for him

outside the changing rooms. I looked around and I saw Hamza

standing a little away from me talking to someone.

I frowned. What is Hamza doing in San Diego?

Hamza was a very aloof sibling. He never talked about his

personal life to anyone. Not even my parents. Some incidents

affect our life very adversely. And that incident had affected his

life severely. I didn't pity him or loved him dearly but as a sister I

wanted to reach out to him. I wanted him to talk to me about it. I

had tried numerous times before but he always shut me out rather

harshly. Overtime I had stopped trying and simply minded my

own business but even today I knew he was hurting and that he

needed love and care but my anger had conquered over my

compassion towards him.

I walked over to where he was and stood behind some people. He

was talking to a girl. She was quite pretty; she had the looks of a

model. She was assisting him in shopping too. I didn't want to

meet Hamza so I simply walked back.

"I saw Hamza in there." I told Daniyal when we walked outside.

"What? Come let's meet him." he grabbed my hand.

"No, let it be. I don't want to meet him." I pulled his hand back.

"But I want to meet him." he tugged my hand.

"Why? There's no need. Let's go. Please."

He sighed and scratched his beard. We walked to my car.

"Alright, I will see you next weekend." I kept my bags inside the

car and turned to him.

"Yeah. Bye. Drive safe." he gave me a one-sided hug.

"Bye."

"Romi, where are you?"

I was lying on the couches in our living room when I heard my

mom calling me.

"In here, mama."

"There you are."

See I went for shopping today with my friends and look what I got

for you." she held up a pretty mauve gown it was short in front

and long at the back.

"Perfect for a formal dinner, isn't it?" she smiled.

I frowned; I knew what this was about.

"Mama, please. Not now." I sat up straight.

She sighed exasperatedly.

"Romi, please. We talked about this. Don't be a kid."

"No, mama. We didn't talk about it. You simply said something

and asked me accept it." I got up.

"You're over reacting. You're not a kid anymore. Life isn't a joke.

We are your parents. We only want the best for you and trust me

this is best for you."

"No, Mama. You don't understand. You just keep talking about

what's best for me and what's not but what you don't realize is

that I want to make my own choice." I tried to explain it to her for

the umpteenth time.

"Do you have someone in your mind? Is that why you're

refusing?" she looked at me with an angry expression.

I looked away. She would never trust me.

"It isn't like that, Mama."

"What I want is just some time. Some time that I wish to spend

doing what I want before I step into this huge relation with tons of

responsibilities."

She got and left muttering angrily.

"Talking to you is useless."

I lied back on the sofa, wishing for some peace of mind.

"Romi."

"Daddy."

I smiled and got up. He gestured me to sit.

"Sit."

"Did your mom bought this for you?" he asked me holding the

mauve dress that now laid in a corner.

"Yeah." I looked down.

"I would have guessed. She has great taste in fashion." he smiled

and kept the dress back and looked at me.

"You'll look beautiful in it, Romi."

"Daddy, I..."

He came to sit beside me and took my hands in his old wrinkled

ones.

"You've grown up to be a beautiful woman, Romi." he smiled

warmly.

"Might as well add talented, intelligent, capable, humorous in it

too." I added and chuckled lightly, he laughed with me too.

"Of course."

"Romi, you have to understand that your mother and I are doing

what's best for you. We are just looking out for you."

I sighed and looked away.

"Look, no one's forcing you but do you think you can give this

dinner a shot. Just for me." he looked at me hopefully.

I sighed.

"Alright, just for you daddy." I smiled slightly.

"That's my girl." he hugged me.

I didn't want to upset daddy. I would do what he wants me to do

just this once. Besides it wasn't like I was saying a yes to this

proposal. I broke the hug. He patted my head lovingly and walked

to his room.

I rested my head on the sofa. My mind a mess of foreign

emotions.

I was better off as a kid.

That was the last thought in my mind before I drifted off into a

deep slumber on the couches.

I woke up late. I was late for my work. I had 15 missed calls from

George and a good morning message from Daniyal.

"Uh, what the heck is wrong with this jacket. "I groaned irritated

whilst putting on my jacket.

I had arrived at the hospital and now I was heading off with

George on her morning rounds.

"How are things at home, Romi?" she asked me whilst sipping on

her black coffee.

"We will be having a formal dinner with the guy's family. I agreed

to meet him."

"What? You agreed? You are a doofus."

"I didn't want to upset daddy. Besides it isn't like I am saying a yes

to this proposal. And you know what I have everything planned."

She raised her eyebrow at me and I smiled wickedly.

"I shall be at my worst behavior at the dinner."

"You make me proud, Romi." she chuckled and gave me a onesided hug.

"I know." I smiled.

"What if the guy is like really handsome? Will you say a yes then?"

I shook my head.

"Certainly not. Marriage is the last thing on my mind."

"Alright. Let's get to work, shall we?"

It was late in the afternoon and I had taken a break for lunch.

George was busy. I was munching on a sandwich in the cafeteria

whilst checking my phone when a pair of leather brown boots

entered my vision. I looked up.

Azaan.

It was him.

He was wearing black pants a black t-shirt and a brown leather

jacket. Damn, he had great taste in fashion too.

I sighed.

"Hey." I made a weary expression.

"You seem so unhappy to see me."

"Who said I was happy?"

He sat down in front of me and eyed my sandwich.

"Why would you eat that crap?"

I frowned. There was nothing wrong with the sandwich. I was

having a vegetable sandwich.

"It tastes good." I told him with a frown.

"And anyway, I am not particular about my food." I shrugged.

"But, I am. Have you tried the Tacos over here. They are

amazing."

"Um, I just got here like 2 days go. Besides I wasn't roaming

around in the cafeteria. Unlike you I had work to do."

He frowned.

"Hey. I have work to do too. I don't like roaming around in the

hospitals either." he sounded offended.

"I apologize. So, what do you do?"

"I am an IT security specialist."

"Oh, nice."

"And you? What do you do?" he leaned forward and rested his

elbows on the table. An action that made me smile for some

reason. I did the same and gazed into his warm brown orbs.

"I am doing an internship as an Architect. Volunteering here is

just a part time activity."

"Oh, cool. I always thought architecture was an interesting

subject. So, you're doing an internship? How old are you?"

"22, and you?"

He leaned back in his chair.

"28, I turn 29 next month."

So, he's 7 years elder than me. I thought.

"So, I am guessing you are a foodie." I changed the topic.

"Yup, forever foodie." he grinned.

I smiled.

"And you? What are you fond of? What do you love to do?"

"I am fond of adventures. I love all those outdoor activities.

Hunting, river rafting, hiking etc..." I grinned widely.

"Interesting. I knew I liked you. I don't know about the rest but I

love boat riding. When I was younger our house was near a lake. I

would take my siblings for a boat ride. Me and my brother would

row the boat while my sisters sang merrily." he spoke with an

unknown expression in his eyes.

"Ah good old days." he sighed.

"You have sisters?"

"Yeah, two of them. A nuisance I am telling you." he shook his

head.

I laughed.

"Wait for me here. I will bring a Taco. Do you want some?" he got

up.

"No, I am good." I smiled politely.

He came back after a while and excitedly unwrapped the cover on

the Taco.

"You want some?" he asked me whilst munching on his Taco.

"No, I don't."

"So, are your sisters younger than you?" I asked him suddenly

curios about his family.

"Yeah. My brother Malik is the oldest and I have two younger

sisters Zainab and Sarah."

"Yeah, and that's my favorite too. Especially when you add honey

in it. It tastes so delicious." he licked his lips.

It had been an hour ever since I came to the café. We had talked

so much. Well, mostly he talked about food and I just sat back and

agreed to whatever he was blabbering. He talked about food with

such passion that I had never seen before. It was really funny.

"And have you tried the new flavor at Dunkin Donuts?" he asked

me bringing me back form my reverie.

"No."

Have you tried Cabeza Tacos? They're amazing.

"No."

"Have you tried Turkish Doner kebabs?"

"No."

He clicked his tongue.

"Gosh, I need to take you out on food adventures."

"Sure." I smiled.

"Have you tried chocolate chip blondies?"

"Yes. Yes. Yes." I yelled. People around us looked at me. I don't

know why I yelled. It was probably my excitement of saying a yes,

this time.

I giggled sheepishly. He covered his mouth with his fingers and

looked at me. He leaned forward.

"Did anyone tell you that you're a public embarrassment?" he

whispered.

"Yes." I replied seriously, remembering all those times when

Daniyal had said that to me.

He chuckled deeply.

I checked my phone and gasped.

"I really need to go, it's way past my break time."

"Don't."

"Huh?" I looked at him confusedly.

"Nothing." he shrugged and got up.

I saw George coming inside the café. I got up.

"It was nice talking to you. I have to go now." I smiled.

"Cut the formalities. We're friends now." he got up and extended

his hand.

I placed my hands in his large one. He simply gripped on to it for

a few seconds.

"Who were you talking to?" George asked me whilst preparing a

report.

"A man I met at the cafe." I replied whilst printing some papers.

"Hmm..."

My phone rang and I rushed to check the caller ID.

"Daniyal"

"Hey."

"What's up?" he chirped.

"Nothing much. I've something to tell you." I replied and took a

seat on the couches.

"Go ahead."

"I agreed to meet the guy Daddy wants me to."

'What?" he sounded angry.

"I..."

"Save it." he rudely interrupted me.

I remained silent.

"Didn't I ask you to follow your heart's desire, Romi?" he spoke

after a while.

"I didn't want to upset daddy. Besides it isn't like I am saying a yes

to this proposal. It's just a dinner. And I've everything planned."

"Planned?"

"I would be at my worst behavior at the dinner." I grinned.

"Worst behavior?"

"You'll see, now bye. I have to go."

He sighed.

"Bye, Romi. Take care."

"Was that Daniyal?" George asked me.

"Yeah." I grinned and kept my phone back on the table.

"Mama, I am home. What's for dinner?" I yelled loudly and sat

down to take off my boots.

"Cook for yourself, sis. Mom and Dad aren't at home."

I looked up and saw Hamza standing in front me.

I scoffed.

"Cooking? And me? Mama asked me not to enter the kitchen in

her absence, Hamza."

"Yeah. After you burned Mama's favorite Lasagna, she banned

you from entering the kitchen." He laughed.

"Please, don't remind me. Her screams still ring in my ears after

all these years." I exclaimed dramatically.

He chuckled deeply. I stilled for a moment. When was the last

time I had shared a nice conversation with Hamza? I didn't

remember.

"How are you doing, Hamza?" I smiled.

"Just fine." he replied and sat down on the couches; I sat down

with him.

"When was the last time we shared a good time as a family,

Hamza?"

He smiled sadly and took the family photo frame on the table in

his hands.

"I don't know, sis. I guess it's because of me." he let out a short

laugh.

"Come on now. Don't say that." I scooted closer to him and kept

my arm around his shoulder.

We stayed like that for a while before he backed away. I sighed.

He was never going to open up to me.

"I heard you said a yes to the proposal. "He abruptly changed the

topic.

"I didn't agree to the proposal. I just agreed to meet them."

"If you have agreed to meet him, everyone expects you to say a yes

the proposal too."

I sighed and got up. I didn't want to argue with him now.

"Give it a shot, Romi. Trust me you won't regret this."

I felt angry all of a sudden.

"Trust you, Hamza? Pardon me but you've always hurt us with

your words and actions."

"I..." he began but stopped.

He sighed for a moment before walking out.