Balaach’s Distraction

After two days, Balaach was at his shop and seeing his customers. He was wondering why he was very much bored in his life, and the answer to his question was his loneliness. He had no close friends in world and was not sharing his thoughts with anyone.

One of his customers asks him:

‘What is the discount price of those suits?’

‘30% discount…’ he stops while talking.

‘Yes… you were saying?’ the customer says trying to get his attention.

Balaach again begins to talk but stops again looking ahead, feeling someone was continuously looking at him.

‘Is there a problem?’ the customer asks.

‘No, nothing!’ he replies recognising Komal who was secretly staring at him but pretending to buy some dress.

The customer walks away.

Balaach gets a little closer towards her. Komal feels excited as he was about to ask for help. But he stops and goes back to the previous customer. She doesn’t like this and says to herself:

‘Since two days I’ve been thinking about him. There’s something about him that I can’t ignore. I just want to get rid of Shams and get a chance of talking to him.’

Later, she walks towards him and asks:

‘So, what’s up?’

‘Excuse me?’ he replies confusingly.

‘I mean how is your business going on?’

‘Good, as usual. Why are you asking?’

‘Well, I just…’

‘You’ve been following me,’ he says being straight. ‘I know you want to talk, or tell me something. What is it?’

She gets a little nervous and replies looking at her feet:

‘I’m just interested in talking to you.’

‘About?’

‘Well, you’re very much like…’

‘…Like your favourite superstar, I know,’ he interrupts, ‘what else?’

‘Well, I would like to thank you for speaking for me that day.’

‘My pleasure… anything else.’

‘Well, I better go,’ she says feeling difficult talking to him.

‘Oh stop, please,’ he said gently, ‘I’m sorry for being a little rude. Go on, keep on talking.’

‘Well, I’ve been thinking about you sir…’

‘Aziz Balaach…’

‘Oh of course, you have a very unique and rare name.’

‘Thank you,’ he replies, ‘so who’s your favourite superstar you’re comparing me with.’

‘Edmund John’

‘The singer?’

‘Yes…’

They talk about this for a while after which Balaach goes back to work and Komal leaves.

Childhood Memory

That afternoon, Balaach took a short nap putting his head and arms on counter table. He dreamt that he was twenty years old and was being a victim of child molest by some adults who were torturing him.

As he wakes up suddenly, and looks around in panic. His co-worker asks:

‘What is it sir? Is everything okay?’

‘Yeah, just a childhood memory.’

‘Was it painful?’

‘Forget it, doesn’t matter,’ he replies realising his guess was actually correct.

Feeling a little uncomfortable, he stands up and decides to go back to his home.

Next afternoon, Balaach was standing outside his store. He sees Komal coming towards his store. However, she goes towards him and said:

‘Good morning!’

‘…Good morning,’ he replies after a while. ‘So, I guess you really like our store. You come here every day.’

‘Actually, there’s something else I like here.’

Balaach had the idea about what she meant.

‘So Mr Balaach what are you doing today?’

‘Nothing special,’ he replies, ‘I’m just seeing my workers and I’ll leave at five o’ clock.’

‘Can we…’ she says feeling nervous.

‘Go for a date?’ he completes her sentence.

She gets silent and nods slowly.

‘Wait till five o’ clock then,’ he taunts.

He goes back inside his store.

t six o’clock of the evening, Balaach was at the counter table thinking about the child molest incident of his life. He stands up feeling uncomfortable and goes outside his store for a while. As he looks around outside, he sees Komal still standing outside. He gets surprised and goes towards her,

‘What are you doing here?’ he asks.

‘Waiting for you… and you were supposed to come earlier.’

‘I didn’t come here for you… sorry I meant that I was just kidding this afternoon that you have to wait for me to go for a date.’

‘But I enjoyed waiting for you.’

He turns around and feels that this girl was sort of clingy but she liked him. So he changes his mind for her feelings.

‘Okay let’s go,’ he says to her.

‘Really?’

‘Yeah, let’s go…’

Disturbed

In the following days, Balaach and Komal again met at his store. Only Komal used to talk and Balaach used to listen silently whatever she used to talk about. However, Balaach was not at all serious about his relationship with her but he however enjoyed her company. Komal was actually falling in love but didn’t realize about her feelings for him.

One afternoon, while they were at the store, Komal says to him:

‘Last night, I had the best date ever…’

Balaach nods.

‘But Balaach you’re the second person I’ve ever dated… Shams is my well about to be my fiancée.’

‘Shams the guy who was with you on that day?’

‘Yes, but I never liked him and want him to forget me.’

‘Well, I’ve never been in a relationship. Neither do I have any friends.’

‘Don’t you ever get bored?’ she asks.

‘Well, I have your company. I enjoy my time with you.’

She gets happier as she likes his compliment.

‘Well Balaach, I feel more comfortable with you than with my friend Jamie. Because you and I have same culture.’

‘Who’s Jamie?’

‘My friend, actually my closest friend in Paris.’

‘Oh, I see,’ he says pretending to be interested.

‘Yes and unlike me, she likes Shams quite a lot.’

He stands up as he sees some boys gathered around with cops outside his store. He goes outside to check out. Komal leaves the store as well for her home.

That night, Balaach was at his room of his house. He was viewing a video clip in his cell phone. He had seen this video clip almost fifteen times today and he was very much disturbed at the moment.

For the next whole week, Balaach doesn’t go to his store as he was feeling very much disturbed.

Komal Exposes her Love

Next week, Balaach had shifted from his family’s bungalow to another apartment. He lived all alone right now as he was mentally disturbed. He decides to go back to his store, so he does. As he reaches his store, he sees Komal waiting for him. He rushes towards her but for the first time he sees a painful anger in her. She says to him:

‘Where have you been Balaach?’

‘Sorry Komal, I forgot you. I’m really sorry.’

‘You forgot me?’ she asks sadly. ‘Maybe we didn’t have any relationship, but I was always serious and honest with you.’

‘I know Komal. I was just a bit busy. I had switched off my cell phone.’

‘Look Balaach, you might not believe this but I am in love.’

‘With me?’ he asks getting surprised. ‘Well, that’s good I suppose…’

‘I don’t want you to talk like this. Please be honest.’

‘Well, just give me a second. I need to see what’s going on at my store.’

Balaach leaves her and walks toward his store.

The moment he enters inside, one of his workmen comes toward him and shows the report of earnings of last week. After taking a brief review, his workman says:

‘Sir is that girl your girlfriend?’

‘No, just a friend.’

‘But she’s coming here since a week, and was only asking about you.’

‘I know,’ Balaach replies.

‘Sir, she’s very desperate. She used to wait for you since morning till evening.’

Balaach remains silent and feels about Komal. He realises that she was really in love with him and she deserved his attention as whenever she was with him, his day used to pass quite well than usual.

A moment later, Balaach comes outside towards her and says to her getting closer:

‘So you really feel for me? What do you want from me?’

‘Your time, your attention… I want you to be honest and serious about our relationship. I know I have no right to ask all this, but I just want this from you.’

‘Komal, you have every right. And I will give you everything you want from me.’

‘Really? Are you speaking honestly?’

‘Of course I am,’ he replies firmly. ‘I won’t disappoint you again. I promise.’

She gets cheered up and she happily hugs him.

From a little distance, Shams was watching them. Seeing him, Balaach stops hugging and tells her:

‘Shams is watching us!’

‘Doesn’t matter, he has begun his relationship with Jamie.’

‘Are you sure? Why does he seem so jealous?’

Shams walks away angrily as he was getting too possessive.

A Visit to Louver

Within three months, Balaach and Komal’s relationship gets deeper as they both were in love. Balaach had not exposed his feelings yet, but he knew he was in love. They used to meet only on dates outside their homes. Balaach had never visited her home; neither had she ever gone to his’. Balaach was beginning to realise that his life had changed since the day he met her.

One day at Komal’s home, Jamie comes as a guest and talks to her about Shams. Jamie tells her:

‘Shams and I are breaking up…’

‘Why? I thought you liked him.’

‘Well, he says that he is still in love with you, and he can’t be with me.’

‘But he should also know that he cannot achieve me.’

‘Actually there’s something else,’ Jamie says. ‘He has done me a favour. He has this friend named Claude. He has given me his phone number and address.’

‘Claude? So did you ever meet him before?’

‘No, but I will today. And I talked to him last night on phone.’

‘How is he? I mean did you judge anything from his words?’

‘Well, I…’ Jamie thinks for a while, ‘I felt as if he is a very furious sort of guy.’

‘Well, best of luck with him.’

Jamie and Komal have lunch, after which Jamie leaves.

Few days later, Balaach and Komal meet at Louver Museum. Balaach was having a camera and taking photographs. This was Komal’s favourite place.

While they were walking there, Komal says to Balaach:

‘You know something? Shams is still trying to be with me.’

‘But he was with Jamie.’

‘He broke up with her and now wants me back. What should we do?’

‘Don’t worry Komal, you’re safe with me. He won’t do anything to you. So what about Jamie?’

‘She’s okay without him’ she replies. ‘She has a new boyfriend Claude.’

‘Who’s he?’

‘A dark and rude sort of guy, Shams,’ friend, they meet only at midnights.’

‘Midnights? Why?’

‘They must be up to something. But whoever he is, she tells me that he is a very dark and cruel guy.’

‘Well, she better be careful’ he says trying to show he was interested.

‘So…’ she says, ‘anything you want to tell me?’

‘Uh…have you ever,’ he says after thinking for a while, ‘I mean have you ever felt or seen anyone who does sleep walking?’

‘That’s something different and unusual. But why are you asking about that?’

‘I feel as if I am a victim of this disease. I think I walk in my sleep.’

‘When you wake up at mornings, do you find yourself sleeping somewhere else?’

‘Yes I do.’ he replies.

‘Then maybe you do…’

She and Balaach talk and roam around at the museum and leave after a while.

There’s Something about Claude

Days later, at Balaach’s home, he receives a phone call from his mother, who asks him to come for a visit. So he goes back to his home and his mother feels as if there was something wrong with him because he seemed distressed.

A couple of days pass, and Balaach meets Komal again at a park near his store. She seemed quite worried. He asks her:

‘What is it? You seem to be disturbed.’

‘Well, it’s about Jamie.’

‘You don’t need to worry about anyone else,’ he smiles, ‘because I have good news for you.’

‘What good news?’ she asks impatiently.

‘Few days back, I went to see my mother. She said she wants me to get married. She asked me whether I have anyone to choose. So I told her about you. The good news is that she agreed.’

‘Wait, you’re saying that you want to marry me.’

‘Yes.’

‘That’s very good news,’ she says excitedly. ‘I mean I wasn’t expecting this from you.’

‘Well, I told you I’ll be serious about this relationship.’

‘Oh Balaach, I love you for this,’ she says getting delightful. ‘I got to tell you, that this is the best moment of my life.’

He smiles. After a while, Komal says to him:

‘Balaach, I want to tell you about Jamie. She’s having an affair with a horrible person.’

‘Claude? Why what did he do?’

‘Whenever I see Jamie, I find at least two new wounds in her body. Anywhere, arms, legs or even face.’

‘Oh no…’ he gets a little worried. ‘You mean he beats her.’

‘Yes…brutally.’

‘Then why doesn’t she break up with him?’

‘I asked her, but she says that she can tolerate this for him. I think either she loves him with the core of her heart or she is lonely and needs someone to be with…’

to be continued...