Everything was changing positions promising until a say hadn't woken up into that vivid zone of two darling birds, breaking out both of them flabbergasted, gaping at each other's faces blankly. They two maintained a hush when the footsteps were earning higher and closer.
"Imran, go and hide anywhere. Don't come out unless I order you."
He bobbed his head and commotion towards the water storage tank. As she ensured he was hidden, she immediately took her box into her hands and sat down to have them. She acted as if frivolity happened. Though she was feigning to be not dreading, her heartbeat was apparently racing taller and taller as the footsteps earned nigher to the patio exit.
There. A knock roses. She put forward her eyes, gradually, warning herself to not act as if she wasn't alone there and not to be frivolous with her ludicrous spooked face. As she comes into contact with the guy's eyes, she learns that the guy is taller and looks smarter in his way. Having circular spectacles, he wears a solemn expression. His ilk of dressing the uniform wasn't so far to call diverse, ostensibly the same as other pupils but he got a foreign sense in his shoes. He was on sports shoes when studies usually don't have them on.
Her lookout was back on his profound face, he brought his middle finger up and acclimated his eyesores with a grave look at Soha.
"What are you doing here? Lunchtime had already ended, girl."
"Oh. I didn't see my watch. I'll leave as soon as I finish my meal."
"No, girl. You need to leave right away. You need to obey your council President's order."
"Council President…?"
She mumbled as she never got to drop in on him, nor ever taken notice of him. In the first curtain-raiser, he just left her in perplexity. She accepted his intro and said,
"At least give me 10 mins, please."
"5 mins. Not more than that."
She cropped up an annoyed face and bobbed her head. As she did that, the tall guy left the place without any further interruption. The footsteps were deliberately bygone. She corroborated that he was driven and instantly scurried to Imran who was actually positioning his sight somewhere else, not even disseminating a damn sight at Soha this whole time. Hash!
"Better you head back to your class, Imran."
"Already?"
"Uhm! If the council president is back again then we might be in a misfortune. So, please."
"Ok, I got you, Soha."
She didn't presume to make a comeback and tramped to her lunch box. Goggling at the container, an introspection bloomed in her head. Only she learns this box is merely made for him so she takes it off over there without assuming it with her. Without any reticence, she momentarily departs the place with a rosiness on her cheeks. That's a quite dissimilar procedure now. Quite different.
They both overshadowed one classroom from distinct avenues. So, of course, learners hadn't acknowledged that there was a duo being in a relationship for a couple of days. As Imran hadn't passed along this news to his chums yet whereas Soha had only one mate so she conveyed it to her already. Divulging that he ought to be a steadfast candidate with his pals, Imran is in accord with to share about his affinity with Soha with his few trusted buddies, not all are trustworthy, right?
"Soha… ca-can… can… can I…"
A girl who was meshing her hands, tugged down between her shanks, was jiggling to utter. Her head was confronting towards her foot, her almond eyes were roughly quivering for no reason, and her face was fraying a rosiness. She suppressed her lower lip and looked seductively at Soha. Dropping in on the girl, Soha's eyes dilated a bit, and took a step back.
"What do you need from me…?"
"Oh. Sorry, Sister Soha. I was just rehearsing my part in drama class."
"Eh… You're so weird. I almost lost my soul."
"Haha! Well, this sheet is yours, right? I got this one from Sanal."
"Oh. Thank you…"
As Soha opened the sheet of paper, her eyes enlarged and she immediately closed it. Her hand was covering her mouth, eyes being out the window, and a blush on her face. She immediately tossed the paper under her desk, not letting any pupil have a look at her paper. "Oh, what was that? Why are you embarrassed?"
"Nothing. Do your job."
"Ah. Sanal is smart in such things, huh. Continue guys."
"Shhh. Lower your voice…!"
"Fine…!"
...
"Hey! Soha!"
"Imran…? What is he doing here…?!"
She instantly wandered out of the convenience store and reached out to him. Dropping in on Soha near him created him to crop up a seductive smile on his face. Soha wore a blush and looked away to omit his smiling face. Obvious thing, his smile was making her ruddy.
"You–"
Before she could get her words out to scold him, his phone began to ring. He couldn't ignore it as it was a call from his Elder Brother – Irfan Muhammad. From a distance, she located Imran being in serious discussion. Seeing his standing, she recalled the situation of Sanal and began to miss her, inch by inch. She earned no curiosity to know what made Imran concerned. She just lets him fight his own situations and conditions alone as she already brings into the world a lot on her plate.
Their paths weren't fortuitous enough to put them together, her utterances were a million thousands, being a hurdle on her heart… A longing boosted in her heart when she saw Imran, thought to disentangle her burden by having a part in him but that thought never came factual, it just left as a thought for the rest of a couple of days.
With tear-sadness in herself, she walked alone to her home. He didn't even give a thought of walking her home – just scrutinizing her leave. She felt his eyes over her backbone but said nothing – just let him leave her.
But when she reached home… Everything has changed…
Soha's heart raced like a frantic drumbeat as she navigated the labyrinth of destruction, each step a silent plea for safety amidst the ruins of a once-thriving city. The echoes of violence reverberated through the empty streets, a grim reminder of the havoc wrought by the merciless civil war. Bereft of family, friends, and familiar faces, Soha found herself adrift in a sea of desolation, her spirit battered and weary.
In the shadowy recesses of despair, a glimmer of hope emerged—a hand extended from the darkness, offering solace amidst the chaos. Startled yet desperate, Soha lifted her gaze to meet the eyes of strangers cloaked in mystery. Among them stood a figure with eyes that pierced the veil of uncertainty, a beacon of strength amidst the gloom—the enigmatic leader of the Hoo-Doo Man community.
"Come with us, child," his voice, like a soothing melody in the cacophony of chaos, beckoned her. "We will shield you from the storm."
With nothing left to tether her to the shattered remnants of her former life, Soha nodded silently, surrendering to the unknown path laid before her.
Days bled into weeks as Soha found refuge within the clandestine sanctuary of the Hoo-Doo Man community. Amidst the flickering shadows and hushed whispers, she discovered a sense of belonging—a kinship forged in the crucible of adversity. Bound by shared suffering, they became her surrogate family, their stories weaving a tapestry of resilience and survival in the face of unfathomable odds.
While Soha sought sanctuary in the embrace of shadows, Imran, her beloved, embarked on a journey of his own. His family, prescient to the impending storm of conflict, fled the country under the guise of a leisurely sojourn, leaving Imran ensnared in the web of deceit spun to safeguard their own interests. Though his heart yearned for Soha's embrace, duty tethered him to the whims of fate, his loyalty torn between filial obligation and the longing for love.
Despite the gaping chasm that yawned between them, Soha and Imran clung to a shared dream—a beacon of light amidst the encroaching darkness. Their aspirations of joining the clandestine ranks of undercover agents burned bright, igniting a flicker of hope in the murky depths of uncertainty. Yet, fate, an indifferent arbiter, wielded its cruel hand, severing their path with callous indifference.
Imran's family, consumed by a primal instinct for self-preservation, rebuffed Soha's inclusion in their flight to safety, casting her aside like flotsam amidst the tumultuous tide of conflict. Forced to confront the harsh reality of their fractured existence, Soha and Imran stood at the precipice of separation, their love tested by the crucible of adversity.
With heavy hearts and tear-stained vows, they bid farewell, each word laden with the weight of unspoken promises and shattered dreams. As Imran vanished into the ether of distant horizons, Soha's gaze lingered upon his fading silhouette, a silent prayer whispered into the void, a plea for reunion amidst the chaos of uncertainty.
Alone yet undaunted, Soha embraced her newfound kinship with the Hoo-Doo Man, a bastion of strength amidst the tempest of turmoil. With resolute determination coursing through her veins, she embraced the shadows that enshrouded her, a silent sentinel in the ceaseless struggle for survival.
And as she disappeared into the depths of the clandestine enclave, Soha's heart echoed with a refrain of hope—a whispered melody amidst the symphony of chaos, a testament to the indomitable spirit that thrived amidst the shadows of adversity.
"We'll grow! Higher than anyone ever could imagine!"