Mending Broken Hearts

14. Together

This is a one off chapter from Salman and Noor's perspective.

Noor

The lights were blinding so I closed my eyes. The pain in my throat excruciating so I took short gasping breaths. Nothing in my surroundings was familiar, giving rise to a panic I had only once felt before. That was the moment I had found myself alone at home, struggling to catch my breath while I stumbled around looking for my phone to call for help. 

Vague memories of Kim's distressed voice, and the blaring sirens of an ambulance threatened to turn the panic into full on hysteria when I heard him laugh. It wasn't the carefree type that I had fallen in love with. This was more measured, and calculated, with an edge of anxiety. 

But I heard it, which meant he was here. Right next to me, when I so desperately needed him to be my anchor. 

I opened my eyes and looked at him, "Salman", my voice croaked. 

"Noor", his voice faltered. 

That was all he needed to say for a calmness to descend over me. One hand clasped mine, the other gently caressed my cheek pushing back strands of hair. There were tears in his eyes but a tender smile on his face and I knew then; we would be ok. Where ever we were, whatever moment in time this was, he and I were together and that is all that mattered. 

"Noor, I am going to put this face mask on you so we can give you Oxygen", I heard a friendly voice say, "Stay with me, ok. We'll take care of you"

"Ok", I whispered to Madi and let her put the plastic mask on my face while I closed my eyes, tightening my grip on Salman's hand. As the grogginess lifted, I remembered more of how I ended up here. Things started to make more sense, till once again panic ripped through my battered body. 

My eyelids flew open, "Our daughter", I said to Salman. 

"Don't worry", his said softly, "She was born early but is doing very well in the NICU"

"Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. Now close your eyes and rest. We'll go meet her in a bit"

His composure was infectious, I had to admit. Which was funny, because our roles had always been reversed. He was the hot-headed one, and I was the cool, composed one. He went all out with guns blazing when things didn't go his way, I would stop, think, ponder. We were opposite in so many ways, yet we were perfect in every other way too. 

I smiled at that thought and closed my eyes. The lights were still too bright. 

"Your daughter will finally have a name too", a voice from my past spoke. 

My eyes flew open. The lights were too bright, but I blinked and blinked and then I saw the man who was once my fiancé standing next to my husband. A new kind of panic settled in. 

"Omar", my voice was hoarse but loud enough that he looked at me. I looked at my husband then back at him. Both were smiling now, and I was sure that I was just dreaming. Maybe I had died and woken up in an alternate world, or the anesthesia was making me hallucinate. 

Nothing made sense again. 

The last time I had mentioned Omar in front of Salman, he had vowed to punch him in the face if he spoke to me again. 

And the last time I had met Omar, he ran away from me like I carried the plague. 

"You both - met?", I asked hesitantly. 

Salman chuckled and pretended to whisper to me, "Oh yeah we've met and fyi, Omar is still as dumb as before. Nothing has changed"

"At least I don't go around calling people names like a bratty kindergartner", came the instant reply.