by Zeenat Mahal
EPILOGUE
“The Malik brothers are the undisputed kings on the field today. Salaar Malik has scored three and Fardeen Malik is about to—and indeed he has—scored his second and the final goal of the game.”
Standing in the delicious cold morning of December in Lahore, looking chic in long coats, heels, and over-sized sunglasses, Swaba and Zoella were cheering like mad. Polo matches were the Derby of Lahore. It was as much about the horses and riders as fashionistas.
Zoella let out a deep breath as the boys came towards them, grinning. Fardeen and Salaar strode towards them like conquering heroes.
“Get a room,” said Swaba.
“Misuse of the phrase here, Swaba,” replied Zoella, still watching Fardeen, who caught her looking, and winked, grin widening.
“Whatever. Here they are.”
Abba came forward and shook hands with them both.
“Well played, my boys. Well played. Although if I’d been in your place Fardeen, I would not have made that slip in the first half. And Salaar, your posture, son? Needs work.”
Fardeen smiled and said, “Yeah, we know. You have losers for sons.”
“That is not what he meant, beta,” said Ami soothingly.
“No that’s exactly what I meant,” countered Abba laughing along with his sons. His wife glared and he wiped the grin off his face.
“Assalam-o-leikum, everyone.”
Zoella recognized Neha’s voice. There were loud groans from around her in response.
“I haven’t heard from you in days, stranger,” undeterred, Neha smiled at Fardeen.
He put his arm around Zoella’s waist and said matter-of-factly, “Zoella and I’ve been on our honeymoon. We just came back.”
“Oh? A bit late in the day for that, isn’t it?” Neha tried to smirk but looked perturbed instead.
Fardeen laughed, and looking at his wife with an openly adoring expression, he said, “I’m beginning to think our marriage is going to be one long honeymoon.”
Neha’s gaze darted to Zoella and then back again to Fardeen.
“Fardeen? Are you serious? I thought you understood we made a mistake?”
“Actually, I know I almost made one.”
Neha said tartly, “Did she pull the old pregnancy trick on you?”
“I wish,” moaned Zoella before Fardeen could answer. Then she dropped her voice and confided, “We’re working on it very diligently though.”
Fardeen chuckled and said, “Excuse us, Neha, we have a family celebration to start. And…er…work to do.”
Zoella sniggered.
“Fardeen?” Neha whimpered.
Keeping his hand on Zoella’s waist, Fardeen turned away without another look at Neha. Abba smiled and taking his wife’s arm, started off after his children.
“I liked the stress on family. Subtle,” commented Salaar.
Fardeen laughed.
“It’s not every day my younger brother manages to score a goal.”
“Hey, he scored more than you in that match against HBL in 2005 and he scored more than you in 2010,” exclaimed Zoella in Salaar’s defense.
“You go, Zee,” Salaar grinned.
Fardeen looked at Zoella, riveted. Then he asked gravely, “What about 2006? He scored more than I did, I think?”
“No. You scored four and Salaar didn’t. Score, I mean. Sorry.”
“I was ill,” Salaar explained.
Swaba patted his arm reassuringly.
“And 2009? I think we lost that one?”
“No you didn’t. The team scored only one goal and you did it. You lost only one game and that was in…”
Zoella stopped because Swaba was giggling behind her hand, Ami and Abba were smiling at her benevolently. Salaar looked faintly embarrassed for her and shook his head at her in feigned disgust.
Then she glanced at Fardeen. His eyes were full of laughter and he was trying his best not to give in to his urge to laugh.
“Yes? Do remind me,” he said managing to keep a straight face.
Zoella glared at them all and stomped away. She heard Fardeen guffaw behind her and her own smile broke loose.
“1997?”
“Shut up,” she said.
“2000?”
She turned back and whispered into his gorgeous face, “You keep this up and there’ll be no ‘work’ for at least a week.”
“I highly doubt that. I’m wearing khaki breeches and a white shirt,” he whispered back.
“Shut up?”
GLOSSARY OF TERMS
Abba: Father
Ami: mother
Assalam-o-elikum: Greeting. Literally, peace be upon you.
Bacha: Child
Baraat: Wedding party
Basant: Spring festival of kite flying in Punjab especially Lahore
Beta: Son
Beti: daughter
Bhabi: brother’s wife
Bhai: brother
Bo Kaata: cry of victory when an opponent’s kite is cut down
Chacha: uncle (Prefix for any older male to show respect)
Dupatta: scarf
Eid: religious festival
Falsa: berries
Jannah: paradise
Jee: Suffix to show respect
Laddoos: Traditional sweet made of milk, sugar and fat
Lassi: Traditional yoghurt drink
Ma’sha Allah: It is as Allah has willed
Mohtarama: Lady
Nikaah: Marriage vows
Pakoras: Traditional gram flour tempura like finger food
Phupho: Father’s sister
Pinna: String ball for a kite
Rishtas: Proposals
Saab: Sir, or mister
Salaam: Greetings
Sherwani: Traditional formal overcoat usually worn by grooms
Yaar: Friend
≈
NOTE TO THE READER
We hope you enjoyed reading She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not by Zeenat Mahal, brought to you by Indireads. As a young publisher that aims to bring the best popular fiction from South Asia to readers everywhere, we are keen to hear from you—our readers.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Zeenat Mahal (@zeemahal) is an avid reader and has been writing for as long as she can remember. She has an MPhil in English literature from Government College Lahore and recently completed an MFA in creative writing from Kingston University, London.
Zeenat has eclectic tastes and an insatiable desire to learn. Her romances are a heady mix of the traditional and the contemporary, old world values face the challenges of a shrinking globe that impinge upon and help shape South Asian sensibilities.
She can be contacted on her FB page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Zeenat-Mahal
ABOUT INDIREADS
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Title: Haveli
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Abandoned by her father, C. is brought up by her domineering, intractable grandmother, whom she privately refers to as ‘The Broad’. Raised in the closed environs of a haveli in Jalalabad, C. is rebellious, quick-witted and a self-proclaimed cynic.
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Praise for Haveli:
Though Austen might have taken pause with some of Chandni’s wardrobe options, I think she would whole-heartedly approve of the buildup to the romance between Chandni and Taimur (who turns out to be a respectable gentleman even Mr. Darcy would approve of
The Lemon Review
"Dear Ms. Mahal, I love your voice here!”
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A reading treat both for eyes and for minds alike.
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I will revisit it whenever I want to read a modern, Asian version of Jane Austen books.
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Though Austen might have taken pause with some of Chandni’s wardrobe options, I think she would whole-heartedly approve of the buildup to the romance between Chandni and Taimur (who turns out to be a respectable gentleman even Mr. Darcy would approve of).
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Book Blurb:
“…I’ll pay you a monthly salary to behave and appear for all practical purposes as my wife…If you agree, the marriage vows can be taken on the phone on Saturday, since I have an hour free in the morning.”
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One reason I love to read books set in a country other than my own is for the chance to vicariously live there for the duration of the story. "The Contract" allows me to do just that. It's packed with little details about life in Lahore, Pakistani families, weddings, Daahta Saheb and life in general."
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She is a blessed writer who spreads ‘the fragrance of motherland’ through her prose. She hails from Pakistan and her understanding of Pakistani culture and her admiration oozes from her stories and characters alike.
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A perfect leisure read which thrills and excites
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Read this story for the brilliant language, portrayal of emotions and strong female character (that is an indireads norm, I guess). A very enjoyable, short read.
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Ranbir and Mira’s love story had me in splits. Get a copy, read and enjoy.
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An excellent read, I could not keep it down till I finished it. A must read if you are into romance, and it is well worth a try it even if you are not into it.
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Not only is this a great story, I love the way the characters are true to life. I would recommend reading this book if you love romance and mystery. I would love to see a series made from this story.
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The author has done a brilliant job in such a short space at bringing the characters and their lives to life. The people and the places are very vivid and real and the cultural references were a real eye opener. I would recommend this book to other readers.
The Romance Reviews
The love story between Rumi and Ahad is cute, passionate and very emotional. Would I recommend this book – Definitely.
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I loved the book a lot. The story is a revelation… the characters are lifelike and identifiable. An excellent job done for a debut. Highly recommended.
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Travel journo, Kairavi Krishna (Kay) has had it with men. After a series of disasters (losers, philanderers, leeches, mama’s boys and possessive psychos), she is all too tempted to walk out on the prospect of ever finding love. But just when Kay is Done With Men, she meets Mr. Right.
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Shuchi Kalra is a witty and observant author who is already a well-established blogger and editor. She has a perfect voice for women’s fiction with her dry humour and chatty writing style.
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This is the author's first endeavor in novel writing and she has truly done justice to the story and the characters. I would definitely recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a light-hearted romantic story.
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An irreverent romp! Do read!
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I admit to knowing very little about the rom com titles currently available in the Indian market, but as an American reader who has read wide and deep in this genre, this novella hit the mark. I suspect Suchi will find a very large audience for her work.
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Hilarious, and possibly the Indian answer to Bridget Jones' Diary!
