THIRD PERSON'S POV

Arham was very excited as it was Muskan's birthday, he wanted to give her some special gift, so he decided to go to college before usual time. He wanted to arrange flowers on Muskan's desk. Holding a bouquet of flowers he entered in the classroom. There were only three or four students present, but then Arham's Gaze went to a figure sitting on the desk, lost in her own world. She was looking pretty as usual but there was something which made Arham's heart hurt. Muskan was Wearing the purple and yellow suit but he wanted her to wear the red one. Muskan also wanted to wear red but after burning that she was left with no other way to wore that purple suit, which was the best of her collection.

'No matter whatever she wear she always looks beautiful' Arham maintained a genuine smile on his face and cheered himself up. Taking steps towards her he made himself stand just a few steps away from her but she was still lost in her own world of thoughts

"Hey birthday girl!" Arham chirped and Muskan jumped on her place on that sudden call.

"Arham you scared me" she said while putting her hand on her heart and looked at him with wide eyes.

"Yaar ab itna bhi darawna nahi dikhta ki tum mujhse dar jao" Arham said in his defence and Muskan's lips played a smile.

(Dude I don't look too horrible that you become scared)

"I didn't mean to say that, I want..."

"Okay okay... No need to clarify,'' Arham said and passed her the flower bouquet which she accepted with wide eyes in disbelief and big smile of joy in her lips.

"Happy birthday" He whispered softly and Muskan blushed.

"Thanks for this" She muttered and Arham took seat on the next chair but he was facing her

"Dena or Kehna to bohot kuch chahta hu, tum Anzala ko chhod ke meri taraf dhayan to do" Arham muttered as he was feeling jealous of Anzala

(I want to give and say a lot, but at least you leave Anzala and pay attention to me)

"Hmm? Pardon!" Muskaan utter with confusion as she didn't understand what he said under his breath

"Haha... Nothing.. I was saying that I wanted to surprise you but you ruined that" Arham pass a hesitation filled smile to mask the whole situation and Muskan nodded

"I'm glad that you remember my birthday" She chirped and Arham sighed dramatically

"Main to or bhi bohot kuch yaad rakhta hu, tum kabhi notice hi nhi karti." Arham said with full of real emotions and Muskan looked at him with confusion and disbelief.

(I keep remembering many more things but you never notice anything)

"Kya matlab?" After shrugging the shoulders she asked and Arham smiled.

(What do you wanna say?)

"Kabhi waqt nikalo or khug samajhne ki koshish karo."  Arham said with a smile and Muskan was still confused.

( draw some time to understand what I want to say)

"Arham I can't understand you, you are unpredictable for me. Many times I tried to understand what you want to say but you always puzzle me" Muskan shared and Arham smiled.

"It means you think about me and try to understand what I want to say?" Raising his brow he asked in his playful manner but

''Umm.. Yeah... No.. I mean why.. " Muskan stammered suddenly and Arham smacked his forehead in his imagination.

' Muskan try to understand my feelings, I'm Afraid to tell you clearly because I can't afford to break the only bond between us which is our friendship' Arham said to himself and Stopped himself to say anything.

"Muskan.."

"Hmm"

"Wi.. Will you come with me for lunch?" Arham asked in almost a whisper.

"We all do lunch together everyday, what's new in this?" Muskan asked and He huffed but didn't show her.

"I mean to say, not for normal lunch which we do in college canteen, but I'm saying about bunking college and going for lunch in some good restaurant?" For a second Muskan was in disbelieve.

'Is he really offering me lunch?' she asked to herself

'What's the matter of going with him when he loves someone else.' She concluded sadly.

'But I want to go' poor girl was stuck in between her heart and brain but in the end her heart was dominant

"But Arham, if daddy...." Muskan was saying but a loud call pulled her attention towards that

"Musu caaaaaatttttt...." She was Maizah

"Happy birthdayyyyyy" Maizah shouted and went to her best friend to hug her.

"Happy birthday my Musu Cat, see what I have for you" Maizah chirped while hugging her and Anzala also came there holding a small box in his hand.

"Happy birthday Muskan" Anzala wish her and felt happy when notice Muskaan wearing the same suit which he suggested her

"Thanks a lot you both" Muskan said while taking the gifts from both of them.

"Musu you are looking pretty" Maizah compliment her and Muskan smiled

"Yesterday I suggested her to wear this dress, because I know Muskan looks gorgeous in this dress" Anzala told Maizah but she didn't feels good by listening that, the reason was Unknown to her.

'Anzala said to wear this dress, and I told her to wear the red one, she gave priority to Anzala over me. Why can't you see Muskan how much I love you? why can't you see me in front of Anzala?' Arham was becoming green in envy.

"Let's go somewhere after class" Maizah suggested and Anzala nodded. Though Muskan was refusing to go but then after forcing by three of them she got ready

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"Treat will be from my side." Anzala said while dragging chair for himself beside Muskan but that time Arham wasn't a step behind, he took a long step and sat down beside Muskan, for a couple of moments Anzala was shocked

"Arham I dragged this chair" Anzala said with an angry expression.

"Oh... Thanks for dragging the chair for me, otherwise boys do this work for girls but you did for me.." Arham said in playful way making everyone laugh but not Anzala, he felt angry because he wanted to sit beside Muskan

"Dude you sit beside Maizah" Arham said while rolling his eyes and Anzala did so but not before mumbling ''I don't need your suggestion"

Arham opens his mouth to say something when "Muskan What would you like to order? It's your birthday so you should order." Anzala said suddenly and Arham couldn't do anything.

"A dark Chocolate cake for Muskan" Anzala said happily and Muskan shook her head suddenly

"No Anzala, no need to...." Muskan was saying but Anzala didn't let her complete

"Why no need?? Of course We need a cake to celebrate!" Anzala said and Maizah nodded.

"But..." Muskan's words were again cut off in between by Maizah.

"Yeah... And order lunch too, I'm dying of hunger" Maizah said with a happy smile.

"Two paneer tikka, one dark chocolate cake..." Anzala started ordering but stopped in between by Arham's call

"Dude, don't you know Muskan don't like chocolate cake, especially dark chocolate one. She likes strawberry flavours'' Arham said and everyone was surprised to know that. Muskan was a silent girl who never share about her choices or her feelings with anyone so none knows her taste, but Arham because he did not had any other work accept noticing Muskan and her deeds.

"Really Musu cat?" Maizah asked and Muskan nodded looking at Arham.

'He noticed?' Muskan asked to herself looking at Arham

'Yaar Muskan is mine, why Arham is doing this?' Anzala asked to himself with anger.

'I wish, I also to get the one who keeps in his mind what I like and what not' Maizah made a wish in her heart when noticed that Anzala and Arham both were showing their interest towards Muskan.

''So fine one strawberry cake for our birthday girl" Anzala said with a smile and Muskan nodded with a blushing expression on her face. She was feeling happy because Arham remembered her choices but her blushing gave different feelings to Anzala, Maizah and Arham.

On one hand Anzala felt happy that Muskan was smiling and blushing because he ordered the cake for her, on the other hand Arham felt deeply hurt. 

'First she wore the dress which Anzala said to her and now she is blushing when he ordered for her. I don't know what I should do.' Arham said to himself, while thinking something deeply.

'Muskan and Anzala are perfect for each other, they both love one another.' Maizah said to herself while looking at both of them, she didn't realise when her heart felt a different pain, she was unaware about that feeling, as well as she was the reason behind her sorrow.

Four of them celebrated Muskan's birthday very happily. But in the whole time Maizah and Anzala both were looking at one another every now and then, but they were trying their best to avoid each other and the feeling which they was raising in their hearts.

'Sometimes she looks so cute, my chudail' Anzala said to himself when he looked towards Maizah who was silently playing with the piece of cake and he didn't realise when his lips covered into a smile.

'Control your flirty heart Anzala, you are such a disgusting man. She is Maizah. How can you even think about her in this way?' very next moment he scolded himself and averted his eyes immediately.

"Thanks guys for this celebration, but now I should go, daddy will be angry if I reach home late to home" Muskan said while making herself stand and she picked her gifts and bag before going towards the door.

"Maizah we should also go" Anzala suggested, avoiding eye contact with her as he was feeling something different while looking in her eyes, but Maizah nodded and moved out from the restaurant after saying bye to Arham.

'Why this girl can't see that I love her.' Arham questioned her while bowing his head and his gaze went to a mobile phone laying on the floor.

"Muskan" He called her loudly but three of them were already gone. That was Muskan's mobile. Picking up the same Arham ran out from the restaurant but Muskan wasn't there. He sighed and puahed her mobile in his pocket.

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"Sorry Daddy" Muskan mumbled, she was standing in front of her father, who was holding an angry expression on his face.

"Muskan when will you become responsible?" He roared at her and Muskan was just fixing her gaze on the floor.

"Sorry daddy" She again muttered, she was being scolded by her father because she lost her mobile.

"Daddy I will be careful from now onwards" she added and her father rolled the corner of his big moustache, which was making his overbearing face more dictatorial

"Shame on you, you are the daughter of retired Colonel Arsalan Haider, I was always famous for my punctuality and responsibilities. Muskan was silently listening to everything when something made her cry.

"You are just like your mother, neither she understood the responsibilities of her home nor you will ever understand"..

In the time being they listened doorbell sound And soon a maid came inside the room

"A boy is standing on the door, he is saying that he has to meet Muskan" the old maid inform and poor Muskan felt a jolt in her heart, she never expected that any boy would come to meet her to her home but she gathered all her courage to move towards the door. But her father became red with anger as that was against his rule.

No boys were allowed to come home and especially to meet Muskan

" Muskan you forget y...." Arham's sentence was cutted off when he found her crying

" What happened Muskan? Tell me If there is any problem" Arham tried to assure Muskan that he was there for her but instead of saying anything in reply Muskan asked him about the reason of his visit. "Your molibe.. It was laying on the floor but you didn't noticed" passed the mobile to Muskan, Arham said and at the same time Colonel Arsalan Haidar also arrived there. Muskan felt her heart was racing with the fear of her daddy

" Daddy, I forgot my mobile in college. He is my classmate. He came here to return my mobile.'' Muskan uttered half truth, half false and her father nodded with the fake satisfied expression but he offered Arham to come for tea.

While having tea Muskan and Arham were sitting silently beside each other, Maintaining a good distance! Muskan was smiling in her thoughts because she was sitting beside Arham but her father was noticing her each and every expression, he was very keen in understanding the hidden emotions of people specifically his only daughter. After some half an hour Arham returned to his home. He took half an hour because Muskan's father was asking too many questions, but he didn't like his daughter to talk or spend time with any boy.

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I'm hating this editing

It's too tiring, even more than writing

😩😩😩😩

_Naaz Jamal