Sukoon
Pairing: Uzair Baloch x reader
Summary: What happens when Uzair's profession causes a minor inconvenience in your lives?(based on this request by the lovely @carmenred28)
Warnings: gore, violence, slight use of profanity.
This is a fictional work and does not endorse, glorify, or justify the actions depicted. It is written purely within the narrative context of the film’s characters and storyline.
It all happened in the blink of an eye.
One moment you were on a bench, sitting with your fiancé, enjoying a kesar pista kulfi and teasing him about how he had already gobbled 3 sticks and was currently biting down frivolously on his fourth. "Meri pehli waali bhi khatam nahi hui hain aur aap 4-4 thoos gayein? Insaan hain ya shaitaan?", you giggled, getting another lick of your kulfi. "Dekhiye waise toh main insaan hi hu par aap jaisi haseena ke saath thodi shaitaani karne mein kya harz hain?, he winked at you while taking another bite of his kulfi.
He did not like this flavour at all before you came along. He much rather preferred a simple rabdi or mango kulfi. However, on one of your first dates, you had dragged him to this kulfi stall and ordered for the both of you. He did not have the heart to tell you that he would rather eat a sookhi mirchi than eat a kesar pista kulfi. He ate the whole thing with a smile on his face, relishing in the look of satisfaction in your eyes when he had lied and told you that it was the best kulfi he had ever had. It had been almost a year and you still visited that stall at least twice every week. And Uzair had grown to like the nuttiness of the pista ,the subtle earthy bitterness of the kesar, its honey- like sweetness but most importantly, he grew to like the way you would close your eyes at the first bite every time, the way you took your time with the kulfi and licked your fingers afterwards, as if trying to keep its taste for longer in your mouth- something he found himself doing with you.
And well, after that he didn't waste much time asking your maamu for your hand in marriage.
You blushed. "Aap kaisi baatein kar rahein hain? Sharam bech khaayi kya aapne?", you asked with a slight furrow in your eyes. "Ji sharam ka toh pata nahin par khud ko zaroor bech diya hain aapke ishq mein.", he feigned in a 'it is what it is' tone.
You chuckled. "Itni sadi hui dhoop mein bhi drama barabar karte hain aap.", you said while bringing your hand to your forehead, trying to shield your eyes from the blinding sunlight.
Lyari in summer was no less than a boiler. Unsurprisingly, streets were usually deserted in the afternoon with most people only coming out of their houses after 5pm. They were not to blame. With so much dust and loo, even stepping out for a minute seemed like an impossible task. And so, for the 4th time this week(it was only Tuesday), you and Uzair were back at Altaaf bhai's kulfi stall.
"Arey? Ishq karna bhi gunaah hain ab?", he was slightly offended at the fact that you saw his love as nothing more than a dramatic flair. You chuckled and shook your head at his antics. Uzair sat up straighter. "Theek hain phir. Agar ye ishq gunaah hain toh sazaa dijiye hume!", he said bravely, puffing out his chest. This time you laughed wholeheartedly. You threw your head back, and just laughed. Initially, Uzair narrowed his eyes at you but seeing you laugh like that- like you didn't carry the world on your shoulders, like you didn't carry his world on your shoulders- made him melt, and soon enough, he joined you.
His phone rang amidst your laughter and he picked it up.
"Haa hamza?", he asked, smiling. "Uzair tu kaha hain iss waqt?", Hamza's voice sounded through the phone speaker, carrying a sense of urgency and panic. Uzair immediately stood up in alert. "Main Y/N ke saath Altaaf bhai ke yaha aaya hoon. Kya hua sab khairiyat toh hain?" You too sat up straighter at this.
"Tu meri baat sun dhyaan se", Hamza started calmly. "Arshad Pappu ke gundey-", he didn't get a chance to finish when a gunshot sounded through the air.
And then it started.
It was as if bullets were raining from the sky, left right and front. You felt a hand tightly grip your wrist and yank you to take cover behind the stall.
You peeked around to see 3 gunmen just blindly shooting in your and Uzair's direction. One had an apple in his hand, while the other two were big and gruff with a devilish look on their faces. These men looked like they had descended straight from hell and were determined to take you both there with them. For the first time, you finally registered what was happening and fear started clawing at your insides.
Uzair pulled you into his chest, his phone in his other hand and Hamza still on line.
"Uzair? UZAIR??", he yelled. "Hamza foran ladke bhej!." That was all he said before hanging up and untucking his glock from his waistband.
He shot at the gunmen from where he was sitting, taking cover whenever they would spot him.
You looked around. People were running for their lives in a blur of chaos, dust and heat. It was as if everything was moving in slow motion-much like your heartbeat. Your breaths deepened and the gunshots and screams sounded like a dream far away.
You turned around and sat with your back against the trolley of the stall. Your mind dissociated from your body.
You barely heard Uzair telling you to stay where you were and running behind the next stall to get a better aim.
Only when you heard one of the gunmen scream, you were broken out of your trance. You hastily turned around and peeked to see that Uzair had taken one of them out.
Relief coursed through your veins momentarily before you were reminded of the two other men, one of whom was currently aiming at Uzair while he was busy with the other one. Your eyes widened and without a second of hesitation you stood up and mustering all your strength, threw the block of weight from the next stall at him.
While you were aiming for his head, it hit his collarbone and he recoiled in pain- falling down. His eyes fell on you. "Saali, mujhe maaregi?", he gritted still groaning. You didn't have time to register his words before he lifted his other arm and pressed the trigger thrice.
The faint screeching of tyres was all you heard before darkness consumed you.
Uzair only noticed this commotion when he heard those gunshots but before he could react, Hamza ran towards you, picked you up-Donga and Siyahi covering you while the other men covered Uzair- and moved to the car.
He laid you down on the backseat and caught Uzair's eye just before getting in himself. Hamza nodded once to reassure Uzair and drove like there was no tomorrow.
He got you to the hospital as fast as humanly possible and rushed you in with the help of the nurses. The nurses checked your pulse. It was there- but faint, very faint. Just as the surgeon was about to enter the OT that you were in, Hamza cornered him against the wall roughly and leaned in. "Agar inko kuch bhi hua toh ye aapka bhi aakhri din hoga." The doctor nodded with frantic haste and practically ran into the OT.
Back in the streets of Lyari, though still panic stricken about you, all Uzair saw was red.
Donga had shot the man who was shooting at Uzair before stabbing him in the stomach a four times. The man lay there, almost lifeless when Donga pushed his boot onto the handle of the knife in his stomach so it went all the way in.
Uzair however didn't pay any heed to the screams of the other man. His sole attention was on the man who shot you. The one Siyahi was dragging by the hair towards Uzair.
"Ye lo bhai. Ye wala aapka.", he said proudly, curling his lips in disgust. Uzair looked at him and smirked with a crazed look in his eyes.
At the hospital, the doctor came out of the OT after about two hours. Hamza immediately stood up, expecting an answer. "Teen goli lagi thi. Do kandhe pe aur ek bas baazu ke bagal se guzar gayi toh zyada nuqsaan nahin hua. Khuda ki rehmat se sahiba khatre se bahar hain. Abhi dawaa chadhayi hain toh behosh hain. Jab hosh aayein toh aap unse mil sakte hain."
Hamza breathed a sigh of relief.
He was about to thank the doctor when the hallway quieted down and sharp footsteps echoed through the walls of the hospital.
He turned around to see Rehman approaching them.
"Rehman bhai aapko kisne-", Hamza was cut off. "Kaisi hain wo?", Rehman's quiet question was directed towards the doctor, who was internally sweating.
"Khatre se bahar hain. Par zakhm behad gehre hain. Waqt lagega sehat yaab hone mein. Behtar rahega ki ye theek hone tak yahin rahein."
Rehman looked at Hamza and he understood immediately.
"Nahin. Hosh aa jaaney ke baad wo Baloch Haveli rahengi jahaan unka poora khayal rakha jayega.", Hamza voiced Rehman's thoughts.
The doctor nodded, telling them he would visit bi- weekly to make sure you were recovering well. Out of respect for Rehman, he also insisted that a nurse from the hospital stay with you at the Baloch Haveli until your internal wounds healed. Out of concern for you, Rehman agreed.
Just then, another pair of rushed footsteps echoed through the halls.
Rehman turned around to see Uzair. He kept looking around like a madman until he finally spotted Rehman and Hamza.
Speed walking turned into full blown running and in 2 seconds Uzair was standing in front of them, breathing heavily, eyes searching for answers. The moment of silence that followed was the longest of Uzair's life. His eyes carried a touch of hope and a whole lot of belief. Belief in you.
"Khatre se baahar hain.", Rehman held Uzair by his arms, calculating the expressions on Uzair's face.
Uzair looked up and closed his eyes, thanking his allah under his breath for keeping you safe. Hamza hugged him, slapping his back as a token of comfort and Uzair in turn held him tighter, silently thanking him for getting you there in time.
"Kaam khatam kiya?", Rehman cautiously asked Uzair, referring to Arshad's men.
Uzair nodded with a cold look- cold enough to rival Rehman's own.
You gained consciousness the following day but you didn't get a chance to talk to Uzair or even see him properly before you were conveniently shifted to the Haveli.
For the first three days at the Haveli, you were high on painkillers and were asleep most of the day. All you would remember were glimpses of Ulfat Bhabhi bringing you soup, the blurry face of the nurse while she changed your dressings and the feeling of Uzair's hand holding your non- injured one.
The forth day however, you were more in your senses. You woke up around 1pm, feeling slightly better and much more conscious.
You tried to rub your eyes but a strong grip on your hand stopped you, as if you'd turn into dust if they let go.
With hooded eyes, you looked down to see Uzair sitting on a chair beside your bed. He looked horrible. His kurta was creased, jacket discarded somewhere. His hair were all over the place and he looked like he'd barely gotten any sleep.
He hadn't. He would sit by your side all day. He would go to rest only when Ulfat forcefully sent him out of the room, claiming she'd sit with you while he freshened up or when Rehman scolded him- however the latter was because of sheer fear and respect.
Your already weak heart weakened further looking at him so you tried to lighten the mood.
"Ye kya hooliya bana rakha hain apna? Maine toh suna tha shaitaan bade hi haseen hote hain. Aap toh shaitaano ka naam kharaab kar rahein hain.", you croaked with a smile, while sitting up a little- with Uzair's help of course.
He didn't say anything. He just got up and retrieved a glass of water from the bedside table and brought it to your mouth. You took a few sips before slightly pushing the glass away, indicating you were done. Uzair, still silent, placed the glass back on the table.
You tried again. "Itni khaatidari? Kahin main jannat mein toh nahin?"
Uzair was still wordless as ever. He just swallowed harshly, looked down and took your hand again, tracing slow circles on your forearm and wrist.
Your gaze softened further. "Uzair", you whispered.
That did it for him.
All the emotions he had been trying to bury deep inside of him came flooding. His fear, his panic, his anger at himself for putting you at risk. Everything.
Tears ran like rivers down his face and he moved his chair closer to hug your waist tightly.
"Uzair main theek hu.", you spoke softly but it didn't make Uzair's sorrow any better.
A sob escaped his lips and your heart shattered into a million pieces, every shard piercing your insides more than a bullet ever could. And what he said next in between his cries just twisted the knife in your stomach.
"5 saal ka tha jab ammi-abbu guzar gayein. Uss waqt nahin samajhta tha ye cheezein. Sab log kehte the ki ammi-abbu nahin aayenge ab par main roz darwaaze pe khadaa rehta tha iss umeed mein ki kabhi toh unko meri yaad aayegi.", he choked on another sob but you rubbed his back, urging him to continue.
"Par nahin aaye wo kabhi. Rehman bhai ne kabhi wo kami mehsoos nahin hone di par maine intezaar kiya tha unka. Jab tumhein goli lagi tab aisa lag raha tha ki mai wapis uss darwaaze pe khada hu, intezaar kar raha hu. Bohat dar gya tha main.", he finally admitted, his voice barely a whisper.
Listening to his cries was one of the hardest thing you'd had to do but you decided he needed this. He needed to let it all out. So you held him there, just running your hands through his hair.
"Uzair, yahan dekhein!", you ordered weakly in between sniffles. He slowly lifted his head to look at you. "Main theek hu, Uzair. Aur main jaanti hu ki jab tak aap mere saath hain tab tak mera koi kuch nahin bigaad sakta. Aapka bass chalein toh mujhe jahaanum se bhi kheench layein.", you joked again.
This time he chuckled lightly and a smile graced your face.
He went back to resting his head on your stomach and you lightly massaged his head.
Soon enough, he fell asleep.
You closed your eyes aswell and were on the brink of falling asleep when you heard someone knock and open the door. It was Rehman.
He took one look at the situation in front of him and turned around immediately, aware that he was interrupting something. "Main baad mein aata hu.", he muttered.
"Arey nahin Rehman bhai. Aayein, baithein.", you shifted slightly to make room for him on the bed.
He sighed deeply and almost reluctantly took a seat.
"Kaisi ho ab?", his voice was laced with slight concern.
"Behtar hu.", you smiled softly. He acknowledged your response with a single nod and a comfortable silence stretched across the room, filled only by the sound of Uzair's soft snores.
Rehman nodded towards him. "Thak gaya hoga. 3-4 din se theek se aaraam nahin kiya hain."
You hummed.
"Bachpan mein jab khel kar, thak-haar kar shaam ko ghar aata tha, tab aise hi mere bagal mein aake sofey pe so jata tha. Fir toh janaab subaah tak nhi jaagte the. Aur kyuki raat ko kuch khaaya nahin hota tha, jaagte hi 'bhook, bhook' chillana shuru.", he smiled lightly at the memory.
"Matlab bachpan se hi drameybaaz hain aapke bhai?", you teased.
Rehman chuckled.
"Ek baar mere paas cheekhta hua aaya. Bola kamrey mein bhoot hain. Main dekhne gaya toh pata chala ki jo parda hawaa ki wajah se hil raha tha usey bhoot samajh raha tha. Bohat samjhaya tab jaake yakeen hua ki hawaa hi hain. Par phir bhi ek haftey tak mere saath hi soya.", he said fondly, shaking his head.
You let out a breathy chuckle and noticed that Rehman was staring into the space, as if his mind was weaving the threads of nostalgia.
"Rehman bhai?", you said, and his eyes immediately moved to you, as if he wasn't just lost in his memories. "Shukriya.", you whispered. You didn't mention what you were thankful for but he understood. He understood that you were grateful for always taking care of you, for treating you like family, for being the brotherly figure you never had and for taking care of Uzair.
He got up and patted your head- the only proof that he had heard your gratitude and was acknowledging it in his own way.
He shook his head at his loudening snores. "Lagta hain kal hi uthega ab.", he patted his back and exited the room, leaving you giggling.
You took a deep breath and leaned back. Despite your physical pain, you were content. Your mind, heart and soul were fulfilled. You had found yourself a second family that treated you like their own. In your lover's arms and at his family's home, you had found sukoon.
taglist: @precioussophia @malekathesimp68 @seasonofthenerd @mainyahaankyunhoon @goodasaysboo @hereforfanfictionsfr @gulaabjamun08 @bobcuts-blog @stoicepochmaw @goodnightkatherine
reply here to add urself to the taglist
