The End Of An Affair

It seemed like the most beautiful day of Nazia’s life. The man who had stolen her heart had finally asked her to marry him. She felt euphoric; it was a miracle she did not burst into a bollywood song routine at her office. When she went home, all she could think was how to break the news to her parents. She knew there will be opposition, quite a lot of it, but she was sure, she will make them understand.

While confident that she will win her parents, she had a feeling of unease, below all the hyped happiness. Fahad already had a wife; the wife who was totally wrong for him from the first day of marriage. Innumerable times, Fahad had narrated to Nazia his loneliness in his marriage, how all these years Fahad and his wife Myra have just coexisted with little understanding. She had also seen Myra at a friend’s meeting, and she did seem like a rather boring woman. Fahad was still very young, and he wanted a fresh start, he told Nazia that he was planning to divorce Myra soon irrespective of whether he had met Nazia or not. But after meeting Nazia his resolve has become so much stronger. With Nazia he was truly happy and he was experiencing love for the first time in his life.

They have been in love for over two years now. She could remember distinctly seeing him for the first time, she was representing her Multinational cosmetic company and he was the client manager from their ad agency, and in their first meeting they had a heated argument over the creative concept for their shampoo advertisement. Later they met some more times and the day the ad went on air, he asked her out for dinner. The clicked superbly. She knew this was love she has been waiting for all her life. Fahad was so straightforward, he told her about his situation right from the first date. He told her that he is tied in a loveless marriage right now. “Myra”, he said, “is a good woman and could be a good wife for some guy, but with me she has nothing in common; we both are fully aware that our marriage is not going anywhere”.

Last two years were utter bliss for Nazia, her happiness reflected in her appearance and her attitude. Yet at times she felt guilt creeping into her, she was usurping Myra’s husband, which was wrong by all the values she had known till that time. She rationalized it by saying to herself, Fahad had been unhappy long before he met her, if it was not Nazia, it would be some other woman who would caused the end of this depressing marriage. Today Fahad held her hands and asked her to marry him; however he also said that the marriage can only take place in 6 months time. “Why”, she asked. “Well my divorce will get finalized in that time, and Myra will also move to US with her parents. I will be free then, really free”, he had replied.

Finally she mustered up courage to tell her mother. “I have feared that this day will come Nazia” her mother said. She was making a huge effort to stay calm though inside she was desperate to stop her daughter to make a blunder of her life. First of all I don’t think he will marry you, and second even if he is planning to marry you he will definitely not divorce Myra. “My dear right now he comparing you, his sweetheart, with a wife; of course he will find you more exciting, but later the competition will be between two wives. One will be having the full blessing of his family and friends and the other will be a pariah. You will not be a winner then.”

“Have you ever wondered Nazia”, her mother started after letting her first comments sink in, “why, if he was so achingly unhappy, he did not get a divorce in the last five years?” “Well,” Nazia replied, “he said he wanted to make sure that this is the right decision and after he met me, he became sure. He speaks the truth with me Mama, he has never made any unrealistic promises”

“My baby I am sure he meant what he said at that time, but all I am saying is if a person is truly very unhappy in a marriage, he will not wait for another woman to come in his life to get out of that marriage. The fact that he stayed married for five years, shows that it cannot be such a bad relationship, something must be working well with both of them.” “Mama I have thought through from every angle, my mind is made up but I want your blessing in this, please try to be supportive of me”, Nazia said resolutely.

Her mother realized that any further argument will strengthen Nazia’s resolve, but she made one last try. “Before you make a decision, meet with Myra, and try to find out about her life with Fahad; you told me she runs a boutique just go there as a client and try to get to know her. And don’t tell Fahad about it please.”

Nazia made several visits to Myra’s boutique, on the pretext of preparing for her wedding trousseau. She became aware that reality is so much different than her assumptions. Myra talked about how supportive her husband has been of her work as a designer. She seemed untroubled or in fact unaware that her husband was about to ditch her. Once Nazia asked her, whether she gets jealous because Fahad works with beautiful fashion models plenty of times? To that Myra replied, “I trust my husband a lot, and I also don’t want to be a nagging wife to him, of course it bothers me sometimes that he is working with the coolest girls in town, but I also know no matter what Fahad will not jeopardize our life together, that keeps me secure”.

The last straw for Nazia came when she asked Myra; “I have heard that you are moving your work to USA”. “Oh dear” Myra exclaimed “this is what happens when you have a shop in the same lane as your competitors, I am sure you heard this from the neighboring upstart designer, she has been angling for my customers for some time. I am only going to USA to set up an office for selling these clothes there. I suppose my maximum stay will be three months, which also include one month of holiday with my hubby, please don’t worry that your orders will not be completed in time; we have been extremely reliable with our timelines.”

Finally Nazia went to see Fahad. She felt numb inside, but kept a cool exterior. Fahad seemed so happy to see her; her heart started to melt once again but she kicked herself out of it.

Fahad: So did you tell your parents?

Nazia: Yes, they are very supportive and very pleased about the whole thing.

Fahad: They are! … er no objection about my being married before?

Nazia: no, they trust me to make the right decision, and they know how much I love you. All they want, and I want too, is that we get married quickly, why wait.

Fahad: I told you that Myra will go to USA and then we can marry, now there is a slight change in plans, I will tell you but please promise you won’t get mad at me.

Nazia: What change?

Fahad: I have to accompany Myra to US first, you see she doesn’t have any of her family here, if I divorce her here she will be devastated, as a good will gesture to her I want to do it once she is with her family. I will be back in max ten days.

Nazia: Really? By the way does she have any idea, inkling, that her marriage is doomed?

Fahad: Yes she has an understanding; she surely knows that I am unhappy, that we were not meant to be a couple from the first day.

Nazia: I mean have you ever spoken to her about your unhappiness and that you may at some point want an exit.

Fahad: There was no need to talk to her about it, it is mutually understood.

Nazia: Let me get this straight, you are planning to marry me, and divorce Myra and she doesn’t even know that her marriage is even mildly troubled. And you tell me that you will divorce in US, well if you don’t have courage to even talk to her here in your own house, how will you get that courage once you are sitting in her parents’ mansion?

Fahad: I want to spend the rest of my life with you; all I am asking is just to wait a few more months.

Nazia: Tell me, what you don’t like in your current marriage, I know we have talked about it so many times, but now I want to know in very clear terms what is really the deal breaker in this marriage?

Fahad: You already know, I have no understanding with her on anything, when I am with her I am so unhappy, there is no passion, no romance left.

Nazia: And what do you expect life will be like with me?

Fahad: Blissful, and happy

Nazia: So why wait anymore, we can get married even right now, can’t we?

Fahad: Come on that’s not possible, I told you about the US trip

Nazia: Yes Fahad you told me about the trip and so did Myra. You two are planning to have a one month second honeymoon in the US; you are going to Hawaii and laze on the beach for hours. That she will be coming back in a couple of months, because when you miss her terribly when she is away. I have been busy finding more about her, you see; and …

Fahad: You have met her? How? When?

Nazia: Never mind, you see, I still want to believe the best about you, so I will say that what you have told me so far is what you believed to be true. You are not a liar but you are very selfish; because you were unhappy you assumed that it will be OK for you to seek solace with me, and now internally you want to end it with me also, but you don’t want to admit it, even to yourself.

Fahad: Please let me explain, I love you a lot, I want to spend the rest of my life with you.

Nazia: Fahad I love you, and a part of me will keep on loving you forever, but you are not the one for me. All marriages have some bad patches; when you got yours, you chickened out. But not completely. You didn’t really risk anything, and kept your life line intact. I have been at fault too along with you. I have never questioned the picture of your marriage that you painted before me, because being with you made me so happy. But now at this point I know what I want; I am freeing myself from you and you are also free to go about your life. We are finished here.