My blank love - My blank love Part-23

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFOUoWKLr2Q

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXD8qaFi7Jy

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbTCASYQhsW

The little bell above the bakery door

rang again—

ting…

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmCBCtdLMT

As soon as Emma left,

the woman (the owner of the bakery)

had just turned to attend to other customers

when a new face appeared at the door.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh8aWPhHJGN

A boy, about sixteen,

slim,

a backpack slung across his shoulders.

His hair was slightly messy,

but there was a strange calm on his face.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxUkcVSyHC4

He smiled and said—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEYX8hlx5Og

> “Hello sister,

I’d like two sandwiches

and a chocolate cake, please…

and if possible,

could you make the cake

in a little heart shape?

Because it’s for my dear friend

Ena.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBkCDCkh7Qc

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpIPj3KKzWc

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaiIb8WJpFj

There was a soft innocence

in his voice.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5rd2MrR2Xo

The baker smiled—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ4Zwk0IuCS

> “Of course…

but you’ll need to wait 15 minutes.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT4GGuKasAj

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtXga2IyB1j

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1SULYvk4pW

She noted down the order

and walked towards the kitchen.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡamUQLaRn8S

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9DV08KDIi7

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Ng5YSBHTG

Outside, a gentle wind was blowing.

Between the mist on the window

and the warmth inside,

the boy slowly sat down

near the counter.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUCe6lAtz0t

His eyes wandered

over the corners of the bakery,

as if trying to recognize a place

he had never seen before.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjHqcVy5LpH

As soon as he sat down,

he pulled out

a small, old box from his bag,

its lid covered in a thin layer of dust.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBOXiiitC31

Cleaning it with his hand,

he whispered softly—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4nJM4xFuCH

> “Today…

I’ll give this to Ena.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIaJdztBL2V

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKUyNT2MclY

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9Sv8ncVGTG

And then he looked out of the window—

at the cold street,

the cars,

and that same parked car

where, just moments ago,

Emma was hugging her mom,

holding her pineapple cake.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdjk4wOMb6L

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSSICX2AmiB

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ29ijIPMmmZ

Inside the kitchen,

while decorating the cake,

the woman paused for a moment.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqPxCZjRZAf

A strange thought

crossed her mind—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0j6td0r5W5

> “Since morning,

so many new faces have come in.

Maybe this little bakery

is no longer just about cakes.

Perhaps people are drawn here

for some other reason too.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOeTmQq7kps

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCXI5zX8F5L

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBlIwAes3iK

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0vZxRQWvKn

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzQwt6oJoA9

When she came back,

she saw the boy

still gazing out of the window,

a faint smile lingering

on his lips.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTSGMBBxe1M

She asked softly—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhuQawXLc96

> “What’s your name?”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4KmtKuVt2e

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5mHXtIqsz3

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPR5QHS9uHZ

The boy turned suddenly,

and then smiled—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBncVlJXIr5

> “Rayyan…

Rayyan Malik.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO583EczvNY

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi0WlvTEXGR

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrXufNxKQbG

And his fingers tightened

around the little box

beside his bag.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgWfwAoYeOq

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1Th3UzKo0z

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡduDTucbUqZ

The next 15 minutes passed

in the scent of baking chocolate

and the quiet thudding of Rayyan’s heart.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoMvWweJYYm

He kept looking

from the clock

to the window,

as if waiting for someone.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1YkEi0eRSX

And when at last

the heart-shaped chocolate cake

was placed in front of him,

there was a soft sparkle in his eyes.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2UP6Z8mXq7

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ofoDm6NyR

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhJZxnE5wJS

But…

who was Ena?

Why was that little box

so precious to Rayyan?

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV3eImAMjHB

Was this bakery

just a bakery,

or was this small town

about to witness

the beginning of a new story?

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMLip39A0WK

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbF5V8JprVB

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUIMjvcmqES

After Rayyan left,

the bakery door closed again

with that same little sound—

ting…

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHghP3HtKNX

The sweet fragrance of cake

still lingered in the air,

but what followed

was a peculiar silence.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZAsBn3R0yd

The woman (who had only recently

started her life over

in this foreign city)

stepped out from behind the counter

and sank into a chair.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnNzYAtIFDg

Empty chair,

quiet air,

and a mind

full of unspoken voices.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5XMH4WXFfp

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSH0kVNpewQ

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGL4whD2cZM

> “I don’t know why,

but seeing that boy today

has brought someone back to my memory…

someone from a very long time ago.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnkjSB9JE9

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡml81ZvY9ye

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTNsZXgG6e6

A tremor rose deep in her heart.

It had been a whole year

since she shifted to Canada.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡO3nxxqTLoc

She had thought that

in the noise of this bakery

and the crowd of a strange city,

she would leave everything behind—

but the truth was,

what she had been running away from

had never really left her.

It had followed her like a shadow

into her soul.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLNuHXC4UEZ

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsed0qPnYCH

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCE6rSjD86L

Her eyes began to grow moist.

Looking out at the snow

falling softly beyond the window,

she whispered to herself—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6KXRztVMBq

> “What kind of life is this…

walking on strange paths?

One thing never moves aside,

and another

never lets me forget myself.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw3aJT9vITx

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtGrEnGMzc4

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWUGSp8Rnur

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8fhdR0WAHx

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5U02OQyOeq

She bent forward on the chair

and slowly rested her head

on the table.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBDwaFAqI7d

> “All roads, all travelers…

keep wandering like this.

Even when the destination

is right in front of them,

sometimes the path

just doesn’t appear.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwmjzybyLHP

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtRTZ4OIHkv

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡo3N97GVaSA

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWq1vwC76mg

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMDtURNnqgk

Behind her closed eyelids,

she saw that old house again—

that empty courtyard of the haveli,

and those still, waiting eyes

looking at her.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCZ6giohJXr

She thought—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwhZnNAgotd

> “Will it ever end?

Or wherever I go,

will this story

always walk beside me?”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfpKHUj4DbD

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUd5Iiiu8ED

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM5mAcdChj9

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG0i6UDao10

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjBWhdBKW3V

Outside,

snowflakes were falling lightly.

Inside,

the clock in the corner of the bakery

kept ticking softly.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1cB4q89EpG

But in that moment,

her heart repeated just one thing—

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdRgup3163F

> “How long can I keep running?”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQuNjTHCWZd

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7NXHRH48v4

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡooP0VDLrgY

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1WqkmI414D

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhYpB7qzbNd

Zoboriya had her head resting on the table.

Her fingers traced slow, invisible words

onto the wooden surface—

things she couldn’t bring herself to say.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvT21DSZ1Xo

Outside,

the cold wind brushed against the glass windows.

Inside,

despite the oven’s warmth,

an unfamiliar chill

settled into her heart.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqXxONmaqEE

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuZIGWVzHfd

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbityR9ZHzM

> “Zoboriya…”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpbl7YWydl7

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbcZS9SE67k

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaI7PXBPI6y

The name was spoken softly,

but it carried a mother’s entire love.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQktcUDpTq8

She didn’t flinch.

She simply sat there,

listening to that voice

without lifting her head.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3xIBFYu2Yv

And then—

those same hands

that had been wiping away her tears

since childhood

came to rest gently

on her hair once again.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXmUfk7bcQx

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2HwqyEZ3vf

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3BdEp37ULz

Slowly,

Zoboriya lifted her head.

Her eyes were wet,

but there was

a faint, weary smile on her lips.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8crJvcXAvo

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRMDkkpvaBs

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVgMR92keEe

> “What is it, my child?”

her mother asked tenderly.

“Why are you sitting like this?”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXtAJPA4rLy

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCcRyzsREJC

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGVyjphzCwc

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4rhE4gyYqW

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHbCFR8M5aj

Zoboriya sat up straight.

She looked at her mother—

and then suddenly

took her hands into her own.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCioEh3opow

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVldAf2qeE

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjxOFDAHhLz

> “Nothing, Mom.

It’s just that sometimes,

certain bitter truths of the past

pull us back

for no reason.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4eKgr0AM9X

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF8xr68bF7R

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhInO0pOSs2

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLTc2ueTVsd

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBc0vT5hAx0

There was no complaint

in her voice,

only tiredness…

and depth.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1wmefmkMEr

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3zl6iovANU

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBdlOuyNge0

Then she pressed her mother’s hands

to her eyes,

as if this was

the only place in the world

where all her exhaustion could disappear.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4JNHpEfkIA

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP0KuXACIyO

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0FcxYVk6R0

> “But Mom…

as long as you and Dad are with me,

I don’t need anyone else.”

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5ibbfQeKVb

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnILBdUT7wv

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRZq6VgTtO2

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2Jlff6kbVZ

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNDqGyLZgno

Her mother’s heart filled up.

She pulled her daughter

into a deep embrace.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPkIFLatn95

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡt1zxSrKkiD

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWQo8fafcIY

In that small moment,

after a very long time,

a true smile

returned to Zoboriya’s face.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwvCNuQHz4K

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWOdOCj0TmB

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgxPpW9QqQf

Outside, snow was falling quietly.

Inside, a mother’s arms

held all of her daughter’s sorrow

still for a little while.

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAvrAofuMHW

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT2QqxpkDAx

---

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ZQmlNPTbi

67Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHovHusVQqH

ns216.73.216.131da2

Reading Theme:

Font Size:

Line Spacing:

Paragraph Spacing:

Load the next issue automatically