Zoha typed her resignation letter with shaky fingers.
Every word felt like a goodbye to something she wasn't ready to lose.
But she was exhausted.
Exhausted from the silence.
Exhausted from being strong.
Exhausted from waiting for a man who only loved her behind closed doors.
She printed it. Signed it.
Folded it neatly into an envelope.
The office felt like a stranger's house now.
People who once laughed with her now whispered behind her back.
Meher watched her from the glass cabin with a smug smile, like a queen who had won a kingdom.
Zoha didn't break. She didn't cry.
Not in front of them.
She placed the envelope on Zafar's desk and walked away.
No note.
No explanation.
Just silence—the same silence he had given her.
That night, she sat alone in her small apartment, surrounded by memories she didn't want.
She scrolled through her phone, paused on the photos of Ezra.
His smile. His giggles. His tiny hands in hers.
Tears slipped down her cheeks.
"I didn't leave him," she whispered. "I left the man who kept pushing me away."
It was after midnight when her phone rang.
Unknown number.
She almost didn't pick up.
But something in her chest told her to.
"Hello?"
A panicked voice. One of Zafar's guards.
"Miss Zoha—it's Ezra. He fell down the stairs. He's unconscious. Zafar's with him at the hospital. He asked for you."
Her heart stopped.
She didn't grab a jacket.
Didn't lock her door.
She just ran.
When she reached the hospital, she found Zafar pacing in the hallway, his hands in his hair, shirt half-unbuttoned, looking nothing like the cold boss she knew.
When he saw her, he broke.
"I couldn't protect him," he said, falling into her arms. "He was looking for you. He tripped."
Her heart shattered.
She pulled away, eyes wide. "What do you mean—he was looking for me?"
Zafar's voice cracked. "He kept calling your name. Crawling to the door. I was on a call—I wasn't watching—God, Zoha, I—"
She hugged him again, tighter this time.
"I'm here now," she whispered. "And he'll be okay."
Ezra was resting.
Tiny stitches on his forehead.
But breathing. Peaceful.
Zoha sat by his side, holding his little hand.
Zafar sat across her, quiet.
Then he whispered, "You said I never speak."
She looked at him.
"Well, listen now…"
He swallowed hard.
"I love you."
Zoha's breath caught.
"I love you in a way that ruins me. That scares me. That burns me."
"I'm not good with words. But I'm better when I'm with you."
He stood up, walked around the bed, and knelt beside her.
"I'm not afraid to say it anymore."
Tears rolled down her cheeks.
"I love you too," she whispered.
And Ezra, half-asleep, mumbled, "Zo-Zo…"
Both of them laughed through tears.
And for the first time in weeks…
It didn't feel like they were falling apart.
It felt like they were finally coming home.