Zavian had just woken up, eyes still heavy with sleep, when his phone buzzed beside him.
He lazily reached for it, rubbing his eyes as the screen lit up.
"I love you, Zavian"
A smile spread across his face. He quickly typed back:
"I love you more, begum"
On the other side of the border, Mahek sat cross legged on her bed, phone in hand, cheeks slightly red.
"Let me clean my room now," she replied.
"Go & brush, Zavian"
He chuckled softly, his voice still thick with sleep.
"No hug? No kisses?"
Mahek froze for a second, then bit her lip to hide the smile on her face.
"Shrm kro, Zavian"
(Have some shame, Zavian)
He laughed quietly, imagining her blushing on the other side & in that simple, silly exchange, everything felt right again.
After a refreshing shower, Zavian was feeling more awake, drying his hair with a towel as he checked his phone.
On the other side, Mahek had finished cleaning her room. With her hair tied up in a loose bun & a warm cup of chai in her hands, she finally settled back on her bed.
She unlocked her phone & texted him:
"Mai agaiiii" (I'm back.)
Zavian smiled instantly as he read her message, he replied:
"Zah e naseeb" (I'm honored)
She shook her head with a little smile, he had a way of making her feel adored.
Mahek took a sip of her chai, texted:
"Office jana hai?"
(Do you have to go to the office?)
Zavian, sitting on his couch with his own cup of chai, smiled as he read her message. He replied:
"Na jaun?" (Should I not go?)
She smiled, shaking her head.
"Jesy mai rokun gi or tum ruk jao gy?"
(As if I'll ask you to stay & you'll actually stay?)
His smile deepened,
"Ap hukam toh krein"
(You just give the command)
Mahek bit her lower lip, hiding the way his words made her heart skip.
Zavian leaned back with his chai & typed:
"Okay nai jata" (Okay I won't go)
Mahek couldn't help the wide smile that bloomed on her face. He always knew how to make her feel special, even through the smallest things, she replied back:
"I love you"
Without missing a beat, he replied:
"I love you more, Chanda"
It was a slow, cozy kind of day.
The rain still tapped gently on the windows & the clouds outside made everything feel a little softer. Zavian & Mahek spent most of their day texting, calling, laughing as if the world had paused just for them.
There were no heavy talks, no overthinking just little stories, random jokes & warm silences that didn't need to be filled.
Eventually, Mahek got up & said,
"I'm going to shower now"
Zavian replied with a teasing,
"Don't go"
She laughed & walked to the bathroom.
On the other side, as Zavian lay on his bed, phone in hand, his thumb casually scrolled through the screen. Work emails were ignored & most of the reels didn't hold his attention until something familiar popped up.
A page dedicated entirely to Hot Wheels.
He paused. Then smiled.
Zavian had always been a fan ever since he was a kid. The tiny cars, the tracks, the thrill of collecting each unique model, it all held a strange kind of nostalgia & now, seeing them again, that same old excitement returned, just a little quieter & grown up.
He clicked on the page & started exploring. It was like stepping into a piece of his own childhood.
For a while, he got lost in it tapping through posts, reading captions, even saving a few. His serious face softened as he imagined adding to a collection again. Maybe even displaying it someday. Maybe even showing it to his future kids... the ones he secretly imagined having with Mahek.
The rain still poured gently outside, but in that moment there was a different kind of comfort.
One made of hotwheels cars & soft memories & somewhere, in the middle of all that, his phone lit up again.
Mahek was back.
Mahek, fresh out of the shower with a towel wrapped around her hair, picked up her phone & saw Zavian was still online. She typed quickly, a teasing glint in her eyes:
"Kis sy baat kr rhy thy tum, Zavian Ubaid?"
(Who were you talking to, Zavian Ubaid?)
Zavian chuckled the moment he read it. He could already picture the serious face she must be making.
With a teasing smirk, he replied,
"Chauthi biwi k aathwein bachy sy"
(To my fourth wife's eighth child)
Mahek rolled her eyes instantly & typed back:
"Bhaar mei jao"
(Go to hell)
Zavian burst out laughing. After laughing for a moment, Zavian's tone softened.
"Mai Hotwheels dekh rha tha, Mahi"
(I was looking at Hot Wheels, Mahi)
Mahek smiled at her screen, then typed.
"Yakeen kr lu?"
(Should I believe you?)
Without saying anything else, Zavian quickly took a screenshot of his Instagram feed, filled with little die-cast cars & Hot Wheels reels, sent it to her.
The moment she saw it, Mahek laughed, shaking her head.
"Proof k sath q aa jaty ho?"
(Why do you always come with proof?)
Zavian smiled at her message, then typed with a tease in his eyes,
"Apko manipulate b toh krna hota hai na" (I have to manipulate you, right?)
Mahek raised her eyebrows as she read it,
"Woh toh tum bht achy sy kr lety ho"
(Well, that's something you're really good at)
Zavian laughed & replied innocently:
"Mai ny kb kiya?" (When did I ever do that?)
Mahek shook her head, still smiling. She knew he was acting all innocent now, smiling at her screen as she typed.
"Show me the Hot Wheels you want, Zavian"
Zavian's eyes lit up like a child handed candy.
"Wait," he replied, excitement in his words.
"You're gonna love these"
And just like that, he began flooding her inbox, photo after photo of tiny cars but not just any cars. Zavian was picky. Out of nearly eighty models, he chose only four. He rejected the others with quiet mutters to himself like.
"No the tires are off"
"This one's too common"
"Why would they ruin the headlights like that?"
Mahek just watched his enthusiasm pour through the screen. Then came his little explanations.
He sent a picture & said,
"This is a Kia Stinger GT. 2018 model. Twin turbo V6 engine. They nailed the rear detailing on this one, I swear"
Then came another a Mustang, a McLaren & something she couldn't even pronounce.
Truth be told, Mahek understood nothing about cars. Not the models, not the engines, not even the obsession but as she sat there watching his texts come one after another, his little explanations overflowing with excitement, she realized something:
He was acting like a kid.
Her kid.
And somehow, that made her heart feel full.
She smiled softly & typed back:
"Bs kr do professor, I only care about the color"
His smile faded.
"What do you mean?" he typed back, pretending to be genuinely hurt.
Before she could respond, he launched into full-blown car enthusiast mode.
"Mahek, how can you say that? Do you even know how deep this world is? Cars are art"
And then began the roll call.
"McLaren. Porsche. Acura. Cadillac. Volkswagen. Volvo. Aston Martin. Bentley. Chevrolet. Dodge"
One after the other, he listed them with pride like a passionate collector defending his treasure.
Mahek blinked at the screen, laughing
"Zavian, relax you sound like you're naming your lost friends"
But he wasn't done.
"These aren't just names, begum. They're legends, history, performance, emotions"
Mahek giggled & replied:
"Alright, legend. My respect to your world"
Zavian smiled again, this time wider.
After their fun little banter, both Zavian & Mahek got busy with their own routines but even while folding laundry, Mahek's mind kept going back to something.
Zavian was really choosy. The way he had rejected nearly all of those Hot Wheels & only picked four with such careful love, like they were more than just mini cars, it told her something.
Her husband was a picky little kid.
And she adored him for it.
A soft smile tugged at her lips as an idea bloomed quietly in her heart. She pulled out her phone & opened the chat with her friend in Pakistan.
"Hey, I need a favor. Big one. Can you help me get some Hot Wheels delivered to someone in Faisalabad?"
Her friend was surprised, but curious.
"Hot Wheels? For who?"
Mahek replied with a secret smile.
"For my husband. He doesn't know but I want to surprise him"
Within a few hours, they began looking. Mahek remembered the exact models he'd mentioned. She had screenshots.
She spent hours selecting the exact ones he liked. Not just random ones, his picks. She wanted it to be perfect. Something that would make him feel seen, known & deeply loved.
And the best part?
Zavian had no clue. He was off somewhere being a car nerd, scrolling & sipping chai, completely unaware that his wife sitting miles away was quietly planning a little joy just for him.
Because love...
Sometimes it's not in the grand gestures.
Sometimes, it's in a 1:64 scale Hot Wheels car.
-----------------------
Three days later, Zavian heard the doorbell ring.
He opened the door to find a small parcel resting quietly on his doorstep. There was no sender name he recognized, just his own written in bold.
He picked it up with curiosity, turning it around in his hands. Just then, a text popped up on his phone.
Mahek.
"Open it, Mr Husband & please, video call me while doing it"
His brows furrowed & a small smile curved on his lips. What is she up to now? he thought.
Still holding the box, he walked to his room, shut the door behind him & sat on the bed. He opened WhatsApp & called her.
She picked up immediately, her face glowing with excitement.
"Ab kholo," she said with a smile.
(Now open it)
"Yay kya hai, Mahek?" he asked, now he was more curious.
(What is this, Mahek?)
"Bs kholo & don't you dare pretend you're not excited"
He chuckled, shook his head & began opening the parcel, not knowing that what he was about to see would completely melt his heart.
Zavian carefully unwrapped the box, peeled back the tape & opened it.
The moment he saw what was inside, he paused staring down at it with a blank expression.
Then he slowly lifted his gaze to the screen, looking directly at Mahek.
"Like seriously?" he said, deadpan, holding up one of the Hot Wheels.
Mahek couldn't hold it in, she burst out laughing.
That laugh of hers, so full so real, echoed through the call.
And just like that, the corner of Zavian's lips twitched, then curled into a deep smile. The kind of smile that made him look like a boy again.
He carefully took each Hot Wheel out of the box, six in total, one by one, admiring them like they were treasures. His eyes lit up as he turned them in his hands.
Then he looked back at Mahek, the wonder still fresh in his eyes.
"You remembered them?" he asked softly.
Mahek nodded with the sweetest smile.
"Ofc I did"
And in that moment, Zavian didn't say anything. He just looked at her...
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Zavian's POV:
I didn't expect it, not at all.
When I saw the parcel, when I opened it & saw those six little cars neatly packed inside, something in me paused.
Hot Wheels.
My Hot Wheels.
For a second, everything around me disappeared
For a second, everything around me disappeared. The room, the phone, even Mahek's laughter on the screen it all faded for just a breath because it felt like I had travelled back in time. Back to a version of me that I thought was long gone.
My childhood wasn't easy. In fact, most of it was dead weight. Heavy, dark but there was always one thing that gave me even the tiniest bit of escape, cars. These little cars I don't know how but they made me feel alive.
And now she remembered them. She noticed, she cared, she brought them back to me.
These aren't just Hot Wheels anymore. Not to me. They're pieces of my broken childhood, pieced together with love by the woman who somehow sees everything I don't say.
And I swear, I've never loved her more than I did in that moment...
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I hope you liked the chapter, stay tuned for the next part...🤍📚
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