The next few days flew by in a blur, consisting of Laila fighting with Mami every day to take a shower, running from home to the hospital and back, holding Sudais' hand and placing her head on his bed all night, talking to him, begging him to please not give her another heart condition and wake up, and spending time meeting people from all over the country coming in to see a still unconscious Sudais.

She had even met his family from his deceased mother's side and his elder brothers who flew in the moment they heard the news. The new king, Suleiman Mamman, had been generous enough to drop by twice to check up on his nephew.

Everything had gone okay, as okay as it could be, the doctors were still urging them to pray but Sudais' vitals had shown cooperation, his bruises and stitches healing, his breathing becoming less hoarse and more steady, his x-rays showing quite the hope they were searching for. His state of consciousness couldn't be praised that good though.

Laila had never regretted studying medicine that much. She knew more than the rest knew whenever the doctors spoke in medical terms. Knowing well that his body wanted to live but his brain wasn't giving the order to.

Laila had stepped out to the cafeteria after the crew of doctors had come in to slant Sudais to another side and do some checkups and was on her way back when she caught sight of someone she couldn't believe her eyes were seeing.

With her emotions packed, she decided she was going to walk past the woman and head for the room. She did so by standing between the soldiers in front of the room and ordering them to not let that person in.

The woman made the mistake of calling out Laila, "Laila, wait!"

She did wait. Alongside that, she told the guards to stay on alert before she twisted, marching to the woman.

"You have a lot of nerve showing up here," was the first thing Laila told the woman while crossing her arms over her chest.

The woman sighed, her eyes dark and her face devoid of makeup. "I just wanted to see him."

"And i just wanted to tell you you won't see him." Laila dropped her hands after that, turning to walk away until a hand grabbed her arm.

She snatched her arm out of the grasp, anger flashing in her face as she gritted, "Don't touch me."

"I just want to see him."

"I am not letting you see the man you almost had killed, Naja'atu. If you know what's best, you better turn your hypocritical self around and get going before i have guys beat you up."

Naja lifted a hand and placed it atop her large baby bump, "No matter what happens, he is still my husband and the father of my child."

Laila couldn't help it, she yelled, "The same father you conspired to kill!"

"I didn't conspire to kill him, Laila!"

"Admit to it once and for all will you?" Laila needed an outlet, and Naja'atu was going to be receiving the action. "You married Sudais to get me out of his life. Then when you couldn't, you conspired to kill him and put it on me. It didn't work sweetheart." She poked a finger into Naja's chest, suddenly not caring that the woman was pregnant, "Because of your ugly tendencies, you conspired to kill the man who treated you well. You are a horrible woman. I hope you won't raise this innocent kid. We'll take custody and take him far away from you, you'll never see him again." Laila pulled back, waving one of the soldiers over, "Get this woman out of my sight!"

"Laila."

Laila's eyes closed at the sound, her head throwing itself back and her lungs taking in a deep breath.

She was calm. She was going to be calm.

She turned to her father, the large hallway pin drop silent at her outburst before she shook her head. "Daddy she can't see him. What if she is here to poison him? Ta qarisa min shi? Wallahi aniyarki ta biki."

"Laila, she is carrying his child." Even Mami was on her side?

She whipped to her mum in disbelief, stretching a firm arm at her co-wife, "Mami this woman is not who you think she is. Don't let her innocent face fool you. Sudais is hanging by a thread. I am not letting any threat close to him. Inaaaa-"

In a calm voice, Sultan El-amin said, "You are going to stop making a scene. She is going to see him and you're going to act maturely about it. I am not repeating myself."

"Daddy—"

He held a palm up, closing his eyes and giving a single shake of his head. "I am not repeating myself."

Laila dropped her head, her lips pushing into a frown. She wished her dad stood up for her mum when his first wife used to do worse to her. But some things could not be reversed.

Naja was going to see him didn't mean Laila was going to let her do it in peace.

With the request of 2 soldiers, Laila led the way into the room, standing by the side and watching Naja's moves.

When her Co-wife attempted to touch their husband, she snapped. "Don't touch him," Naja looked at Laila in disbelief, her teary eyes squinting and her brows drawn in. Laila didn't care and added, "Unless you want to be escorted out."

Call Laila jealous or hypocritical, but she didn't like Naja's eyes on Sudais for too long. It didn't take 5 minutes before Laila was ushering Naja out, her excuse being people aren't supposed to be in his room for long. Which was true. With the Covid-19 pandemic and whatnot, who knew if she was infected?

Laila wouldn't take the chance.

When they were out, Laila collapsed on the chair she had put by Sudais' bed, placing her palm atop his pale, lifeless ones and breaking into pathetic sobs that could be heard throughout the room.

By the time her tears for the day had run out, she placed her head beside their brushing palms, whispering. "I never told you what happened when i bolted after Daddy got me married to you-" she trailed off, "Fake married-" she chuckled, rubbing her palm atop his and imagining him waking up to squeeze her palms like in the movies but he never did.

When she was done narrating what happened, she chuckled again, the tears flowing down her nose to her temple without an obstruction.

"Now i know what you're thinking. Most of what i did was stupid. In your head, you're calling me an idiot. Saying, 'Idiot, what did you think was going to happen?' Or 'Why get yourself into that mess?' Or 'how could you be so stupid?' Huh," she laughed, "And, I'm judgmental. So you know i have a 100% judged those people too. Amma wallahi, everything's different when you're afraid. When you're scared. I knew what the right thing was but I didn't feel safe enough to do it-stay home Laila, listen to Daddy. You didn't listen to him at first and look where it got you. Stay home- that was the right thing. But I didn't feel safe. My head was a mess. I was trying to calm down, telling myself it'll be okay by telling Maya just so i could believe it. She also knew running wasn't the solution but neither was marrying me to a stranger,"

Laila looked up, lifting her hand to place it on his pale cheek, his stubbles grazing her palm and she felt the need to shave his messy beard by herself, "A sometimes stupid but beautiful stranger. Who had i known you, I wouldn't have bolted. I would've let my guards down. I could've stopped and I could've let you see that all the tough walls i put up around me is so I don't get hurt. But i guess you already knew that."

"You're becoming a problem, Laila."

The patient's wife had no idea someone was in the room, her eyes widening and her neck almost whipping off her body as she turned to the intruder. At the sight of her elder brother, her shock dissolved into anger, her nose flaring. "I am sitting beside my comatose husband and I'm becoming a problem? Really Shehu?"

He jerked off the wall, dropping his folded arms and leaving Laila to wonder when he had come in by taking calculated steps towards her. "You haven't slept in 7 days. You're causing a scene every chance you get. You're angry at everything and every one as if we caused this. You need sleep. You need rest, Laila, Don Allah."

All his stupid speech slipped through her right ear and flew out of her left.

He wasn't the one watching their partner slowly turn into a corpse. He wasn't the one not sleeping no matter how hard he tried. He wasn't in her head-her messy head. He couldn't possibly know how much her heart ached.

And here he was, calling her a problem. Huh. He had no idea what a problem was.

Lips set into a tight line, her next words were devoid of emotion. "I will sleep when Sudais wakes up."

"What? So this is like a sleep strike? We don't know when he'll wake up."

"Let's hope it's soon then."

With no more regard for him, she turned her head to place it back on the bed, tightening her hold on Sudais' cheek.

"Mami is calling you," He announced, shifting from one leg to another when she did not attempt to get up. "Maya is here too."

That did the trick.

Laila squeezed Sudais' cheek, whispering, "I'll be right back." Before standing up to gesture at Shehu to lead the way.

It might've seemed like she didn't trust him, to be honest, she didn't care what anything seemed like anymore.

All she wanted was for Sudais to wake up. But for now, seeing her best friend would do.

At the VIP lounge that her family had made pretty much their home, she waved at them, at Mima and Mama mostly- before tapping Maya's shoulder who was talking to Modibbo, and waving her hand back at Shehu from her behind. He was hovering.

Engulfed in her best friend's embrace, she didn't know when she let out a silent sob.

"Shhh—" Maya's hands came up to rub Laila's back which was covered with a veil wrapped from her shoulders. "It's okay—I'm here now. Everything's going to be alright."

Laila nodded, wanting to hear that from her as she always believed it.

Everything would be okay.

"Can you do me a favor, boo?"

Without hesitation, Laila nodded.

"Go to sleep..."

"Maya I haven't—" a sharp pain poked into Laila's neck before it diffused, "I can't—Maya—"

Laila's vision blurred, the sounds around her blending, her body relaxing and her legs giving out.

Throwing the syringe to the side, Shehu grabbed her by the waist, watching the consciousness rapidly leave her body.

***

Laila was too anxious about Sudais that her sleeping routine turned into a freestyle to the point her blood pressure had shot so high if it was pushed just a little bit, she might go into stroke. If not forced or threatened to be drugged, Laila wouldn't take the drugs prescribed. Not to mention she had been missing heartbeats more than normal since her surgery which wasn't pointing to something good.

On the 9th day after the accident, the door to the hospital room was pushed open and a crew of men with bullet vests walked into it, Mama following them closely behind.

Laila had taken her head off the bed but still had her hand around Sudais' as a man approached them. A man who seemed to be the head brought an ID out, "My name is Isaac Sambo of the governor's crimes Unit from the Economic and Financial Crimes commission. The patient, Sudais Idris Mamman former Emir of Adamawa state has been placed under investigation for alleged corruption and constant disregard for the directives of the State government of Adamawa. He is not allowed to leave the state or country until the investigations are over. We've put a temporary restriction on his passport issuance and we've frozen all his accounts until he has cleared his name," the only time the man halted was to twist to his boys and jut his chin. The women were too stunned to speak as the guy rounded to the other side of the bed and cuffed Sudais' noninjured arm to the bed before the head of the crew started again, "Data on his whereabouts from July 19 to July 31st, 2018 must be provided before he will be free of handcuffs."

With no regard whatsoever, they turned around and left, Laila's mouth hanging open in dazzlement and denial.

The man cannot even be comatose in peace? He had to be in handcuffs? What kind of system was this?

It was as if Queen Baraka was cracking her brain the whole time the room's only sound was from the cardiac monitor, then she rose an index, "He and Muri must have been in Saudi for hajj." and then she was out of the room.

Laila was scared the EFCC was going to come back to take Sudais while his family went on a rampage in search of his used passports and the proof they needed to prove he was innocent and clear his name-hopefully before he woke up.

She'd refuse to leave Sudais room unless it was necessary. She had met more prestigious people sitting on a hospital chair than she had ever done during happy occasions in her life. Her eyes red and about to drop, she started to stare at people talking to her as if she was crazy, unable to form words to reply until it was considered if she should be checked by a doctor.

She hardly ate, except for the meat-pie and carprisun she depended on from the cafeteria, and a few times she was forced to eat homemade food. Not even medical school had the ability in making her lose over 15 pounds at once. She went from a solid 127 pounds to 112 pounds fast. Her casuals had started to become baggy from the top considering no matter how hard she tried, her ass was not going to shrink, it was a part of her and was hell-bent on staying fat. Her upper body and cheek though, different case.

Laila continued her unhealthy routine for weeks. Weeks she couldn't count and not burst into tears until a fateful day that she paid heed to Mami's scolding about taking a bath and dressing like a wife instead of a maid.

Back at her dad's palace, she had taken a shower and stepped out, vigorously towel drying her hair despite knowing the damage that did to the hair follicles until Maya spoke from the bed.

"Come sit down with me."

Laila stared at her in disbelief. "Sit with you? I have to get back to the hospital. I have to—"

"Please," Maya's eyelids kissed, her palms coming together in front of her face, wordlessly begging. "It's always, 'I have to get back to the hospital.' 'Sudais needs me.' 'I can't eat, what if Sudais wakes up.' Laila please, just slow down. I'm not even telling you to stop because i know the things you do for people you care about so, please. Even Sudais' wouldn't want this. Just sit with me for a minute, if you don't like it, you can go."

Maya's idea of sitting was on the bed, legs splayed out under the covers as she fiddled with her fingers on her thighs.

Laila's sighed, throwing her head back and shaking it.

"Alright." She spread her arms only to drop them. In her robe, she threw the towel away and got into bed in a similar position as that of Maya, except she brought a pillow to her lap and dropped her head to stare at the patterns of the sheets.

A few moments passed before Maya pulled the hem of Laila's robe, whispering, "How you feeling?"

Maya knew Laila. Laila hadn't talked to anyone about how she was feeling, what she was feeling for weeks. And she had an inkling she needed to let it out.

Laila shared eye contact with Maya for long and Maya didn't like that. Laila seemed distant even while sharing eye contact. The fair lady nudged Laila's arm with her fingers, jutting her chin in question.

Laila zoomed back, her lips curling up in an attempt to seal the sob that she was fighting. She moved back, only to bring her head on her arm and lay on Maya's lap.

Maya got the memo, she helped Laila adjust into a comfortable position before she started to smooth Laila's damp hair, soothing the girl in the process.

When Maya thought Laila wasn't going to talk like always, the girl did. "I'm scared, Halima."

"I know," Maya whispered.

Laila's right hand came up to sync with her words, "You know it's like...i keep waiting to wake up from this dream but i still haven't...it's true. He keeps...he was making progress during the third week, moving his fingers. Sometimes his toes. But then...he is not making much progress. And he knows. He knows he is out of handcuffs but it's like he knows EFCC are still on him and wallahi he is innocent. He cries at night Maya," she sniffled, recalling the fact that she mostly sleeps with him or sometimes with Hafsy, sometimes Mama, and even Maya at times, but none of them knew as much as she did.

"He cries...brutal, ugly cry. Like he is in limbo and is trying to pull out but he can't...the poor man underwent another surgery just 3 weeks back to reduce the swelling in his brain but still..." she lifted her wet eyes to look at Maya, "It's been 7 weeks. Most of his wounds have healed. Even his broken bones and fractures have shown great progress but 7 weeks? And all we get are just slight movements of his toes and fingers that give us hope only to shatter us again? Innalillahi Wa'inna'ilaihir raji'un."

The fact that Laila hadn't cried in front of anyone for over 3 weeks made crying in front of Maya harder, her breath hitching and her fingers coming up to claw against her throat in hopes of scratching a lump away.

Between croaks, she managed to say, "The longer he takes to emerge from his coma, the less likely he is to...for him to recover. Or to resume his normal life, Maya...which is worse?"

Which was worse? Knowing he might never wake up or knowing if he did, he probably won't be able to go back to his normal life?

"He will be fine, Insha Allah..."

Did she even believe that anymore? Maybe not. Still, she nodded.

Oddly, sleep was quick to plunder her without torturing her for hours. Don't even start about painkillers and sleeping aids, they don't work anymore.

Weird...

  ***

Saturday, 7th June, 2020

Laila's heart and the leather bag dropped at the sight of medics rushing into Sudais' room while his family was being ushered out.

Clasping her already trembling hands, she froze in her spot, afraid she'd collapse if she moved an inch. Her eyes blurred over her glasses, her voice quiet and shaky, "What is happening?"

In a shriek that was supposed to be happy but came out tangled with a sob, Mima announced, engulfing Laila in a tight embrace. "Hamma is awake! He was moving and even called out for Mama!"

Almost in sync, Laila and Mima let out another ugly sob, squeezing the blood out of each other as they rocked side to side and so did the rest of the family.

Although on edge without sitting, they stood outside for the first 2 hours after Sudais regained consciousness. The medical crew examined him and monitored him physically and verbally now that he was awake for any missed information before they let Mama in along with them.

For the next hour, the room neither had anyone coming in or going out, the family growing more happy but edgy by the second.

A smile that hadn't grazed Mama's face for 66 days now-8 weeks and a few days- was splayed for everyone to see that day. The family met her halfway, almost hovering over her with questions.

Queen Baraka was quick to grab Laila, knowing the girl had suffered more than anyone since the attack 2 months ago. "I want you to go see him after the doctors are out. They'll be out in a minute and everyone—please, stop breathing around me like this, what if one of you has coronavirus?" The family scattered with laughter, laughter that hadn't been one of their acts for so long.

She dragged Laila to the side, her voice dropping in degree. "Listen Halima, i just want to prepare you for this. He might not recognize you. Don't freak out, his memories will come back to place." Laila didn't let it show, but her heart was beating loudly and zigzagging in her chest, almost popping out like those times Jerry was in in-love in Tom and Jerry's cartoon.

Instead, she nodded, glancing to see the doctors leaving the room and almost sprinting to it. "Wait," Queen Baraka held her in place, "They just realized he is partially deaf in one ear and they'll be working on treatment. So, you have to speak louder."

"Yes, yes," Laila was sprinting to the hospital door by the time she was done.

Someone would think with the way she sprinted to the room, she'd sprint to throw herself to-okay carefully, embrace him and rock him side to side not minding that he was still healing. Laila pushed the door after her, standing at the door and grabbing her right middle finger with her left fingers as she stared at him.

He was not laying flat like usual, instead, they had slanted the bed into a fowlers position-his upper body up and his lower body still supine.

Although pale, he managed to look a little tanner than when he did while being unconscious, his pink eyes settling into a squint as he stared at her in contempt, probably thinking who the hell was this.

Laila stood frozen not because she wanted to but because she'd faint if she moved closer to him and like in so many Indian series, he'd flinch back to ask, 'Who are you?' God knows that would be the end of her. She couldn't bear the rejection.

But still, if he was going to reject knowing her, they might as well get it over and done with right?

She had told herself that but still couldn't bring herself to move until she heard a knock on the door.

She yelled, "Don't come in." And watched the door through her side view until she heard footsteps fade.

She took a deep breath, taking a step towards Sudais who still had wrinkles on his forehead, his eyes small and indicating he was still not on board.

At his bed, Laila didn't know what to do after he had flinched when she brought a hand to catch his.

This was it.

That Indian bullshit had just happened to not just someone she knew but her, from someone who was her husband. She brought the hand to her chest and slanted towards him, removing her glasses with the other hand.

She opened her mouth to introduce herself just when he slanted towards her, mouth slightly agape. "Sadiya?"

She nodded, closing her eyes and in turn compelling her gathered tears to make an ungraceful fall. "Sadiya..." she repeated the name-her name that no one in this world decided to call her with it except him.

Most awkwardly, she slanted into his drugs-smelling upper body and rested her face against his shoulder, wrapping an arm that didn't go halfway around his T-shirt covered midriff. "I am so glad you are okay. So glad."

Another impatient knock on the door came and this time Laila pulled away from him and shouted in the direction of the door. "You can come in now."

Immediately, the door opened to reveal a gushing family of the patient, his sisters-Mima, hafsy, his brother-Muri, and his wife, lastly Mama. The rest of the family were flying in on the next flight they could find. As for Naja, she had given birth to a boy who Queen Baraka named after Baba Alhaji, Idris but he would be tagged as Sultan.

The mother had to shh her girls down as they started to shout and embrace the man who at first looked confused before realization dawned on him and he was raising his noninjured arm to reciprocate the hug.

He hadn't said a thing and when he did, it was strings of Arabic in a deep, hoarse, gravelly voice.

His voice unlocked something within Laila, she clutched his cannulated hand as she dropped to her knees, a sudden wave of sadness rushing over her.

The man above her exclaimed, "Ahh Ahh," And for the first time in 2 months, she heard him say something to her. "Me kikeyi, Sadiya?"

Laila held it, wallahi she did, but unfortunately, convulsive sobs wrecked through her, her hand lifting from Sudais' to cover her mouth and the room went silent at that.

She let out her misery, all that had swept under the rug for the past two months not caring that her in-laws were there.

She felt much better when Mima joined her, gaining another exclamation from Sudais. And then it was Hafsy, Mama, and finally Muri's wife. Leaving just Muri and Sudais, not in a state of hysteric sobs that had them trembling,

Sudais had no choice but to look at the person that started it. "Haba, Sadiya. What's this?"

Not just her lips were covered, but so did she move her fingers up to cover her eyes when she made eye contact with him.

Taking a deep breath, he moved the hand that was clutched to hers, "Wallahi, i will choke you to death with my IV tube."

Laila hadn't expected that, as such, her pink eyes widened up, her mouth open. "Huh?"

He nodded at her, eyes narrowing despite his weak state. "I'm serious...banason wannan kukan naki."

Sobs returning, she mumbled. "Why won't...why won't i cry?"

"Because i am alive, aren't i?" He asked, slowly moving his head around so he won't get a sudden pain from his almost healed whiplash before returning it to Laila who was shaking her head.

"We had lost so much hope."

Sudais opened his mouth to say something but the increased cries of the women had him halting.

"Duk wacce baza tayi shuru ba ta tashi ta fita. You either stop crying or you vamoose."

His threat went on deaf ears, the sound in the room indicating they were mourning more than celebrating.

Thank God it was only his family and he could say what was on his mind. His gaze still on Laila, he grumbled, starting from the bottom, "Mima, get out."

The girl realized she wasn't going to stop crying, and neither did she want to get on her brother's bad side. With a hand over her lips, she dragged her feet out.

Since Hafsy hadn't stopped crying, she joined Mima.

Although he didn't want to be ordering someone's wife, he didn't want her tears either, he sent Muri's wife out.

Now back to Laila. "Are you going to stop torturing me with your cries or do I have to send you away too?"

Seriously though. She cried during the attack, probably after the attack, when he was in OR, when he slipped into Coma-throughout Coma, and even now that he had woken up?

Enough was enough.

He wanted to hear her laugh, not cry. Since he wasn't getting the foremost, he didn't want the latter either. "Tashi ki fita a dakin nan," he mumbled, weakly snatching his hand from hers, his head moving back to rest against the bed while his eyes went to the ceiling.

Medical student and all, filling a partially deaf patient's ears with her cries wasn't something her professors would be proud of. But still.

Sudais was alive. Maybe not exactly healthy, but still, alive.

She stood up, heading for the door and banging it after her.

The room fell into a much less sobbing mess, only his mother-who was still crying-and his brother who was standing arms crossed with a small smile.

The mother hoisted her head, her sobs dissolving. "What about me? Bazaka koren bane?"

A corner of his mouth quirked up, his head lazily crooking in her direction and his smile widening. She knew he could never and like a child, he dragged in his most playful tone, "Mama..."

"Naja gave birth," Queen Baraka started, wiping her tears and smiling at Sudais who rose his back from the bed, eyes wide as saucer "To a boy."

He whispered, "I have a son?"

"Yes. I named him Idris, but we call him Sultan. What are you doing?" Queen Baraka rose, putting a hand out to stop him from trying to get off the bed, "Be calm. We called his—" she ceased to turn at the sound of the door opening, "His mum is here."

Pheww!!! 😭😭😭
Please anticipate the epilogue and bonus chapter soon!!!