She sat silently on the bed she thought of hers, in the room they said was hers. But all she could recognize in the room were her clothes and the portraits Nasir sent to her today. She held the journal to her chest and stared at the set of trolleys lined up for her at the other side of the room. They were the life, the traditional gifts of clothes coming from a groom to his bride. But her lefe was practically bought together with her because it was Mama that bought it all.

She yawned and felt sleepy all of a sudden, Fatima had stayed with her until it was 9:30 pm and it had been an hour since she left. Aisha pulled out the bedside drawer and placed the journal before she looked around the room. Slowly, she walked to the bathroom and had her bathe before she walked out with her hair drenched. She opened her wardrobe and pulled randomly out of her nightdresses. By the time she had turned off the light, she was already feeling dizzy.

She thought about Nasir and slowly snuggled her head into the pillow. She pulled the blanket over her head. All felt weird, she hadn't been in this house before, and she had so much missed her old room. She knew the feeling, it was the kind of feeling she felt the day she first slept in Nasir's house. It felt all alien and like she had been in a dream. She pushed away all her thoughts and slowly drifted into a slumber, even though not a peaceful one, her eyes closed nevertheless.

Abba had been in the house for only twenty minutes. He had bathed and ate what he assumed to be their dinner set on the table by Mama's women. He wanted to go and sleep, not see the face of this girl; but he couldn't. She had been I his thought ever since he woke up today, and when he heard the imam solemnized the wedding, he had never felt as ease like today. He felt as if this is what he had been waiting for.

Silently, Abba walked towards Aisha's room and he found it locked. He felt a huge blow aimed at his ego. This girl even thought of locking her room? What did she think of herself? Did she think of herself as some sort of irresistible fairy? He hissed and walked away to his room. On the bed, he kept tossing and turning on his bed, all he wanted to see was Aisha. He had seen her picture, which Firdausi sent to him. She looked beautiful with makeup on and her bridal dress.

He had a night of disturbed sleep, and as he heard the adhan proclaimed for Subh salah, he pulled himself out of his bed. Abba walked down the hall and knocked on Aisha's door. He knocked for the fifth time until she groggily towards the door and unlocked it. She stretched herself and looked at him with lips pursed into a pout. "Good morning," She drawled and left him at the door, walking directly to her bathroom.

Abba wanted nothing but to hug her, she looked irresistible in her sleeping dress. With eyes barely opened, lips pursed into a pout and the way she stretched herself; he gulped down a lump in his throat and walked to the mosque that was only a few feet away from the house. When he came back, Aisha had already prayed and she was back on her bed, cuddled together with her blanket as she slept like a baby.

He walked silently into the room and looked at how she slept peacefully. His eyes wandered around the room and he caught a glimpse of the frames she had already hanged, courtesy of Fatima. She looked beautiful in all the pictures, and no matter how Abba hated to admit it, he knew Aisha was beautiful.

He pulled out the vanity stool and sat down opposite her, barely an inch between them. He wanted to admire her face while she didn't know he did. He stared intently at her face, it was the only thing visible to the outer world in her body, she had the whole of her wrapped in her blanket. He smiled at himself when she made a babyish sound and turned to the other side of the bed.

It took him sometime before he walked out of her room and carefully closed the door for her. He went directly to his room but sleep deserted him as much as water deserted the Sahara. He turned and tossed on his bed but there was nothing in his mind apart from Aisha's face as she slept. He got tired of lying on the bed and stood up. He had his bathe and called Mama, he knew she was awake by now. The people that came to the wedding hadn't left yet.

"Good morning, Mama." He greeted as he sat down on his vanity stool, brushing his full hair and beard.

Mama smiled tiredly and answered him, "Good morning, Abba. I hope Aisha is fine?" She asked, and he smiled at himself through the mirror.

"She's fine, Mama. What about our breakfast? Can I come and get it?" He asked and Mama heaved a sigh out of relief.

"I've been thinking of this. Both the drivers are busy taking my relatives. to the car park, you should come and get it, please. I need to see them off, bye." She ended the call before he could reply to her.

Aisha got ready and dialled Nasir's number for the umpteenth time since yesterday. He was never the one to care if other's make an appearance of not, but Nasir's absence to his wedding Fatiha was all over the place, and he wished he was there. Fortunately, it rang this time. Because Nasir had his face switched off throughout yesterday.

It rang and Nasir didn't pick the call until Abba called the second time. His voice was gruff and it seemed as if he had been crying all night, judging by the way he had been heaving sighs. "Nasir, that's so good of you. What was that for?" He wasn't only angry at Nasir, but he was disappointed at him.

Even though it pained, Nasir smiled at his brother through the phone. "What did I do, Abba? I had surgery all day, I didn't get back home until after midnight. I know the bride, I would have come back in a week to see who she is." He laughed a burst of humourless laughter that sliced his throat before it came outs. He felt a squeeze in his chest, knowing Abba might've already kissed Aisha or even...Don't go there, Nasir. He warned himself and fought his tears back.

Abba heaved a sigh and stood up, he walked to the living room and sat down in one of the sofas, he knew it was too early for him to go home now. He turned the tv on as he conversed with Nasir. "I missed you, you idiot. When are you coming back home? We haven't had time for each other since forever. We should go to Katsina and snatch Nana away from that husband of hers."

Nasir smiled widely at him, this time the smile was real, it wasn't a pretence. "I would've loved that. But this hospital is stressing me out, Abba. Surgery almost every day. I have to make time to come home."

Abba groaned and chuckled. "My baby brother is all grown up, yeah? He's even too busy to come over to his brother's wedding. I'll hold a grudge on you like you do when I don't wish you on your birthday, so you know..." Abba let his words trailed off as he exclaimed. "Nasir!!! Don't tell me you use this way to get back at me because I didn't wish you on your 25th birthday! Oh my god, you're so unbelievable."

He put the phone on speaker as he walked towards the tv and took a remote from there. "No! Come on, Abba, I'm all grown up now. I'm hooked up with surgeries that's why." Nasir answered and laughed. When Abba wanted to be the brother he was to them, he was the loveliest. The irony was that he was the major source of Nasir's grief, but talking with him had eased him off.

Aisha had already had her bath and she walked out of her room to take a look around the house and also eat something in her stomach. The hours she spent without eating were haunting her now. As soon as she set her legs out of her room, she heard the sound of his laugher and nearly lost her balance. It didn't sound real, but she wished it was.

She heard as they conversed lovely with Nasir and wished she was the one talking to him, not Abba. She walked to the living room and stared at Abba from behind. The sound of Nasir's laughter was teasing her ears and she wished she can speak to him. She didn't know when she rushed to where he sat and looked at him, "Can I please talk with him?" She asked, and Nasir instantly heard her voice.

Not now, please. Aisha, not now, please. He had to find a way out, and in a matter of second, he excused himself. "I'm sorry, Abba, I have to go." He ended the call before any of them would get the chance to talk him out of it.

Aisha didn't know when tears slipped out of her eyes, she knew he was avoiding her. Abba looked at her and hissed. If someone had seen him the way he was looking at Aisha hours ago, he could swear this wasn't the Abba he saw. "Get out of my way, and don't you dare walk up to me like that. Don't you have manners?" His voice irked Aisha, and it added more pain to the one Nasir inflicted on her.

She stumped her legs on the floor and glared at him, "I didn't say I wanted to talk to you, It's Dr I said I said I wanted to talk to. In case you heard me wrong." She turned on her heels and she barely walked two steps when Abba held her back.

Abruptly, he turned her until she was facing him. And the moment Aisha set her eyes on his face, she knew she was doomed. She had almost forgotten who she was together with until now. "I'm sorry please, Ya Abba. Please." She was shaking, and he saw the rate at which her heartbeat from her chest.

"What was that, um?" His voice made her shuddered even more, and the tears she held back released themselves out of the dungeon she had locked them.

"I'm sorry, Ya Abba, it won't be repeated please." Roughly, Abba released her and she lost her balance, falling on the centre table. Aisha wailed in pain and held her back, but Abba hissed and walked out of the house.

The moment she heard the roar of his engine, Aisha broke into tears. Is this the kind of marriage she had embroiled herself in? She crawled to her room and slumped on the ground, crying her eyes out. She wondered what Mommy would have said if Aisha told her the kind of man she got as a husband. She knew Mommy would be furious and would cry with Aisha when she was done ranting off about it.

Aisha thought about Nasir and what had happened out there, he was over her. But a tiny voice at the back of her mind uttered, Maybe he had gone back to Madina. Who knows she was in the picture ever since? And she cried even more. Aisha wished she can turn back the hands of time. The first thing she would have changed was school; she wouldn't have thought about going to a school, not to talk about ATBU, lest she met Jaafar and he unveiled all the thing that we're in a shroud.

❃

She heard when he entered the living room and came to knock at her door. with her body shivering in fear, Aish rushed to her door and inlocked it. Her back was still paining, but she dared not utter a word about. The earlier she knew the type of man she was dealing with, the better it would all be for them. First, she knew she had to do all she can to avoid crossing paths with him, if not, whatever happened was her own to deal.

The door revealed his face and she cringed to her skin. She wished he wasn't the one standing before her, but even now that she thought about it, Nasir had annoyed her today. She looked at him and her chest pounded in terror.

"You should come out and eat," He said and barely turned to his heels when Aisha shook her head. "I'm full," She said and turned back as well. She would rather starve to death then eat together with him.

He turned and flashed her a look that spoke his annoyance and disgust towards her, "And who are you to say that? Get yourself out in peace, or you'll be out in pieces." And he was out even before Aisha got the chance to say a word out.

She knew him better to tell someone else, and so she silently walked out of the room. She met him seated on the dining table and she served him first before she served herself and sat on the chair at the far end of the table. She realized how hungry she was when the aroma hit her nostrils. She dived into her food and didn't look up until his phone rang and he picked it up with a soft tone.

"Nuriyya," He drawled in a voice Aisha had never heard him used. Not even when he was with Mama.

The fact that he was on phone with lady didn't bother her as much as the contents of the call did. "I missed you so much, Nuriyya. Will you spend the weekend with me when I'm back?" She didn't know what Nuriya said that he laughed handsomely.

"Oh come on, I promise to give you the best this time." There was silence before he spoke with a smile and a tone of excitement laced on his tone. "I'll be back on Monday, I'll pick you up on Tuesday."

Sharing the same table, Abba conversed with Nuriyya as though he had no wife together with him. Her chest was pounding, and she had her eyes bulged out as she stared at him. He was done having his breakfast when he turned to look at her, "Get your clothes ready, we're leaving on Monday." He was about to leave when she shook her head vehemently and replied.

"I can't follow you, I'm sorry. School resumes in two weeks." He didn't spare her a glance when he walked away and his voice echoed on the walls confining Aisha.

"I have you transfer letters with me. You'll start attending Taraba State University." And he was already in his room when the words finally registered in her brain and she felt all her world crashing down. This was a page-turner to her heart, she knew. At the pitch of her lungs, she felt a certain coldness and a restless feeling gnawing at her soul. This was never going to be a good one, she knew. Slowly and painfully, tears rushed down her tears. She was tired of crying, but she knew of no other way than that.