She immediately stood up from the sofa she was seated on and released the curtain of the window she was holding onto. "I need to go back home, I haven't even taken my bathe." She knew he was sometimes amused when she acted some sort of way, but right now he was just staring at her. "What? Why are you giving me that look?" She asked, and he quickly shook his head, taking his eyes off of her.

"Nothing, you're just so comfortable." He pointed out, and she stared at herself, she had taken off the hijab and also the wrapper, she was only in the night gown she couldn't wait to take off and also her turban that she got tired of.

"That's why I need to go back inside, Mujaheed. I'm really tired of this night gown, I need to take my bathe and have some rest." She whined while flapping the loose ends of the gown and Mujaheed shook his head while he wrapped his hands around his chest.

"You can't go back now, Fareeda. I don't know what they're planning, and it's only the beginning of the night, can you wait some more?" He said, and before a whining Fareeda answered him, they heard a soft knock on the door.

"Who is it?" Mujaheed asked and walked toward the door, he unlocked it and Nana stared back at him with a wide grin. "Nana! I've been meaning to call you, come inside." He opened the door for her and she walked carefully holding the tray in her hands.

"This is so heavy for me, Ya Mujaheed." She whined, and he laughed before he collected it from her and placed it on the centre table and she ran to where Fareeda was, embracing her. "I've missed you, Ya Fareeda. Here..." She said as she pulled out some garments, "I thought about how you haven't taken your bathe all day, your favorite night dress."

Fareeda chuckled before she broke their hug and planted a kiss on Nana's forehead, "I love you, Nana. Have I ever told you that?" How could a small girl like her be this thoughtful and sweet altogether?

"You've always said that one day you'll kill me if I keep on annoying you. It feels good to know that you love me." Nana got a smack as a response and Fareeda stood up immediately.

"I need to go to your room to take my bathe," she informed, staring at him. She knew he would hardly let her go but she had to try. And if not in her room, where was she going to take her bathe?

"No! Please don't go, because I had to sneak into your room before I got these out, Ummah has been there since you left, she said she's going to kill you tonight since Alhaji wasn't home and you're already thinking of killing her. So she'll kill you..." Before Nana was about to finish, Fareeda had already rushed to the door.

"That woman, who did she think she was? Last time she got saved, but I'll have to make sure she doesn't live to see the next day." She said through gritted teeth but before she turned the doorknob to leave, Mujaheed held her wrist and pulled her back into the house.

"What do you think you're doing, Fareeda?" Her wrathful eyes glared at him and she softly hissed.

"You can't stop me, and that's final. Let go of my wrist, this is my father's house, and she can't stop me from living the way I want to in my father's house." She was angry beyond words could tell, and she wanted nothing right now but for her to meet with this woman and see who amongst them could come out alive. She was tired of everything she was doing to her in this house.

"You can't leave here until she's left your chamber, Fareeda. Nana will call me when its safe for you to do so. I don't want any trouble, will you for once act like the grown up woman you are?" Even though his voice carried the air of command, when she looked into his eyes, he was practically pleading her with his eyes.

She stubbornly lifted up the night dress Nana brought for her, "I have to take my bath, I feel disgusted with myself right now." She said, and he shook his head before he softly pushed her to his room.

"You can take your bathe in my bathroom, if you need something, Nana will bring it for you before you come out, okay? Don't be a baby and please just go, Fareeda." He pushed her into the bathroom and closed the door from outside, "Call Nana's name when you're done, she won't leave." He walked back to the living room only to find Nana smiling at the door they shortly disappeared into. "What are you smiling at?" He asked and smacked her head before sat down.

"Ya Fareeda listens to no one, it's still surprising me how she listens to you without throwing any tantrums. Abba was right, he said no one could handle her but you." She giggled while tapping her hands excitedly and Mujaheed shook his head. Nana could be given the award of the most trying match maker.

"How does it feel in there? Any trouble for you?" He asked like the big brother she took him for. And she smiled innocently before she shook her head.

"Dahlia insulted me because I laughed when Ya Fareeda slapped her. But after that, nothing comes, I know how to carefully avoid them." She smiled and he smiled back at her.

"You need to go and take some of her belongings for her, I don't know what she might need, but you should know." He said while taking a quick glance at the door of his room. "You need to be careful not to get on their bad way, Nana, okay?" She nodded her head and left the chamber.

He sat down thinking of what had been happening around him. There was a time when he regretted some of the decisions he had taken in his life but not anymore. He felt that whatever he did was for a reason and slowly everything will be unfolded right before his eyes. He heard her banging the door of the bathroom and when he looked at the entrance door, Nana was still not around.

"Nana! For how long do you want to have me stuck in here?" He heard her voice. He had always heard her voice, but today it felt unreal hearing her voice coming from his room. How quickly life changed and the impossible became possible. "Nana!!! I'm going to kill you both. Mujaheed, what do you think you're doing?" She shouted and he knew making her wait any longer would only worsen the situation they were in, and he quickly stood up and walked to the room.

He unlocked the door and she barged out of the bathroom, angry. "Nana, what do you think you just did? He locked me from the outside and..." Her words became guttural when she saw him standing in front of the door. She quickly hide behind the curtain while covering her body, she was wearing his towel, and before she did that she wondered what kind of man he was to have a towel. Didn't all men just went to the shower with their boxer that would unfortunately be worn again after they were done?

"What are you doing here?" She asked, making sure her face was the only thing visible from the curtain.

He was amused, and Mujaheed didn't know when he chuckled. "What are you doing, Fareeda? Do you think I'm going to talk because you wore my towel?"

"Stop it! What have you seen? Go out!" She pointed at the door for him, her cheeks all flustered. He understood that she went out of the bathroom with only a towel that reached only the middle of her thighs, she ought to be shy. But why become flustered that he could see it clearly on her cheeks?

"Calm your horses, I was only trying to help a stuck woman in the bathroom, that's all. I'll leave now." He walked out of the room with an amused smile on his lips while he heard as she called Nana's name again. He sat down on the sofa and Nana rushed into the living room.

"Ya Mujaheed, I stayed long, right?" She asked breathlessly and he wondered what was long. "Asma'u nearly brought an end to my life, she became so furious when she saw that I took some of Ya Fareeda's things, she thought Ya Fareeda was staying here tonight." She giggled and he only shook his head. This family had bunch of crazies.

"Mark my words, I'll make sure Jibril drive that girl to the hospital, I'll have to teach her a very good lesson. Nana! Where are the things?" She called out from the living room and Nana rushed inside, she was back out in a rush because she knew if she stayed long, Fareeda will pour down everything on her.

They were chatting laconically when Fareeda walked out of the room, and today, she didn't just felt his scent, she also scented like him because she used the perfumes she saw on his mirror. Now that she thought about it, she was glad that Alhaji furnished the gateman's chamber himself, because even though she knew she wouldn't stay married to him forever, she knew she would have to spend some time with him and it would only be worse if he had just a mattress and a wrecked toilet. But here, it was average and looked great.

She sat down on the sofa away from them and asked him, "Where's the remote? I need to watch something."

Nana handed it for her before she began to serve them the food. "Ya Fareeda, Ummah did what you don't like today, but I made a soup for you. Ya Mujaheed also doesn't like fara da wake, so you two can eat together. She caught me arranging the tray and sent me out, so I could only get two plates. One's for me, because you know?" She winked naughtily at her before she continued, "Team fara da wake all along. So you'll have to eat with him." She began to serve the food without waiting for a response from them and when she was done, she placed the plate beside Mujaheed and pulled Fareeda out of the sofa she got herself cocooned in.

"You've already lost some weight, Ya Fareeda. I'll make sure you eat so well from now on." She said as she successfully pulled her up and slightly pushed her to the sofa Mujaheed was seated on. Fareeda had no choice, she was so hungry to argue with this. When Fareeda glared her with a heated look, she grinned and nodded her head, "I know, I'm annoying. But at least I've saved you twice already."

Fareeda was about to speak when Mujaheed shook his head, "Let the innocent girl alone, Fareeda. Let's eat." She rolled her eyes at him and he took his eyes off her. She was so childish that if he was going to act like she did, they will be a bunch of children.

They ate in silence, with only the program Fareeda was watching booming across the room. They were halfway into the food when Fareeda turned and spoke softly and casually at him as though they were used to this, "Can you please hand me the water..." She choked on her words and began coughing. Mujaheed quickly gave the water for her and he turned the tv off.

"What are you doing? She asked as she turned to look at him.

"You aren't concentrating while you eat, that's why you choke on yourself, Fareeda. Concentrate on the food first, okay?" He said and her lips immediately curled into a pout without knowing when she did that. He found that amusing.

"Please, Mujaheed. They don't do reruns of it and I don't want to miss this episode, please?" She begged, and Mujaheed stared at her face while she flashed him her best puppy eyes.

He turned back the tv on and collected the spoon from her hand. The next thing she saw was him trying to feed her, her eyes dilated in shock and he pointed at the tv for her. "Watch the tv, I'll feed you while you do that." She wanted to argue with him, but she knew that if she did, he would stop her from watching the movie. She took the first spoon and turned her attention back to the tv. And that was how he fed her while she watched the tv and after they were done, that was when their eyes got back to Nana that had her eyes fixed on them.

"I wish I came here with my phone, how could you two not notice it?" Reducing the volume, Fareeda turned to her and asked with a confused expression.

"What? Something happened and recorded it for me?" She asked and turned her attention to Nana and the girl shook her head with a pout on her lips.

"What happened happened right now, and I wish I have my phone to capture it for you two. How you acted just now, wallahi I've never seen a better couple like you two, just a day into the marriage and the storyline is already changing who..." Fareeda chased her and she quickly dropped her plate aside and ran out while laughing at the pitch of her voice.

"Ya Mujaheed, I'll call you when it's safe for her to come back, it would've been better if she stayed there! Good night, Ya Fareeda." She called from outside and they heard her echoing laughter as she ran back to the house.

Fareeda rushed to the door, "I need to set that girl's mouth." But Mujaheed quickly held her wrist as he pulled her back into the living room.

"Let the innocent girl live, Fareeda, is that too much to ask when you're around?" He wanted to laugh at how flustered she look and also angry, but he knew if he did, they would have to fight and he didn't want that to happen. It felt as if he had exhausted his fighting powers with her tonight.

"So long as she's going to sleep in this house today, I'll make sure she suffered." She said through gritted teeth and slumped back on the sofa. This place felt like a dungeon, she couldn't wait to be out of it for good.

Mujaheed sat back and changed the channel for them, "I think I'll have to do what she said then, you're going to sleep here if you know you're going to make the innocent girl suffer."

She sharply turned at him with an annoyed and wrathful expression, "Mujaheed!"

He quickly lifted his hands up in surrender while stifling back a chuckle, "I dare not, Fareeda Kamal Sardauna, let me live my life, please." She rolled her eyes at him and turned her attention back to the tv without glancing at his way. She was aware of the amused look he was flashing her and wondered what was wrong with him, it felt he had been changed even though she had seen the shade of him she had seen, but this Mujaheed, something was definitely off with him.

✥

For the past two weeks, she always stayed in Mujaheed's chamber from early in the morning until it was after midnight and Mujaheed will escort her back into the house and he made sure that Nana woke her up early in the morning because anyone in the house got up and even though she didn't want to, she had to go to his chamber until midnight. Nana was always together with her the moment she came back from school, and that was what was lessening Fareeda's boredom and also when she was on phone with Adam. They were still yet to find a solution to this problem, but Fareeda trusted him that he would find one. The day she told him about the marriage, he cried throughout the call and she knew she had to do whatever it took to get out of this bondage and reunite herself with her beloved.

Today, Nana was late and the first thing Fareeda felt instead of the soft and calming tap of Nana on her shoulder, she felt a cable being laid upon her back, what in the whole world?! She quickly opened her eyes and before she got the chance to wear her glasses, it kept coming and she knew she had to leave the bed.

She immediately stood up while the person kept beating her with that belt, "What do you think you're doing? Who are you?! At least let me wear my glasses!" She thundered while finding it so hard to find an escape route because she couldn't even see where the intruder stood, she only felt the cable all over her body and she refused the tears from coming down.

"Ummah!!! What are you doing?!" Nana shrieked and ran up to Fareeda and hugged her. "Ummah! Stop beating her, what wrong has she done this time?!" Nana shrieked again when Ummah kept beating them both.

Fareeda placed her hand on Nana's head with a painful and wrathful smile, but whatever it was, she knew to keep her anger to herself while she wasn't wearing her glasses. "Nana, get my glass for me, I need to set things right once and for all in this house." Before Nana gave her the glass, Ummah made sure she had beaten her to the point she felt nearly satisfied. But with Fareeda, she knew she would never be satisfied.

The moment she had her glasses on her face, Fareeda snatched the cable from her in one good swift and she had lifted it up to retaliate when Alhaji barged into the room. "Fareeda!" He thundered, and Ummah slumped on the floor and broke into tears.

"I'm glad you came Alhaji, you've seen it yourself. I'm just here to wake her up for Such Salah, what have I done wrong?" She wept bitterly while looking at Alhaji. He pulled her up and helped her sit on the bed and when he walked up to Fareeda, the first thing she felt was a loud striking slap on both her cheeks and an before she spoke, he had collected the cable from her and began splashing it on her body, not minding the way Nana kept screaming and asking him to stop.