Slowly squinting her eyes, Fareeda laid them open to find Mujaheed seated beside her while all he did was stared at her face. She smiled lazily at him and Mujaheed wished the bed they were on could swallow him whole, nothing could be more beautiful than the after-sleep smile of Fareeda, it was perfection at its greatest form. She lifted herself and sat upright, resting her back with the bed head, still not energized to get off from the bed.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, and he took her hands in his, he didn't know why he was doing what he was doing now, and he had no other way of justifying his actions, all he knew was, he wanted to be around her at all cost.

"Nothing, I just want to stare at you as you sleep. And you sleep beautifully between." He smiled and her eyes flickered at their entwined hands for a moment before she smiled again. She didn't know how she was finding it possible to keep on smiling at him, but what scared her the most was that she didn't pretend in her life. If she did or said something, then that was how she felt in her heart.

"Have you gotten the henna for me?" She asked while she placed her feet down on the floor, feeling the warm concrete floor as it chilled her skin.

"I did, and that's why I was late and didn't get to pray in congregation. We have to pray together now, hurry and perform your ablutions." She smiled and nodded her head. Mujaheed watched as she walked into the bathroom and he sighed while he smiled. He didn't know, but he had noticed she was more lenient today, more submissive. And he liked that about her.

He had her in his mind for all the hours she had slept, and the way her lips tasted had stuck in his mind throughout. He had to come and sit beside her because all he cold think of was the taste of her lips in his, the softness of her body and how her hands felt when she had them in his hair. He knew controlling himself would be so hard for him since he had done the mistake of knowing what it felt like to kiss and be kissed by Fareeda Kamal Sardauna.

She came out of the bathroom with water slowly dripping from her face and smiled at him. "Let's pray, I want to apply the henna." They prayed, and for the first time in her life Fareeda prayed together with a man. She knew Adam had been her first in some things, but in all the things that mattered to the soul and melted the heart, Mujaheed was her first. She realized that she had never prayed with Adam before and had never thought about it. But standing behind Mujaheed as the words of the Almighty rolled down from his lips provided peace to her soul.

After they were done, they went to the kitchen to make preparations for the henna and she turned to look at him with a whiny expression as he cooked while she dealt with the henna. "Nana always help me with this and now I don't think I can do it alone." She said with a sigh and he kept the spatula before he came to her, she was sizing and shaping the black sellotape.

"I know Hajia wouldn't allow her to come, at least not after what you did to her, Fareeda. But I'll try and help you with it, I think I've once helped someone with it, I can do it." He smiled charmingly at her and despite the glare she wanted to cut his eyes with, she smiled back innocently.

"Who did you apply it for? Your wife? That one you don't want me to know about?" She giggled when he shot her a hard glare and stubbornly nodded her head. "You aren't going to scare me with those mahogany eyes of yours, I must say it, Mujaheed. Who's the one you're talking about? She should be your wife, right? What's her name? The way your talk about her alone is evident that you love her, what a lucky woman she is!"

He stared at her for a minute and smiled, slowing down the gas to let the food simmer as he came back and sat down beside her. "Whoever I love will be tagged as a lucky girl?" He asked with a mischievous smile and Fareeda wanted to smack herself for always not knowing how to keep her thoughts to herself.

She rolled her eyes at him and fixed back her gaze to the sellotape before her and counted if she had reached twenty for all her fingers, hands and feet. "What's so special about you that she'll be tagged as a lucky girl? I think the wrong word slipped off my tongue, I beg your pardon."

"Fareeda, you're so stubborn that it amuses me all the time. What is there if you just say it out? Come on, say it." He laughed as he nudged her shoulder and she placed the razor blade and turned to look at him.

"What do I need to say? I'd appreciate it if you stop putting words into my mouth, please." She rolled her eyes and was about to get back to her work when he held her hands and smiled, putting up a feign hurt expression.

"Say it, 'Mujaheed, I'd be lucky if you fall in love with me.' Nothing will change in you, not even the honey color of your eyes, Fareeda." He stated and she punched him lightly on the chest before she shook her head.

"You must've been mistaking me for someone else. It's Fareeda Kamal Sardauna, incase you forget. I have something to do and for you? Ahh!" She screamed while she pointed at the cooking pot and he quickly stood up and rushed to the gas, "The food might get burnt while you look at someone's daughter as though you're going to eat her alive. I bet if you aren't in love already." She laughed at the hard glare he threw at her while he worked meticulously and took care of the food.

He made sure the food was set in the warmer before he came back to the chair and sat down, "Only one thing will prove that to us, whether I'm already in love or not, but I doubt if I am. Do you want to prove me wrong?" She threw her head back and laughed, shaking her head.

"No, thank you. I know you aren't in love already and you can't even fall in love with me, we're not meant to be, and you're so serious to have made such a mistake. One way or the way we'll have to find our separate ways." Mujaheed felt a squirm in his heart, he hated it when she made lousy comments like this with a smile on her face and act as if nothing had happened or she hadn't said anything wrong.

"What's wrong?" She asked, taking up her razor blade as she went back to work. He just kept staring at her, wondering that if there would be a chance for them to go their separate ways, she would be okay with that? She wouldn't feel bad without him? Like he knew he wasn't in love yet, but she was the only person after Nana that he had let close to him, opened up to even though all he let them knew was how he looked like and sometimes how he acted as, but he was certain it would hurt terribly when he wasn't together with her anymore.

"Nothing," he said as he stood up, taking the bowl she had mixed the henna in and walked out to the living room with it. She watched him as he kept taking the food items to the living room and before he left the kitchen for the last time, he turned to her and spoke, "I'll wait for you in the living room after you're done cutting the sellotape." And she watched his retreating back before she sighed and fixed her gaze firmly on her work.

She knew what made him acted this way, he didn't like the comment she made, but at least this wasn't the first time she had made such comment, was it? She made sure she remembered him about the possibility of each of them going their separate ways lest they became so comfortable living with each other. What she didn't understand was the reason why he pulled up that expression, was he worried? Had he gotten used to her already? To even the point that he will be so worried that she had said such a thing? And as sadly as this might sound to her, she knew it was already too late.

She walked to the living room after she was done and found him watching the television but with just a single glance Fareeda knew he didn't even know what was happening. He looked ruminative and at least Fareeda didn't want this to happen between them today. If it was some other day, she would have shrugged off her shoulders and went about her business, but she wanted things to get better between them. At least for today.

She smiled, gulped down her ego before she placed down the tray of her sellotape and walked up to the sofa he was seated. She sat beside him with a charming smile on her lips and he didn't look at her, "Mujaheed!" She whined, and that forced him to look at her pouted lips. He stared at her but without saying anything and she whined again, "What have I done? You don't even want to look at me?" She asked with a smile at the edge of her tone but she knew she had to act all innocent and cute if she wanted him to forgive her.

"Nothing," he said as he shook his head, "Let's eat then you can apply the henna." He was about to step down from the sofa when she held his hands and he turned his attention to her, "I told you, you did nothing wrong, Fareeda. Can we eat?"

She stubbornly shook her head, enjoyed the heat going on between them. She loved it when he was acting all stubborn and tough when all he wanted to be was pampered and loved. "No, we can't eat, until you forgive me at least."

"You don't done anything wrong to me, Fareeda. I don't know of it even if you've done something. I'm famish-" before he finished what he was saying, she planted a quick smooch on his lips and his eyes dilated and she ducked her head down shyly before she mustered the courage and looked up at him.

"There, is that enough for you to forgive me?" She asked with a soft and shy smile and Mujaheed despite wanting to be angry at her over and over again, he couldn't. The way she looked, with almost half her hair showing and innocent merged with beauty dripping from her eyes. The way her shy smile added sophistication to her face and just her, being Fareeda Kamal Sardauna was enough for him.

He shook his head mischievously, "That isn't enough, but this might be enough." With a swift, he had her in his arms with his hands cupping the back of her head as he kissed her harder than the first time he had kissed her. Fareeda grinned softly and kissed him back, she had been craving for that since she woke up and found him intently staring at her.

He kissed her until he felt their breathe were going to halt and they pulled away from each other to take a breather and he smiled at her when their eyes met, "Now, you're forgiven. Should we eat?" She grinned and nodded her head at him.

They got down on the carpet and Fareeda changed to the channel she wanted to watch and when he complained, she dismissed him with "You weren't even watching what was going on." They enjoyed eating on the carpet and until they were done, Fareeda began to apply the sellotape on her fingers while he watched her did it.

"I'll apply it on my feet, hen you help me cover it with these nylons I've cut. I'll apply it to my left fingers, you'll do the same for me and when I'm done, apply it on my right hand, you have to be careful, Mujaheed." She said and he nodded his head, watching as she applied the henna while he tied the fingers for her. They shared little to few words together and all was said by Fareeda while Mujaheed watched her. He loved watching her speak her her speak, it felt therapeutic to him.

Like she said to him, when she was done applying it to him, she handed him her right hand and grinned softly, "Mujaheed don't spoil my precious hand, please?" She begged and he laughed before he nodded his head at her. He fixed his eyes intently while he applied it for her, careful not to have it all around his hand as well. And while he did the work, Fareeda had her eyes on him. She noticed his brows, naturally arched in a way girls trimmed theirs to be. His eyes, with those long lashes she's kill to have. Everything about him looked calm, peaceful and handsome as well. But there was something about him, something she was still yet to decipher.

Mujaheed didn't look like the person he was. She knew looks weren't determining what a person was, but one look at him she doubted if he was ever the man he claimed he was. There was an aura surrounding him, which when he spoke it splashed his charisma and what she had long long to be power. "You haven't told me your name yet." She voiced out in a blue, still angry at herself for not keeping her thoughts to herself.

"What will my name do to you? Hand me that nylon," he arched a brow and pointed at the nylon. She handed the nylon at him and watched him tied it on the last finger left before he looked at her with a warm smile, and before she spoke to him, his phone rang.

"Hello, Nana?" He said and put the phone on speaker, already cleaning the living room.

"Ya Mujaheed, I've called Ya Fareeda but I think she's not close to her phone. Will you please hand the phone to her?" She said and Mujaheed sensed urgency in her voice, he wondered what happened again.

"I'm hearing you, Nana. What happened? Is everything alright?" She asked, and they could all hear the frantic breathing of Nana.

"Asma'u is so angry, Ya Fareeda. She said she won't let what you did go scot free, Ummah is still crying in her room, I don't know what she's going to do." Fareeda hissed loudly and wondered what that foolish girl meant and who she wanted to threaten.

"Don't let what they say or do threaten you Nana, okay? I'll always protect you and let that stupid girl, she wants to be admitted into a hospital I think."

"Ya Fareeda..." Fareeda cut her of quickly.

"Nana, don't be bothered please, okay? I know how to deal with their stupidity, I've been with them for more than the half years of my life, I know what they're thinking of." She said and brushed off the look Mujaheed flashed at her and ended the call.

"This is what I've been warning you off, Fareeda." She chuckled and pouted her lips at him, giving him the best puppy eyes she could muster.

"You promised to protect me, incase something bad will happen, didn't you?" He pinched her cheeks and spoke with a loving tone.

"You should stop acting nonchalant and all cute when you want me to forgive you about on something." She giggled and hugged him, she didn't know he would realize that so soon.

✥

She kept displaying her hands at him to the point that the got tired of saying they looked beautiful and began to ignore her. "Mujaheed! It's so late and we're going to sleep now and you haven't told me that my henna looks beautiful."

"Attention seeker," he muttered under his breath and her eyes bulged out as though a saucer.

"Mujaheed!" She whined, "I'm now an attention seeker to you? That's fine, I'll get someone and show him my henna so he'll say it looks beautiful. Let me go to the officers out there by the gate." She was around the door when he pulled her backward and forced her to sit on the bed and he sat down beside her while he stifled his laughter.

"You know that's not what I said, Fareeda. It's just you jumping to conclusion without hearing fully what I said..."

She rolled her eyes, "It wasn't on your face-off you to say I saw it wrong, my ears are right incase you forgot."

He couldn't stop his laughter, "That's not what I mean, Fareeda, and you know it. I've told you times without number that our henna looks so beautiful, I love it." He kissed her hands and looked up at her, "You're so beautiful as well. What more do I ned to say?"

She stubbornly pouted her lips at him and he chuckled, "That I'm not an attention seeker."

"You aren't an attention seeker, Fareeda. You can have all my time and I promise to treat you like the queen that you are." She finally smiled and relaxed under his touch.

"Really? Then make me lay down on the bed, cover me with the duvet, supplicate for me and turn the lights off, this queen wants to sleep."

He looked at the bed devoid of her barriers and smiled, "Your barriers, I need to make them first, right?" She turned to her side on the bed and smiled before she turned at him.

"I don't think there's a need to, I trust you around me." She laughed at the pained expression he made.

"But I don't trust myself though, what do we have to do?" He asked and she laughed again.

"I want my pillow for today to be your chest, can this queen have what she wishes for?"

"Fareeda!" He whined, and she thew her head back and laughed, "You're making it hard on me, you know it."

"Come on, I'm sleepy, Mujaheed!" She giggled and pulled him toward her and Mujaheed knew it would only be a matter of a few days before he claimed his possession in Fareeda Kamal Sardauna.