ﻭَﻟْﻴَﺴْﺘَﻌْﻔِﻒِ ٱﻟَّﺬِﻳﻦَ ﻻَ ﻳَﺠِﺪُﻭﻥَ ﻧِﻜَﺎﺣًﺎ ﺣَﺘَّﻰٰ ﻳُﻐْﻨِﻴَﻬُﻢُ ٱﻟﻠَّﻪُ ﻣِﻦ ﻓَﻀْﻠِﻪِۦ ۗ

"Let those who find not the wherewithal for marriage keep themselves chaste, until Allah gives them means out of His grace."

* * *

The breeze swept the curtains aside, allowing the rays of the sun to filter through the window and illuminate the cozy room. The wind blew past her hair, causing  a few stray strands to fall onto her face. She frowned as she moved them aside.

A  pen was held in her hand and her favourite notebook rested on her lap. She spilled the emotions of her heart onto the paper. The pages that were a mirror of her feelings  protected the deepest secrets that resided in the depths of  her heart.

Yusaira was never an open book , never one who openly expressed her feelings. Many a times people misunderstood her silence to be mistrust for them, they never understood was that she just could never share some things. She prefered some things to reside in the recesses of her heart. Never to be evident to the eager ears of people. She prefered to be the quiet, introvert, that was never noticed in a crowd. She despised being the centre of attention.

Despite her being the shy girl that she was , she had a strong mind and a firm heart. A person who had her resolutions set out. She was a girl who would abide by the rules. A girl who had her goals set out in life, determined to cross the obstacles and reach her destination. She would tread that path with steadfastness, no matter the obstacle  that obstructed her way. 

As she jotted down the emotions that lay hidden deep within the crevices of her heart , she failed to hear the constant knocking on her door.

  Finally , a loud knock that reverberated through out the room brought her out of her reverie.

Startled, she threw her abaya over her casual jeans and butterfly top.
She swung the door open , revealing her foster brother Laaeeq, who gave her a sheepish smile.

She glanced at the rose gold clock above her bed, just as the needle struck eight o clock.

Surprised that her brother was awake so early and that also on a Saturday morning , she turned back to him, her brows raised in question.

" And how are you awake so early?!"

"Umm couldn't really sleep sis ...", he trailed off , as he scratched the back of his head awkwardly.

Yusaira looked at him intently, noticing the dark circles under his eyes, probably due to lack of sleep. The worry lines that marred his forehead. On close inspection, she saw the glint of fear was evident in his hazel eyes.

Worry surged through her body.
A hundred thoughts flashed through her mind. Something was troubling her brother and she hadn't noticed it before. He was always her rock of support in times of distress, and she had no idea that he was drowning in worry.

Realising that Laeeq was uncomfortable under her scrutinizing gaze, without another word, she ushered for him to come into the room and closed the door softly behind her.

Laeeq sat on her bed , his back resting against the suede headboard.
He mindlessly tossed a cushion from one hand to the other, a frown painted on his face. He was deep in thought, his gaze lowered.

Yusaira sat on the edge of the bed, and  silently observed her brother's disturbed expressions. She never forced him to speak, she waited patiently, until he spoke his mind.

Laaeeq mused whether or not to share his troubled thoughts with his sister. He knew he could trust her , he knew she wouldn't judge him, yet for some unknown reason, he was unable to form the scattered words in his mind onto a verbal sentence.

Laeeq threw the cushion aside, then began fiddling with his fingers.  After a few agonizing moments of silence, he dropped his hands on his lap and huffed in annoyance, finally meeting Yusaira's scrutinizing gaze.

"I ...I need to talk to you about something ."
He finally managed to state the obvious.

"That much I gathered."
Yusairah nodded, beckoning for him to continue.

Laeeq sighed, he didn't even know why he was making a big deal out of this, it wasn't such a bad thing ....or was it ?

"While it's not such a serious thing , or atleast I think it isn't ... I don't know why I've been stressing about this !"

"Go on, I'm all ears."

Laeeq glanced at her, hesitation evident in his speech.
"Well you see there's this girl..."

As soon as Yusairah heard this, her brows shot up, and her eyes sparkled in amusement. This was not the reaction she wanted to display if her brother was confessing that he was communicating with some non mahram girl, or worse, head over heels for her, but she was amused.

He had always been the one they looked up to, his shy nature and abstinence from the opposite gender was something she had admired.

Laeeq shook his head , reading her thoughts.

"It's not what you think , I'm not communicating with any non mahram girl! I'm not in love with one and I don't have a girl friend!"
He carified, glaring at her.

"Okay , okay !"
She raised her hands in surrender.
The corners of her lips twitched into a smile.

"There's this girl, she's in my class. Last week some time, I was late for class. While  scurrying down the hall as fast as I could. I heard someone screaming my name. Not recognising the voice, I stopped and saw an unfamiliar Muslim girl, dressed modestly in an abaya and black scarf running behind me. When she reached me she was out of breath , and she looked fearful.
I think I even noticed her eyes were teary. I Quickly lowered my gaze and turned around , intending to head back to class, but she asked me to wait. Annoyed at the girl I turned around again, not making eye contact with her.  While I glared at the ground, I asked her what she wanted from me.

She told me that she needed my help and that some guy in our class was troubling her, she explained that she was highly embarrassed to ask me for help, but she was afraid to ask anyone else, because she knew I was one of the very few Muslim boys that was decent and modest and would assist her.

For some reason I knew she was speaking the truth, but I refused to assist her and even blamed her for using excuses to try to get my  attention, and I walked away.

After that day I haven't seen her at school and it's eating me inside.
I feel really bad now, what if she was speaking the truth and what if something terrible happened to her , whereas I could have helped her out. It troubles me that I judged her, but on the other hand, the only reason I didn't pay heed to her was because I wanted to protect my gaze and keep my distance from the opposite gender !"
He sighed in defeat.

Yusairah gave him a sympathetic look. Feeling guilty for thinking otherwise, she hugged him to console his guilty conciense.

After she pulled away , she thwacked his head.

"Ow what was that for !" He glared at her, rubbing his head.

"That was for judging an innocent girl. Also it was for deflating your ego and aroogance, how dare you think a girl would fake a story to get your attention. While you are very handsome, let me tell you this my dear brother, there are many other much more good looking guys  than you. And thirdly it was because you didn't use your brains! You could have told me to speak to the girl , find out if she's okay."

"Jeez thanks ...you just added to the load of guilt!" Laeeq slumped his shoulders.

She gave him a sympathetic look.
"Well I tell it like it is. I'm not going to make you feel better if you're the one that's wrong. You are wrong, you have to accept that you are and fix it."

"So what do you suggest I do ?"

Yusairah thought for a moment.

"Find out where this girl lives, and I will go and pay her a visit. In Sha Allah she will be okay. I shall also apologise on your behalf and befriend her, and I will also grantee that if there's someone that troubles her again you will make sure to deal with it."

At this Laeeq glared at her.

"She's not my responsibility. Secondly don't you think for me to find out where she lives will be creepy , or it will give the wrong impression. If she has any brothers they will think I'm stalking her."

" Firstly she is not your responsibility that's true, but you have to help a Muslim in distress and by helping her you don't have to communicate with her. She can always tell me her troubles. Besides you owe it to her."

"Fine!" He agreed , rolling his eyes.

"Don't worry about getting her address. I will get it " Yusairah  concluded, putting her brother at ease.

" What a wonderful sister I have !"
He gave his sister a sweet smile , happily hopping off of the bed.

"Thanks sister !" He made his way to the door.

"It's Jazakillahu Kahiran. And anytime dear brother. oh yes ! What will be my payment for helping you out ?" She placed her hands on her hips.

"Lots of rewards in the hereafter!"
Laeeq smiled sweetly.

"Aameen . Aameen. May Allah accept. What I meant was what will you gift me with?"

Laeeq feigned an annoyed sigh.
"Fine state your wish and it shall be fulfilled. "

"Ah ha that's what I like to hear ! A double treat is what I would like , so that means Krispy Kreme and Haagen Daas in one night, or maybe starbucks coffee instead since the weather is getting nippy now."

Laeeq shook his head.
"Your demands shall be granted , just be forewarned that the previously mentioned places are very addictive and there's chances of you returning looking like a truck !"

Yusairah chortled with laughter.
"That's okay Bro for good food, I will chance it. "

"That's not food that is pure junk."

"A girls haven!"  Yusairah beamed.

"Oh maybe we can take that girl along with us for a treat, what is her name by the way?" She gave Laaeeq a menacing grin.

"No way ! and I don't know what's her name. "

Her face fell. " So how exactly are we going to know where she lives ?"

He shrugged." I guess we have to wait for her to return to school......" he trailed off, thinking of another option.

"I guess so."

After Laaeq left her room , she decided to clean up her room and change into something warmer.

She went over to her window , shuting it, the cold wind causing chills to travel down her spine. Once done , she ambled down the stairs, intending to make a delicious breakfast for her family.

Mentally planning what to make, she settled on pancakes with Marple and golden syrup , with a dash of cinnamon, and sliced strawberries. Omelets, that comprised of diced onion,tomatoe and polony, sliced mushroom, a dash of coriander and pounded green chillis, a few pinches of spices, and a splash of milk, complimented with creamy mozzarella cheese , and a sprig of rosemary. She decided to make mango combined with banana smoothie, as well as pineapple combined with strawberry and kiwi, and of course for her coffeholic brother , well brewed frothy coffee just the way he prefered it.

She spent her morning as she would every Saturday, preparing breakfast for her family who would  be awoken by the divine aroma that spread through out the house. Not long after they would devour it, continuously complenting her as well as appreciating her sweet gestures.
She would smile in response flushed due to all the attention.

The wind whipped his face as the car raced past various buildings. Suhaib stared out of the window,deep in tbought. He could hear the chatter of his friends but, he zoned out of their conversation.

Suhaib wondered what was the matter with his sister , she had always been one of less talk and she prefered solitude as her companion. She was a hard shell to crack, but she was still seen happy and in a good mood the few times she decided to free herself from hibernating in her room.

Lately she had been awfully quiter and aloof than normal. First he thought she was experiencing her monthly mood swing, but when she refused to go to school  and presented feeble excuses, he knew something was on her mind.

She was never one to skip a day of school. She achieved a hundred percent attendance award every year and her studies were always her first priority.

Unfortunately having the personality she had, she never did share a close bond with any of her siblings, not even Suhaib and Zahra who were the most liked in the family and who could  be trusted blindly.All his  siblings besides Taeeba knew their secrests would be safe with their older siblings, and they knew for sure they would advise them and try to guide them.

He hated that she kept so much to herself, to the extent  that she even refused to let her own blood in. He had endured enough of her silence, the worry was gnawed at his heart, disturbing his peace.

Today he would try and win over his sisters trust, he would assure her that he was there for her and always would be, and that he deeply cared for her even though she never believed or acknowledged it.

When the tires of the car came to a screeching halt, he snapped out of his reverie. Without looking up he gathered his books on his lap together and slung his bag on his shoulder , only to look up and realise they were not outside his home, rather they were parked alongside  a dark alleyway, he had never been to this part of the city. Heck no wonder he hadn't this place looked shady and spooky, like a place that  only gangsters and drunkards would hang out at. Before he could ask for an explanation, his friends jumped off the car and headed towards a buff, built man, Suhaib handn't noticed he was standing beside the alley. He had a dark, cold look on his face, he wore a sleeveless hoody, the hood covered his hair and a fraction of his forehead, his muscular arms filled with tattoos of all sorts, his skin concealed beneath the layer of tattoos, his beady eyes stared directly at Suhaib, as if ready to pounce on him, sending a shiver down his spine.

Realisation dawned upon him, he knew that his friends were not good company but it had never crossed his mind that they were involved in drugs, or perhaps worse part of a dangerous gang. Horrified at the sudden revelation, his heart began beating erratically, he didn't want to be dragged into this mess, he didn't want to be known to be a bad boy just because he hung out with boys that were deviated, but at the same time he didn't want to leave them drowning in a world of deception, immersing themselves in harmful and illegal acts, it was his duty to prohibit them from such serious forbidden things, as a true friend he decided to stick with them and try to talk some sense into them, even if it meant that his status and reputation in the locality would diminish. As long as he was sincere and Allah will always know what his true intentions of befriending them would be. 

The trio jumped into the car, their respective packages stuffed into their pockets, not bothering to explain the reason for their stop, they headed to Suhaib's house, for they knew he was intellegent enough to understand what they were involved in, and they were also well aware that if they told him right now they would have to brace themselves for another lecture.
He had chosen to keep his tongue at bay for now and they had chosen to remain silent as well, Suhaib with the intention of reforming them into better people, and his friends intended to deviate him in a skifull and deceptive way. Only fate would make known which of the two opposing intentions would overpower the other in reality.

Assalamualaykum dear readers. I hope you all are in the best of health.

So finally after a very long time this book is continued, and we will complete it together in Sha Allah.

How was this update ?

Has the writing in this chapter improved compared to the previous three chapters?

What is your opinion regarding Laeeq , did he do the right thing by ignoring the girl or should he have atleast  listened to her first?

Do you think Suhaib will be able to convince Taeeba to confide in him or will Yusairah attempt to do it first?

What's your opinion do you think Suhaib will be able to change his friends for the better or will his friends turn him from the good admirable boy , to a good boy gone bad?

More importantly do you think Taeeba will be a means of Suhaib and Yusairah meeting very soon , or will they meet by some other means in the future.