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Nabeela

A knock sounds on my door just after my fajr alarm rings, so I walk to the door, i peep and its definitely Adeel from the silhouette I'm seeing. I open the door to face him.

"Good morning." He nods.

"Come to the prayer room after your ablution, we'll pray together." I stare at him and nod eventually. When did we start praying together or waking each other for prayers?

I slowly wash up and wear my pink khimaar over a black Jilbab and pad sleepily to the beautiful prayer room.

Immediately after praying, I move my mat to the shelf to lean my back on it and pull out my Quran from the shelf and begin to recite quietly. A nightmare woke me just before my alarm did, so, I'm in no shape to go back to sleep.

After one surah, I close the Holy book and place it back. Only to find Adeel watching me from behind. His phone in his hand.

"You recite so beautifully, Ma Sha Allah." I nod and walk out of the room, the unexpected compliment making me loose balance a bit.

"Thank you." I say at the door and walk back to my room taking off my Khimaar on the way and unbuttoning my Jilbab.

I walk into my closet to pick out what to wear to the opening of Maama's restaurant. I scan through the racks and pick out a pair of blue jeans, a heavy silk grey kimono and a plain black tee, a white cotton scarf as a topper. I settle back in bed and pull my grey covers over my body.

Just as I drift off, a knock sounds. I groan lowly and shout for the knocker to come in.

"Beela." Adeel, allow me to sleep.

"Yes?" He sits at the edge of my bed and spreads his feet. I watch him from where I'm lying.

His eyes go to my set out clothes sitting on the chair of my vanity mirror.

"Is that what you are wearing?" I nod and he nods in return.

"I'd like to correct an impression." What impression?

"Is everything okay?" I ask. He nods again.

"This marriage, this thing between us." He waves a beautiful fair finger between us, his ring glinting in the soft lighting. "Is more than the physical, its beyond the physical aspect." I cock my head in question.

"I mean, in this marriage, I intend to be your friend, your lover and husband, everything. In due time." He smiles.

"And when we do broach the physical aspect of our relationship, you'll be thinking of just me and only me." I smother a smirk at his cockiness and nod. He gets up and pats my head before walking away and I lean back into the comfort of my bed.

What just happened?

*******

I climb down the stairs at ten thirty am exactly. Adeel is sitting on the throne chair in the bigger living room, working on something on his personal computer.

I walk over, sit in front of him and watch him round up his work when a honk sounds outside. The driver honks louder and Adeel turns off his PC before walking outside with me.

We walk to a four wheel drive idling on the driveway. As we approach Mu'adh Dikko hops out of the front passenger seat into the back seat, Ajike beckons me into the passenger seat Mu'adh just vacated.

"Asalam Alaykum sweetie." I hug her over the console.

Adeel has gotten into the back seat beside Mu'adh Dikko and slammed the door shut.

"Walaikum salam Umm Fawad." She revs the engine and puts the vehicle on reverse.

"How are the kids." She looks in the mirror with a pout before replying me.

"Fawady and Khay Khay went to school while Teemah is with my mom. So for today." She spreads out her hands for a second, returning them to the wheel immediately. "I'm one free mama, free to do as I please. The only thing that would make this day better is to cut this car into two and the both of us can run into the afternoon."

I laugh out loud drawing the attention of Adeel and Mu'adh. I laugh out louder again at the expression on their faces.

"Who doesn't want to be free?" I ask thoughtfully. Thinking of the nightmares that have plagued my existence since I was twenty. Since I married that bastard from hell.

She manoeuvres the vehicle onto the main road smoothly, looking in her mirror over and over.

"Zeenah came to see me yesterday. Told me that Safiyya's mother poisoned herself and her adopted daughter. How true is that?" She whispers, I sigh and look out of the window.

"She was poisoned by my mother." She looks at me in shock and question, so I explain all that transpired to her.

"Innalilahi. I thought your mother just had a little issue, now I know its full blown." She shakes her head as we park, it has been a full one hour of driving.

"Ready to go rock this party?" Ajike asks and the discussants stop their hushed discussions and get out of the car with us. They walk in immediately.

Ajike adjusts her sparkly beige abaya and turns this way and that in front if the car tinted windows.

"I don't look like a mother of three, do I?" I shake my head in silent laughter, she grabs her black bag and walks with me to the door, Adeel and Mu'adh had left earlier to find our seats.

We walk through the flower perfumed entrance and take a couple of pictures. We give our name to the hostess and she directs us to where. Adeel and Mu'adh are waiting.

I feel like I'm on a double date.

Soon enough we order and start to eat, Adeel and I choose the chef's special.

We begun eating after a few minutes and Maama comes over. I hug her and thank her for the meal. The restaurant feels like a place from one of those Arabian themed restaurants with its flower decorations and table incense.

"Let's go to the powder room Affy. I'm going to see my mother in law and I feel like my lip stick has disappeared." We both get up and I dust off the crumbs of the toast I had earlier.

We walk to the powder room of the toilet, painted in dark blue and walled mirrors all round. She whirls in my direction in anger.

"Sit down there." I sit and watch as she paces around.

"Where did you have the accident?" Accident?

"I didn't have an accident fa." I spread out my hands. My abaya sleeves billow with the effort.

"The one that got you the brain damage that has made you blind to Adeels mooning." Oh, that.

"I can't say exactly what he feels for me is genuine, so, I'm just watching." I say in a tone I pray is offhand.

"Watching and overlooking abi? Wehdone ma." She bows in front of me with a mocking expression. I look at the hand dryer for kids near the chair I'm seating on.

"Its not what you think Umm Fawad. Walahi, I'm scared. I've never been truly loved before, what if I confuse the emotions?" She sits next to me and begins to rub my back gently.

"That man is obviously in love with you, he'd do anything for you Affy, anything at all. So, look beyond the face and see the actions. OK?" I nod somberly and she stands up to the mirror and begins to apply plum red lipstick.

"Do you have some talc powder and some tissue?" She nods and brings out a small talc compact and some tissue.

I begin a secret process to keeping lipstick looking as chic as though it was freshly applied.

"So whose idea was it to twin in grey." I squint at her, I don't know what she's talking about.

"So, you are telling me that you didn't see that Adeel wore a grey T-shirt over his jeans. Oh My Allah." I look away again. No wonder he asked me if I was wearing those earlier.

I shake my head and she looks me up and down in rapid movements.

"You need cane. Wallah."

"Umm Fawad." She raises a hand to halt my words. I hold my lips like a child, subdued.

*******

How was it?

Ajike should open a love radar business😸😎😎😹😹🙊🙊

Thank you all for 15k reads, God bless you. I love you.

Thank you to Aduke for the new cover.

This chapter is for someone, she knows herself. I couldn't tag her 😪😪.

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