Aisha stepped into the room. The sound of the door being swung open snapped Rahma out of her trance. The quad looked up, their lips curling into smiles when they noticed who it is. Aisha, just like Zarah and Rahma looked stunning in the anko the three had for the wedding. The only difference between them was that she along with Juwy had their veils bigger than the other two since the two are married women.

She and Tahir got married a month after Rahma was released.

She gasped when her gaze fell on Ameerah, her lips curling into a wide grin, "Masha Allah! Zawjatu akhi you look stunning!"

The friends nodded in agreement.

"She looks stunning but this girl eh...There's not a single drop of tear in her eyes!" Juwy exclaimed for the umpteenth time.

Rahma chuckled, shaking her head in the process. "Why do you care so much about this ne kam?"

Juwy scoffed, rolling her eyes. "If not children of this generation how is it that you won't cry on your wedding day?"

"Don't mind her" Ameerah said, "She's just angry because I made fun of her when she cried on her wedding day"

This made the others laugh, except Juwy who rolled her eyes mumbling stuff about how unfair it is that Ameerah made fun of her but she couldn't return the favor.

"Don't worry" Rahma said to Juwy, "I have a feeling she'll cry soon" Her eyes met that of Zarah who nodded in agreement. The look they shared indicated that what she said meant more than what the rest assumed, yet no one made a move to ask for an explanation.

Aisha glanced at the wristwatch strapped around her wrist. She then looked up, "The groom will be here soon. You should get changed, I'll retouch your makeup. Yalla!" She held her sister in law's hand and pulled her up.

Ameerah chuckled at Aisha before she shook her head, "Let me pray first". She picked up her a hijab and headed to the restroom so she could perform ablution.

Juwy leaned back on the bed, keeping her gaze on Aisha. "As the groom's sister, shouldn't you be home helping your mom?"

"Nah" Aisha shook her head, placing her bag on the bed, "Today, I'm the bride's friend not the groom's sister. She and I grew up together fah"

Rahma parted her lips to say something, when a knock on the door stopped her midway. Her brows drew in, wondering who it could be.

"I'll check" Zarah said, standing up. She picked up her veil and put it on before heading to the door. The rest quietly waited for her return.

After a couple of minutes, Zarah returned. "Girls put on your veils, let's head out and wait first"

"Who is it?" Aisha asked, brows knitted.

Rahma's gaze met Zarah, she quietly nodded in understanding. She knew who it was, as so did Juwy which is why she didn't ask too. Rahma moved her gaze to Aisha, offering her a smile. "We'll tell you outside. Let's just go"

Aisha shrugged, taking her veil too. Together, they all left the room.

Ameerah came out after performing the ablution, clad in her floor length hijab. Fixing the hijab, she spoke, "How come you girls are quiet—" She looked up, stopping midway when her gaze fell on the people there.

She stumbled backwards, hands falling by her side. With her mouth hung open, and heart beating wildly, she gulped, suddenly feeling dizzy. "Inna? Baba?" Her voice came out barely above a whisper as she stared at the aging faces of her birth parents.

~*~

"Are they really her birth parents?" Aisha asked, blinking rapidly.

The others nodded.

"How did you guys find them?"

Zarah sighed, "I kept contact with them all these years. They saved my life after all. Mubarak had been looking for them too but he couldn't find it. And when I found out, I told him the truth so he just helped me take care of them the past couple of years. That's why..." She moved her gaze to Rahma, "...I was sure he'd help you with your case back then. Because he owes me one"

Rahma shifted her gaze to the room who flinched away due to the intensity of the glare, "So you owe her yet you were forming for me back then"

Mubarak who arrived a couple of minutes earlier along with his friends chuckled. "I would've helped you eventually, I just wanted to see how far you could go with your blackmailing" He air quoted the word blackmailing.

Rahma scoffed, narrowing her eyes at him in slits, "You should be thankful it's your wedding day else I would've sent you to meet our grandparents in the grave" She threatened, making the others laugh.

Over the past year, they had all gotten used to her bickering with her new found cousin. Since Alhaji Saminu, his father, and her uncle considers and treat her as a daughter, they considered each other siblings, along with Aisha. And that means they bicker like siblings too, all the time.

"Bro..." Mubarak patted his friend beside him on the shoulder, "It's not too late to run away. You see the woman you want to marry ko? She's even threatening me on my wedding day"

His friend, and partner at work simply chuckled. "Don't worry, I can manage"

This made Rahma stuck her tongue out at Mubarak who rolled his eyes, glaring at his friend muttering something about betraying their bro code. As if he wasn't the one getting married that day.

"But wait!" Aisha who was still confused by the new revelation spoke up, catching their attention, "How come none of you told Ameerah about her parents before till now?"

Zarah sighed, crossing her arms, "With everything going on with her back then, it was best she didn't know. Besides, they wanted to wait too. They didn't exactly believe us when we told them about her. It took a while of convincing" She shook her head, "Fulani people and their stubbornness"

This made Mubarak and Aisha glare at her playfully, "We're Fulani too, you know?" Aisha said.

"But at least you left Yola and moved to Kebbi"

Aisha knew that wouldn't justify Zarah's words, yet decided to not say anything about it. She simply chuckled and shook her head.

"I'm hungry" The guy sitting beside Rahma said all of the sudden.

Rahma glared at him, "You're always hungry, Noah!"

Noah scoffed, "I didn't eat breakfast now. This groom wouldn't let any of us live in peace"

"He's right" Tahir said, "I've never seen the groom that disturbs his friends on his wedding day like Mubarak did" He used his fingers to rub his eyelids, trying to get rid of the sleep that he didn't get thanks to Mubarak.

"Sai kace akansa aka fara aure" Noah muttered, making Rahma chuckle at him.

"You should stop speaking Hausa. Your pronunciations are all wrong" She get that he grew up abroad, but he'd been living in Nigeria since he started working. He ought to be able to speak it correctly, especially since all his friends are Hausa but for some reason, he's still having a hard time.

Noah narrowed his eyes at her, but said nothing. He was simply happy just by having her casually speak to him like that. It took a while for them to get back to the way they were before especially after everything that happened. He's just thankful that he made the right decision back then by admitting the truth.

27th October, 2017.

The Court of Appeals.

"I killed him" Noah said, answering the first question Zarah asked him.

"You killed your father?"

Noah nodded, lips set into a tight line.

"Why?" Zarah rose a brow.

Noah stared at nothing in particular, hands intertwined. "When I woke up that night I heard him yelling a someone. For as long as I can remember I hated one thing about him the most, the way he yelled at my mother. Who would like seeing their mother constantly being yelled at and abused? When I came out, I saw him trying to hit Maria, so I tried to help her..." He trailed off. He still didn't believe how come he didn't notice his mother back then. Perhaps it was because the minute he stepped in the scene, she found a place and hid.

Lena hid because she didn't want him to see her, yet she stayed close ready to step in and do anything necessary if he tries to touch her son.

Noah inhaled deeply, the continued. "...For the first time in my life he tried to hit me. I didn't care, even though I knew it's meant for Maria and not me. But I couldn't stand it. All the memories I had of my mother was ruined by that of him abusing her. And I didn't want to let him take Maria away from me too. She's the only mother figure I had in life, how could I bear to lose her too?"

"What happened afterwards?"

"He tried to hit me again..." He stopped. He honestly couldn't remember every detail of the night. It was dark and so long, his memory was fuzzy. "Somehow amidst of them fighting, I wanted to help her. I wanted to defend her because id didn't want to lose another mother. I looked around for anything to help me and...that was when my hand landed on the knife" He took in a sharp breath. He didn't need to continue further; they all knew what happened afterwards.

But it was self-defense. He was only trying to defend himself and his mother. Despite everything, he didn't regret his actions. He would do it again if it meant he'll save his mother. And that was why he's willing to accept any punishment against him.

"So instead of facing the consequence of your actions, you framed Rabia?"

His eyes shot up immediately. He shook his head, "No...of course not! I could never do that to her. I really do consider her a sister to me. How could I do that?"

"Then did Maria frame her for you?"

He nodded. That's the one reason he hated her all these years. He was willing to face the consequence of his action but because of the bizarre decision she made, someone ended up taking the blame for something he did. He should've done something to stop her that night, but he was too stunned to do that. How else was he supposed to react after killing someone? The person he had known as a father his whole life?

He was in too much shock to react. And when he did regain his senses the next day, it was too late. Maria had already called the cops and Rahma was being arrested. That was why he cried that day. He didn't cry because he lost a father. No, he cried for the sister that's going to pay for the actions he did. He was in too much embarrassment to face her.

That's why he didn't visit her along with Maria, nor did he in ten years. How else would he be able to face her?

Even if he testified, it wouldn't have helped. All evidence pointed at her. Besides, he had no idea that Maria framed her for everything till he woke up the next day, willing to face what he did only to see all evidence being pointed at her.

"Why..." Zarah's voice snapped him out of his trance, "...would Maria do that for you?"

Noah looked up, swallowing thickly. That is a question he wished Zarah wouldn't ask. She knew the answer already since she was the one that found them and convinced he and Lena to testify. And in a way he understood the reason for her to ask in court. Yet, he wished she didn't ask that. Even he was finding it hard to accept the truth. He flickered his eyes close, "Because she's my birth mother" His voice came out low, but due to the microphone, everyone heard him.

"Hey!" Rahma snapped her fingers infront of him, trying to gain his attention.

Noah blinked, suddenly realizing that he spaced out while thinking of the past. "You were saying?"

"Do you want to eat now? Because by the looks of it, we'll have to wait for the bride for long. It'll take her a while to accept seeing her parents again"

Noah nodded. Rahma then asked a girl who was willing to get him and the others the food. After hearing what they wanted to eat, the girl and a couple of others left to bring it.

Once they were gone, everyone returned to their conversation, making the living be filled with chatters again.

"Tell me..." Rahma spoke up, making Noah snap his gaze to her, "...You were thinking of her, weren't you?" She didn't need to mention her name; they both know who she's talking about.

Noah sighed, looking down. He nodded, "I still find it hard to believe. Yet, thinking about all the things she did for me back then, it made sense"

Rahma offered him a small, reassuring smile, "Don't beat yourself up, I'm sure she understood how you felt"

"Did she?" He shook his head again, "Rahma I was so rude towards her. Honestly, after everything we did to you, I'm not sure if I deserve to talk about her with you" He left out the part that he'll forever be thankful that she forgave him when he was pardoned by the court because they viewed what he did as self-defense. Lena gave testimonies about how her husband really was an abusive person, that coped with hospital records of her back then when she got treatment because of how much he hurt her.

That along with other circumstances proved that Noah killed the man out of self-defense. If it was another person in Rahma's shoes, he or she wouldn't have agreed to forgive Noah after everything he did. Yet, she forgave him.

She didn't see the need to stay angry at someone. She had held in so much anger for a decade already, she didn't want to hold any more anger in her. Besides, Allah forgives His servants when we make mistakes, who is she to not forgive another?

Noah already did everything required of him islamically after murdering someone, there was no need to stay angry at him for long again. Besides, she wanted her brother back.

Rahma sighed. She didn't know for how long more she has to have that same conversation with Noah. "Noah I've told you before, it's all the past. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here. That's what siblings are for, right?" Granted, they are only siblings on paper but the two still considered themselves siblings. They only had each other.

Even if she's not Rabia Malik anymore. She wouldn't trade the relations she created as Rabia for anything.

Rabia was her past. Rahma is her present.

That's why she didn't change her name again. Just as Zarah changed her name form Rahma Saleh to Zarah Gwalabe, she changed hers from Rabia Malik to Rahma Turaki.

To her, Rahma is and will forever be the strongest person she knows. So, she's remain grateful for having such a name as hers. It reminded her of the friend she has, her past that craved her into who she is, and her future that she's looking forward to living. A future where she could be happy.

"Noah..." She called out again, seeing as he's still not convinced. He had been blaming himself for the way he treated his birth mother before she passed away since the day Lena told him the truth. "She is your mother, and that means she understood how you felt. I can't justify her action for not telling you the truth, but, I'm sure that as a mother, she forgives you. Honestly Noah, I don't think there's any good mother that would hold a grudge against her child till her last breath. She left you a letter, remember?"

Noah still refused to raise his head up and look at her. He knew which letter he's referring to. The letter had been in his possession since the day Maria died yet he hadn't had the confidence to open it yet. He was simply too scared to do so. At first, after she died, he was too angry. Now, he was simply too scared.

She sighed, seeing as he wasn't willing to budge. "Do you trust me, Noah?"

He snapped his head up, staring at her as if she had grown two heads. "Of course I do"

"Then trust me when I say, you should read the letter when you're ready. I'm sure you won't regret it. Okay?"

He stared at her for a while, before he eventually nodded; his shoulders sagging. He offered her a small, barely visible smile. "Okay. I will in shaa Allah"

The food arrived shortly after, and the ones that asked for it ate it up. Eventually, Aisha left to help Ameerah once her father left, leaving Ameerah along with her mother. The others waited for the bride to make an appearance, especially Mubarak who couldn't wait to see his wife.

"Well, here comes the bride!" Aisha exclaimed, making her way into the living room where the others are.

Ameerah came into view shortly after, looking stunning as ever. However, her eyes were still red, indicating how much she cried. Juwy resisted the urge to laugh at the girl. Despite the circumstance, she was happy that Ameerah cried at last!

Ameerah on the other hand made her way over to Zarah, pulling into a hug. When she pulled back, she had tears in her eyes. "Thank you" Her gaze moved to Rahma who stood beside them with a smile. She reached out and held Rahma's hands. "Thank you both so much for this. May Allah reward you abundantly. Allah raba ku da duniya lafiya" She said, the tears in her eyes cascading down her cheeks.

Zarah patted her shoulder. "Don't cry Ameerah, it's nothing Allah"

"Yeah" Rahma agreed. "Don't cry kinji, else you'll look ugly. And if you look ugly, Mubarak wouldn't want you again" She teased, making them all laugh.

"Thank you" Ameerah repeated, offering them both grins. She knew no amount of gratitude will repay them for everything they did to her. Yet, she knew she could never stop thanking them.

"You're welcome" Zarah smiled.

Ameerah then walked away from them and headed towards her husband.

Zarah glanced at Rahma with her hands folded over her torso. "This is the beginning of forever for them, right?"

Rahma sighed, a grin plastered on her face as she stared the familiar faces of everyone she had come to know. "It's the beginning of forever for everyone" She muttered.

"Not for us though" Zarah said, making Rahma snap her gaze to her, "We still one more thing left to do before we completely move on"

THE END.

For real this time, it's the end!

Epilogue coming up!

Love, Jannah.