Patsy (the victim)

33

The night seem long for Zahra'u,
She's not someone that like changes and knowing right opposite her bedroom is a man with an estranged personality doesn't help, she glance at her daughter who's sleeping peacefully enjoying the cold room temperature of the AC and sigh,
She sit upright and grab her phone.

1am, she sigh and come down from the bed , she grab her veil and exit bedroom, she quietly tiptoe to the kitchen not wanting to make any sound, she open the pot and the food is still there, bilal hasn't eat, Zahra'u wonder if he eat at all, for the past few hours she's in the house she hasn't seen him eating, he spend the entire day in his bedroom, she close the pot with a sigh and can't help but wonder what he's doing now, she grab the case of water and exit the kitchen,

The silhouette figure sitting in the parlour is what makes her cringe her eyes in confusion and quickly turn on the light.

"Bilal." Zahra'u call, he have his gaze strain to the wall as if reading something so important, she walk to him and glance at him.

"Why are you sitting in the dark?" Zahra'u ask worriedly and scared at thesame time.

"Why haven't you eat?" She ask but all he does is stare, Zahra'u would swear he didn't blink not even for a sec, she sigh and stand confuse.

If only she can read minds, she thought and sigh.

"Bilal should i bring you food?" She ask and for the first time he turn his gaze to her.

For Bilal he find it rather odd for someone to care about him, for the past 2years his dad has brought girls, he lost count of them both none of them seems to care, they rather treat him like an animal, scared while looking at him and always maintaining a healthy distance as if that can prevent him from hurting them if he want but there's something different about the lady that walk in that morning, he could see her from the window when mika'il walk her to the door, if he hasn't gone out for a while he do swear to have seen her somewhere, perhaps it's just his hazy imagination.

"Bilal." Zahra'u call slightly touching him on the shoulder and the look he give her makes her quickly raise her hand.

"Do you want food?" Zahra'u ask worriedly, she will rather get used to this man personality because at the end of the day he's her husband.

Bilal watch as she walk to the kitchen and he turn his gaze back to wall,
Nights are always long for him, sleep is impossible for him because the memories of his past hunt him down whenever he close his eyes shut,
There are days where he spend the entire day crying as if that will erase the memories or that will heal him,
For bilal his life comes to a halt after a single mistake, A mistake that he believe will hunt him down even in his grave.

"Bilal tea." Zahra'u say but there's just something about her voice that upset him and he violently push the mug from his face sending it flying to the ground and Zahra'u give him a weird look.

She sigh and pick the broken mug before heading back to the kitchen, she turn some of the jellof rice into a plate and set it in the microwave before grabbing the rag and head back to the now empty parlour, she clean the floor and head back to the kitchen.

Pacing in the bedroom bilal stare at the sketch, why did she looks like her?he thought studying the many sketch of thesame lady trying to find any difference but it's impossible, he crumble all the sketch in anger and destroy the entire table out of frustration.

"Bilal." Thesame voice he hate to hear call knocking on the door.

"Your foo....he doesn't let her finish her sentence he storm to the door, savagely swinging it open sending the plate flying out of Zahra'u hand.