So Much For Love

Chapter Twenty

The morning was bleak and it wasn’t due to the cold dry weather outside, but because Hauwa hadn’t had a decent sleep. It wasn’t until the last part of the night that she fell in to a deep slumber, only to be woken up by the clinking of utensils from inside their kitchen.

Inna had always been an early person and had made it a norm for the family to be up before dawn to prepare for the morning prayers. Malam was the imam after all. 

She sat on her sleeping mat properly and scanned the semi dark room. The temperature of the room had dropped considerably, indicating that the last of the coal had turned to ash completely in the saucer.

Gaji village weather had always been extremely hot and sunny during summer and incredibly cold and windy during winter. It made her not want to venture outside at that time.

She spotted Zainab, whom had curled up on her mat all covered up for more warmth. Zainab had always been reluctant to get out at the early hours of the morning during winter.

Sometimes she performed her ablution inside the room with warm water.
Hauwa knew they didn’t have to worry about the cold outside. Inna will soon replenish their ash-laden saucer with fresh supply of coal once she had the fire going in the kitchen.

Thinking of Inna, she’d noticed Asma’u’s absence on her sleeping mat and her heart slipped in to despair. Their mother was out there, trying her best to provide for and take care of them, when unbeknown to her, her daughter had probably left the house on a foolish sojourn to Allah knows where. One daughter was getting divorced and another was leaving!

How much could a mother endure?

She knew for certain that Inna wasn’t informed about Asma’u’s decisions. If only she knew, she wouldn’t allow the irrational idea form or even take roots in her head.

They wouldn’t have allowed it either. But she’d only dropped her plans on them like a nuclear bomb the previous night.

She sighed. There wasn’t any need to get herself all worked up over something she had no control over. She’d made up her mind to clean up the mess Asma’u’s disappearance would cause their parents. It was her duty. But as at then, she needed to drag herself out of bed to help out in the kitchen.

As she opened the door, the cold wind hissed at her face, snarling around the house. She seriously contemplated getting back to the little warmth the room provided, but decided against it.

Inna needed her assistance. Plus she needed to get the warm water they would use to perform their ablutions.
There was fire burning under the three-legged metal stove and Inna’s hot water pot nestled atop it. From the looks of it, the fire hadn’t been lit for long. She’d have to use the cold water instead to ease herself in the bathroom and perform the ablution.  Zainab had always considered that act as suicidal.

Ten minutes later, she went back in to room. Zainab still lay on her mat. She knew for sure that she wasn’t sleeping; in fact, she’d hardly gotten any from all indications. She must be musing over what Asma’u had said to her.

Zainab wasn’t one to sulk for long, but she wouldn’t be surprised if she still held grudges over last night’s spat. She hoped she would come around soon.

She was performing the nawafil prayer when, as usual, Malam passed by their room, clearing his throat. He did that all the time, whether out of habit or just maybe, he wanted to announce his passing by. Whichever was the case, the gruff voice helped soothe them, made them, well, feel secured.