Nikkah

21

The same day, at night.
Zoya had sprayed her perfume in all corners of the room, which made it scent elegantly with jasmine fragrance. After she kept the bottle back in its place, Aryaan returned, and she ran quickly to hug him.

"You're back,"

"I am."

She knows when he isn't happy, and after pulling away, she peeked into his tired face.

"Why are you sad? Is it because you'll never meet Zarah again?" She teased him while maintaining her small smile, but that only got him more offended, as he shared,

"I'm sad because you don't trust me. I told you there was nothing between us."

"I know. I trust you," she sincerely replied.

"No, you don't. Had there been trust between us, you wouldn't have met her secretly without my knowledge. You won't have threatened her with her life to stay away from me. She told me everything, and to be honest, I was not happy with how you behaved." He moved his eyes from her face and walked past her.

"Why will Zarah share what we discussed?" To her, it was hypocritical. She then sighed, not wanting to give any attention to that at the moment but to pacify her husband.

"I met her because..." she wanted to explain her side, while he cut in, not in the mood to listen in fear that he might say something that she may not like.

"You don't trust me. I know," he said as he sat on the bed.

"I believed there was nothing between you both. When I went to check on your father, by accident, I met her. I asked whether she was single or not. She said she was and that she was searching. Every woman in my place would have done what I did. I asked her what qualities she was looking for in her life partner, and she started describing your personality. She even gave an example with your name. Aryaan! She said if you were a rich man, nothing in the world would stop you both from being together since the religion permits four wives. She doesn't even care that you are married. I don't know if she has told you all this or if she only told you things that kept her in the good light." She stared at his deep gaze, which was trying to analyse whether she was telling the truth, and although she made half the story up, she confidently remained looking at him with innocent and soft eyes.

"Okay, let it be." At the end, he believed her and sighed.

"But can I ask you a question? Do you promise to answer honestly?" His sudden seriousness made her wonder what he wanted to know, but she nodded her head slowly in approval.

"If, by any chance, I know it won't happen, but let's assume it does, I marry another wife, and..."

Before he finished, tears gathered and rolled from her eyes, and she turned from his side, holding her chest, which was beating rapidly at his unexpected question.

"Zoya!" He immediately sprang to his feet and went over to her while she cried, and in a whisper, she warned him,

"I won't mind being submissive to you at any time of the day, but if you bring another woman into our lives, be certain that will result in my death. Don't forget what you told me back at my home in Agra. You said whoever will add another wife after me is an ungrateful soul that doesn't realise the type of blessing God bestowed on him through me. Don't be that ungrateful soul. I know I'll die with the arrival of another woman in your life, but I'll make sure before going that I take you along. If you can't be mine alone, I promise you can't be anyone else's. If we can't reunite in the world or Jannah, we'll surely reunite in Jahannam."

He became speechless with her anger and the words that she uttered, which she didn't seem to care about.

"One more thing. If you think you can go behind my back and marry someone else without my knowledge to prevent the storm that will occur, believe me, you're wrong. I will turn the world upside down to take your life and mine. I won't endure any pain silently because I don't know how to do that. Understand that I will never share you with someone else," she boldly notified him.

When he regained his words, even though he was still frozen from shock and a bit scared at how much she loves him, he managed to tell her, "Don't turn yourself into a kafir for me. I don't deserve it. If I marry again and you kill us, there will be no way we'll reunite in the afterlife. My sins will automatically be yours while I'll be freed from them."

She cried louder as she concluded that he brought up the topic because he wanted to remarry. Her heart ploughed strongly in her chest to push open because it felt like someone had cut it in half.

"It's love. My love is pure, and I want to give it all to you. Despite my aunt's constant warnings to me that I shouldn't marry you, I still went ahead and did. We are living happily with each other. Except for you, I have no one else by my side. She has never answered my phone call since after our wedding, when she informed me they had reached Agra. Your mother doesn't speak to me either. Sanam ended our friendship. Ahil thinks I'm the reason his mom is upset with him. If you leave me, I have nowhere to go. I have no family. No home. I have no one." Her trembling hands managed to hold onto his hands, and she lowered her head, still crying, not able to withhold the burden that suddenly dropped in her heart and made it feel heavy.

"You're so stupid, you know? I don't know if it is your brain that isn't functioning well or if you intentionally made it not to. I said, Let's assume, even though it will never happen. Why do you think I'll ever leave you for someone else? I'll build my home with you, in sha Allah. After you, there will be no one. Even I won't attempt to marry again, knowing it will be the reason for my death." He proceeded to hug her, although she was still crying in his arms.

"Will it only be you and me forever?" She wanted to ascertain if she heard him right.

"You, me, and our kids, in sha Allah," his words provided her with more relief, even lifting the burden that had descended in her heart.

"Don't ask me such a question again, Aryaan. I'm not strong for it." She drew back, and he nodded obediently because he was also slightly scared of her anger.

"Tell me how many kids you want." He tried to change the topic so that she would be as happy as she always was and become herself fully again, which successfully worked because she smiled and forgot what just transpired.

"Tell me how many kids you want," she replied to his question.

"Will six be enough? Or seven?" He wrapped his hands around her waist while she chuckled a bit.

"Isn't that too much?"

"For me, it isn't. I will work hard to see all of them have a good future," he confided, but this time she laughed in response because seven or six were just so much. On the other hand, he smiled because his aim was to make her laugh, and seeing that, he was satisfied and delighted.

"Six it is," she shrugged.

"No. Seven, and tonight, we'll try to make the first one." He was already holding her close, but he brought her even closer while she blushed and bowed her head as his lips tried to capture hers.

••••

A woman turns on his Qur'anic recitation on her mobile.

••••

Two months later.
Aryaan and Azaan were in his office when he brought up the topic.

"The election is around the corner. Are you ready to..."

"I told you I'm not interested in politics. It's a dirty game that makes us blind and unable to differentiate right from wrong." His voice stated with his complete disinterest.

"But we had decided a few months ago. I need someone trustworthy who will bring back the throne to my family. After Father's death, it was given to another family. We need it back, Aryaan. You're the only person I can trust with this task. We'll make you the chief minister of Delhi in front of the people, but behind the wall, I will be the man giving the final verdict."

"I don't understand why I have to be included. You want it. You want your rules to be followed, so why won't you openly tell the people you'll contest? Why bring an indirect rule?"

He chuckled briefly with a sigh. "They have all my bad records in check. The moment they notice I've started making moves to compete for it, they'll stone me back to the floor. Already, we have so many competitive parties. It won't take them long before they erase my party from the list. But if we make you our new face, no one would suspect you and I are in cahoots."

"From what I understood, you want to use me as a medium to get the position for yourself. I may be sitting on the chair, but it will."

"No! You're getting me wrong. Certainly, you'll rule. All I want from you when that day arrives is permission. Permission that will let me do anything in the state without limitation, and we'll be good. If that happens, both you and I will benefit."

He refused to be part of the plan that led to them exchanging heavy words with one another, each reminding the other of the favours they'd done to each other in the past.

"Okay! I get that you don't want it. I'll respect your opinion." Azaan at last gave in.

"Thank you."

••••

A few days later,
Azaan and Zarah entered the printing department, and a man came, whom they followed into the room that had so many posters printed.

"In a few seconds, the new face of our party will be revealed," he shared with joy.

"It's you, right? That explains your happiness," she said, but when the man took one of the posters and showed them, her jaw dropped open, and she froze.

"No, no. Not possible. Him?" she asked, still not able to believe what her eyes were looking at.

"Place it everywhere in the city. Broadcast it publicly. Radio, television, and newspapers. His name and face should be out. This is the man we're submitting as the face of our party. The next stage will be how to win the election," he shared ambitiously.

"As you command. Thousands of these posters will be printed. By tomorrow evening, his face will be the new paint on the walls." The man answered.

"We won't make silent moves anymore. I'll only rest after I become victorious, Zarah. It will happen soon. That day is nearing."

She nodded slowly and then excused herself because she wasn't able to wrap her head around how it happened.

••••

Zoya took the mug of tea that she had prepared that Aryaan had finished into the kitchen, but before she returned, he had already gotten into bed and covered himself, as he was very exhausted. Seeing the room dark after she went back, she quietly lay next to him and asked him,

"Have I done something?" because if she did, she wouldn't be able to sleep until they'd sorted it out.

"No. I'm just tired. Can we talk tomorrow?" A yawn followed after his reply. She wanted to tell him one last thing, ahead of it happening because that was the right thing to do, and so she shared,

"We're moving out tomorrow. I've decided to forgive my uncle for my parents' deaths. I need a family I can rely on in times of need. Moreover, keeping you away from them won't bring back my lost family. Your mother wasn't at fault, yet she is being punished with him. Sanam and Ahil too. I'm keeping their brother away from them. They don't even visit us because they're upset with me. I want to end that bitterness in our relationship." She gave him a few seconds to respond, and when she didn't hear anything, she called his name.

"Aryaan!" There was no response, and she sighed, realising he had already slept.

"I'll tell him tomorrow morning then," she said, closing her eyes, not after moving to snuggle with him, to which he also wrapped his hands around her. She smiled at his soft and adorable snores that were coming from him before she also drifted into a slumber.

On the table, his phone moved in its place as it vibrated due to an incoming call from his mother. After it ended, Sanam's call buzzed for a while, and then Ahil's. Meanwhile, both of them couldn't hear it because the phone was in silent mode. His phone continued to ring, so did hers, which was charging on the floor from her aunt.

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