Architect and Mrs Dantata

36: ZAYD

It's natural to smile back. "What?"

"Alessia said Jason was moved by our wedding. So, he's getting a ring today. He's going to propose to Diana just as the clock strikes midnight on New Year."

That's - Wow! "That's nice, Amal."

"It is!"

I caught glimpses of Jason and Diana during their graduation last year and during the wedding. They're the perfect definition of two people meant to be together. I'm glad Amal and I were able to inspire Jason to take the next step.

"I know Diana is going to push for a small wedding," Amal continues. "But she better have me on her bridal train. Unless there's something stopping me from going, I'll be there and I'll make sure my camera stays in her face."

The mental image is funny. "Why are you like this?"

"You love me either way."

I don't even bother to deny it. "I do."

She leans in, her voice dropping. "Good, because I love you too."

The kiss she gives me starts out gentle and innocent until she decides to take things further. I pull back, trying to stop her because I know how exhausted she was this morning. She smiles at me, her hands on both my cheeks. "I'll be okay, Zayd."

I can't help but hesitate which causes her to chuckle. She leans in once again, her next words throwing my hesitation out the window. "I promise."

Much, much later, we go down for what ends up being brunch because, as Amal puts it, it's too late for breakfast and too early for lunch. We opt for hot chocolate instead of coffee and when we're done, Amal pulls me with her to show me every single place she explored on her own yesterday while I went back to sleep after Asr.

Giessbach is like a winter fairytale in real life and I'm glad we came here instead of going to Forgolio. Amal tells everyone who bothers to listen that we're newlyweds on our honeymoon and while it makes my cheeks burn when older locals get so happy for us, it does earn us freebies and easy access into certain places. The best part? It makes Amal glow like never before; as though she's the sun and the rest of us are stars trying to be as bright as she is.

When we're asked if we'll be part of the New Year countdown, Amal makes the impromptu decision for us and says yes which makes the questioners happy. It makes me happy too. By the time we return to our suite, pray and then head down for dinner, I'm even more certain that being married to Amal is the best thing.

I'll always be grateful for it.

~*~

Amal and I spend the rest of our honeymoon jumping from place to place and living out of our suitcases, getting a first class feel of the thrill world explorers feel.

We go from exploring Brienz in Switzerland to visiting contemporary art galleries and museums in Saint Paul-de-Vence and then getting a taste of the glamorous Cannes in France. We catch live performances and hop from one restaurant and shopping mall to another in Madrid before passing through Stiges and Barcelona in Spain. Our next stop is Portugal where we tour the Belem Tower and cruise along the Tagus River in Lisbon before getting a quick tour of Porto and then finishing it off with Sintra which, in my opinion, gives a better fairytale experience than going to Disney; especially with the castles that give an idea of how the royals once lived.

We then move to Ireland and we stick to staying in Clifden, spending hours indoors instead of actually going out to tour. In the UK we tour and stay in Skye, Scotland. We end up going to Aberdeen because Amal missed it, not having come to the city after Mahmud graduated from med school. She disturbs him with pictures of the both of us in the city he spent years in and we both laugh when Mahmud blocks her for a few hours.