ENSHROUDED

22

But on days the stars smile at ours

I speak to Allah in a cheerful tone

And shamelessly as Him to make us one

He knows of our good and bad days

The days I feel like plucking out my

Heart to wash you away

And days even this bridge between us

Seems nothing but a mere line to me

He knows the amount of love

I have for you that even you don't

I love you so much-Dr, Allah hears that a lot

Aisha U. Faruk.

Nasir placed down the frame and this time, his tears successfully rushed down to his cheeks. Aisha had been the most amazing person he had ever seen or met in his life. She spoke volumes in his life that no one ever did. And all this was going down the drainage. To admire her from afar would be a sin. He would be a married woman, prohibited to every man in the world, himself inclusive.

He unfolded the letter and watched in awe at the drawing she did, above whatever it is she had written. 'Happy Birthday, Dr Aisha loves you.' She wrote the words in such beautiful calligraphy that Nasir seemed to be amazed. This wasn't the same as that on his phone case, that was done by a calligrapher. But this, she put her little heart to it.

He felt warm within.

Happy Birthday once again, Dr As much as I hate to say this, I'm crying while writing this to you. I can't believe you're leaving tomorrow, and asking you to stay would be so selfish of me, Dr But what do I have to do other than cry it all out? We will be fine like you've said.

I shouldn't wallow too much in pain, right? This is a happy day, we should at least fake it even if it can't be real. Have you seen the poem on the frame? I'm improving, right? I want to be a very good poet, Dr Being a poet is a priceless feeling. You get to write out whatever it is that is eating you up in just a few stanzas, and you'll feel happy all over again. It's safe to say it's a therapy.

I have two poems for you now, I wrote to them the night before. You're the only fan I have. No one had ever seen one of my poems, not even Fatima. Before I write to them, know that I love you and will forever do, Dr No matter what happens to you, count me in. Cheers to 25 years of life! I pray to Allah to give you the strength to pull through this. You're a strong man, it's just a phase and trial from the almightly. Let's embrace it. Like you said, the sad ones first, so you'll smile at last.

Hopeless, that I am

With no words to describe how I felt

How I felt when the glass I took care of

Landed on the floor before my eyes

How I felt when my last drop of water

Got sucked up by the sand

And here I stand, crestfallen

Watching things I thought would be there;

Shattered and slowly failing

I had hope for us

For the man between us to take a step back

The smile on his face to vanish

The echo of his laughter to get bored to our ears

I had hoped from your eyes

The looks you and I could only relate to