MAYBE IN ANOTHER LIFE

THE ONE WHERE MARYAM GETS OVER ABDUL

In that moment, I thought to myself, "I have become a statistic—a hopeless romantic, another page in the 'I fell for a married man' book." A million thoughts were racing through my mind; at that moment, I probably looked like a deer caught in headlights. I couldn't even take my eyes off another woman's husband.

"Subahanallah! Oh, ni Maryam, what have I gotten myself into this time around?" I thought to myself. Then I actually looked at him. Abdul looked at me with his head slightly tilted, like he wasn't sure where he knew me from. As for me, I knew it was him. He was my Abdul. It was almost like I was drowning in his scent, almost like he was trying to figure out where he knew me from but was distracted by the boy bouncing on my lap, arms outstretched, waiting for his dad to pick him up.

"Come here, my boy," he cooed. His voice sounded even silkier than the other night. It was almost like I was intruding on a very private moment between father and child. The crazy thing was I had never been attracted to him the way I was at that moment, looking at him in what seemed to be his element. What I thought would be the final nail in my coffin was Kauthar saying, "Toh sannu, Ajmal, you reserve all your giggles for Dada koh."

I turned away to pick up the twins. Adil, the independent baby that he is, was insisting on walking on his own, so I gave him a finger to hold onto while I picked up his sister, Manal. I was about to walk away, leaving the happy family in their own little world.

"Thank you for looking after him," Kauthar said, stopping me in my tracks. Before I could answer her, my phone rang. I mouthed a sorry, indicating that I had to take the call. I placed the phone on my ear and used my shoulder to keep it propped while I walked back to my office with the munchkins. Upon picking up, Hawwa immediately got into a rant about my role in Aslam's latest attempt at winning her over. I remember making up an excuse to get out of the conversation, promising to call her back. I spent a bit of time cleaning up and packing our stuff while the munchkins snacked on some cut-up fruits their mum had packed for them. I called Mallam Shehu, letting him know to bring the car around; we would be coming out soon.

The ride home was quiet. The twins napped while I got lost in thought about the entire situation with Abdul. Seeing him felt like an out-of-body experience. I had never seen him before then. I didn't even get a glimpse of him the night before. But the minute I heard the voice, I knew without a doubt that the tall, beautiful, dark specimen standing before me was the man of my dreams (I know I might be exaggerating a bit). I made a stop at Aisha's house to drop them off and maybe talk to someone about it.

We both got to work, giving them their baths and getting them dressed for bed. Aisha chalked it up to a crush, and at that time, it made sense, and I agreed. She was right; it was an intense infatuation and nothing more. That's the only reason to explain the intensity of the situation. I steered the conversation away from me and asked about the new project she was working on with her husband, Ahmad. They were both architects running a very successful architecture firm, and there was always something new happening at their site. She immediately delved into a mini-rant about her work. I stayed for about an hour before I decided to take my leave.

On the way back home, I told myself that this would be the last time I let myself think about Abdul, and maybe I should redirect my energy elsewhere. I wasn't doing anybody any good acting like a crazy, scorned ex-lover when I was never even in the picture. I picked up my phone and deleted the message, just like that. It was like it never happened.

THURSDAY, 10TH MARCH 2022

With Abdul out of the picture, I decided to give Hammad a chance, and everything was going really well. I had spent the past two months pouring everything I had into opening up a new branch for just the café in Gwarinpa. I spent a lot of time with Hammad during that time, and I got to know him better. He was still very quiet, but he made up for it by always being there. He would show up for me always, and I guess I could live with that. He had mentioned a couple of times that he felt I was holding back a part of me. I knew what he was talking about, but I wasn't sure how to fix it.

I had just finished walking through the site with Aisha. We were discussing some changes and adjustments that needed to be made, and we decided to grab lunch with the girls. They had texted us prior, but I didn't think we would finish on time. We left Ahmad to deal with the rest of the work, and I drove us to the restaurant to meet up with the girls. I forgot my phone in the car, so I told her to go on without me; I would be right up.

Almost on cue, I started walking towards the entrance after getting my phone, and I bumped into Aslam, whom I hadn't seen since the night of Nafisa's birthday. I heard from Hawwa that he had been out of town, but I didn't know he was back yet, so I was quite shocked to see him.

"Maryam, where have you been?" he exclaimed.

"Very busy with work," I replied curtly. I was a little upset with him. I couldn't believe he gave my number to Abdul without giving me a heads up about his marital situation. He looked like he wanted to say more, but I cut him off. "I have to leave now; I am having lunch with the girls upstairs." Without waiting for an answer, I pushed past him and walked away.

I met Rumaisa, Halima, Nafisa, and Ayra in university. We all met during our first year and have been inseparable ever since. We would meet up twice a month to catch up or just talk and rant about what goes on in our lives. I made my way upstairs to find Rumaisa telling the girls what Ismail was up to again. It was always something with those two.

"Rumaisa and her husband are back at it, koh," I announced teasingly as I dragged my seat out to join them.

"Why are you guys on my case? What about Maryam and her new man, Hammad?" Rumaisa exclaimed, and I flushed instantly. They knew about him. That wasn't what had them looking at me with a cheeky look on their faces. Rather, it was the fact that I was very insistent that I didn't want to spend the rest of my life with him, yet here I was giving him what looked like a shot.

Before I could even get into things, thankfully, the waiter appeared to take our orders. They waited for me as we continued to talk about anything and everything going on in our lives. Hawwa was doing her online master's classes under human rights law while simultaneously working with a renowned organization for women. Ayra, who had been out of the country for a while now, had just finished her master's and had just gotten a job working at the World Health Organization. Halima and Nafisa were halfway through their housemanship, and Nafisa was the only one from the friend group that was married. My money was on Halima to get married next. Rumaisa, the psychologist who majored in forensic psychology, got a job with the EFCC and has been blooming. I know she's been talking about going somewhere that her work would be more appreciated.

Lunch went by without a hitch. Ahmad picked Aisha up, and I decided to surprise Hammad with some food. I was trying to put in more effort; he was the one always starting the romantic gestures. By the time I got to his workplace and made my way to his office, I asked his assistant if she was free. She informed me that he was inside with his cousin Abba, and because it wasn't my first time coming over, she asked me if I would want to go in. I politely declined and left the food there. I told her it would be enough for two, and I drove home.

When I got home, I spent some time with my mum. We chatted, laughed, and shared stories about our day. I cherished these moments with her, the comfort of home. I remember that day being the quiet before the storm.

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DEAR LOVELIES

Thank you for keeping up with me. I know I promised yall something really juicy for chapter 3 but after careful consideration I think the suspense is good for you guys!!!!! lots of kisses and love

MWAH