It's honestly hard to ignore the glares Ameerah is sending Haneef across the table. Saleem is doing his best to make me and the other girls ignore her and of course, Haneef is sure enjoying himself with us but Ameerah, if I am to paint her as a cartoon figure right now, I'll make sure to add flames escaping all parts of her body.
She's fuming.
" I've honestly never tasted pancakes this good, they're so yummy" Saleem says from my side while chewing down a fork of chocolate pancakes. He ordered the same breakfast I ordered for, pancakes, sausages, a fruit bowl and tea.
Lipton with lots of milk.
"Here, open up" he says again, signalling for me to open my mouth and I quickly obey. Within seconds of waiting with my eyes closed, a chunk of pancakes rests in my mouth and I begin to happily chew down.
Saleem is so cute. " Aww, you eat like a baby" he says again and hastily plants a quick kiss on my cheek. Saleem is adorable and I can't help but love him more.
Immediately he turns back to face his meal, I quickly repeat his actions on me and watch his smile widen as my lips part his cheek. " Aww, I love you guys" Adama chirps and I blush while chewing down my food and facing my meal. " We love you guys, but please na, us that we're single don't make us feel worse" Candy adds with a nice smile and Saleem laughs a bit. " Don't worry, all your prince charmings are on their way" says Saleem.
" All their prince charmings are on their way, mine is already here" Juwairiyah isn't one to flaunt what she has, but I can see she is very ready to flaunt Reedo. " Ugh, abeg. Must you all tell us you have boyfriend" That's Tay Tay, she's been trying to bully us all through our breakfast but Saleem has been firing back her shots.
Her face right now is more than hilarious. " Tayibah, don't worry. You're a very beautiful woman, I'm sure guys are lining up for you" Saleem compliments and I watch my tough bestfriend blush. " you know babe, you're right. But the thing is she sends all her suitors away with punches or harsh words. The guy that'll win her heart will be someone that's savage enough to return her comebacks" I comment and Tayibah rolls her eyes.
" Well I hate to break it to you guys but as time goes on, all this romance stuff is going to wear off and you're going to want to call it quits" Ameerah says and everyone tilts their faces to look at her. " That can only happen if the person you're dating is selfish and a player. If they call it quits just because they're bored then if you really love them, you'll go out of your way to make them see why the two of you are meant to be, you'll do everything you can to win them back. If they don't come back after all your efforts, you kidnap them and get married to them by force" Haneef answers, eyes stuck on Ameerah.
" or you could just give up and move on with your life" Ameerah answers and I finally realise that they're talking about themselves. I wonder when and why they broke up, they sure would make a really nice couple.
But they both have a crazy mentality. I mean if someone breaks up with you just because they're tired of being with you, then they don't even love you at all. Why stress yourself trying to get them back?. " well, Haneef I really think that if someone breaks up with you because they're bored then they never really liked you in the first place. So there's no need to waste your time trying to win them back" Candelaria answers.
Someone with sense. " Well Candy, I'm sure you know the way girls and forming are like twins. A lady might just break up with you in the name of she being tired but truly, what she wants is to know how far her partner can go to get her back, how extremely romantic and mischievous he can get to win her back you know?"
" That's actually true" Tay Tay comments and Haneef continues. " If her partner really loves her, he'll do everything he can to get her back but if he doesn't, he'll leave her alone" Haneef replies and I use the opportunity to stare at Ameerah who's now trying to hold back a small smile on her face.
Okay all this is weird, she was just glaring at him a while ago. I wouldn't want to stress my mind out by thinking about what happened to these two so it's better to just hear what truly happened between them. " So where should we go next from here?" Saleem changes the topic and I hear Candy sigh heavily from the seat across me. She's happy Saleem changed the topic, I am too.
" There are a lot of fun things to do at the mall, you girls will certainly love it there" Haneef comments and Juwairiyah squeals out a loud " Yayyy".
" I want us to go somewhere else if you don't mind" Saleem whispers to me quietly and I nod, another date. " Sure, I'll just tell the girls that I'll be gone for a while"
" The whole day" He corrects. " Where are we even going to?"
" We're going to have fun, and I really want us to spend the day together. I'd rather spend the whole day touring the city with you than with your besties tagging along. We'll have tomorrow to spend with everyone but can today be for just us?" Saleem says politely and with a small smile, I nod at him.
I take my phone out from my bag and message my girls.
Zakiyah:
Guys, Saleem wants the two of us to go out for the day. I hope you don't mind🤗
Sent.
" I sent you two something, check your phone" I say to them and watch them take out their apple devices from their bags.
Tay Tay smiles a bit while reading the message and Juwairiyah doesn't look so happy.
Juwee:
If he takes you near a hotel, run for your life.
Oh my goodness.
Zakiyah:
Yes Ma'am.
Juwee:
Good
Tay Tay:
Promise you'll make it up to us tomorrow?
Zakiyah:
Sure, I'll make sure we snap pictures.
Juwee:
Yayyy, great. If we find anything nice at the mall, we'll get it for you. Besides, I'll love to get to know this Khairiyah's brother more. He seems pretty cool.
Tay Tay:
He looks cool, I think he has a thing with Ameerah.
I guess I'm not the only one that noticed that they were talking about themselves earlier.
Zakiyah:
Yeah, they're ex's.
Juwee:
No wonder
Tay Tay:
have any idea why they broke up?
Zakiyah:
None, but from what I've seen, I think one of them was tired of the relationship.
Tay Tay:
Yeah, should be Ameerah.
Zakiyah:
Well, thinking about them will probably stress us out so I'm guessing I and Saleem will head out now.
Juwee:
Ameerah sure let one hot stuff go.
Sha take care of yourselves Zaki, ensure you bring back goodies.
Zakiyah:
Ensure same.
" we can head out now" I whisper to Saleem by my side. " Alright"
" Well ladies, Haneef, my woman and I are going to be heading out for the day. You guys should take care of yourselves okay?" Saleem says and I hastily pick up my handbag from where it sat on the ground throughout breakfast. " Where are you guys going to?" Ameerah asks. " On a date" I answer as I get up from my seat. " Do you guys really have to go together, I mean I agreed to join you guys mainly so I could spend time with my in-law" Haneef asks, with eyes on me.
" You'll get more time bro, but today's for the both of us only. The rest of the girls are great company as well" Saleem answers and we watch Haneef sigh. " Of course, be careful okay?"
" Sure" Saleem answers and we bid everyone good bye before walking out of the cafe hand in hand.
" let's walk a bit, I'm glad you wore sneakers today" Saleem mentions as I look around the busy surrounding around me. The road is bustling with cars and the pedestrian walks are filled with people and tourists. " Me too, you know I put more effort into my outfit today, all because of you"
" you'll look beautiful in anything you wear" He answers as we continue walking on the well interlocked pedestrian road, hands intertwined. " You know Zakiyah, ever since I saw you in school, I looked forward to going on these kinds of dates with you, getting married to you and sharing everything I have with you. I looked forward to it all and God knows how I prayed for coming back to you and not meeting any problems" Saleem says, stopping so we can face each other.
" I've said this before and I'm willing to say it many many times just so you know how much I truly care about you. You're the only woman I've honestly fallen deeply for, there's no other woman I'll want to spend the rest of my life with other than you. I love you with everything I have and I'm willing to risk everything just to see you happy. I know everyone thinks us getting into a relationship now is hasty but God knows how long I've waited to be by your side and call you mine. You might not believe it when I say that I feel we're destined to be together, but that's what I feel and I'm sure it's true. There's a lot for us to unravel about each other and I know you're a good person, and so am I. Right from start, mummy told me that no woman wants to spend the rest of her life with a delinquent, a liar, a cheat and I made sure to shape myself well and try as much as possible to be good, to be good enough for you because you deserve the best Zakiyah. I love you soo sooo much, more than you can imagine" the way sincerity is laced in his voice brings tears to my eyes and I instantly wrap my arms around his waist, giving him the tightest of all hugs to ever exist in mankind.
I've never heard words this echt and unfeigned and I'm more than fortunate to have heard it come from someone I have intense feelings for. Feelings that aren't going to ever waiver. " I love you sooo soooooo much Saleem" I manage to say amidst tears of joy. " I love you more Zakiyah"
Saleem borrowed Haneef's driver for our day out together since Haneef is stuck with Omar and the other girls. Saleem says we're going to the Dubai Miracle Garden, I really can't wait to see what it's like.
" Babe, there are a lot of things for us to see today. Like Dubai is filled with lots of pretty places so I picked out the ones that are more romantic for us today. I promise you, we're going to have a great day" Saleem says and plants a kiss on my forehead. The fact he's doing all he can to please me makes the love I have for him enlarge.
Choosing Saleem to be mine can never be a bad idea.
On reaching the garden, I let my eyes stare in astonishment at the beauty and serenity of the flower statues surrounding me. This place is like a flower haven.
I've never imagined seeing such beauty or perfection. The flowers all look healthy, well kept and trimmed. They're of different colours and variants, thousands of them made into heart shaped canopies and statuses. It's all so amazing. The only words to use and describe this place are beautiful and amazing. . It's all a burst of colours that's making me appreciate the earth. The place is so serene and neat, it's not crowded and the masterpieces are simply just amazing.
Like wow.
The photos I and Saleem took is enough to keep all the memories I'll have here alive. Every nook and cranny of this place picturesque.
We got to eat delicious shawarma and something called shish taouk. It's like a chicken kebab on skewers that's spiced with yummy stuff and there's garlic dip for it. It was all so yummy. While waiting for Saleem to round up Salatul Zuhr, I got to take more pictures of the epic miracle garden and got us some cotton candy sticks.
" So where are we heading to now?" I ask as we walk side by side out of the miracle garden to where Haneef's driver parked his car. " What do you want to see?"
" Anything, like this place is full of pretty places. Where should we go?"
" Well let's go to an arcade and keep this big smile of yours blooming" Saleem says, pausing on his heels to face me and cup my cheeks. " Sure, my smile will keep on blooming as long as I'm spending time with you" I answer and I begin to notice his eyes watering up.
" What's wrong?, did I say anything wrong?" I ask, worry laced in my voice. " You didn't say anything, looking at you and remembering how long I've waited for you brings tears to my eyes honestly. You really don't know how much I love you" He answers, dabbing tears away from his eyes and I slowly wrap my arms around his waist, resting my head on his stomach.
It truly sucks to be short.
The arcade Saleem took me to, Magic Planet is in the Great Dubai mall and boy, there are tons of things to do here. Like you can literally get lost here, everything is so large and glittery.
And yes, fancy.
Very fancy.
We played lots of fun games together and Saleem got to win me a cute and small pink teddy bear, I know...
It's cliche
But I still really love it. I got to see the fun and joyous part of my boyfriend and I'm more than glad that I got that opportunity. He pouts everytime I win against him and literally dances happily when I let him win, he isn't even embarrassed to do such.
He's a bunch load of cuteness.
9:00pm and we're on our way back to our apartment after going to the movies to watch Jexi, Good Boys and Booksmart. We love to laugh and these movies helped a lot, most especially Jexi.
They were all hilarious but Jexi hit the right spot.
I've truly never been happier.
" So we'll see each other tomorrow?" I ask Saleem who's sitting in the cab that stopped right outside our residential tower. " Yes, we'll go out with your friends tomorrow. Text me where you guys want to go to tomorrow okay so I and Haneef will dress appropriately"
" Sure, I'll do that"
" Good, text me when you get to your apartment okay?"
" Okey dokey" I answer and again he places a small kiss on my forehead after I leaned closer to give him access to it from inside the cab, since I'm standing right outside of it.
After bidding Saleem goodbye, I walk through the reception to the nearest elevator. Immediately the elevator doors open up, a tall figure of Haneef reveals itself.
Everyone around me is tall, looking up while talking is starting to piss me off.
Real bad.
" Hey beautiful, you just parted ways with Saleem right?" He asks while stepping out of the elevator. " Yeah, we had a great day" I answer and notice the white shirt hoodie he's wearing, making memories of my smoothie splashing all over him the other day cloud my brain. " What happened to your Kaftan from that day?" I ask, folding my arms. " well I obviously took it to a dry cleaner"
" of course. Well I'm sorry for that actually, I didn't mean to" he deserves the apology. " I know you didn't mean to and I'm sorry for lashing out like that. I don't know how to control my anger sometimes, I was having a bad day then. Y'know that was the day your sister broke up with me" eyya. Maybe she could no longer stand his anger issues.
" oh no wonder. I'm sorry"
" It's okay and I know you're wondering why she broke up with me" oh, he reads minds. " and it's not because of my anger issues, she just sent me a breakup text just like that and up till date, I really don't know what her reason for breaking up with me is. Even after confronting her days later, she didn't give me a solid reason" Haneef adds, the sadness in his voice is so audible. " Should I try to......" I'm suddenly cut short as a kid running after a dog with lightning speed rushes towards us, accidentally pushing me to the tiled cold floor.
"Ouch" I wince from the slight pain on my ankle. " Are you okay?" Haneef asks with worry and I nod. " I'm so sorry miss" the kid yells to us from a distance, still trying to catch his dog. " I'm fine" I say to Haneef.
" Are you sure, you held your ankle in pain a while ago" he says again, trying to help me up from the floor. " Yeah it hurts a bit but it should be okay soon, it's just one of those small pains y'know" I answer as he helps me up and I close my eyes tightly from the sharp pain. I didn't think it'll hurt this much. " You're obviously in pain, come I'll help you up to your apartment" Haneef says and within the blink of an eye, I find myself being swiftly carried up and my arms wrapping around the neck of Haneef.
That was entirely uncalled for. " what are you doing?, put me down" I ask, struggling to ease out of his hold around my legs. " Don't struggle, I'd rather do this than watch you limp to your room. Besides, Saleem won't exactly be happy if he lets me leave you to limp" but this is so weird. " it's okay honestly, I'm fine" I say again, trying to shrink out of his hold but all my efforts seem to make him hold on to me tighter. " I might as well just tickle you into giving in" he says with a bright smile on his face, making me obliged to stare back at the beautiful masterpiece in front of me with a small smile as well.
The elevator door opens up and a figure of Ameerah comes in sight. This just got weirder. " What are you two doing?" She snaps instantly and of course you'd think Haneef would let go of me instantly, he didn't.
He instead, held on tighter. " Well she sprained her ankle and I'm just helping her to your apartment" He says, walking into the elevator with me in his arms to stand beside Ameerah. " You could've just helped her walk. Zakiyah come down, I'll help you to the apartment" Ameerah returns.
Her voice and expression writhed with jealousy.
" Well Haneef, I don't want to get in between the problems you two are sharing so please just let me down" I'm only being truthful. " No, there's nothing wrong with carrying you up like this. I don't care about what other people think, as long as I'm sure that Saleem is okay with this, who cares what other people think?" Ugh.
" Who says Saleem will be okay with having his girlfriend in the arms of his so called bestfriend?. Guy, put her down" ugh, it really is annoying to be light weighted and short. He legit carried me swiftly without any hassle and now, I can't slip out of his tight hold. I'd rather be any where than where I am now.
Ameerah obviously looks angry now. " What's your own problem now?, I'm trying to help your sister here"
" Are you serious Haneef, you can help her some other way, not like this. Don't touch her" Ameerah snaps, tears brimming up in her eyes. Ugh, I can't take this.
I scan Haneef's hand for a fleshy part and successfully, I find a fresh skin ( his hand) and pinch him instantly.
That simple act made him let go of his hold around me immediately after the sudden pain that I sent his way. Luckily, the elevator doors open up and I slip out immediately. I want nothing to do with their drama abeg.
But a question keeps on floating around my mind.
Ameerah broke up with him without any valid reason.....
So why was she about cry when I was in his arms a while ago?
There's a whole lot that happened between those two and really, I'd rather my peace of mind than having to get answers to my questions.