—————Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur.
—————————3:30Pm
I kept on staring at my phone in the conference room as I received Faryah's text message saying we could meet in a park some minutes after I called her in the morning.
I couldn't wait to see my wife, even though she wasn't going to bring my daughter, I could still see her.
I was happy and excited.
I was in a meeting that started by 2:00pm. They were using this opportunity of my arrival to their city to show me an app proposal to promote Olyster Textiles. I wasn't paying much attention as I kept staring at my phone over and over again just to be sure that I was going to meet Faryah by 5:00pm.
" That concludes the meeting for today, any questions?" The person presenting the app called, snapping me out of my thoughts. " Sir do you have any questions?" He asked me in particular. " Oh no none, in fact I love this app, it's going to promote our business. Good Job" I said and the people in the conference room clapped and I smiled at them. I looked at Zarah that sat beside me, she was looking at me intently. I just hoped she wasn't plotting anything against me in that tiny head of hers or maybe she was admiring my good looks.
" I can leave you here if you want me to?" I said as I got up from where I sat to give our partners a good handshake. " I'm so sorry, I zoned out, we're leaving now?" She asked and I nodded as she greeted our partners as well. " We're so glad you liked the app, we worked very hard for it" A man said as I shook him. " It's my pleasure, I can't wait for it to be released to the public" I said and smiled at him again. He was probably the head of the organization, Loga Apps. " Thank you very much sir, we'll send you all the files you need to sign to your secretary" he replied and I nodded. " Good, we'll take our leave now, thank you so much for your hospitality"
" Okay, Goodbye" He answered and I smiled as I walked out of the conference room with Zahra behind me.
" What were you thinking about?" I asked as we walked out of the company, to the parking lot. " Nothing important" she answered as I unlocked my car and we both got in. " That's the only meeting you have today" she said. She didn't look as happy and annoying as she was yesterday. She looked down. I noticed that from when I picked her up at her hotel. " what's wrong?, you've been moody since morning" I asked as I started the engine. " it's nothing, don't worry and why do you care?" She asked as she rolled her eyes and put her laptop in her bag.
" whatever" I answered as I drove out of the parking area. " How's your mother?"
" why do you care?" Hah!
I watched her smirk and roll her eyes. I typed in the address Faryah sent to me into my maps and I watched as it displayed my results. I was 30 minutes away from the park and there was a mall adjacent it. I could get something for my daughter there.
" why're you going to the Central City Park, ohh can I come along, I've heard how beautiful it is" She squealed and I rolled my eyes at her again. " we didn't come for a vacation"
" Then why're you going?"
" It's honestly not your business" I answered and heard her sigh.
My mind ran through ideas of what I could get my daughter. A toy car, a doll or something. I needed a feminine view on this. " Hey, what do you think I can get for an 8 months old baby, you know as a gift to remember me by?" I asked Zahra and waited to hear her response.
" Why are you asking me that?" I shouldn't have expected a polite answer. " Don't worry" I answered and heard her groan. " A fluffy teddy bear, a doll or something, you're on your way to the mall for that?" She asked and I nodded my head. " sweet, I'll come along with you please, besides you've never been here before so you'll get lost" she said and smirked at me. " You've been here before?"
" Yeap, I studied here. High school, lot's of beautiful memories" she answered as she looked out the window. " That I want to forget" I heard her whisper sadly before turning to look at me.
Why did I feel like she was going through a lot. Family crisis?.
" How're your parents?" I asked and watched her mood change. " They're both in a better place, May Allah Forgive them for all their sins" She said. What was so special about Allah?.
He wasn't there for me and my mother when we needed him and still yet people believed in him. " You still believe in him after he took your parents away from you?" I asked.
" what kind of question is that, he took them because it was their time to leave" She answered. " He hurt you"
" What's wrong with you, Allah(SWT) never hurts his followers, he tests them, he tests their Iman and blesses them, if he hadn't taken them away I wouldn't be where I am now"
" Do you like where you are now?, are you proud of where you are now?" I asked again. " Stop your car, the hell stop this car. I am not going to listen to you talk nonsense, you know he gave you life right?" She snapped. " He gave me a life to suffer"
" Stop your car right now, I can't deal with you anymore" She snapped. I wasn't stopping for any reason.
" look I didn't mean to annoy you.." she cut me off. " In my life, I've always prayed to never ever encounter this kind of situation but here I am now"
" Congrats?" I said and she hissed. " look, Mr Olyster, Allah is the exceedingly merciful and the much forgiving, no matter how much your sins pile up and how much haram deeds you commit, he is the only one that has the ability to forgive you because he is the Almighty. Look, do you know something, The angel of death is watching you right now, ready to take your soul at any moment all he needs is a Go signal from Allah and that's it you're gone. You know you can die at any moment, because Allah said Verily, every soul shall taste death and are you prepared for that?, are you?, all you think about is this worldly life but this life isn't important at all, we were placed on earth so we would be able to serve our lord and Shaytan has successfully led a lot of Allah's slaves astray, but it's never too late for them to repent and ask for Allah's forgiveness, he will forgive you if you ask sincerely, we all want the highest rank of Paradise but are we working hard for it enough?, no body knows Mr Olyster. And that is why we need to ask for his forgiveness and repent at all times, think about it, what happened to you happened for a reason Mr Olyster, we just have to endure because only Allah knows best, only him" I understood her. I understood honestly but like she said I needed to ask for forgiveness sincerely, and that sincerity to acknowledge Allah again wasn't in me. I was still very much hurt.
" we'll go the mall and you'll help me get some stuff" I said after a few seconds of silence. " You can just run away from the topic like cowards do" she answered and adjusted her sit. " I'm only trying to avoid arguing with you" I answered. " If you want to avoid arguing with me, do not say anything bad about Allah" She said and I nodded. " I'm hungry" she added. " Good, let's get to the mall" I called as I drove faster.
Malaysia was a beautiful city. Modern and nice. A commercial town with beautiful people.
" I really missed the malls here" she squealed as we got down from my car. " Uhmm, hey look I am sorry for the way I snapped at you back in the car, I only wanted you to know the truth, I don't know what you went through back then so, I'm sorry" Did she just apologize to me.
" you just apologized"
" Don't make me take it back" She said as she sent me a death glare and walked into the mall and I followed her with her laugh.
" So tell me about you" I asked as we walked side by side in the mall. It was quite busy, ladies were mostly around the place. " What do you want to know?" She asked as we both looked around. " You"
" wow how specific" she said and rolled her eyes at me. " aww, look they have cute dresses in that store, I'm going in" she squealed. " hey wait, I need something for an 8 months old baby" I said as I stopped her from running away from me. " Fine, let's go to the second floor, I got something for my cute cousin in a store there" She said as we walked to the escalator. " They have many adorable stuffs, I just hope that they're still here, I mean it's been years" She added as we climbed the ascending stairs. " Whose baby are you getting a toy for, is it a girl or a boy?"
" it's a girl" I answered. She didn't need to know who the baby was. " oh so is she your daughter?" She asked again and I shook my head. " you sure?" She asked again and I nodded. " if you say so"
We got off the escalator on the second floor and I stood firmly beside Zarah.
" I need to get a new camera" she said again as we walked past a computer store. " you kind of destroyed the one I had" she added and I tilted my head to the side to carefully look at her.
" excuse me?"
" yes, I fell from the fright of being hit by your car and my camera fell to the ground, and it damaged a chip inside, it doesn't turn on anymore" She answered. " I see, we'll get ya a new one" I answered. " Good, there the store is still around, come on" she said as she pointed towards a toyshop. Mindy Toys.
" Assalamu Alaykum" she greeted as we answered and an Old man in the store was revealed to us behind the counter. " Wa'alaykumussalam oh, ini awak, siapa nama awak lagi? ( oh, it's you, what's your name again?)" I heard him ask her as they spoke their language. "ini saya, Zahra( It's me Zahra)" she answered and I almost scratched my head in confusion. " ya Zahra, sudah lama, apa khabar?( yes Zahra, it's been a long time, how're you?)" I was confused. " Saya baik-baik saja Paman, apa khabar ?, bagaimana perniagaan?( I'm fine uncle, how're you?, how's the business?)" she was the one talking now. " Saya baik-baik saja, perniagaannya bagus tetapi tidak lama lagi saya akan tutup( I'm fine, the business is good but I'll soon be closing down)" he answered her. I was getting tired of waiting. " apa kenapa?( what, why?)"
" baik, lelaki tua ini kehabisan wang, tiada pelanggan( well this old man is running out of money, no customers)"
"tssk tssk, oh tidak, apa yang anda akan buat sekarang?( tssk tssk, oh no, what'll you do now?)"
"Saya akan bersara dan mencari pekerjaan kecil lain yang akan membantu saya bertahan, siapakah pemuda tampan ini?( I'll retire and find some other small scale job that'll help me survive, who's this handsome young man?)" I looked around the store. The toys here didn't look modern, they were old and simple. I looked around and my eyes cut a very cute purple teddy bear. It looked so fluffy and nice. Something a baby would always want around them.
" adakah dia suamimu?( is he your husband?)"he asked again. I was honestly getting tired of standing and watching them like a dummy. " hahhhha, neraka tidak Paman, dia bos saya, dia datang untuk mendapatkan sesuatu yang comel untuk bayi, berusia 8 bulan( hahhha, hell no uncle, he's my boss, he came to get something cute for a baby, 8 months old)"why was she laughing?.
" ohh, okey, dia bukan dari sini kan?( ohh, okay, he's from here right?)
" tidak, sama sekali, ini pertama kali dia ke sini( no, not at all, it's his first time here)"
" oh, terima kasih kerana membawanya ke sini( oh, thank you for bringing him here)" he said and looked at me. " Good afternoon sir" he greeted with a nice Malaysian accent. " Good afternoon sir" I answered with a smile. " Zahra here told me what you're looking for, I have some few options for you" He said. " Oh don't worry, I think I found something I like, the purple teddy bear over there" I said as I pointed it to him. " Oh okay, let me just get it down for you quickly"
" Thank you" I said and watched him go. " What were you talking about, the language was confusing"
" oh well nothing serious, he was my late tutors husband you know, They had no children, now he doesn't have customers coming over here so he's closing down to find something small to do so he can survive" so sad. I didn't like seeing old people that didn't have what to fend themselves with. It was like seeing Mother that way. I couldn't honestly take it. " it's so sad you know, even when his wife was still alive, they were not doing so well, you see she died from a heart disease, it was painful for us" She said and smiled gently. " I'm so sorry" I said and she nodded. " I've heard a lot of that right from when I was still a kid so it's fine"
" How many people have you lost in your life"
She laughed a little before she answered. " I've lost a lot and I've hurt a lot, don't worry let's just leave that aside, I don't want to talk about it" she hurt a lot?.
What was that all about.
" Here you go sir, you see this is the last of it's kind, any baby would love this cause it's so small, soft and cuddly" The old man said and I smiled at him as I gave him my card. " let me pack it up for you" he said and smiled at me genuinely. "pakcik(uncle)" Zahra called as she took out her phone from her bag. "ya anak(yes child)"
" Beri saya nombor telefon anda supaya saya dapat menghubungi anda bila-bila masa(Give me your phone number so I can contact you anytime)" she said and gave him her phone. " okay anak(okay child)" he answered and collected her phone and wrote a number in and gave it to her. " Terima kasih banyak pakcik(Thank you very much uncle)" She said as he gave her phone back to her. " Apa sahaja untuk anak anda(Anything for you child)" He answered as he gave me back my credit card and the teddy bear without swiping my card. " you didn't take the money?"
" No don't worry it's on me"
" oh no, please no sir"
" Hey child accept it"
" pakcik(uncle)" Zahra called. " Anak, it's on me, don't worry" He answered and I sighed. I needed to do something for this kind soul. " Thank you very much sir" I thanked and smiled at him. " Terima kasih pakcik(Thank you uncle)"
" Don't worry"
" Selamat tinggal pakcik, jaga diri awak okay?(Good bye Uncle, take care of yourself okay?)" Zahra said as we were about to leave. " Saya akan, anda juga( I will, you too)" he said and smiled at us. " Goodbye sir" I said and he nodded. " Good bye" he said and we left the store.
" I have to repay that man" I said as we walked out. " I need you to find more details about him okay?" I said and she nodded. " Sure, repay me first, that store over there is where we can go" She said and I laughed a little. " Let's go" I said and we walked to the computer store.
" let's go to your hotel now" I said as we walked to the parking area. " oh don't worry, I need to see someone, you can go ahead without me" she answered. We moved from the computer store to get some dresses for her and Mother. Going out with her was nice. She wasn't as troublesome as I thought. " Okay then, be careful okay?" I said as I kept the teddy bear in the front seat with me. It was already 4:50pm. I didn't want to be late. " I will, you too, bye" she called and walked away from me.
I got into my car and found my way to the park I was supposed to meet Faryah. I was excited honestly. I also needed to find a way to know more about Zahra. I had to call up my PI to find out more about her. She lost and hurt a lot of people. What did she mean by that.
She was a nice person, she was funny also. Someone I will like to be around for entertainment.
—————KLCC Park, Jalan Ampang, City Centre, elevated bridge, 5:00pm.
I got to understand why she chose this spot for us to meet. I got a great view of the whole park from here and it was so beautiful.
So very beautiful.
There were swimming pools, and playgrounds all around. There were also beautiful fountains and wow, I was honestly impressed. So many greeneries around and wow, nature was beautiful.
It was exactly 5:00pm on the dot and I looked around if I could find her. The place was not so crowded. Kids and parents were everywhere. Cute beautiful families, different food carts, cotton candy carts and hot dogs, donuts and any other sweet stuff.
I would honesty love to tour this place. It was so beautiful.
I kept on looking around to see if I could find her. She wasn't here yet. It was already 5:10pm. Did she trick me into coming or something. " Abbah" I heard a tiny voice scream and I turned around to find a baby boy tugging his father's pants. " More cotton candy" he yelled and pouted. " You've had enough already"
" Hey" I heard her sweet voice call from beside me. I slowly turned around and found her holding a baby carriage. My beautiful daughter was in there. I looked back up at her and a smile spread widely across my face as I took in how beautiful she looked. She looked more beautiful than ever. She looked like she was doing very well.
My Faryah.
My beautiful wife.
" It's nice to finally see you again" I said and watched her smile a little as I tried holding back tears from falling out of my eyes.
I missed her so much.