...she thought things were alright but it was just her that problems gave her a break.
Waking up, Jasmine felt her body aching, probably from the long journey and at the same time she was having cramps. She yawned and stretched as felt pains striking through her joints, she held her tummy and hissed before muttering a dua. She couldn't even sit up.
"Rise and shine sleepy head." Muslim's voice came from beside her. She turned and saw him resting his back supine on the headboard, looking at her.
"What are you doing in my room? On my bed for that matter." She strictly phrased from her laying position.
"Looking after my wife." He rejoined and moved closer to her face.
"Divorce me." She vocalised in form of a whisper.
As if being pushed by an invisible force, he quickly moved away from her face. He smiled and inched closer to her again. "I'm not doing that," he said in a low husky voice.
"I'm leaving you then." She said in a carefree tone.
"Have you forgotten what Islam says about what you're demanding?"
"I haven't. And I'm going to do just that, just set me free." She talked in a low but threatening voice but he smiled knowing he holds everything.
"Let's forget about this topic, get up and eat." Muslim smiled demonically and she had no choice but to keep shut and abide by what he said.
As he was feeding her, an idea came to her mind and a ghoulish smile played on her lips.
"You said I should tell you what I want in a man." She stated and he hummed interestingly.
"I want a man that wants whatever I want. That's ultimate to me."
Chuckling, he asked, "so what do you want now?"
"Divorce!" She whispered.
"You're sick Jasmine."
"I know. I hate you..." She started her play. "Just leave me alone. It's Sadeeq I want, he is my the love of my life, I'll marry him and we'll have children and grandchildren! We'll live happily every after till doomsday. That is my dream and let me fulfill it! Let me love him as much as..." She yelled on top of her voice when a slap landed on her right cheek and she stopped. Exactly what she planned to have.
"I hate it when you talk about Sadeeq." He gritted.
"I love Sadeeq, I love Sadeeq.." another slap visited her right cheek. She held it in pain and cried happily. She yanked her floor length hijab and wore it over her nightwear before storming out of the room, leaving him immobile.
She took her car key and ran out. She sped up as fast as possible immediately the gateman opened the gate because it made a sound and that made Muslim alarmed. She knew he would come to check but it was too late, she had already hit the road.
"I hope this works." She told herself. "But this is so painful. Is his hand made of rock or what?" She kept talking to herself until she reached home.
Immediately she drove into the vicinity, she started her crocodile tears and ran deeper inside, banging the door like a maniac.
"Who the hell is that?" Sa'eeda said and went to open the door. All eyes were on the door with palpitating heartbeats ready for the worst. Opening the door all of them gasped.
"Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi rajiun. What is this?" Nooria was the first to speak, seeing the right side of her daughter's face swollen and red.
"Mummy Muslim. I cannot do this anymore, enough of the maltreatment." She cried and hugged her mother.
"I don't understand this. Explain to me, who did
this to you?" Nooria asked with broken voice and led her to a couch.
"Muslim of course." Sa'eeda rolled her eyes.
"How comes?" Aisha asked.
"Where's daddy? I want this to end mummy." She shuddered on her mother's lap.
"Mummy let me tell you something. The other day at her house, I saw with my own eyes when he slapped her and she fell with a thud, it was so wicked and cruel. He drove out without a single care in this world." Sa'eeda explained and Aisha went dumbstruck.
"Why didn't you tell me this?" Nooria asked Sa'eeda.
"She stopped me."
"I'm going to summon for a family meeting."
"Aisha, call your uncle, your elder brother and your mom." Nooria ordered and Aisha did just that.
That morning, all of them were present in Nooria's living room. Usman sat on the two seater couch alone while Fatima and Nooria sat on the longest sofa and the couple on the carpeted floor, Muslim beside his mom and Jasmine opposite him. Sa'eeda, Aisha and Abdulqaadir were sent upstairs.
"What's happening?" Fatima spoke first. She was the only one oblivious to the situation.
"Speak up!" Nooria yelled at Jasmine after a while of silence.
"It's him." Jasmine pointed at Muslim. "He--he.." she hiccuped. "He beats me anyhow and I'm tired of tolerating it." She finally broke down. Certified actress. "He's the reason we lost our child. That evening when we were at Hajiya's and I had serious spasms I wasn't the one that said we should go home, he insisted on that and when we went back home from he beat me up and left me in a pool of blood which was our baby." She shamelessly acted in between sobs. Muslim, who didn't raise his head until then to be sure it was really his Jasmine talking, felt a pang in his chest and it was clutching really bad. What just happened?
Usman being the head there didn't even budge, but he felt the pain he just had to pretend.
"Hasbuna-llahu wa ni'mal wakeel Muslim do you want to kill me? When did the devil win entrance to your heart, when did you change to this monster Muslim?" Fatima said as her eyes became glassy.
"Hajiya by Allah..." Muslim started.
"Shut up!" Fatima exclaimed and a slap landed on Muslim's face. "Look at her face, did she do this to herself?" She asked him, disappointment evident in her tone.
"No." He answered softly and bowed his head down.
"Then who did this?" Fatima was already crying.
"I did." Her son said, much to her chagrin. Aisha who was eavesdropping gasped and said, "I'll have to do things fast then" and ran to the balcony where Sa'eeda and Abdulqaadir were.
"I'm disappointed Muslim." The woman said in a soft, yet, grating voice.
"Calm down Fati." Nooria held Fatima by the arm. "Take things easy, everything will be okay."
"Nooria how do you expect me to? This boy wants to be the end of me, I didn't raise him to ill-treat a woman. No I didn't." Fatima cried as she pointed at Muslim while Nooria kept patting her back gently. Jasmine was enjoying the show and she smiled surreptitiously.
Muslim was already in tears and was slowly shaking his head in disbelief.
"Talk to Allah." Nooria advised.
"Enough." The head finally commented but Fatima's tears didn't subside. "Let's settle this and let him take his wife with him." Hearing that made Jasmine burst into newly formed cries.
"I'm not going anywhere. He's going to kill me." Jasmine whimpered.
Breathing heavily, Usman declared, "Muslim what you did was inhumane, I didn't give you my daughter to receive this in return. Remember, she got separated from her addiction just because I want your happiness and this is what I get in return?" Usman used his hand and gestured to Jasmine. Everyone kept quiet, waiting for either of the men to speak.
"No daddy." Muslim voiced in a shaky voice.
"I'm really flabbergasted. This isn't how we treat women, women are precious, they are diamonds. In fact, they are too precious to be treated the way you did irrespective of anything that you may think of. You shouldn't cause pain to a woman especially if she birthed you or birthed your children for you. Do your best to prevent a single drop of tear from slipping from her eyes but you're doing otherwise." Usman calmly said but the type of calmness was filled with deathly warnings.
"I'm sorry daddy but hear my own side of the story. By Allah I didn't do all what she said, I'm guilty for slapping her but.." he was saying when his mother shooed him with a throw pillow.
"One more word and I'll disown you." Fatima said.
"No it shouldn't reach to that Fatima. He's just a child." Usman chirped.
"I've suffered in raising them, he's the eldest of them so what is he teaching his younger ones?" The woman felt broken and that her labour had went in vain and had dissipated into thin air.
"We'll sort things out just now." Usman said to Fatima. "Jasmine?" He called.
"Yes daddy." Jasmine hiccuped.
"Do you still want to be with him?" He asked.
Muslim's eyes contacted with Jasmine's but she looked away immediately because she was guilty or maybe it wasn't guilt, who knows? She wanted to say ‘no’ but the word wasn't passing her lips. She finally gathered the courage and voiced "no daddy" in a broken voice.
"Muslim, set my daughter free." Usman demanded.
"Sweetheart but.." Nooria started but stopped when Usman's hand rose up in command.
Jasmine's heart was beating fast, she didn't want to be a divorcee at such young age but she had to save her love life. Muslim only smiled at that while Nooria and Fatima held each other and sobbed silently, not a weeny bit ready for the worst.
"I rather die than do it." She whispered through the deafening silence and they all heard him.
"Daddy this is more of wickedness wallah." Jasmine cried and stood to leave.
"Come back here." Usman said and the power in his voice made her come back.
"I want to first have a word with my wife." Muslim said, laying emphasis on the last two words.
"You want to finish her or what?" Fatima sent a glare to Muslim which made him shudder.
"Let him." Usman said in a voice that required no objections.
Muslim held her wrist and dragged her upstairs, to her previous room that was clean, he yanked her inside and slammed the door before slowly turning around to see Jasmine panicking.
"Please don't slap me again." She held her cheeks.
"I understand why you have to do this but at least, consider my situation Jasmine. Give me a chance." He said and moved closer to her as she cried and stepped backwards.
"I hate you." She cried.
"Listen to me, cook as many story as you want Habibty, I'm still keeping ya and that is it, I'm never letting you go. I don't mind leaving you here in as much as you're tied to me. I'm not going to utter any word of divorce for you because if I do, both you and I will regret it." He said and smirked. Her back hit the door of her wardrobe and he caged her between his hands.
"Because I love you." He whispered in her ear and she shivered, it was the first time he had said that to her. "And you love me too. It's just too early for you to realise it and until you do, I'll not set you free, I'll patiently wait." He said aloud while looking into her dreamy light brown eyes. He kissed her forehead before leaving her, frozen.
She hissed and sat before removing her phone from her pocket and dialed Zayn's number which she saved with ‘Doctor Zee’ just in case.
"Brotherrr." She cooed.
"Yes baby sis. What's up?" He sounded excited through the phone.
"The matters at hand are not good now and I miss you, if you were here with me things would have been much easier." She said in a dejected voice.
"You're now a big girl Jasmine, you're twenty-five years old, learn to do things by yourself please. One day you won't ever see me again in this world, learn to get used to that before then."
"I want you to come back." She teared up.
"I will, very soon. How is Aidah and her family?" He inquired.
"They're doing just great, we came back last night and guess what!" Her mood lit up.
"What?"
"I saw Askariy and Eira after nineteen years! Aunt B said they'll come around before they leave for Bahrain."
"Oh, r--really?" He stuttered.
"Yeah, what's wrong?"
"Nothing chiquita." He giggled with mirth at the same time nervously.
"Okay, I'll hang up now, due to security reasons. I'm at home."
"Which home?" He chuckled.
"Our home, the home you also call home." She pursed her lips to a thin line.
"Jasmineee." He dragged her name. "I'll return home soon, that I promise."
She breathed heavily and said, "bye then. Take care" and hung up.
Muslim meanwhile left the house with a flounce without talking to no one which was so unlike him making Fatima to suspect something. He is the one to lose control whenever she's hurting but today!
Knocking slightly, Sa'eeda entered saying the taslim. Jasmine sat on her four-poster bed and brought her legs to her chest with her head on them, she was sobbing silently since when she terminated her call with her only brother.
"Sister?" She called softly.
"Stay away Sa'eeda." She sobbed. Sa'eeda let out an "okay" before disappearing.
A while later, Nooria went in. "Are you okay baby?" She asked.
Jasmine shook her head. "I want a heating pad." She voiced, looking at the world through a blurry view.
"You having cramps?" She asked and the subject of the question nodded.
"Take a hot shower and sleep, you'll feel better." Nooria said and placed her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Don't let anything haunt your t, I'm with you even if the whole world is against you no matter what." She added and that gave Jasmine courage and hope, she nodded with a tight smile at her mother before she left the room, leaving her in her pool of thoughts, wondering why she was having cramps when she had fully miscarried the baby, but she shrugged it off and did as her mom told her.
*
"I'm jealous the way you smile at your phone and ignore me." Maimuna said to her son. Ever since she heard the convo between her kids, she made up her mind to let go of her trauma and take care of her kids accordingly.
"It's nothing Maa." Sadeeq replied with a smile, not taking his eyes off his phone. "Just that I met someone from my secondary school and it's really fun y'know, she's easygoing and nice to have around."
"More than me?"
"No way!"
"The way you're smiling from ear to ear I hope you don't go nuts, by the way, I'm happy. Extend my regards to my future daughter-in-law." Maimuna smiled and averted her attention from her son.
"Maaa." He dragged. "Don't anticipate that, I'm still going to wait for Jasmine, even if it'll take a thousand years, I'll wait for her." He said exuberantly and Maimuna just shook her head with a smile.
"Accepting your destiny as it comes is part of faith. Just a little reminder." She winked at her son.
"Well, I don't know how to explain this. But I know you know what love feels like, you miss Dada so much but you pretend to be okay, that's what I'm feeling." He explained in a way she would understand.
"You're too young to see what I'm seeing, I see future in you. And if Jasmine is your wife, no creature can prevent her from being and if she's not yours, no matter how powerful you are, you won't get her. So just leave everything under His control." She looked at him with an unreadable expression.
He lopsidedly smiled and said, "by the way, my new friend is sending her warmest regards to you. One more time, we're just friends I hope you believe me. I don't even want a wife like her, she's just so talkative and kinda clingy."
Her clinginess is keeping you intact and I like that. I would want to see this mysterious girl that does things to my son miraculously, she said in her head. "Children nowadays are so shameless. Tell her I'm sending my warmest regards to her and I want to see her." She said and tilted her head.
"I'll get going Maa, will pray Asr and pick Mina up from school." He said, trying to avoid the awkward atmosphere.
"Take care. Fee amanillah." She said and watched his retreating figure with a smile. When he had fully disappeared, she burst into full blown tears, she didn't put any effort to stop the waterworks as she let them flow freely.
"He is right, I miss you so much Amar, if not for our kids, I would've prayed to Allah to take me to you, living without you is hard. They all believe you're dead but I hope you're alive and healthy wherever you are. Maimuna loves you so much Hakeem Zayyad." She cried as her last moment with him played in her mind.
"I don't want you to go." Maimuna pouted.
"I have to, little one. But I'll be back before you know it." Hakeem smiled at his wife and pinched the bridge of her nose before hugging her to his chest and stroking her back.
"I don't want to be late." Hakeem said after a while of silence, making Maimuna to break down.
"The five months is going to be long and excruciating without you." She cried.
"I know, but I'll call you whenever I get the chance to. Now stop crying." He said and gently pushed her from his embrace then wiped her tears.
"I love you baby girl." He said, making her chuckle.
"I love you too ya Amar." She said and hugged him again.
"Baby girl my flight." He reminded. "I need to say bye to the kids too."
With that, they both went out of the bedroom to the living room, Maimuna forcing a smile.
"Fresher fresher. Don't you have lectures today?" He said to Sadeeq who was going through his handout.
"No papa, I don't." He answered.
"Little angel." He called Amina.
"Papa, I'm almost done with secondary school so I'm not little anymore." She complained as usual.
"It's after this holiday that you'll start taking chemistry and physics." Sadeeq laughed.
"Nah, financial accounting and commerce." Amina corrected.
"Yeah whatever." Sadeeq shrugged.
"So kids, papa will be going today and I'll spend a little long time there, almost half a year. So pray for papa and take care of yourselves and your mother for me, okay?" Hakeem said to his kids.
"I'll pray for you everyday insha Allah papa." Amina said and went to hug her father.
"Me too." Sadeeq said and joined, Maimuna joined them also.
"Papa will be late, let him go." Maimuna dejectedly said.
"Extend my regards to the whole of France. And take care of yourself for us." Amina said even though she didn't like the idea of leaving them for five months.
"We'll follow you to airport." Amina stated, more like asked.
"No sit and take care of the house, Maa will drive me." He said to them because he didn't want them to cry when they depart, he knew his wife would for sure.
After hugging the children one last time, Maimuna drove her husband to the airport without saying anything to him. She parked the car then looked at him.
"I'm having a bad feeling about this." She said in a broken voice.
"Don't scare yourself, it's just that this is the first time that's why." He said to encourage her but she broke down nevertheless.
"I'm not leaving you on my own accord you know that, don't you?" He asked as he cupped her face and she nodded.
"Take care of yourself and our children. I love you." He said and sealed her lips with his.
"I love you too." She said as her lips quivered.
"Stop crying now." He ordered in a stern voice but she knows better. She bit her lower lip to stop herself from producing any sound.
Hakeem didn't want any longer before he went off the car because the tears he had been holding were threatening to fall and he didn't want to look broken in her presence.
She cried before she went home. Hakeem scarcely called his family but sent messages almost everyday till the day he told them he was coming back.
They had been waiting for him since that day, neither did his line go through nor did he come back, and that way, they lost hope but Maimuna never seize to pray and anticipate his return. It's been a decade but it feels fresh to her, she's tardily crumbling.
_______________
I'm sad, ion know what to say.
We all have scars and that makes us who we are🦋. I say make I try to dey motivate una and give una reminders small small😁.
Phewwww💨. I don disappear.
Thank you,
Fatiimah.