Federal Capital Territory,
Nigeria.
Crash!
A small pieces of glass splatter on the tiled floor in different directions. The antique flower vase with floral designs that Sameera so much adores now broken into smithereens, just like Khalifa's heart.
Every single step Sakeena took out of the house took a small piece of his heart. Bit by bit, she left with his entire heart in her palms. He now feels empty like the piece of flesh isn't in his chest anymore. He has set his own heart on fire and now it's blazing with flames of regret, the flames ignited by the remembrance of the harsh words he uttered to her.
His face is bruised like never before and aching but it will never match up to the blazing pain in his chest. He sat on the floor his back against the wall, a small piece of glass stuck in his right foot with blood dripping on the floor but he didn't give a damn, no physical pain can match up to the amount of pain he's feeling right there.
After a long while of sitting there motionless, he heard footsteps approaching where he's sitting with his head hung low like the coward he is. "What the hell happened here?" His brother's voice registered in his mind but he didn't move or make the slightest attempt to reply.
"Khalifa." Sameera called as her eyes scanned the mess he made in her living room. They still didn't get any reply.
Abdullah squatted down to face his brother, so many questions filling his mind about the bruises on his brother's face and the mess they met. He tapped his brother "Khalifa what happened here?" He asked.
Khalifa finally raised his head and acknowledge their presence. Abdullah stared at his brother's bloodshed eyes, filled with rage and pain. Abdullah stood up and straighten his posture then stretched out a hand for Khalifa which he ignored. "I don't deserve her, I don't deserve any of this." Khalifa mumbled under his breath.
"Where's Naisa?" Sameera spoke up. "I think she's upstairs let me check on her." Sameera turned to head up the stairs but Khalifa's next words halted her movement.
"She's gone." It came out as a low whisper but they heard him clear.
Sameera blinked. "What do you mean she's gone? Did she step out?" Sameera asked confused.
"She's gone." A sob broke through him as realization dawned upon him. "She's gone." He repeated, almost like convincing himself that he did send her away.
His sobs turn into cries. Abdullah and Sameera shared a look before looking back at him cluelessly. Right on cue, Fadeel walked in saying the Salam with Ammar tailing behind in his school uniform. They were having a conversation they didn't notice what was happening. Fadeel stopped making Ammar bump into him. "What happened here?" He asked throwing looks at his brothers.
"Ammar go to your room." Abdullah instructed his youngest brother who obeyed without objecting.
"I'm going to put Zahra down for her nap as well." Sameera walked passed them following Ammar with her daughter who has dozed off on her shoulder.
Fadeel walked to where Abdullah stood and repeated his question. "What happened here?"
"Exactly what I'm trying to find out." Abdullah replied. "But he won't say anything." He added.
Fadeel moved towards Khalid who's balling his eyes out like a baby, his shoulders shaking. He kneeled down and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Listen man, I don't know what happened here but I need you to calm down and tell us what happen." Khalifa didn't say a word instead kept crying.
Fadeel has never seen his brother this broken and vulnerable.
Fadeel got up and stretched a hand out for his brother. "Get up." Khalifa ignored him and raised his red face to look at his brother.
"I'm a freaking coward. I couldn't keep her with me and caused her pain. She didn't deserve all this, she doesn't deserve all this pain. She doesn't deserve all the fucking problems that I'm shrouded with, she doesn't deserve all of this." Khalifa yelled as his voice echoed loudly through the house.
Fadeel and Abdullah shared a look and pulled their brother up together and led him to a sofa. Abdullah hissed as he noticed his brother's bleeding leg with blood oozing out of the open cut. Abdullah rushed to grab the first aid box to treat his brother's wound before it get's infected.
In the blink of an eye, no one saw it coming. One minute he's sitting on the sofa as he sobs silently and the next, he has a scissors that he grabbed from the open first aid box embedded in his upper arm. Fadeel cursed as he pull out the scissors while Khalifa grunted in pain, blood soaking his shirt.
"What the hell?" Fadeel yelled as they watch their brother squirm in pain. It has been long since they witness their brother in this state; since Haaya's death. He's suicidal once and for him to trying self harm again, something big happened in their absence.
Fadeel pressed a torn piece of cloth to Khalifa's arm to stop the blood but Khalifa pushed him away. "Allow me to fucking die. I don't deserve to live after causing everyone pain. I am a burden to you all."
Fadeel faced Abdullah. "He's never in his right senses whenever he talks this way."
"We need to get him to a hospital." Abdullah voiced.
Their attention shift to Khalifa who's struggling to breath, his face turning ashy. "Shit." Fadeel cursed. "Wrong timing seizure." Fadeel stepped forward to catch his brother before he hit the ground, his arms and legs jerking.
"Get the car." Abdullah commanded.
Fadeel rushed out of the house to get the car to the front while Abdullah struggled with Khalifa's jerking body. With great struggle, they managed to get him to the hospital leaving Sameera behind in the house with the kids who's watching everything with tears streaming down her face, her heart breaking for Khalifa.
In the hospital, Khalifa has been rushed to the emergency room who looks dead on the stretcher. Abdullah and Fadeel stayed outside, anxiously praying for their brother to be okay. He has been through enough already. The hallway is dead quiet, strong smell of antiseptic hanging in the air. The two brothers are caught up in their thoughts till Fadeel remembered.
"Where's Naisa?" Fadeel asked his brother who shrugged his shoulders, wondering the same thing. "Whatever happened between them isn't so small for Khalifa to try and claim his life while she goes missing." Fadeel pulled out his phone and dialed Fahad's contact.
"Just the man I was about to call." Fahad's voice came through. "Hope your brother's face is recognizable?"
Fadeel glanced at Abdullah in confusion before replying to Fahad. "Is Naisa with you?"
"My sister is with me." Fahad replied curtly.
"What happened between them?" Fadeel asked.
Fahad hissed. "Why don't you ask your brother that?"
Fadeel got slightly pissed at Fahad's attitude. "Look man this isn't the time for drama, tell me what happened between them."
Fahad chuckled sarcastically. "I would've loved it if your brother told you what happen but let me tell you, your coward of a brother broke my sister's arm. He even went as far as pushing her to the ground." Fahad let out a deep breath before he continued. "He should be grateful that I only disoriented his face not snapped his neck."
Fadeel's jaw tightened. "Do not call my brother names Fahad."
"Too bad it's the name that describes him best." Fahad replied annoyed.
"My brother is in there fighting for his life right now, I will not tolerate any shit that will be said about him so you better watch your mouth." Fadeel warned. "I'm sorry about what happened to Naisa and I am sure for Khalifa to do whatever he did there must be a reason for it."
"I don't give a damn whatever the reason is, he should've given it a second thought before hurting my sister. Tell your brother never to come close to Sakeena ever again or I will do much worst next time." Fahad ended the call without listening to Fadeel's reply.
Fadeel's nose flared in anger and he subconsciously threw his phone across the hallway making it to shatter. "Everything's fucked up." His loud voice echoed off the four walls.
Abdullah placed a hand on his brother's shoulder urging him to calm down. "What did Fahad say about Naisa?"
"Khalifa has hurt her. He even went as far as giving her a fracture on the arm." Fadeel's replied. "Now Fahad has vowed to keep Sakeena away from him." He continued.
Abdullah thought for a minute before he spoke. "Khalifa won't survive without Naisa, he can't." Abdullah's phone rang in his pocket, his mother's name flashing on the screen.
His face paled.
How will he explain to her the condition Khalifa is in?
The phone kept ringing as he stared at it till it stopped.
"Shit just hit the fan."
•••••
"Khalifa wake up." A voice yelled.
"Please save me." Another voice yelled.
Khalifa looked around the confined space he's laying on the cold ground. His vision doubled as he tried to focus on the voices but he staggered and fell back to the ground.
"You need to get up." The first voice yelled again.
"Stay away from me." The second voice screamed, fear lacing her tone.
He tried to get back on his feet again, his vision hazy. He balanced himself on his feet as he stood straight, his hand clutching his head that feels like it's about to split open. His vision got clearer and clearer and focused on the two beings in front of him.
On one hand is Sakeena without any traces of fear while on the other hand is Haaya who's shivering in a corner, both stood opposite each other. He tried to move forward but ended up bouncing back. He felt a force pushing him back every time he tried to reach them, like an invisible barrier. After many failed attempts, he gave up.
Then he heard it.
The voice he dreaded the most in this world, it made shivers run down his spine. He froze as the said person came in sight with a sinister smile on his lips, eyes so black like an endless abyss of nothingness. "Hello Khalifa."
Khalifa's heart slammed against his chest as his name rolled off the man's tongue. He is reliving a nightmare.
"What a pleasant surprise to find you back here." He smirked. "Except this time we have a new guest with us." He glanced at Sakeena. "Welcome."
"Don't you dare hurt her." Khalifa warned, his voice not wavering.
"Don't worry I won't hurt her, yet." He walked towards Haaya. "You watched Haaya die once and you survived, I'm pretty sure you'll survive again." He moved towards Haaya who screamed in fear.
Beads of sweats broke on his forehead as fear gripped him. "Stay away from her." He warned.
The man chuckled. "You see Khalifa, you can only save one of them. You can't save both."
"I'll do anything don't hurt any of them please." Khalifa pleaded.
The man tsked. "I wonder how betrayed Haaya will feel seeing you with Sakeena. You moved on so quickly and forgot about her instead of mourning her death."
Khalifa yelled out of frustration and clutched his hair. "It is not true, I didn't forget about her." He yelled.
"You did." He pointed his finger at Sakeena. "You moved on way too fast with her and enjoyed life instead of mourning the sister you lost. Mind you Khalifa it's because of you Haaya died, you didn't save her in time." He poisoned Khalifa's mind further.
"Stop." Khalifa yelled.
"You watched her die before and now you'll watch her die again." He let out an evil laughter. "Unless you're willing to sacrifice Sakeena in her stead. Your choice." He folded his arms across his chest as he watch Khalifa shake his head vigorously. "Time is running out Khalifa." He raised his worst and checked the imaginary watch on his wrist.
Khalifa's shook his head muttering no. Why is this happening again to him, he wondered.
"Your time to think is over, now watch her bleed again." The man smirked at fog filled the invisible cubicle Haaya is locked up in which made her cough. She clenched her chest as she coughed harder and harder till blood started dripping down her nose. She knelt down on the ground unable to control the stinging pain piercing through her heart.
Just like the first time, Khalifa watched Haaya die again and he couldn't save her on time.
The man turned to face Sakeena. "It's your turn now." He man voiced.
Khalifa watched as Sakeena struggle to breath, almost like all oxygen around her has been seized. Her face started to turn blue then to purple before her body finally gave out and she collapsed to the ground as well, right before his eyes.
"SAKEENAH!!" Khalifa jerked up from the bed, harshly ripping the IV cannula out of this hand making blood to drip out but he didn't care about that. All he cared about was how to save someone who's already dead and someone who's on the brink of death.
Abdullah rushed towards his brother before he could hurt himself again. "Khalifa calm down."
"I watched her die again, I watched them die but I couldn't save them." Khalifa cried as his face turned red, his heart beating wildly.
"It's just a bad dream, it's not real." He shushed his brother who wasn't ready to be tamed. It's a dream that felt real, he witnessed it happen.
Fadeel walked into the room just in time to meet his brother trashing on the bed like one who's possessed. He stepped forward to help his elder brother hold his younger brother before he hurts himself again.
"What happened?" Fadeel asked.
"Get the doctor." Abdullah commanded.
Fadeel rushed out of the room and came back seconds later with the doctor trailing behind him.
Khalifa wasn't calm so the doctor suggested him to be sedated before he gets another seizure attack. The trashing stopped as Khalifa started to go under after being sedated. The doctor glanced at Khalifa with a pitiful look before exiting the room, the boy has had bad experiences with seizures so far.
The two brothers watched Khalifa sleep both lost in their thoughts till Fadeel spoke. "I told Amma what happened earlier. They will be on their way back tomorrow In Sha Allah."
Abdullah could only nod not being able to find his voice. He knows it's just the beginning and his brother has to take the blow of everything.
•••••
I am back with an update as promised.!😌💅
Hope y'all had a wonderful Eid? Mine started out uneventful but then it got better.
This is the beginning of the end guys, brace up for what's about to come.
PS, we have hit 13k reads😭❤️. I am over the moon for the love this book has gotten🥺❤️
While waiting for the next update,
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Love, Aishatou💕