Each word uttered at the meeting were like razors to Safaa's wounded heart, they pierced through it like a dagger ruining all the hope she had that her family would be united again. She knew her love story with Ahmad was not meant to be completed but she wanted her father and his elder brother to be in good terms. She hated the fact that her marriage was creating a chasm between them.
Some days after the meeting Ahmad came back to her father's house to patch things up again, but she told him she wanted to be on her own, she was not capable of taking the pain no more, he left yet again with a broken heart.
Minutes after he had left, Abidah barged in with the same aim, to convince Safaa to go back to her brother's house but found her packing her things, getting ready to go and stay with her Mama's relatives.
" Safaa " Abidah smiled sitting next to her on her king sized bed.
" Ummu Shuraim" Safaa smiled too, a smile that did not reach her empty eyes.
" Are you not telling me where you're going? " Abidah asked when she saw the bags containing Safaa's things.
" Err I don't want to tell you really, because you'd tell your brother"
"And you don't want him to know?" Abidah cocked a brow.
" Unfortunately, Yes "
" Safaa what are you? Where did you take my cousin who's a fighter?" Abidah smacked her playfully.
" She's still here, but not as a fighter now" Safaa managed to smile not letting the tears fall from her glassy eyes.
" Why are you doing this? I mean why are you leaving Yaya Ahmad when it's so obvious you're hurting"
" Because I can't, Ya Rabbi..." Safaa face palmed herself.
" You can't what? "
" Let's just stop talking about this please" Safaa begged leaving the bed.
" Alright as you wish, but you know you can't go away without his permission right, you're still his wife"
" Well Abidah guess what? He said I should go and that..." Safaa sniffed.
" And that? "
" He'll let me go after I give birth, He was so mad at me, why can't you all just understand that the pain I go through is way too much than the love? " Safaa walked into her closet trying to hide her tears from Abidah.
" I'm so sorry, when did he told you that? " Abidah followed her.
Safaa chuckled and deliberately began arranging her shoes in another bag.
" He left some minutes ago and well I guess that's it, eventhough it is so painful, our marriage is like this now because of your parents, my Uncle Abidah, can you imagine? Why did I even let myself fall in love with your brother, when I knew it might someday get to this, It's all my fault" Safaa sobbed going back to her bed.
" Don't say that, it's not your fault" Abidah went after her and sat beside her on the bed.
" Well whose fault is it? I just hope I'd be able to move on, I need to move on" Safaa sighed.
" I don't want you to leave" Abidah smiled sadly.
"Well I promised Maa I'll come back when my baby is two months old" Safaa laughed patting her tummy gently.
" You're crazy, You know that right"
" If craziness is leaving your brother, then yes I am crazy" Safaa rolled her eyes at Abidah making her shake her head amusingly.
" I will miss you so much, what do you say about visiting Aisha? You know you haven't visited her since she gave birth right, please let's go" Abidah pouted.
" You're still Mommy's baby you know, but I'd love to go, she bought some baby clothes for me from her cousin and I didn't collect them "
" Alright then, let's get going" Abidah squealed.
" Thank you for always being there for me Abidah" Safaa started becoming emotional again.
" And thank you pregnancy hormones for making her confess" Abidah raised her hands up dramatically.
" No it's not about my hormones, I am seriously grateful"
"Awwwnn you don't have to thank me, what are elder sisters for?" Abidah winked pinching Safaa's cheeks.
"Oh please" Safaa chuckled wrapping a veil around her head.
"Are we ready?" Abidah asked.
"Yup we are"
"You're becoming heavy you know, too bad I won't get to see you when you're in labour"
"You're now the crazy one" Safaa laughed walking out of the room.
They walked to her mother's room laughing heartily like they had no care in the world and Safaa's laughter, though not too excited gladdened her Mama. Fadimatu almost danced out of joy when she heard that laughter, it had been ages since Safaa laughed that way.
" I have to thank you for visiting, you have no idea how I have been trying to make her laugh" Mama smiled at Abidah.
" Maa ki dena biye mata, she's the one who chose not to be with her source of happiness ina? "
" Shut up" Safaa glared at Abidah.
" I even zipped the mouth don't worry, Maa I want to take her out, she looks like a ghost" Abidah whispered the last part.
" I heard that, Maa we're going to Aisha's house" Safaa informed her mother rubbing some talc powder on her face.
"You look scarier" Abidah teased.
" Yeah whatever, let us go"
" Regards to Aisha, tell her am really mad at her for not visiting often" Mama said walking them out.
" Alright Maa, I love you" Safaa smiled.
" I love you too Safaa" Mama waved at them closing her front door.
When they sat in the car, Abidah kept stealing glances at Safaa suspiciously, she hated the way Safaa always bottled up her feelings, she did not like how she always sacrificed her own happiness for others, she left her home because of Hajiya Turai and Baba, what baffled Abidah was that Ahmad went to a place far away from Mama so he could have a happy marriage yet the woman followed him and wrecked his home.
It was so obvious that Hajiya Turai believed that her actions would not come back to hunt her.
" Abidah darling, what is wrong with you? You seem lost"
" ohhhhkay What's with you and being affectionate today?" Abidah asked discarding her thoughts.
" How?" Safaa asked confusingly.
" Well you were in tears thanking me some minutes ago and then you just told Maa you love her, just because we're going out, what are you? A teenager?" Abidah snickered.
"Just drive" Safaa hissed resting her head on her seat.
" I get scared if people begin acting that way, Safaa please don't die" Abidah pouted.
"Abidah will you stop acting like a child and concentrate on driving?" Safaa groaned.
" Yeah okay, tell me about the baby" Abidah asked taking the drive way that'd lead them to Aisha's house.
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Zarah had a phone call with the man who never failed to soothe most of her pains but instead of feeling better, he made her so scared that she could feel the pounding of her heart and her uneven intake of breath. He was willing to ruin her life but she could not afford that, not when she had began to find peace.
Her mother was the first person that came into her mind after she finished the phone call so she called her to share the situation at hand with her.
" Zarah calm down, You should not be this scared considering your state" Zarah's mother scolded her after she had finish narrating her plight to her.
"Okay Maamie, but you know it's only because of the baby that he has been nice to me right?" Zarah sniffed.
" Will you stop crying? And listen to me, what does he even want by the way?" Her mother asked her but the knock on her door stopped her from answering.
" I think someone is at the door" Zarah whispered.
"Just be sure he didn't hear our conversation, I'd get back to you later" Maamie said and ended the call.
Zarah wiped her tears and unlocked her bedroom, she saw Hajiya Turai impatiently tapping her foot on the marbled floor and the suspicious look Hajiya Turai gave her made her flinch.
"Okay Mrs safety, why do you lock your bedroom when you always leave your front door unlocked?" Hajiya Turai asked trudging inside the room.
"Welcome Mama" Zarah cleared her voice walked back to the room too.
"Thank you, have you been crying?"
" No I haven't, it was a fly that entered one of my eye some minutes ago, what'd you like to drink, let me call the maid"
"Oh Zarah, something must be wrong with you, is it my son?" Hajiya Turai asked caressing Zarah's cheeks.
"No, Your son has been amazing for some weeks now" Zarah smiled.
" Am so glad, so how's my jikalle doing?"
" Oh Mama, all is well"
"May it always be well with you my dear, now let me tell you some good news, we had a meeting days ago, did he tell you about it?"
" No he didn't, but there was a day he came back looking broken and all, so how did the meeting go?"
" The meeting made me so happy Zarah, the witch said she won't come back to his house" Hajiya Turai squealed like a little girl.
"Oh" Zarah sighed absentmindedly.
"You're just going to say Oh, are you not happy?"
"Mama I don't know, I am just so scared, we're responsible for it what if Allah never forgive us?"
Hajiya Turai began laughing like a maniac, when she saw that Zarah was not laughing with her, she stopped and explained.
"I don't want you to get soft now Zarah, not when we are almost there, I have always warned the girl, I told her not to try me but she did and they say the one who laughs last, laughs best, ko yau kasuwa ta tashi dan koli yaci riba, I have broken her, I have shown her the place she belongs, now she would never mess with the likes of Hajiya Turai"
" But Mama you broke him too "
" Zarah..." Hajiya Turai called her name strictly.
" Na'am " Zarah shivered.
" You don't tell me what's right or wrong, I know what am doing and please I don't want you in my bad book so watch you say to me"
"I'm sorry Mama, but I just feel so worthless, I have tried everything possible to get his attention, I have honestly confessed my love to him yet he's nothing but harsh towards me, I get to sit and have a normal conversation with him only when I get sick or when he wants to ask about the baby" Zarah croaked..
" I promise you he'd be all yours, the woman he's head over heels in love with does not want him anymore, You're here and you are ten times better than her, I bet if you show so much care for him in this state he is in, he'd learn to forget about her"
" Her love is engraved in his heart Mama"
" Zarah can you just shut up " Hajiya Turai shouted angrily.
Hajiya Turai had never raised her voice at Zarah, but the way she was acting enraged her.
" I am tired " Zarah sobbed.
" But you love him don't you? " Hajiya Turai mumbled uninterestedly.
" I do, but I had a boyfriend who loved me just the way I love Yaa Ahmad, I shouldn't have followed my stupid heart, maybe I would've been happy with him"
" What nonsense! " Hajiya Turai bellowed.
" Ya Rabbi I made a huge mistake" Zarah sobbed remembering the chaos that her life was in.
" What mistake? " Hajiya Turai asked, Zarah's emotional outburst had been making her more suspicious.
" Don't mind me Mama, let me get you something to eat or drink, I can even make your favourite" Zarah wiped her tears and took her headtie.
" Wait I'll go to the kitchen with you, are you sure nothing is wrong with you?"
"Am sure, Let's go to the kitchen " Zarah managed to smile.
Hajiya Turai returned the smile uncertainly, letting herself wander off to her thoughts.
Something was bothering Zarah and it had nothing to do with her son.
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