Y'all remember that multiple POV thing I said I was gonna do?. Yh, so I'm doing that in this chapter isA.
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Kaduna, Nigeria
2020.
Rayyan lay on his bed, mulling over things he'd promised he wouldn't think about.
For one, there was a threat looming over the NDA which he wasn't sure the cadets were ready to face.
There was simply no way out of their predicament, with the number of deaths that'd been happening, it was clear that there were moles amongst them that would report every action of theirs.
And what worried Rayyan more was that along with cadets, some personnel could be working for the other side. It was the only way possible, seeing as military issued guns were always found at the crime scene.
On the other hand, his sister had called to inform him — sometime in the previous week— that their parents had set up her Nikkah with Adam, who he could vaguely remember.
Apparently, the Nikkah would be a small event that would take place at the Central mosque.
He'd talked to her, asked her if she was on board with the arrangement or if she was yet again being pressured by their father, but she said she was happy with it.
He'd attempted to talk to their dad, but she'd talked him out of it, saying she wasn't trying to lie to him, and that she really was on board with it.
Rayyan was no fool, he could sense the lack of enthusiasm in her voice, no matter how much she tried to hide it with halfhearted laughs, but he knew she had her reasons and respected her decision.
If he was being honest with himself, he doubted she would ever move on from Zahar, having seen firsthand, the depth of her feelings for him.
But it was for that reason he didn't try to pry into her matters. He'd seen how much damage both of them had sustained in trying to move on from each other.
He'd acted oblivious to their feelings for each other since they were kids, mainly because he knew how deeply Zahar cared for his sister.
Even in their teenage years, when the focus of every other guy their age was girls, Zahar never indulged in their interests.
He'd witnessed several girls try to sink their talons into the guy, but they'd always end up the same way— disappointed and angry.
Rayyan cared for his sister very much, but wasn't one to express his love with sweet words and coaxing. He stepped up when she needed protecting, but rather watched her from the shadows.
He wasn't that that guy who'd walk a bumpy path with someone, holding their hands in his. He was more of a guy who lurked around in the shadows, helping you up if you fell and silently retreating back.
Zahar complemented Rayyan perfectly, in that he concealed every lapse of his by being the one who'd walk hand-in-hand with people, making you laugh along the way, and even forget that the path you're walking on was bumpy to begin with.
In short, Zahar was the Naruto to his Sasuke.
When he'd visited Zahar while on an official assignment to the UK the previous year, he'd seen how horrible he looked.
He was still the usual cheerful Zahar, just a more pretentious one. Rayyan of all people, could tell the difference between when he faked a smile and when it was genuine.
And the last he'd seen him, he'd hardly seen any genuine happiness in him.
Rayyan sighed heavily, wondering if Rumaysa's marriage would help them both heal, or destroy them further.
The Nikkah was slated to take place on the 10th, three days from the present.
The last he'd spoken to Rumaysa, she'd told him she hadn't informed Maliya of the Nikkah.
Rayyan knew what she was afraid of, seeing as he dreaded it also but he'd told her to tell Maliya before it became too late.
......Maliya.
A deep sigh escaped Rayyan as she invaded his thoughts yet again.
He'd found himself getting more lost in thoughts of her in recent times. Since he'd begun conversing with her, the feelings he'd hoped would subside were hell bent on going against him.
Against his will and better judgement, he'd fallen into a world of unprecedented doom disguised in the form of his deep likeness for the woman.
He hated how hope had begun to take root in his heart, how the feelings he'd been fighting overwhelmed him.
As cringey as it was, his heart which had never wavered from his conviction trembled with emotions he didn't want to give into.
But what caused fear to engulf him was how much comfort the entire situation brought him, how at ease he was with letting Maliya invade his thoughts, how much he wanted her to see the parts of him he never wanted anyone to see.
He had a strong compulsion to tell her the most insignificant things that went on in his daily life.
He lived for the excitement in her voice as she spoke to him about her day, and whenever she was depressed about the loss of a patient, there was this need that blossomed in his chest.
His chest would constrict tightly as he visualised tears glistening in her hazel eyes, those hazels that killed him.
Rayyan truly couldn't handle it.
Couldn't handle the kind of things she made him want to do.
He longed for things with her that he'd never had thought his heart was capable of wanting.
He rarely ever dreamed, but on the few occasions he did, her thoughts followed him from reality into his dreams.
She'd always come to him, a bewitching smile on her chubby cheeks on which he longed to pepper kisses.
He'd casually lick the indent on her right cheek, warmth flooding his heart as she'd flick him on the forehead as she struggled to contain her giggles.
Sometimes he'd be working on his laptop and she'd wrap her arms around his neck, nuzzling her face in his neck.
If he didn't turn back to look at her, she'd poke his cheek continuously till he turned back to look at her, and once he did, she'd press a kiss on his lips and a sloppy one on his cheek, and in that soft voice she reserved for him alone whisper 'that's my revenge, habibi'.
The last dream he had of her, she was humming a tune as she stood washing dishes against the sink.
She draped a black Abayah over her body, a blue headscarf slung on her shoulders.
Her hair had been tied up in a bun but wisps of hair escaped, plastered to her temples.
Rayyan stood by the doorway for a moment, gazing at his wife.
As if being pulled to her, he took some steps until he was pressed against her back, arms circling around her.
His arms brushed against the bulge of her stomach, head coming to rest in the crook of her neck as she gazed at him hoodedly, her lashes blinking against hazel eyes.
Laughter escaped Rayyan as he stared at her, amusedly.
"What do you think you're doing with those short lashes?".
Maliya gasped as if insulted, turning to face him properly as her eyes narrowed infinitesimally.
" These are my seductive eyes, okay?" She said, eyebrows furrowed as she pouted at him dejectedly.
"Your what?" Rayyan laughed loudly, undeterred by his wife's annoyance.
"I'm not talking to you again" Maliya scoffed angrily, turning away from him and back to the sink.
Rayyan's laughter subsided as he looked at her, teeth nipping playfully at her earlobe but she didn't respond.
She really was angry.
"Princess" Rayyan crouched down, until he was gazing at Maliya's stomach.
"...tell your mum that she doesn't need to try any seductive looks on me" he said, looking up to see that Maliya was still looking away from him.
A smile spread across his lips as warmth flooded him, a tingly sensation in his heart that had only intensified over time.
He stood up, cupping Maliya's face in his palms as he stared at the hazel eyes that had caused his destruction, his restoration.
"Let her know that I will always find her seductive in anything she does, in the mornings when her hair is messy, in the afternoons when she's in her lab coat, and especially at night when she's curled up against me" He said, now standing behind her, whispering against her ear.
Maliya's breath hitched as she lost herself for a second, entranced in Rayyan.
Her husband.
How she'd longed for this. The intimacy that she alone could get from him.
Instead, she feigned indifference to his words, stretching till she reached his ears where he was weakest.
Giggles threatened to burst from her lips, but she held them in.
"Are you sure?" She asked, voice low as her teeth lightly bit down on his earlobe.
Satisfaction overcame her as Rayyan's breath quickened.
"Hmm" he hummed in response, using his arms to draw closer to him.
Her laughter threatened to burst but she managed to choke out the words she'd been waiting to say.
"Even when I'm in the toilet, taking a seductive shit?" She said, laughing as she took in his expression.
"Ya Allah babe, way to ruin the mood" Rayyan said grumbling.
He scowled as she saw Maliya's laughing face, ignoring the surge of warmth in his insides.
****
Rayyan sighed as he tried unsuccessfully to get the image of Maliya away from his head.
Just when he'd turned off his light to go to bed, a loud bang resounded across his room as the walls shook.
Thrust into panic, Rayyan pulled his blinds to see a cloud of smoke and fire coming from the quarters were the cadets were situated.
Suddenly, his door was thrown open by O.S Bitrus.
"Sir, the base is under attack" He said hurriedly, panic in his eyes and a rifle slung across his shoulders.
"Inform the Commander immediately, tell him that the Cadet's quarters have been compromised" Rayyan said, shuffling inside his drawers for his gun.
War had finally come to them.
.
.
.
.
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Abuja, Nigeria.
2020.
"Hey Ruma" Maliya said groggily.
"Are you just waking up?" Rumaysa asked her, surprised.
"Yeah, I had a shift since last night, just got in about an hour ago" Maliya said.
There was silence for some minutes, neither knowing what to say.
Maliya was still in shock since Rumaysa told her the previous day that she'd be having her Nikkah in three days.
Maliya was floored. She didn't even know that Rumaysa had met someone, and she'd dropped that big of a news on her.
She was angry at her, but more shocked that in such a short time, she'd be getting married.
Not knowing where to start from, she hung up the call.
After several hours of deliberating over the issue, she called Rumaysa back.
She had only one thing to ask her.
"Are you happy with this Nikkah or were you forced?" There was a long pause before Rumaysa finally answered.
"I don't love him right now, but he's someone I can see my self coming to love. And this is my decision, I wasn't forced" she said.
"You know I'm going to tell Zahar this right?" Maliya said, unwilling to accept that Rumaysa was finally going to move on from her brother.
"I know, tell him that I wish him the best there is and that I hope he finds someone that'll make him happy" She said, her voice clearly shaky.
"Rumaysa, you can't--" Maliya started but was cut off softly by Rumaysa.
"Don't Liya, it's for the best" She said in a soft voice that held conviction.
"I'm sorry Rumaysa, you know I just want what's best for you" Maliya sighed, breaking the silence.
"And you think Zahar fits that description?" Rumaysa asked, and while her tone was sarcastic, there was genuine curiosity somewhere under the layers of sarcasm.
"To be honest, I can't tell if this guy is going to be the person you truly need but I also don't believe that in this world, Zahar is the only one you're compatible with." Maliya started, thinking about her brother as she spoke.
"But one thing that I'm certain of is that to Zahar, you're it. You're his world and have always been. And no matter what you say, I know you Rumaysa, you also love my brother far more than you would like to admit to yourself.
But I'm not going to fight your decision, I'm happy as long as you are. I just hope you're right and this guy treats you well" Maliya finished.
"Have you told him?" Rumaysa asked, a mix of emotions Maliya couldn't recognise laced in her tone.
"Yeah" She replied simply.
"Ohh" Rumaysa said, then exchanged some pleasantries and hung up.
Almost immediately she got off the call with Rumaysa, Maliya received a call from Doctor Linda.
"Maliya, rush down to the hospital" Maliya was alarmed by the panic in Doctor Linda's voice and shot out of bed immediately.
"What happened?" Maliya asked, as she grabbed her key and shoes.
"The NDA has been attacked, and the CS has assigned you and a group of personnel to go over, medical assistance is needed urgently".
Maliya zoned out of the conversation the minute she heard NDA.
Her hands trembled as she hung up on Doctor Linda and dialed Rayyan's number.
Three unanswered calls later, Maliya shot out of the house, into her car and off to Empire hospital.
Rayyan!
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The updates are coming in guys. I hope y'all enjoyed this chapter.
Ramadan Mubarak.
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