*

During Nabeeha's stay , the trio had a lot fun reminiscing on the good old days and making new memories. They get to know that Nabeeha got a boyfriend who has been bugging her to let him introduce himself to her parents as the one he wants to spend the rest of his life with but she always give one excuse or the other, thinking that daddy will scold her and be angry at her for slacking in her studies and having time for boys .

" I never knew you're stupid until now , all this big head for nothing " Zee said giving Nabeeha a knock on her head .

" Ouch ! You're too violent Zee, I was scared , I still am, what do you expect me to do? " Nabeeha whined giving them her best puppy face , wishing they will see things from her own perspective .

" Madam Dr, last I checked we are age mates and Farouk introducing himself to your family doesn't mean  that he is going to marry you the next day, he just want to mark his territory, to let you know that he is serious unlike those chewing gum boys and if  daddy will object to you marrying at your own age because of your studies he definitely won't have let your brother marry me until I finish my studies also " D being the sensitive one reasoned .

" Okay guys I get it, I was wrong and scared and clueless as to how these things are done , I took the fact that Yaya Aneesah didn't get married until after she finished her undergraduate studies .I will call Farouk right away and give him my blessings " Replied Nabeeha suddenly excited and rummaging through her bag to get her phone .

" Blessings kini? When did you become his mother Mama Nabeeha ? See how she's behaving as if she is not the person freaking out over something not worth freaking over for a few minutes ago ..." Zee's rants were cut off when Nabeeha sprang up on her feet and left the room .

" Zee! Zee!! Zee !!the mother of us two and the unborn baby, I hail thee mama keep scolding us like three year olds " D snickered which earned her a smack on her face with a pillow .

They went to shoprite for a shopping spree mostly buying baby stuffs as Nabeeha insisted that since she will be away when the baby will come it will be nice for her to participate. Ahmad's name once slipped off Nabeeha's tongue mistakenly and Zee almost choked her to death with glares .It was official that Zee's pregnancy is making her a very violent woman whom you don't want to cross at all cost.

D sat Afreen down in her room one day and explained to the little girl in a subtle manner the circumstances surrounding her birth even though she  didn't disclose the fact that her mother did not want her neither did she tell her that she abandoned her the day she was born, she just told her that Nihal is indeed her mother but she is also her mother who loves her with the whole of her heart and will do anything for her , she might not have given birth to her but she will always love her as much as she loves Ihsan and Ilham .The little girl nodded in agreement, giving D a tight hug which silently conveyed the message that she believes her and have accepted her as her mother .

"Mamie I don't even want to meet her , she's so mean and dress badly unlike you " The girl stated in between sniffs and that almost made D shed tears too .

" You will not understand right now but when the time comes you will .May Allah bless you my child,may He guide you aright and protect you from the evil whispers of Satan " They prayed ishaa salah  and that night , slept together ,with Afreen snuggled into her bosom like her life depends on it .

She told Kaybee about what transpired between her and Afreen the next day apologizing in case she has over stepped her limits as his wife and a step mother to Afreen .

" I know that you may be angry at me Abba and I'm sorry, but the girl deserves to know something so that she will stop asking questions and I want her to know that they are all the same to me and I love them equally " she stated fidgeting with her fingers ,heart beating fast .

" You're indeed a blessing Angel, thank you so much " was all he could muster the courage to utter because he felt so emotional fearing that if he say more he will cry .

Nihal almost aborted his child, she left the child and never look back for once even though he told her not to, he was expecting her to because of the connection inherent between a mother and her child but she didn't , and here is someone who even though he is related to by blood  accepted his daughter with the whole of her heart ,going extra miles to make things right for his beloved child .

" Abba !she is my child , stop thanking a mother for what she did to her child except if you want to prove otherwise " She scolded sounding hurt .

" Forgive me my darling , I won't say such ever again Mamien Afreen " he apologized and the matter was put to rest .Since it was a video call, she helped him choose a suit and a tie for an executive meeting which is due the next day .

" I wish you would be here to dress me up " he said with a pout, something she has grown to love .

" Don't worry, when you come back ,which will be soon in shaa Allah , I will do everything for you till you say enough D this is too much " she said with a wink and he laughed out loud like she just told him the most funniest joke he has ever heard .

" why don't I have wings to fly ?" He asked

" Because you're a human being and fortunately we don't fly " she replied .

" Nah !From my view point not having wings is the most unfortunate thing that ever happened to me " he said sipping his Ahmad tea Vanilla Flavour , another habit they have cultivated , sipping the same flavour of tea whenever they are on video call .

" Babe I miss you so much "

" I have heard that for the umpteenth time today, if you really do miss me then please come back " She whined , batting her lashes which she have no idea the kind of effect they have on him .

" Soon dearie soon in shaa Allah " he managed to say in a voice which is slightly above whisper.

**

From the day Taheer dumped Ahmad in that dark alleyway he had never seen him nor heard from him again, he thought Taheer will come back for him and give him another chance as he always does but it seems like he  has misused all his chances and now is facing a fate worse than death .

The grey hoodie guy never said a word to him. He will come early in the morning, give him food and motion for him to follow him where he will work , mostly he will wash like a hundred set of clothes for a day and the next is for ironing, some days he will be instructed to dig a hole he is having a hunch will finally be his grave .There was a time he was asked to empty a pit filled with shit. His prescribed drugs are been given to him along with his three square meal, he has exhausted all the guesses he can possibly have as to what the place he is being held captive actually is .

" Please help me with your phone I want to call Taheer " He pleaded to one of the guys that usually tell him what to do and how to do it .

" Who is that ? I don't think we know him even if we do you will not get a chance to speak with him until the boss deems fit .Now get up and pray you infidel " The man retorted giving Ahmad a hard glare wondering how on earth such  a fine young man will not pray until he's been told to.

Taheer knew the place which is some kind of a traditional  rehabilitation popularly known as Gidan mari in Hausa since when he was young, it was built by his forefathers and managed by members of his family, all the information he had gotten was through them, he had pleaded to his cousin who is presently managing the place to treat Ahmad better because he is his friend and he is keeping him away for some reasons .

What Ahmad didn't know is that he is in a secluded part of the place because in the main compound some people were even held in chains mostly because they've tried to escape or they are die hard drunkards who will even resort to sniffing the gutter just to get high .

Meanwhile Hauwa was on the verge of going gaga within the months that followed after she came home without seeing or hearing anything from Ahmad, her treasured conquest .Two of her clubs burned down to ashes in a span of three weeks interval and no one knows how or what caused the fire, lives have been lost but she didn't Care, all she cared about is the incentives she use to get from the establishment because they are the best among all .One of her drug suppliers duped her a large sum of money, most of her workers either quit to her face or just ran away with her money without a trace .She is going bankrupt without anybody  to talk to and tell her woes .

It's really ending for her when she didn't see it coming neither is she ready for whatever is to come her way as a punishment for this is just the beginning .It is finally time for her to reap what she had sown with her own hands .

***

After a few weeks Afreen went back to her grandparents to continue with her session after which she will be transferred to kano .D's life is going perfectly as Allah planned , she aced her first year result and kaybee was so proud of his beloved wife to the extent of singing her praise songs to her amusement .

The first semester of her second year is in full swing and she concentrated on doing her best if not for anything then to make her husband proud of her which swells her heart with so much happiness . She is tired of begging him to come home, she cannot tell him just how much she had missed his presence even though he is always with her making her miss him less but distance makes the heart grow fonder especially a heart like her own which is filled with so much pure love for him and only him alone .

She has already learned how to drive which makes it easy for her to go to school and drive herself to the market or anywhere whenever the need arises .Every morning, whenever they have lectures by 8 even though Zee is in her Third year D will pick her up from her house saving Taheer the trouble of taking her to and from school. Whenever she finished lectures  before Zee instead of leaving her behind D will stay in the library either to go through her notes or do her assignments till Zee is done then she will drop her off at her house and head home .

So many people mistaken the two best friends for cousin sisters because the connection, the way they interact is just so amazing and worthy of emulation ,Zee is the bubbly and outgoing type which got her a lot of friends while D being D , shy, introverted and anti social as Zee and Nabeeha always point out to her she hardly interact with people apart from casual hellos and hi's then during group presentations or lab work which she has to participate.

A lot of guys mistaken her for a single lady until they were told to back off, she's taken and off limits .

" Yah Allah save me !my limbs ache " Zee wailed in the car almost making D loose concentration .

" Subhanallah ! Sorry Dear, should I take you to the hospital ?" D asked ,her voice laced with concern.

" I will be fine , just take me home " Zee gritted out trying so hard not to shed tears .

Knowing that it's nowhere near her EDD , D took her home and called Taheer to come home. Before he arrived she had already cooked lunch for them because he was about to enter into theatre the moment she called .

" Assalamu alaikum D how's she ?" Taheer briskly came into the house looking like he ran from the hospital instead of drive .

" Wa'alaikassalam, she is better I guess . she managed to get some sleep. Now that you're home I really need to get to mine.  Ihsan is not feeling too well " she replied taking her car keys and lecture notes on the dinning table .

" Okay ,may Allah grant her health. Thank you so much D may Allah reward you abundantly " He appreciated.

" Shhh don't mention, if I were in her position she will do same and more , I will call later in shaa Allah to inquire after her health " D waved him off and left .

She had to call Ummie and ask for some herbal medicines to give the poor child, she is always the sick one and the doctor assured her that everything is fine with her baby, she just have a weak immune system which will get better with time if care is taken and she is taking the drugs on time and according to prescription.

" Yahsalam , she's still not feeling fine?" Ummie asked and D nodded forgetting that she can't see her .

" I will be on my way with the herbs ,give me 20minutes " Ummie finally said before cutting the call while D sat on the edge of the bed , looking at the curled up form of Ihsan shivering with fever .She eventually lay beside the girl and gathered her in her arms , whispering some du'as and blowing over her .

Kaybee had been calling D throughout the whole day but couldn't get a hold of her ,his numerous missed calls were left unanswered and he started to freak out, he called ummie who has also left her phone at home in the haste to go to D's .Unable to take the suspense anymore and the fear of not knowing  what was going on , he summoned the courage to call Baba and inquire and that's how he get to know that Ihsan is sick and they are at home attending to the child .

He couldn't sleep  till D who couldn't get a hold of herself to even think of something called phone until past midnight when she's ready to turn in for the day called him back.

" Assalamu alaikum Abba am so sorry " was the first thing she said after he picked the call fuming with pent up anger and frustration .

He can't believe that Ihsan is sick and she didn't see the need to tell him .

" Hope your daughter gets better soon " was all he said before clicking off the call, he was so angry at her , he thought they were a team and are supposed to do everything for each other , be there for each other no matter what but it seems like its just a theory which D is not ready to practicalise .

D was dumbfounded when he cut the call , what on earth just happened and what has she done to deserve such a cold treatment from him ? This is not the first time they are having a misunderstanding but what just happened is not just a conflict of interests but rather a fight, their first fight and she can never forgive herself if she let the man who thought her how to live once again sleep angry at her even though she has no idea of the crime she has committed.

She kept dialling his number ,him rejecting her calls , her calling back again till she almost smash the phone out of frustration ,she made a resolve not to back down till he picks her call even if it is going to take forever.

He didn't pick the calls neither respond to her messages begging him to pick and at least tell her what her offence is .

The next morning she look like a zombie with red rimmed eyes which were deprived of sleep, how can she  sleep when her husband is super mad at her showing her his dark scary side for the first time ?

" Deejan are you alright? What is wrong with you?" Ummie asked when D went to see how Ihsan is doing , she has stayed the night to take care of Ihsan.
She almost told her mother about Kaybee's outburst but held herself, she can never tell Ummie or anyone that they are fighting even if he is at fault. He has done so much for her to deserve anything less than her patience and understanding, she will keep trying till he come down .He can't stay mad at her forever can he ?

" I'm fine Ummie, just didn't sleep because I'm worried about Ihsee " she said the half truth half lie .

" Don't worry dear, In shaa Allah she will be fine, the fever had gone down since last night ,she's just weak and pale " Ummie assured patting D on her back .

" Go and get some rest before you leave for school. I will make breakfast " she didn't wait for anything before trudging back to her room .After calling Zee and inquiring about her health, she kept trying Kaybee to no avail till she fell into a deep slumber only to be woken by the shrilling sound of her alarm .

She  woke up feeling light headed and went into the bathroom to take a bath after which she dressed up and called Kaybee again which is still not answered .She gobbled down some breakfast hastily, checked up on Ihsan who true to Ummie's assurance is looking much better unlike the other day before finally heading to school .

The day went by painfully slow which makes D's heart ache the more, she had cracked her brain and ran out of all the possibilities that will make her husband angry at her, she kept calling and texting him at intervals but he still didn't relent in answering her call .

I don't even know what I've done as I've told you a thousand times earlier,please Ya Hayatee pity the condition I am in and just tell me what wrong I've done to you, I am really sorry to hurt you to this extent that you don't even want to hear my voice or listen to my own side of the story, I miss the sweet hubby I've gotten used to like the air I breath. Forgive me please Habibee I love you and you're breaking my heart into a million pieces right now .

She sent the message and held her phone like her life depended on it waiting for his reply which didn't come .

°•°

Assalamu alaikum ya jama'aaaa how are we ? I hope good good not bad bad in shaa Allah .

Another update which I hope you enjoyed and will give tons of comments and a single vote that will make me happier than I am right now .

May Allah be with you all .

With mea ...Humylash