Before she was conveyed , she had cried her heart out and it took the elders a lot of effort to chastise her, her aunt whom she was named after, who is living in Abuja married to a notable figure in the country had to promise to cater for her further studies before she let go of the hem of Ummie's wrapper which she held tightly as if her life depends on it.

The house is okay, a bedroom, a kitchen, a toilet and a small backyard and it had been elaborately furnished for her as if she's a daughter of an average family, she was shocked to see all those expensive looking furniture and she vowed to study hard when she gets admission just to take care of her Baba and Ummie . After all the guest have left, whom were mostly family , Zee and the rest of her friends swept the house , washed the toilets and arranged everything back to order , spraying the house with a sweet scented room fresh and a burner was switched on with another incense. The first thing that will welcome anyone walking into the house is the sweet scent emanating from the house .

Khadijah had begged her friends to wait till Ahmad arrives but they refused , giving an excuse that its getting late and since there won't be the customary budan baki there's no need for them to stay behind , leaving Khadijah to her thoughts of a better life ahead with her Mifteey her best friend and now her husband.

It was a few minutes after 10pm when Ahmad walked into the room , Khadijah had already cried till she don't have the energy to cry more ,she was just uncomfortably seated at the far end of the bed , sniffling.

" Cat haven't you cried enough? This is supposed to be the happiest day of our lives why are you crying so much ?besides ,Ummie is not far away from you, you can visit them any time you want to , you have me and I will take care of you habibty, cry no more dear, I will treat you like a queen"

He unveiled her and his breath hitched seeing the beauty behind the cover , he's indeed blessed to have Khadijah and he won't forget to thank Allah for blessing him with such a damsel, a ravishing one at that ,the type he will boast to his friends, the type he will puff his chest out and show the world , his prized possession , one whom he had nurtured for a long time and now it's time to reap what he had sown, to harvest what he had cultivated .

Khadijah couldn't look up at him, she's suddenly feeling too shy around him, though she knows that this is bound to happen , she had never been secluded with him and this is the closest they had ever been, she is scared , really scared .He wiped away a lone tear from her face and urged her to get up and make ablution, since its the only room in the house ,he had to wait for her to freshen up in the living room, sensing her nervousness, he don't wanna rattle her more .

Khadijah removed her clothes and neatly fold them, keeping them on an empty compartment in the wardrobe , she fished out her new set of pyjamas, a cotton tee and a three quarter trouser, having done that, she take out her toiletry bag from a box and went into the bathroom, thankfully there is a tap in the bathroom so she took her time cleaning up, first by brushing her teeth, a habit she has been doing since when she was seven ,to brush her teeth before going to bed, something Baba thought her .She came out after taking a cold bath and making ablution.

She hastily dressed seeing that she has wasted almost 30minutes in the bathroom, she don't want Ahmad to think that she is sluggish, then she remembered that he know her and shrugged the thought off .As If he can read her mind, Ahmad barged into the room without saying the salam which baffled Khadijah but she kept mum, before she can even open her mouth to speak Ahmad started " What type of nonsense is this Cat? How can you stay up to 30 minutes in the bathroom knowing that am waiting for you ? Is that how you were thought to treat your husband?" He bellowed and she cringed ,she's not sure what she feel at that time, was it shock ? Surprise or wonder? " Am really sorry Mifteey ,you know how I take time in the bathroom but in shaa Allah it won't happen again, I'm sorry "

she tried to be strong ,but a stubborn tear had to roll down her cheeks, isn't this guy ya Ahmad ? The guy that is always with her , pampering her and supporting her ? How can he shout at her over such a frivolous issue ,knowing fully well that it is how she is ? And on their first night as man and wife , a night he's to prove to her and show her all the love he had been telling her over the years, making her dream, making her fantasize. Even in her wildest dreams she never pictured their first night to be like this .She wiped away the tear and hurriedly wore her PJ's applying cream to her body since it's harmattan season .

He came out a while later, she had already spread the praying mats a new set ,the ones she bought for them ,their favorite colors, hers is sky blue while his own is midnight blue. He regretted how he treated her, but he had been too easy on her for long, its time she face the reality ,it's time she understand that he owns her and she should do things as he deem fit not as she is used to back in her father's house , marriage isn't a child's play, he will teach her that .After they prayed the sunni two raka'ats prayer newly wedded couple are advised to do so as to ward off evil and ask for Allah 's blessings upon them and their new home , Ahmad held Khadijah's head and prayed for her then asked her the basic questions about Islam and ghusl .When she answered to his satisfaction, he went to the living room , coming back with a polythene bag and a plate .

Khadijah offered to help him serve them the chicken on the plate but he rudely declined. She didn't say anything apart from sorry, instead of serving them on the same plate as he had always told her on phone , he served them separately his share thrice her own share, even though she can never eat like him. She lost her appetite because she's too sad, she just want to go to bed ,sleep and wake up from the nightmare she's in right now, not knowing that it's not a nightmare but the beginning of a hellish ride ." Won't you eat ? Why are you staring at the plate like that ? Its not your fault tho, you don't use to eat chicken regularly at home unless on special occasions or when I pity you and decide to help you with half chicken, enjoy this cause it's your wedding night, you might not get the chance to eat something like this again " he said giving her a dirty look with his mouth stuffed with chicken parts .Khadijah shook her head and quietly ate the chicken , fearing that he might beat her and say more hurtful words to her if she decline. They ate in silence .

He was done long before her, belching and gulping five alive juice at the same time , she wanted to tell him it's not a good habit but held her self back .To her the chicken tasted bland and the juice tasted like quinine .

She packed the plates ,the polythene and empty pack of five alive and took them to the kitchen .She silently walked up to bed and squeezed herself at the far end of the bed , crying quietly only to be interrupted by his gruff voice " Go and lock the house Cat, must I tell you everything ? Are you here as my wife or as a child for me to babysit? "She mumbled a sorry, took out her hijab and locked the house and instead of letting her sleep that night, Ahmad raped her on their marital bed, no one will dare call what he had done to her a mistake or love making, it was rape and he had revealed his true colors to her ,only that it was too late , she's already bond to him and only him can release her from that bond .

She had cried in pain , begging him to stop, telling him he is hurting her, to take it easy ,she almost died and it was after he had finished damaging her that he realised the extent of what he has done, she couldn't move neither is she breathing ,she looked like a corpse and he panicked, regretting his action, it's his Cat his baby .And that night it became official , he is a monster and he had betrayed her love and trust for him, not only her but their parents who have faith in him, who will not believe anyone that will break this horrible news to them especially her Baba.

At dawn , he called his friend a Dr to come and help him out, she was still not moving , not breathing and he feel like killing himself as a punishment for what he had done ,upon his arrival, the Dr gave him a hard look and upon seeing the condition Khadijah was in he shed tears " Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun! Ahmad have you gone nuts ? How can you do something like this to the girl you love so much ? just pray that she's not dead" the Dr exclaimed and they took her to the hospital .

Ahmad plead with him not to let anyone know about what happened. The Dr had to stitch her up and she was admitted , Ahmad was in a dilemma as to what to do, he knows that his mom will definitely send them break fast and what will he tell her when just a day after his marriage the house is found locked and neither him nor his wife is to be found? An idea popped into his head and he went back to the house, awaiting the errand boy's arrival.

The boy arrived after 9am and Ahmad collected the basket filled with food, telling the boy that Khadijah is still in bed .He hurriedly took a bath, take a change of clothes for Khadijah and left for the hospital thanking Allah that he's not living too close to his father's house, he don't even know who his neighbours are, so that Mama won't get a whiff of what is going on .

She was still sleeping when he got there ,but from the way she's turning and twisting her face , you'll know that she's hunted in her sleep by none other than the monster who call himself her husband, he didn't know what got into him, after she was pronounced as his legally wedded wife , he felt like all the love he has for her dissipates into thin air,he started having doubts about marriage, he's a mere carpenter with no educational qualification apart from secondary school certificate, was he ever in love with Khadijah or he's just obsessed with her? That's the question he kept asking himself. Truth be told, he knows that Khadijah doesn't deserve to be treated with cruelty, but she is so beautiful and he can't hold his rein making him loose control, he didn't plan on raping her , and if he will be honest, he was so lost that he didn't even hear her cries and pleas .OK, he can admit that he heard her, he just didn't know the extent of the damage he had caused and now here they are, instead of them to be in their new home, cuddled up together, telling each other sweet nothings, him taking care of her and enjoying their honey moon, they are at the hospital,all because of him, because he is a beast.

Khadijah woke up with a start around 3pm mumbling some du'as and looking around her, the white walls, the strong scent of antiseptic, and the cannula on her hands made her realize that she's in a hospital room, but what brought her to the hospital? She thought and it all came replaying back in her head, his cold attitude, his insult and finally the rape .

She shrieked closing her eyes,repeating Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi rajiun over and over again, the sound of her scream draw the attention of the nurse in charge and she hurriedly alerted Dr Taheer who came rushing in with Ahmad closely behind him .
" It's okay Khadijah you're safe now, can you please tell me what is wrong with you ? Are you in pain?" He asked and she kept mum only her tears speaking for her, letting him know that she has been scarred deeply ,badly hurt and in need of relief, an escape from the monster who was once an angel and no drug can heal her pain, only Allah can do that .

Dr Taheer tried to make her open up but she didn't even make a sound, he was afraid that she can't talk due to the trauma but she shake her head letting him know that she can, she had to speak so as not to be diagnosed with an ailment she don't have . Dr Taheer left a while later after giving her some food and injections.

" Cat " Ahmad started but she turned her head to the other side of the room, shutting her eyes .
" I know that I have hurt you real bad , and I don't have any excuse for doing that ,but am really sorry, please forgive me hun, I'm still your Mifteey ,your Ya Ahmad, that same guy you fall in love with ,your confidante and partner in crime , do give me a chance to amend my mistakes please " he pleaded and she gestured with her hands for him to get out, her blouse was drenched with her tears, who is she going to tell this to ? She's not going to tell anyone ,at least not now, she will bear her burden alone and pray that Allah will make it easy for her , but how can she face Ahmad again?

Ahmad went to Dr Taheer's office fuming with anger.
" You can't expect her to forgive you easily, what you've done is unforgivable and blame no one but yourself" Taheer said looking through a patient's file .
" I know,but she send me out without even a word , I am angry at my self that I disgust Cat to the extent that she can't look at me not to talk of speaking to me "Ahmad said plopping down on a couch .
" I'm also disappointed in you honestly, you need to be careful next time, what you have done is akin to savagery and no one will be on your side. It's not excusable " Taheer advised shaking his head, still wondering how someone like Ahmad can do something like that to Khadijah, the girl everyone knows he loves so much, he had noticed some changes with his friend yesterday after the solemnization, he wasn't as happy as people expected him to be considering the fact that everything about him is Khadijah, you can't sit with him for five good minutes without him mentioning her name to you, telling you things about her , how much he loves her and what not .

Ahmad kept up the charade of collecting food from Ya'u the errand boy and saying Khadijah is sleeping for two days before Khadijah was discharged, he's lucky she has started speaking to him, but she flinches whenever he gets close to her so he keeps his distance.

She is having nightmares and shouting at night, she will wake up drenched in sweat and burst into tears the moment she realise its just a nightmare, it went on for three weeks and she didn't tell a soul about what happened, Ahmad is now treating her normally as it was before they got married and in her young heart she's trying to forgive him, taking what happened on their first night as a test from Allah and a mistake on his part , she had visited her parents and his mom the other day and she didn't let them sense that something is wrong between them .Ahmad normally go to work by 10am. Come back for lunch by 3pm and come home for the day after ishaa prayers .

She never asked him a dime for grocery shopping since she started cooking and he never offered, and before going out he will tell her what he'd like to take for lunch and dinner ,she used the money she has and now she doesn't have a dime apart from the money she saved with zee and her Ummie. She thought of calling zee to give her the money and thought against it knowing that she will ask her about the money she has which she doesn't have now and can't tell her how she spend them .So she decided to call Ya Ahmad, she no longer calls him Mifteey but he still call her Cat and other sweet endearments .

She dialled his number and it almost cut before he picked " Assalamu alaikum Ya Ahmad how's work " she greeted
" Thankfully, your dumb head told you am at work and work means no disturbance , why are you calling me ,did anyone die?" He answered her haughtily, She shook her head sadly, recalling their past when he was almost sacked at work because he's always on phone with her .
" It's about money for grocery shopping, I don't have any money and it's lunch time kuma Mama had already send Ya'u to collect her share " she explained with her sweet cool voice .
" I only have 100 naira,if you can manage ,tell Ya'u to come and collect it for you and don't you ever call me again about something stupid like this , I guess in your sweet shamble of a home you go days without food ? Now you want to form big girl, as if I don't know everything about you " he cut the call without waiting for her reply, they are back to square one and she pray that it stays with him being rude and not making a move on her , she still hasn't healed properly and she is afraid of him. She quickly wiped away her tears before Ya'u could see her and sense that something is wrong or worse tell Mama about it,the last thing she wants to happen .

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So, this is the second chapter and I hope it reach up to your expectations?more heart wrenching tear jerker chapters are coming in shaa Allah just give me your lots of love in form of votes and comments and I will keep the update flowing in shaa Allah ,update depends on you !
Thank you.