"Hmm, this is like a telenovela to me" Qudrah said as soon as I told her what had transpired between me, Yusuf, and Professor Marwan in the past few weeks. "Well, I am not surprised. The man likes both you and your Yusuf a lot!"

"You can say that again" I sighed pulling over at an eatery. Actually, we were just returning back from Jasmine's house, one of our course mates back then in Zulu College. She had an accident few days ago with her fiance, Bolaji.

"Oh Fatimah, I don't like this eatery!" Qudrah complained. "Their food are too expensive o!" She apprised as she unfastened her seatbelt.

"Worry not, bill is on me" I turned off the car.

"Awwn, I am so grateful!" She said, beaming.

Hence, we alighted from the car and headed into the eatery. It was very big, the first floor was full so we were ushered to the top floor. Thus, the waiter gave each of us menu to fill.

"Spicy chicken wings, and... a coke please" I said, gently handing back the menu to him.

Its been long I ate such thing!

"Masala whopper and a pepsi will do" Said Qudrah, returning back her menu as well.

"Right away madams" He said and then left. Hence, Qudrah brought back our old topic...

"So, when is Professor Marwan going to see your father?" She said, folding up her arms.

And that made me to heave a sigh. I ought to be so very happy with the fact that Professor Marwan was going to help me and Yusuf out but I didn't just know why I wasn't happy. Of course I wanted the same thing as Yusuf, but the fact that my father didn't like our union made me to keep having distressful feeling about it. What if things turn out to be sour?

"I don't know when he's coming o!" I huffed.

"You should know, at least in order to..." She was saying when we heard a woman by the opposite table shouting at a girl that seemed to be hers. Well, they somehow looked alike...

"Haba, what is wrong with you please? Huh? Why do you like suffering me?!" She uttered.

"Mammy, I am sorry" The girl sobbed.

"Come on, keep quiet!" The woman said and kept shouting at the girl until Qudrah and I decided to interfere. The girl was very small.

"Madam, please be gentle" I pleaded with her.

"Yes please, ok?" Qudrah chimed in as well.

Thus, the woman glared at us and asked us to mind our own business. She seemed rude, but perhaps it was because of all the stresses she was going through as a mother. So, we let her be... And hopefully, she stayed until we were done eating the food we were later on served.

...

"So, how much is our bill?" I asked the waiter. And after telling us, I asked about that of the woman as well. Thus, I paid him all together. I did that to show the woman I meant no harm.

"Thank... thank you" The woman managed to say just as we were about leaving. "I am very sorry about what happened earlier, I... I was just pissed off by my... daughter. She doesn't like eating food talk more of taking her pills"

"Pills?" I wrinkled a brow.

"Yes, she's a sickler - always on drugs" The woman said, and that made me to look very closely at her daughter. The girl's eyes were yellow, and she looked relatively abnormal.

"Is she always in pain?" I asked.

"No, from time to time" The woman said.

"What's her name?" I enquired.

"Farzana, and she's four" The woman said.

That moment, I felt like the whole world was onto my head. I gently bent down close to the girl and held her hand. "You will be fine, ok?" I said and she nodded. "But always do as your mommy told you to do, ok?" I added and she nodded again. Thus, I gave her one thousand naira note before biding them both goodbye.

...

"The woman is so young" Qudrah said as we headed back to my car - outside the eatery.

"Yes, she is" I said hopping into the car.

"But do you think she is even married at all?" She asked as she hopped into the car as well.

"That is none of our business, I just pity her daughter" I said igniting the car into action.

"Me too, I really pity the poor child" She said and then huffed. "Some parents are wicked, I mean how can they marry despite knowing that both their genotypes are incompatible?"

"Nice point, some are just selfish!" I uttered.

"Yes, and their children are the ones paying the price!" She uttered, expressing sadness.

And at this juncture, I would like to advice all the people reading this to make sure they check their genotype. And also not to engage into any relationship with someone whose genotype is incompatible with theirs. This is to avoid giving birth to the children that will at the end of the day suffer the consequences. Yes, why give birth to sicklers when you have all the power not to? Do you even know the kind of pain sicklers are going through? Many don't even get to enjoy their life to the fullest due to pain, and some ends up dying early!

This is not the era of ignorance anymore, we are civilized now (at least most of us) and the least I would ever expect from us is making the mistake our parents / grandparents made in the past. If you love to see your children happy always, marry a compatible partner!

Sickle Cell is a very severe hereditary form of anaemia in which mutated haemoglobin distorts red blood cells into a crescent shape, causing the cells to become stuck in capillaries. Downstream tissues are thus deprived of oxygen causing ischaemia and infarction...

The reason why the anaemia is called sickle cell is simply because the red blood cells of those with the anaemia are in form of sickle. Such type of abnormal cells are very likely to block blood vessels, thereby causing pain for the sicklers. It can be managed, but the cure isn't an easy process. It requires a stem cell transplantation which is highly expensive!

...

Just as I drove Qudrah home, I swung my car and drove back home as well while thinking about Farzana. She was just a kid, and why'd her parents even marry? Or didn't they know that their genotypes were incompatible? And talking about them, I didn't even know what Yusuf's genotype was but mine was AA. Thus, I called Yusuf and asked him about it and he told me his own was AS. Well, we can marry!

According to scientific research, AA and AS can marry each other, and also AA and AA. However, AS and AS would have mix of AA, AS and SS. While SS and SS will give birth to complete SS which is extremely bad. Hence, the best combinations are AA and AA, AA and AS, or AA and SS. Try and check your genotype soon!

"AsSalama Alaykum..." My mother salaamed into my room while wearing a very sad face.

"Wa'alaykumus Salam, mum" I said keeping my phone aside. "Mum, is everything okay?"

"Not really" She said as she gently sat by the bedside. "Your father is... trying to suspend our cement production, anytime from now"

"Subhanallah, why?!" I puzzled.

"Actually Fatimah, it's because of the lack of market. The DAF Limited have taken over all our percentages in cement market" She said.

Hmm, seems my Yusuf is doing just great!

"Allow dad to suspend it" I uttered smiling.

"What?!" She glared at me. "Are you mad?"

"No..." I heaved a sigh and continued. "just allow him to do what he think is the best!"

"Nonsense!" She said as she stood to her feet. "You sound just like your father, none of you seems to care about this company these days"

"Mum..." I said as she quickly left the room.

Gosh! I patted my forehead.

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Happy Eid il Fitr in advance to you all💖

Read more about Sickle Cell on Google.

Lets make a change, today!