Two days ago, I slipped my card into Manal's car without her knowledge thinking she would eventually see it and call me but guess what? It was a dead end, and now I had no other choice but to request for her number from Hilwah.

"AsSalama Alaykum" I uttered as soon as she picked the call. It had rang to no avail before.

"Wa'alaikumu Salam Ya Idris, Good morning and Juma'at Kareem to you" She greeted me.

"Morning, and same to you" I said smiling.

"Thank you sir," she said and continued. "Sorry I couldn't pick your previous calls, I was in the kitchen cooking breakfast with Manal sheyasa"

"No, ba matsala ai toh" I huffed and continued. "How's she?" I found myself asking about her.

"Manal is fine, I left her in the kitchen when Hajiya told me about my phone" she said.

"Okey, can I get her number please?" I said.

"Hmm, sure!" She cleared her throat and continued. "Right away sir, lemme send it"

"Thank you" I smiled and ended the call.

In less than a minute, Hilwah texted Manal's contact to me and I unhesitatingly saved it as Ummu Amani which means the mother of my daughter, Amani. Funny, right? Well, she might just be my wife in the nearer future, you know.

Alhamdulillah. I heaved a sigh of victory.

I so much wanted calling Manal as soon as I got her contact but something told me not to, at least not at that moment. Thus, I checked if she was on WhatsApp and found out - yes - she was but her profile was blank, meaning she set it in a way that only the people in her contact list would see her information. I loved that!

I walked into the bathroom and took a very warm shower before hopping onto the bed. I had been at work throughout the night and now, it was the right time for me to sleep.

I slept until quarter past eleven when my phone woke me up, it was the alarm I set. Thus, I took a spiritual bath, got myself prepared for the Juma'at prayer and then drove hurriedly to the central mosque.

When the prayer was done, I prayed for my parents, my late wife, my daughter and also brought the case of Manal to Allah. "If she's the best for me, please make her mine soon" I supplicated in my mind and rubbed my face with my palms. Thus, I walked out to my car.

Just as I was driving home I fortuitously saw Salim by the roadside standing in front of his - perhaps - broken car. I quickly pulled over and walked over to him. "Hey" I said smiling.

"Idris?" He dropped his jaw in puzzlement.

"Yes, it's me" I stretched my hand for a shake.

"Sorry, that day I wasn't able to..."

"It's okey Salim, I understand" I cut in as we shook hands. "What happened to your car?"

"I don't really know wallahi" He sighed and continued. "It started rumbling by the road"

"And you think it is not fuel?" I said.

"No, I filled the tank just recently" He said wearing a sad face. "I think it's the plugs"

"Okey, so now what?" I said.

"Well, I already called Manal to come with my mechanic. They would be here soon" He said.

That moment, I felt something cold in my heart. If Manal was coming, then I had to stay! I said to myself. "Okey then, I will keep you company before she arrives with him" I said.

"Alright, thank you" He said smiling.

"You're welcome" I smiled back.

Thus, we began poking fun at each other and cracking jokes until Manal arrived with the mechanic. She was so surprised to see me. We greeted and she looked away. She was wearing hijab as usual and her face was free from makeup but despite that, she looked hot to me. I kept looking at her as the mechanic began checking Salim's car but guess what she did? She kept avoiding eye contact with me as if I did something wrong to her. Or was it about the card I slipped into her car? I wondered.

"It is not the spark plugs, it is something beyond that sir" The mechanic apprised.

"What is that?" Salim asked.

"Something is blocking the fuel from entering the engine. The tank needs filtering. Sadly, the equipments are not here" The mechanic said.

"Can you call any of your boys?" Salim asked.

"Have you forgotten I lost my phone? Same reason why you were unable to reach me directly. Your sister can drive me back and..."

"That's a lot of pressure on her" I chimed in.

"No, it's okey Idris" Manal glanced at me.

"Really?" Salim asked on my behalf.

"Yes, Ya Salim" She said hopping into her car. "Lets go, Babatunde. I have a lot to do at home"

"Alright" The mechanic hopped back inside.

Manal gave me one last glance before starting the car. Thus, she drove away in speed as if my presence irritated her. Did she even loved me at all or was she just playing hard to get?

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Thank you for reading #InsideArewa