jlsorensen!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I DID IT! FINALLY! YAY LOL!

*Hud pulls his motorcycle into the driveway, pulls off his helmet, attaches it to the handlebars of his bike, and looks up at the house uneasily. He was meeting Jenna for the first time since their engagement party, and he had to admit, he was feeling terribly sad. This was not how he imagined how he would be meeting his fiancée for the first time alone. Granted, his engagement night was not exactly the best either considering there were ten men all with guns melted into the darkness around the house to protect them all in case one of Jamaal's men were around to attack the family.

Also there was the fact that Jenna had not said a single word to him. Not even one. She hadn't even looked at him either, and if he hadn't met her times before when he had come to visit Muhsin, he would have no clue what her voice even sounded like, and he hated that. He hated that with his very soul, considering marriage had always been one of Hudayfah's biggest goals in life, and now it wasn't going to be like how he had always imagined.

Especially because his soon to be wife hated him.*

*He made his way up the front steps, and after standing there for a few seconds, he rang the doorbell, waiting uneasily for someone to answer. Eventually the door opened, and Jenna's mother, Yasmin appeared, beaming largely.

Yasmin: Hudayfah habibi!!! Come in!!

Hudayfah: *trying to give her a genuine smile* Salaam Khaltu Yasmin.

Yasmin: *waving a hand in the air* Oh none of that formality! I am practically your Mother! I can't wait until you and Jen are married and I can give you the biggest hug ever! Come in, come in!

*Hudayfah laughs, and steps into the house, his stomach fluttering nervously at the thought of Jenna suddenly appearing out of nowhere.*

Hudayfah: How is Amu Adam doing?

Yasmin: *in a scolding voice* What did I just tell you Hudayfah! He is going to be your father soon! No formalities! *she doesn't wait for him to answer, and starts to walk towards the kitchen motioning towards him to follow her* So Jen will be down in a minute, you can just head straight to the family room. Can I get you anything to drink or eat?

Hudayfah: *whose stomach started fluttering at the mention of Jenna's name, and he shakes his head because the thought of eating something makes him want to throw up* Oh Barak Allahu Feeki but I'm okay.

Yasmin *dismissively* You'll have a sandwich and some iced tea! Now hurry on to the family room and wait for your *teasing voice* fiancée!

*Hudayfah laughs as Yasmin and Jenna's sister Emma are very similar in regards to their teasing personalities, though he knows that Emma is ten times crazier even though he had only met her that once at their engagement party. He goes down the hallway to the family room, and sinks down onto one of the couches, his whole body tensing every time he hears footsteps. Finally, after a few minutes, Jenna appears.*

*The sight of her takes his breath away, as it usually does, for she was truly stunning. She is wearing a long flowing red dress, a white scarf with red roses on it, and is staring down at her hands. Upon her entrance, Hudayfah stood up, gave her a small smile, though she wasn't looking at him to see it.*

Hudayfah: AsalamuAlaikum Jenna.

Jenna: *in barely a whisper* Walaikumasalaam.

Hudayfah: How are you doing?

Jenna: *even quieter* I'm okay Alhamdulillah. *she hesitates for a second, her eyes flickering briefly over him* How are you?

Hudayfah: I am well Alhamdulillah. *they stand there for a few moments, before he gestures towards the couch* Please, let us sit.

*Jenna nods, and the two of them take a seat. Automatically, she pulls one of the pillows across her lap, as if she is trying to put a space between them. They lapse into an awkward silence for a few minutes, before Hudayfah clears his throat.*

Hudayfah: Did you have a nice time at our engagement party the other night?

Jen: *not meeting his gaze* Did you?

*ouch*

Hudayfah: Um yes. I wish I could have spent more time with you though.

*Jenna doesn't say anything, keeping her gaze firmly on the ground*

Hud: *desperate for her to at least look at him* I brought your rings with me. Would you like to see them?

Jenna: *she hesitates for a second before nodding slowly* okay.

*Hudayfah reaches into his inside suit pocket, and pulls out the two ring boxes. He opens the engagement ring first, and as he does, her eyes open wide*

Jenna: Oh my God!

Hudayfah: *hopefully* Do you like it?

Jenna: Am I supposed to wear that?!

Hudayfah: *uncertainly* Um, yes?

Jenna: Um, wow. It looks too expensive. I would have been fine with a simple band.

Hudayfah: Oh well I don't want you to worry about the price, I just wanted to give you something that would make you happy.

Jenna: *curiously* What made you think I would want something so extravagant?

*Hudayfah blinks in surprise*

Hud: I'm sorry?

Jenna: *looking down at her hands again* I'm not really a fancy person I am quite simply. Big expensive flashy things kind of freak me out a little bit.

*Hudayfah stares at her in total surprise, before clearing his throat*

Hudayfah: I see. *he puts the rings back in his pocket, not even bothering to show her the wedding band which was encrusted with diamonds as well* *in a slightly annoyed voice* Well, I can certainly get you another one if you'd like.

Jenna: *shaking her head* It's fine, *she looks at him briefly before attempting a small smile* thank you.

Hudayfah: *blurting out before he realizes what he is saying* That's the first time I've seen you smile since we got engaged.

*Hudayfah immediately regretted his words as the smile instantly left her face*

Jenna: Well, my life isn't exactly the best right now. I don't have many things to smile about.

Hudayfah: Look, Jenna, I know that things are really hard for you right now. And I can't imagine how you must see me. But I promise you that all I want is...

*Just then they hear footsteps, and Jenna looks at him in alarm*

Jenna: It's my Mom! She doesn't know! Act happy! *she starts to laugh before putting her hand to her cheek* I can't wait!

*Just then Yasmin comes into the room holding a large tray*

Yasmin: *cheerfully* What can't you wait for?

Jenna: Hudayfah was just telling me about the cake he ordered for the *she pauses and swallows hard as if she is having trouble getting the words out* wedding.

Yasmin: *beaming at Hud* Oh how wonderful! Now eat! *she hands out the food and drinks she brought with her, before she puts her hands over her heart, and looks at the two of them* Such a beautiful couple! MashaAllah! *she gives another sigh of happiness, before she bustles out of the room, and once her footsteps fade, the smile drops from Jenna's face, and once again, she looks down at her hands*

Jenna: I'm sorry about that.

Hud: *looking at her in concern* I'm sorry you had to do that. I don't want you to have to put up a front for the rest of your life.

*Jen looks at him in the eye for the first time ever*

Jenna: I don't have a choice.

Hud: Oh Jenna.

Jenna: *quickly shaking her head* Don't. Please don't. I don't want to talk about this anymore. Please talk about anything else.

Hudayfah: *staring at her for a few seconds, feeling his heart constrict, before nodding* Alright. *he takes a sip from his iced tea* What are you reading these days?

Jenna: *blinking in surprise* I'm sorry?

Hud: Well, the first time I met you, you were coming home from the library with a bag filled with books, and bumped into me because you were reading. I'm guessing you are an avid reader.

Jenna: Wow, I'm surprised you remembered that.

Hudayfah: *uncomfortably* I remember a lot of things about you. You're going to be my wife soon In Sha Allah, I should know you.

*Jenna looks at him briefly, before quickly looking away. However, before she can say anything, a super bright light goes off, nearly blinding both of them*

Hudayfah: *rubbing his eyes furiously* Woah! What was that?! Was that lightening!?

Jen: *who is also rubbing her eyes* Um, no.

Hudayfah: *who is seeing spots* then what was that?

Jenna: *sighing* Emma.

Hud: *in confusion* Emma?

Jenna: *sighing again* Yeah.

Hudayfah: I don't underst...*the lightening flash goes off again* Ya Allah! What's happening!?

*For the first time Jenna laughs, and Hudayfah can't help but smile for the sound made his heart jump in his chest*

Jenna: *pointing* Emma has decided that she wants to document every moment for us, but since Mama wouldn't let her be in the room with us, she had to improvise.

*Hudayfah follows where she is pointing, and laughs as he spots Jenna's sister Emma who is pressed up against the backyard sliding glass door. She is holding a giant camera, with an even bigger flash, and when she spots them looking at her, she waves so wildly, it causes her hair to fly about her face, before she raises the camera up to her face, and snaps a few more pictures in a row.*

Hudayfah: She is something isn't she?

Jenna: *smiling* Emma is a very eccentric character.

Hudayfah: She isn't married right?

Jenna: *shaking her head* No. She has always gravitated towards guys that she could argue with, but at the end of the day, I think she will need someone calm and quiet who will know how to manage her during her drama and will take care of her and will love her.

Hudayfah: I think at the end of the day we all need someone to take care of us and love us. *quietly* And if you let me, I want to be that for you.

*A full two minutes pass between them, before Jenna speaks*

Jenna: *quietly* I think we should eat before my Mom comes and brings seconds.

*Hudayfah sighs, and reaches for his sandwich even though he has no appetite whatsoever*

*AFTER THE MOST AWKWARD THIRTY MINUTES EVER*

*Jenna is walking Hudayfah to the door. They had eaten as slowly as they could to avoid having to talk, but after just sitting there for a ten minutes of silence, Hudayfah had stood up, saying he had to go see to last minute details, and Jenna had jumped up, a relieved expression on her face*

Hudayfah: *pausing in front of the door to pull on his shoes* So In Sha Allah the dressmaker will call you tomorrow morning to set up an appointment for your dress and the dresses for your sisters to make sure they fit before the wedding next week. Is that okay?

*Jenna nods*

Jenna: Yes of course.

*They linger awkwardly for a few seconds, before Hud gives her an awkward nod*

Hudayfah: So I am just going to go. Do you want me to call you later?

Jenna: *hesitating* Um, you don't have to. I will just see you at the wedding In Sha Allah.

Hud: *trying not to show his offense* Sure, no problem. AsalamuAlaikum.

Jenna: Walaikumasalaam...

Emma: WAIT!

*They both turn around and see Emma dashing towards them, tripping over her camera equipment, and trying to run with her hair flying about her face*

Jenna: What Emma?

Emma: Can...I...*breathes deeply* take a...*heaving breath* picture of you guys!?

*Jenna and Hud share a glance, before quickly looking away*

Jenna: I don't think that's such a good idea...

Hudayfah: *at the same time* Yeah I'm late for the thing...

Jenna: And my scarf is a mess...

Emma: *crossing her arms over her chest and pouting* Oh please! All I have are pictures of you guys eating and staring at your hands all shyly! PLEASE!? Please!? OH PLEASE!?

Hudayfah: Um, well if Jenna is okay with it I guess I can take a quick one.

Emma: *hopefully* Jen!? Please please please!?

Jen: *sighing* Just one Emma.

Emma: *clapping her hands together* YAY! Okay! Scooch together!

*They don't move*

*Emma frowns*

Emma: Come on scooch!

*They still don't move*

Emma: I SAID SCOOCH!

*They quickly step a bit closer and while Emma isn't exactly satisfied, it is as close as they can be as they are not yet married. She quickly puts her camera up to her face, though it takes another fifteen minutes before she actually takes the picture as Emma wasn't the best photographer in the world, and she hadn't thought about the fact that having them right in front of the windows like that did not make for good lighting. Finally Jenna couldn't take it anymore*

Jenna: Emma! Just take the picture please!

Emma: *huffing* Fine!

*The blinding light goes off, causing both Jen and Hud to rub their eyes again, and after Hudayfah bids them farewell, he leaves. Once the door closes, Jen lets out a long breath, not sure if she wants to cry or scream, and she quickly heads towards the stairs to bury herself under her blanket and feel sorry for herself about the fact that she only had a week left before her life would never be the same again*

Emma: *following her sister* Hey Jen! Do you want to see the pictures I took!?

Jenna: *taking off her scarf and dropping it down to her shoulders* Nope.

Emma: *looking at her sister weirdly* Why not?

*Jenna remembers that she is supposed to be playing the infatuated young bride in front of her Mom and sisters, and gives a sigh, before smiling at her sister*

Jenna: Can we go into my room first so I can change?

Emma: *skipping happily* Sure!

*As Jenna is changing in her bathroom, she hears Emma jabbering on about how adorable Jen and Hudayfah are and how cute they were together, and her feelings of sadness intensify by the second. As she comes out of the bathroom however, she is startled to find her sister standing right outside the bathroom door*

Jenna: Emma! You scared me!

Emma: *ignoring her sister* Jenna! Jenna look at this last picture I took of you and Hudayfah by the door! I am a photography genius!

*Jenna rolls her eyes at her sister, but she takes the camera, looking down at the screen. Despite herself, she feels her breath getting caught in her throat as she looks at the picture*

Jenna: *breathlessly* Wow. Emma, this is amazing MashaAllah! Did you edit this?

Emma: *shaking her head excitedly* No! That was the light that was shining in from the window!

*Jenna sinks down on her bed, and stares down at the picture. For the first time since hearing that she had to marry Hudayfah, she felt the beginning of hope start to ignite in her heart that maybe things wouldn't turn out to be so horrible. For even though their stances were awkward, and their smiles looked fake and uncomfortable...*

*For the light shining in from the windows surrounded them in such a way, and with the angle Emma had been standing at, she had managed to capture them in a heart.*