Life is a journey, keep going, don't worry about the potholes on the way or gravel roads, they will just mold you into a better you! The most important thing is to KEEP GOING!

~Unknown

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Ruqayyah

"He did tell me who he was, just his name" said Huma didi 

apparently, all girls, meaning, Irqa, Nabz, Nafz, Huma didi and I were seated down on the floor of the dining hall, which was quite huge, and were cleaning up vegetables needed for the salad and food 

I was peeling the cucumbers, Iqra set on my right, peeling down the carrot

Huma didi was infront of me cutting the fresh 'Dhanya' and Nabz was chopping english cabbage 

Nafz was just running errands for us as she was too klutz to do anything without cutting herself 

and then the story of Huma didi's marriage started 

she was explaining how she met Shaheer, her husband and dear Shumayll's elder brother 

"I was flattered about it but me, being.. well myself, i did not want to talk to him- i mean come o! he was the hottest hunk on campus!" she grinned and laughter erupted amongst us 

"So yeah..he would always talk to me, play about with me and i guess soon, i fell for him- i mean it was not easy- knowing my family and all- they would never allow me to get married to a guy with no job or career! but then his whole family secret burst when i saw his photos at the office, i was renovating! it was Edris empire-" she said and Iqra laughed

"So he had lied?" i asked running the fork down the cucumber 

"Yup! but then he explained and gave me 2 days to think- 2 days were not even completed when his family came to mine asking for my hand and my parents... said they will think about it- so yeah.... we sorted out our differences and............ things just happened" she said blushing at the ending part 

We laughed before going back to work 

my heart beat increased slowly and a familiar scent traveled through my nose 

oh no 

no no!!

"Iqra, where on earth are the spoons!?!" he asked coming into the view 

his usually neat hair was in a mess and his face was red from the heat 

his eyes met mine and i looked away, feeling my face heat up 

"Its on the top shelf, on the left, beside the micro- or oven- idk which one it is-" said Iqra and Iqraam nodded

he turned to his heels and walked away, but not before shooting me one of his charming smiles 

i shook my head and got back to peeling cucumbers 

after setting up things for salad and food, we were left with one teeny tiny thing

Cut the onions 

as usual, none of them wanted to do it so i volunteered 

"No- wait-" said Iqra and everyone turned to her 

ammi and Loriza aunty were cooking at the other kitchen, backyard kitchen as they call it and we were here setting up things so that its all there when anyone needs it 

"Just give me a sec- i am sure Uncle, daadi mah (Shumayll's grandma- she is awesome!) and abba can handle things outside-" she said and sprinted outside to do, Allah knows what 

After several minutes, she walked inside grinning like a chestier cat

Iqraam, Namaan, Shumayll and another guy i don't know followed her inside 

"You can't be serious!!!" laughed Nabz and Iqra nodded

"Boys, there are the cutting tools, get to work!" she grinned and teased Shumayll 

"As salaam, When did you get here?" asked Huma bhabhi giving water to the unknown guy and he grinned

"Was salaam- Just about 5 minutes ago-" he replied and she nodded smiling lovingly at him 

i assume that is her husband, Shaheer?

"Ahem sorry to break you two- but we have onions to cut, brother!" winked Shumayll and Shaheer threw a plastic fruit at him 

Shumayll caught it and grinned turning to Iqraam 

"He is sabotaging your house, mahn!" said Shumayll and Iqraam face palmed himself 

it was nice, to see siblings quarrel and love each other at the same time!

i smiled and set on the chair 

"Ruqayyah bubu- just get the ice from the fridge please" said Nabz from the sink and i nodded

i opened the deep fridge and searched for the ice boxes 

'Its in the second row" said Iqraam from behind me and i gulped down the saliva 

okay....

taking out the ice from the second fridge, i turned around and looked up to him 

he was leaning at the edge of the table, arms crossed and looking at me with an amused look

he smiled at me and i held his gaze

his eyes also had specs of golden in them- 

is that possible? 

"Ice please!!!" called out Nabz, a hint of playfulness in her voice and i diverted my gaze 

Iqraam laughed before turning to his work 

i walked to the sink and dumped the ice into it 

"Ahem, work first!" winked Iqra from my side and i blushed

'Look whos blushing!" giggled Nafz and Iqra grinned

"I am wearing a niqab, you possibly can't see that" i muttered and they laughed

"But you were!" said Iqra before running away to Iqraam 

just maybe... i could get used to this? 

a goofish smile appeared on my lips

i shook my head and put small ice cubes in glasses in which Nabz, then, poured out juice. 

"Help me with these please!" she said and i nodded

i took the huge tray and she grinned

"I will go give this to Abba and the rest outside, you give this out to this people here" she winked and i sighed 

"K" i said as i started with the girls 

"Hey, we worked more than them!!!" whined Shumayll and Iqraam hit his head playfully 

Shumayll, being himself, hit Iqraam back and soon both were wrestling

Iqra stood up and walked to Shumayll 

i thought she was going to stop the fight but instead, she pulled Shumayll by the collar of his tees and separated Iqraam and him 

Iqraam was pink and laughing and so was Shumayll 

'That was the best fight ever!" said Shumayll and Iqraam agreed

Iqra sighed loudly and walked back to her seat

I offered her juice and she happily took it 

"I love you mahn!!!" she said as she drank down her juice 

wow 

I passed out juice to Huma didi, Nafz, Shaheer bhai and finally i stood infront of Iqraam 

(Namaan had sneaked out with Nabz to abba)

"I.. uh.. do't-" he said and i raised my tray 

"No didi- No juice for him-" said Shumayll and i looked at him questioningly

of course i was wearing my niqab so he did not get me 

"I don't drink soda's-" said Iqraam and my eyes went back to his 

"Why?" i asked him curiously 

"Well because it is not good for me and Iqra won't listen to me when i say not to drink it- i don't wanna be in the hospital with IV's and pipes stuck to my body" he replied and i nodded

"You, Shumayll?" i asked Shumayll and he shook his head

"Oh so you two are twins or something?" i questioned and he laughed

"You could say that" he replied and i chuckled

I put the tray and two glasses of juice on the sink and opened the fridge for a bottle of water

I poured it in 2 glasses and walked to Shumayll 

'Water?" i asked him and he grinned

"thank you!" he said and took one glass off the tray 

I turned to Iqraam and he nodded taking the other glass

"Sit and drink, btw, its sunnah" i muttered to him and he smiled at me before sitting on the FLOOR and drinking water

i shook my head laughing at his behavior

Shumayll copied him and set down, before drinking water 

i put everything away and washed the glasses and dishes in the sink and Nabz returned holding Namaan by his ear

"He sneaked off" she said and Namaan whined 

ignoring him, she walked to me

"Awwwwhhh thank you!!!" she hugged me 

"Why?" i asked her smiling

"You cleaned up this place!" she said and i shook my head

"No probs" i replied as i walked back to Iqra 

she seemed to be enjoying this 

Shaheer bhai, Shumayll, Namaan and Iqraam were cutting onions and they all had tears running down their faces

Shumayll being the playful one, began sniffing and wiping away tears with his hand, only to cause more tears in his eyes

"Arrggh, i hate you Iqra for this!!" he whined and Iqra laughed

"Feelings mutual, mahn!" she grinned before eating away her potato chips 

'Hey, share!" said Huma bhabhi and soon the packet of chips went around the girls 

 I ate as i watched Iqraam wipe away his tears while chopping onions very finely 

he was a good cook, eh 

"Awee the boys are crying!" said Loriza aunty walking inside the kitchen and we laughed 

'Mah, not you too!!" whined Shaheer and i was beginning to see how Shumayll and him were brothers 

"Hey baby!" she winked at me and i chuckled

"Hello aunty" i said and she shook her head

"Ruqayyah, you are like... Huma's sister- call me mah" she said and i nodded smiling at her

Loriza aunty was as awesome as Mah aunty and grandma was the awesomest 

like total crazy!

Loriza aunty took chips from my hand and munched on it 

"Mhhmmm this is- nice!!" she said as she took more 

i laughed and handed her more 

"Oh where is Sohayl, Huma?" she asked didi 

"Sohayl, Zaik and Zahi are at the nursery, with Shumar" she replied and aunty nodded

i turned to Iqraam and he seemed to have a hard time chopping them 

his eyes were puffed up, his face was red and his cheeks were tear stained 

i sighed and stood up 

"Can't we just help them?" i asked Iqra and she shook her head

"Nope!" said Loriza aunty smirking "-Plus this is the first time, i have seen Shumayll work! let me have the moment!" she added as she took out her phone 

'Moommm no!!!" yelled Shumayll as aunty took his photos and i laughed

"There- moment captured!" she said showing us the photo of a tear stained SHumayll trying to duck behind Iqraam who was wiping his eyes and ending up cutting his hand 

"Are you okay?" i asked him as i gave him the first aid box that Iqra gave me 

'Yeah" he replied wrapping his wrist with a white cloth 

"Just a small cut" he laughed it off and i knew it was hurting him 

"Go take rest, we will finish this!!" said Iqra walking to him 

"You okay bro?" she asked him and he nodded

"How about you go out to abba, we will handle this-" she said and he nodded grinning at her

he gave me one last smile before walking away 

"It hurt you to see him like that, didn't it?" she asked me smiling and i looked away 

she held my shoulders and faced me

"You love him, admit it!" she said and i sighed 

love was.... not easy for me.... but i am willing to give Iqraam a chance.. i mean it was not his fault all that happened with me, right? 

"You okay?" Iqra asked and i nodded

Huma didi held my shoulders from the side and hugged me sideways 

"Tell him" she said and i shook my head

"No way to America, am i doing that!" i said and they laughed

"Fine but if he asks you to marry him, you will say yes?" asked Huma didi and i sighed

duh!

they squealed and i closed my ears

"Okay time to mix up salad and put everything in place- Nafz has swept the downstairs floor and its clean- the hall has been set as well- we just need to get ready and leave" said Huma didi and we nodded

it was almost 6 and everything seemed set except salad 

we had to mix it 

"Iqraam where is the deserts?" asked mah aunty walking inside the kitchen 

"Ruqayyah, please go ask him" said mah aunty and i nodded

i walked up to his room and knocked on the door

'Come in' he yelled and i opened it, walking inside his huge familiar room 

his scent made my mind go haywire and i was confused

what happened?

"Iqraam, ammi wants to know where the deserts are" i said to him as i walked into his bedroom from his attached living room space

He was standing infront of the mirror with a bottle of perfume in his hand wearing jeans... only 

i immediately turned around and focused my eyes on the ground 

"Oh yeah... umm............. sorry about that- tell her- argghh!!" he said and then i felt droplets of water fall on me 

was he spraying water on me? 

I looked up and saw his bottle spray, handing from the ceiling light, spraying all over me 

what the-? 

how did he manage to get that there?

"Uhh Iqraam.." i said 

"Yeah?" he asked me 

"How did that go up there?" i asked him 

his footsteps were coming nearer 

i hope he is wearing a tee shirt or something 

i screwed my eyes shut and he laughed, his voice echoing in the whole room 

"Open your eyes, Ruqayyah, i am dressed" he said and i slowly opened my eyes 

I let out a sigh of relief when i saw him wearing a tee shirt 

"So how did it go up there?" i asked him crossing my arms 

"Well, i was trying to get my tees that was at the end of the step- i bent down and the bottle slipped out of my hand and flew up the ceiling light-" he said and i shook my head

this was stupid 

"Anyways- what about the desert?" i asked him

"Tell ammi, i will pick it up from the shop with Shumayll before we get to the hall" he replied and i nodded

i walked out of the room, gracefully this time, and strode downstairs

"Mah aunty- he said he will pick it up with Shumayll when he comes to the hall" i told her and she nodded

"Now go get ready, all of you- and Ruqayyah, you are getting ready with Iqra-" she said sternly and i shook my head

"I will get ready at home and come to the hall" i said and she sighed

"Okay!" she replied in defeat and i grinned

"Ohh can i go with her?" asked Iqra and turned to me

"Can i come to your place and get ready?" she asked me and i nodded

'Sure-" i said and mah aunty shook her head

"Nope- Nafz and Nabz will be alone-" she said 

'Then we all go- there are like 3 rooms and two bathrooms, i am sure all 4 of us can manage" i said and ammi's mouth hung open

"Oh my- okay- go but no harassing her" she said and the girls nodded

"I will meet you all at the hall!" said Huma didi hugging all of us and we nodded

With final goodbyes, Iqraam decided to drop us home 

Zahi had her own baby seat so no problem with that 

Nabz took the front seat, Iqra, Nafz and I took the back seats, Zahi in my arms and Zaik was at the back in the SUV 

it seemed weird but.... let it be 

Iqraam dropped us off in front of the apartment building and called out to Iqra 

"Shumayll will pick Nabz and Nafz with Zaik- k?" he said to them and they nodded

"Iqra, you, Ruqayyah and Zahi will be with me-" he said and we nodded

We walked up to the lobby and into the elevators 

"Wow, nice place!" said Nafz and i grinned

once in my apartment, Zahi collapsed on the couch and immediately closed her eyes 

she seemed tired 

Zaik went to shower and Nafz did the same 

I opened my hijab and niqab and stripped down my abhaya,  wearing leggings and tees that i had worn underneath 

I set down in the living room with Iqra and Nabz

"So Nabz, any guys?" i winked and she laughed, pink tints on her cheeks

"So there is someone! whos he??" asked Iqra and Nabz blushed harder

"just.. no one" she sighed deeply and Iqra laughed

"Come on girl! tell us!" i said and she chuckled

"Hes... just some guy........... i guess...." she smiled and i grinned

i knew that smile 

"WHO. IS. HE?" asked Iqra inching closer to Nabz and i pulled her back 

"Chillx girl!" i said and she grinned sheepishly

"Is he good looking? cute? what is his career? name? address? phone number?" shot Iqra and Nabz seemed startled 

"Chill Nabz- so who is he?" i asked her smirking and she blushed

'Shumayll" she barely whispered and Iqra coughed out loud 

"WHAT?" she asked her and Nabz nodded looking down 

I hugged her 

"thats great news!" i said and she smiled at me

I looked at Iqra from over Nabz shoulder and she seemed in her own world 

am i missing something here? 

"Congrats gurl!!!!!" grinned Iqra as she hugged Nabz 

"Nabz you can shower-" said Nafz from my bedroom and i pushed Nabz 

"Go shower girl, you need to look good for him" i winked and she laughed walking away 

Iqra was plopped onto the couch and staring at her phone, reading a book 

'You okay?" i asked her and she set up forcing a smile

"Yup-" she replied looking back down a the phone

i set beside her

"So tell me about this Musa guy?" i asked her and she did not respond

"thats not his name... i lied- i was not ready to let anyone know- now i realized i never liked him anyway!" she said and i stared at her

'You what?" i asked her and she sighed

"I am gonna take a shower" she said smiling at me and i nodded, not pressing the issue

something is wrong and she is not telling me 

if Iqraam finds out, he will be furious 

Ya Allah please let their family be safe, they just united now!

++++++++++

Salaam people 

I updated

You all wanted them married so i decided to hurry up the marriage process

they were suppose to get married by NEW YEAR but now its... CHRISTMAS!! or before that- 

yupp so i am planning the next 2 chaps- 

spoiler: he proposes her- 

Lol 

so yah 

i love u all

alot 

and yes- Huma is not married to Shumayll my dears, she is shumayll's bhabhi- his brothers wife and Sohayll is their son! :D

muahh 

Take care- 

~Queen