Hey guys,

Welcome to a new chapter 🐱. So, I hope y'all leave comments and vote and share Underwater with your friends 🌝🏃🏽‍♀️

See y'all tomorrow. Depending on the votes and comments. 😍

Ciao bella

"Are you going to begin looking at houses soon? You can't bring a wife to live here neither can you live at your old house." AbdulRahman sighed in exaggerated tiredness and set down his MacBook pro. He could almost swear that his mother was more happy about this than anyone else, she'd brought up several plans and how-to's in the past two days. 

"Dada, she hasn't accepted, we haven't met her parents, nothing has happened. I don't want to jump the gun, we talked about this just two mornings ago, I don't think she should have answers so soon." He watched his mother's excitement deflate a bit before she perked up and walked away. He shook his head and went back to looking over the third quarter figures for the year twenty twenty.

Although a pandemic had hit, his company seemed to do better since most people were home, flour sales was at it's highest and the sales team wanted to go even higher. He got up with his laptop and walked upstairs to his father's former study that he'd claimed for himself ever since he took over the helm of affairs. 

He turned on the lights that his assistant had installed for him and sat behind the desk, transferred the contents of the meeting to the personal computer and began the countdown to the video conference. 

His phone chimed as soon as the meeting began and he facepalmed before turning off his video function to look at the message. It was from Amina so he immediately sat up from his slouch. 

Assalamualaikum sir,

I'd like to see you after Asr, there's a park in my brother's estate, you can wait for me there if I've not arrived.

                                           Amina Adepoju

He read the message three times over, trying to decipher a tone, good or bad, but failed to do so as it sounded as civil as possible. 

His meeting began a few seconds later and while he was known to pay rapt attention and put utmost concentration on all tasks, his attention span dropped noticeably and his employees had to call his attention twice.  After the third reminder, he ended the call on the premise of bad network and began to pace his study. 

As much as he put off thinking about Amina, he just couldn't stop it, he wondered how she came to be. So innocent, beautiful, vast in thought because he'd heard her speak on many matters in the mornings and her respect for others regardless of their social status. He'd seen her greet people who swept the roadside each morning on their way back from their run. 

He stopped pacing and walked back to his seat just as the adhaan for Zuhr prayers was called, he got up and speed walked to the small mosque his father had built as a part of the house a long time ago. As he performed his ablution with other men, he set his heart on what to pray for; Allah's guidance in his next steps. 

After Asr, he stepped out of the mosque and frowned when he saw Tahir performing the rest of his Asr prayers. He groaned as he walked upstairs to his study, he didn't want the stress of Tahir today, not when he wasn't sure what Amina's response would be. 

Just as he sat down, his phone dinged with a text informing him lunch was ready and what lunch was. He almost swore at the timing, so he got up again and began the torturous descent down the stairs to the dining. 

At the dining room, he met Tahir saying something that was making his mother wheeze with laughter, he rolled his eyes as he walked closer to them. 

"What are you doing here? Don't you have work today?" He asked his friend who was dressed in a white button down shirt and jean trousers. 

"Well, I went to your office and found out you lazed around today, I decided to come be your second." Tahir responded as amiably as he could, only earning an eye roll from AbdulRahman. 

"More like pain in my behind. Dada, good afterno-" Tahir shouted, cutting AbdulRahman off from greeting his mother. 

"Dada, you see why I said I only came to greet you. Your son bullies me." AbdulRahman didn't respond, only lazily turning around to go sit at the already set dining table. He took a spoonful of the coconut rice and placed a grilled lamb chop beside his rice. 

"This one you're quiet, is everything okay?" Tahir asked with concern. He knew if he ribbed AbdulRahman, he always ribbed him right back with equal if not higher intensity. 

"Amina wants to see me today, I asked her to marry two mornings ago." Tahir's fork dropped on the ceramic plate with a loud clatter. 

"Iyeeeh. No wonder you've been behaving as though you lost your favorite ball. She's going to accept, maybe with a few requests, because, you're a a good man my friend and if I had sensible sisters, I'd marry them to you in a heartbeat." AbdulRahman's lashes flew up in surprise before he sneered at his friend in mock disgust. 

"Who wants to be in-laws with you?" He asked Tahir who had picked up his fork and begun eating, chewing loudly just to anger his friend. 

"Ai, Dada isn't eating with us?" Tahir asked, AbdulRahman got up and went to get some sparkling water as he returned, he hit the plastic bottle on the back of Tahir's head. 

"So that you can blabber my life's history to her again abi? I'll use hot water on that your sieve of a mouth if I hear it from Dada." He warned his friend very sternly before going back to his seat to finish the rest of his food. 

"Well, I did you good. I've never been bad to you, I just don't like how you keep to yourself, you don't want to talk to people. Since you went to Osman's wedding, you haven't gone anywhere. They invite you but you snob them, you're looking to get married now, I'm sure they'll rally here to attend but when did you ever keep your side of the friendship?" Tahir questioned AbdulRahman, he wanted to being his friend out of the shell of quietness. Tahir watched AbdulRahman sink into a bubble he created for himself, no one could get in, not even his closest friends who had been with him since childhood. 

AbdulRahman tried to exhale but found that his chest was a little tight. He tried, but no words came out so he chewed the last of his lamb chop and sipped some if the sparkling water he'd opened before saying solemnly. "You know the tragedy that hit my life, you know how I lost everything I lived for. You can't tell me how to live or grieve for something I lost, hell, Tahir, I lost my wife and children. How am I supposed to move on from that?" He swallowed painfully and leaned back in his chair, let out a small burp with his mouth covered. 

"I- I lost myself. I am slowly finding myself and I want to take it slowly. I finally found a woman I can do it with and if she will agree to be with me, I'll be giving her my all too. I just need you to understand that It's been hard on me, life has been hard on me. The only thing keeping me together is the love that I know Allah has for me, I also know He would not give this hurting soul more than I can bear." He pushed his chair back and walked upstairs, leaving his friend behind. 

As he reached the study, he took out his sleek new phone and began to type a text he'd composed in his head as he climbed the stairs. He wanted to move meeting Amina to another day, but as he entered the room, he ambled over to the floor length windows covered by thick curtains, he slid one end apart and looked out the expanse of land behind. 

He watched his mother rock her chair slowly as she read a book on her kindle and decided not to send the message anymore. He would not chicken out now, he would see it to the end. 

*****

"She's there. Look at her pushing a child at the swing." Tahir pointed out quickly as soon as AbdulRahman drove into the parking lot. 

"Hey! Stay here, no movement, if you think you'd not be able to hold yourself together, drive the car back home and ask a driver to pick me up." AbdulRahman wanted to say 'Don't mess this up for me' but he stopped himself last second and stepped out of the air-conditioned car into the heat of the late afternoon. 

The sound of leaves crunching underfoot was the only sound that permeated the air as he strode towards Amina. He reached her and greeted loudly. "Assalamualaikum." 

She stopped and stared at him, same as the light skinned little boy she'd been pushing. The boy bore an uncanny resemblance to her brother Azeem. 

"Walaikum Salam. Good afternoon." She greeted back. She unlatched the safety strap of the swing and picked the boy firmly in her hold and transfered him to sit on her hip. 

She walked to a shaded cement bench and he followed. She sat and he perched on the edge of the bench trying to keep more inches between them. The sun that previously shone on her face now stung her eyes as she had to look up at him. 

"Uhm. I called you because I wanted to ask you a few questions and I thought it best to watch you answer them." He nodded and watched as she swallowed. 

"We will sign a prenup agreement, I don't want your money, my father, Alhamdulilah has enough of his. Is that okay?" He chuckled. She didn't give him an option, she must had thought about that before laying it out as a statement. 

"Amina, whatever makes you sleep well at night, a prenuptial agreement, no prenuptial agreement, fine by me." She nodded and he waited for the next question or response with bated breath. 

"Do you have any secrets?" He thought about it for a minute and then shook his head, but something nagged at him, he shook it off and shook his head again. 

"I'll keep praying Istikhara and send you a message once I make a decision. Should not take too long, In Sha Allah." He watched as she played with the quiet boy's fingers in a bid to quell what he determined to be nervousness. 

"Alright, till then. You can ask me any questions, I'll answer them truthfully. I promise." She nodded, not speaking and he asked with his eyes if that was all, she agreed solemnly. He got up waved at the boy and left, walking back to the car, his heart which had set itself earlier seemed to tighten even further with anticipation. 

At this rate, there was nothing he could do but wait and pray. Pray fervently. 

****

I'm sorry.

I thought she'd accept easily too but 🙄see as she dey do shakara.

Anyways, I said I'll see y'all tomorrow. See you all tomorrow. Really. Thanks and God bless.