RAYS OF HOPE✔

Chapter 29

Humaira's hand traced the books on the shelf in an extra room in the house which Nabeel turned into a study. It was the only place she'd find the much needed quietness from all the hustle and bustle of people coming in for condolences. Today was the fifth day of granny's death and she could only imagine how full the house would be on the seventh day.

Pushing her thoughts back a little, she retrieved a book from the shelf which she'd been meaning to read for months now. She reclined on one of the comfy chairs and opened the first page. Her eyes strained to read the second line after the first but when it'd been five good minutes yet she still hasn't gotten through a sentence talkless of the whole page, she heaved a sigh of disappointment and closed the book then eventually succumbed to her thoughts.

It'd been 4 days since they started their exams in school and Humaira knew she was just writing it for the sake of it. With everything that has been weighing down on her from granny's loss, coming down to the ultimatum and then the pressure from her school mates, she barely grasps what she reads as her mind just wasn't on her side. It'd taken every will power in her to gather the courage to sit for the papers so far and all she could do was to pray she somehow passes.

Come to think of it, today was the sixth day of the ultimatum which implies she has one day to go yet she still didn't have any tangible evidence. She knew Ya Nabeel and Ya Adeel have been trying their best in finding a solid proof but things were just not unfolding. Although it was good to know they found a witness but she knew that would not be enough.

Looking out the window, her heart constricted at the thought of her granny. She missed her warmth, her scent, her arms around hers and everything that made the pretty old woman stand out. She missed how she always served as a source of emboldenment for her.

Humaira thought that nothing would be more painful than her death but yesterday was indeed one of the hardest days of her life. It was the day when Ammi was discharged from the hospital prior to when she was due to leave. A nurse unknowingly made a slip of the tongue and informed her about granny's death and seeing her mother crumbling to pieces was one of the things she'd never ever prepared her self for. It felt like her heart was temporarily removed from its place of refuge before it was stitched back.

Coming down to the situation at hand, Humaira didn't know how, when, where or whether they would be able to find some kind of evidence in just a day and a half, yet she was still holding on to that slightest ray of hope that there would be light at the end of the tunnel. Or perhaps this was the end of her journey as a journalist, before it even began.

At that notion, she felt some moisture on her hand and before she could wonder where it came from, she realised it was her own tears staining her right palm which she held her phone with.

Without giving it much thought, she unlocked the phone and opened her Instagram app. She remembered the time when Adeelah installed the app on her phone saying she was turning herself into a nerd with everything school stuffs.
"All work no play, makes Humaira a dull girl." That was her exact words when Humaira tried convincing her not to install it.

And right now she didn't know why she had the urge to scroll through the app for the second time, peradventure, since when it has been on her phone. Maybe it was to get her mind off everything for a while? Well, whatever the case might be.

Scrolling through posts of one of her followers, she came across a quote which said;

Don't ever make the mistake of letting people's judgemental tendency get to you. It will greatly lessen your self-esteem. The thing of it is, they will always judge you regardless of what you do, so you might as well just hold your head high and dust yourself off. You're in this world to please your lord and not them so their opinion has never and should never matter.