A Blissful Romance✔️

ONE

BISMIALLAH AR'RAHMAN AR'RAHIM

Doha, Qatar

Have you ever had a day when you wished you had stayed in bed? As I rushed to catch the bus on what seemed to be a perfectly normal day, I had no idea what was coming for me.

"Hurry, or you will be late!" called my mother, Ama, from the bottom of the stairs. "Today of all days, you want to be late," she reprimanded.

"Ama, just give me five minutes. I will be down, Insha'Allah." I was trying to convince myself more than her. I, of all people, cannot get ready in five minutes to save my life. For Allah's sake, five minutes! Who does that?

"Can you repeat yourself? I didn't hear you. Did you say five minutes, huh?" Ama scoffed.

"Ama, sorry. I promise to be down soon, like I said, five minutes max, Insha'Allah." I replied, racing to the bathroom. Ya Allah!

Miraculously, I came out five minutes later. I hurriedly got dressed in my black abaya, tied my hijab in a Somali style, then slipped on my sneakers. Lastly, I strapped my tote bag on my shoulder.

"Be safe, azizi," Ama said as we walked out of the house.

"Insha'Allah, Ama. Allah hafiz." I prayed, kissing her on her right cheek and adjusting my bag.

"God bless you, Hidaya. May Allah be with you."

"Ameen, Ama."

The sun was warm on my face as I raced toward the waiting yellow bus. As I nestled into the mocha leather seat, I was greeted by the friendly voice of my excited best friend, Imtisal. The look on my face was one of confidence and excitement as I saw her. With a jerk, the bus drove out of my neighborhood.

Twenty-five minutes later, we arrived at Hammad bin Khalifa University. We all got off the bus in a single line and were guided to Allah knows where until I suddenly collided with a rigid body. I slowly retreated my hands from the person's chest and looked up.

SubhanAllah, I was met with alluring mocha-colored eyes shining in the sunlight. The person flashed me an apologetic look and smiled, revealing pearly white teeth. I didn't know when I started swooning.

"Audhu billah, Ya Allah, forgive me. How could I think of that?" I thought to myself.

"Asif, I didn't see you coming," I apologized.

Before I could hear his reply, Imtisal suddenly dragged me away. I turned back to look at the brother, but he was nowhere to be seen. I didn't know why, but I felt a pang of sadness. Ya Allah, what is happening to me?

"Why were you with that brother, huh?" Imtisal asked, raising one of her brows expertly, something I always found appealing.

"Wh-what? Oh, nothing, we just collided, that's all," I replied.

"But why are you stammering? That's so unlike you, habibti." Imtisal asked.

"Nothing, really." I replied, giving her a reassuring smile.

"Ok, if you say so." Imtisal shrugged.

We increased our pace because everyone was ahead of us. I waved at one of our classmates, Fatima, to wait for us so we could enter the hall together.

I, Imtisal, and Fatima sat in the second row of the vast hall. The hall was huge; it had almost a thousand chairs and gigantic speakers mounted on the walls, resembling those in Masjid Al-Haram.

We waited for about twenty minutes before the competition we were invited to participate in started. The competition consisted of Quran, hadith, and sirah. I was going to participate in Quran recitation, Insha'Allah. I was excited but also nervous. Ya Allah, guide me through.

The competition started with sirah, then hadith, before Quran, which was going to take place after a short break. Each category had its own judges, which surprised me.

Alhamdulillah, everything was going well, even though my school was in second place. Whoever wins, we will still celebrate.

"The judges for the Quran recitation are; to my right, we have Sheikh Hamza, in the middle, Sheikh Ahmad, and to my right, Sheikh Hafeez. We may proceed. First on our list is Hidaya Noura," the anchor announced.

My heart raced as they called my name. My hands started shaking from fear, and I kept reciting du'as as I walked to the stage.

"Assalam Alaiki, Hidaya Noura," one of the judges said. Masha'Allah, his voice was so sultry. I raised my head slowly to see the brother from earlier.

My heart started beating rapidly, as if I had run a marathon. I didn't realize I was staring until I heard my name being called, SubhanAllah. Ya Allah, what have I caused for myself?

"Are you okay, dear? You don't need to be scared; you will do well, Insha'Allah," the brother said.

I nodded nervously before shutting my eyes for a second. I took a deep breath and opened my eyes.

"We may proceed," the brother said.

As I walked nervously to the stage, the whispers of the audience seemed to blend into a distant hum. Unexpectedly, a gentle breeze swept through the hall, carrying the fragrance of freshly bloomed flowers. The atmosphere shifted, and for a moment, time seemed to slow.

As I began reciting the Quran, I felt a calming peace in my heart as I zoned out just focusing on the meaningful words of the Quran and the privilege of competing on such a big stage.

Assalam Alaikum once again. How was the chapter? I hope it 'somehow' reached your expectations, but well let's see how it goes. Don't forget to vote, comment and share💗.

Till we meet again.

Love, Mardieeeee❤.

→