HIS (YOU series #1)

30

Amira

I landed in Nigeria at about 6:15 pm, I'll be staying at my in-laws because my dad and grandma were in Yemen, funny enough, I wasn't jet-lagged at all, I was super energetic. Aadil had slept almost through the entire flight, and for the hour he was awake, I fed him then he just laid on my chest, heartbeats in sync.

As soon as the car went through the gate, I noticed someone running out, a smile on my face as I recognised the figure. As the car stopped, I gently hopped down, clutching Aadil to my chest.

"Sis", Ailah yells, stopping in front of me. She collects Aadil and begins kissing his cheeks.

"He's even cuter in person", she says, and I smile.

We make our way into the house where Ammi and Baba are waiting, as soon as I step into the living room, I'm pulled into a hug.

"Oh, my daughter", Ammi says, squeezing me as I hug her back.

Baba hugs me, and we exchange pleasantries before being wholly entranced with Aadil, Ammi takes him out of Ailah's hands, allowing us to embrace properly, we hug for what feels like an eternity, but it was so worth it,

"God, I missed you so much," I say as we pull apart.

Fatima squeals loudly, running into the living room, I throw myself into her arms, and two other pairs of arms wrap around us, Amina and Hudayya. I missed my girls so much, this felt so right, I've longed for this comfort for months.

Tears begin to well in my eyes, and I hiccup to keep my sobs in, the girls break away quickly, and Fatima stares at my face, she knows. She pulls me out of the room and up the stairs, and the others follow, as soon as we get into Ailah's room, I break down in Amina's arms.

She guides me to the bed, and we sit, the girls huddle around, waiting for me to calm down, finally being able to speak, I begin to spill everything that's weighing me down, from Akram lying to me to all my fears about my son resenting me.

"My poor girl," Amina says, wiping my tears.

"We all don't have kids, so it's hard to offer you any solutions, but I promise you we'll be there to help and comfort you every step of the way", she adds.

"And trust me, Aadil loves you," Fatima says, "so put a smile on that pretty face, you're back home with the people who love you," Hudayya says, pulling my cheeks.

I giggle at her antics, this is what I needed, comfort and distractions.

"So, Ailah," I say, wiggling my eyebrows at her.

"Ohhhh", she responds, whining like a child,

"why is everyone so interested in this relationship? This morning it was Ammi and baba, now it's you", she adds, thrashing around.

"Oh my god, they know! Did you tell them?" I ask, all giddy,

"nope, they saw them", Hudayya responds, giggling.

"They can't exactly act normal around each other", Fatima adds,

"That is the cutest thing ever. I squeal but are Ammi and Baba for?" I ask.

"They keep asking about marriage, knowing that I just turned 21", she groans.

"We're both not ready for that kind of commitment, we're still having fun, and I'm still in school", she adds.

"I think you both should sit down with them and tell them you want to go through with it, just not now, I'm sure they'll understand", I suggest.

"Enough about me, Fatima. What's your life like," Ailah asks, changing the subject, "I was hoping someone would ask," Fatima responds, grinning widely.