THE CONTRACT MARRIAGE

9-THE NEWS

OMNISCIENT

The Grema's mansion was covered in pin-drop silence, no one dared to utter a word. Elders and youngsters filled the living room, all of them waiting for a certain person's presence. It wasn't up to six hours after their return from Babangida's residence. Everything happened spontaneously, from going to pray and getting married in the mosque.

Immediately Saif heard the general announcement, he left to God knows where. Muhannad also followed him to ensure his safety, it was obvious that he wasn't in the right frame of mind. She was supposed to be his but now, she's his brother's.

After Engr Muhammad Babangida proclaimed the news, the place turned silent before the sound of Dalila's sobs ended, she bolted upstairs to her room. Sumaira zoned out completely, no matter how hard they tried to get her to react, she stayed there motionless, her eyes unblinking. That was how they left in sadness, wondering if they did the right thing. The architect also regretted his actions and blamed himself for agreeing with his friend, everything was too fast to process.

On their way home, he summoned Maheer back to Nigeria without saying a word about the marriage. Adeena was unusually silent, she didn't speak since the incident. Waheeda was the strong one who tried hard to console everyone and even made arrangements for other family members who had been told about the marriage.

"This can't be accepted! You know it's not our tradition to get someone from this family married without perfect knowledge of an elder and a background check," A look-alike but older version of the architect spoke.

"Brother, I've been doing a background check for almost two years now. The father of the bride is also my closest friend. I know we did things in a hurry but it can still be fixed," Arc Abdullahi Grema retorted.

"It's not about you. Does Maheer even know this? Did you even think about how he'll react after finding out, knowing fully well how troublesome that boy can be?" Alhaji Akram Grema furrowed his eyebrows. The man is the eldest and thus, he makes the decisions that come with marriage and other important things that require elders.

Surprisingly, he accepted the impromptu marriage that happened without his consent, he was just watching out for the married couple. On one hand is his untamable nephew who is a well-known misogamist and on the other is the wife whom he's yet to meet.

"I can deal with Maheer," The architect retorted.

"How long is it taking you to prepare that boy for the conglomerate? Let alone getting him to accept his marriage! This isn't a child's play, Maheer said he doesn't want marriage but no, you still went ahead and forced your son. You could've given him some more time, anyway, that's too late now," He sighed.

"Brother-in-law, Sumaira is the best match for Maheer, she's also in love with him. If there's anyone who can fit into our image, then she's the one. Wait until you meet her," Waheeda released a smile and he nodded.

"Where's Saif? We need to plan homeboy's wedding party," A buoyant male voice cheered. The glare everyone sent his way had him recoiling. He embarrassedly stood up and left to avoid further awkwardness.

Rahim Akram Grema is their cousin and also the eldest son of Alhaji Akram Grema. He is a bit older than Maheer and also unmarried, he's the absolute player and never takes things seriously. Rahim is Maheer's closest cousin, that's because they have almost the same habits. The main reason why he calls him homeboy. He placed his bet with Maheer on the first person who'll get married, as it is, he was already excited to win.

"How will you inform him now?" Asked Akram's wife, Jiddah, her expression was that filled with concern.

"Leave that to me. Thankfully, her father said he wants the marriage to remain a secret and we agreed on that because the married couple's opinion matters too. The bride will be welcomed to her new home tomorrow, only close family members will have the information." He retorted.