Our Friendship

15

Ummi was in a hurry as she didn't want Khadija to wait long. They had planned to meet today at the Central Mosque to review some of their courses.

Her phone rang as she came out of the toilet; it was her sister, Amira. She smiled and answered the call. "Lil, I missed you," she said. Amira giggled, "but you never call first."

"It's because I'm busy."

"Okay, guess what," Amira said.

"Please just tell me," Ummi pleaded.

"I'm on my way."

"What? Don't tell me you're coming to Zaria."

"I'm already in Zaria; I'll be at your place in a few minutes."

Ummi was so happy; she never thought her dad would let Amira visit her. She had to call Khadija to apologize for not being able to come as they had planned, and Khadija told her to "never mind."

She dropped the phone on the center table and moved to the kitchen as she wanted to prepare something for Amira.

"Ummi!" Inna called, "Go and check who is at the door," Inna instructed.

Ummi was so happy that she couldn't close her mouth.

To her surprise, it was Khadija standing by the door. She was stunned and could only stare at Khadija with her mouth open.

Khadija burst into laughter. "What is this? Close your mouth; it's me for sure. You're not hallucinating." They all smiled and headed inside.

Khadija helped Ummi prepare lunch.

Ummi was angry because Amira had lied to her, but she held her tongue. Khadija told her to wait and see; maybe it was because of traffic jam.

Amira and their uncle arrived. Ummi looked at her icily. Amira smiled; she knew what the look was about. "I'm sorry, sis," she said.

Ummi only greeted Mahfuz and didn't say anything more.

Khadija and Ummi served their guests. Inna called Hajiya (Ummi's grandma) and told her about Khadija, Ummi's new friend. Hajiya was excited to hear that her granddaughter had a female friend, as she didn't like the fact that Ahmad was her only friend.

Khadija always came to Ummi's place during the mid-semester break, and they studied together there.

Amira stayed in Zaria for almost two weeks. They sometimes went to lectures together, and Ummi's coursemates kept wondering how her sister was quite different from her; they were total opposites.

On the 13th day, Mahfuz came back to pick up Amira.

Ummi visited Khadija sometimes. The first time she went to Khadija's place, she was pleasantly surprised to see how everyone knew about her, even though they had never met in person.

"So, this is how you keep circulating my pictures?" Ummi said, peering curiously at Khadija's face as they walked towards the gate when Ummi was leaving.

Khadija smiled and said, "I'm sorry; I'll never do that again," she said, gripping her ears.

Khadija insisted that she and Amatullah should look for an Islamiyya (Islamic school) they could attend on weekends and during their free time. Ummi was thrilled about the idea but needed to inform her Dad first.

With Khadija often sharing stories she read on social media, Ummi decided to create her own accounts. She was already on WhatsApp but only chatted with three people: Ahmad, Amira, and recently Khadija.

Khadija recommended some WhatsApp groups, Telegram channels, Instagram pages, and blogs where important issues were discussed. Ummi joined them. As she read more about life on social media, she began to understand how lucky she was with her parents.

Despite her parents' divorce and her stepmom's involvement, she felt fortunate. Some of the stories she read were horrifying: children mistreated by their fathers and stepmothers, abuse, and even incest. Ummi somehow felt grateful to Sa'ada for not treating them as rivals but as her own, although she couldn't bring herself to like her.

Ummi wanted to be more carefree like Khadija but was held back by her fear of being deceived. Having Khadija in her life gradually convinced her that not all friendships lead to betrayal. She believed that Khadija would never betray her.

Khadija would never be like Sa'ada, at least that was her belief. She didn't know how her mother's friendship with Sa'ada had started, but she believed Sa'ada had harbored ill feelings towards her mom from the beginning.

Ummi rarely posted on social media but was known for her impressive, educational, and inspiring comments on other people's posts. She garnered many followers on Twitter despite never sharing her picture, not even in her profile picture. Her words resonated with many, especially men who admired her for her intellect.

The fact that she never checked her inbox made her oblivious to the messages people sent her.