Embraced (#2 Natives series) #ProjectNigeria

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

              THE DAYS PASSED ON UNEVENTFULLY and soon, nearly a week had passed since the faithful Sunday Fatiha had accepted Munir's apology. It was also the Sunday her mother had nearly brought down the house.

Fatiha could never forget that day. Her conversation with Munir played over and over in her head like a loop. She still couldn't believe they'd had a normal conversation. But what baffled her most was the icing on top of the cake: Munir's apology. It had felt so surreal until her mother had ruined it.

Rashidah Abdullah was a strongheaded woman and a fierce mother. Through the week she'd remained bitter at her eldest child and had ignored addressing her. It was at times like these that Fatiha wished auntie Halimah was her mother instead.

Two nights ago, just as her auntie had told her to, Fatiha had plucked up her courage and tried calling Faisal for the first time. Sadly, there had been no response nor call backs.

It was Friday and the cold of the harmattan was slowly beginning to intensify. Butterflies flew prominently about in the afternoons now. Fatiha loved seeing them just as she abhorred the dryness and cracked skin the season brought.

She was seated on a mat under a tree in their compound with her sisters as she worked on an order she'd received early that week. Just as she had been doing since she wrapped up her exams, Nafeesah was on her tummy catching up on her Philippine series. Zarah on the other hand was seated with her ankles crossed and her back resting on the trunk of the tree as she read a book, while Madinah busied herself with adding makeup and accessories to her AliExpress shopping cart.

The time was quarter past four and as the last few days had been, Fatiha was certain the day would roll over with very little event. That was until she saw her best friend, Nooriya Adam Madaki rushing through the black iron gates of her father's house. Her lean face and stride coloured with such urgency had Fatiha pausing her crocheting and calling out to her friend.

After her talk with Munir the last time, Fatiha had reached out to her friend but she still hadn't visited her at home. Noor had used two days to ignore and reject her best friend's apology, but on the third day she had eventually given in. "I've been dying silently for when you'd reach out, so it's useless to keep malice." She'd confessed.

"Nooriya, mai faru?" Fatiha queried her friend after responding to her tasleem.

Plopping down on the mat, Noor removed her khimar, revealing the black sequined shirt and multicolored cargo pant she had on. She scratched her head through the green cap covering her head haphazardly. "Water," she rasped, motioning to Nafeesah to get her a cup. "Hmm, wallahi tallahi, Fatiha, you will not believe what I just heard." She went on in short and raspy sentences.

Nafeesah returned shortly with a cup of cold zobo instead.

"You know me well sha," Nooriya said, giving the teenager a gratified wink before gulping down most of the content.

The girls paused what they were doing as they waited for their guest to satisfy herself before she resumed her speech. Meanwhile, Madinah who wasn't much of a fan of the princess's theatrics gave no heed to the girls words.

"Noor, what is it?" Fatiha asked, dragging a sigh.

Wiping her mouth with the back of her hand, Nooriya turned her eyes to her friend. "You don't know?" she asked quietly.

Fatiha noticed how the shade of her friend's eyes became a little brighter under the sun's light. Like golden honey. She remembered Munir's eyes looking like that sometimes. As she looked at her friend, she began to realize something she hadn't before. Munir and Noor looked so alike they could have been twins. Although one was male and the other was female, there was a lightheartedness that resided in them both.