RUNNING

Chapter Sixteen

"And when he came to the fire, he was called by name: "O Musa! Verily i am your lord, so take off your shoes; you are in sacred valley Tuwa. And i have chosen you. So listen to that which will be revealed. Verily, i am Allah! none has the right to be worshipped but I, so worship me and perform As-salat for My Remembrance. Verily, the Hour is coming and I am almost hiding it from Myself- that every person may be rewarded for that which he strives. Therefore, let not the one who believes not therein but follows his own lust, diverts you therefrom, lest you perish.And what is in your right hand, O Musa? He said: "This is my stick, whereon I lean and wherewith I beat down branches for my sheep, and wherein I find other uses. (Allah) said: " Cast it down, O Musa. He cast it down and behold! It was a snake, moving quickly. Allah said: "Grasp it and fear not; we shall return it to its former state." Surat Ta-Ha; 11-21

After returning to the ward, Afnan take some moment to ponder over the situation that Akin just revealed to her and she tries to analyze everything. She wondered how strange life can sometimes be, how friend can turns enemy and how an enemy can become so dearer to us than our life. She realized there is no such thing as permanent friend or permanent enemy, she recalled the lecture of Yasmeen Mogaheed she once watched tittles; Jewel of the Quran, during the lecture the speaker narrated the story about the incidence that occurred when Allah called Prophet Musa(A.S) to prophet-hood and one of His signs was turning prophet Musa's stick to a snake. She had said the lesson Allah want prophet Isa (A.S) to learn when his staff turns into a snake was probably the fact that nothing except Allah is worth complete reliance on also a companion that is so supportive of you may turn into a sworn enemy that can hurt you the most in just a moment.Subhanallah! Truly in the Qur'an there are series of lessons to learn for those who understands.She looked towards Maraya and wish she could just move so that she will realize how sorry her friend was and how futile life is. Akin already told her that Maraya's brother will be coming today so she decided to take some moment off and go to the hostel. Besides she will be having a test by two so she need some time to relax and revise what she had read the previous night in the hospital. "Excuse me ma?" she called as she approached the nurse she earlier talked with in the nursing station. "Anything you need?" she smiles gently at her. "Not really. I want to go to the hostel and have some moment before my test." "I understand, i wish you best of luck.
"Thanks. Meanwhile, her brother may come around before my return. I just think you should know."
"No problem, but i need to remind you that there is visiting period in this hospital and we don't allow visitors to come in any time. It is because you are a student here and your friend's case is exception because she needs to be closely monitored, that is why you are allowed to be staying with her all the time."
"I know and i appreciate your kindness but her brother is coming from Lagos because he just get to know about her accident last night."
"What! Today is Thursday, its been five days, why haven't you tell her family till now?" the nurse couldn't hide her surprise and annoyance.
"We thought it is not something serious and we don't want to bother her family at first." She simply answered because she is not ready to tell the nurse that she did not have a contact of any of her family or that she is not even her friend and that her best friend is responsible for her current state and that her other friend decide not to tell her family for fear of being judged.
"Whatever the case is, you should have informed her family first." The nurse insisted.
"I understand ma." Afnan said without understanding anything. "I need to go now."
"I wish you all the best in your test."
"Thanks ma." Afnan said and walks out of the ward.
By the time she gets to the hostel, it was already past twelve. She set aside her bag and make some noodles that she ate before taking a quick bath. She said her Zuhr(noon prayer) and another two units of voluntary rakat. Before leaving for the school premises. She had already informed their lecturer about Maraya's sickness and the man was kind enough to accept that he will set another test for her whenever she recovers, she hardly have time to revise before the lecturer enters the class with a big envelope which comprises of their test question sheets.
The test took them one hour, the time which was not enough for most of them but Prof. Oyegbade is known for his discipline towards time so no student is expecting him to add a bonus time, lucky enough for Afnan that she was able to round up her test before the given time.Another good thing that afternoon was that their lecturer did not hold them for the remaining hour because they are through with course, otherwise, the normal time for the course is two to four. Just as she stepped out of the class her phone ring and she picked up wihtout checking the caller i.d.
"Hello." She was able to recognize Akin's voice from the other line.
"Hello."
"Sorry to disturb you i hope am not interrupting your class?"
"Not at all."
"How was your test?" "Alhamdulillah.""Her brother just call me that they are already in the hospital."
"They?" She was expecting one brother, she's not even sure on how to deal with one and now two? What has she got herself into? She paused to hear what Akin will say next, though they had earlier agreed that Akin will be around and together they will face her brother and explained the situation so she hope he is not trying to back out of their agreement especially now that they have two angry brothers to face.
"I will be going to the hospital to join them now, i just want to let you know."
"Alright, i will join you soon but i need to get to the hostel first."
"Okay, thank you for everything."
"Don't mention. Bye."
"Bye." Maraya's sickness has brought her and Akin together and the little time she spent with him has made her realized how kind he is, he can't stop thanking her for her assistance despite her telling him not to worry. Every time he is coming to the hospital, he either come with fruits or take-away food and despite that she is the one sleeping in the hospital with Maraya she hardly have anything to complain about.