A BOND OF FATE

Chapter 26

I stared at the coffee in front of me, its flavor as stale as my mood. It tasted like a forgotten biscuit, left to wither away in a old shop. My phone rang again, and I groaned, seeing Mamah's name on the screen. I am not ready to talk to anyone, especially not after they'd just married me off like a used car being sold for parts.

"Jalila, why aren't you answering my calls?" Mamah asked, walking into the living room with a concerned expression.

I clenched my teeth, feeling a single tear slip down my cheek. "Because I'm trying to process the fact that they  all decided to ruin my life without my consent.

"Oof Ruin your life? How? Jalila, they're just trying to.."

I cut her off, my frustration boiling over. "And to make matters worse, Ameer is already bossing me around! He told me I can't even go to work today. I mean, who does he think he is? My boss, my father, and my jailer all rolled into one?

Jalila, listen to me. Ameer is just trying to protect you. he wants to make sure you're safe and happy."

I scoffed, rolling my eyes. "Protect me? From what? My own life? My own choices? He's suffocating me, Mamah! And you're all just letting him do it!"I want to make my own choices, my own decisions. I want to be my own person, not just a wife or a  prisoner."

"Oh no, Jalila! You're not going to turn into a disobedient wife, are you? Her eyes widened in horror.you've to understand that relationship and marriage is now a different thing.

I put both my hands on my cheeks, while mamah did the same dramatically.

Inna  walked out of her room, looking at us with a confused expression. "What's all the commotion about? Did Ahmadu die or did you just hear about his death?" She exclaimed, walking towards us.

I facepalmed. "Inna , it's Ameer you can call him Ameer , not Ahmadu. And no, he's not dead....yet. But if you keep pronouncing his name wrong, he might just die from embarrassment.

She  looked at me sternly. "Well, same difference. You're still going to his house and make him happy, or so help me..."I'll come after you with a rolling pin! Or maybe I'll just tell him to marry me as his second wife instead. I mean, who wouldn't want a 70 year old wife she exclaim.

Mamah burst out laughing."inna , I think Ameer would run away screaming if you proposed that to him! Wallahi, guduwa zaiyi, Jalila, don't worry, we'll make sure Ameer treats you right. No need for Inna to become his second wife.

Inna huffed, "Fine, fine. But mark my words, I'll be keeping an eye on that boy. And if Ahmadu doesn't treat you like a queen, I'll... I'll... well, I'll knit him a sweater with a embarrassing slogan on it, like 'I'm with stupid'... or 'I love grandma more than my wife'!"

I let out a laughter as I walked towards my room. "And it's Ahmad , not Ahmadu," I added, closing the door behind me.

Just then, my phone rang. Ameer's name flashed on the screen, I rejected the call without hesitation. But he called again, and I answered, my tone firm. "Assalamu Alaikum, what do you want? Are you happy that you've ruined my day?"

"Come out, I'm at your house," he said, his voice calm.

"What house? What are you doing at my house?" I asked, my frustration boiling over.

"Come out, I'm waiting outside," he repeated, and then hang up.

I throw my phone on the bed, feeling like screaming. No one has ever pushed my buttons like Ameer did. I wanted to scream so hard, but I took a deep breath and tried to calm down.