𝐀𝐘𝐀𝐓: 𝐀 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐐𝐮𝐫'𝐚𝐧

chapter 6

The Next Day, Morning

Ayat was at the madarsa, searching for Sabeeha everywhere, but it seemed that she wasn't there that day. “Amma, where is Sabeeha Aapa? She isn't anywhere,” Ayat finally asked Amma, who was in the children's rooms. “Actually, I haven't seen her since morning either,” Amma replied, making Ayat confused. Sabeeha lived in the madarsa, so it was strange that she was missing. “Okay, Amma. When she comes, please tell her I was looking for her. Now I'm going to class,” Ayat said, smiling behind her veil, and Amma nodded.

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“Yeah, she was not in the madarsa today, and it’s really strange because it never happens that Sabeeha Aapa would miss a day, especially when it’s time to teach the students,” Ayat told Sidra as they walked out of their classroom after the lecture. “But why were you looking for her?” Sidra asked in confusion. “Actually, yeah, come here, I want to tell you something,” Ayat said happily, and Sidra nodded, still puzzled.

They sat at one of the chairs in the canteen area, Sidra looked at Ayat with a confused expression. “Why are you so happy?” she asked. Ayat replied, “Actually, tomorrow I’m going to a wedding, but it’s not just a wedding—it's for my proposal because their family wants us to meet.” Ayat said this shyly, leaving Sidra in shock and confusion.

“What? But wait, I don’t understand anything! You were going to marry Aatif, right? Where did this new proposal come from, and how did your parents agree?” Sidra questioned, squinting as she tried to decipher Ayat’s words. “Oh, I’m sorry! Let me start from the beginning. Here’s what happened…” Ayat explained all the drama at her house that ruined her chances with Aatif and how her parents found her a new proposal.

“Oh my God, you cheater! How could you hide all this drama from me? You should have called me to tell me right away! Sorry, but you totally failed the vibe check!” Sidra exclaimed, folding her arms and pouting, making Ayat giggle at her drama. “Now what?” Sidra said, whining, which made Ayat laugh at her childish behavior, though she tried to hold it in.

“I won’t be marrying Aatif but Ashar, but it’s still not confirmed by Abbu. It was Ammi who stubbornly took me to the meeting yesterday; otherwise, Abbu would never have allowed it,” Ayat explained to Sidra, who had returned to a serious mood.

“So how is he? Did you talk to him, or were you just being shy?” Sidra asked, resting her hands on the table as if she were ready to bang them down. “I talked to him, and he seems nice based on our conversation, but who knows what lies behind the words?” Ayat shrugged, causing Sidra to exclaim in frustration.

“What did you ask him?” Sidra said, almost expecting that her clueless friend hadn’t asked the right questions. But to her surprise, Ayat had asked a few key things, causing Sidra to facepalm. “You just asked this? Didn’t you ask about his likes and dislikes?” Sidra said, trying to keep some hope alive. “Yeah, I asked only what seemed important to me,” Ayat shrugged again, leaving Sidra exasperated. However, she didn’t press Ayat any further.

“Oh, yeah, Sidra! I wanted you to do me a favor!” Ayat suddenly said as she noticed Ayaan sitting with his friends, apparently lost in thought. “What?” Sidra asked carelessly while sipping her coffee.

“Can you call Ayaan and tell him I want to talk with him about something? Ask him to come to the garden area?” Ayat spoke normally, but this request shocked Sidra. She almost choked on her coffee, and Ayat quickly became worried. “What happened?!” she said, patting Sidra's back to help her calm down. “You. Want. To. Meet. Ayaan. Alone. In. The. Garden. Area?!” Sidra said after regaining her composure, emphasizing each word to confirm she heard correctly.

“Yeah, it’s important, and I’ll explain later. Just go and tell him,” Ayat said with a neutral tone, making Sidra even more confused about Ayat’s strange behavior.