BE MY GUEST

CHAPTER THIRTEEN

K H A D I J A✓

KADUNA, NIGERIA

"I'm exhausted, Ya Allah!" I exclaimed, removing my turban from my head. I felt immediate relief after taking it off. I plopped onto the bed with a sigh, resting my head on the plush pillow. My eyes wandered to the ceiling, covered with a twinkling star wallpaper, a testament to my love for stargazing.

With considerable effort, I lifted my lethargic body from the bed with a loud grunt. I knew I could fall asleep in that position if I wasn't careful, and I still had pending prayers.

I removed my jewelry and placed it on the dressing table. I picked up my makeup wipes and began removing the makeup from my face. Having done that, I headed straight to the bathroom for a quick bath. This was necessary because I hadn't prayed yet; otherwise, I had planned to pamper myself with a long hot bath, but that would have to wait.

After dressing in a comfortable pajama set, I completed the two obligatory prayers of Maghrib and Isha, the fourth and fifth prayers in Islam. Relief washed over me, knowing I had fulfilled my religious duties.

I had no plans for the night other than resting until the following morning, God willing. I plugged my phone in to charge, then slipped into bed, ready to drift into slumber, but I heard a ping from my phone. I intended to ignore it, but another message came right after the first one.

Without a second thought, I got up from the bed and unplugged the phone. I opened my iMessage and saw a message from Rayan.

"Assalam alaikum, Khadija. How are you? Hoping you're taking a good rest. I wish to thank you for all you have done for me, the effort you took in making sure everything came out well, and the motivations. Jazakallahu khair. May Allah reward you with Aljannah firdaus.

Good night!

Oh, lest I forget, here is the receipt for your payment! Have a good rest. Allah ya tashe mu lafiya."

When I saw the amount, my reaction was equal to that TikTok video that trended a while back, which says, "Kill me, stab me, do whatever you want to do with me." My guy freaking sent me a payment of 1.2 million naira in this Tinubu era. I know somehow I deserve it because I poured my all into this project, but man, my guy has left me speechless. Haba, kallan su ake so.

But then, isn't that somehow too much, especially tun da ma Dan gida neh, as our Hausa people like to say. Originally, I was planning on charging him just four hundred thousand when we talked about the payment, because honestly, we hadn't even discussed it yet.

Without a second thought, I went to his contact and pressed on call. As the phone rang, I felt a mixture of gratitude and confusion. Rayan had been generous since we started working together, but this was unexpected. I wondered what this gesture meant for our professional and personal relationship.

He picked up on the second ring. "Assalam alaikum," he greeted warmly.

"Wa alaikum assalam," I replied. "Ina yini?" I greeted him in Hausa, asking how he was doing.

"Lafiya lau, Alhamdulillah. How are you?" he responded.

"I’m good, Alhamdulillah. Thank you so much for the money, but Rayan, the amount is too much. I was actually planning to send it back to you," I said, getting straight to the point.

Rayan chuckled softly. "Khadija, you deserve even more than that. I did some research about how much influencers are paid before sending you the money. I sent that amount because I knew you wouldn't accept the amount I initially wanted to send."