𝐀𝐘𝐀𝐓: 𝐀 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐐𝐮𝐫'𝐚𝐧

chapter 12

After a week

It has been half a month since Ayat's exams finished, and she has only spoken to Sidra on the phone without any meetings. Today, however, is her wedding day.

After the Fajr prayer, Ayat got up, folded her prayer mat, and placed it on the cupboard. She took out her burkha and started putting it on when Anaya came out of the bathroom.

"Where are you going, Appi?" Anaya asked worriedly, looking at her.

"Madarsa," Ayat replied while tying her veil and grabbing her mobile from the table.

"But Appi, today is your wedding day! You shouldn't go out!" Anaya insisted, causing Ayat to pause and turn around.

"It's just a five-minute task, and please don't tell Ammi. I'll be back early," Ayat hurriedly replied as she left the bedroom, leaving Anaya confused.

At the madarsa, with quick footsteps, Ayat entered Sabeeha's room and greeted her excitedly. "Aapa??" she exclaimed, catching Sabeeha’s attention.

"Ayat, you came this time?" Sabeeha said with a smile, standing up.

"Aapa? Where have you been?" Ayat asked, ignoring Sabeeha’s questions as she rushed forward to hug her while tears streamed down her face.

"Aayat, what happened?" Sabeeha asked, taken aback by her reaction, and returned the hug.

"I missed you so much! You were so irresponsible!" Ayat said, breaking the hug and wiping her tears, behaving like a child.

"Ayat, I was stuck with some issues," Sabeeha explained, looking at her with love.

"But still, at least you could have answered my calls!" Ayat replied, still sobbing a little.

"My phone got lost somewhere, and that's why I couldn't talk to you or Amma!" Sabeeha explained, placing her hands on Ayat's shoulders. However, Ayat shrugged her off in a fit of little anger.

"Aayat, I was at the hospital," Sabeeha confessed, startling Ayat, causing all her anger to vanish as she looked at her in confusion.

"My mother passed away, Ayat!" Sabeeha revealed.

"What are you saying, Aapa? I don’t understand!" Ayat cried.

"When I was at my friend's house, I found out about my family. By the time I arrived, my mother was taking her last breaths, and she suddenly died due to medical issues," Sabeeha explained miserably.

"But Aapa, you never told us about your family!" Ayat said, curious as Sabeeha motioned for her to sit on the bed.

"The story starts from when I was a 19-year-old teenager. My family was strict and very far removed from Deen. No one studied in my house, not even my parents. However, I was really interested in studying, and as their only daughter, my parents allowed me to study until graduation. They had already selected a groom for me, my cousin, whom I didn't like much, but I agreed for my parents' sake. However, I never spoke to him, nor did he ever try to approach me.

Soon, after I graduated, my family began preparing for my wedding. During that time, I started reading about Islam. As a typical Indian Muslim family detached from their faith, I didn’t know much about my religion, but after graduation, I felt the urge to learn more. Over time, I began living my life as a Muslimah.

You know how intolerant families can be, and mine was no different. They didn't like my growing attachment to Islam and started questioning why I covered myself so much and why I didn't speak to my male cousin. They began to blame me for being detached from my cousin and family members.