After the truth

~30~

WARNING!!!!! ⚠️
THE FOLLOWING CHAPTER CONTAINS DESCRIPTION OF RAPE AND ASSAULT.

It was a traumatic day for her, and for weeks she thought she wouldn't recover. The painful months she had carried her baby and even the days she laboured before giving birth to Mukhlisa was always etched in memory. So why was she forgetting what really happened, the night she was raped.

The floor was wet from the rain when her body was slammed. She could never forget what she had on- a shirt she had taken from Maimuna's wardrobe and a drawstring skirt her mother had gotten for she and her twin, Zulfa. Her breath had escaped her when her back had come in contact with the floor.

There was a scuffle and she remembered hearing someone struggle and plead but why?

What would her father stand to gain from kidnapping her? Now she was sure he was the one who had sent the message to her. He knew all along that she didn't sleep around but was raped and still went ahead to send her out of the house. Marwa let out a sudden scream. Allah was really testing her and she didn't know how long she could hold on before she gave up.

Aaron couldn't possibly be her rapist. She cried at the thought. At this crossroad of her life, she wasn't sure if she wanted that to be the truth, her reality. She remembered the first day she had seen Aaron. Her sister had changed schools. She was a tomboy growing up and had lots of male friends. Even when their mother had separated them from their male cousins, and spoken to them about friendship with the opposite gender, Zulfa had always been strong headed about following rules and being obedient.

She remembered her sister had been hammering about who she could possibly have a crush on. Zulfa had just learned what a crush meant and would come home, frustrating Marwa. On one of the many occasions that Marwa would come over to Zulfa's school so they could leave together, she had asked her who her crush was and Marwa had turned and pointed at Aaron who was also stepping out with Imran.

For days, Zulfa could not shut up about him. She spoke about his character and how kind he was. She never liked him in the beginning. She never even knew him but suddenly, she found herself wanting to know about him. Coming from her type of family who cherished reputation over anything, Marwa knew not to push it but observed him from afar and act nonchalant about it.

Aaron was a shy, lanky kid. She remembered that much. His hair was a bit brown with reddish hints and he touseled it a lot, not from arrogance like Imran but shyness. And from the one time they had spoken to each other, he was well versed on Islamic knowledge. How could he have raped her? Marwa wondered.

The floor was wet when her rapist pushed her. It was sudden and knocked her out of breath. She had fainted for a few seconds and when she came to, his mouth was on hers. She hated being wet when it wasn't intentional that she had poured water on herself. She remembered she had struggled a lot but he was stronger.

Aaron was a shy, lanky kid.

Her assaulter was really strong and definitely not lanky. She had clawed his face and in retaliation, he had choked her, his large hands wrapping around her whole throat. Her vision had turned blurry and she could barely see.

His fingers had caressed her face and went down to her breast. He had groped her, fondling her barely grown breast. She had always been on the smaller side while growing. She remember she had slapped her assaulter and had tried to push him off but he had grabbed her by her hair and slammed it onto the wet concrete pathway. She couldn't scream because somehow, her voice had left her when he strangled her.

He had tore her skirt, pinning her to the floor. She had cried, shook her head and could only whisper pleas but it fell on deaf ears. Her assaulter had raped her brutally and it had hurt a lot. She remembered someone screaming but the pain between her legs was a lot and it felt real now.

Marwa broke down into tears and tried to clench her legs, as if to stop the past from occuring but felt something between her legs. She had been so stuck in trying to remember the event and face of her attacker that she hadn't realised someone had their hands between her legs. She froze up in fear, barely able to see.

When fingers pulled aside her underwear, she finally came to her senses and clenched her legs, using her foot to hit whoever it was. The person slapped her thighs and came up to her face.

His breath was heavy and his tongue swiped over her neck. She felt irritated and helpless. She tried kicking but his fingers dug into her skin, illiciting a sharp cry from her.

"P-please let me go." She begged.

It was quiet for a minute and then fingers worked down her buttons.

"PLEASE!" She shouted, struggling on the chair.

The person nibbled on her ears and a familiar voice whispered into her ears, absolutely paralysing her.

"I love it when you scream. Do it again baby."