When Dreams meet Destiny

Chapter 12 : Breaking The Silence

The tension in the air was palpable as Yahya entered the restaurant straight from the office, his mind too preoccupied to even consider changing his outfit. The private room, reserved for the dinner, was filled with Maryam's cousins, but the only person Yahya noticed was Maryam. Their eyes met for a fleeting second before she quickly looked away, her indifference like a dagger to his heart. He greeted her with a soft "Assalamualaikum," to which she responded with a quiet "Walaikumasalam" and a forced smile, as if the mere effort was exhausting. Yahya's frustration mounted as Maryam continued to treat him like he was invisible throughout the entire dinner. He could feel something was off, something more than just post-wedding jitters.

As the meal progressed, Maryam's phone buzzed with a message from an unknown number. She glanced at the screen and her heart skipped a beat: 'The way you are ignoring me like I don't exist is driving me insane.'Her eyes shot up to meet Yahya's intense, burning gaze. His expression was unreadable, but the anger and confusion simmering beneath the surface were unmistakable. She didn't have the courage to respond, knowing the confrontation was inevitable.

When the dinner concluded and everyone prepared to leave, Yahya asked, "Can I talk to Maryam in private? Just for two minutes, please." No one dared to refuse him; everyone sensed the tension between the newlyweds. One by one, they left, leaving Yahya and Maryam alone in the room.

Maryam's heart raced as she anticipated the confrontation she had been dreading. Yahya wasted no time, his voice tinged with frustration. "What's wrong, Maryam?"

"What?" she replied, avoiding his gaze, her voice barely above a whisper.

"I'm a hundred percent sure something is wrong, and we don't have time to make this conversation long. Please, just tell me."

"There's nothing wrong, Yahya," she said, her voice trembling slightly.

Yahya's patience was wearing thin. "Firstly, look at me when you talk to me," he demanded, his tone stern. "Why are you doing this?"

"Doing what?" she deflected, still avoiding his eyes.

Yahya let out a bitter chuckle. "Really, Maryam? You've been ignoring me like I don't exist from the day of our nikaah!"

"There's nothing like that, Yahya," she insisted, her voice rising in an attempt to maintain control. "You must have a misunderstanding."

"I'm not a child, Maryam! Stop doing all this. I'm your husband, for God's sake!"

"I'm not doing anything, Yahya. You're the one making it so hard for me not to fall for you. Why are you doing this when we both know this is all fake?" Her voice cracked, betraying the turmoil she felt inside.

Yahya stared at her, confused and hurt. "Excuse me? What? Fake? What do you mean by fake?"

"Stop pretending like you don't know anything!" Maryam shot back, her frustration bubbling over.

"Maryam, I really don't understand what you're talking about."

"Then who's Alina?" The moment she uttered the name, she noticed the subtle shift in Yahya's demeanor. His discomfort was palpable.

"Wh-who's Alina?" he stammered, clearly caught off guard.

"Come on, Yahya, stop acting like you don't know. You're not a good actor anymore."

"She's a childhood family friend. But how do you know her, and why are we even talking about her?" Yahya's confusion deepened.

Maryam unlocked her phone and placed it on the table between them. "She's been messaging me about your past with her."

Yahya's face hardened. "And you believed her?"

"I didn't at first, but the day before our nikaah, she sent me a call recording of you two. That was enough for me to believe her."

Yahya's tone shifted, his voice now cold and measured. "You can't judge me by my past, right?"

"I wasn't, until I heard your voice in that call," Maryam countered, her eyes flashing with pain.

"I can't justify my past," Yahya said, his voice tinged with frustration. "But I can tell you this—I don't need your father's money. Alhamdulillah, I have enough. How could you believe that I'm marrying you for money? You're the first and the last girl in my life, Maryam. I didn't expect this from you."

"I was helpless, Yahya. You were new to me. I didn't know who you really were."

Yahya sighed deeply, his shoulders slumping with the weight of her words. "I would suggest you listen to the entire call once you get home."

Without another word, he stood up and left the room, his departure leaving Maryam on the verge of tears. She barely held it together as she joined her family, her heart heavy with regret and confusion. The entire car ride home, she sat by the window, lost in thought, her mood somber and distant. No one dared to ask what was wrong, sensing that this was something deeply personal.

Finally, unable to bear the uncertainty any longer, Maryam plugged in her AirPods and listened to the full recording of the call between Yahya and Alina. As she heard Yahya's cold, detached tone, her heart sank. There was nothing inappropriate in his words, nothing that suggested anything more than a distant, formal relationship. The realization hit her like a ton of bricks—she had been so wrong. She had let her insecurities and fears cloud her judgment, and now she was paying the price.

Meanwhile, Yahya confided in Sara, his voice tinged with disappointment. "She actually thought that about me, Sara. She believed I was marrying her for money."

Sara tried to comfort him. "You should be happy that she was being possessive, Bhai. Put yourself in her shoes—you'd probably do the same."

But Yahya couldn't shake the sadness. He couldn't believe that on what should have been the happiest day of their lives, Maryam had been anything but happy.