Embraced (#2 Natives series) #ProjectNigeria

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Twenty-Nine

             Dear Basmah, a lot has happened since I last saw you. First of all, my engagement with Faisal fell through. He left me, it's not the other way around, and if you knew the full story you'd wish it was the other way round. I do so too. Although it's too late for that, I still wish I had listened and called it off first. Secondly, I went on a break or vacation of sorts with auntie Halimah to Abuja where I met these amazing sisters and... Munir. We're doing okay, I... guess. Auntie Halimah had an accident and is currently in a coma. It might sound like a lie, but I swear it's true. I mean, we only ever see someone in a coma in movies but I feel like my life is currently a movie.

She's been in a coma for days now and I haven't been able to go back home to Nasarawa. I'm still in Abuja. My mom and Madinah have visited once. Mom plans to visit again with Nafeesah tomorrow so I might get a bit of time to rest. Uncle Ishaq visits as well. He's auntie Halimah's man-friend, I'm sure you get what I'm trying to say. They were on a date when she slipped and fell. He got her a private room and everything.

Munir visits too and every time I see him something just lifts the weight on my shoulders. I feel so at ease whenever he's around, isn't that unbelievable? He's sought of like an anchor, keeping me grounded whenever those whispers of doubts crawl in. But I guess that's all in the past now. His visits ended a few days back. Lol, I'm tearing up just thinking about how that ended. It is quite the story and it is a silly one at that. He was going to tell me something and I jumped into conclusions. I thought he was going to ask me if I had feelings for him or that he was going to confess his feelings for me. But I turned it down. I don't even know what he was going to say but I cut it off before it even came out of his mouth.

Am I being silly for feeling so heartbroken now that he's gone? I mean we have a long history of hate between us, so having any feelings close to romantic for him just doesn't feel right. I don't know... I just...

Basmah? Where on earth are you? I don't think I've ever needed your ugly facts the way I need them now. Either I know what these feelings are or I don't know what they are. Or I'm just choosing not to acknowledge what they are.

Life can be quite the marvel sometimes, can't it? I, who used to be hurt by Munir Adam, who could have ever imagined that the thought of never seeing him again could make me feel so hurt?

Basmah, in your long leave of absence I can only guess that life isn't working out how you expected it to. As much as I need to hear what you think about my despicable situation, what I want more is for you to give me a sign that you're still out there breathing.

Two ticks would do, but I'll be selfish to ask for two blue ones and an emoji. I hope you're doing way better out there than I am.

Fatiha's fingers hovered over the keypad of her phone as she stared with blurry vision at the last sentence of her message. She pursed her lips in an effort to cease the trembles that was a result of the tears she struggled not to shed.

She failed. She sniffled as a tear slipped from her left eye then her right with a sting. With a frustrated exhale, she swiped her left palm across her face to wipe off the salty drops before placing her fingers on her lips. She chewed on a nail as she pressed the send icon on the WhatsApp application she had drafted her letter in.

A minute. Two. She waited five minutes on the app before exiting it and turning off her data connection.

She placed her phone on the side table next to her auntie's bed with a sigh as she turned to watch the comatose patient's heartbeat on the EKG machine. The monitor showed that her auntie was in a great condition but she was yet to wake up. The doctor had mentioned something during his round two days back about how the rest of auntie Halimah's recovery depended on her will and the will of Allah.