Embraced (#2 Natives series) #ProjectNigeria

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

             THE GIRLS PRAYED ZHUR IN a small corner designated for women in the hospital masjid with the congregation. They were listening to the Iman giving a khutbah when Nooriya's phone vibrated in her bag for the third time. She excused herself with a frustrated sound to answer the call she'd been ignoring. Fatiha and Aabidah exchange curious glances and raised brows at their friend's behaviour.

By the time the Iman rounded up his sermon, Nooriya had still not returned. So, after waiting another five minutes for her, the girls decided to go on ahead and wait for her in the waiting room.

On their walk up to her auntie's floor, Fatiha and Aabidah made small talk. Fatiha wanted to know how the honeymoon had been.

Zanzibar was wonderful. Aabidah narrated with a smile. The crystal blue sea of the beach paired with its white sand that was so soft it felt like flour rather than actual sand. The picturesque sunsets which couldn't compare to that of Nasarawa's. As someone who loved the sky, Aabidah had taken pictures of every sunset and sunrise with the camcorder Omar had gifted her while on their trip. She showed Fatiha photos on her phone as they made their way through the crowd.

"Mashā Allah," Fatiha uttered in awe and good natured envy as she swiped slowly from one image to another.

The orange, pink, red. It was like a circus of colours was playing catch in the sky. Fatiha had never seen such a beautiful twilight in her life. Picasso couldn't compare to the artist that Allah was. The only sunset she'd ever seen in her life was that of Nasarawa and Abuja, except the current situation wasn't exactly one that called for romanticizing the sun as it retired from work. She wished to travel out even just once but her bank account wasn't really aligned with her desires.

"Hmm," she exhaled heavily through her nose as they settled down on an iron bench in the waiting room which was a little further down from her auntie's room. "I need to work harder," she said as she handed Aabidah her phone as realization dawned upon her.

"Why?" a look of confusion played on Aabidah's face as she questioned. "Aren't you already working hard?"

Fatiha sighed. "Apparently not," she muttered. She turned her body sideways so she was facing her friend, then crossed her legs at the ankles. "I'm not being serious with my business," she confessed. "I don't even know when I last posted online and I've just been having small pay clients. I don't think I'll be able to save up enough money to pay for a visa much less buy a plane ticket."

Fatiha's companion looked surprised when she asked, "You want to travel out?"

She gave a little nod.

"I thought you didn't like going out."

"I love Nasarawa, but I've just been feeling like going somewhere new even if it's for a short period of time. I want to experience something new before something permanent keeps me here." Fatiha explained. "I know my life isn't as wild or adventurous as Noor's but I'm starting to see that our life is what we make of it."

Could she really live her life the way she wanted? Fatiha thought sadly. There was a duty on her shoulders. A responsibility and a leadership role she hadn't asked for but came as a package deal when she came to the world as a first born child. She had to be clear headed and objective. She was meant to be the one who cleared the path for her younger ones. The one who lit their path and guided them onto the right track. Being twenty-seven and not yet married, she scoffed bitterly, she sure was doing a fine job already. Her lack of focus and achievement was probably keeping her sisters from succeeding as well. She needed to marry well so that her sisters could follow the same path.