Dawud.

Chapter 3: Her Modesty

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

***

Jannah's P.O.V

'It's this house right here.' I told Abdallah, my sister's husband. Today was Jummah (Friday), the best day of the week amongst the Muslims. It was narrated that 'The best day on which the sun has risen is Friday. On that day Adam was created, he was admitted to Jannah, and he was expelled therefrom.' [Muslim].

'Is that Warsan at the door?' Mariam asked me. I nodded. Abdallah parked the car and unlocked the doors as my best friend made her way with great difficulty down the icy sidewalk. Attending Friday prayer became a tradition ever since my sister and Abdallah had gotten married over a year ago. Warsan opened the back door and slid in next to me. We all greeted her.

'Who wants coffee? We have around forty-five minutes to spare.' Abdallah said, adjusting the rearview mirror before backing out of the cul-de-sac.

'I could use some coffee. Jannah and I were up all morning reading Surah Al-Kahf.' Mariam said. Warsan gave me a high-five and Abdallah shot me a thumbs up.

'Those are the Sultan Sisters I know and love. On Jummah, we don't play games, do we?' Abdallah joked. Mariam looked over at him and began to grin. They stared at each other quietly as we reached a red light. I gagged at their modest form of PDA, followed by Warsan."Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Abdallah groaned, stepping on the gas pedal once the street light turned green.

My favorite thing about Abdallah was his love for Allah. When he met my sister, his faith rubbed off on her, which led to her impacting me, which led to me impacting Warsan and Muna. Although Mariam and Abdallah had been married for some time now, Mariam lived with my mom and me while the two of them were saving up enough money to rent an apartment. I adored them because they were a mature, modest and practicing couple, Allah yubarik lahum (Allah bless them).

'Jannah, don't fret. You'll find someone who will make you swoon too, insha'Allah.' Mariam taunted me, yet her words were sincere. It was as though she could read my mind. I looked up, surprised. 'Your face shows exactly what you're thinking, you know. I can read you like a book little sis.' She pointed out. I fiddled with my fingers awkwardly as we pulled into a coffee Drive-Thru. I hadn't told a soul about Dawud since I met him two days ago.

Dawud's P.O.V

I stepped out of my apartment building to encounter the beautiful blue sky, the blisteringly cold wind, the shining sun, and Akhlaaq standing in the parking lot. He hopped up and down, attempting to warm himself up a bit. I couldn't help but laugh as I reached him. 'Salamu'Alaykum Akhi (my brother).' I pulled him in for a hug.

'Wa'Alaykum'salam, bro.' He replied, hugging me even tighter than usual. I began to laugh, pushing him off of me. 'What? I need the warmth!' Akhlaaq defended. 'You were all cozy in your own bachelor apartment while I walked a mile to get here.' He complained, shaking his head.

'It's okay. You'll get the rewards if Allah wills.' Despite the cold weather, we walked to the masjid today because every step is a reward. I tried ignoring it, but Akhlaaq was being really weird today. He smiled to himself every time a woman would walk by and I'd lower my gaze and he'd chuckle to himself when I'd mention the bookstore. 'What's your deal Akhlaaq? You're acting weird.' I asked him.

After some time he chuckled and shrugged. I asked him once again and he finally said, 'You know that girl from the bookstore yesterday?'

'Jannah, right?'

I looked up at him, noticing he was biting back a smile. 'I was right! So many girls came to the bookstore yesterday yet you mention her.' He rejoiced.

'So what? You know that I'm looking for a wife. What's the big deal?' I defended.

'She likes you too! In fact, it's more than that, bro!' Akhlaaq said excitedly.

'What do you mean by "more than that"?'

'Dawud! Are you crazy? When she heard your voice her head shot up and she was staring at you like you were the most beautiful brother she's ever seen!'

I smiled and looked at the floor. Her features were one-of-a-kind and I couldn't help but blush. Not only that, but she was significantly shorter than me, which I loved. She had a puffy jacket on and the lower half of her face was covered by the blanket scarf she wore around the hoodie of her jacket. I could see somewhat of her rosy cheeks, nose, and beautiful eyes. I remembered how silly she was yesterday. She seemed ditzy but not in the way that you'd think. She seemed to be in the act of constantly collecting her thoughts which was adorable. She was easily excited and extremely bashful. I don't know how to explain it. She was a lot of things that I liked. 'You can't be serious.' I said, shaking my head.

'Why would I lie? I'm a Muslim.' He said. I don't know why but I laughed. He's also a goof. 'Allah has a plan for you two. I can feel it. You're bringing the package to her house tomorrow morning, right? If her Dad is there, you can ask for his number and the two of you can set dates to meet under his supervision and you can get to know each other better! It's called halal-dating.' He explained, disheveling my hair.

'What are you- Stop!' I pushed him off of me and ran my hands through my hair. Alhamdullilah, I was gifted by Allah with locks upon locks of hair and the only way to maintain it was to avoid touching it. I pushed my hair out of my face and onto the side of my head. It really was time for a haircut. The ends were now resting on my shoulders, making me look like a Muslim Tarzan. 'From Jannah's last name, I found out that her father was the one who donated a huge cheque to the bookstore when it first opened and he's a nice man. He'll probably invite me in if he answers the door. But I don't want to get rejected again so I won't do anything big. Maybe Jannah's not comfortable with the idea of marriage. I should probably just-' I was interrupted by Akhlaaq's hand in the air.

'I don't think Jannah is like the other girls you've approached for marriage. They rejected you because you are a practicing Muslim and they felt intimidated. I can see that Jannah's deen (faith) is on point. She walked into the store yesterday and when she saw it was crowded with men, she tried to walk out. That shows modesty. She lowered her gaze once she realized that she was staring at you for too long. Another case of modesty. She wasn't wearing tight clothing and she wasn't wearing perfume either. Another case of modesty.' He pointed out.

'You observed all of this? Bro, where's your modesty?' I teased him, walking up the stairs to the mosque's entrance.

After the Friday prayer and sermon, everyone parted ways, saying their goodbyes outside the mosque. I wore a thick coat, scarf, and beanie but I left my gloves at home, causing me to wince as the blistering cold wind blew against my bare hands. I shoved them in my pockets and smiled to myself, remembering how Allah does not burden a soul more than it can bear and that Allah does not inflict pain on his servants without removing bad deeds from their scales. 'Alhamdullilah.' I whispered, for only Allah and I to hear

'Dawud!' I heard a voice call. I turned around to see my old friend Abdallah and his wife. We greeted each other, smiling. 'How are you doing brother?' He asked me, pulling me into a hug.

'Alhamdullilah, I'm good.' I told them. Akhlaaq left my side to greet a friend of his. "How about you two? How has your first year of marriage been?' I asked them.

'Fun! Dawud, it's like living with your favorite person. I swear, getting married is probably the greatest thing that you can do.' Mariam told me sincerely.

'I've been looking to get married for some time now." I said shyly, kicking at the snow under my boots.

'We'll help you out then! I'll keep my eye open.' She said

'Mariam and I were thinking of eating out tonight. Would you like to join us?' Abdallah asked me.

'Sure! I haven't seen you two in a long time. It'd be nice to catch up.'

'We'll be at that new halal burger joint downtown. I think it's right next to your bookstore-" Mariam stopped speaking, looking over my shoulder at something. 'It's Jannah, she's over there.' She told Abdallah.

I froze.