Chapter 12
"Jalilah baby wake up.....Lila come on", I heard. I tried to open my eyes hoping that I could get out of the nightmare that I was in. 'Please Ya Rab allow me to come out of this' I thought to myself. Again I tried to open my eyes but still they wouldn't budge. I felt pinches on the lower part of my back. I tried to scream but no sound came out. What the hell is happening. "Let me try", a male voice says. "No I'm good", the other voice says. I recognize that one as Dulamah's. "Please....… she had blacked out when she was younger and by Allah she would come out of whatever the hell she was in when I recited Ayatul Kursi. Please allow me too", the voice says again. "Who are you to her?", Dulamah's voice asked.
Minutes passed and I didn't hear anything. I could just feel the pain rising in my body from the fall and a headache was soon to arrive. "I'm her uncle Jahdami", he says. "Allow me please", he says. Flash backs came as I remembered looking into his grey eyes. He was my uncle Dami. Jahdami Ibn Sayyid was his whole name. My favorite uncle was here wanting to recite on me after ten long years of thinking I'd never see him again because of stupid rumors saying that he was killed in a shoot out. Those were all lies that my family and I believed.
His life wasn't taken as we thought. "Go ahead. Hurry", Dulamah's worried voice said. I felt cold hands touch my arm and I could feel my body twitch. Those words that he recited made my eyes open with tears flowing from them. Dulamah hugged me and kissed my forehead while my uncle finished up the last ayah. I looked over at my uncle Jahdami and he too had tears coming from his eyes. Everyone at the restaurant was staring at us with a smile on their faces.
"May God bless your soul", an old lady said. "Thank JESUS!! I couldn't have anything bad like death being taken in my RESTAURANT", the store owner says. Dulamah picks me up in his arms and I reach out to hug my uncle who grabs me and hugs me tightly. "I miss ya baby girl", he says. I cry harder into his shoulder. "You want me to hold you Lila?", Dulamah asks. I shake my head and hold onto my uncle tighter. Dulamah grabs my stuff and Jahdami and I follow him out of the restaurant.
Dulamah leads us to his car and he opens it as my uncle tries to place me inside. "No", I cry. My uncle Jahdami kisses my forehead. "Lila come on, you have to go home with your husband", he says. "No", I sob. Dulamah looks at me with saddened eyes. "Jalilah come on baby it's getting late", he says trying to grab ahold of me. "Don't leave me", I cry out. "I'm not. I'm not. I have to go home to my family", he says. "I wanna see you again", I sob while hugging him. "Inshallah", he says.
Dulamah pries me off of my uncle. "Stop by our house inshallah okay brother", Dulamah says. "Inshallah. Tomarrow Inshallah can you show me my brothers house. Jalilah's father", he says. Dulamah nods. "Inshallah. follow us home so that you can come tomarrow and we'll take you over there", Dulamah says holding me. He places me in the car then kiss my cheek. "Ok Salaamu alaykum wa rahmatullah", my uncle says walking away to a silver BMW. He climbs in then backs out as Dulamah climbs into the driving seat after closing my door then he speeds off.
I don't talk. I just wipe away my tears thinking about my uncle and the lies that I believed were true. I just wanted to see his grey eyes again and cry.
"Jalilah, you okay?", Dulamah asks. I don't reply. "Jalilah are you okay?", he asks again. I turn to him with reddened teary eyes. "Do I look okay?", I asked him in a hoarse voice. "Cut the attitude baby", he say reaching out to touch my hand as he drives with the other hand. "Dulamah?", I say. "Hmmm.....", he replies. "Are we gonna get Ayah tonight?", I ask sniffing. "Naw, she's spending a night at our moms house", he says. "Oh okay", I say.
Dulamah pulls into our driveway and he walks around the other side and helps me out. My uncle sat in his car and watched. "Ya akhi, see you all tomarrow inshallah. My wife's worried sick", he laughs out. "Alright inshallah", Dulamah calls out. "As Salaamu alaykum", he says before speeding off. "Wa alaykum salaam", Dulamah says.
