FLAWED SOULS

CHAPTER 13: THIS THING ABOUT YOU

Dedicated to hajiyaammi

•••• •••• •••• ••••
Amirah couldn't decide whether the blue gown or the black, she dropped both on her bed with a sigh. She usually wasn't good at decision-making and that was where she needed Khadijah the most but now there was still a strain in their relationship. Five days had passed and she'd barely seen her, she was feeling embarrassed to go to Aunty amarya's place, all because of Hajiya's remorseless act.

Among the rest of her siblings, Amirah was the closest to their mother, sometimes herself she wondered if it was because they were similar in character but she was always quick to contradict her thought, she was better than Hajiya, at least she felt remorse if she found out she'd done wrong.

Growing up, Amirah had despised her mother, the mere presence of the woman used to disgust her, she had no idea how they'd become close again but she knew Hajiya had been the one who'd slowly tried to repair their relationship, after all it had been all her fault that there was something to repair in the first place.

Now they were both in the sitting room, Amirah couldn't say she'd totally forgiven her mother for the hell she'd allowed her go through when she was young but she was willing to put it all behind her, she's never actually been good with fighting and keeping malice. If she didn't like you, she made her feelings vocal, just as she did with Muhammad but the clingy lovesick person he was wouldn't just let her be.

She turned on her phone hoping he'd gotten tired of calling her without any response from her side, why couldn't he just let her be so they could continue living as strangers? She'd even enjoyed the few days she'd stayed cooped up in her room without having to see or converse with him but the lovesick fool had come knocking on her door on the second day, just as she'd predicted.

"Have you gone to your in-laws place? I don't want anyone to start talking about how I am not teaching my daughter manners." Hajiya said and Amirah sighed. She truly despised Muhammad's parent, especially his mother. The woman was a hindrance to her peaceful life, after her son that is.

His sister was tolerable, it wasn't like she ever spoke, her nose was usually stuck up in whatever Hausa novel she was reading which was good enough for Amirah because the few moments Zulaihat's eyes stayed on her, she'd felt like her scrutinizing gaze could see through all of her and that was a scary thought.

"No, I'm yet to go there." Amirah replied her mother.

"Why? Please go, I don't want to have a fight with Aminatu, your husband's mother is a troublemaker." Hajiya also disliked her too and that was why in those little, abrupt moments like this one, Amirah would find similarities between herself and Hajiya that usually gave her chills. No-one should be like her mother.

"I don't want to go there yet, that woman is bothersome." Amirah said mustering as much nonchalance as she could.

"And she is always acting like she's something special, she isn't the only one with a doctor son. She really should focus on getting her daughter a husband, she's getting old."

"She's just twenty-three." Amirah said sharply.

"And so are you, but look at you, happily married."

Amirah shook her head, someone needed to wake Hajiya from this lovely dream of hers involving Muhammad and Amirah's happy marriage, they were both at their unhappiest.

"Do you know what happened the other day at the opening of the new almajiri school? I donated much more money than this woman but during the appreciation speech, they called her name before mine."