Scarred For Life

Chapter 21

*
Sa'ada's wedding was held on a Friday, the thirteenth day of the month. Superstitious people might have deemed it an unlucky arrangement, but for the most part no one seemed to care.

As it happened, Adnan didn't attend the ceremony. He had chosen to book another appointment with the realtor on that same day, in order to take his mind off the fact that Sa'ada would be leaving him forever that day. He decided to invite Khalifa as well, and with someone else there to help him decide, Adnan quickly found the house he wanted.

It was a four bedroom detached duplex, with a two bedroom guest chalet and a two bedroom boy-quarters, in the less-densely packed part of Nassarawa. Adnan had liked it immediately due to the spacious backyard and the large rooms. He didn't even need to sit in the middle of the room the way his mother had suggested he do. The moment they had driven into the house, Adnan had felt at home, much like he did whenever he drove into his parents house. The beauty of this particular house wasn't in the grand nature of its design, neither was in the blinding white paint all around which made it seem even larger than it truly was. The beauty of this particular house was simply the fact that it was homely, in spite of its size. There was an unexplainable coziness to its size, and the freedom which he so desperately searched for seemed to hide within the walls, just within his reach.

"It was recently renovated, you see," the agent said as they came down the stairs after inspecting each bedroom. "Should you find anything which doesn't quite suit your taste, I assure you that it can be taken care of immediately."

"What do you think?" Khalifa asked as they reached the bottom of the stairs.

"It will do," Adnan said with a slight shrug. "How much did you say it's worth?"

"Well, at the moment it's valued at fifty seven million. But this is a very prominent area, you see, and I'm sure the house will be worth a lot more in a few years to come," the agent replied, coughing awkwardly. Adnan paid no attention to the unease etched across his face. He could tell that the man was eager to please him, as he was most likely running out of ideas. Well, it was time to put him out of his misery.

"I'll take it," he said, his tone masking the fact that he was actually very pleased with the house. There was no need to wear his emotions on his sleeves.

"You... You will?" the agent's eyes widened as he felt a great burden being lifted off his shoulders.

"Yes," Adnan replied. "I believe that's what I said. How soon can we finalize the payment?"

"Well, it all depends on you, sir," he smiled broadly. "As soon as you make the down payment, I shall have the necessary papers ready for you to sign. Once everything is completed, then you can make the full payment and the ownership will then be transferred to your name. Every document related to the property will be transferred to your name as well. All in all, it shouldn't take more than a week."

"You'll receive the cheque tomorrow for the full payment," Adnan said. "I'd rather we speed this process up, and get everything done as soon as possible."

"As you wish," the agent gave a feeble attempt at a bow. "I shall see to it that everything is concluded immediately."

"Good," Adnan said as they headed for the door. "Give me a call if anything comes up."

"Of course," he nodded eagerly.

Adnan didn't speak again for several minutes, which made Khalifa very suspicious.

"Are you okay?" he asked with a hint of worry in his voice.

"I'm fine," Adnan replied.

"You're not thinking about the wedding, are you?" he asked.