The Wait ✔

Gone With The Wind

Momina Murad Iqbal

I heard the doorbell ring, it must be Murad. I turned to see the time and realized that he was late. I opened the door not checking who it was and spoke "Murad, love. You are late today. We were supposed to---"

I cut off, frozen in my tracks, to see the most expected person at this time, Aliya.

"Assalamoalaikum," She said in her fake innocent voice. I eyed her up and down, furrowing my brows in confusion, to see her at my door.

"Walaikumassalam. What are you doing here?" I snapped at her.

"I wanted to see you. Your mom gave me the address to your house."She answered while I stood holding the door handle thinking whether to let her in or not. Unwillingly, I had to let her in and treat her nicely, and that's what I did. We sat on the couch after I made her a cup of tea and got her some cookies.

"So how is life treating you?" She asked me, taking a sip of the tea.

"With pure love and harmony, Alhamdulillah," I replied with a smile plastered on my face and happiness laced in my voice. She stared at me for a few minutes and sighed.

"Look I know I treated you like sh*t, back in high school. I came to say I am sorry for everything I did to you." She said. She looked at me expectantly, to say something, and to forgive her probably.

"What did I ever do to you, that you treated me the way you did?" I asked, trying not to sound hurt or pissed and trying not to go down that road again.

"I am sorry! I was jealous of you, alright. You were always the talk of the town, the one who was praised well by everyone. Always the straight-A student. You were popular among the boys and everyone tried to befriend you." I looked at her like she had grown two heads.

"Are you insane? You thought I enjoyed all that? All the attention, guys hitting on me every time, being surrounded by fake people. Do you know how it feels when you have no one you can trust? no one who cares for you? People approaching you just because you are a good student. You know how lonely it feels, when you have so many people around you, yet no one to rely on?" I was furious and had to keep myself to cry.

"I am sorry, I truly am. It was nothing but my insecurity. It was worth nothing, I know. Just please forgive me." She pleaded with those crocodile tears. I inhaled sharply, thinking about freeing myself from her and never let her come near my family again.

"Fine," I said. "I forgive you." She smiled in her tears. We talked for a little while before she decided to leave. I opened the door for her and saw Murad stepping out of the elevator. She shouldn't see Murad, she just can't know he is my husband. Aliya walked towards the elevator and I saw her stop when her eyes landed on my Murad. He was in a white shirt and blue pants with a loosened tie around his collar. He looked at her and then looked at me standing at the door, guarding my husband against that malice. Nonetheless, she resumed her walk and stepped into the lift, shutting the door behind.

"Who was that?" Murad asked me.

"A guest," I told him. He shrugged and walked past me into the house.

******

We were in some random outlet store when I got a call from Mom.

"Assalamoalaikum," I said after picking up the call.

"Momina--your Ammi--Ammi--" She tried to speak between her hiccups, she was crying.

"Mom is everything alright? What happened to Ammi?" I was freaking out.

"Ammi--stroke---come home now---" This was enough for me to leave everything and go home at once.

"Alright, I'll be there soon, inshallah." I disconnected the call and shoved the phone in my pocket. I turned to Murad saying "Murad! we have to go home. Ammi isn't well. Mom said she got a stroke." His eyebrows shot up and he held my hand leading us to the car. I threw whatever bags I was holding in the back and buckled up. I started praying to Allah, while Murad gave me reassuring glances now and then. We reached home in 45 minutes, the earliest.