Saved by my nightmare (A Nigerian Story)

CHAPTER 46

Unedited

Kaduna, Nigeria
2020.

Rayyan could remember how Zahar had come to see him briefly after he got home that day, and then came once more in the night.

The night when it all started.

Rayyan could remember how Zahar came up and started chatting with him about Power rangers, undeterred by how silent he was.

He could feel himself smile at the oddity that was Zahar, so vocal and expressive, a stark contrast to his reserved self who rarely ever spoke to anyone.

But with Zahar, he could feel the occasional urge to input a word or two into their conversation.

While he was amused by Zahar, his sister was taken in by Maliya, laughing whenever she failed to pronounce her name correctly.

From his seat across them, he could see the bright Hazel eyes she shared with her brother, fascinated by the unusual trait.

He fought the smile that threatened to crack the thin line on his lips as he watched how playful she was being.

It was only when she walked over to him, almost missing her step like she had earlier that day that he really got to look at her.

She stared at him for a while, curious hazel eyes bright against the clear white of her pupils, and smiled.

She tried to crawl onto him but fell down, he stared unblinkingly as she tried again and fell back down, she tried yet again and was met with the same fate.

It was only after she fell one more time, landing on her back in the process, her face scrunching up in pain as tears filled her eyes that he finally picked her up.

His hands trembled in uncertainty as he placed her between his laps on the sofa, staring icily at her.

He hated the sight of tears.

She stood on the chair, fingers combing through the hair he hadn't cut in weeks, and pulled.

A sharp pain coursed through his head as she pulled, and it was all he could to not to scream.

Anger coursed through him as his eyes snapped towards the evil baby.

But as quickly as it came, it disappeared.

Tiny giggles escaped the little girl as she stared at him, and he could feel a warmth, similar to the one he got from listening to Zahar stir in him.

Despite himself, the smile he'd been trying to hide cracked his lips open, a motion so slight you wouldn't have noticed if you didn't pay a close enough look.

But his mother was — looking at him that is; from the corner of his eyes, he could see the tenderness in the eyes he'd started to warm up to as she stared at him.

The eyes of the woman who'd saved him, his mother, stared back at him in a manner so loving it overwhelmed him with pangs of pain.

His eyes snapped back to Maliya as he swallowed tightly, brushing his fingers through her oiled curls.

She played with him for a while, poked his cheek in an unsuccessful attempt to get him to smile, and after some time sat back down on the chair, head nestled in the crook of his neck as he carried her.

Only when soft puffs of air blew against his neck and the feeling of her heartbeat slowed against his chest did he let the smile he'd been holding back out- and what a sight it was!.

Zahar came over to him, whispering some duas(prayers) in into his palms and wiped it down Maliya, he crouched in front of Rayyan to place a kiss on his sister's forehead and went back to playing with Rumaysa.

Rayyan stared at the baby in his arms, lost. That day had been his first time ever holding someone in his arms.

His arms curled around her small frame tightly, afraid she would fall onto the ground.

The notion scared him.

Some time later, as their mothers kept on talking to one another like they'd been best friends throughout their lives, Rayyan started to feel sleepy.

His hooded eyes drifted to Maliya, who was still clutched in his arms. He looked at her for a moment, unable to understand her.

Were all babies like this?

He placed his lips on her forehead like he'd seen Zahar do, and drifted on to sleep with a smile on his lips for the first time in a while.

****
Since that day, the Jamil and Kamardeen siblings had been inseparable.

It took Zahar quite a while to accept the fact that Rayyan wasn't much of a talker, he'd learnt to understand that his lack of speech didn't necessarily equal hatred.

Moreover, Maliya did enough talking for the both of them.

Rumaysa on the other hand didn't talk much to him, but conversed quite well with her brother and Maliya. Zahar concluded that she just didn't like him as much as she did his sister.

It made him quite unhappy when she'd run off to her room the minute he stepped in, but he'd always hound her and keep teasing her till she'd shout at him.

As the years rolled by, both Rayyan and Rumaysa started speaking more. Rumaysa, although still extremely shy, talked to him a lot more, and he in turn stopped teasing her excessively.

Even though the sight of her fuming always made him laugh.

Rayyan however, became his closest friend. He still didn't talk much and frankly didn't need to.

He understood Zahar in a way that was almost telepathic, always able to read his moods, and influence them in a way no other person could.

Rayyan's relationship with his sister, Maliya however was another thing, she lived to provoke him.

His little sister was as mischievous as she was sassy, and it was always great fun watching Rayyan who never seemed to get flustered by anything, riled up by her tiny self.

He would flick her forehead when he'd catch her, smiling when she'd get annoyed and refuse to talk to him.

She brought out a mischievous side of Rayyan that Zahar couldn't, the cool and collected Rayyan seemed to disappear once his sister was up to her antics.

He lived to see the smile on Rayyan's face, knowing he didn't have that smile on enough.

The tenderness in Rumaysa's eyes whenever her brother would smile however, weakened him.

He didn't know what went on in both their heads, only that Rayyan definitely wasn't an average child.

But he wouldn't change him for the world and all it contained.

Whatever secrets lay in the Kamardeen household, he wasn't privy to, and he didn't care to know.

All that mattered was that he had the most important people with him.

****
Hi guys extremely short I know, and I apologize.

I intend to update more this week, in shaa Allah.

All my Muslim readers and friends, Ramadan Mubarak to y'all.

Stay safe guys, don't be like me😅.

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