Leenah's POV
I went in when Noor dropped me off. I said my salam and went into the kitchen to drink some water. I greeted Binta, who was busy cooking something that smelled heavenly.
I gulped down the water and walked out of the kitchen.
I went to the living room to see my worried mum and dad there. I greeted them and asked them what was up with their expressions.
"Leenah, your brother is back," Mum said, heaving a sigh.
"What? My brother? He has the guts to even set his foot here again," I said.
Khaleel is my brother, he left the house few years back as dad got him a job in the states through a friend of his. When Khaleel left, he never contacted us. Dad tried messaging the friend but he couldn't get through to him also. We tried as much as possible to contact them but all in vein. Dad went to the states leaving all his work behind but he was prevented from seeing either of them.
Such a long and sad story that I don't want to relive.
"He has realized his mistakes and we all forgave him" dad said
"Yeah if he is truly sorry then so be it, besides No one cut him off" I say trying to make a point
"You should go talk to him, he looks stressed" mum suggested
I walked up to Khaleel's room and knocked on the door before opening it and sliding inside. He looked up at me and grinned, but he looked pale and worn out. I walked over to him and gave him a tight hug.
"Hi, bro," I said, pulling his nose.
"You still haven't changed, huh?" he said, pulling my cheeks and smiling.
"Brother Khaleel, I've missed you so much. Life without a brother is hard, you know." I pouted.
"Now I'm back and I'm not leaving again, insha Allah. You know, after I left, I realized my mistake and tried to come back, but I was too ashamed," he said, letting the tears slide down his face.
"Bro, this is your home. No one will ever send you away," I said, smiling sweetly at him and wiping away his tears.
He didn't say anything, but he lowered his head, clearly ashamed.
"Come on, bro, don't be ashamed. We all make mistakes, and the fact that you realized yours is perfect. You know?" I said, squeezing his hands to make him more comfortable.
"Thank you, sis," he said, flashing me a smile. "I'm going to take a shower now, and don't forget, we have lots to talk about, okay?"
I nodded and left the room.
Khaleel is just like our dad, he has almost all dad's looks. He has a thin perfect nose, bold eyes, full lips but not like mine he is dark, tall and muscular. i remember when girls usually wants to befriend me just because of him.
I went straight to my room and took a shower before changing into something comfortable. As I was watching my TV series, the sound of my ringtone interrupted me. When I saw that it was an unknown number, I hesitated to answer it but something made me pick up the call.
"Hello, this is Saheel," the husky voice on the other end spoke.
"Hi," I responded.
"It's been a long time since we last spoke or saw each other. How have you been?" he asked.
"I've been good. How about you?" I replied.
"I've been good too. I'll be in your city soon. We have some things to discuss," he said.
"Okay, until then," I replied, ready to hang up. But he continued talking.
"I can't wait to see your gorgeous face and hang out with you," he said excitedly.
"Oh, yeah! See you soon," I said and hung up.
I hope that he has good intentions, because I don't want to make the wrong decision that will affect me for the rest of my life.
I called Aleeya and Najma and told them everything that has been going on. Aleeya had just returned from her honeymoon and Najma said she would be arriving tomorrow, which meant I would have the whole day to myself and my brother Khaleel, as we had a lot of catching up to do.
I took a short rest and then looked at the clock, which showed that it was 9:42pm. Since it was already Sunday, I got up to check on my brother. I knew that my parents were either sleeping or about to sleep, so I went straight to his room and saw him busy on his laptop.
"Hi handsome bro," I said.
"Hi ugly," he replied with a smile.
"You'll never change, will you? And we all know that I am the most beautiful in the house," I said, chuckling.
"What??! No way! I am the most handsome, then Meelah, Aleeya, and then you," he said, sticking out his tongue.
"Haha, you're dreaming! So tell me, how was life in the states?" I asked, curious.
"Ahh, the states. It's not like in the movies, but I bet you that there are lots of jobs there that you can do and they pay pretty well," he replied.
"Oh, yeah I know about that. Tell me something new. What have you been doing and why didn't you contact any of us?" I asked.
"I met some Nigerians who are high class, just like me. Little did I know that they were not good people and they were not friends that one should keep," he said, with a sad face.
"Ahh, I see. It is what it is, and we shouldn't be talking about that now. Tell me, have you found anyone yet? A sister for me?" I said, grinning.
"You know how the girls are with me, they all throw themselves at me but I can't tell if they love me for the sake of Allah. So I didn't commit. What about you?" he asked, raising his eyebrows.
"Oh, man, the ladies! Me? Well, there's this guy, Amir. We dated for 2 years and I loved him to death, but he left me for some girl that he was intimate with," I explained.
"What???!! Unbelievable
But you shouldn't have shown him that you loved him that much. That's why he was misbehaving, and I bet you he'll come back," he said, closing his laptop.
"He did, but I didn't give him a chance," I said, rolling my eyes.
"Men will always be men. Don't ever give him a chance. He'll never change, since he's not wearing diapers. If a man rejects you and then comes back, I advise not to go for it because he's probably back for something else. So now, there's no one?" he asked.
"Well, Aunt Rahma suggested to my parents that they should arrange a marriage for me with Saheel," I said.
"The Saheel I know?" he asked, and I nodded.
"Then you should spend some time with him and see if he's your type, but if he's still the same Saheel I used to know, I advise you to stick with him," he advised.
"Yeah, that's just it. So, are you going to continue working in Dad's company?" I asked.
"Yeah, the old man deserves to rest. And you?" he asked.
"I work at MNO company as an accountant," I said, smiling.
"Oh, wow, that's cool! Why don't you just work at Dad's company? Why are you working under a young CEO?" he asked.
"I just want to go somewhere that isn't family, so I can focus more and gain some experience. I still plan to start my own business, though," I said sweetly.
"You have a point. And what kind of business?" he asked.
"I'm planning to open a restaurant," I said.
"Yeah, that's a good idea, but you know it isn't easy. And I bet you don't have a problem with funds, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, I have Dad, you, and myself, of course," I said with a wink.
We talked about random things after that, and we discussed some countries we wanted to visit.
We called it a day and I went to my room. We have so many places to visit with Khaleel tomorrow. I organized my things and went to sleep.
