Scarred For Life

Chapter 47

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Adnan had always imagined what it would feel like to hold Afrah and call her his wife. He had imagined the feel of her hand in his, and the way his heart would flutter whenever she looked at him through the eyes of a wife.

But nothing could have prepared him for the way his breath would seize momentarily whenever she turned to him, or the way his heart soared when she slipped her hand into his and smiled so brightly that his knees trembled from the effort of looking at her and remaining calm and collected.

The moment they descended the stairs, a cheer erupted in the living room, so loud and deafening that it seemed to shake the building. The ladies swooned at the sight, the men barked out their laughter as they cheered him on, and somewhere in the crowd a woman stared at Afrah with a calculating look in her eyes, relishing the thought of all the heinous things she was going to do to her.

Neither Afrah nor Adnan noticed her however. They were too busy smiling at everyone, turning their heads this way and that as several cameras clicked in their direction. Afrah felt her stomach clenching at the sight. She never enjoyed being the center of attention, but it seemed like the sole purpose of the day was for everyone to stare at her. And they were doing so liberally, oblivious to the way her insides squirmed as each photo was taken, and she was forced to stare at an unfamiliar face and try to muster a genuine smile to her face.

It wasn't that her joy was fake.

By everything that was holy, she had never felt so happy as right now, with her husband perched on her arm and a genuine excitement soaring in her heart.

Husband.

She laughed at the word then.

"Is something wrong?" Adnan cocked his head, dropping his voice to a whisper.

"Not really," she said. "You just look very handsome."

"I do, don't I?" he smirked, straightening up. "Don't feel jealous if you're overshadowed by my glory. That's something you will just have to get used to now that you'll be standing by my side forever."

"Trust me, I'm not complaining," she laughed. "By all means, bless the congregation with your unfathomable charm and glorifying beauty."

And he did.

Afrah watched as he turned to smile at a cluster of her cousins standing by the wall, the three of them swooning at the sight. She rolled her eyes as he turned to the other wall and grinned, his dazzling white teeth gleaming as two other women she didn't recognize sighed dreamily. He continued his little game, while he casually led her towards their parents standing at the far end of the living room.

There went a cluster of Amina and her friends as he turned toward them and posed for the camera.

Next was a group of her mother's friends, who stared at him hungrily, debating with the thought of whether it would be considered disrespectful to offer their daughters to him right now.

Even Aunt Safiya couldn't resist a partially-hidden grin as he inclined his head towards her.

He was having fun, and as he turned to shake someone's hand, her eyes shot straight towards her parents, standing beside the window and grinning from ear to ear.

And then she saw him.

To say that the wind was knocked out of her would have been an understatement. Afrah's heart literally clenched in her chest, so violently that she felt herself swaying on the spot. Her knees shook violently, and the only thing stopping her from toppling to the ground was Adnan's firm grip on her.