Cinderella? NO

MARYAM

Zahra told me she's coming and I was surprised because I used to beg her to come, now she's coming without me insisting. I prepared all her favourite vegetarian foods and went to the airport to pick her up. We were talking throughout the drive and when we reached home I saw the gates of the 1.5bn house opened and asked the driver if someone has bought the house. He said some Arabs rented it for few weeks and I just nodded my head. Zahra became a celebrity because I told everyone in my family about her. My granddad knows everything about her, when he met her he said "I feel like Zahra is one of my kids because of how much we talk about her in this house". My uncle was like "Seeing Zahra live, is like seeing your favourite qaa'ri; someone you've been listening to all your life and then one day you meet him". My grand mum was like "Zahra I can tell your favourite colour, your favourite qaa'ri, daa'i, your favourite food...your favourite everything" and we all laughed. From the windows of our sitting room, we could see straight into that mansion so sometimes when NEPA takes light we open the windows and peep at their garden. It is so beautiful. Zahra used to say the garden would be so perfect for tea and best friend and she looked at me. I told her I am not her best friend; I am her wifey so she shouldn't even think of habibi(lover) in her life.
We visited my favourite place; Tarbiyya Book Plus and I got Zahra a book name 'Ideal Muslimah'. I bought so many books but Zahra said we are not opening a single one at home, because she's here to spend time with her best friend not a 'librarian'. When we came back and Zahra handed me a Qur'an. I saw it on the shelf and just looked at it. I don't know what prevented me from buying it. It is so colourful and pretty. She wrote a small note on it and it reads "Babes please make this your personal mushaf and make me proud." Zahra is the best thing that happened to me in Dubai. I told her "Even if Middlesex refused me a certificate, I won't feel bad because I think Allah took me to Dubai to meet you and change my life." Zahra has the pride and dignity of a muslimah, and I used to think it was ego but when I told her about my feelings for Abdul, she dropped everything and approached him. She even received a negative answer but she didn't blame him or feel bad and she didn't befriend him on Facebook ha ha.
Zahra told me she was going to meet someone and she doesn't want me to follow her, I gave her driver and wished her goodbye. After an hour she came back and I told her that was fast. She said she found out they live close by. "Very close" she added and smiled. I know she's acting weird but what to do? She's Zahra—the craziest person on earth. She told me to go on a date with her and I felt embarrassed because I was the one who is supposed to take her. But she said it wouldn't make any difference who is taking who, the only thing that matters is us having a date together. She chose a restaurant in Maitama named L'Toiles at Nile street. I loved the place because it is so deserted and dark and calm, Zahra knows exactly what I like. We ordered their pizza and I decided to eat their pizza whenever I am craving pizza. Their pizza is...beautiful. Zahra was checking and typing on her whole frequently and it feels weird because she respects dates but I didn't complain because she doesn't seem like she wanted to share. We were the only ones in the restaurant and after like 30 minutes, a guy came in and it was Imran. I just sat looking at him and calculating things, so everything is a plan; Zahra's coming to Abuja and our date. He said salaam and joined us. I don't know why I couldn't say or do anything. I just sat and looked. Zahra was signalling me to talk but I couldn't say anything because I don't know where to start from. I managed to asked how he fared and what business brought him and he just said 'a mission'. I wanted to ask if he was alone but I don't have the energy and enough sugar in my system to receive an answer so I just kept quiet and we enjoyed our threesome date.
After subh prayer Zahra said we should go for walk and we did. When we went out and saw the buildings of Asokoro, the long trees, the flashy cars, I remembered Dubai and how we used to take a walk 6:30am in Al Barsha. That's when I realised that I missed Dubai, we came back and Zahra entered the gate before me. I saw the door of the mansion opening and I stood and stared. It was a guy in Nike shoes, Sweatpants, well-built and beautiful. It was him. It was Abdallah. You know how you put pause on TV and everything just come to a halt? That's how everything around me and inside me stopped and everything came back; that closed door-- those memories, those feelings. I felt like running away and erasing what just happened but I wasn't in a movie. It's real. Instead of me to go away from him and follow my brains, my heart jumped out to him and I followed my heart. I couldn't stop myself. I went and stood in front of him and just kept staring. He ushered me in and I just followed him. We sat in the garden I used to see from my window and I thought of Zahra and her wish. We sat and everything feels so awkward. My eyes kept wondering from trees to the cute tiny table and I kept rubbing the surface of my nose. I couldn't hold his gaze nor ask him anything. I had so many things on my mind. I want to ask how he is, what brought him to Nigeria, how his father is faring, how their relationship is and what brought him to Nigeria but I just looked around. Then something clicked, I remembered that Abdallah got married! I lost interest in all the questions I wanted to ask him and now I just want to know why he got married. Why won't he? You broke up. Remember. If he is happy and if he loves her and if he likes her eyes and if she loves him too. The remembrance made me feel distant from him and I increased the distance between us my shifting my chair backwards. I also stood up and told him I wanted to leave. "Maryam..." I felt so good from the mere mention of my name on his lips "Talk to me, ask me what is written on your face. Ask me anything; whatever you wanna know. Don't leave again, talk to me..." he pleaded and my stupid tears came flowing.