A tale of love, loss, and new beginnings.
Hareem wants to start over, Momin is stuck in the past. Can a newly wedded couple learn to love and accept one another while also dealing with an uncertain future and a haunting past?
Trigger warning: ptsd...
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Chapter Thirty Four
Hareem stared ahead as she got off the university bus the next morning. Her parents' words from last night rang in her head, bringing back the wave of anxiety and worry which had kept her up the entire night. She had tossed and turned, imagining countless scenarios, thinking about all the things implied by her parents and those that would become her responsibility after marriage.
Her parents had let her go after talking to her, assuring her that she could take her time to decide, and that they wouldn't pressurize her to accept either option. It was her choice alone.
It was exciting to think that if she accepted the suggestion, she would properly be Momin's wife, but at the same time, becoming his wife would mean breaking down all the walls that continued to stand tall between them. It was thrilling, yet scary, making all the emotions crash together into a ball of confusion.
Her first instinct was to downright reject the offer, because she wasn't ready, however a part of her yearned to fully accept the title of Momin's wife. With the realization of her feelings towards him, she wanted to get to know him fully, she wanted to be the one who discovered his habits, explored his flaws and learned to understand him more than anyone else. She wanted to be there for him the way he was attempting to be for her, she wanted to comfort him in his times of distress, and whisper words of encouragement when he lost hope.
But she couldn't. She couldn't utter the approval on her tongue.
A shaky breath left her mouth as she trudged through the moist grass and towards the main University buildings.
Walking by the tall plants lining the loggia, she went up the stairs towards her first class. The old wooden steps creaked and slightly swayed with the weight of the students walking up and down, a duty it had been committing for the past eighty-seven years. The cracks in the hard cement walls attested to the history of the campus, boasting how it had educated generations of women.
Hareem weaved through the corridor and found Aima lingering outside the classroom. Her eyes were widely looking around, her feet pacing the length of the classroom entrance like she was waiting for someone.
Hareem greeted her with a Salaam, startling her.
"Oh Wa'alykum Salaam dearest! I didn't see you there." Aima greeted, smiling widely.
"Are you looking for someone?" Hareem wondered, noticing Aima looking over her shoulder, standing on her toes to see someone in the distance.
"Sort of, but I'm so glad to see you!" She grinned. "Did you do Ms. Masood's assignment?"
"I tried to." Hareem confessed as they entered the classroom, Aima back to herself.
"Yeah I thought it was difficult too."
They slid into the fourth row near the windows, taking a seat next to each other. Hareem tucked her backpack under her chair, squeezed in her planner, notebook and stationery box in the small desk space attached to the padded chair. She left her water bottle near the window, briefly glancing outside at the cars pulling into the parking lot.
