Hidden Sun

chapter one

Chapter one
The sun has risen so beautifully and shines very brightly, it was quite a beautiful day and the rays of the sun have started reflecting on the windows of the specialist hospital Lafia, the brightness of the sun has shined through Laylah’s window which woke her up, Laylah jumped out of her bed amazed and surprised to find herself in the hospital, without knowing who brought her or how she got there, she tried hard to recall what had happened the previous night but all she could remember was meeting some thieves on her way; arguing with them as they hit her with a gun on her head, after that she tried so hard but she could not remember anything else. She thought for a while “was she raped and dumped on the streets or did someone rescue her and brought her to the hospital?” so many thoughts were running through her mind as she could not find an answer to any of her questions, a voice came amidst her thoughts “madam thank God you are awake, good morning and how are you feeling now” it was a nurse; she was of average height, dark in complexion dressed in a white uniform, pink socks which looked like trousers and black shoes.
“Good morning to you too, am feeling better now “
“Ok you should rest now while I will go to call the doctor” and then the nurse turned to leave
“Excuse me ma” Laylah called out. “Yes, how can I help you?”
“Please how did I get here?" I mean who brought me to this hospital because I could not recall anything and I know I did not come to a hospital?”
“Oh, I forgot to inform you, a man had brought you here last night and promised to be back in two days because he had to attend a very important meeting in Abuja”
The nurse left and Laylah who was surprised was thinking ‘Who could it be that brought her to the hospital, was it someone she knew’ she lay down to sleep as her mind brushes through her dark past…

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Ten years ago when laylah was fifteen years old….
It was the dry season and the harmatan wind blew strongly in the dense city of Zaria, Kaduna state in the northern part of Nigeria, dust covered everywhere including inside the rooms of houses.
“Laylah” Dalilah called out from outside “Can you please help me clean all the chairs and the television?”
Dalilah was a young woman of average height, dark in complexion, and a little fat with dimple on her cheeks which shows even without smiling, she was married to Alhaji Ibrahim at the age of seventeen and had her first and only child which was Laylah at the age of nineteen, she is a fashion designer and has a tailoring shop in Sabon Gari market where she sows cloths and trains young girls.
“Ok mummy” Laylah answered, like other children in the Hausa land, Laylah does not address her mother as ‘mama’ instead she calls her ‘mummy’ and her father ‘daddy ’because that was how she was taught when she was young by her aunt,  Bilkisu.
“hurry up and finish before your father returns” Dalilah reminded her because her father did not like seeing her doing any house chores instead she should focus on studies, Alhaji Ibrahim was a person of principles who only does what his mind tells him without having a second thought about it, his only wish was for his daughter to study law or any professional course but for Laylah, she wanted to become a fine artist because she was very good at drawing and painting and she will like to put more efforts to it. When she told her father she wanted to read fine art, he told her it was a waste of time and resources and he also thought she was too young to know what is right for her or choose a course for herself, he said when she is older she will change her mind about studying fine art but her mother told her it was a nice course.
Laylah during that time had a friend Yazeed, who was her childhood friend and neighbor, Yazeed was almost the same age with Laylah but was a little older than her, they both attend the same school and were very close to each other that they share each other’s secrets, Yazeed was also good at paintings so during holidays they both sit together and compete with each other in drawing. They always walk to school together and also return home together, one day as they were returning home from school, Laylah decided to tell Yazeed of her father’s decision for her to study law
“Yazeed, my father does not want me to study fine art because he thinks it’s a waste of time, he wants me to study law “
“But laylah why won’t you follow your father’s choice and do what he wants, he will never choose what will harm you, and you don’t know his reason for saying that”
“What reason will it be that will make him stop me from reading fine art”
“Whatever his reason might be, just remember that he will never choose what will harm you and there is this saying that what an elderly person sees even if you will climb an Iroko tree you will not see it, and your father is elder to you so he knows what is best for you”
“Ok thanks, but do your parents also see fine art as a waste of time?”
“My father says whatever a person does as long as it is not bad and is with good intentions then it’s not bad, so I guess I will just study fine art”
“Oh good for you, I wish that was how my father thinks too”. By now they have reached home and were about to path ways, “Oh Laylah, I forgot to give you back your book which I collected yesterday”
“Oh that! Just keep it with you and give me tomorrow I would not need it tonight”
“Ok then bye” they both entered their houses.

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Suddenly Laylah heard some voices near her; she hurriedly got up, it was the nurse that had returned but this time she was not alone, a man was with her, Laylah thought within herself for a while “was this the man that brought me here, no I think he is the doctor” by this time the man approached her
“Good morning miss, how are you feeling now?”
“Am getting better now” Laylah said, looking at the doctor as he examines her body temperature, the doctor was wearing a blue jeans with a white shirt and a white coat on top with ‘doctor Khalid’ written on it, he is tall and slender, dark in complexion and looks like someone she has seen somewhere, Laylah was thinking of where she had seen this man; her thought was interrupted by the doctor’s question
“Do you have any relative or contact of anyone you will like to inform about your condition?”
Laylah thought for a while before she answered “You see, the thing is, I am from Zaria, I just came to Lafia for something, I mean to see someone  and I was attacked by some group of robbers and they took all my belongings including my phone, right now I can’t even tell how I managed to escape the thieves”
“Ok just calm down and relax, the nurse will bring something for you to eat and cloths for you to change and she will also bring your medicines, just rest now I will see you in a while” the doctor left along with the nurse and laylah once again went back to her thoughts…

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