When Stars Collide

Salman's Outburst

This chapter is for muslimah_khadijah❣️😘😘Thank you so much for all that you do for me. ❣️

"I'll call someone now. Okay?"

Hibba ended the call and resisted the immense urge to stomp her feet on the muddy ground. The day was turning out rather badly, first she and Nana had spent the night bottling over a thousand bottles of Zobo and tiger nut drink, adding up to a thousand, two hundred and fifty bottles, now her bigger problem was, the dispatch rider she usually used had refused to pick calls or reply texts and she needed a new mode of transportation as soon as possible.

It had to be said that Hibba had not slept for more than an hour before waking up to go to her supplier in Karu for more things, she reached there and got the call from Nana that even the transportation she had arranged did not arrive. She shut her eyes and forced herself to calm down, she would be irritable as a result of lack of sleep and the frustration accompanying the drinks delivery.

Just as she began to the process of picking the cucumber she wanted, her phone rang. She put the little phone to her ear and picked several good and fresh looking cucumbers in succession.

"Hibatullah? Assalamualaikum." She breathed out slowly, it was Salman. She was worried it would be the event company who had contracted her to make drinks.

"Walaikum Salam Salman, can I help you with something?" She sighed and waited for his answer, she wanted to end the call before taking out her frustration on him, but she persisted.

He laughed and a knot in her heart and shoulders loosened, she even stopped picking the cucumbers and smiled. "Is everything okay? You sound somewhat troubled."

Hibba found herself shaking her head and words began to tumble out of her mouth on their own accord. "Wallah, I must be the most frustrated human in the universe right now, there's so much to do Salman, and my transportation networks are letting me down.

If I don't get those drinks to the event planner, I would never get a contract with them again. The MD clearly said she needed those drinks at two thirty today, it's already eleven am, and the drinks haven't left gwagwalada." She ended her tirade with a hiss and continued to pick cucumbers from the wooden tray like table into the basket she had snagged for herself.

"What can I do to help?" Salman asked calmly. Hibba rolled her eyes, he was far away in Dubai, there was no way he could do anything, she told him so.

"Don't worry. I'll figure something out, don't be angry or annoyed, okay?" Hibba nodded and ended the call. She continued picking the cucumbers and moved to avocados, eventually ending her fruit buying with plenty oranges. She paid and let a barrow pusher take it to the park for her, to the bus that would take her back home.

Just as she got into the bus, settling in with the fruits in a safe place on a seat beside her, her phone rang again. This time she picked with more trepidation, but frowned when a man said Hello.

"May I know who I'm speaking with please?" She asked in English, causing other passengers to take another look at her. She shut her eyes when she heard who was speaking, set her head on the headrest and weakly said she would text the person her address.

When she ended the call, she said several duas for Salman Baanziye that Allah would bless him for being so tactful, so amazing. He sent her a van service that specialized in carrying goods around Abuja.

Such a help.

*****

Salman drove into the wide compound and parked hazardly, clearing some of the African violets that was used to decorate the carpark. He slammed his vehicle's door without any care for the loud sound that followed or even worry that the car's door could get damaged.

He stalked his way into the house, narrowing his eyes at the sound of mocking laughter coming from the living room. This had to stop and it would end right at that very moment.

"Assalamualaikum." The whole roomful of people turned to look at him, he stood at the door and stared at everyone till they felt the energy of the room change, feeling shame of themselves, they got up and began to leave slowly. They greeted his grandmother and left, trickling out till the room was empty, save for Salman, his mother Deena and his grandmother.

"Grandma." He called out and walked further into the room, his grandmother frowned and asked him with her eyes what he was doing. When he didn't answer but continued to stare at her, she set down her cane on the tiled floor, hard.

Salman didn't reply, he only sat down and waited for her to ask questions. "What has come over you?" She finally asked him, Salman chuckled and shook his head, finally replying.

"You. You grandma, you've come over me." His mother who had cried harder, said solemnly, " Salman hush!"

Salman waved her concerns away and said to his grandmother, "If my father won't stand up for her because he's your son? I'll stand up for my mother because I'm her own son. This thing you keep doing, don't you feel Allah's wrath would come over you anytime? You bring your friends here all the time, their only job? Embarrass my mother.

She can't go out, she's a laughing stock, because your high and mighty friends have destroyed her name. Mami's only offence? Marrying your son!" Salman stopped and massaged the TZone on his face, he was going to be hard pressed for this when it was all over but he had started and could not cut it shut halfway, he had to go all out.

"Salman!" His grandmother shouted out, Salman seemingly possessed by  the devil himself, powered on heedlessly.

"Haven't you punished her enough? Haven't you? All this time, you're either asking her to do impossible things or trying to cause a fight between my father's wives. Are you not fearful of Allah's wrath? Aren't you?" His grandmother held her chest and Salman rolled his eyes, feeling some pain, he was going to need a lot of sleep after this.

"I am just here to say, if this happens again, I'll make sure you stop entering this house. You can go to Aunty Mama or Iya, but never here again, you either-" He couldn't speak anymore because his mother covered his mouth, instead of feeling angry, he got up and pulled his mother up the stairs, leaving his grandmother in the living room, shocked and extremely dumbfounded.

                                **********

A few days after the fiasco in the Baanziye house, Salman's grandmother, his very elderly grandfather, his uncles, aunts and his parents all sat in the living room while he sat on a leather ottoman in a corner.

"Salman, why did you shout at your grandmother?" The one asking the question was his uncle who was the apple of his grandmother's eyes. His Uncle Salim.

Salman furrowed his brows at the directness of the question, seemingly wondering how to answer, his grandfather cut in and asked, "What exactly happened Salman?"

Salman explained how many times his grandmother would leave Maiduguri, bring her friends to humiliate his mother, humiliate her at parties which included petty things like throwing a drink at her white kurti once when she had to speak at an event. He stated all the things his mother had swallowed down and ended the long reportage with the story of what happened the other day.

"Is that true?" His grandfather turned to his wife, she fidgeted, making the old man sigh because he knew his wife.

He asked other people to leave the room, leaving only he and his wife. Not even Salman remained, leaving others in the dark about what had transpired in the room that day.

***
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