THE TIMOROUS DUNYA✅

THIRTY-FOUR

Assalamu_Alaikum! We have reached more than 20,000 reads! I can't believe it guys! Thank you! Thank you! I have arranged a mini surprise for you guys on my IG page @Aeeeshatuh  ( link in my bio) head there to know how Maryam's story came to life and what inspired me to write it😊💖

Back to who Maryam saw😂 I had a blast going through the comment section and reading your guesses. Some are just so hilarious 😆😆 I wish I could tag all of you even though no one got it right, I'm still grateful to those who participated. Okayyyyyyy are you ready to find out who it is?

*****

Two hours later, Maryam jerked awake, drenched in sweat.

"Alhamdulillah! Maryam you scared the crap out of me! What happened back there?" Hajarah voiced all in thesame breath. Her hands reached out to the the bottle of water on the bedside. She unscrewed the cap and gave Maryam, who soaked her dried throat with large gulps from it.

Maryam didn't bother answering Hajarah's question. She had no idea how she was feeling. Inside, she battled between being scared or relieved. Answering that question meant being reminded of her past. A past she has been trying to bury.

A sharp pain shot through Maryam's forehead. She winced, letting her head rest on her palms. Hajarah got up quickly. "I'll go get you some painkillers." She voiced before skipping out of the room.

Outside, Hajarah met Sufyan pacing the length of the living room, something he had been doing since he escorted their family doctor out. She informed him that Maryam's awake. Sufyan released a breath he didn't know he was holding. Seconds later, he was in Maryam's room while Hajarah continued to the bathroom to get the pills.

Sufyan met Maryam in thesame position Hajarah left her, hands clutching her head. His footsteps were slow and quiet, afraid that any little sound could make her faint again.

Maryam raised her head, their gaze met, taking Sufyan completely offguard. A shiver ran through his body, he had no idea how scared he was until now. The way Maryam's breath seemed to be knocked out of her lungs, the way her eyes filled with terror and later on seemed to be deserted from any trait of life, the way her legs gave out on her body and she fell to the ground, abruptly, longingly, like it was home. Sufyan was almost certain she was dead.

In the living room, Sufyan tried to imagine a life without Maryam. It was like watching a movie on a white and black TV. Everything is either too shaddy or gloomy. Sufyan tried to imagine a life where the sun, sky, and flowers blurred to thesame shade. That is exactly how a life without Maryam is, colorless and unbearable. At once, Sufyan had prayed to never be able to find out what a life like that would feel like. God knows, he wouldn't be able to live that life.

"What time is it?" Maryam asked him, her eyes glued to the window. The night has fallen in it's earnest. The air was abit cooler and damper.

Sufyan glanced at his wristwatch. "Ten twenty four."

"Guess no ice-cream today. I was really looking forward to taste that coconut flavour." Her lips curled naturally in a pout. The laugh verbrated out of Sufyan's chest, a deep rumbling sound that made Maryam smile without even knowing. It was a few minutes later when his laugh died down. Sufyan tried accessing her features. Her eyes were red and swollen from the sleep she had, her lips were dry and chapped, Sufyan accessed all of her, her flaws and imperfections, everything that made her special.