It wasn't as though, he had ever had the intention of beating his wife. It was not a dream and definitely not the best thing he had ever done. He's sure there's more to what he did than what was let out.
The feeling of remorse flowed through his veins like some blood he survives on. He feels pathetic for ever raising his hands at her. But then, what will take away the thought of her having the baby that isn't really his?
He inhaled deeply, his right hand over his face, as his right leg was sprawled on the floor in his bedroom, while his left foot was crossed over. He had been sitting in the same position for the past two hours ever since he had left the hospital with Khadija.
He knew she was still preparing the food she was asked to, but he still couldn't bring himself to forget her expression when she saw the mess and dried blood trailing in the living room. What was she thinking? That couldn’t be brought to hi
A fraction of what was happening these days felt so unreal to her. She had always known that her Abubakar was romantic, but not as he had been these past few days.Guilty conscious, perhaps?Probably.He might have really changed like he had been saying for the past few weeks. Her Abubakar is finally back and more of an upgrade. Zeenah thought happily as she prepared his breakfast. But as soon as she cracked an egg, she felt nauseous and had to run to the nearest toilet and threw up.When will this morning sickness ever end, she wondered sadly as she leaned her back against the sink trying to catch up her breath."Thought I made it clear that I don't like you stressing yourself with your condition?" She heard his voice behind her."I was just preparing your breakfast.""You shouldn't have bothered" Abubakar replied as he helped her back to the living
The baby is gone' was the thought that crossed Zeenah's mind as soon as she opened her eyes, surveying her surrounding, she realized she was in a hospital, AGAIN.This was the second time she had been admitted to a hospital ever since she had gotten married months back. Was it a coincidence? Or was something certainly wrong with their marriage?''Kin tashi?'' (Are you awake?), she heard his voice whisper ''I thought I was going to lose you.'' Abubakar added as he moved close to her, taking her right hand which was free of drip in his and squeezing it so tight. His heart jerked at the feel of her cold hands in his.Zeenah looked up at him with her doe brown eyes and noted the dark circles around his eyes. Oh, how she loves this man as much as he loves her.''What happened?'' She managed to ask softly, her voice so soft that he had to strain his ears more to get what she was trying to say.A
Two days later, Abubakar notified Zeenah that he would be travelling to Zaria on a matrimony basis; Zeenah stared at him, in her thought, asking who could this be that she is not aware of and moreso, never heard about."Yaayy! should I get my bags ready too?''She interrupted Abubakar from operating his phone. “Pack your bags and go to?'' He asked slowly.''I thought you'd be taking me along, ain’t you?''Did I say so? What gave you that impression?''Okay, Zeenah thought. Why was he getting all worked up over something that simple?''Never mind. I'll get your bag ready then. By the way, who's this 'anonymous friend’ of yours?'' She asked, air quoting the favourite cousin's part.Okay! He had had enough of her bullshits. ''When was it made a policy for me to tell you everything about myself? I can't remember when the law was p
They were in their sixth month of marriage, and Zeenah comprehended that Abubakar's bad days, the days she was required to sympathize and compensate for every small injustice done to him, were outnumbering the good days. She didn't know how to fix that, but she suspected it was her fault. She knew other people's marriages were different, that they didn't constantly worry about how to anticipate their husbands' needs, they weren't always walking on eggshells. Certainly, her own parent's marriage hadn't been like this.She seems to subscribe to nightmares, leaving her exhausted the next day. She dreamt of losing a tooth or falling from tall buildings, a skyscraper perhaps. Or being chased by things she couldn't put her fingers on."It is bizarre and cryptic," she related to Abubakar one morning as he sips his coffee, "this new one I had last night. I was in a park somewhere, just walking by myself, and my right leg fell off. No blood or anyt
She tossed and whirled to her left side, a smile lingering on her lips. She had had one of the best nights since the past two weeks. How else can she be convinced not to fall in love with Abubakar over and over every single time when he's this sweet? She scoffed when she remembered Samira's words before she had married Abubakar.'Don't do it, you're going to regret it.'But she hadn't, and she never will. Abubakar has been one of the most incredible things to have ever happened in her life. They might have their bad days, but isn't it the same with every couple out there? Those ups and downs were what made them strong as couples.''You're awake.'' She heard his deep voice say behind her, and she smiled. She slowly opened her eyes and turned towards the sound of his voice.Abubakar was standing in the middle
“You look so thin,” Samira Bashir started as she settled on one of the couches illuminating Zeenah’s living room. “are you okay? Is something bothering you? In fact, you look so nervous Zeenah,” she added, accessing her friend’s appearance from head to toe.Zeenah forced a sad smile and sat beside her friend. "What if I am pregnant?”“Are you?” Samira asked quickly, “because if you are, you’re still in a mess. Remember, you’re yet to cleanse yourselves. Zeenah, do that before it’s too late, please.”“But Abubakar is not ready,” Zeenah heard herself saying. Even to her ears, the words sound shoddy. What was really wrong with her?It was a bright Monday morning, and she recalled the little fight she and Abubakar had before he left in the morning just because Samira was visiting. It had been long since any of her f
Little by little their marriage closed around her. At first, it seemed like heaven when she thought of the idea of being married to Abubakar. She had all the time she needed to plan how perfect their married life will be. She spent hours poring over recipes, improving her cooking skills so she can please her fiancee when they finally got married. Now, every day before Abubakar came home from the office, she would put on makeup and changed her outfit. She had started to do that after he'd told her one night he hoped she wasn't one of those women who let themselves go after they'd caught a husband because recently she had lost all interest in trying to look good for him.If Abubakar had been a jerk all the time, she wouldn't have been so compliant. It was the in-between moments that kept her with him, the evenings when they cuddled in front of the TV and watched the news, the impromptu romance after dinner
Zeenah had never needed something as much as she needed Abubakar's approval and go ahead in her life. From the clothes, she wears to the type of food she mostly eats, to the people she talks to, damn! To even how to speak.It was a bleak Sunday afternoon, and Zeenah was busy ironing Abubakar's clothes, while he sat, crossed leg, watching football on the large plasma screen pasted on the wall. They had just finished having lunch, and he had subtly talked about his clothes that weren't ironed."I wanted to ask Bala to help iron them, but I don't want to be a Bad Boss. Maybe I'll just iron them later when I rest." He had said that when he was feeding a Zeenah a spoonful of rice, while she sat in between his laps."I'll get them done. I always did, why will you give them to Bala?" Zeenah had asked pouting."But I don't want you to keep suffering. You're my wife, not a maid." Abubakar had said, wiping her mouth