Love after Nikkah

Chapter 2

﴿وَأَطيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسولَهُ وَلا تَنازَعوا فَتَفشَلوا وَتَذهَبَ
ريحُكُم وَاصبِروا إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَ الصّابِرينَ﴾ [Al-Anfāl: 46]
(46) And obey Allāh and His Messenger, and do not dispute and [thus] lose courage and [then] your strength would depart; and be patient. Indeed, Allāh is with the patient.

Thebes, Egypt.

She was a blend of dream and reality, so simple yet so intricate, so plain yet so beautiful, her eyes held mystery but her smile would make you wonder if it was the same girl who thought she was lost. She exuded resilience; she illustrates intrepidity in a petite body. She was the flower which had gotten itself scarred in the sandstorm, but the very scar was the reminder that she had seen and outlived the hard times.

"Hebs, you shouldn't be here. Today is your Laylat Al Hinna (night of henna party)" a little girl of 10 screamed as she made way toward Hebs who was engrossed observing her plants... I will rephrase that; Observing Oma's plants who have partially become her's.
Swiveling her head over to see her little cousin, she displayed a lip tight smile as she moved the tips of her finger away from the chamomile plant that had just begun to grow.

"Come here!" Heba, who was fond of little children, motioned for her little cousin to come forward. The little girl, without wasting much time, moved forward to Heba and they locked each other into a hug.

Breaking apart the hug that only lasted for less than a minute, the little girl spoke "I was wondering why the house was suddenly decorated in a colourful way, food was being prepared and guests trooping in and out, so I asked mom who told me that you are getting married tomorrow!" taking a purse to register Heba's expression, the girl continued a second after.

"How did this happen so fast? By this time yesterday you didn't know you would be getting married tomorrow, right?" the girl asked and just like always, Heba was baffled by how rational the girl is for her age.

Nonetheless, Heba flickered her eyes shut for a sec, brought out her phone and check the time, clicked her tongue which happens to be an attitude she just can't quit, her deep curve dimple evident in a beautiful way on her cheeks before she replied

"well... it just clocked 2pm. At this exact time yesterday, I already knew I would be getting married tomorrow" she curtly replied as she crouched down to her Cousin's level to get a closer glimpse of the chubby little girl.

"It happened so quickly that I still don't believe... But, I guess I'm truly getting married this time around!" Heba affirmed, her eyes revealed glitters, while her lips remained slightly narrowed.

Holding onto her Cousin's hands as she slightly squeezed them in a comforting way because the girl was revealing a sad expression. "I will miss you Hebs!" she pointed out, sadly.

"And I will miss you the most, Di!" Heba almost lost her voice, she was beginning to feel extremely sad and holding back the tears that threatened to fall off wasn't easy. She didn't want to have a breakdown in front of the little girl, so she resolved to hug her.

Breaking apart again, the girl cleaned her tears and tried to be happy for her older cousin because even though she was little, she just happens to be a very smart and understanding girl.

Marriage is a good thing anyway and she has always wanted good things for her Heba cousin.

"Today is the Henna party, why are you here? You should be getting ready for the party" Dina sounded more like an older Aunt than a younger cousin. But the close relationship between them made Heba chuckle at her beloved younger cousin.