Love through time

End of the road

The drive to Manchester was about 1 hour 40 minutes. They were both quiet for the 20 minutes of the trip. The morning had been heavy on the heart. Jamil's parent had joined them for breakfast and after telling Zarah how remarkable her mother was in her teenage years, he told them they had to be prepared for the worst and said
'No matter what happens, both of you will be fine. I'm an evidence of that. You have to understand that life throws at us the darkest moments but in the dark, we will always find light' he held Jamil's mother's hands on the table as he spoke.
'That being said, I'll try everything possible to see that you two won't have those dark days'
He looked at his phone and continued
'I have an appointment with Mai Martaba Sarkin Kano. He is in London and I understand your dad is a title holder, if he can intervene on the matter that would be remarkable'
' Know that there is always a place in this house for you my darling Zarah' Jamil's mother said holding Zarah's hand from across.

His dad left for London and they got into Jamil's car to proceed to Manchester.
After the long silence, Jamil spoke first
'Have you met him?' Jamil asked out of the blue.
'Met who' Zarah asked genuinely.
' The... person..' Jamil could not bring himself to say the person Zarah was to marry.
' I met him on my last trip to Nigeria when I missed my flight to Kano, he was sent to pick me up, and we barely spoke.'
There was another long silence between them both

' Has anyone of your family members ever flouted this arrangement' Jamil asked, Zarah could see what was going on in his head. She had thought of running away, but she was too grounded to do so. She loved her family dearly regardless of their unideal circumstances. She shook her head and Jamil could see the pain his question had caused her.
' I'm sorry I asked' Jamil said.
' I'm unable to come to terms with the possibility of losing you, I can't"
The thought of them eloping had crossed his mind. He thought of getting a villa in Singapore or deep into the mountains of Bali where they would marry and live together. He knew it was not possible but he had thought of it.

'I'm selling off my company' Jamil said looking straight at the road
' You cherish your company, please don't sell it. I have seen your work and it brings you a lot of happiness' Zarah pleaded.
' I cherish you more Zarah, but here we are, I'm meant to give you up and be ok' he said with a slight frustration.
' Jamil please don't make this more difficult for us both' Zarah subbed, the tears she'd been holding rolled down her cheeks, she cried her eyes out, and her face dropped into her hands. Jamil parked the car, got out and came to the passenger door. He opened it, bent over and released the seat belt. He took Zarah's hand and got her out of the car. Zarah had no idea what he was doing. The winter air was cold outside. He wiped her tears with his hands. He leaned her into the car and for a moment Zarah thought he was gonna kiss her. Instead, Jamil reached for her hijab and adjusted it to her face.
' I have never been more scared of losing Zarah,' the look he gave her while he was inches away from her face sent shivers down her spine. ' I want you to know that I prayed for you to be mine and that dropping you off today not knowing our fate, will be the most painful and heartbreaking thing I'll ever do
There were tears in his eyes. Zarah lifted her palms and wiped them away. He held her hands to his cheek for some moments and before letting go he kissed her palm and whispered
' I love you Zarah'

Jamil dropped Zarah at her Aunt's house. The last thing he told her was ' fi amanAllah Zarah'
( I leave you in the care/Protection of Allah Zarah)'. She said and looked as his car drove off. Knowing that this might be the last time she would ever see him.
She got into the house and was surprised her family had not arrived yet. She was glad to see her Aunt and the new baby.
'Wai Sarkin Kano Mai Martaba ya Che wa baba ki  ya zo London, so sun sauka London sai Auntie za su taho nan da train.- the Emir of Kano asked your dad to see him in London, so they flew into London and Auntie and the rest are coming over here by train.'
Zarah's heart pounded faster with this information she learned, everything could go wrong and her world would come crashing down on her. Her family might ask her to go back to Nigeria with them and marry her off to Umar immediately.
She sat in silence waiting for any news from London hoping it wouldn't break her heart to pieces.
****

'Eng Haroon, Barkan mu-(greetings to us)' Sarki said as he rose to shake the hands of Jamil's dad.
'Allah ya kara mai martaba-(Allah protect his highness)' Jamil's dad said with his fist raised to the sarki before shaking Sarki's hand.
' I'm delighted to see you, Eng. The last time we met was in hajj, I promised to call you whenever I come to the UK, I was so glad to get your text message.'
' I can appreciate Mai Martaba's busy schedule ai"
' No, I can't be busy with my closest friend in school. Although we are far apart, such bounds are cherished forever"
The two men sat and had tea, dabum Kaza and masa brought in by one of the wives of the Emir. They reminisced and talked about the state of Nigerian politics and economy.
' Mai martaba as I said in my text I'm here on behalf of my son who wants to marry Iyar Gidan Iyya' he explained to Sarki what Jamil does and how old he was. He said they met when she did her internship in his company and because Zarah had said she had no say in who to marry, only her parents do, he has come to Sarki to seek her hand in marriage for his son.
'When you told me a bit about this in the text message, I called Iyya, it just happened he had a flight scheduled from Saudi into the UK. I invited him over, he should be around any moment from now"
' MashaAllah godiyya nake- ( I'm grateful) '
' Ah, aii Jamil da na ne aii - ( Ah, Jamil is my son ).
They chatted and waited for the arrival of Zarah's father. Five men came in whilst they were waiting two were residents in London from Kano and the three came in from Nigeria. The Emirs house was located in North West London, an affluent residential area of London. His house had two living rooms and they were big and decorated to indicate royalty.
When Iyya finally came in it was about 3 pm. The sun was about to set because it was winter and the sunset early. The Emir introduced Zarah's father to that of Jamil. He invited them to his other living room to give them privacy from the other men.
' After much deliberation, and explanation from the three men, Zarah's father said
' Mai martaba Duk matakin da ka dauka, yayi saboda duk yayaanka ne-( your Highness whatever decision you take is fine, they are both your kids'

Sarki said ' I'll make a pronouncement but I'll want to talk with both kids before we say the margrib Salah'
Zarah's dad said 'I can call her now Mai martaba' Zarah's dad called her
When she picked he could hear the noise in the background. He assumed his wife, son and the rest had arrived at his sister's house.
' Go to a quiet place in the house, I want to talk to you.'
The seriousness in her dad's voice scared her, she knew what this was about. She gently exited the living room and found an empty room.
' Sarki Mai martaba wants to speak to you"
the next voice she heard was another
'Fatima Zarah'
'Allah ya taimaka Sarki,' they spoke at length. He asked her if she knew Jamil. Although Zarah was shy, scared and terrified she said murmured 'Yes'
He asked about when she did her internship and all. At the end, Sarki said.
' When your parents make vital decisions on your behalf, it is done from concern and love. Kin gane abun da na fadda?'
' Aye sir' she said not knowing what this meant. She lay down on the bed looking at the ceiling. 'Ya Allah ease my affairs' she prayed.