The Cost Of Retribution( Not your usual Hausa love story)

Chapter 10

Tale as old as time
Song as old as rhyme
Barely even friends then somebody bends unexpectedly.
💔💔

Sometimes being strong is not about being brave and smiling all the time,
Sometimes it's not about acting as if you're the happiest person alive,
Sometimes it's not about holding it together when all it seems to do is fall apart. Sometimes you have to swallow your pride and break down, hug someone who loves you and just cry or get angry.

*Ali*

It had been an agonizing ten minutes since our parents had left the huge living room in which Amani and I were seated across from each other, I don't know what stopped either of us from talking but none had said a thing and the silence was deafening.

"So how are you?" I asked and it made me sound just as nervous as I was, yeah mr keep it cool was losing his cool.

Amani just kept looking ahead at me, and at that moment her eyes glistened a bit. Tears, she was crying.

I got up from across the large living room and walked slowly across to where she was seated with her head looking the other way, so I couldn't see her tears. I approached her and sat down on the chair at her right.

"what's wrong Amani? Why the tears?" I asked in a low tone.

"I don't need you to see me cry, okay?"
Her hands went to her face as she dabbed a bit at her eyes, I instinctively pulled out a handkerchief from my front pocket and offered it to her, she looked at me and my heartbeat increased at the sight of her upset, she looked down at the hanky and took it using it to dab at her eyes,

"breathe" I urged, she just stared at me like she didn't know what I was talking about and I smiled. "in and out, try and breathe,"

After a bit, her breathing seemed to even out and she had visibly calmed down.

"better?" I asked and she nodded.

"I don't want to do this" she whispered

I stayed mute for fear of confirming the statement or for lack of what to say.

"stop looking " she said turning her head the other way and a few tears rolling down her cheeks.

I smiled. "why?" I asked.

She sniffled and dabbed at her eyes, "it's not my best moment" she said after a while.

"you look really beautiful, when you cry" I began and she looked at me, the uncertainty on her face made me continue "when you laugh, when you check the board and frown when you've been posted to the burn unit, after a day of surgeries looking really exhausted, you look beautiful every time"

She kept staring after that and I realized I probably sounded like a stalker or some obsessed lunatic.

"sorry that was uh --- awfully cheesy" I said rubbing my temple.
Amani looked away and smiled, and of course I felt that familiar pang.

"our parents want us to get married" she began. " is that what you want?"

"the more important question is, it it what you want" I replied

"No, I - just answer me please" she pleaded.

I sighed, "honestly in the beginning, I didn't want to get married to some instagram slay queen"

"instagram slay queen?" she repeated like she wasn't sure what that meant.

"well when my father said his friends daughter I jumped to conclusions" I admitted "so I didn't want this, I didn't want to come to the meeting or meet the girl or anything, that was before you walked in here"