The Trust She Broke

36. In the open.

36.

Enjoy.

***

She was kneeling down weeping.

He was facing the window, he had his back to her. He appeared to be watching the rainfall but his mind was far from it. His tall feature was slumped and often times, he would shook his head.

He was staring at nothing in particular but his mind was nowhere and everywhere. Lost in his own train of thought, he still couldn't believe everything that just came to his knowledge.

The thunder stroke loudly making her jolted from her crouched position on the floor, she looked up and stared at his back before bringing her gaze down again.

The rain was pouring heavily and one may think that heaven shared her sorrow and was crying for her. She was well soaked in her own tears, her body shook vigorously as she continued weeping.

Slowly, he turned and faced her with bloodshot eyes which was evidence that he had also being crying.

'Why?' He asked with a gruff voice, demanding an answer but his question was met with dead silence.

"Why couldn't you tell me?" He rest his head on the glass in frustration. "When did you start meeting him again?"

"Oh" He exclaimed in understanding. "That was where you went that day."

She looked up to meet his gaze and regretted doing so immediately. The eyes that once looked at her with affection and pure love shinning in them were now staring at her with total emptiness. She would have felt a tad bit better, if his eyes held a bit of emotion either sadness or disappointment or even hatred.

'Why did you lied to me?' He asked again getting more frustrated when she still refused to answer him.

"I demand an answer to my questions." He fired at her and she cowered in fear.

'I...' She opened her mouth to talk but no word would form "I...I'm sorry" She said with a shaky voice.

There are some situations that one would find unbelievable when experienced in life. If Ilyas was told by anyone that he would one day be in this kind of situation with the person he treasured the most on earth, he would have fought that person with everything he was.

With a pained expression in his eyes, he placed his right hand over his chest and closed his eyes. He reopened his eyes, shook his head as he couldn't believe was he was about to do, he said the word that had has his throat clogged.

"I, Ilyas Hussein" He paused. "I divorce you, Ruqqoyah Bashir".

The thunder stroke loudly outside almost as the same time as he spoke making his word nearly unheard by Ruqqoyah. But of course, she heard him, loud and clear, every part and every clause of the sentence.

She watched him opened the front door and walked out into the rain. She wished to ask him where he was heading but she couldn't formed the words. She sank further into the floor and her world came crumbling down.

***

Haroon sat on the seat behind his table in his study. His laptop was on the table, a video which he had watched in countless amount of time was playing. He had a glass of champaign held between his thumb and forefinger.

He chuckled when he think of how conniving he had been in making the video. He had secretly hid a camera in the VIP lounge where he had hosted Ruqqoyah. He later had his personal assistance forward the video to Ilyas e-mail. It took him days for that to happened though, he was waiting for the perfect moment.

He couldn't help but wondered the situation the couple would be in right at the moment. They are probably having a fight. He pictured an enraged Ilyas and a pleading Ruqqoyah who will be begging an unyielding Ilyas.

'Would Ilyas raised his hand on her?' His nose flared at the thought of Ilyas hitting her, he pondered on how he would made Ilyas pay if he dared to hit his woman.

He checked his phone expecting a call he knew very well wouldn't come anytime soon. He couldn't help himself from wishing she would call. Nothing more would have gladden his heart better.

He leaned forward and reached for a folder on his table, he opened it and brought out its content. They were all pictures of him with Ruqqoyah amongst which he had sent some to her. He picked out one from it and smiled a genuine smile.

Ruqqoyah was sitting on his lap, she had on a newly hairdo, his lips were on her left cheek and she had eyes closed and her face squeezed in excitement. It was his favorite.

He downed his glass of champaign in one go and poured himself another glass. He watched as bubble moved around in the drink and sighed. Right at that moment, nothing could comfort him and ease his aching heart. He need his woman and soon, she would be his again.

***

Ruqqoyah stood up groggily, her joint aching for staying in a crouched position for hours. She checked the wall clock, it was a bit past three in the morning.

She headed to the bathroom to perform ablution, it's a little to early to perform tahajjud (near dawn prayer), but there's no other way to relief her heart of some ache except some conversation with her Lord.

She observed two rakah, when she was done she remained sitting on the prayer mat, she rest her head on the wall behind her. Her tears had dried off, her eyes were tired of crying but her heart wished to cry more. How her life took a wrong turn in the span of five months after her marriage was beyond her.

She was still supposed to be basking in the euphoria of her newly found home but she became a divorcee before she could spell happily ever after. What would she tell her parents, her family, her friends, would Samiah returned from honeymoon and heard her friend's marriage of barely half a year had crashed, what will people say, how would she face the world? Too many questions but no answer?

She couldn't accept the fact that the day marked the end of her happiness. The day she had feared the most, she had hung to a thread of hope that that day would not come to pass. It was just her wishful thinking, everything is finally in the open.

She drew her knees close to her chest and rest her head on it. Her mind took her through the journey of memories she had buried deep within her heart. To where everything started. How it all began.