Him & His Muslimah

33

Zaib

Clang.

Zaib unceremoniously piled the dirty dishes into the dishwasher and pressed the start button. A whooshing noise confirmed that the machine was indeed on, so Zaib hurriedly rinsed his hands and wiped them on a kitchen towel nearby. He then walked into his now empty living room as his family had gone to visit some relatives, leaving the house to himself.

Although Zaib was always someone who visits his relatives and socializes, he simply didn't feel like it at the moment. Everything had been hard on him the past few days considering the whole Zoya situation, legal battles with his ex-partner's company and getting his own company back on track.

He had been working non-stop to fix everything that had gone down behind his back. Ever since Zoya had confronted him at his workplace, enlightening him about the issue he was unaware of, he had just lost hope. Not only did he lose face in Zoya's eyes but he was betrayed by colleagues he had closely worked with for years. The effects of this ordeal were taking a toll on him physically and mentally. His dark locks remained unkempt, his eye bags were prominent and his shirts wrinkled.

He was so focused on his work that he didn't spare any time for him to groom himself. When he wasn't working he was praying or just sitting there blankly thinking to himself. Zaib was good with words since day one but he had been contemplating how to make this right. He did have plenty of arguments with different people but this argument was different. It was someone he loved and could easily lose.

Zoya—just the thought of her made his heart sink. The acrimonious argument and the visible disgust on her face haunted him throughout these days. She believed that it was him behind this horrifying injustice: is this how much she trusted him? Had he not made himself worthy enough for her? At this point, he couldn't help but doubt the status of their relationship.

If she could so easily assume him in the worst position possible, surely she lacked faith in him. If this was happening now, when they were only engaged, what would happen once they got married?

The television was on but Zaib was occupied in his own world. A cloud of emotion dwelled above him: regret, confusion, anger, and hopelessness. He felt distraught.

Just as the cycle of his thoughts started repeating once more, a ringing interrupted him. Frantically, he pulled his phone out of his pocket thinking it was another work-related call but surprisingly it was Bilal. He hadn't talked to Bilal in weeks as they were both caught up in their own lives, so it was weird that he was calling on a working day. He swiped the screen to attend to the call.

"Bilal? Is everything okay?"

Silence. For a few seconds all he heard was breathing but it didn't sound like Bilal.

"Bilal-"

"It's me."

That voice. The voice that got his heart racing in a matter of seconds. The voice of the person who could always get that crazy reaction from him no matter how much tried getting used to her. But he couldn't let himself melt now. He had to keep it together.

Why was she even calling him anyway? Zoya was not the kind of person who would call or text first, it was always him initiating conversation. She had a very timid nature and wasn't very impulsive either so he didn't understand why she suddenly called that too from Bilal's number. He would have to find out anyway. He inhaled in an attempt to calm himself down before speaking to her.

"As Salamu Alaykum," her voice wavered, as if she was having a hard time composing herself. No matter what the situation was or where she had left off with a person, she would always greet them properly. This was one of her qualities he admired—she always meant well.