Cinderella? NO

ABDALLAH

I don't love Samia but I like her because she is generous and humble, the best thing I like about her is the fact that she's simple. And because of me, she's praying regularly and really trying in her deen. I feel good, and believe Allah will reward me for Samia's improvement. So I believe Samia is a good thing in my life and a test. I promised to fulfil all my duties towards her and make our marriage work InshaAllah. Now mum is happy, dad is very happy and Imran is confused. On my wedding day he said "Allah is the king, the most powerful and all these kings are just mere servants to him. Why is it then they win? Why do they always get their way?" he was almost in tears because I know how it hurts him to question the doing of Allah. Imran has never asked me anything about the decree of Allah, not even when his dad left him. So I acted a Mufti and answered his question "Because this is Dunya; Allah can destroy shaitaan in less than a second but ain't shaitaan winning in this world? Allah can destroy terrorists too but ain't they bombing and Allah watching? That's the hikmah(wisdom) of Allah. He can and He did, He can and He didn't; He does as He pleases. And the kings don't always win. If the kings had their ways they wouldn't get sick, they wouldn't go to the toilet, they wouldn't get hungry. But in this world, no matter how powerful and religious you are, all these things happen to you. The kings darling, don't have all they want. You wouldn't know or see it but if they should count what they want and how they want things to be, you wouldn't believe it and you would know how incapable and worthless they are. You are just judging based on what you see. A good example was yesterday, dad wanted the wedding walima to be yesterday but what happened? We couldn't fly because of a huge cloud. A cloud Imran, changed my wedding date cos dad couldn't go by road because of his health. This is enough for you to know that kings don't always get their way. This is just in Dunya. What happens in akhira when Allah would ask 'who is the king now?' would the king of Saudi or Trump get up? No! because they were just acting in the dunya. The real King is Allah. He is winning and He is going to win." I really spoke like a mufti. He wiped his face and said "May Allah forgive me and guide me."
A week after my wedding and a week to my crowning, Samia held my hands for the 1st time and said "Today is one week, you didn't even touch me nor look at me the way spouses look at eachother. You promised to fulfil your duties but you are failing terribly. Alhamdulillah I have gained something in this marriage because I have improved in my deen and all you do is write poems and take coffee. You are not happy, why did you then agree to marry me? To fulfil your father's wish?" she looked at me "Yes" I said and caught her gaze. I never looked at her well so I never realised she's this pretty. I cannot use beautiful because beauty got its beauty from someone I used to know and that person is history. The only person that's beautiful is that person. She released my hands and said "It is because of that woman right? That you cannot love me or any other woman. It's because of her that you want to make your dad happy. It is because of her love that you became cold as stone and heartless..." she started talking "I am not cold, if I was cold, I wouldn't have married you. If I was heartless, I wouldn't have stayed with you and promise to fulfil my duties." I cut her off "That's not what I meant, I mean you used to be lively and cheerful, now you barely smile and you don't even love yourself now; that's what I meant when I said heartless. Her love has changed you and has taken everything from you. She wouldn't be happy if she sees your condition now. Your father that you married me to make him happy is not receiving any love from you, your poor mother is confused and you...you look pitiful. Fix your relationships." She said "I need time. Nothing feels right, I feel heavy and stuffy. I feel like...dying." I paused to control my tears "Her love didn't take away things from me, I let it happen. And she has lost things more than I did. In my case, I even gained a lot; I got my family back. But her, I took away everything from her; her dreamland(Dubai), her friends, her good memories of Dubai. Dad tortured her, she cried, she questioned her mother. She... forget it." I gazed in the distance "Wow, so you cannot even blame her for a thing. You must really like her" she laughed "Dad said I was crazy about her and you are laughing at me, you must also believe I am a majnun. Mum thinks she did some sihr on me and the whole world thinks I am stupid. But nothing is true, I just love her. That's how love should be, selfless, crazy, dangerous, adventurous, irrational..." I got myself into my senses and looked at Samia. She was already in tears and said "I wished you could love me like this" I looked at her and said "Who knows? I might" she just smiled because she knew I was lying but maybe I could love Samia in the future. After aunt Maryam and Maryam, Samia was the 3rd woman I opened up to. This life is unpredictable.
Two days to my great event or dad's rather, Samia came and did it again (held my hands) it felt awkward she tried to hold my gaze but I rested my gaze on the lace of her abaya. "In two days, you are going to be the king. Dubai and everything in it is going to rest on your shoulders. Can you?" she asked but I couldn't say anything because I don't feel anything for myself, how would I feel for thousands of people. "A ruler needs emotional support the most and I can't give you that because you are not letting me. You are not opening up to me. How would you open up to so many people? I don't think you are ready Abdallah. Your dad is ill; he needs you, your mum needs you, I do and the whole of Dubai does." She said with a straight face "How would I be ready when so many people are expecting so much from me? My wife wants to have happy home, my dad wants to see a better Dubai and my mum wants to see me happy but she cannot give me what makes me happy. I am not ready, I am not happy and I don't know when I'd be ready." I made the same face she made "What if I give you that thing your dad refused to give you and your mum couldn't? What if I bring back Maryam into your life?" she asked "Oh please Samia. Don't play that and besides, it is not from my side only; Maryam made her choice. And I made mine." I said and gave her a cold grin "You were compelled to, because you had no choice. Both of you couldn't do anything about it." she almost yelled "I could do something about it, I could drop the crown...I could leave my family and she...she could do the same also. But we didn't, we chose family over us." I yelled "You people chose to do the right thing, that's what compelled you; the truth. You did the right thing by choosing family over yourselves and that's why Allah would reward you and give you something better. The better thing is...you have a yes from me. Go and bring back Maryam...or I go to Nigeria myself. Please Abdallah, we want a happy king. We want a king that can, with this your behaviour, you can't even make me happy" she teased and laughed.
Samia got my tickets and told me she'll handle dad and the council. I refused to take commercial flight and took my plane with Imran. To Maryam.