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Behind A Smile 009
His gaze darted to her disdainfully. "Why haven't you served her anything yet?" He questioned, gesturing towards his sister with a jerk of his chin. Here it goes again, a familiar thought whispered through her mind. "I was busy cleaning up her room." "That is not an excuse!" Bilal's voice rose a notch. "Had it been your mother in her place, would you have ignored her the same way?" Instantly, Zynah felt a pang in her heart. Whenever any of her parent's were mentioned, the pain and regret of what she did to then surged back into her in full force. She knew what he was doing - he mentioned her mother intentionally, because he wanted to add salt in her injury. He had a motive. He knew exactly how to inflict the most damage. "Just let it go already." Nazmeera smirked. "She was probably busy, like she said." "No, I won't let it go." He snapped. Through the corner of Zynah's eye, she could see Nazmeera smiling in satisfaction. "She needs to be taught a lesson. It seems
Behind A Smile 010
"What in the world do you think you're doing?" Zynah shrieked, her heart hammering frantically against her chest. The amount of blood oozing out from the fresh cut made her dizzy. "Exactly what you see." She smirked and within few seconds, her face scrunched up in pain. "Bilal!!" She bellowed. "Please save me!" The sound of Bilal's heavy footsteps sent shivers down Zynah's spine. Bilal appeared in the doorway, a whirlwind of concern. His gaze darted towards his wife first, taking in her trembling form, before averting to his sister. His eyes widened when he saw her bleeding arm. "What the hell is going on here?" He boomed; his brows tightening. Silence, thick and suffocating hung in the air. "Will someone give me an answer immediately?What's happening?" He moved closer to Nazmeera and grabbed a hold of her hand. "How did you get injured, Nazmeera?" Whimpering, Nazmeera spoke. "It's nothing, Bilal... I don't want you to get mad at —" "Nothing?" he roared. "You're bleedi
Behind A Smile 011
Flashback begins Miserable and exhausted after trying to convince her dad, but to no avail, Zynah ran into her room and began to cry her eyes out — she just wanted to be happy. Why was her dad so against the man she had chosen? Did he not want her to be happy? — she couldn't help, but have these thoughts. Entering into the room, Ramlah felt so bad, seeing the condition her sister was in. She also did not see anything bad in Bilal, she had made her stance clear to Zynah. Why did their father despise the idea of him so much then? Shaking her head in an attempt to get rid of the thought from her head, she rushed towards her sister and started rubbing her back soothingly. "Everything will be fine, ya Zynah. Trust Allah to make everything right again." "Nothing will be alright, Ramlah." She sniffled a sob. "Dad will never accept him. He told me so himself." Ramlah's heart plummeted as she gazed at her sister. Deep within her, she also knew that it would be almost impossible fo
Behind A Smile 012
Due to the call to prayer, Zynah broke out of her trance. She wiped a lone tear from her eye and swallowed a lump in her throat. She was tired of living like an outcast in a house that was supposed to be her home. The regret of the decision she made years ago was eating her up. Momentarily, she contemplated on leaving the house and going very far away from all of her worries and problems - away from her marriage. Away from her monster of a husband, Bilal, but the big question was; would she be able to succeed? Ambling to the bathroom, she performed wudhu (ablution) and emerged afterwards. She spread the prayer mat by the corner of the room and began to pray to the creator of the universe. Like always, she cried in sujood (prostration) and pleaded with Allah, the most merciful and compassionate to make a way for her. A way out of her sham of a marriage. She wanted to be strong - she really tried, but her courage and patience had been exceeded. She couldn't fight any longer. She was
Behind A Smile 013
"Hey!" Nazmeera called, making her jump a little. Not bothering to turn around, Zynah totally snubbed her. "My room is a mess." She said. The urge to give her a befitting reply was insurmountable. For that one time, Zynah didn't want to be silent. She wanted to make it clear to Nazmeera that she wasn't her slave. "So what?" she retorted, finally turning to face her. She chuckled humorlessly. "So... You have to go in there and tidy it up." "Why should I?" Zynah asked, standing daringly in front of her. "It's your business. Take care of it!' "Because," she scoffed. "That's what you're here for. Don't you dare act smart with me." Realizing that she was only wasting her time talking to Nazmeera, Zynah turned back to what she was doing before Nazmeera interrupted. "Did you just snub me?" She squeaked; her voice laced with disbelief. Silence. "I'm talking to you." She boomed, exasperated. Silence. All of a sudden, Zynah felt Nazmeera's hand on her shoulder,
Behind A Smile 014
"What! Me?" Nazmeera's demeanor contorted in astonishment. "She did this to you?" Bilal asked in a soft, yet profound voice. Zynah nodded. Deep within, she was scared of what his reaction would be. If he ended up believing her, it would be a miracle on his side and if he did not believe her, she wouldn't even be surprised. Her expectations were zero. Glaring menacingly at Nazmeera, he questioned; "is this true?" "Of course not!" She was quick to deny. "She's accusing me and you know it. How can I possibly do this to her? She doesn't like me and I'm sure this is her way of getting back at me for what happened the last time and you..." She trialed off, a calculated sob escaping her lips. "... Don't tell me you actually believe this liar over your own biological sister." Bilal remained silent, his gaze flickering between Zynah and Nazmeera, seemingly searching for the truth in their eyes. It was as if he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. "Your silence says it a
Behind A Smile 015
"I hope you still remember what we talked about yesterday?" Bilal asked casually as they drove home after Zynah's discharge from the hospital. A curt "Yes" escaped her lips as she turned to stare out of the window. The cool air washing over her face made her lips curve into a smile. Just a little longer. Then, freedom. She couldn't wait for them to get to the house to execute her plan. The mere thought of having to live with him for a second longer was unbearable. A life without Bilal in it seemed promising. She couldn't wait to have her former life back. For a fact, she knew her parents, especially her dad would find it almost impossible to forgive her, but she was ready — more than prepared to face them and beg, till they eventually accept her back into their lives and forgive her for not realizing it sooner that their decision was the right one. Tears instantly prickled her eyes. In a way, she felt she deserved all that she got, but she had reached her breaking point. Hasn't she
Behind A Smile 016
Ferociously, Zynah opened the small drawer in the bathroom and fumbled around for a pregnancy test strip. The first time she suspected she was pregnant, she had bought the test strips in bulk, so she believed she would be able to find an extra one and fortunately for her, she did. Without wasting a second more, she peed on it and the next few minutes felt like forever. Time seemed to be moving slow. Too slow for her liking. Her heart thumped painfully in her chest as she awaited the result. Her breathing labored and her eyes, tightly shut. It was over ten minutes, yet Zynah couldn't bring herself to take a look at the result. She was afraid of finding out she was pregnant. She was about to start anew, but if she was pregnant, she would never truly be able to forget Bilal, because the child would be a connection and she wanted to sever all connections and ties with him. Mustering all of the courage in her, she decided to take a look at the result now. A small part of her mind wa
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