* The curtains were drawn shut, as they always were. Somehow, though, a few inches remained between them so that a sliver of light crept into the room and onto the carpet. Slowly, meticulously, it crawled up the side of the bed as the sun rose higher into the sky until the light touched Afrah's sleeping face.  

* "Marriage?!" Damn it! "Afrah, I can explain.""I don't want to marry you, Adnan," the words tumbled out of her without so much as a pause. Adnan sat up on the bed, his eyes drawn to the clock. It was 11pm, the ungodliest hour of the day. "Afrah, please let me explain." "Why would you think that I would ever want to marry you?" "Wow," he said, trying at humor. "That's a nice boost to a man's ego." "Why did you do this behind my back?" she asked. "I'm sorry," he said. "Truly, I am. But perhaps if you would let me get in a word, then you will understand my own point of view." "I don't want to hear it," she said. "Afrah, please." He sounded calm. Too calm. It wasn't fair, when her mind was spinning in a million different directions. Marriage to him? Of all people? Imagine that. But the terrifying part was that she actually could. She could imagine them together, and she could imagine him as her husband. It was exactly what she had been trying to stop herself from imagini

*Several days later, Afrah still couldn't decide whether she had done the right thing or not. Sometimes, she would look at her reflection and insist that she wanted this; that it was the right thing to do. Other times, she would lock herself in her bedroom and cry, unable to bear the thought of it all. But she had made her bed, and now she must lie in it. The uncertainty remained with her however, even when Adnan's representatives came over to formally ask for her hand. Afrah nearly had a heart attack when she was called to help with the food, but a stroke of luck saved her when she realized that his father wasn't there. Instead, her father's cousins had taken up the space in the living room, conversing loudly so that their voices bounced off the walls. They were talking about politics, which had never been her favorite topic in the world. Afrah kept her face down as she placed the food before them, hurrying back to her room. She left the door open however, so she could hear what t

*Afrah woke up to the sunlight creeping into her bedroom, and the sounds of the bird performing a sonnet right outside her window. She remained lying down while her brain booted up slowly. Her mother used to say that when it came to waking up, she was like an old computer, the ones with vacuum tubes. Having gone to bed late the night before, she took several minutes to recollect her thoughts. Fifteen minutes later, she crawled out of the bed. It was no graceful affair, more like a snail emerging from its shell than a princess rousing from her bed. Her footsteps were silent as she walked to the window, the carpet absorbing most of the sound. She pushed her hair out of her face, drawing the curtains aside. The sunlight poured into the room then, blinding her momentarily. Somewhere at the back of her mind, she knew there was something she was forgetting. Today didn't seem like an ordinary day. The sun was much too radiant, the clouds has gone on vacation, and the air felt intrinsical

*"Can I ask you something?" Sa'ada said, a sweet look in her eyes. "Sure," Afrah replied, staring down at the time on her phone. Soon, her mother would be calling her upstairs to get ready for the dinner. She had been sitting out here with Sa'ada for a long time now, and soon they'll have to leave. But there was something about the woman that kept her in her seat. It was a strange twinkle in her eye, almost as if she knew something Afrah didn't. "Do you love Adnan?" she asked. Her voice was light; playful, even. But somewhere in her eyes, one could tell that she was eager to find out the answer. "I..." Afrah stared down at her hands, deciding to answer the question truthfully. "I don't know. I guess I'm supposed to, but it's a process. Surely I'll get there one day."Somehow, she missed the way Afrah gripped her bottle tighter, and the way her eyes flashed maliciously before she regained her composure, frowning slightly. "What do you mean?" she asked. "Don't you love him?" "Not