Chapter 29: Chapter 29

He spent some minutes standing, his eyes were fixed intently on her crying body; he could feel how her tears were dripping onto his heart as if she had poured an already melted steel on his heart.

Sadeeq got tired of her silent whimpers and mustered the courage to enter the room. She was still on the bed, oblivion to his presence, when he walked towards the bed and sat beside her; placing his hand on her back.

"Ihsan, what are you crying for?" He knew it was dumb of him to ask, and knowing Ihsan, this question might anger her more. But what was he going to do? When he didn't have the single idea of why she pulled up what she did.

Her tears intensified, he felt how her body was shaking and how she was trying to shrug off his hands on the center of her back.

He used both hands and steadied her on the bed, lifting her up and she smacked away his hand from her shoulders. "What do you think you're doing? Sadeeq get out of my sight!" She roared, her eyes rolling in perfection, Sadeeq could taste the sophistication dripping from her eyes.

"Stop acting like a child and stand up, Ihsan. What are you crying for? Why did you do that back in school?" His hands had a tight hold on her shoulders and he forcefully pulled her up. She groaned and yanked off her body from his hold, moving far away from him. He scoffed. It pained him.

"Go out please, I need to be alone. Can't you understand that? I don't want you here, go away!"

"You don't expect me to leave you alone while you're crying your eyes out, Ihsan. Tell me what made you cry, and I promise to leave you alone."

"Oh, that's so thoughtful of you, Alhaji Ibrahim Karaye. I'm okay now, leave, and your dumb brain doesn't expect me to tell you anything. Would it?" She scoffed and stood up, plucking out a tissue, blowing away her nose.

He stood up too, the attitude she was giving him was teasing his nerves but he was trying so hard to suppress his annoyance.

Ihsan moved towards her bathroom door and pulled her towel from the door line. She looked at him and rolled her eyes again, he shuddered.

"I'm about to take my bath, in case you have become blind overnight. You can take your leave please; close the door on your way out."

She left him standing beside her bed with mouth hanged opened and she made way towards her wardrobe. Ihsan brought out a plain white jeans and a black crop top; matching the look with a white turban. She laid them on her bed and walked back to the bathroom. She felt his eyes scrutinizing every move she made, and Ihsan intentionally snubbed his entire existence.

Sadeeq pulled her away from the door and flung away the towel resting on her shoulders. Oh no, he looked mad. And the openings of his nose were flaring Ihsan was sure he had inhaled more than intended. How he got there so fast would still remain a mystery to her.

"You can't act as if I'm not standing in your room, Ihsan. I met you crying your eyes out, how dare you act all fine and ignore me? At least I cared to ask you!" seeing the scowl that planted itself on her face, Sadeeq internally smacked his head. That shouldn't come as it sounded.

She straightened herself and wrathfully shrugged off his hold on her wrist. She brushed away an invisible hair away from her forehead and looked at him directly in the eyes. Her eyes unnerved him. Oh, he should've looked away! Her eyes got him stifling a swoon.

"Did I ask you to show you care? I didn't. Don't come here and think you can rant off my ears with your annoying voice. Kindly find your way out of my room before I do something we're going to regret."

Sadeeq was lost in her eyes that he couldn't point out a single word she had uttered. He packed his thoughts in a whole and asked the question that had been gnawing at him since at school. "Is it because you saw me with Noor at school? Is that what made you cry?"

She laughed a humorless laughter that did nothing in hiding her pain from Sadeeq. He might've suspected right, how would he be that dumb not to think of that as the reason why she cried? Ihsan rolled her eyes at him and he could swear the taste of her eyeballs was felt in his taste buds.

Her words jolted him out of his trance, and he had nothing to do but to stare at her, as she spoke.

"You think, me, Zainab Ibrahim Karaye would cry because of some certain worthless brown haired ogle that doesn't deserve a single glance from me? Really, Sadeeq? How dumb of you! Let the curiosity of this kills you, I'm never saying a word. Go and find out yourself."

She left him rooted at the spot and entered the bathroom, banging the door she was sure had startled him off his thoughts. Sadeeq spent minutes staring at the door, before a smirk graced his lips. She was the first one that brought the idea of separation, wasn't she? Why would she be jealous then? Just because she saw him with someone that might be there for him when the time would come? This girl was selfish. And he's sure what he saw in her eyes was nothing but jealousy.

He walked over to her bed and opened her handbag; he took a note from it and scribbled some words on it. She wanted this, who knew she had this planned to get rid of him? He promised her he would set her free whenever she found the person she loved. A promise said shall be fulfilled. He walked out of the room with a sigh.

•

She took a cab to school the next morning, the last time she saw Sadeeq was before she banged her bathroom's door on his face. She woke up early and left, leaving everything in her room untouched. She knew he would look for her, and what she did would make him know that she wasn't into his stupidity anymore.

She was about to enter their theatre room when she bumped into someone, she felt the bang. Ihsan looked up with a scowl on her face and her eyes fell on a man, basking in all the glory of his mid-twenties. She was about to bellow out her words when she saw the tag on his chest; it read Dr. Aashif.

"Good morning, Sir." She greeted instead and ducked her head down, walking into the hall. Allah had saved her! What if she had uttered some harsh words to him? How would she face him as he taught them? She wiped away a strand of sweat that managed to form on her forehead despite the chilly wind of Qatar caressing her whole skin.

He came into the class and their eyes locked, Ihsan had to duck her head down to avoid his eyes whilst fumbling with her fingers. Darn it! Why in the whole world Qamar choose today to be absent? She's so going to kill that woman tomorrow! They can have a court case with her Hubby afterward.

"He's asking you," A girl beside her nudged her shoulder, jolting her out of her trance.

"Sir..." Ihsan stuttered and awkwardly stood up, hoping the ground beneath her would open and eat her up.

"What's the meaning of stoichiometry?" He asked again, his eyes fixed directly into hers.

Had she ever thought about the reason she hated chemistry? And now how in the world was she going to tell him the meaning of stoichiometry? The only definition of a chemistry term she could remember is that of distillation. She kept fumbling with the hem of her abaya and couldn't look up at him.

"Meet me in my office." He dismissed her with a hand wave and she stiltedly sat down. The girl beside her looked at her with eyes as big as saucers. "I pray he takes it easy on you. He has the reputation of being strict."

Ihsan flashed her a tight lipped smile and fixed her attention back to Dr. Aashif. She got curious of what his name meant. Much as she hated it; she had to put Sadeeq's words into practice. She pulled her phone from her bag and searched the meaning of Aashif. It meant; bold and courgeous.

The class was over and Ihsan waited until all the students left. She watched as Dr. Aashif packed his belongings before he walked out and she tailed behind. She gulped down a lump and clasped her sweaty hands over the fabric of her abaya before she turned the doorknob and entered the office with a salam.