Chapter 28: Chapter 28

The Ademola's got back home and Salamat rushed to her bedroom.

Mrs. Ade who noticed her daughter's moodiness throughout the drive back home quickly followed her. She entered her bedroom and saw her crying.

"Omowunmi, what is the matter with you?"

"Mummy, Saleem is selfish", she announced.

"Why did you say that?" Her mother questioned.

"He's leaving me."

"Does that make him selfish?", Salamat looked up at her mum and kept quiet.

"The selfish one here is you Salamat", her mum asserted.

"Mummy, you don't understand."

"Then make me understand", her mother said and sat on the bed.

Salamat was silent.

"Saleem wants the best for you, that's why he is doing this. The problem is that you don't understand him and you are blind to see the sacrifices he has been making for you. Wumi, you are no longer a child, you will be 22 soon. Stop being childish and don't torture yourself. When will you become realistic?", she asked but Salamat continued crying.

Her mum moved closer to her.

Then, she said calmly, "Stop crying dear, everything will be fine. But I want you to know that in life, some opportunities knock at our door and it is left for us to choose whether to open the door or not. If we open the door, it becomes ours and we will take possession of that thing. But if we don't open the door, we lose the opportunity and that opportunity might never knock on our door again. I can't choose for you which is why I want you to figure out what you want. You are a woman now and you need to start making decisions as one."

"Mummy, I don't want him to go. He is the only friend I have."

"He might be the only friend you have but you don't expect him to continue being at your service all the time. He has a future ahead of him and he needs to pursue his dreams. His dad told me that he might go overseas for his masters because the department wants to retain him."

"Mummy, you see what I am saying? He hates me now and he wants to be far away from me because he knows about my past."

"What? He knows?", her mum asked and Salamat nodded. "How?"

"I don't know how he got to know", Salamat replied and narrated everything to her mother, including her first encounter with him in Radda.

"Salamat, it's apparent that he is serious about you. Just give him a chance. Don't let your past hold you back from experiencing what true love is."

"Mummy, I am scared", she admitted.

"What exactly are you scared of?", she asked her daughter.

"I don't know."

"It's ok dear... I will give you an assignment now. Do you know about the istikhara prayer?", she asked her daughter.

"I only know it is a form of guidance prayer but I don't know how to do it."

"It's ok, I will write it down for you, and then at your convenient time, you will do it and ask your Lord for guidance on this issue. God will surely lead you to choose the right decision."

"Thank you, mummy."

"Also, I want you to call Saleem and apologize for calling him selfish. I wonder why he didn't hit your mouth when you said that", Mrs. Ade remarked, smiled at her daughter, and stood up.

Salamat wiped her tears and smiled too.

"I love you dear", she said and kissed her on the forehead before walking out of the room.

*****

Saleem and his family members got home around past 7 p.m. Saleem observed his prayer and went to his room. An hour later, his mum called him out for dinner but he told her he wasn't hungry.

" My son, what is the matter with you?", his mum asked.

"Nothing mummy, I'm ok", he replied.

"You know the kind of mother you have, I know it's something so tell me what it is. Don't hide anything from my dear, you know so well that I have my ways of discovering things all by myself."

Saleem sighed and said. "Mummy, I am in a dilemma, I don't know what to do with Salamat", he said, looking at his mum who only nodded for him to go on.

"She keeps rejecting me every time that I feel I am not worthy of her. I decided to let her go but she doesn't want me to. I know it's not going to be easy for me but I was willing to give it a trial. My heart aches mum... it's so painful."

"Do you know if she feels the same way towards you?", his mother inquired.

"That is the problem mum, I don't know. All I know is she keeps rejecting me all the time and wants me to continue being her friend."

"Do you know her reasons for rejecting you?"

"I don't know her reasons for rejecting me. I feel it has to do with her past or maybe it's because she doesn't have any feelings for me."

"Then, why is she refusing to let you go?", she demanded again with a confused look.

"I don't know either."

"Then it's settled", her mum said and he looked back at her puzzled.

"How?"

"She doesn't want you to go because she feels the same way and she is rejecting you because something is holding her back. She is scared that once your friendship turns into something else, you might get tired of her and leave her at any given time. She hadn't admitted the feelings to herself which is why she doesn't want to admit it to you or anyone else. I think you should just give her time", she advised.

"But I feel hurt anytime I see her, because I know I can't have her."

"Of course you can, just have faith and be more prayerful. Also, I think it's best you observe the istikhara prayer for more clarity. Be more prayerful my dear and I assure you that the Almighty will grant you your heart desire", she prayed.

"Thank you, mum", he said.

"You are welcome son, will you eat now?", she asked him.

"No mum, I am not hungry."

"I will be cross with you if you don't eat tonight."

"Ok mummy, I just want to take a very hot tea or pap", he said.

"Done", his mum said and strode out of his room.