Alayla's Pov
I muttered a quick sorry and began picking up her things from the floor
"So sorry " I apologised again as I gave her the things I picked but I saw something like a smirk or maybe my mind is just playing tricks on me because I have never met her before so why would a normal person just smirk at a stranger
"Thank you Mrs Alayla Khalid zaydan " she said,taking her bags from me and as she brushed past me I heard her mutter 'impressive'
I just shook my head and shrugged, well you get to meet different people daily and today is not an exception.
....
Zaynab's Pov
She has passed my expectations,she's way more beautiful than I thought,polite and everything but she looked meek and that's the one thing i hate about women of our part of the world,being a woman doesn't mean you should always hide in the shadows of a man.
As I drove past our favourite park when we were kids,my mind drifted to the reason I went to that mall in the first place,that mall isn't just a building but a proof of what I lost and who took over my place
My surroundings blurred and suddenly I wasn't in the car anymore, I was twelve again, back when life was simple and the future seemed certain. Khalid and I grew up side by side, two children tied together not only by friendship but by families who saw destiny in our closeness.I remember our childhood vividly,the endless afternoons chasing kites in the open field, him always running faster, always turning back to wait for me. "Hurry up, Zaynab!" he would call, his grin wide, his hand stretched toward me. And I always reached for it, always believed that as long as Khalid was ahead of me, I would never be lost.When we were barely teenagers, the whispers in our households became reality. Our fathers sat together one evening, and with firm voices and satisfied nods, they betrothed us. It wasn't just play anymore; it was official. I was his, and he was mine. That night, Khalid walked me home under the silver glow of the moon. At my gate, he bent slightly so our eyes met and said, "Zaynab,one day you'll be my wife" Those words rooted themselves deep in my heart.
But then, life happened. My father 's work demanded we relocate abroad, and though my heart broke, I left with khalid's tantrums still fresh in my mind "go away,you want to leave me right?then go away" he was so hurt that he couldn't go with us to the airport, so we separated with no proper goodbye
At first, letters kept us close. Khalid wrote of his days, his plans, his dreams for our future. He spoke of saving money, of building a home, of counting down the years until I returned. I would sit by the window at night, clutching his words against my chest, smiling at the certainty of our future.
But as time passed, the letters grew fewer. Then they stopped. My messages went unanswered, and though doubt tried to creep in, I silenced it with hope. "He is waiting," I told myself.But when my family returned, I was shattered,Khalid had moved on. He was no longer the boy who promised me forever. He was a man, standing proudly beside another woman,Alayla.
And that was why I had gone to the mall today,not by accident but out of curiosity. I needed to see her with my own eyes. I needed to understand the woman who had taken the place I was meant to
The hum of the car engine was the only sound in the air, but inside me, the voices of the past refused to die down. My hands tightened on the steering wheel as the city lights blurred past.
I shouldn't have gone to that mall. I shouldn't have wanted to see her. Yet, seeing Alayla,graceful, serene, walking in that place Khalid built for her was enough to make me remember our past
The memories of my childhood with Khalid clung to me, but the truth was clear now. The man I once thought was mine was no longer mine or maybe no longer mine alone.A bitter smile curved my lips as I pressed harder on the accelerator. No. If Khalid thought marrying Alayla was the end of my story, he was wrong. It was only the beginning.I would not sit back quietly. Islam allows more than one wife. Why should I be the one to suffer?"
No, I would fight.Not with noise, not with tantrums. With presence. I would place myself where Khalid could not ignore me. And when the time is right, I would remind both families of the bond that was made long before Alayla ever stepped into the picture.I believe the elders will support me as a second wife.Our betrothal was not a fairy tale and I intend to claim what was mine.