FreeFreeDescription
Part 1
Carefully, she finished closing the windows of the room, turned around, and looked at the massive clock hanging on the wall. Walking over to the side of the bed, she sat down and said in a very low voice, "Rain? Not today, please..." The bedroom door opened, and she turned quickly. Her mother, standing at the doorway, said, "Make sure you put on your sweater, say your prayers, and go to sleep. Good night!" Without saying a word in response, her mother turned and left. Looking at the clock again, she saw it was almost half past seven. Her phone, which was lying on the bed, began to ring. She got up, picked it up to see who was calling, answered, and brought it to her ear, saying, "Hello!" From the other end, a voice said, "Don't tell me you aren't coming because of the rain?" She let out a sigh and said, "You know Mummy..." The friend cut her off and said, “No, honestly, you're not being fair to me. It's already dark, just sneak out and come right now. No one will know; after all, you said Abba is out of town.”
Tilting her head slightly, she replied, "Alright, let me try to do that. I'm on my way." With that, she hung up the phone. Within a short time, she finished getting ready, took her bag, put her phone and money inside, and then took a raincoat and put it on. She turned off the room lights and crept out of her room on tiptoe. She carefully scanned the corridor; seeing a dim light shining from her mom's bedroom, she let out a quiet sigh of relief because she knew her mother’s routine—once her mother finished what she was doing, she would go to sleep until the next morning.
She quickly hurried downstairs, noticed all the living room lights were turned off, and headed to the kitchen. Fumbling her way through, she exited through the kitchen door, pushing it gently behind her without locking it. When she reached the gate, the security guard said nothing to her; she opened the gate and slipped out. She walked very fast because the neighborhood was dead silent and completely empty, illuminated only by the streetlights. She reached the main road and found a tricycle (*daidaita sahu*), told the driver her destination, and boarded. For no apparent reason, her heart was pounding heavily because she had never done anything like this before. She was only doing it today because of her friend—a friend she hadn't even known for very long, and with whom she wasn't particularly close.
A few minutes before eight, she arrived at a massive house. Despite the heavy downpour, the booming sound of music blasting from the house was unmistakable. She walked through the gate with a heavy heart and approached the door leading to the main living room where the birthday party was being held. Women and men were mingled together, dancing wildly in total chaos. She spotted her friend, the celebrant, who rushed over to her in a flowing gown, hugged her, and said, "Oh babe, I'm so happy you came! Take off your raincoat, you're already missing out." Lowering her hood, she remarked, "But I never knew the birthday party would be like this. It's just disorganized..." Her friend interrupted, “Nothing is disorganized here. Come along and join the fun, just join in!”
Smacking her lips, she removed her raincoat, revealing a beautiful, ready-made long gown. She let down her long hair, and her friend winked at her, saying, "Wow, bestie, you look gorgeous! I wish your Boo could see you right now." She smiled and muttered, "Uhm." Her friend pulled her by the hand into the thick of the birthday celebration. She found a place to sit, opened a can of Maltina, and began to sip it while watching how the men and women were letting loose, with smoke filling the air everywhere. She felt completely uptight and out of place, as someone unaccustomed to such environments. In her heart, she began to wonder if she should even continue her friendship with Clara; she was just too wild.
She hadn't been sitting for even ten minutes when a guy came over, sat next to her, and said, "Hi babe, how you doing?" She glanced at him briefly and replied, "Good." He asked, "Please, may I get to know you better?" She shook her head and said, "No." Just then, Clara signaled to her from afar, prompting her to stand up and walk over to her. The guy watched her leave, then glanced at the drink she had been sipping. Within a mere seven seconds, he slipped some pills out, dropped them into her can of Malt, and quickly pulled out his phone, pretending to text.
It didn't take long before she returned, sat down, placed the meat skewers and cake she had brought in her hand on the table, and picked up her can of Malt to continue drinking. The guy bit his lip, smiling slightly, saying nothing to her, and she said nothing to him either. After about ten minutes, she began to feel incredibly drowsy. She stood up with great difficulty and said, "Excuse me." The guy stood up too and said, "Oh, no problem. Are you heading home?" She looked at him dazed and replied, "Yes." He said, "Alright, let's go say goodbye to your friend, and then I'll drop you off. That's my duty here." She didn't argue. They walked over to Clara, who said in surprise, "Haba babe, so early?" She answered shortly, "Yes, I'm feeling sleepy." Clara looked at the guy, smiled, and said, "Alright then, please take her straight home, Sam." He replied, “Alright.”
She quickly hurried toward the door as her head began to spin. As soon as they stepped outside, he grabbed her hand and led her to his car. By then, the rain had subsided to a light drizzle. He opened the front passenger door, put her inside, got into the driver’s seat, and drove off. They hadn't gone very far when he parked by the roadside and asked, "Baby, where is your house?" She looked at him with heavy, half-closed eyes and muttered, "Tarauni..." He grabbed her hand and said, "Oh, that's very far." She remained silent as he began to stroke her hand gently, pulling her long fingers. Closing her eyes, she whispered, "Take me home..." He pulled her into his embrace, stroking her face while simultaneously shoving his hand under her dress and reclining her seat. She screamed at the top of her lungs, "Stop it!" His eyes turned red with lust, and he tried to coax her, saying, "Baby..." She slapped him hard across the face, forced the car door open, and bolted out. His eyes widened in shock as he held his stung cheek. He quickly got out of the car to chase her. Seeing this, she began to run, even though her head was spinning violently. She ran with every ounce of strength she had left while he pursued her.
After running a long distance, she felt she could no longer keep going. In front of a certain house, she spotted a man standing with his back turned toward some flowers, holding a phone to his ear. Panting heavily, she rushed up to him, her body trembling, and cried, "Help, please..." She froze completely when she noticed a cigarette (*taba*) in his other hand. Terrified, she turned quickly to run away, but the man threw the cigarette away and snatched her back forcefully. She let out a loud scream just as Sam caught up to them. Sam took one look at the man, instantly recognized danger, turned on his heels, and ran back toward his car.
At that moment, she ironically wished she were back in Sam's hands rather than with this intimidating stranger. She struggled desperately to wrench her hand free, her entire body shaking, but she couldn't break his grip. He stared her down from head to toe with his large, piercing eyes. Bursting into tears of terror, she wept, "For God's sake, please have mercy and let me go." He jerked her closer, facing him squarely, and demanded, "What brought you out at this hour?" The expensive, pleasant scent of his perfume mingled with the harsh odor of cigarette smoke completely overwhelmed her. Seeing that he was strictly waiting for an answer, her lips trembled as she replied, "I came out for my friend's birthday party." He scanned her from head to toe again and remarked coldly, “And so you were chased down to be raped, right?”
Tears streamed down her cheeks as she stood speechless. He added, "If I knew the kind of background you came from, I would have left him to completely ruin your life..." With that, he shoved her away. She immediately fled the spot, running as fast as she could. He stood there watching her until she was about to round a corner, where she suddenly stopped dead in her tracks. He spotted two young men standing right in front of her in the dim light. She turned to change her direction, but one of them blocked her path. He watched in shock as they began dragging her toward a car that apparently belonged to them. Before he could fully process it, they had reached the vehicle, and he could faintly hear her screams from a distance.
He broke into a ferocious sprint, running so fast it felt as though his feet weren't touching the ground. But before he could reach them, they started the car and sped off. "Shit!" he cursed. Turning back, he ran to his own car, jumped inside, and drove off at a breakneck speed of 160 km/h, pursuing them. He managed to catch up with them with great difficulty at a roundabout, nearly ramming into their car. He threw his door open and stepped out. One of the thugs got out of their car, ready to unleash a furious tirade over the near-collision, but the man completely ignored him. He yanked open their backseat door and saw that they had tied a cloth over her mouth. He forcefully pulled her out of their car. The thugs stood there like absolute fools, paralyzed and staring at him. He opened his own car door, threw her into the back seat, got back behind the wheel, and drove off.
After driving a long distance, he pulled over by the roadside. He turned around to look at her and saw her lying face down in the back. He barked, "Hey!" There was total silence. He shouted at her again, but she still didn't move. He opened his door, quickly stepped out, opened the backseat, and lifted her head, realizing she had passed out. His eyes widened. He got fully into the back seat, closed the door, and lifted her up. He flinched backward as a pungent, foul smell hit him from the cloth over her mouth. He quickly untied the cloth and threw it out of the car. He brushed her hair back, examining her face. Her eyes were closed, displaying long eyelashes that looked almost perfectly planted, and a long, beautifully sculpted nose. Slowly, his gaze fell upon her small, two-toned pink and black lips.
He looked away, laid her down gently, stepped out of the car, closed the door, and leaned against the vehicle, deeply contemplating what to do with her. Opening his eyes slightly, he quickly got back inside, lifted her up, and checked her breathing by placing his hand near her nose. He hissed in frustration, let her go, and held his head in his hands. After a moment, he leaned down slowly, brought his mouth close to hers, opened her mouth with his hand, and began performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, blowing air into her. He did this for nearly seven minutes until she suddenly let out a violent sneeze. He pulled back quickly, pulled a handkerchief from his pocket, and began wiping his mouth and face.
Slowly, she opened her eyes, sat up, and held her aching head. He just sat there silently watching her. Seeing that she was trying to get down from the seat, he held her back and said, "Hey, lady, stay still..." She burst into tears, shaking her head, and cried, "Where is this? Please take me home, my head is aching terribly." He glared at her fiercely, as if she could see the intensity of his look, and retorted, "Who told you to go roaming around at birthday parties anyway?" With great effort, she opened her bloodshot eyes, looked at her savior, and said in a trembling voice, "Take me home, please... my head hurts so much." He hissed, threw his handkerchief aside, climbed back into the front driver's seat, started the engine, and hit the road. He demanded angrily, “Where is your house?”
In a tearful voice, she gave him the directions. He turned up the music to the highest volume, singing along just to drown out the sound of her weeping. He abruptly parked the car, then shifted into reverse until he backed up to a large pharmacy they had just bypassed. He got out and went inside. She tried to open the car door to escape but found herself utterly paralyzed; it felt as though the weight of the entire world had been placed on her head, and her vision was spinning wildly. Bursting into tears again, she slumped back into the seat. Within a short time, he returned holding a nylon bag of medication. He opened her door, threw the bag to her, got into the driver’s seat, and they drove off.
Following her weak directions, they finally arrived at her house. After surveying the massive mansion, he turned to look at her with a hint of surprise. She struggled to open the door to get out. Hardening his facial expression, he said, "There is medicine right there, for the sake of Allah and Islam!" She looked at him with her exhausted, weary eyes, picked up the bag, and stepped out of the car. She nearly stumbled and fell, but he didn't say a word or offer help. Swaying unsteadily, she walked toward the gate. He hissed, threw the car into reverse, accelerated, and sped away from the area. With great difficulty, she crept into her bedroom, ensuring she didn't make a single sound that would attract her mother’s attention. She tossed the bag of drugs onto the bed, collapsed onto it, and began tossing and turning as tears streamed silently down her face.
Part 2
The moment he finished parking his car in the designated space compound, he opened the door and stepped out. He looked around carefully before walking over to the courtyard relaxation spot. He pulled a pack of cigarettes and a lighter from his pocket, lit a single stick, and began to inhale deeply. Within a very short time, he smoked two cigarettes, shoved the pack back into his pocket, and walked back to his car. He pulled out a spray-like mouth freshener, sprayed it into his mouth, put it back, locked the car, and entered the house with his usual arrogant, aristocratic stride. He gently turned the doorknob of the living room, walked in, and closed the door soundlessly so as not to wake anyone. Looking at the wall clock in the living room, he saw it was already one o'clock in the morning. His eyes widened in shock. *How time flies,* he thought. He wondered how it was possible that he had dropped that girl off, gone to his friends' house, went out clubbing with them, and allowed time to slip away so completely without realizing it.
He headed for the stairs, walking extremely softly so that his footsteps wouldn't be heard. Just as he reached the corridor upstairs where the bedrooms were located, a door swung open. A middle-aged woman, who looked to be in her early fifties, stepped out and stared directly at him. Widening his eyes in surprise, he muttered, "Mami!" She walked over to him, her expression completely neutral, neither praising nor scolding him initially, and asked, "Where are you coming from, Abuturrab?" Scratching his head nervously, he lied, "Um, Mami, I'm coming from the clinic. I couldn't finish my shift early..." She shook her head and said flatly, "You are lying!" He fell silent and said nothing.
Deeply worried, Mami said, "Aliyu, when are you going to start advising yourself? It is high time you realized what is good for you. Aside from hanging around useless people, you haven't achieved anything meaningful in life. What is the benefit of this lifestyle? Why won't you let me have peace of mind in this life? If your younger siblings copy this behavior, what will you say?" He remained silent, bowing his head. She stepped closer to him as if trying to detect something, causing him to quickly hold his breath. She grabbed his hand, brought it close to her nose to sniff, shook her head, and said, "Fine then. Keep destroying your life. Being my only son does not mean you are my only child..." He adopted a pleading expression and said, "Please, Mami, I'm sorry..." She snapped at him, yelling, "Shut your mouth!" He went dead silent, watching her as she turned around, entered her bedroom, and locked the door behind her.
Letting out a deep sigh of relief, he walked into his own bedroom. He headed straight to the bathroom, took a shower, put on his sleeping robe, and lay down on the bed. Suddenly, his stomach growled loudly; only then did he remember that he hadn't eaten dinner. Yawning, he sat up and began thinking about what to eat. Finally, he got up, walked to the door, opened it quietly, and headed toward his sisters' bedroom. He gently pushed the door open, walked in, closed it behind him, and flipped the light switch on. His three sisters were all sound asleep on the bed. He walked over, sat on the edge of the bed, and stared at them. He began shaking Ramlah to wake her up. She opened her eyes with great difficulty, staring at him. Making a pitiful face, he said, "Lil sis, I haven't eaten..." She frowned deeply and snapped, "Oh, Yaya, I am sleeping and you're waking me up... Look at Leesah over there, go wake her up." With that, she turned her back on him.
He turned his attention to Khaleesat and began waking her up. She sat up looking as though she was about to burst into tears and grumbled, "What is it again, Ya Abu?" In a soft, pleading voice, he said, "I haven't eaten food." Squeezing her face in annoyance, she said, "Well, I wasn't the one who served dinner, Mami did. But you can ask Ilham." With that, she lay back down and turned her back on him as well. He felt a strong urge to slap both of them, but restrained himself because it was late and he didn't want Mami to overhear them. He looked at Ilham and began shaking her awake. She turned around to face him, and he said, "Pretty, I haven't eaten food." Frowning deeply, she sat up and said, "Well, it's your fault for not coming home early. Seriously, Ya Turab, stop waking me up when I'm sleeping. Why didn't you wake Anty Ramlah or Leesah?" Pouting her lips, she climbed down from the bed, muttering complaints under her breath as she walked out of the room. He gave his other two sleeping sisters a quick, frustrating pat, causing them to jump up in a fright. Hardening his face, he muttered, “I will deal with all of you.”
With that, he turned and left the room, heading downstairs. As he stood by the kitchen door, Ilham finished setting his food on a tray and walked out. He followed her back upstairs. She placed the tray down in his room. He sat before the food as she headed for the door to leave. Suddenly, she stopped, turned around, and snapped, "You won't even say thank you, right?" Darting a sharp glare at her, he replied, "No, I won't." Twisting her mouth in annoyance, she marched out of the room.
The following morning, which was a Sunday, Abuturrab and some of his friends were sitting out in front of one of his friends' houses, Ayman, whose house was located on the third street away from Abuturrab's house. Abuturrab glanced in the direction his friend Saleem was staring and spotted three young women walking toward them. All his friends shifted their entire attention to the approaching girls. Abuturrab hissed softly and looked away. When the girls drew parallel to where they were sitting, Ayman muttered, "Cute!" Only then did Abuturrab turn to look at them. His eyes locked directly with one of the girls. He found himself unable to stop staring at her, and she stared back. Instantaneously, he recognized her, and she clearly recognized him too, judging by the way she looked at him. She quickly averted her gaze and kept walking. She was the only one among the three wearing a long dress that reached the ground; her friends were both dressed in short gowns.
They hadn't walked very far when she turned to
