The Sifriti Jinn

Chapter Five

Two years had passed and I was in my second year in med school. Aman had been so supportive of my education and it made me fall in love with him the more. I'd heard of girls who got married and were denied the right to go to school.

     Med school wasn't exactly easy but I was going to scale through. Two months into my pregnancy, I had a miscarriage. I was devastated and so was Aman, but together we got over it. Aman advised me to wait a little longer before trying for another baby and I did see reasons with him. Having a baby while in school was going to be difficult.

     I got up from my bed and got ready for the day. It was my last exam for the semester and I was both nervous and excited. Nervous because I didn't know what the questions would be like and excited because Aman booked flight tickets to Bali for us. I couldn't wait to go to Bali. It was one of my dream holiday destinations.

     By the time I got to my lecture theatre, there were a few students already there waiting to take the exams. I took a seat beside Melinda, a transfer student from the University of Texas at Arlington.

"Hi, Melinda." I greeted her.

"Hey, Aisha. What's up?" She flipped the page she was reading over.

"Nothing much. I just want to get this exam done and over with." I answered.

"Same. I'm just going through the textbook before we start." Melinda said.

"Alright mate! I'll leave you to it." She gave me a thankful smile and rapidly read through the pages. That was a skill I wish I had. I couldn't read at the exam venue because I'd end up confusing myself and probably forget everything I read.

"Good day class. Unfortunately, Professor Sengupta wouldn't be in school today so I'm covering up for him. I'll love for you all to maintain decorum and avoid cheating in any form. Your papers will be handed over to you and you have three hours to answer the questions. Good luck." A teacher assistant whose name I didn't remember said.

When everyone got their papers, we were asked to start. I looked through the questions with a smile on my face. They weren't exactly hard and I knew the answers to them. Three hours after, we submitted our papers and left the hall.

"How was it?" I asked Melinda as we walked out.

"Good. The questions were quite easy. How did you do?" She swung her shoulder bag on and adjusted the strap.

"I'm sure I did good. Hopefully, I mean." I chuckled.

"All the best." she smiled.

"You too. I have to go now. I have a flight to catch." I winked.

"Ohhh! Safe flight, Aisha."

I pulled her into a short hug and hurried back home. After paying the taxi driver, I took the elevator to our apartment and headed inside to see Aman doing some last minute packing.

     "Assalamu alaikum habibi." I said with a big smile.

     "Wa alaikum mu salam habibti." Aman returned my smile and pulled me into a hug. "How did your exam go?"

     "Alhamdulillah. In shaa Allah I'll get an A."

     Aman placed a soft kiss on my forehead and whispered, "I trust my baby."

***

The flight to Bali, Indonesia was a long one. We ordered an uber to take us to the beach resort. From the photos we saw on google, it was beautiful and at the end of a forest. You could either take the longer route via the main roads or the shorter route through the forest.

"Would you like the longer or shorter route?" The uber driver asked.

"Baby don't you think we should take the shorter route? I'm tired and can't wait to get in bed." I told Aman.

"Sure. We'll take the shorter route." Aman answered.

Fifteen minutes into our drive through the forest, the car came to an abrupt stop.

"What's wrong?" Aman asked the driver.

"I don't know sir, the car just stopped. I'll check it out now." The driver replied and got down.

He opened the bonnet and was in the middle of checking what was wrong when a strong wind came from nowhere to shut the bonnet alongside his head. A piercing scream filled the forest and suddenly everywhere became dark, the only lights coming from the headlights of the car.

"What's happening?" Aman asked, pulling me close to him.

"I don't know. I'm so scared. Ya Allah!"

"The dri-dri-driver." I stuttered. "Is he okay?"

"I don't know. We have to find a way to get out of here and call the police. There's no service."

A loud howl filled our ears and gusts of smoke whirled around the car. It was becoming difficult to breathe.

In the distance, a dark figure approached us. Or rather, just legs. It was very huge and its hand alone could pick up our car as a toy. It was covered in a black cloak and hoodie and it held a scythe, just like death.

"Oh my God! Oh my God! Aman! What's that?" I screamed, holding him for dear life.

"Subhanallah!"

"We should pray." I said. Before we could utter any words, whatever the creature was picked us up in its hand. We were at face level but instead of a face, a gaping hole filled the hoodie.

"What are you and what do you want? Please leave my wife and take me. I don't know what you want but let my wife go." Aman said bravely. I knew he was scared but he tried not to show it.

"Who am I?" It asked.

"Yes! Who are you?" I asked the creature. I knew for sure it was a dark entity and I was probably dreaming. Surely, I'd wake up from the dream soon.

"You do not remember me habibti? That hurt me right here." It replied, tapping the spot where the heart should be at.

"I do not know you!"

"Of course you do habibti. I am Aashiq! And I have come to claim what's mine."

Hello everyone. I'm soooo sorry for disappearing. I just have a lot of work to do. I'm in my final semester and my final exams are coming up next month. I have a lot to read and I'm also working on final year project so I barely have time to myself. I just had to squeeze in time to write this chapter. Soooo sorry🥺🥺😘😘