UNFURLING FATE.

Actual wedding bells.

Maryaam Madinah.

It has been exactly three weeks and four days since I have been married. Every single day was the same, he wakes me up for fajr by knocking on my door, I go back to sleep and wake up by nine to ten am, take my bath and get dressed, go and eat breakfast while he's in the gym- though we have eaten breakfast together a lot times-, and then after zuhr, he has lunch with me where we don't converse at all before I go to the main house and spend most of my day.

Maama sends a maid thrice daily with food and said maid usually did the dishes. I was being spoiled rotten and I feared the day I would move to my own home without all of maamas maids.

Currently, I am at my Abbie's house. I have been here for two days for the countless traditions we did not do before the nikkah. The first and most important was the sa lalle. This was an event that comprised of me getting bathed in ruwan lalle (henna leaves soaked in water) and prayed for by the elderly and married women in my family to essentially bless my marriage. And also because it's good for my skin.

Yesterday morning was my final bath, It was done with heavily perfumed water that my skin still smells like, milk was also rubbed all over my body. And just when I thought I was done with the gyaran jiki (traditional spa days) mama halima brought a Chadian lady to do one last session for me.

We also got our henna applied yesterday, my sisters, cousins, Ammal and I. Traditional music was played, and some algaita people were called to rain praises on everyone present for some money.

Masa and different traditional foods were served throughout the duration of the day and the house was basically wide open for any and all well wishers to come and pray for me. It was a beautiful yet stressful event. I crashed the minute I prayed Ishaa.

I'd missed my room much more than I realized, though I slept with Zara and Ammal, since Zara's room was occupied by a few of maama Sarah's guests. We literally had so many guest rooms but even those were not enough, the house was so so filled to the brim. The last time it was this filled up was Ya Aisha's wedding, and when mommy passed away.

"Madinah I know you're in there, you need to hurry out here and start getting your makeup done!" And there goes my thinking time.

I groaned out loudly and rounded up my skincare routine, then walked out of the bathroom to meet my room surprisingly empty, with just Ammal who was previously banging on the bathroom door.

I have barely seen any of my sisters throughout my two days here, they have been running halter skelter tending to guests. Even ya Aisha was currently staying here.

"Where is the makeup artist?" I asked Ammal who was busy arranging my accessories on the bed.

"She is in the parlor eating, you know she also did our makeup. I will call her when you're ready."

"Go and call her, I am ready." I told her and slipped out of my bathrobe and into a cotton dress. I prayed zuhr since it was already one pm, by the time I was done, the makeup artist was already waiting for me.

"Good afternoon bridey! Any specifications?" I greeted her back and told her to go crazy, I really did not care. She was very happy to hear that, she asked me other questions like my skin type and the likes before she started.

My sisters walked in together as she did the makeup, they were all wearing anko. It was a beautiful multicolored flowery material that had touches of pink to match my clothes, Ammal was wearing it as well because I specifically requested that she wear a sisters anko, she did everything throughout my wedding, she helped in all the ways my sisters did and she was much more than a sister to me. The word to describe what she was to me did not exist.