Nusayba

Part Two

Part 2

The excitement had finally died down in the house. The banging of the drums had quietened until it eventually left the household. The chattering of the guests and family had faded to nothing past three in the morning. At long last, everyone was asleep. Nusayba was certain that if a pin fell, she would be able to hear it hit the floor. Terrified to actually fall asleep, Nusayba laid wide awake with Aamir. Her fear for not falling asleep was silly. What if she let out wind during the night? Or what if she drooled on her pillow? What if she sleep-talked? Worse yet, what if she snored? She did not want to wake up ashamed the next day when she saw Aamir.

How would she face him?

"Have you fallen asleep, yet?" he asked, his voice was turning husky with the desire to sleep.

She turned underneath the covers, the scent of roses becoming pronounced, and shifted closer to his body heat. "No," she answered and faced him. He was lying flat on his back, staring at the beige ceiling above them. His inky black hair was a beautiful contrast to the silver silk pillow beneath his head. His chocolate eyes turned to face her with a smile. Understanding that she wanted his touch, he reached out a hand and pulled her closer to him until she relented and lied her head on his chest, the rest of her body tucked underneath his arm.

The dark wood four-poster bed with its silver curtains blocked much of the room out, but Nusayba loved it. After years of crushing on Aamir, it finally made it feel as if they were in a bubble of their own. As if they had a world of their own.

After pressing a chaste kiss to the tip of her forehead, Aamir spoke. "Why are you leaving tomorrow?"

She bit on her lower lip. "If we hadn't gotten married, Aamir, would you still have asked me to stay?" she asked.

Nusayba felt him inhale sharply and then release an annoyed exhale. "Don't answer a question with another question."

She smiled against his chest. "Is this our first fight as a couple?" she teased as she grinned up at him, her long hair catching on his beard.

In reply, he narrowed his eyes at her, even as he curled his long legs around hers. "That has still not answered my question."

"Neither have you answered mine," Nusayba pointed out as she took one hand and began drawing irregular patterns on his chest. Internally, all she wanted was for him to tell her to stay – even if she could not stay. She just wanted him to tell her that he loved her. Even when she missed all the obvious signs of his love. She didn't see them at all.

Aamir had gone out of his way to arrange a surprise wedding for the two of them on the day his cousin had gotten married. After their arrival on the first day, seeing his elder sister be outrageously rude to Nusayba, he had immediately begun to organise their wedding. On finding out that not only had his parents and younger sister and brother approve of her, but his grandparents as well, he had enlisted the help of his little sister and brother to help him.

They had arrived in the afternoon, just after 3pm. Nusayba was extremely nervous, Aamir smiled as he watched her fiddle around in the taxi that brought them from the airport to his family home. He knew that she was not meant to come initially, but he had told her that they were going not only for a vacation but for a wedding as well. Then, he invited her to come along. As a set of triplets, he knew that they had never been apart from one another for more than a week. Even then, at most, they were nearby. Seeing her sad face at being left behind all alone, he invited her to join them for the wedding – at the least. One week is all that he would have of her and him in India.

With most of his family staying in India since his parents emigrated there eleven years ago to open up a factory manufacturing confectionery, he wanted to introduce them to her – as his wife. He wanted to know if they approved of her. For the last three years he was harbouring a crush on her. On his best friends' little sister. He was mortified that he had feelings for, but she was adorable: fierce, feisty and completely mouthy.

When his parents moved, he lived with an uncle of his who refused to get married. His uncle was not gay, just someone who had had his heart broken in his youth when the girl he loved – and was prepared to marry – suddenly ended up marrying another man without telling him the same week when he had proposed to her. So, happily, Aamir moved in with his uncle when his family emigrated. Together, they had become fast friends, indulging Aamir every single time that he brought friends over. Hussain, Aamir's uncle, approved of Nusayba wholeheartedly, claiming that she was a 'once in a lifetime' sort of a girl.

Aamir remembered – as he sat in the front of the taxi – the first time that Hussain met Nusayba. Hussain was taken with her, absolutely mesmerised with her good manners, her pleasing attitude and her full of life personality. The entire time that she was around, Hussain sat and spoke to her alone. The instance that she left with her brothers, Hussain pulled him aside and told him, "You better marry that girl!"

As the taxi rolled to a stop, Aamir smiled and started speaking to the driver as he pulled out a stack of money to pay the taxi. With one hoot, all of his family members rushed outside. One of his many cousins shoved the money back into his hands and paid the taxi fare. Aamir smiled as he went to the back and opened the doors for his friends.

"Welcome to my family home!" he greeted. India was where his great-grandfather was born, where he was originally from. Only his grandfather had left and settled in South Africa. Being in India, once again, for Aamir brought out a hidden sight. He was ecstatic to be there. To be home. India was where he felt most at home.

He watched amused as the triplets jumped out of the doors. Both brothers sat by the doors, squashing Nusayba in the middle. Muhammed jumped out from the driver's side while Yusuf jumped out from the passenger's side.

As always, his eyes were drawn to Nusayba and her expressions. Her hazel eyes were lit with excitement, with wonderment. He tried to see it from her point of view – but really, all he saw was a three-storey villa, multiple windows that took up massive amounts of space, a green garden, a hidden roof terrace garden, and an exceptionally long driveway that they passed. It was not spectacular in the least.

The first to envelope him in a hug were his younger siblings, his brother and sister, Yasmeen and Irfaan. Smiling, Aamir held them tightly. They peppered him with kisses. "We missed you!" Yasmeen pouted.

Her eyes then fell on the boys, and Aamir wanted to groan. She straightened up and fixed the scarf on her head before smiling more demurely at them. He wondered if there was a blush on her face. He bet that there was one. She gave a shy greeting before she went to greet Nusayba.

Aamir watched as his sister pulled Nusayba up to meet his parents and family. Nusayba was naturally warm and welcoming, being an extrovert. She just had everyone eating out of the palm of her hand once she smiled at them.