Dear Shumail..

Chapter 28

17th June, 2020

Eram was peacefully sleeping on Shumail's arm and as she moved more closer to him to get in a comfortable position, Shumail pulled his arm which was under her form, pulling her towards him in the process as well, and wrapped his other hand around her form, hugging her tightly. Finding a presence in his arm, his forehead scrunched and ever so slowly his eyes opened. It took him a few seconds to take in his surrounding and he pulled back a little to have a look, only to find Eram snuggled in his arms. His eyes landed on the angelic face of his wife and he felt his heart skip a beat for a millisecond to have Eram so close to him.

Eram shifted in his arms and snuggled more in his chest. In her petite fingers she held his shirt and breathed in his scent. A pleasant smile instantly graced her lips. Shumail's gaze went to look at their position and in an instant he pulled himself away, but her hand which was holding onto his tshirt stopped his movements. Careful not to wake her up, he pulled his arm from around her form and slowly opened her fingers to get his tshirt out of her grip and immediately got out of the bed.

He quickly headed to the bathroom and closed the door behind him, and the sound of the door closing disturbed her sleep and she slowly opened her eyes. She found the bed empty. Her lips pressed in a thin line not finding Shumail in the bed, but that quickly curled up in a smile when she recalled sleeping in his arms last night.

'I didn't know your arms around me could make me feel so protected.'

Eram wondered as she gazed at the ceiling with a smile on her face. She tried to sit up on the bed but with her right hand in a cast, she was struggling a bit. The bathroom door opened and Shumail walked out after making his wudhu. Their gazes met on instinct and they looked at each other for a second before Shumail looked away from her, and ignoring her struggle to sit up, he headed to grab his prayer mat to pray fajr.

She gave up her feeble attempts to sit up and lied on the bed, awake. Her eyes were glued on Shumail though, who stood in the corner facing the qibla, offering his fajr salah. Her lips were curled up in a smile as she looked at him, thanking her Rabb for granting her such an amazing better half. She couldn't imagine her life with anyone other than him.

She loved him, with all her heart.

She averted her gaze quickly when he caught her staring at him. She was flustered and she felt heat rise up her cheeks, and her heart suddenly began to thump louder than usual against her chest.

"Sorry for falling asleep on the sofa and troubling you last night." Eram said, getting his attention. He was done with his salah and had taken steps to walk out of the room, probably for his morning jog, when he stopped, hearing her speak.

"If you're really sorry then don't repeat it again, and if you think I'll do that again, then you're mistaken." He said and walked out.

Her lips curled down in a frown, hearing him, and she felt hurt. A lone tear escaped her eyes and she wiped it away with the back of her hand. "This is nothing, compared to the hurt you've inflicted on him, Eram." She reminded herself. "Stay strong and keep working to get his forgiveness."

Gathering all her strength she decided to sit up on the bed, not wanting to trouble him. She kept pulling herself up and finally succeeded in sitting up on the bed. She pressed her back against the headboard and took deep breaths, suddenly feeling too weak after using all her energy in sitting up.

She felt frustrated with herself. Her dependency on others for things which were really very basic, was frustrating her. She wanted to do all those things on her own and not depend on anyone for it, but she wasn't able to.