chapter 2

INAYA -

"I haven't heard from you in a long time Inaya," the caller said immediately.

His voice sends shivers all over my body...

That deep hoarseness... That coldness.

It all belonged to one certain person.

He was Hamza!

My ex-husband!

I haven't seen nor heard from him for about 3 years, still even after such a long time I still recognized his voice.

My heart started beating fast immediately... Not out of love but out of pure hatred!

Hamza not hearing a sound from me continued immediately,

"you seem very idle recently, even having admirers calling you and asking ambiguously to be with you"

I didn't utter a single word, because I swore not to speak with him again in the past. And because I was scared too of course!

If I know one thing about that husband of mine then it is that he was ruthless and merciless.

I was already thanking god day and night for getting me rid of him I have by far overestimated my luck. That scum was still embroidered in my life. He even knew where I worked and easily called me and ruined my mood.

I made a signal for Faisel to cut the call, but even before he had the chance to do so, Hamza continued with a frightening tone;

"we'll meet very soon Inaya"

And then he cut..the call

I continued animating my show as if nothing had occurred.

But the moment the green light which indicated I was on air turned off, I dashed out of the station building right away ignoring the rest of the work I had.

I stopped a taxi immediately when I was in the street, then I gave the taxi driver the address of the dental clinic which I visited prior that morning. I needed to contact dr. Yacine immediately since his life was endangered because of me!

I know my husband well, even though we were officially only together for one year but I'm well familiar with his cold nature.

He always considered words as gold, so every single letter he uttered was very purposeful and to be taken extremely serious. Today he expressed his displeasure with my "admirer" quite frankly, So it was a clear message that Dr. Yacine's matter had to be taken care of before he takes things to his handle.

If you wonder if Hamza was being jealous I'd like to tell you that he wasn't... Not even the tiniest bit.

For him, I was simply.. his property.

And he simply hates it when others take his belongings.

I tried to contact the clinic's number which was written in my prescription but I still failed to do so even after numerous tries.

It wasn't until the taxi finally reached the clinic that my call finally was picked up by the receptionist.

"is dr. Yacine still in the clinic?" I asked immediately.

I didn't even know his full name And if he gave me a wrong name when he called on the radio so he wasn't even called Yacine then I'll have to just start describing his physique in hopes the receptionist wouldn't think I was throwing a mannerless prank on her.

Thankfully the receptionist recognized the name I gave and replied,

"dr.Yacine finished his shift at 12h, if you need to take an appointment with him then I can help you with that, if you need to inquire about some issues then I need to check with dr. Yacine first before I forward you."

" yes... I need to inquire about something, tell him the patient he had earlier this morning... Inaya Habib.. Needs to speak with him urgently."

"ok.. I'll contact him now"

As I was waiting for the receptionist to forward my call I was startled by the sound of a phone ringing right beside me, I reflexively turned my head to see the source of the ringtone only to find dr. Yacine surprisingly standing right there.

He was looking at me with a wide smile on his face... He answered his phone saying:

"I'm busy now" and immediately cut the call.

I kept looking at him calmly... So only after that, did the receptionist's apologetic voice come from the other side on my phone saying:

"I apologize to you, the doctor is busy right now, If it is not an urgent matter you can contact the clinic later and ask for him, if not then I can forward you to another doctor working in the clinic"

"thank you, I'll contact him later," I said before cutting the call as well.

"since when have you been standing here?" I asked dr.Yacine.

He looked so amused with my sight, his smile was getting wider with every passing moment, he finally answered,

"I was on my way back to the clinic since I forgot my house keys there, then I saw you standing here, Are you here to meet me?"

I nodded, I surveyed our surroundings and then I said:

"I need to speak with you... Can we go somewhere calm first?"

He nodded calmly, then again in a commanding tone he ordered:

"follow me"

He soon led us to a nearby coffee shop. We didn't say a single word along the way.

After we both were seated at a table and ordered our drinks, I immediately blurted out:

"I'm a married woman dr.Yacine"

The smile on his face vanished right away.

He gave me a serious look, then he questioned me,

"you are not wearing your wedding ring, is this just your way of rejecting me?"

"I don't need to lie to you about this matter dr. Yacine, I chose to come here and speak with you properly out of respect and not to ridicule you."

" your husband, is he the man who called right after I did on your show?" He interrupted me with a serious expression...

Noticing that I did not reply to this question, he added:

"you both don't seem on good terms, He said that you haven't met for a long time."

"This is our private matter."

"I became involved the moment I decided to call your show" he boldly said.

I looked at him taken aback because I didn't expect this weird answer, he further added:

"Now I fell even more for you since you have rejected me, I have never been rejected by a woman, you don't seem on good terms with your husband... So I'm guessing you're in the process of getting a divorce already. Therefore I can't accept this as a reason for your rejection"

What is this man made of?

I was starting to lose my patience when I added:

"dr.Yacine, my husband is a very dangerous man, even sitting here with me is putting your well-being in danger, and I'm not getting a divorce, I'm still his wife"

Once I finished speaking he didn't say a thing anymore, he kept looking at me calmly with those soft eyes of his.

I sighed.. since I finally felt reassured that he was going to stop trying to be with me, I said:

"I'm going to leave now, You can appoint me to another doctor for my next visit to the clinic if you feel uncomfortable, have a nice day dr.Yacine"

"at least drink your coffee first before leaving"

He suggested with a serious tone, his manner was so imposing that I couldn't reject him, therefore I obediently continued occupying my seat in front of him.

The waiter soon delivered our orders, I looked at the strawberry-flavored piece of cake dr. Yacine ordered for himself and I wondered if a dentist should be this careless and eat much sugar, Aren't they the ones always asking us not to eat sweets?

We both didn't say a word, After we finished, dr.Yacine paid the bill, and as we were about to go each in his separate way he suddenly said:

" next time you come to your appointment I will be your doctor, take your pills in time, and if you feel pain you can call me anytime to comfort you... You don't have to support it alone."

He smiled and then added:

"have a nice day Inaya"

I looked at his tall figure as he walked away leaving me behind, in the three years of my separation from my husband only two men tried to get close to me: The first one was a former coworker in the station, we used to broadcast an evening show together, one day he confessed to me and I rejected him.

Even with doing so, his life still got disturbed because of me, it was in fact only due to this accident that I figured out that I was still spied on by my former in-laws and surveyed attentively wherever I went since this coworker confessed to me privately yet he was still discovered and "punished".

I don't know what exactly happened to him, but what I know is that it made him act very ungentlemanly towards me, he yelled to my face:

"you're a curse! I wish I had never landed my eyes on you! I'm quitting my job... Tell his men that I will never even think of you again!"

He quit his job within two days.

As for the second man... It was dr.Yacine.

I felt more concerned about dr. Yacine since my devil husband didn't even choose to take care of this matter discretely like the first time, but instead, he even chose to call me for the first time in 3 years because of him!

I was so worried... I had every reason to be so.

Since I hired a taxi twice that day, I felt so agonized thinking of the much money I had spent, I even had to pay for the dentist and the meds, I would soon go bankrupt if I continued to live such pricy days!

My work in the radio station doesn't pay that much money, so I had to be very considerate since my resources are not a flowing river, unlike my in-laws' wealth.

I took a bus home...

Once I entered my house and turned on the lights, The tablets of pain killers were all over the floor, my pillows as well, And the cover that is supposed to be on the bed in my bedroom somehow ended up lying on the floor of the kitchen.

I made all this mess the previous night because I was in pain, and I was panicking.

I walked through the mess and threw myself on the sofa, I took off my shoes and threw them to the door .. Then I Hugged my knees to my chest and I felt pity for my life.

My living was compared to a mouse in a lab. Always caged... Always observed.

My life and death meant nothing to no one... I meant nothing to my in-laws, nor to my husband, still, i couldn't get my freedom from them.

I don't know for how long I just sat on the sofa with an absent mind when my phone started ringing suddenly,

I felt terrified the moment I noticed that it was a strange number calling me.

The first idea I had was that it was Hamza.

Although I didn't want to pick up the phone... I still did.

With a shaky voice I said:

"Hello"

" Hello, Inaya! This is your grandmother!"

"Nana?" (Grandmother) I asked with a frown.

"Yes, you ungrateful granddaughter! You dare express your displeasure hearing my voice?!"

I didn't want to say a thing, I didn't even have the heart to say anything at all, I just put her on a loudspeaker, put my phone on the small table in front of the sofa, and hugged my knees again.

After a long silence I finally felt obliged to speak:

" How are you doing Nana? Are you living well with uncle?" I asked like an obeying granddaughter.

Although I already knew she was doing more than well living in the fortune of belguassem Filladi.

When I first married Hamza 4 years ago, my grandmother put me as an excuse to move to the filladis with me and live the life of a queen in their "big castle", at the time, she said I was her only family and she couldn't possibly live without me.

But here I am living alone without her, Where had all the family affection gone to? How is she still breathing without me around?

Such a sneaky old woman.

She sighed on the other side and said:

"I'm not doing well without you, of course, you still haven't forgotten about the past already? Just let bygones be bygones and stop acting stubborn, what is good about living alone? get back with your husband already."

"I don't have to live alone, I could have started a family of my own if that scum gave me my divorce."

I said displeased... Already planning to hang up the phone.

"shameless!" Nana scolded right away.

Thank god I had put the phone on a loudspeaker away from my ear, otherwise, she could have easily dug a hole inside my ear with this high piercing scream of hers.

"you dare to call your husband a scum! I really failed to raise you up! I'm not going to say more words to you in this matter, do what is convenient for you and come back home when you're ready, your uncle told me you went to the doctor today, are you ok? Were you in pain?"

"I'm fine Nana, I can't talk much with you, or else my tooth will start hurting again so I'm going to hang up now."

"wait! Your husband just came inside the hall now, Do you want to speak with him?"

I hang up the phone immediately.

I'd rather slaughter my neck than give that lowly person the pleasure of hearing my voice talking with him!

Even the mention of him gave me nightmares that night, All my dreams were full of his ugly face looking at me coldly.

After waking up to reality, finding that I was lying alone on the bed... I felt so relieved.

My days with Hamza in the past held no joy, usually, when I used to wake up I'd find him already sitting on the couch in our room working on the laptop, reading some files, or speaking with his associates.

Not a single day he said "good morning" to me, Instead, he would eye me coldly when he notices my small movement, and then in an icy tone he would ask:

"Are you awake?" .. "Go freshen up and let's go down to have breakfast".

He had to accompany me every day to the breakfast table because of their family's costumes, once he finished stuffing his stomach, he would vanish to his company without even sparing me one look before going.

If I had to live another year with that icy creature, I would have turned insane!

After I had my breakfast that morning I took a bus to my work at the radio station.

I spent the morning discussing the programs and planning for them, as for my show... I chose that day's theme very purposefully:

"The hardships of marrying a cold man"

I had always been very frank in my show, somehow being frank and narrating my honest experiences had made more listeners choose my show during lunch break. This treat of mine helped raise the ratings so much that even my dramatic manager had once told me;

"as long as you unveil no names and break no religious costumes or country laws feel free to tell whatever story that you want! Just leave some space for the calls though."

I had never mentioned that I was married in my show before, But after what previously happened, I decided to no longer conceal this reality that I hated the most.

I fixed my headphones, Took a deep breath, and then I said to my listeners:

" today's theme comes from my personal experience, I was married too to a man who didn't match my dreams, I was young then, and I thought that time will bring us closer since I found nothing wrong with this man except for his indifference towards me. Now, I regret my decision .. Maybe it worked with other husbands and they indeed became better after marriage but I wasn't lucky with the man who I chose"

I felt my heart aching with every word that I said, my tone must have been full of mockery and self-reprimanding that most of the calls we received that day came from women cursing my husband and narrating their similar stories on the passing.

Even the playlist I chose that day had an only breakup and revenge songs.

After my show ended, I finally felt better after hearing so many people cursing that heartless ex-husband of mine.

Actually, I felt even more than just better! I was so revived and excited that I chose similar topics for the whole week!

For example "how did you make your cold partner regret his doings"

" life after getting a divorce" .. "Finding real love after a failed first experience"

I was feeling much to much better with every passing day that by the time my appointment in the dentist's clinic came, I was glowing! I wasn't even feeling scared about experiencing pain there.

I was very prepared for this appointment, I bought a magazine that didn't even have the slightest mention of my "ex" husband, nor his family... Nor their corporation. Of course, the only magazine that had these requirements was a foreign classic art magazine.

I sat in the waiting room browsing enthusiastically through the beautiful artworks in the pictures when the receptionist finally called:

"Inaya Habib .. Examination room number"

I stood up, and I walked to the room confidently.

But the moment I opened the door, all my confidence had somehow vanished and my fear of pain started creeping his way towards me.

Probably because the person who I found inside was not the young doctor with soft eyes that I expected to see.

dr, Yacine was not there.

I felt that something must have gone wrong immediately, I looked at the elderly doctor who was sitting behind his desk waiting for me to go inside and I said;

"excuse me .. I'll be back in a minute"

I went back to the receptionist's desk to ask about dr, Yacine, because I remembered clearly the way he looked at me the last time we met and his confidence when he said he'll continue being my treating dentist.

Something went wrong with him for sure, I felt my heart already starting to be squeezed inside my chest when I asked:

"excuse me, I previously had an appointment with dr, Yacine but today I found that my treating dentist had been changed."

"I apologize to you miss, but all dr, Yacine's patients had been forwarded to other dentists in the clinic since he had quit his work here a week ago"

What!?