Chapter Eleven

Farah's POVI landed in Abuja and ordered an Uber straight home, my knee bouncing the entire ride.I hadn't told anyone I was coming back today — I'd let them all believe my exams ran until next week. I wanted to walk through that gate and watch their faces."We're here, ma'am," the driver said.I paid him, hauled my luggage out, and knocked on the gate myself instead of calling ahead.It swung open.Zafeer."Ya Farah!" He barreled into me before I could even set my bag down, arms locking around my waist."Zafeer! I missed you so much." I pulled back to look at him properly, dragging his cheeks between my fingers. "Look at you, how many months was I gone that you grew this much?""Ya Farah, did you bring me something?" he asked, already craning his neck toward my suitcase."Hmm, did I? Oh no." I pressed a hand to my mouth. "I think I left it in the Uber.""Ahn-ahn, no! Let's call him back, quick—""I'm joking, baby." I laughed, ruffling his hair. "Come inside, I'll give it to you.""

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Chapter Twelve

Farah's POVBy Wednesday, the whole house had turned into a henna-ceremony production line.Amma, Aunty Memunah arrived that morning with Baby Nadia and Abdulrafeeq, back from boarding school two weeks earlier. I hadn't seen him in months. He was sixteen now, and somehow already taller than me. Ya Sodiq wouldn't make it until closer to the wedding — work, as always, but he'd promised he'd be there. Even Aunty Hameedah had come to help.Abdulrahim's mom.As much as I couldn't stand her son, I loved her. She'd always treated me like her own, even back in secondary school, even though she already had a daughter.Zara and I were in the kitchen, elbow-deep in prep, while Mama, Amma, and Aunty Hameedah gisted in the living room about God-knows-what. Baby Nadia had been a whirlwind since morning and was, mercifully, down for a nap."Ya Farah! Feeq won't give me my iPad, and I'm watching Barbie!" Baby Nadia announced, storming in, nap apparently over."Feeq, give my baby her iPad. Don't make

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Chapter Thirteen

Farah's POVBy noon, the house had filled with Ya Nadia's friends, and — of course — my girls too: Zara and Asma. I'd even asked Aunty Hameedah to bring Nuri along.The bridal shower was supposed to start at ten. It started at noon instead, which surprised absolutely no one. By the time it did, we'd been dancing, singing, and posing for pictures for what felt like hours already.Ya Nadia stood at the center of it all in a white gown, turban, and veil, glowing in a way that made my chest ache a little. The rest of us wore pink, a sea of it, moving around her like petals."Time for the games!" the MC announced, clapping her hands for order. "Bridal Pictionary! Ten groups, five per group — the bride will be our judge."A board went up on an easel. Beside it, a bowl of folded papers and a marker."One person picks a word, another draws it, one minute on the clock. At the end, the bride picks the winning team and keeps her favorite drawing."My group. Me, Asma, Zara, Nuri, and Zainab, one

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Chapter Fourteen

Farah's POVAfter Ya Mukhtar and his friends left, we all pressed Ya Nadia to open the last box. It was already past seven, an hour past when the party was supposed to have ended.She lifted the lid... and inside sat a Mercedes-Benz key.The room exploded."Oh my God, someone actually bought her a car! But who?"Then she found a letter tucked beneath it and started reading it out loud."Nadia, even if I've never shown it or told you before, I love you. I'm so happy my baby is getting married. It feels like only a blink since you were born. I was so happy then, even if I never really acted like it. I hope you enjoy today. Yours truly, Da..."She never finished the name. The key clattered to the floor, and she was already halfway up the stairs before any of us could react.What was that?I told Zara and Asma to see the last of the guests out, then went up after her.---She was on the floor when I found her, knees pulled to her chest, crying too hard to answer when I asked what happened

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Chapter Fifteen

Farah's POVBy Wednesday, the whole house had shifted into a new gear.Today the groom's family was bringing the kayan lefe, the bride's gifts, so Ya Nadia had gone to wait at Ya Rufaydah's place while I stayed back to cook for the guests."Farah, go tell your sister to hurry and leave. Does she want them to meet her here?" Mami called from the kitchen.I went and passed the message along, and ten minutes later Ya Nadia was gone.By one, the guests arrived with fifteen boxes between them. We fed them, Mami sat with them a while, and then they left.Zara and I hauled the boxes into Mami's room and called Ya Nadia to come home. She made us swear not to open a single one before she got there.When she finally arrived, we tore into them one after another. Wallahi, I wished I owned half of what was inside, lace, ankara, abayas, jewelry, bags, shoes, skincare, more than I could count. We admired every piece, packed it all back up, and Zara and I filmed the whole haul to send to Asma.The ne

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Chapter Sixteen

Farah's POVI slept far later than I meant to. My whole body felt like it had been folded and unfolded a dozen times, and when I finally dragged myself downstairs, the house was already humming with reception prep. Mami was on the phone with the caterers, Zafeer was underfoot with a tray of chin chin he wasn't supposed to be eating yet, and I still had hours before I needed to think about getting dressed.I was halfway through breakfast when the doorbell rang."Farah, get that," Mami called from the kitchen, too deep in her caterer negotiation to move.I opened the gate and found Abdulrahim standing there with Nuri's small backpack slung over one shoulder and Nuri herself half asleep against his side."Aunty Hameedah has last minute errands before tonight," he said. "She asked if Nuri could stay here till the reception.""Oh. Okay." I stepped back to let them in. "Zafeer's around somewhere, she can hang out with him."Nuri perked up at the mention of Zafeer and wandered off toward the

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Lahat ng Kabanata ng Beyond The Scars : Kabanata 11 - Kabanata 16

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen