ENSHROUDED

Chapter Fourteen

This was the fifth time he was reading the letter, the amazing thing was how he heard her voice in his head as he read the words she had written. He smiled brightly, of course he would love to help her pack her clothes, that's the greatest pleasure he would have to experience. 

Dr. Aliyu entered his office with a file of a patient and placed it on his table. “Dr. Nasir, this girl should really let you work. You can't be smiling all day in your office.” He teased and laughed when Nasir glared at him.

“And this file?” Nasir dismissed the conversation as he began taking a look at the patient's file.

“I have too much patients now, that's why I have the girl taken to you. Please, do this for me.” She was just a little girl of about 7 years old, Nasir consulted her while in his head, he wanted nothing but to drive back home to Aisha. She had this effect on him. Whenever he was away from her, he wanted nothing but to be around her.

He finished all the works he had in his office he locked the office and drove directly back home. Without even taking off his lab coat, Nasir knocked on the door and entered the living room with a faint salam.

No one was around in the living room, he knew they must be in the kitchen, and he predicted right. The moment he entered the kitchen, he saw Aisha and Mama baking expertly, they had lunch already placed on the dining table. These were snacks, and he wondered to whom all those snacks belonged to.

“Assalamu Alaikum. Good afternoon, Mama. I missed you so much.” He uttered and softly hugged Mama, planting a small peck on her cheek.

Mama pushed him off her softly and he laughed. “You've been away for only hours, and you're here ranting off my ears about how you missed me. Lunch is ready, you can go and eat.”

“I'm not hungry, I can wait for you to finish. Between, who are you making the snacks for?” He asked, and now, their eyes met with Aisha. Both of them silently wished he can do to her what he did to Mama, even more. The thought was dismissed, as they smiled at each other.

“Good afternoon, Dr.” Aisha greeted and he nodded his head at her.

“I'm storing these snacks for Aisha in the freezer so she will fry them whenever she wants. She doesn't like taking breakfast so much, I think it will help. You shouldn't stay with hunger, Aisha.”

Aisha laughed and kept on folding the ends of the samosa and taking the folded ones to the fridge. She'll take them with her tomorrow morning. She had already fried the ones they were going to eat today.

“You've said that numerously, Mama. I won't stay hungry, I promise.” She spoke and laughed. Nasir moved beside her and took one of the samosas and immediately started eating.

“You're really happy about leaving tomorrow, right?” He hushed only for her earshot, and she shook her head, glancing squarely at Mama.

“I'm not happy, but sad. Mama said the driver is taking me there, are you busy at work?” She hushed back, pretending to be intently engrossed into her work, as Mama made the batter.

“No, I'll take you there. It's friday after all, Aliyu will be there to help when I'm needed.” He hushed back and took another samosa before he went towards the fridge and took a can of drink.

“Mama, I'll take Aisha to Katsina tomorrow,” He uttered out of the blue moon, and they all turned to look at him.

“Isa will take her, you don't have to squeeze yourself too much, Nasir.” Mama said in a dismissive way and turned back to her work. 

“No Mama, it's really not a great deal, I'll drive her there. Won't you join us?” In his mind, he prayed Mama said no, and when she shook her head, he wanted to scream out of joy.

“I was there only three weeks ago, I can't go back now. Aisha, you won't cry there right? I'm sure Nana will take a very good care of you.” Mama patted her shoulder lovingly, and Aisha felt the sudden urge to cry. There was no lie in it, she was going to miss Mama so much.

Nasir chuckled at their sentimental moment, “C'mon, Mama. She's a big girl now, if you want, she can have a child next year by marrying her off in a month. What's there to cry for?” 

Mama knew his words were sarcastic, and she chased him out of the kitchen with her spoon. His laughter lingered long in the kitchen that it made Aisha laughed. “That boy is never serious.” Mama said as she entered back the kitchen and continued her work.

They were having dinner that night when Baba looked at Mama remorseful, “Hajia, I forgot to buy Aisha the trolley you said. Nasir, would you mind to go buy it for her after dinner?”

Nasir shook his head, “I have a trolley she can use, unless she wants something new.” They all looked at her, waiting for her response.

Aisha smiled and nodded her head at them, “I'd use his own, Baba. Thank you.”

They had their dinner silently and after they were done, Nasir went to his room and came back, Mama was already doing her finishing touches to the living room before she got to bed. Baba was no where to be found, Nasir knew he had already slept.

“I'll this the trolley to Aisha, Mama.” He informed, and Mama nodded her head at him.

“I'm going to bed now, she should lock the door when you're out.” 

“Okay, Mama. Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight, Auta. You should sleep early, a long journey awaits you tomorrow.”

He whined, and she laughed. He hated it when she called him Auta, but deep down Mama knew he loved the name. He knocked on Aisha's door and she took some seconds before she unlocked it, wrapping her veil tightly around her hair.

“Dr!” She looked startled, as if she wasn't expecting him to knock on her door. 

He chuckled, “What? You thought the knock will come on your window? Remember what you wrote?” he said as she moved aside and he walked into the room.

The room was clean and smelt of jasmine. He looked around and found all her clothes on her bed, waiting for the trolley. “You're really excited to leave, Aisha.”

He pulled out the vanity stool under her mirror and sat down opposite to where she occupied on the bed, smiling at him while she fondled the creases on her bed. She shook her head, “I'm not excited about leaving, I'm just excited because...what I wrote, you know? Has been fulfilled.”

He nodded and placed the trolley open before them. “Pack first then talk, or talk then pack? Or pack while we talk?”

Aisha chuckled, “If I say pack first, aren't we going to talk?”

“We can't sit together and not talk, you know. So, let's pack and talk.”

“Okay, let's pack, Dr.” Slowly, she began handing him a few set of her clothes while he have them placed carefully inside the box.

“So, when are we leaving? I need to sleep early, right?” She asked, and he looked up at her from the box.

“You can sleep as much as you like, then we leave when you wake up.” That was sarcastic, and she didn't know when she burst out laughing.

“You shouldn't have to be sarcastic, Dr. I think it's better we leave early so we can arrive there on time. You have places you promised to take me, remember? Besides, are you coming back to Bauchi on Saturday?”

“No, I'd have to stay until Sunday. If it was the way I want, I would've stayed until tuesday, so I'll be there with you to school on monday. But I have work here, a scheduled surgery on Monday, Insha Allah.”

She nodded her head in understanding, even though she would love to be with him on her first day in school. Not just her first day, she knew for sure her fears would run a marathon back to her the moment she stepped her legs into Alqalam university. That she was sure of. What if she met another person in the name of Jaafar there? Would she be able to survive?

“I pray it comes out a success, Dr.”

“Do you have to take this abaya with you?” He asked, carefully stocking it inside the box. It was flashy and always looked beautiful on Aisha whenever she wore it.

“Fatima said they don't allow their female students in, except they're wearing hijab. Not just students, even the visiting ones, if you're female you have to wear hijab. Unless on occasions like convocation and the rest.”

“I'm glad then. No one would see how beautiful it looks on you.” She laughed and shook her head.

They finished arranging her clothes and hijabs inside the box before she opened her bed side drawer and pulled out a stack of papers, the moment Nasir saw them knew they were his papers.

“What are you going to do with these?” Nasir asked, when she handed them to him and asked him to put them inside one of the pockets. 

“I want to read them whenever I miss you.” She answered shyly, looking away from his intense gaze.

He stood up from the stool and she looked at him with questions ranting off from her eyes. “I'm coming, I need to bring something from my room.” She nodded her head and she watched as he walked out of the room.

She glanced at the side her inner wears were kept and made it a mental note to put them inside the trolley when Nasir was out of her room. She couldn't bring them out while he was there. She prayed she won't forget and fall asleep.

Shortly after, Nasir knocked on her door and she muttered “Come in,” softly for his earshot. He walked in with a stack of papers wrapped into his hands.

Confused, Aisha looked at him and smiled. She helped him placed the papers on her bed and they both stared at them. Each of one of them had a title on it, and what Aisha could call a description.

“How many letters have you written? I can't even count.” She laughed softly at him, looking at the paper with so much admiration in her eyes.

“They're seventeen, your age. But you have to promise me something before I legally hand them to you.” There was a warning and serious tone on his voice as he sat back on the stool.

“What's the promise? Let it not be hard please, they're itching me to read.” She laughed softly, shuffling between the letters.

“Don't you ever read any unless you're really in the mood I wrote them for. Please?”

Reluctantly, Aisha nodded her head with a faint smile as she picked the one that had 'Read this when you're sad' and picked another one with 'Read this when you miss me, so much' Boldly inscribed on them.

“What? You're already breaking your promise before you left?” He laughed and that stopped her from opening the two letters at the same time.

Her eyes began getting misty, she really is going to miss him there. Practically, she had no one in Katsina. But Ya Firdausi was there, Sudais as well. “I'm sad, and I'm already missing you, so much.” Her tears successfully cascaded down her cheeks.

“What? Don't cry please, you shouldn't cry today. You'll wake up sad tomorrow and we have a long day ahead of us. Smile, okay? I'm sorry, but you can't read these letters now, unless you're truly feeling what I wrote them for.”

She nodded her head and smiled ruefully before she handed him the letter and he stocked them carefully in one of the pockets of the trolley. The ones she had with her were taken back to their usual position, and Aisha smiled brightly at him as he zipped up her trolley. 

“Are you sure you have everything you'll need here? You can't have me going to the park to deliver your things or even worse, make me use that as an excuse to come and see you.”

They both laughed, and Aisha smiled shyly at him. It was getting uncomfortable, having him sitting on her vanity stool, being engulfed with her girly scent. “Everything I need is set, Thank you, Dr.”

He stood up on his feet and looked at the watch wrapped expertly on his wrist. Sadly, he looked at her, “We both need to sleep, Aisha. We have a long road to cover tomorrow.”

“Where is my letter for today? It will feel empty without reading your letter today. You've written so much, I guess I should read the old ones, right?” Innocently, she asked. She stood up as well, and it felt frightening how his height hovered over hers.

“I have those letters not at once. I wanted to write to you today, but I feel you'd love it more if I read it out aloud to you. What do you think?” 

She shook her head, “No, words written in letters stays in letters. That's the rule. Just tell me a word or two that I'll have in mind as I sleep.”

“Oh, yeah. The rule. You're beautiful, amazing, and irresistible Aisha. Take care of yourself, I'll miss you terribly.”

“Thank you, bye, you should go and sleep.” She said the words in one breathe, she was shy. She had never thought he would be as straightforward as this.

He threw his head back in laughter and admiringly looked at her. She was even more beautiful when she was shy. “You look more beautiful when you're shy, I'd make you shy often. Goodnight, Aisha. Sleep well.”

She walked behind him until they reached the door and he was out of the living room, standing on the stairs. She held the door knob as she looked at him and leaned on the door. “I'm going to miss you,” she blurted out, her eyes getting misty.

“And I'm going to miss you more, Aisha. You shouldn't cry today, wait until Sunday then you'll have Nana to console.” With his eyes, he tried to console her and Aisha smiled warmly at him.

“I made a promise to you back in my room, you have to do something for me too.” She pouted her lips at him and Nasir wished he could hang a portrait of her leaned on the door with her natural and dazzling face. A small pout to beautify the look.

“What do you want? Consider it done!” He avowed, and Aisha smiled thankfully at him.

“You'll always come to Katsina whenever I miss you so bad that it hurts. Promise?”

“This should make me smile, but I'm also sad. Yes, it's a promise. You'll always find my way to Katsina until Nana gets tired of me.”

“She won't. Thank you, Dr.”

“Sleep well, Aisha. Don't dwell about leaving, just sleep.”

“I will. Goodnight, Dr.” And he turned and left, it took her minutes before she locked the door and walked back to her room, not forgetting about her inner wears that have to be put into the trolley.