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Everyone at home was worried about me, I refused to eat ,I refused to talk to anyone, the only thing I am good at is crying ,I've cried silently, I've wailed ,I've cried inwardly and my heart hurts like it's going to burst out of my chest any moment.

For the past three weeks I've been miserable and no one was able to make me whole again, I'm broken beyond repair. From the day Taseer left he didn't call neither send a message to tell us he had arrived, Abby ,Hajia and Ammy had all tried his number but it wasn't going through ,Ameer assured us that he was at the airport when their plane took off but he didn't contact him also. Abby confirmed from the airport authority that the flight had landed Amsterdam safely and no hitch was reported . Yah Allah where is my husband ?is he safe ? What happened to him ?no one knows that answer.

Abby contacted everyone he knows there ,the school hadn't seen him and exams were in full swing ,his rented apartment was empty ,the few friends he had there all said they haven't seen or heard from him. We all are worried not knowing whether the guy in question is dead or alive ,kidnapped or he ran away ,the latter seemed much unlikely because Taseer will never betray us or his family ,his mom is living with us ,am married to him then what in the jahannam went wrong ? Yah Allah keep him safe ,don't let any harm come to him .

Five weeks after the sudden and tragic disappearance of my husband , Simran came again to chastise me for taking it so hard on myself, I looked so frail and worn out you won't have recognised me from a distance ,the vibrant lively Manal Is long gone along with her husband.

" Haba Manal ,look what you've done to your self habibty? Do you think wherever Muntaseer is he will want you to be this way ? Allah does not burden a soul with more than it can bear and He sees He hears and He answers, the best way to show Muntaseer that you truly love him is by praying earnestly to Allah that he keeps him safe and bring him home to you Manal ,please get up and take a bath ,I will find something for you to eat and please stop crying you'll finish your tears " she teased at the end trying to light up the mood before pushing me to the toilet and going out to meet Ammy and Hajia who are all trying look strong for my sake .

I felt refreshed and the tears subsided ,I offered two units of nafl and recited the Quran while Simran patiently waited for me to finish before she gave me a hot cup of coffee first urging me to drink it up before giving me a plate of jollof rice with fried fish. That's a good meal I've taken in days and I felt kind of okay ,I scrolled through my gallery looking at the pictures we've taken at our date and warm tears cascaded down my cheeks as Simran wiped them away ,hugging me to her side .

Jiddah' s wedding is fast approaching and I don't think I will make it .

" Manal be patient kinji? Allah is with those who are patient and you should know that this is a test from Allah ,try and pass it you will emerge victorious in shaa Allah " she kept on soothing me with words till after ishaa before she left .

Abby came into my room while I was listening to surah Nisa'i from my digital Qur'an with hands on my chin staring at Taseer's picture . I burst into tears the moment our eyes met, he looked so worn out too and I know that it is also hard on him and he loves Taseer like the son he never had .

" Manal come here " he motioned for me to come and sit beside him and I did .

" How are you dear ?" It was a question he don't need an answer to . I just nodded still sobbing quietly .

" I've done my best Manal ,I've done everything possible to locate Muntaseer but it proved abortive .I will go there next week in shaa Allah and look for him myself ,with luck I will be able to find him " he said looking at me with so much pity as to the empty shell I've become .

" Abby I want to go with you please " I finally found the voice to speak .

" No Manal you stay right here and pray ,and please stop crying and beating yourself over what you cannot control my dear, goodnight may Allah be with you "

I was so deep in despair that I forgot the fact that prayer can move mountains ,I should have done what Simran advised me to do right from the time we realised that something went wrong, then maybe the pain in my heart will not be this much.

That night I didn't sleep a wink ,I bowed down in sujood telling my problems to the only One Who has the power of solving them till the adhaan for subh is called.

The beeping sound of the heart monitor is the only sound coming from room No 4 of St Mary's hospital Amsterdam. A man lay on the bed looking lifeless as a young man of 19-20 years of age sat on a chair beside him .He had been wondering when the poor man he had crashed into while he was crossing the road will regain his consciousness and tell him anything that will help him find his family and inform them of the tragic incident . Not even the doctors thought the man will live to see another day ,he had sustained a lot of internal injuries and outer ones ,it was a miracle they saved him even though he has been in a coma ever since ,but they assured the man that brought him to the hospital that his health is improving and he will make it .

An elderly woman who is the carbon copy of the man sitting beside the unmoving patient came in with a sullen look on her face ." James you should go home and change ,I will stay with him and call you when he wakes " she said as she draw a chair to sit beside the man she called James.

" Mom I feel guilty, he doesn't even look like he comes from here,it was all Anna's fault and my recklessness to drive in such condition I was in that day " he said ruffling his hair in frustration.

" What's done is done James now go home ,I've left food on the table, make sure you eat before coming back " James left the room giving the man lying down on the bed one final glance wishing he could open his eyes right that instance before gently closing the door behind him. On his way out he dialled a number and it was picked on the 8th ring " Jamy whatsup " a feminine Voice from the other line echoed through the speaker. Hearing that voice will definitely lead him to doom ,he winced and answered " Anna you have no idea what damage you had caused ,you should meet me at St Mary's in the evening room number 4 " Anna laughed haughtily from the other line

" I won't come James ,it's over between us and I don't care what damage I've caused ,you bore me and I had found a new guy who will entertain me get over me momma's boy " she sneered and clicked off the call.

James huffed in annoyance and with so much regret over why he didn't heed his mother's advice when she Warned him against dating girls like Anna , she is the baddest girl in college , beautiful and popular, every guys dream , he should have known that this is bound to happen one day ,they are polar opposites and it will never work out ,everyone had told him that,his mom told him even before he asked her out,the rationale part of his brain had warned him and now he's left with nothing except had I known which will never changed what had happened .

That fateful day , Anna broke up with him calling him all sort of names In public ,soiling his shirt with her drink and slapping him when he tried to reason with her and make her stay . He was so heartbroken and pissed that he had to get drunk and drive in that condition ,that's how he crashed into Muntaseer who just came out of the airport ,crossing the road to hail a cab that will take him to his apartment .He was not with a luggage and his phone had crashed beyond repair so the only means of telling his family is to patiently wait till he wakes .

Back at St Mary's , James mother made herself comfortable on the chair beside Muntaseer ,reading a fashion magazine and sipping a cup of tea .The nurse came in to check the vitals of the patient before going out. She was so engrossed into what she was reading that she didn't notice the man's middle right finger moving , the beeping sound of the heart monitor increased and the man started breathing rapidly which draw the attention of the woman ,she quickly pushed a bottom and within seconds a doctor came rushing in . she was asked to go out while he went to work on the patient.

She wanted to call her son but she didn't want to give him false hope , so she decided to wait for the doctors report . An hour later ,she was summoned to the doctor's office where he told her the patient hasn't wake up yet ,but he will soon wake up because he is a fighter ,right now he is fighting for his life and might hear what people are saying just won't be able to respond.

" May be if someone he knows come here ,we can be able to save him sooner ,the voices might make him wake up ,but thankfully there is an improvement and we should hold unto that " The doctor said with a tone of finality while James mother came out smiling . Hoping they will get anything that will give them access to contact his family .The man was a victim of what he doesn't know ever existed and now he suffered the outcome the most .She feared that if the man dies, her son will never be the same again .

They kept holding unto that hope for 7 weeks but there was no other improvement apart from the erratic breathing of the patient once or twice in a day and then nothing. James had talked and talked ,his mother had read to him anything she can lay her hands on but still nothing ,the doctors kept assuring them that he will come around and they hope with all their hearts he will.

Abby was supposed to leave three weeks ago but he fell ill so we have to wait till he is hale and hearty again ,God knows I was getting impatient and also worried for Abby and my husband so I decided to suggest another option to Abby .I sat beside him on his bed feeding him while he coughs occasionally.

" Abby why don't you send Ameer instead since you are not too well and you can't travel in this condition ". I said wiping his mouth with a tissue .He coughs again and I gave him a cup of water .

" That's a good idea Manal ,I've been thinking about the same thing but don't you think we might bother him? Maybe he is busy or something " Abby stated .

" Ameer will never be too busy for Muntaseer, they are very good friends and best ones too ,am certain he will be glad to help " I kept making Abby see to reason till he gave in and asked me to call Ameer to come and meet him at home ,every single second matters because it is the life of the man I've ever loved at stake .Yah Allah keep him safe and alive ,wherever he is don't let any harm come his way.

Ameer came after ishaa prayers and he was ushered into Abby's room who couldn't come out because of his fever. He told him what I suggested and Ameer was happy to help saying that he wanted to go since ,but he doesn't have the means of doing so .Right there he booked a flight online in three days and he left wishing Abby quick and speedy recovery . I escorted him out trying so hard not to remember the day Ameer left with Muntaseer ,the day he told me he loves me and I didn't get the chance to tell him that I love him too .

" Manal don't worry in shaa Allah ,everything will be alright ,Muntaseer will never leave you and not look back for a reason he can control ,I will not come back without a news of his whereabout in shaa Allah ,just keep praying and don't loose hope in the mercy of Allah " Ameer advised as he entered his car ,I just nodded wishing him safe drive back home ,he promised to come the day he is leaving and I wrote a letter to my husband .