•••

•••

M A R I N A

As she made her way downstairs for breakfast, her mind couldn't wrap around the fact that Shahroz's family will be coming over today for her hand.

She was frightened yet slightly excited.

Her eyes roamed around the kitchen until they landed on her mother who was adding milk to the tea.

"Assalamu Alaiykum ammi." She grinned at her mother who looked up and set the milk pot aside.

She replied to her greeting and Marina joined her in getting the rest of the breakfast ready.

They were almost done when her mother spoke.

"So.. Shahroz is coming over today, huh?" She grinned at her daughter who gave her a shy smile.

She nodded, "Yeah.."

"Are you excited?" Her mother asked with a height of enthusiasm she was well aware of as she nodded.

She was glad her and her mother were really close, as she didn't have anyone else other than her in the family to share her girly talk with.

"Ammi.." She suddenly started and her mother turned her head towards her daughter.

She hummed to let her continue.

Marina sighed, "There are some things I want to tell you about Shahroz before you give him.. give him the right.."

Her mother looked worried, "What happened, beta?"

Marina gulped. She knew she couldn't lie to her parents about the flaws of Shahroz, as they should fully know about his background before taking their final decision.

She had to be honest.

She swallowed the saliva forming in her mouth, "He.. he used to drink and did drugs only once.."

She closed her eyes and turned her head away once she said those words, her heart going into panic mode for her mother's upcoming reaction.

She was surprisingly calm.

"Oh.. so he doesn't do it anymore?" Her mother voiced and Marina mentally dropped her jaw.

That was a very un-desi parent reaction.

"Nope." She said as soon as she threw the empty ketchup bottle in the bin, her mind alert of her mother's every expression.

"But how?" Her mother was perplexed now.

Marina felt a little uneasy, but continued anyway.

"I.. I took him to the mosque and he prayed, so he doesn't do those things anymore.." She trailed off to a dead end, scared of her mother's reaction.

Her mother paused for a while before voicing her opinion, "And why did he do those things?"

"Because.." She didn't want to reveal too much about his past as she carried on, "Because he wanted to forget about some things. He didn't do any of that for pleasure."

Her mother gave her a look of sympathy, "That's actually really sad. You said he gets good grades now, right?"

"Yeah.." She smiled, "I tutored him all year."

There was a silence in the kitchen which wasn't uncomfortable at all. Marina got to think about what she'll say next, and her mother got to process what she heard from her daughter.

Her mother was always a very understanding woman. The real problem was always convincing her father.

"You know.." Marina started, "I-I thought about one thing for a while and I.. I find it really ironic about us.."

Her mother hummed to let her continue, "We met when his car crashed and I saved him by giving him CPR.. and abba also saved your life by giving you CPR.. I don't know.. I just feel like that there is a hidden meaning behind that.."

Her mother's expression was confused, "What?"

Marina nodded, "I made Salat-ul-Istikharah once I thought about that.. and when I slept.. I had a dream that Shahroz was my husband.."

Her mother's eyes lit up, "Really? Is this the first time this has happened to you?"

She nodded.

"Oh my Allah! This means that this a sign from Him that we have finally found the right man!"

Marina nodded with a smile etched on her face as she left to get ready.

"Just wait till I'm yours, Shahroz."

•••

The bell rang and her heart palpitated as she fixed her grey hijab above her head.

He's finally here.

She quickly wrapped her hijab above her head loosely and fixed out the creases on her navy blue shirt.

Her feet took her downstairs and she opened the door swiftly to reveal a man with features similar with Shahroz's.

"Assalamu Alaiykum!" She greeted his father who replied with a smile and placed his large hand on her head with respect.

She greeted his mother while both fathers introduced themselves to each other, the house suddenly filled with noises of every kind.

Her eyes landed on Shahroz and they both gave heart-warming smiles to each other.

"Assalamu Alaiykum." He mumbled shyly as he could feel heat flowing to his cheeks.

"Walaikum Assalam." Her voice wavered a little as she looked down and bit her bottom lip.

He chuckled lightly before making his way to the lounge while her hands were closing the door.

She heard a cough behind the other end and stopped, her lips parting in shock.

Shaheer was here.

He awkwardly said his salam and she did the same before he slowly entered.

"Nice house." He mumbled.

"Thanks." She gave him a tight-lipped smile as they made their way to the lounge.

They were all seated in the lounge, with Marina between her parents and Shahroz between his.

Saad and Shaheer sat together on the sofa on the other end.

They had started talking about various topics to warm the environment so Marina had left for a brief moment to fetch the pastries she made earlier.

When she came back with a tray full of chocolate-flavoured cakes, she could feel everyone's eyes on her as she served everyone a piece.

His mother was the first one to comment, "Shahroz," she said his name and nudged him with her shoulder, "she even makes good food."

Shahroz looked down and nodded his head, afraid to meet Marina's eyes who was just across him.

"And she's beautiful too." His father commented and Shahroz's face was even redder than before.

Marina's mother noticed his expressions and was perplexed.

'Was he really the boy who drank and did drugs?' She thought as Shahroz gave her daughter a shy smile.

Shahroz's mother on the other hand was really impressed with his son's choice. She was glad Marina was a woman not below her expectations from a future daughter-in-law.

"So," Marina's father clapped his hands together, "have you been getting any job opportunities?"

Shahroz nodded, his confidence coning back, "Yes, uncle," he paused for a moment, "I have been getting a few after my first semester this year."

Her father hummed in response, "Where exactly?"

"In Manchester and Liverpool, sir." It was getting hard for him to maintain eye contact with her father for too long.

His father was really sceptical about Shahroz before he met him, but now with him giving shy glances to his daughter with his gaze lowered most of the time and being respectful towards him, he was reconsidering his opinion.

His daughter's previous suitors were too manipulative and he could notice them come out as someone they weren't when they met.

He was impressed with Shahroz's modesty.

So he popped up the real question.

"What are your intentions with my dear daughter?"

Shahroz took a deep breath before voicing out what he truly had planned for his and Marina's future if they were meant to be.

"With Allah by my side at all times and especially right now, I wouldn't have been able to come here and ask for your daughter's hand if it weren't for Him." He gave a small smile to his father, "I-I believe that you know I'm a man who didn't have the best of impressions before. I'm a man who never had a chance to prove himself for who he is." He closed his eyes painfully before opening them again.

Her father's eyes narrowed and Marina's heart dropped.

What is he going to say?

He cleared his throat, "I plan to nurture her as I keep her by my side. I plan to carry her in my arms once she's asleep. I plan to stay with her and look after when she's sick, and I'll make duaa for her as nothing happens unless it's under the will of Allah." His eyes landed briefly on Marina before going back to her father, "I plan to raise our kids with her and show them how amazing their mother is. I plan to grow old with her and tell her that she's just as beautiful as the first time I layed my eyes on her, for she is Allah's creation, and Allah creates beauty in the most magnificent of ways."

His eyes landed on hers and in that moment, they could see through each other's souls, for their hearts were open to each other only.

Her father's voice broke him out of his trance.

"Please give us a moment." Shahroz and his family nodded.

Her parents and her got up and left the room, not before Shahroz caught her giving him a smile as she closed the door.

Saad slept halfway throughout his speech, and Shaheer was on his phone the whole time to even care.

None of the three spoke a word until they reached the kitchen.

Marina spoke up first.

"So.. what do you say abba?" She was fidgeting the whole time.

His father rubbed his bearded chin with his thumb and forefinger.

"I.. I-I don't know.. what he said was really realistic.. and better than what the other men said." His eyebrows furrowed, "And I can tell he's modest and honest.. but his past.."

"Abba," she started, "not everyone's perfect. And he doesn't do those things anymore, plus you used to be a smoker too until ammi stopped you."

She crossed her arms and looked up at him, her gaze challenging. Her mother was quiet the whole time.

"But-"

"Abba," her tone was firm yet gentle in a way, "we did our part. We tried so hard to find a man for me. It's now the right time to leave things in Allah's hands as well." She paused to see his reaction but didn't get any, "I did Istikharah and I only saw him."

His father was reluctant but nodded defeatedly.

"You really want him, don't you?" He asked as he gave her his fatherly smile.

She nodded, "I'll want him in the blink of an eye." She smiled confidently.

He nodded and they left for the lounge, her heart and soul still in denial that she will be married to him.

Truly Allah is the best of planner and the Most Merciful.

As her father opened the door, his daughter's eyes landed on Shahroz and her mind only thought of one thing.

He'll be her husband.

And she'll be his wife.

Her father cleared his throat and all attention was on him in an instant.

Even Shaheer's.

"I know the proposal and decision was so sudden, but I believe Allah has the best plans for everyone regarding the circumstances." He paused to look at Shahroz and smiled, "And I'm pleased to say that I lend you my dear daughter's hand in marriage."

Shahroz and Marina's parents erupted in screams of joy as both families congratulated the couple at hand.

Shaheer had a small smile on his face too and Saad woke up from the noise and rubbed his eyes.

Shahroz came up to Marina, his hands on his mouth and his eyes widened as she nodded at him with a smile.

"We'll be married?!" He asked disbelievingly as she nodded at him once more and let out a cute giggle.

Saad got up and congratulated his sister followed by Shahroz's parents who were grateful to have a future daughter-in-law like her.

They ate the rest of the cakes in happiness and it was finally time to leave.

Shahroz discreetly whispered something to her which made her question reality, which was finally better than her dreams.

"Get ready to finally be mine, Marina."

•••

Hey there peeps! First of all, MY BABIES ARE FINALLY GETTING MARRIED AWWWW!!! I hope you liked the chapter. There's like four more left for this book *cries*. Ok ya take care and InshAllah He blesses y'all.

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