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Her Father’s Final Words
As soon as she heard her father’s last words, she shut her eyes tightly and suddenly burst into a restrained but heart-rending cry. She clutched the long red bridal veil that covered her completely down to the ground. From her appearance alone, one could tell she was a new bride—barely minutes away from having the marriage solemnized.
Her whole body trembled violently, her eyes filled with intense disappointment and a kind of overwhelming confusion raging in her heart, one she could not even begin to explain. Only a few unexpected tears began to roll freely down her face, the kind that clearly showed she had not prepared herself for this moment.
Fear in the Grand Hall
Filled with fear and extreme anxiety, she lowered her head further while kneeling in the middle of their large living room, surrounded by four elders. Her delicate, glowing hands and feet—decorated with intricate red henna designs—were pressed to the floor, right where her tears kept dripping like a tap left running.
She sobbed softly, the pain in her cries so deep it felt as though her soul might tear itself free from her body. Summoning all her strength, she raised her head, the sting of her father’s words flooding back into her mind. She glanced helplessly at the elderly woman beside her, dressed in hijab and wiping tears from her eyes, only to see her lower her head again with cold detachment—clearly unwilling to speak in her defense.
With a wounded heart, she looked at her father. His face was still tightly clenched, dark like an approaching storm. She lacked the courage to say anything to him, completely lost and unsure how to escape the tangled disaster she had fallen into.
A Desperate Plea and a Harsh Rejection
The senior woman of the household, Anti Rainahanatu—known as Ammi Babba—sat in the living room clicking her tongue repeatedly, clearly displeased, as she had always opposed the marriage. No one else uttered a word. Ayaanah squeezed her eyes shut and cried even more quietly, her sobs mixing calm despair with burning anguish. She no longer knew what to do.
Suddenly, without conscious thought, her trembling hand reached out and grabbed the edge of the elderly woman’s wrapper beside her father. The woman reacted with explosive anger, her eyes turning bloodshot as she shook violently with rage.
In a shaking voice choked with tears, Ayaanah held the woman’s hand gently and pleaded weakly,
“For the sake of Allah, Hajiya, please tell Baba to forgive me. Wallahi, I know nothing, I did nothing to him. Please let them listen to me—I don’t know who did this to me…”
Furiously, the old woman yanked her hand away and sprang to her feet, unleashing a storm of insults. She accused Ayaanah of hypocrisy, shamelessness, and destroying her own marriage before it even began. She swore she would never forgive her, even if others did, declaring that Allah Himself would judge between them.
She went on bitterly, recalling past warnings and insults, accusing Ayaanah of disgracing the family, lacking self-control, and choosing to humiliate her elders on her wedding day. Her words cut like knives, filled with rage and contempt, as Ayaanah collapsed into tears, sobbing uncontrollably and crying out in helpless anguish…
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