"Of— what did you just say, Manal? Ummi has a baby in her stomach? Did she tell you that herself?" Saeed asked. His voice hoarse yet calm.

"Khadijah overheard ummi talking about it to her mummy and she told me all about it." Manal replied.

"Are you sure about what you just said, baby?" Saeed asked. He wanted to be sure the news was authentic before he could take any action regarding it. He didn't want a false news.

"Yes." She replied. "Khadijah even said ummi hasn't told you yet. Why abi? Doesn't ummi want you to know?"

Just as Saeed was about to speak, Maryam walked into the room muttering 'salamAlaikum'

"Wa alaikum salam." Saeed replied and stood up to leave the room.

"Where are you going, habibi?" Maryam asked.

"Out." Saeed replied and walked away without turning back.

Maryam's gaze trailed behind him. She wondered what was wrong with him.

• • •

Saeed couldn't believe what he just heard. Maryam was pregnant? Why didn't she tell him? It was a great news for him, but he wasn't feeling as happy he was supposed to. He felt betrayed by her. She had already began telling outsiders about her pregnancy, but not him - the father. "Was Manal really telling the truth? No, it can't be. Maryam couldn't have possibly hid the news from me. I will have to wait till she tells me herself, otherwise I won't be able to believe it." Saeed concluded.

He stayed out for some more minutes before going back to the ward. On entering, Maryam's gaze averted to him.

"Where did you go, habibi? I was waiting for you."

"I was outside." Saeed replied and took a sit on the couch. "Has Manal eaten?" He asked as his gaze darted to a sleeping Manal.

"She has. I had to force her though."

"Have you spoken to the doctor? When can we take Manal back home?" Saeed asked.

"I haven't asked yet." She replied.

"Okay."

"Please have something to eat, habibi. You must be very hungry."

"I'm not." Saeed replies, curtly.

"Have you eaten?"

"No."

"What will you eat then?"

"Never mind that." 

Maryam drew in her breath sharply. Something was definitely wrong. "What's wrong, habibi? Are we okay?"

No! - Saeed wanted to yell and tell her he already knew everything she was hiding from him. He wanted to ask her why she did it and what she would gain from it. He wanted to ask so many things, but he managed to restrained himself from doing such. He wanted her to come clean herself. Only then would his heart be at ease knowing she didn't hide it from him for a grave reason. He would never be able to bear it if Maryam was hiding the news from him for a particular reason. "Do we have a reason not to?"

"We don't, but you're making it seem like we do." Maryam pouted and went closer to him. She took his hand in hers and kissed it. "Please habibi, tell me if I have done something you don't like and I promise to rectify it. I don't like it when you're mad at me."

Saeed didn't reply, his gaze was firmly fixed on his wife's stomach, searching for any possible bump. He was acting comically - he knew, but he couldn't help it.

"Are you even listening to me?" Maryam asked, pouting.

"Yeah." Saeed replied, tersely. "Do you have something important to tell me?" He asked. He was giving her a chance to come clean about what she was hiding. He wanted to hear it fr her own mouth. He wanted her to tell him everything and explain why she was hiding it from him.

Maryam was taken aback by his question, but quickly restored her calm demeanor. "Yes."

"Yes?" Saeed asked, surprised. Was Maryam about to tell him everything? "What is it?" He asked, eagerly.

"What I want to tell you is that you have to eat your food unless you want to get sick." Maryam replied, jocularly.

"That's it?" Saeed asked, disappointedly. He was expecting an entirely different reply.

"Yes, habibi." Maryam smiled. "Were you expecting a different reply?"

"Yes." Saeed admitted.

Maryam was confused by the way Saeed was acting. He was acting really weird for her liking. She wondered what was wrong with him. "Habibi, are you alright. Please talk to me."

Saeed broke out of his trance and smiled a little. "I'm fine, habibty." He assured.

"Really? Then why don't you want to eat? I won't believe you until you have something to eat." Maryam said, her gaze boring into Saeed's. She was trying to read him. She wanted to know where his unusual behavior came from.

"Alright." Saeed replied. "I will eat."

Maryam's lips tugged up into a smile. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you so much, habibi. I love you."

• • •

After an hour or so, Nafisa heard the doorbell rang. Instantly, fear overwhelmed her. Were they back already? Did Manal expose her? Did she die? - different types of distressing thoughts invaded her mind. She quickly composed herself and went to the door to see who it was. She was surprised to see it was Khadijah's mother and not Maryam or Saeed as she had anticipated. "Good evening, ma." She greeted.

"Thank you. I came to pick my daughter." She said.

"Oh! Please come in. She's in Manal's room, I will go get her."

"Alright." Aisha replied and went into the house. She took a sit on the couch waiting for her daughter's arrival.

Nafisa went into Manal's room to call Khadijah and heard her sobbing silently with her knees folded and her head in between. She rolled her eyes and went closer to her. "Your mummy is here to take you back to your house."

Khadijah raised her head up and Nafisa could see how tears running down her cheeks uncontrollably. She glared at her before getting up and running downstairs. "Mummy." She ran into her mother's arm.

Aisha understood why she was crying and drew her into her embrace. She managed to calm her down a little before they left the house.

On their way home, Khadijah had still not stopped crying completely. Aisha continued to pacify her. "It's okay, dear, Manal is fine."

"She isn't. I saw her roll down the stairs." Khadijah cried.

"How did that happen?" Aisha asked worriedly. "Why weren't you two careful?"

"She didn't fall by mistake, mummy. Nafisa pushed her! I saw everything."

"What!" Aisha exclaimed and the car screeched to a halt. "Are you sure about what you just said, Khadijah?"

"Yes, mummy. Manal even told me she hit her sometimes when her mummy and daddy isn't around. She really is a bad person mummy and Manal is so scared of her." Khadijah blurted everything she knew to her mother.

Aisha found it hard to believe what her daughter had said. She also got bad vibes about Nafisa, but she never knew she was that cruel to treat little, innocent Manal so vilely. "Are you really sure about what you just said?"

Khadijah nodded in affirmation. "Yes."

• • •

Immediately Aisha and her daughter left, Nafisa sneaked into Maryam's room for she had forgotten to lock it when she left for the hospital in a hurry. She smiled viciously and started ransacking the room for her valuables. First, she went straight to her wardrobe and stole some clothes from there, then went to her drawers afterwards and started searching for jewelries, money or any valuables she could find.

Not wanting Maryam to be suspicious of things missing when she gets back, she stole just a little and left the room in a hurry. She went to her room and hid the jewelries, money and clothes she stole under her clothes.

~~~

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