Sorry, no reminder in this chapter, but there is a beneficial video in the media section.
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- KING'S POV -

"King, you have to go!" A'ishah chastised, placing her hands on her hips and glaring at me.

"I don't feel comfortable leaving you here." I replied, pacing the bedroom.

"You've taken so much leave these past weeks, King. You're going to get let off." She mumbled. "And you know we can't have that right now." She gestured to her belly.

It had been a week since we found out we were pregnant. Throughout the week, I had grown comfortable with the idea. We still had time to prepare for the arrival of baby. Another eight months. Alhamdulillah.

I liked to think of it as almost a year. It made me feel a little less panicked.

We hadn't told anyone yet. I didn't want us to. Not until we went for our check up and made sure everything was okay inshaaAllah.

A'ishah had gotten her first appointment for next week and so until we found out that baby was healthy and doing okay, I made A'ishah promise me not to tell anyone.

Our appointment also happened to fall on our anniversary.

I couldn't believe we had actually been married for an entire year. It felt like so much shorter. Time honestly flies when you're living your best life alhamdulillah.

Over the time of these past three weeks, I had also recovered from my arm injury. We had gone to the hospital yesterday to take my cast off and now, I just had a sling to prevent too much movement.

I was due back at work tomorrow morning, but I was currently fighting with A'ishah about calling and asking for another day off.

After running into Sulayman the other week, I was barely getting any sleep.

I didn't want to leave A'ishah alone. The thought made me uneasy.

Every time I thought about me leaving for work, I would hear his voice in my head whispering to A'ishah that he'd come while I wasn't home.

"You're going to call in sick tomorrow and then what's going to happen the next day, huh?" She questioned me.

"I don't know, A'ishah." I stressed. "All I know is that I don't want you alone."

"King, I'll put the shutters down, the doors and windows will be locked. We can't do anything else, okay!? Just ignore it. We can't uproot our lives because of what he said." She mumbled, looking up to meet my fiery gaze.

"Ignore it? A'ishah I have barely slept a wink these past weeks. I'm even terrified that when I'm asleep he's going to come and harm you, let alone when I'm at work for 10 hours."

A'ishah smiled slightly, raising her hands to my face in an attempt to calm me. "Nothing is going to happen to me, babe. He's just bluffing, I'm telling you." She spoke.

"Bluffing?" I raised my eyebrows, looking down at my arm that was now in a sling before looking back at A'ishah. She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and swayed on the balls of her feet as she stepped away. "Okay, so maybe he wasn't entirely bluffing, but, I honestly don't think he knows where we live and he wouldn't hurt me." She said with quick shake of her head, dismissing the thought.

"Why?" I scoffed. "Does he care about you too much to hurt you?" I muttered, rolling my eyes and stepping away from her in frustration.

She furrowed her eyes, looking at me as if asking whether or not I was being serious with my question.

"You have seriously got to get your possessiveness under control." She said, crossing her arms across her chest. "No. I meant it because he is scared of my brother."

I shook my head. I need someone here with her. "Call Hanifa or Samira to stay here." I told her.

The easiest option would have been to call A'ishah's mother, but I didn't want to worry her at all about this.

"And put them at risk too?" She muttered, rolling her eyes and I widened mine in return.

"So you know there's a risk!" I accused her and she chuckled, shaking her head.

I didn't know what she thought was funny about this whole situation to be honest.

"No. I was joking." She said, making me narrow my eyes at her.

"You're mocking me because I'm worried about your well-being. Nice."

I felt offended that she was making fun of me right now while I was genuinely worried for her. For all I knew, he could have been watching the house.

I didn't take A'ishah along with me to the masjid for every single salah this week for nothing.

Her smile wiped off her face as she got off the bed.

"Okay, I'm sorry, baby." She cooed, frowning up at me as she held my clenched fists. "I'm not making fun of you, I just genuinely think he doesn't know where we live. That's all." She spoke. "Samira and Hanifa both work. I'm not going to make them change up their day for me. Also, for how long? Even if I go stay with someone, or someone comes here to babysit me. What about the next day and the day after that?"

She was right. There was no one who could stay with us permanently to keep A'ishah company all day. I obviously couldn't leave my job.

And then I remembered someone else.

"Beth." I voiced all of a sudden. "Beth. Call her." I told A'ishah, making her furrow her eyebrows.

"You didn't even want to me..."

"You said she bartends at night. She can stay here while I'm at work and by the time I get home she can get lost back to wherever she stays."

"King, that's really rude. You can't use her like that."

"Just call her to hangout, A'ishah." I told her. "Please. Let my mind be at ease while I'm at work." 

A'ishah thought about it with a frown and she finally sighed and nodded. "But not because of Sulayman. I genuinely like hanging out with her." She said, turning around to go get her phone off the nightstand. "And I don't want you losing your job." She muttered to herself, but it was loud enough and I managed to hear what she had said.

Finally taking a sigh of relief, I decided I would have a shower.

I knew that there was a chance Sulayman was bluffing, but even if there was a one percent chance that he somehow did know where we lived, that was enough for me to worry.

With Beth here, at least I would know that A'ishah wasn't alone. I would feel more comfortable that way.

After having my shower, I got changed into some black sweatpants and a grey T-shirt, putting on a pair of white socks and walking back to the bedroom while drying my hair with the towel.

"Is she coming?" I asked A'ishah, seeing her texting on her phone with a smile on her face.

The smile fell off her face as she looked at me with a frown.

"What?" I asked her.

"She said she won't be able to come in the morning, but if you really want her to come, she will after her shift and stay overnight."

"You told her I want her to come?" I chastised, narrowing my eyes.

"I was going to say come to hang out, but I felt terrible for lying." She defended. "Let her come." She added softly.

"No. We can't trust her to stay overnight, A'ishah." I muttered. She could be a burglar for all I knew.

Deep down, I didn't think any harm could come from her, but it was my coping mechanism I suppose.

"I met her. She's a very nice girl. I trust her."

"Let me hear you say that when she steals all our belongings." I muttered angrily.

"We don't even own anything of value!" A'ishah laughed loudly. "What do we have besides the car, our phones and your laptop? Sleep with your car keys under your pillow if you like." She mumbled sarcastically.

I thought it over. I didn't even want to meet her. What was I going to do now when she came here while I was home? "When does her shift end?" I asked.

I had no choice.

A'ishah needed a companion and she was my only resort at the moment.

"One a.m." She responded. "But she said she can leave now. It's owned by her boyfriend's dad." She reminded me, making me roll my eyes.

"She's an idiot. What happens when she breaks up with the guy and then they kick her out of a job and a house?" I muttered.

"By the looks of it, she'll end up living here." A'ishah smiled at me.

"You know, you're not really being funny tonight." I told her seriously, making her purse her lips and look down, trying to control her laughter. "Tell her to leave now then." I voiced. "I'm not waiting up for her until the a.m."

I took my dad's laptop off A'ishah's dresser and walked out of the bedroom. I guess I'd do some work for my dad in the meantime. I had fourteen red priority folders to get through by the end of next week.

After this whole Beth thing came up, my dad had really fell behind in his office duties as CEO and everything from the company was getting sent straight through to me.

Caleb, my dad's right hand man, had been messaging me constantly about cancelled meetings, overdue payments, accounts that have been withheld and the like, but most of those things I had no idea about.

I had told him to do whatever he needed to in order to keep the company running smoothly.

I didn't want to go and comfort my dad, but I knew that eventually I'd have to go and talk to him. He would drive the company into the ground otherwise.

"She'll be here in half and hour." A'ishah said, walking into the room.

"Can you take the car keys to the bedroom and lock our door, please?" I asked her, making her gape at me like a fish. She asked me if I was being serious about not trusting Beth and I nodded.

Of course I was serious.

She shook her head, but did what I said anyway, coming back to the room and dropping our bedroom key into my palm.

I slid the key into my pocket and continued typing at my laptop.

"I was thinking," A'ishah spoke, walking into the kitchen. I hummed in response, but didn't look up at her as I continued working through the accounts. "Maybe you can teach me how to do the things you're doing. That way I can do them while I'm at home all day."

I looked up at her with wide eyes as the thought immediately made it feel like a burden was lifted off my shoulders. Having her work through accounts as well would cut my load in half, or even more depending on how much she wanted to do. "That's not a bad idea at all. My dad can even hire you and you'll get paid for your efforts too." I added and she shook her head immediately.

"That would be rude." She said, emptying pasta into a pot of boiling water. "I just mean to help you both. You don't get paid for it, so I shouldn't either."

I didn't think it was rude at all for her to get paid. I usually did one or two folders a week up until recently. If I had to deal with this many folders on a weekly basis, I would ask my dad for pay also.

A'ishah could even be employed by my father. In any other instance, I never would have allowed that, but it seemed like my father was having a change of heart recently and so I could actually see myself allowing A'ishah to work for my dad.

From home, obviously.

"Craving again?" I asked her. A'ishah never cooked at 11pm.

"No, but Beth is coming from work. She's obviously going to be hungry."

I rolled my eyes. "She could've made herself a sandwich."

"If you're rude to her when she gets here I will kick you out of the house." A'ishah chastised. Yet again, I rolled my eyes and shut my mouth.

Time seemed to fly by when you didn't want something to happen and sure enough, twenty minutes later the doorbell rang.

God help me.

A'ishah put her wooden spoon down quickly and walked out of the kitchen.

As she passed me, she put her hands onto my shoulders from behind while I was sitting and leaned down to my ear. "Behave, please." She spoke softly, kissing my cheek before moving away and going to answer the door.

She didn't even ask me to go to the front door to greet Beth, obviously knowing that I wasn't going to do such a thing.

Once A'ishah opened the door, I heard her loud and extremely obnoxious voice as she exclaimed A'ishah's name and claimed that she missed her.

How can you miss someone you just met?

"Girl, you're hot!" She then exclaimed.

I rubbed my forehead.

This was a terrible idea.

I should've just quit my job. Financial insecurity would have been better than this.

I heard them approach slowly as they made small talk.

"King." A'ishah spoke, clearing her throat.

Here goes nothing.

I pressed the laptop screen down halfway and pushed myself off my seat.

Bismillah.

Turning around, I came face to face with a girl the exact same height as A'ishah. I held my breath as I took a quick look down her exposed outfit. She had black denim shorts and a crop top that was also black. She did have a black Kathmandu puffer jacket as well, but it was stupid because her legs were exposed anyway.

The older brother in me felt like wrapping her up in a blanket to protect her from the gazes of filthy-minded men.

"This is Beth. Beth, meet King." A'ishah introduced slowly, obviously getting scared of my reaction.

I reached my hand out, forcing the action no matter how much I didn't want to.

She looked at my hand before looking back up at my face with an almost-soulless expression. "You don't have to act all amiable even though you don't want me here." She spoke instead, crossing her arms over her chest and looking at me with her back straight.

I narrowed my eyes, withdrawing my hand as I looked at A'ishah who looked sheepish. She was giving me a look that meant 'don't react, please'.

"You're in my house." I reminded her, clenching my jaw.

"I'm in A'ishah's house." She countered back just as quickly.

"Are you hungry?" A'ishah then asked
nervously, holding Beth's forearm and directing her to the kitchen, effectively preventing the argument that would have began.

Beth looked at me over her shoulder. "Famished." She spoke, turning back around to follow A'ishah.

I hated her.

"I'm going to the room." I muttered, only notifying A'ishah. She turned around and nodded, watching me pack my things up to leave. As soon as I slammed the door shut behind myself, I groaned and released a frustrated sound into my hands.

I wanted her gone already.

- A'ISHAH'S POV -

"Was that too rude?" Beth asked me as she sat on the kitchen stool across the bench.

I frowned at the stove, placing some bolognese sauce over the spaghetti. I cleared my throat and turned around. "I mean, I think it was a big deal for him to have you come here, and for him to reach his hand out, I think, was a pretty big step for him." I spoke timidly, taking a fork out of the cutlery drawer to place in the bowl.

"It's obvious he hates me." She muttered while I slid the bowl towards her. "Thank you, babe." She smiled at me. "Aren't you going to eat? I feel bad that you cooked at this time just for me." She mumbled with a frown. I shook my head quickly.

"I'm not hungry. Plus, I don't have to cook tomorrow." I shrugged, taking my seat beside her on the second stool. "He doesn't hate you." I responded to her earlier question, making her scoff.

"Of course he does."

"No." I said quickly, shaking my head as she ate her pasta. "I mean, he just found out he has a sibling after 24 years. It's not something that's easy to digest. Didn't you feel the same when you found out?" I asked her.

She swallowed what was in her mouth before shaking her head at me. "My mum always joked about how my sperm donor probably had several ***** children around the world, but we both knew it wasn't really a joke. I guess I grew up knowing I probably had multiple siblings somewhere out there."

"You just didn't know he had a child from a legitimate marriage." I said and she nodded. "Well, trust me, Beth. King doesn't hate you. Quite the opposite, internally, I actually think he's already taken you under his wing." I smiled, making her snort in response immediately.

I laughed at her reaction and she laughed along with me, shaking her head.

"I'm serious. When I told him that you live with boys, he got pretty cross." I told her.

"He's controlling, doesn't mean he cares." She shrugged, getting off the stool and walking into the kitchen. She asked me where the cups were and I pointed to the respective cupboard.

"Being controlling doesn't always mean someone cares for you, but when it's King we're talking about, I know it comes from a place of affection. Trust me." I told her again, watching her as she filled the cup with water from the tap and came back to sit beside me.

"Well, I'm not saying sorry." She shrugged.

I laughed. "I don't expect you to. This must still be hard for you as well." I said and she nodded.

"So, tell me about this ***** that King's trying to protect you from." She said, her eyes narrowing as she looked at me.

"Where do I even start?" I muttered, before blowing out into the whole Sulayman issue, explaining it to her from the very beginning until she felt personally attacked by Sulayman and by the end of my little storytime, she was ready to jump out and kill him.

"Good thing you called me, then." She smirked, washing her bowl and placing it onto the dish rack. "I'm so frustrated, man, I need a cigarette." She groaned, drying her hands on the tea towel and rummaging through her back pack to take out her cigarette packet and lighter. "Where can I go?" She asked and I pointed to the back door. We had patio chairs so I hoped she'd be comfortable. "It's cold though." I told her.

She smirked. "I've slept on the streets before, girl. Are you coming?" She asked, putting her jacket on and gesturing to the back door.

"Sure, let me just go get a jacket." I said quickly.

"Can you...um, can I maybe have a shower as well?" She asked shyly. "It's just, I always shower after work and..."

"Of course you can have a shower, Beth." I cut her off. "You don't have to ask. Our home is your home." I smiled at her.

She smiled back at me. "Thank you, A'ishah. I just need som..."

"Clothes. I've got you." I winked at her, making her grin back at me. I turned around to go to our bedroom, hearing the back sliding door open as she went outside.

I opened our bedroom door slowly walking in quietly so as to not wake up King in case he had fallen asleep, but he was wide awake, his dad's folders strewn across the bed as he typed away at his laptop.

"Aren't you sleeping yet?" I asked him once he looked up at the intrusion.

"No. I can't sleep when you're not here." He pouted, making me coo. He was adorable when he was in these clingy moods. Usually it was me who was the clingy one in the marriage.

On the rare occasions where King was needy, I thrived off it. It didn't happen as frequently as when I did it, but it was definitely at a higher level.

"Is she asleep?" He asked.

I shook my head, walking next to him and standing on the side of the bed as he wrapped his arm around my waist and rested his head on my tummy while I slowly ran my fingers through his hair, massaging his scalp and making him groan in satisfaction.

"She's waiting for me outside to have a cigarette." I chuckled. The sentence sounded so odd coming from my mouth.

Alhamdulillah I had never even touched a cigarette before. I didn't plan on it from this day on either.

I