1~After party #2
"Amira why?!"
"I only told him you would be here."
Habiba stared at her in disbelief. "I asked you to stop setting me up for blind dates."
"I know."
"I meant it."
"I know."
"So why again?"
Amira sighed. "Because he's been trying to apologize for weeks, and you keep avoiding him."
"Faruk?"
Silence.
"Amira, I avoid Faruk for a reason."
"I know."
"No, you don't."
For a brief second, guilt flashed across Amira's face.
"I just thought..." She said quietly, "Maybe hearing him out would help you move on."
Habiba let out a dry laugh.
"So that's why you practically dragged me here."
"No." Amira immediately shook her head.
"I wanted us to celebrate tonight."
She paused before adding softly,
"But when I found out Faruk would be here... I thought maybe this was the perfect opportunity."
Habiba closed her eyes for a moment. "You should've asked me."
"I know."
"You had no right to set me up again."
"I know."
"You clearly don't."
Those three words hit Amira harder than anything else.
Before she could respond, a familiar voice spoke from behind them.
"Hanan..."
Her entire body stiffened.
She knew that voice.
Slowly, she turned around.
Faruk stood a few steps away.
He looked almost exactly the same... Only now, there was something different in his eyes.
Regret.
He offered a small, uncertain smile.
"You look..."
His words trailed off.
"beautiful."
Hanan's expression remained unreadable.
"What do you want?" She crossed her arms.
Faruk hesitated before taking a cautious step forward. "I just wanted to talk."
"We have nothing to talk about."
"I know you're angry."
"I'm not angry." Her voice was calm.
Too calm.
"I'm disappointed."
Those two words landed like a fist punch at his chest.
Faruk lowered his gaze. "I deserve that."
"You do."
"I've replayed that night a thousand times."
Habiba looked away.
"I was drunk." He continued. "That's not an excuse... I know it isn't. But if I could take it back, I would."
Silence stretched between them.
The music around them suddenly felt distant.
None of it mattered anymore.
Faruk swallowed hard. "You were my best friend."
Habiba finally looked at him. "And you were mine."
Her voice cracked slightly. "Which is exactly why it hurts."
Faruk closed his eyes briefly. "I never wanted to make you feel unsafe."
"But you did."
"I know and I'm sorry."
"You crossed a line I never imagined you would cross."
Another silence.
This one heavier than the last.
"I don't expect things to go back to the way they were." Faruk said quietly. "I only came to ask for your forgiveness."
Habiba studied his face.
She could see how sincere he was.
She could see the guilt.
The remorse.
But remorse didn't erase memories.
After a long pause, she finally spoke.
"I forgave you a long time ago."
Hope flickered across Faruk's face.
"But forgiveness doesn't always rebuild trust."
The hope on his face disappeared quickly.
"So..." She took one careful step backward. "Please keep your distance from me."
Faruk nodded slowly.
"If that's what you want..." He forced a faint smile. "I'll respect it."
Neither of them noticed Amira quietly slipping away, deciding it was best to give them a moment alone.
She glanced back once before disappearing into the crowd.
Leaving Hanan and Faruk standing face to face with years of friendship now reduced to awkward silence.
Faruk remained where he stood long after Hanan's words settled between them.
"Please keep your distance."
He had imagined countless versions of this conversation over the past month.
None of them hurt this much.
Hanan turned away before he could say another word.
She refused to let him see the tears threatening to gather in her eyes.
She had promised herself she wouldn't cry over another disappointment.
Not again.
Not after everything she survived in the past.
She walked blindly through the crowd, forcing her way between dancing students until she reached the refreshment table.
The laughter around her felt distant.
The music became nothing more than noise.
Her chest tightened.
She reached for the nearest glass without looking.
Cold liquid slid down her throat.
One gulp.
Then another.
It burned.
She frowned.
"That's... strange."
She glanced at the glass.
Before she could make sense of it, someone bumped into her shoulder, making her spill a few drops.
"Oh! Sorry!"
"It's fine." Hanan murmured.
She wasn't paying attention anymore.
Her thoughts had drifted elsewhere.
Back to that night with Faruk...
Another man.
Another betrayal.
She squeezed her eyes shut.
"I thought you were different, Faruk."
That's what she once believed.
Faruk was the first person Hanan befriended in Cal U long before Amira came into her life.
They bonded over the simplest things.
Being from Kano, speaking the same dialect, and discovering they were from a neighboring village made their bond easy to grow strong.
Somewhere along the line, he became the friend she wanted to cherish forever.
Not until a month ago, everything changed.
One drunken mistake had shattered years of trust when he tried to force himself on her.
Since then, she found it impossible to look at him without remembering the fear she felt in that moment.
He didn't just break something inside her, he also awakened memories she spent three years desperately trying to bury.
She emptied the glass in a single gulp.
Another glass appeared in front of her.
She accepted it absentmindedly.
Then another.
And another.
Minutes blurred into one another.
The room seemed brighter.
The music louder.
Her thoughts slower.
Without realizing it, Hanan found herself back on the dance floor.
Someone cheered. "There she is!"
"Hanan!"
"Finally!"
A small circle quickly formed around her.
For the first time that night, she laughed freely.
She threw her hands into the air, moving her hips with the music as her friends clapped along.
"Go, Hanan!"
"You've still got that fire in you!"
The cheers only encouraged her.
She swayed every part of her body.
Her laughter echoed across the hall.
From the edge of the crowd, Faruk was silently watching her with a frown.
Something wasn't right.
Hanan rarely danced this recklessly.
She never touched alcohol.
Never.
Yet now it looked like she was heavily drunk.
Her movements had become unsteady.
Her smile didn't reach her eyes.
And she looked completely unaware of the people around her.
His concern outweighed everything else.
Pushing through the crowd, he gently caught her wrist.
"Hanan."
She blinked at him.
A slow smile spread across her face.
"There you are..." Her words slurred together.
Faruk's heart sank. "You've been drinking."
She shook her head stubbornly.
"No..." A soft laugh escaped her.
"I'm celebrating." The scent of alcohol reached him almost instantly.
His expression tightened.
"You thought it was juice, didn't you?"
She frowned as if trying to solve a difficult puzzle. "Maybe."
Faruk glanced toward the refreshment table before looking back at her.
"Come on."
He spoke gently.
"Let's get you somewhere quiet."
She tilted her head, studying his face with unfocused eyes.
For a long moment... She simply stared.
Then she whispered a name that made no sense to him.
"...Najib."
Faruk frowned. "What?"
Her eyes softened. "You're here."
Faruk's grip on her wrist loosened.
"Hanan..."
She smiled sadly. "Najib... Are you back to hurt me again?"
Faruk's confusion deepened.
"Who is Najib?"
Hanan let out a quiet laugh, though tears shimmered in her eyes.
"You really don't recognize me..."
She placed a trembling hand against her own chest. "I'm Habiba."
The name hung between them.
Faruk stared at her, completely lost.
"Habiba...?"
She nodded slowly, her gaze never leaving his face.
"I'm no longer your wife, I'm going to be Barrister Habiba soon..."
Her voice carried both pride and an unbearable pain.
Faruk realized she wasn't seeing him anymore.
Whoever Najib was...
That was the man standing before her now.
"Okay..." Faruk said gently, his voice calm. "But first, let's get you sober and somewhere quiet."
As he carefully reached out to support her, a familiar voice cut through the noise.
"What exactly is going on here?"
Amira hurried over, her eyes widening the moment she saw Hanan barely able to stand.
"What happened to her?" She asked, quickly pulling her friend away from Faruk and wrapping an arm around her waist to keep her steady.
"She accidentally drank alcohol." Faruk explained. "I was just trying to get her somewhere she could sober up."
Habiba let out a soft, tipsy laugh and weakly pushed Amira aside.
"No..." She slurred, shaking her head. "I can't be drunk."
She looked up at Faruk and smiled.
"You know Habiba hates alcohol..."
Her smiled deepened.
"You know that... don't you, Najib?"
Before either of them could react, she leaned against Faruk once more.
"Najib... Kiss me." She murmured softly while shooting her lips at him.
For a second Faruk froze.
"You're drunk."
"Take me home, Najib. Habiba is tired."
Silence.
Faruk and Amira exchanged confused glances.
"Najib?" Amira repeated under her breath.
"Habiba?" Faruk sighed his brows knitting together in confusion.
They looked back at the unconscious woman leaning against them.
Now who is Habiba?
And... who is Najib?
Neither of them had the slightest idea.
.
.
.
***
A/N