41~His love won #3
"I'm just grateful you listened to me."
"I only listened because of these." He gently brushed away another tear.
"Your tears are my greatest weakness, you know."
"They ruin every rational thought in my head."
She grinned. "Oh really?"
"So all I need to do is cry a little and you'll do whatever I want?"
He stared at her for a moment completely captivated.
God...
He loved seeing her laugh.
Without warning.
He leaned over and kissed her.
Her laughter melted into the kiss.
After a few seconds she pulled away, her cheeks glowing.
"We're outside..." She whispered shyly.
He chuckled. "Then stop tempting me."
"Because when you do... I become even more shameless, I wouldn't even care if we are in a market."
She laughed again while he started the engine.
For a while...
Neither of them spoke.
Then Najib broke the silence.
"Abdul is so excited that we're back together."
"He's been our biggest shipper from day one."
"He really is." She smiled. "And can you believe he threatened to disown me as his sister if I married Faruk?"
Najib laughed.
"He actually said that?"
She nodded.
"That's when I realized he will do anything to bring us back together."
Najib reached across and intertwined their fingers.
"And I'll do even more... to make sure we never fall apart again."
Her smile widened.
"Forever."
She leaned her head against his shoulder.
"Till we're old and grey...and death parts us."
Najib shook his head.
"Even death doesn't get the final say."
He kissed the back of her hand.
"Our story doesn't end there, Habibti."
"It continues in Jannah."
Her eyes softened. "In sha Allah, Ameen."
"Ameen." He smiled.
Abdul was already growing tired of Nanny Ann's endless questions. Sitting comfortably in front of the TV, he deliberately turned the volume up, hoping she would finally drop the topic.
"Abdul, are you seriously telling me Hanan has called off the wedding?" Nanny Ann asked for what felt like the tenth time. "But why?"
He let out an exhausted sigh.
"Nanny Ann, I've answered that question several times already." He muted the TV and turned to face her. "She and Najib got back together, that's why the wedding is off."
She frowned deeply, still unable to understand.
"It doesn't make any sense. Just yesterday we all went shopping for the wedding. Hanan and Faruk looked perfectly fine. They didn't even argue."
"Happily, you say?" Abdul scoffed.
"You were the only happy person there. Hanan wasn't."
He leaned forward, his expression turning serious.
"She spent the entire day pretending because she didn't want to disappoint everyone. You were so focused on seeing her marry Faruk that you never noticed how miserable she actually was."
Nanny Ann lowered her gaze.
"And honestly..." Abdul continued. "You kept pushing her into a relationship she never truly wanted. All because you believed it was best for her."
He paused, taking a slow breath to calm himself.
"Nanny Ann..." His voice softened. "You know how much I respect and love you. You're literally my mother."
"So please... Let's end this conversation."
She remained silent for a while before speaking again.
"So you truly believe she'll only find happiness with the same man who broke her heart three years ago?"
"Yes." His answer came without hesitation.
"Najib isn't the same person he used to be."
"He genuinely loves her now."
"And she loves him too."
He smiled.
"At the end of the day, that's all that matters."
He shrugged.
"And for the record... There won't be any wedding."
"Because even if Hanan changed her mind, which she won't, I would personally stop it unless the groom is Najib."
Nanny Ann sighed. "I still want to hear it from Hanan herself."
"You will." Abdul smiled. "She's on her way."
Almost on cue, the sound of a car horn echoed through the compound.
Abdul stood immediately.
"They're here."
Moments later, the front door opened.
Najib walked in beside Hanan.
"We were just talking about the latest couple in town." Abdul grinned as he exchanged a fist bump with Najib.
"What were you saying about us?" Najib asked with a smile.
"Good afternoon, Nanny Ann."
But Nanny Ann barely acknowledged him.
Instead... Her eyes settled on Hanan.
"Hanan. Can we talk?"
"Of course." Hanan smiled gently.
Without another word, they both walked toward Nanny Ann's room, leaving Abdul and Najib alone in the sitting room.
In Nanny Ann's room, she asked so many questions that Hanan eventually lost count of.
"Nanny Ann..." Hanan sighed softly.
"This time, I want to be completely honest with you. I've promised myself never to lie to myself again."
She lowered her gaze before continuing.
"I was going to tell you my decision about Faruk earlier so now I will..."
"Faruk isn't the man for me... and I can never be the woman for him. I don't love him... and I never will."
Nanny Ann stared at her in disbelief.
"Then why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Hanan let out a slow breath.
"Maybe because I never admitted it to myself... or maybe because I kept pretending everything would eventually work out."
She smiled sadly.
"But I'm grateful I realized the truth before it was too late. Otherwise... I would've spent the rest of my life living with regrets."
Nanny Ann remained quiet for a few seconds.
"So..." She finally spoke. "Is Najib truly the right choice for you? I thought you hated him."
"I thought I did too." Hanan admitted with a faint laugh.
"But somewhere along the way, I realized I wasn't holding onto hatred... I was holding onto pain."
She reached for Nanny Ann's hand.
"I know everything you've said is because you wanted the best for me, and I'll always be grateful for that. But if I can't be with Najib... then I don't want to be with anyone else."
Nanny Ann sighed deeply.
"It's your life after all."
She gently squeezed Hanan's hand.
"My only fear is that I don't trust Najib."
She paused before continuing.
"But if you truly believe he has changed... if you trust him with your heart... then I'll respect your decision."
She smiled weakly.
"You have my blessings."
"But promise me one thing."
"Anything." Hanan smiled.
"Don't let yourself get hurt again."
Hanan nodded without hesitation.
"I trust him, and this time... I trust our relationship too."
She smiled warmly.
"So don't worry. Just keep supporting me... and I promise, I won't let myself go through that pain again."
Nanny Ann smiled proudly.
"Then you have my blessings."
As she reached to pat Hanan's hand, her smile slowly disappeared.
Her eyes narrowed.
"Hanan..."
She gently turned her wrist over.
"What happened to your hand?"
Hanan instinctively pulled it back.
"It's nothing."
Nanny Ann frowned.
"Are you sure?"
A brief silence followed before she asked quietly. "Was it Najib?"
"What?!" Hanan's eyes widened. "No! Of course not."
She hesitated before answering.
"It was... Faruk."
Nanny Ann froze. "Faruk did this?!"
Hanan nodded before narrating everything that had happened, from returning the ring to Faruk's mother to Faruk trying to force himself on her and grabbing her so tightly that it left marks on her wrist.
By the time she finished, Nanny Ann looked completely heartbroken.
She slowly covered her mouth.
"I'm so sorry..."
She looked shocked.
"Please forgive me, Hanan."
"I kept encouraging you to marry him because I genuinely believed he would make you happy."
She shook her head in disbelief.
"I never imagined he had this side to him."
"I never knew he could become so obsessive."
Hanan smiled gently.
"It's okay. I understand why you chose him."
Nanny Ann sighed.
"I always thought he was gentle... kind... respectful."
She looked down at the marks again.
"I never imagined he would become someone capable of hurting you."
Hanan nodded thoughtfully.
"He is kind... He really is."
Her smile faded.
"But somewhere along the line... he stopped loving me the right way."
"He let his love become an obsession... and that's where everything changed."
She looked at Nanny Ann and smiled teasingly.
"So... Whose side are you on now?"
Nanny Ann chuckled softly.
"Honestly? For now... neither."
She smiled. "But because I want to see you happy... I'll try to root for Najib."
Hanan's face instantly lit up.
"Aww."
She hugged her tightly.
"Thank you."
Nanny Ann hugged her back.
"Anything for you, my dear."
She gently stroked her hair before asking...
"Have you eaten?"
"Yes."
"Good."
"I'll still prepare something later."
"Okay."
As Nanny Ann walked out of the room, Hanan couldn't stop smiling.
Ever since getting back together with Najib, she has carried two heavy burdens on her heart.
Faruk and Nanny Ann.
Now that she had finally faced all of them, she felt lighter than she had in a long time.
She walked over to her wardrobe to change into something more comfortable.
The moment she opened it, her eyes landed on the wedding dress still hanging neatly inside.
She stared at it quietly.
A bittersweet smile crossed her lips.
"I never really liked you anyway."
She carefully took it down.
"Someone else deserves you more than I ever did."
Gently folding the gown back into its box, she closed the lid and arranged for it to be returned.
For the first time...
She truly felt like she had finally let go of a future that was never meant to be.
"I thought you said you wanted to spend the entire day with me?" Hanan pouted as she walked into the living room, where Najib and Abdul were chatting.
Abdul looked up and scoffed.
"So now I can't spend quality time with my gee anymore?"
"No, you can't." Hanan replied with a smug smile before turning to Najib.
"So... who is more important?"
Najib chuckled.
"The two of you are equally important to me."
"No." They answered in unison.
"You have to choose."
Najib sighed dramatically.
"Alright then..."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully, glancing from Hanan to Abdul and back again. Both of them watched him eagerly.
"The person is..."