She stood up from the small mattress she was sitting on in the room to go out with her phone in her hand, when her friend seated beside her quickly grabbed her hand and said:
“For God’s sake Fatima, what’s this? Will you even disrespect me simply because I came to your house?”
Fatima sat back down and said:
“Well, I just felt you’re trying to lower our dignity, and besides, I’m going to Ammi now since she’s been calling me for a while.”
Her friend frowned and replied:
“Come on Fatima, it’s not about lowering dignity. You know I don’t have a phone right now, please just follow him, not for anything else but so that we can at least see pictures. Please, you don’t have to chat with him.”
Fatima widened her eyes and said:
“Are you even in your senses Husnah? I can’t stoop that low to follow him. You know I have class.”
Husnah grabbed the phone and said:
“Well, class or not, I’ll follow him myself since you won’t.”
As Fatima tried to snatch the phone back she protested:
“No! But it’ll show as Fatima Muhd, not Husnah Usman.”
Husnah hissed, logged into Instagram without delay, and followed the guy she had been insisting on. Fatima, watching her, said:
“Look, it’s a private account. May God make him accept your request first.”
Husnah burst into laughter and replied:
“Listen to her! It’s Fatima he’ll see, not Husnah.”
Fatima opened her mouth in surprise and said:
“Oh really? Then I swear I’ll cancel it right now.”
Quickly hiding the phone behind her back, Husnah pleaded:
“No, please don’t.”
Fatima pouted:
“So he’ll just go ahead and look down on us like that?”
Husnah shook her head:
“It’s not about looking down. I’m sure later he’ll accept the request.”
Just then they heard Fatima’s mother, Ammi, calling her loudly. Fatima jumped up quickly and said:
“You see…” then left for the courtyard.
Ammi was standing, having just finished spreading laundry. She said:
“I want to start cooking for the children before they return from school.”
Fatima frowned and replied:
“But Ammi, Husnah and I wanted to go out, and I already told you.”
Ammi said:
“Then go.”
After that she went back inside. Fatima turned around looking like she wanted to cry and went back to her room.
Husnah asked:
“What happened?”
Fatima answered:
“She said I should cook for Ummi and the others. Who else would do it if I leave the house?”
Husnah shrugged:
“Well, patience. Even my own mother stresses me at home. I sometimes wish we hadn’t even finished secondary school yet.”
Fatima sighed:
“I swear this life at home is too much for me.”
Husnah laughed:
“Then just say Umar should come forward so we can marry already.”
Fatima twisted her face:
“Please, Umar annoys me now. In fact, I hate him.”
Surprised, Husnah asked:
“Why?”
Fatima adjusted her sitting position:
“Look at Sa’adatu’s boyfriend. Do you see the kind of car he brings when visiting her at night? Not only her clothes but even her shoes have changed. Honestly, I can’t deny I envy her. That’s why I don’t even talk to her anymore. Even when she greets me, I act as if I didn’t hear.”
Husnah rested her chin on her palm:
“Honestly, even Sa’ad annoys me now. Whenever he comes, I don’t go out. From the end of the street, he keeps announcing his arrival with that rotten motorbike. I’m just bored of him.”
Fatima laughed hard:
“Well at least yours has a bike, Umar comes to me on foot.”
Husnah said:
“That’s why I want us to leave this place. If only Elbasheer accepts us, then we can start chatting with him. Who knows, one day we might end up like Sa’adatu.”
Fatima stayed silent. Husnah pressed further:
“Please Fatima, check and see.”
Fatima muttered:
“May God make him accept it, anyway.”
Husnah said:
“He will, In sha Allah. And when he does, please drop your pride and just greet him.”
Fatima only laughed.
Fatima’s Struggles at Home
Around 2 o’clock they came out of the room. Fatima saw Ammi had already lit charcoal and started cooking. She said:
“Oh Ammi, I didn’t say I won’t cook.”
Ammi didn’t answer. Husnah lowered her voice:
“Don’t bother escorting me, so you won’t get more blame. We’ll meet later…”
Then she turned to Ammi and said:
“Ammi, I’ll go now, see you tomorrow.”
Ammi replied without looking at her:
“Okay, greet your family.”
Husnah said:
“They’ll hear.” and left.
Fatima went closer and said:
“Ammi, please forgive me, I didn’t mean not to cook.”
Ammi replied:
“That’s your problem, Amira. If those are the kind of friends you keep, then you’ll suffer. And don’t let me see you again, before I lose my temper.”
Fatima said nothing and went back into the room pouting.
Her phone rang for the third time, and Ammi, sitting on a mat eating with her two other children, said:
“Amira, isn’t your phone ringing?”
Fatima was sitting on her own mat at the doorway with her food in front of her. She replied:
“Yes Ammi, but I’m not going to answer.”
Ammi asked:
“Who’s calling you?”
Fatima frowned, though Ammi couldn’t see her in the dark courtyard, and said:
“It’s Umar.”
Ammi asked:
“And you won’t answer?”
She replied:
“I’m tired Ammi, even my head is aching, so I won’t pick up.”
Ammi said:
“Good then.”
She said nothing more. Fatima finished eating, went inside, adjusted her bed, and lay down. She was desperate for Ammi to send her younger sister to buy recharge card since her subscription had finished earlier. She took a Hausa novel and kept reading until her siblings entered the room. She got up, took out the ₦1,000 Umar had given her two days ago, and said to her sister:
“Ummi, go and get me ₦1,000 recharge card.”
Ummi asked:
“Did you say ₦1,000?”
Fatima replied:
“Yes, unless you don’t want it, I’ll give it to Sajjad.”
Ummi left silently and soon returned with the card. Fatima loaded it, subscribed, and immediately her WhatsApp and Instagram notifications started pouring in.
She ignored WhatsApp and opened Instagram directly. Shocked, she saw that Elbasheer had accepted her follow request, though he hadn’t followed her back. She frowned deeply and checked his photo from three days ago with over 6,000 likes. He was standing beside a car with his arms folded in front of a mansion surrounded by flowers and several other cars.
He looked extremely handsome—tall, light-skinned, with a long nose and large eyes that enhanced his beauty. His lips framed with a neat beard, wearing a shining milk-colored designer outfit. He was truly a gentleman. Fatima’s heart melted.
She sighed: what would such a rich and handsome man want with poor girls like them? She continued browsing through his pictures, but couldn’t keep looking—she felt she might faint from his beauty.
Gathering courage, she entered his DM and sent him a full greeting (without abbreviation). Disgusted with herself, she quickly logged out and returned to WhatsApp, replied to some chats, then switched off her data. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, and now she felt she completely hated Umar.
She slept and dreamt about Elbasheer, waking at dawn still with him in her thoughts. After prayers, she prepared herself and lay back down, switching her phone on again. Still no sign he’d read her message. Weak and restless, she kept checking her phone until noon, and finally sent him another “Hi” before switching data off.
Lost in thought by the firewood stove, she didn’t realize the rice and beans she was cooking had started burning until Ammi shouted angrily:
“What on earth are you thinking, burning my food on the fire?”
Startled, she quickly removed the pot and apologized:
“Sorry Ammi, I was sleepy.”
Ammi gave her a sharp look and left for the kitchen shed. Fatima finished preparing the stew and took the food to Ammi, then went into her room.
When her phone rang again and she saw Umar’s name, she glared at it and silenced it. He had already called four times that day.
She dozed off until late afternoon when her brother woke her.
Elbasheer’s Impact on Fatima’s Heart
Later, while outside, Ammi scolded her:
“Amira, do you even go to Islamiyya anymore? You’re always sleeping or pressing your phone. You’ve turned your friends into your parents. You think it’s me you’re mocking? No, it’s Umar who ruined you by buying you that wretched phone that will destroy your life.”
Tearfully, Fatima replied:
“Ammi, it’s not like I’m always on my phone…”
Ammi cut her short with another scolding. Fatima, almost crying, said:
“And Malam Suraj at school has been eyeing me, so it’s better if I just keep memorizing at home.”
She rushed to her room and switched on data. To her shock, Elbasheer had uploaded pictures of two women who looked like him, clearly his sisters, with the caption “Blood.”
She checked her DM again—still unopened. Furious, she typed:
“Well done big man. So you think you can ignore people’s messages? Do you even know who I am to just snub me like that? Not that I had something useless to tell you. Please keep your arrogance for your family meetings, mister.”
She added an angry emoji and sent it, then switched off her data and prepared for Islamiyya, leaving her phone behind.
Around 6:30pm she returned home. Without changing out of her uniform, she switched on her data. Her heart skipped violently when she saw a message from Elbasheer.
Description
Friends’ Disagreement Over Following a Boy
She stood up from the small mattress she was sitting on in the room to go out with her phone in her hand, when her friend seated beside her quickly grabbed her hand and said:
“For God’s sake Fatima, what’s this? Will you even disrespect me simply because I came to your house?”
Fatima sat back down and said:
“Well, I just felt you’re trying to lower our dignity, and besides, I’m going to Ammi now since she’s been calling me for a while.”
Her friend frowned and replied:
“Come on Fatima, it’s not about lowering dignity. You know I don’t have a phone right now, please just follow him, not for anything else but so that we can at least see pictures. Please, you don’t have to chat with him.”
Fatima widened her eyes and said:
“Are you even in your senses Husnah? I can’t stoop that low to follow him. You know I have class.”
Husnah grabbed the phone and said:
“Well, class or not, I’ll follow him myself since you won’t.”
As Fatima tried to snatch the phone back she protested:
“No! But it’ll show as Fatima Muhd, not Husnah Usman.”
Husnah hissed, logged into Instagram without delay, and followed the guy she had been insisting on. Fatima, watching her, said:
“Look, it’s a private account. May God make him accept your request first.”
Husnah burst into laughter and replied:
“Listen to her! It’s Fatima he’ll see, not Husnah.”
Fatima opened her mouth in surprise and said:
“Oh really? Then I swear I’ll cancel it right now.”
Quickly hiding the phone behind her back, Husnah pleaded:
“No, please don’t.”
Fatima pouted:
“So he’ll just go ahead and look down on us like that?”
Husnah shook her head:
“It’s not about looking down. I’m sure later he’ll accept the request.”
Just then they heard Fatima’s mother, Ammi, calling her loudly. Fatima jumped up quickly and said:
“You see…” then left for the courtyard.
Ammi was standing, having just finished spreading laundry. She said:
“I want to start cooking for the children before they return from school.”
Fatima frowned and replied:
“But Ammi, Husnah and I wanted to go out, and I already told you.”
Ammi said:
“Then go.”
After that she went back inside. Fatima turned around looking like she wanted to cry and went back to her room.
Husnah asked:
“What happened?”
Fatima answered:
“She said I should cook for Ummi and the others. Who else would do it if I leave the house?”
Husnah shrugged:
“Well, patience. Even my own mother stresses me at home. I sometimes wish we hadn’t even finished secondary school yet.”
Fatima sighed:
“I swear this life at home is too much for me.”
Husnah laughed:
“Then just say Umar should come forward so we can marry already.”
Fatima twisted her face:
“Please, Umar annoys me now. In fact, I hate him.”
Surprised, Husnah asked:
“Why?”
Fatima adjusted her sitting position:
“Look at Sa’adatu’s boyfriend. Do you see the kind of car he brings when visiting her at night? Not only her clothes but even her shoes have changed. Honestly, I can’t deny I envy her. That’s why I don’t even talk to her anymore. Even when she greets me, I act as if I didn’t hear.”
Husnah rested her chin on her palm:
“Honestly, even Sa’ad annoys me now. Whenever he comes, I don’t go out. From the end of the street, he keeps announcing his arrival with that rotten motorbike. I’m just bored of him.”
Fatima laughed hard:
“Well at least yours has a bike, Umar comes to me on foot.”
Husnah said:
“That’s why I want us to leave this place. If only Elbasheer accepts us, then we can start chatting with him. Who knows, one day we might end up like Sa’adatu.”
Fatima stayed silent. Husnah pressed further:
“Please Fatima, check and see.”
Fatima muttered:
“May God make him accept it, anyway.”
Husnah said:
“He will, In sha Allah. And when he does, please drop your pride and just greet him.”
Fatima only laughed.
Fatima’s Struggles at Home
Around 2 o’clock they came out of the room. Fatima saw Ammi had already lit charcoal and started cooking. She said:
“Oh Ammi, I didn’t say I won’t cook.”
Ammi didn’t answer. Husnah lowered her voice:
“Don’t bother escorting me, so you won’t get more blame. We’ll meet later…”
Then she turned to Ammi and said:
“Ammi, I’ll go now, see you tomorrow.”
Ammi replied without looking at her:
“Okay, greet your family.”
Husnah said:
“They’ll hear.” and left.
Fatima went closer and said:
“Ammi, please forgive me, I didn’t mean not to cook.”
Ammi replied:
“That’s your problem, Amira. If those are the kind of friends you keep, then you’ll suffer. And don’t let me see you again, before I lose my temper.”
Fatima said nothing and went back into the room pouting.
Her phone rang for the third time, and Ammi, sitting on a mat eating with her two other children, said:
“Amira, isn’t your phone ringing?”
Fatima was sitting on her own mat at the doorway with her food in front of her. She replied:
“Yes Ammi, but I’m not going to answer.”
Ammi asked:
“Who’s calling you?”
Fatima frowned, though Ammi couldn’t see her in the dark courtyard, and said:
“It’s Umar.”
Ammi asked:
“And you won’t answer?”
She replied:
“I’m tired Ammi, even my head is aching, so I won’t pick up.”
Ammi said:
“Good then.”
She said nothing more. Fatima finished eating, went inside, adjusted her bed, and lay down. She was desperate for Ammi to send her younger sister to buy recharge card since her subscription had finished earlier. She took a Hausa novel and kept reading until her siblings entered the room. She got up, took out the ₦1,000 Umar had given her two days ago, and said to her sister:
“Ummi, go and get me ₦1,000 recharge card.”
Ummi asked:
“Did you say ₦1,000?”
Fatima replied:
“Yes, unless you don’t want it, I’ll give it to Sajjad.”
Ummi left silently and soon returned with the card. Fatima loaded it, subscribed, and immediately her WhatsApp and Instagram notifications started pouring in.
She ignored WhatsApp and opened Instagram directly. Shocked, she saw that Elbasheer had accepted her follow request, though he hadn’t followed her back. She frowned deeply and checked his photo from three days ago with over 6,000 likes. He was standing beside a car with his arms folded in front of a mansion surrounded by flowers and several other cars.
He looked extremely handsome—tall, light-skinned, with a long nose and large eyes that enhanced his beauty. His lips framed with a neat beard, wearing a shining milk-colored designer outfit. He was truly a gentleman. Fatima’s heart melted.
She sighed: what would such a rich and handsome man want with poor girls like them? She continued browsing through his pictures, but couldn’t keep looking—she felt she might faint from his beauty.
Gathering courage, she entered his DM and sent him a full greeting (without abbreviation). Disgusted with herself, she quickly logged out and returned to WhatsApp, replied to some chats, then switched off her data. She couldn’t stop thinking about him, and now she felt she completely hated Umar.
She slept and dreamt about Elbasheer, waking at dawn still with him in her thoughts. After prayers, she prepared herself and lay back down, switching her phone on again. Still no sign he’d read her message. Weak and restless, she kept checking her phone until noon, and finally sent him another “Hi” before switching data off.
Lost in thought by the firewood stove, she didn’t realize the rice and beans she was cooking had started burning until Ammi shouted angrily:
“What on earth are you thinking, burning my food on the fire?”
Startled, she quickly removed the pot and apologized:
“Sorry Ammi, I was sleepy.”
Ammi gave her a sharp look and left for the kitchen shed. Fatima finished preparing the stew and took the food to Ammi, then went into her room.
When her phone rang again and she saw Umar’s name, she glared at it and silenced it. He had already called four times that day.
She dozed off until late afternoon when her brother woke her.
Elbasheer’s Impact on Fatima’s Heart
Later, while outside, Ammi scolded her:
“Amira, do you even go to Islamiyya anymore? You’re always sleeping or pressing your phone. You’ve turned your friends into your parents. You think it’s me you’re mocking? No, it’s Umar who ruined you by buying you that wretched phone that will destroy your life.”
Tearfully, Fatima replied:
“Ammi, it’s not like I’m always on my phone…”
Ammi cut her short with another scolding. Fatima, almost crying, said:
“And Malam Suraj at school has been eyeing me, so it’s better if I just keep memorizing at home.”
She rushed to her room and switched on data. To her shock, Elbasheer had uploaded pictures of two women who looked like him, clearly his sisters, with the caption “Blood.”
She checked her DM again—still unopened. Furious, she typed:
“Well done big man. So you think you can ignore people’s messages? Do you even know who I am to just snub me like that? Not that I had something useless to tell you. Please keep your arrogance for your family meetings, mister.”
She added an angry emoji and sent it, then switched off her data and prepared for Islamiyya, leaving her phone behind.
Around 6:30pm she returned home. Without changing out of her uniform, she switched on her data. Her heart skipped violently when she saw a message from Elbasheer.