Zahra Aziz finds herself in a seemingly blissful relationship with her boyfriend. However, his manipulative ways lead her astray from her family and faith, blinding her with love. Just when she believes she knows him, a horrifying incident pushes he...
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I stare intently at the glowing screen of my phone, engrossed in a video of cookies being baked. I place my hands on the kitchen island while my eyes are glued on that tutorial playing on repeat. I just came downstairs after praying Salah with Adam. Since our marriage, it has become our habit to pray together whenever we are at home.
The sudden urge to bake cookies seized me when a short video on a social media app caught my eye. And I know I won't find peace until I attempt to make them.
Adam is still upstairs, wrapped up in an important call, giving me the perfect chance to sneak in here as I know I couldn't possibly be standing here, surrounded by all the ingredients, if he was here with me.
“What are you doing here?”
And just like that, my thoughts manifest into reality as Adam saunters over, hands tucked into his trouser pockets. My gaze lifts, meeting his intense stare.
"It’s just baking, I promise I won't mess up anything,” I say, desperately hoping he'll agree but all I receive in response is a slow shake of his head, expressing his disapproval.
“I'm watching the tutorial too. I can really, really do it this time,” I add, clinging to the faintest glimmer of hope.
Adam places his hand on the kitchen counter, leaning slightly against it, his eyes briefly drifting to my phone and then back to me. “You had a tutorial last time too.”
"I'm going to bake today. That's final. And if you still have doubts, you can stay and watch me," I say, redirecting my attention to my phone, replaying the video.
"Are you sure you want me to watch you?"
My gaze lifts to Adam as soon as I hear his words. His arms are crossed while he stares at me and I notice a subtle smirk forming at the corner of his lips.
"I…I mean...the baking," I stumble over my words, seeing his intense gaze still fixed upon me. My lips find refuge beneath my teeth as my nervous hands fumble aimlessly through the air, desperately searching for something to distract myself from the effect he has on me.
Just as my eyes land on a packet of flour, I instinctively grab hold of it, struggling to open it after a few failed attempts. But hastily I exert too much force, causing a cloud of flour to billow into the air.
I don't know why, but I have this inexplicable urge to glance back at Adam, even though I can feel his eyes still locked on me. And as I turn to meet his gaze, I suddenly burst into laughter.
His brows furrow, confusion etching across his face as he struggles to comprehend the reason behind my sudden burst of laughter. "What's so funny?" he asks, his question only making me laugh even harder. I always end up laughing at the most inappropriate times.
"You look like an old man," I manage to say amidst my laughter, causing him to swiftly retrieve his phone and open the front camera. Now he can clearly see the evidence of the flour that had scattered through the air earlier, settling onto his hair. His fingers hastily comb through his hair, attempting to brush away the remnants of flour, but he doesn't quite manage to clear it all.
