She quickly got ready and set off for her home. The house was a mess. She had planned to tidy it up as soon as she got back. But as soon as she stepped out of the elevator, she saw Adnan sitting on the stairs in front of her apartment door. Raisa was startled. She stood still.
She said, “You came, and didn’t even let me know?”
Adnan replied, “I thought you were on your way. Didn’t want to bother you with a call while you were on the road.”
“Being too nice isn’t good, you know.”
“Even being a nice guy is a problem, huh? What do girls actually want?”
Raisa burst into laughter. As she entered the house, she felt a bit embarrassed. That day, she had been so stressed that she had left the entire place looking like a jungle. How could they even sit and talk in such a mess?
Feeling awkward, she said, “My room is really messy. Please don’t mind.”
“It’s okay.”
“You can sit here. I’ll quickly tidy up the place.”
Adnan was surprised and said, “Who cleans their house while making a guest sit and wait?”
Raisa blushed and laughed. Still smiling, she said, “To be honest, I was in such a hurry to come back and clean the house. But the guest arrived earlier than expected. I didn’t get the time to tidy up.”
Adnan chuckled and said, “Okay. Then I’m giving you some time now.”
Raisa thought he meant he was giving her time to clean. She was just trying to figure out where to start when, before she could grasp it, Adnan had already started picking up the scattered items and organizing them. She rushed over and tried to stop him, saying, “Hey! What are you doing?”
Adnan replied, “Since I didn’t give you time to clean before, I’m helping now. A mistake has been made; I have to take the penalty.”
“You don’t need to take any penalty. Please sit down. I’ll clean up. At least let me organize this room. Honestly, I was so overwhelmed the other day that I paid no attention to the state of my house.”
“Were you overwhelmed because of me?”
Adnan looked into Raisa’s eyes as he said that, in such a way that Raisa froze for a moment. At the same time, she found it amusing. Trying to suppress her laughter, she took the scattered items from Adnan’s hands and put them away in her room. When she returned, she saw Adnan was again tidying up small things. He was clearing the stuff off the sitting area and wiping off the dust.
Raisa said, “You seem to be quite good at house chores.”
“I learned it from you.”
“What? When did I teach you?”
“One day when I visited your house, I saw how beautifully everything was arranged. I was amazed. Since then, I no longer like keeping things messy. My place is neat and tidy now. When I get home from work, the first thing I do is clean.”
“That’s nice.”
Since they both worked together, the room became neat and clean very quickly. Raisa felt relieved. After cleaning, Adnan sat quietly in a corner. Raisa was feeling shy. What should she do now? Should she sit next to him? Just the thought of sitting next to him made her cheeks flush. She felt so awkward. How would she tell Adnan what was on her mind? Just a while ago, everything felt so normal. If only things could go back to being that normal again.
Thinking about all this, Raisa went to the kitchen and started making tea. Adnan stood at the kitchen door and said, “Need any help?”
“No, I’m good.”
“I can boil water if you need.”
“Is boiling water all you can do?”
“I can cook too. I cook my own meals.”
“Wow. That’s good news for your future wife. If she doesn’t feel like cooking, you can do it.”
“If she doesn’t feel like it, we’ll hire a cook.”
“That’s expensive.”
“She won’t need to worry about money. I work like a donkey to earn, not to make my wife suffer.”
“Listening to you, it sounds like no wife in this world cooks for herself.”
“They do. But have you ever heard of a queen cooking?”
Adnan said that in such a way that Raisa couldn’t resist looking at him. Then Adnan said, “Don’t you remember what I told you that day? I’ll treat my wife like a queen.”
“That’s good.”
“But tea made by the queen is always special. Even if we have a cook for meals, I think the queen will have to make the tea.”
“Does your queen make tea? Or did you drink it in a dream?”
“Not in a dream. In reality. I’m going to drink it now.”
Raisa was startled. She turned away and pressed her lips to suppress a smile. Then she said, “You have already assumed that I have become your queen?”
Adnan firmly said, “Definitely. The fact that you called me means you are my queen.”
Raisa gave a slight smirk and said, “Does a call make it so? I haven’t even told you why I called.”
“I am not here to listen to any ‘whys.’ I clearly told you the other day, if the answer was negative, there was no need to contact me. Contacting me means it’s positive.”
“People’s confidence is truly surprising.”
“It’s not confidence. It’s called simple calculation.”
The tea was ready. Raisa placed two cups on a tray and poured the tea. Immediately, Adnan took the tray and headed toward the seating area. Raisa was surprised. She thought Adnan was not romantic at all. But now it seemed she was wrong! The guy was entirely a box full of romance. She realized she knew very little about Adnan.
Adnan was comfortably seated in the seating area. Raisa stood at a distance. Adnan pointed to a spot in front of him and said, “Come sit here.”
Raisa sat in that spot. She felt grateful for Adnan’s behavior because she had been feeling quite awkward moments ago. She was worried about how to start the conversation, where to begin, and whether to sit next to Adnan. Adnan’s normal behavior had dispelled all her worries.
While sipping tea, Adnan said, “Ask all the questions you have.”
“How do you know I have questions?”
“Surely you didn’t call me just for tea. My sense of humor is quite good.”
Raisa smiled and asked, “What do you think is the reason I called?”
Adnan took a sip of tea and said, “If you had called after a week, I would have thought you made the call after a lot of thought and decision-making. Since you called within two days, it means you need my help. You are confused about many things. You called me to get answers to your questions about me.”
Raisa said in surprise, “You seem to be at a detective level!”
“Yes, your personal detective. Now tell me if my guess is correct.”
Raisa nodded gently and whispered, “Hmm. The more I learn about you, the more mysterious you seem.”
“It’s good to have some mystery in married life. It keeps every day exciting.”
“I feel like I don’t know you at all. Lately, it feels like you are a complete stranger to me.”
“That’s normal. Because I have always been looking at you. You never had time to look at me.”
“That’s true. I am quite a selfish person. I only think about myself.”
Adnan said, “At this stage of life, a little selfishness is necessary. I have no problem with your selfishness. I like everything about you. Now tell me what problems you have with me?”
Raisa put down the cup and became serious. She looked out the window and sighed deeply.
Adnan finished his tea.
Raisa said, “Thank you for coming to this house. I feel much lighter now. It seems this was the environment I needed to talk to you.”
Saying this, Raisa became serious again.
Adnan asked, “So, now tell me what you are worried about?”
“Everything. I feel disorganized inside. You have turned my well-organized life into a mess in an instant. I can neither put things in order nor free myself from everything. Nothing feels good. I just want to sit here quietly.”
Adnan said, “Okay. I am in no hurry. You don’t need to say anything. Sit quietly. You still see me as a stranger. Take your time to get to know me.”
Raisa took a deep breath and looked outside. She felt grateful toward Adnan. At this moment, she truly didn’t want to say anything. But she felt like all her worries had vanished because of Adnan. She no longer felt any pressure about anything. She felt light, like the wind. Just like the relief after recovering from a painful illness, she felt the same.
At this moment, Adnan did something surprising. He called home and told his mother to cancel the bride-seeing arrangement.
After the call, Raisa said, “Why did you do that?”
“Would you rather I go see a bride? I don’t need two queens. I need only one.”
Raisa stared at Adnan in surprise. Adnan said, “No need to say anything. Just sit quietly. You don’t have to talk if you don’t want to. I am here.”
“How long can you stay like this?”
“I can spend my whole life sitting beside you.”
“Really?”
“You look very enchanting. I could spend a lifetime just looking at your face.”
“And?”
“You speak beautifully. Talking to you for hours is a comforting experience.”
“And?”
“Even when you are silent, it feels good. There’s a kind of sadness on your face. It makes me want to search for something in that sadness.”
“Enough, enough. You can’t impress me with such words.”
“I know. That’s why I never said these kinds of things before.”
Raisa laughed. She said while laughing, “You know so much, yet you never used it. Why?”
“Simply put, this is called flirting. I knew such lines wouldn’t work on a tough heart like yours. You are experienced. I never wanted you to misunderstand me. That’s why I always kept myself hidden so you wouldn’t form any wrong ideas about me.”
Raisa said, “You are showing many new sides. Like you can tell good jokes now. And your sense of humor is great. I didn’t know these before. Are there any more hidden sides to you?”
“Yes.”
“What is it?”
“I am very caring.”
“Seriously?”
“My mother knows it well. You can ask her.”
“She told me about how you cared for her during her illness.”
“Not just that. I am caring about everything.”
“Then I must be very lucky. I am getting everything at once.”
“Say Alhamdulillah. No, wait. Say it all at once.”
“When?”
“At the wedding ceremony.”
Raisa burst into laughter.
