Married To A Tyrant

Before The Wedding (Part 4)

SALMA

"What was that all about?" Safiya asked, waving her hands frantically in the air. I could tell she was very angry. "Who the hell does Mansur think he is? What the bloody hell will make him act like that? As if he doesn't know us."

"Dan Allah ki kyale shi. Bashida hankali. Kuma a haka Mama take zaton wai akwai wani abu tsakanin mu (Please leave him. He's an i***t. And Umma was actually suspecting that there's something between us)." I sighed, rolling my eyes. How could she even think of something like that, b

"Allah ya sawaqe. Ai idan naji wani abu tsakanin ku, ni da kaina zan yanka ki kina bacci (May God forbid it. If I hear there's something going on between both of you, I will personally slaughter you in your sleep." she chuckled, glaring at me. At least she was calming down. But my emotions were all over the place.

How could any self-respecting human being act like that in public? It wasn't the yelling that pissed me off. It was the fact that he'd acted like he didn't even know who I was. Even if we weren't on speaking terms, I am still his cousin.

"Amma lallai ya tabbata mana chewa bashi da hankali wallahi (He has definitely proved to us that he doesn't have a brain)." she laughed. "I just hope he finds one before it's too late.

"Don't say bad things about him. He's still your cousin. And he's older than you." I mocked her.

"Allah ya sawaqe (May God forbid it)." she laughed. "Please let's forget that i***t and move on with our lives."

"You're right. But I'm not even in the mood to watch anything right now." I said. "Let's go somewhere else. It irks me to know that I'm standing in the same building with him."

"Exactly. Let's go shopping. Dama ina so inje Next (I've been willing to go to Next)." she said, pulling my wrist.

"How about we go to Ice cream Lab first? I've been craving ice cream for weeks now." I suggested. "Only if we head to Dominoes afterwards." she chirped.

"Obviously. Wasn't that the plan in the first place? " I laughed. Pulling out my phone, I quickly dialled Malam Iro's number, hoping that he wasn't too far away.

"Assalamu alaikum Hajiya, lafiya dai ko? (Peace be upon you Hajiya, I hope everything is fine?)" he asked immediately.

"Wa alaikum as salam, dan Allah Malam Iro kayi hakuri, amma idan bakayi nisa ba zaka iya dawowa ka dauke mu? Mun fasa kallon kuma (Peace be upon you too, please Malam Iro don't be annoyed, but if you've not gone far, could you please come back and pick us up? We're no longer interested in watching the movie)."

"Ai kuna cikin sa'a. Yanzu haka ina cikin National Mosque, na tsaya yin sallar azahar (You're both very lucky indeed. I'm presently in the National Mosque. I came to pray Zuhr)." he said, pronouncing the National as 'Nashnal' with his thick Fulani accent.

"Nagode (Thank you)." I said, stifling my laughter.

As we stood in the parking lot waiting for Malam Iro to come, a guy wearing black shadda with a black cap and black sandals walked up to us. He was holding his iPhone boldly in his hand, clearly showing it off. He looked like a true Yoruba Demon. I recognized him from the group of guys that were pointing at us earlier.

"Assalamu alaikum." he greeted, flashing a bright smile at both of us. He positioned himself so that it looked like he was facing both of us, but his body was strategically turned towards me.

"Wa alaikum as salam." we both replied, looking up at him. He was ridiculously tall, and had a very lanky figure. But he appeared to be puffed up, probably because he was wearing multiple undergarments.

"I'm sorry to disturb you ladies, but my friends and I were standing over there and we just noticed how beautiful both of you look." he smiled, looking down at us. "So I just decided to come and let you know. I'm Muazzam, by the way."

"Thank you." I muttered, turning away from him. Safiya meanwhile was staring intently at his face, furrowing her brows.

"Aren't you at least going to tell me your name?" he asked, stooping slightly. I chose to assume that he was talking to Safiya, so I ignored him.

"Um, I'm Safiya. This is Salma." she said politely. He continued to look at me, taking a slight step forward. I turned the other way and folded my arms across my chest, not wanting to engage in any form of communication.

"Can't the beautiful lady tell me her name by herself?" he asked, plastering a fake smile on his face. His intent gaze was beginning to make me uncomfortable. I don't like being stared at.

"Excuse me, but could you please stop acting bitchy and talk to me? I'm just trying to be friendly." he asked, his demeanor changing from friendly to hostile. I cautiously took a step back, planting my feet into the ground.

"I'm sorry, but can you please leave us alone? Not to be rude or anything." I asked, hoping I sounded as polite as possible.

"I'm afraid I can't do that. I came here to get your number, and I'm not leaving without it." he chuckled maniacally. Safiya's eyebrow flew up, as she stared at him slowly. "She just asked you to leave us alone. Can you please be a gentleman and do what she says?" she said, folding her arms across her chest.

"Nobody asked for your opinion." he said suddenly, taking a step closer towards us.

"I'm not fond of repeating myself, but it seems you're a little slow in understanding, so I'll say this slowly. Leave Us Alone." I said, refusing to be intimidated by him.

"How dare you?" he spat. "Do you have any idea who I am? How dare you talk to me like that?"

I ignored him and grabbed Safiya's hand, pulling her away from him towards Malam Iro, who had just parked the car.

"Get back here when I'm talking to you." he yelled, clutching my wrist tightly. I swung around and slapped him instantly, my hand moving faster than my brain. "Don't you dare touch me ever again. I'm not one of those girls. Keep your filthy hands to yourself." I yelled, drawing the attention of several people. Malam Iro was already flying out of his seat, rushing towards us.

"Lallai kin cika yar iska. Dan ma nazo inyi miki magana? To ko uwarki bata isa ba dan ubanki."(Just know that everything said here is an insult. I don't want to translate it, because I'm embarrassed).

My hand flew up once again, but Malam Iro had already stepped between us, punching the i***t square in the jaw. He threw several punches at him, shoving him against the car beside us. He fired rapid insults at him in his native language, many of which I didn't catch, although I caught - idiotic pig, stupid donkey, waste of space - and a few others.

Unfortunately, Muazzam was stronger than Malam Iro, being more youthful and athletic. Soon he managed to push him off, pinning him against the opposite car. "You think you're a wise old man, don't you? Now I'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget." he said, raising his fist.

"Try that, and I promise you that you'll be spending the night at the hospital." I heard someone suddenly say behind me. Safiya and I turned instantly, and standing behind us was a very tall man with a vicious look in his eyes.

"Move." he commanded, looking straight into Muazzam's eyes. His hands were in his pockets, betraying the situation at hand. But something told me he wasn't someone to be messed with.

Wordlessly, Muazzam took a step away from Malam Iro, who was still clutching the former's collar.

"I'm not a fan of repeating myself," he continued, pausing to glare at him. " So I'm going to say this once. Leave before I make you leave."

I could see the fire in Muazzam's eyes dying slowly. His hardened expression gave way to confusion, then defiance, then fear and finally submission. As quietly as possible, he turned around and left, sticking his hands in his pockets.

"Yeah, I didn't think so." the man muttered, turning away from us.

"Ai daka barni dashi. Da sai na koya masa cewa zaman barrikin danayi ba asara bane (You should have left him to me. I would have taught him a lesson he will never forget)." Malam Iro said, adjusting his collar.

"Ba mutincin mace bane a ganta a irin wannan al-amarin (It's not proper for a lady to be seen in these circumstances)." he said, the words slowly rolling off his tongue smoothly; like melting chocolate on a hot summer day.

"Thank you, Mr..." Safiya said, with her big mouth. I didn't want us to strike a conversation with him right now. All I wanted to do was find a nice cozy bed to snuggle into, as I was beginning to get a migraine.

"Usman." he replied nodding in my direction as he hopped into his Mercedes. "Take care of yourself." he said as he wound up the window. He pulled out of the driveway swiftly, swerving out of the gates.

"Amma wannan yanada hankali wallahi (I have to say, this young man is responsible)." Malam Iro said to nobody in particular, walking towards the car.

"IKR." Safiya whispered as we walked to the car. "And he's good-looking as well."

"Shut up. You don't have any brain cells left." I said, hitting her shoulder as we climbed into the car.

"What? So I'm not allowed to notice a handsome man again?" she said, hitting me back.

"To be honest, I'm done with men. Men are scum." I sighed, leaning back as my phone buzzed again from Mustapha's message.

We spent the rest of the car ride in silence, with Malam Iro occasionally telling us a story about his time in the village when he beat every guy in his age group and won the affection of the most beautiful girl in the village.

When we got home, I went straight up to my room and collapsed into my bed, sighing in relief. The image of Mansur yelling at me was still vivid in my mind. I tried to shove it to the back of my mind, but I couldn't believe that he could do something like that.

Was he mad because I didn't talk to him when we went to their house? If that was the case, he better get used to it. I don't want anything to do with him.

Eventually, I dozed off and drifted into a dreamless sleep. I woke up a few minutes to 6pm, and the sun was already setting in the horizon. I rubbed my eyes and jumped out of bed, heading to the toilet. I washed my face and brushed my teeth. Why do people claim that taking a nap will make you wake up refreshed and relaxed? Every time I take a nap, I wake up looking like a demented lunatic.

Turning off the water, I slipped out of my clothes and had a long warm bath. The hot water soothed my aching neck. I stepped out of the bathroom and slipped on my baggy tee with black leggings. I grabbed my phone and headed downstairs. I could tell from the noise coming from the living room that the boys were watching wrestling.

Immediately I entered, Jafar turned towards me. "Yaya Salma, Roman Reigns is going up against Finn Balor." he said excitedly. "Really?" I asked, sitting on the couch beside Nana, who was busy pressing her phone.

"Yeah. And Paige is going to face Sasha Banks right now." Khalid said, his eyes glued to the TV.

"Paige is going to cream her." I said. Jafar's eyes widened as he turned to look at. "Impossible. Sasha will knock the living daylights out of her." he said with a tone of finality.

"Doesn't this referee remind you of Yaya Mansur?" Nana asked suddenly as the match began. I flinched slightly as his image popped into my head once again.

"Haba dai (Impossible). He's much more handsome than Yaya Mansur." Jafar said.

"And wiser too." I muttered to myself.

"What was that?" Nana asked, turning to look at me. "Nothing." I smiled, turning my attention to the TV once again.