taqdeer
By Khaleel Jooste
Copyright Khaleel Jooste 2013
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Ayat Al-Kursi
Allah - there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Sustainer of [all] existence. Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep. To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them, and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills. His Kursi extends over the heavens and the earth, and their preservation tires Him not. And He is the Most High, the Most Great. (Surah Al-Baqarah 2:255)
For Zayn Malik
May Allah be with.
Salaam, Khaleel
As Allah wills
Pleased to meet you
"What do you do for a living?"
Malik puts his right hand nervously on his left. He looks at Gadija, but doesn't make eye contact with her.
"I'm studying." She twists her finger around a tissue. She bites her lip. You could only see her face. Her head was covered in a scarf. She was dressed in a colourful top and a long, plain white skirt that covered even her feet. The shoes barely visible.
"Alhamdulilah. Me too." He tries to smile, but instead made a sort of frown. He looks to his left quick. Then down.
"What?" Gadija asks. She seems interested. For the first time, she manages a smile. She has beautiful dimples, he thinks.
"Engineering. You?" He tries his best not to fiddle with his topi. He crosses his feet below his chair. He smiles at her.
"Psychology." She smiles back. Shyly.
"Alhamdulilah." He manages a laugh. She laughs too. They both look to their left. Then they both look down. She starts to twist the tissue again. Smiles nervously. He tucks at his topi, then his shirt collar.
"Do you enjoy it?" She asks. "The engineering, I mean." She looks up just enough for him to see her eyes. She smiles again. Beautiful dimples, he thinks again.
"Alhamdulilah." He smiles. This time he shows his teeth. She bites her lip and looks down.
Gadija's two brothers, one on her right and the other to her left, watches as Malik touches his nose and tries to hide a smile.
Gadija looks at her brother on her left. Go easy, she thinks to herself. She then looks at her brother on her right. Please, I like this one. Her face manages to give them the message. They both shrug and look away.
Ibrahim smiles at Gadija. Gadija smiles back. Malik looks at his uncle Ibrahim, who is sitting to his right. His uncle winks at him. He's smile is sincere. This one is a keeper, they both think.
Ibrahim accompanied his nephew to this first meeting between Malik and Gadija. Gadija is accompanied by her brothers, Abdurahman and Yaseen.
Rhoda sits in the corner of the restuarant, unnoticed by the others. Rhoda is Gadija's mother. She observes her daughter's every gesture. The dimples ever present. She is sincere. The twists of the tissue. Nerves. She likes Malik, Rhoda concludes. The twinkle in her eye a dead give away. Rhoda senses trouble. Riedwaan is not going to like this. Not at all.
Amr sits close to the fish tank, near the wall of the restuarant. Unnoticed to even Rhoda. Amr is Malik's father. He observes his boy's excitement. After many times of coming to these meetings with a bunch of strangers, his son, is finally excited. He is blushing and smiling nervously. He keeps tugging at his topi. When he is excited, he does that. His excitement usually makes it fall of his head.
Amr is happy. He looks at Gadija and her brothers. They're clothes look expensive. Those patterns in Gadija's dress are hand woven, those don't come cheap. Her scarf is heavy and yet fine in texture. Those turbans that the brothers are wearing don't come cheap either. Amr sighs. He looks at his son, Malik. Excited face. His everyday, white shirt and white pants, that reaches to his ankles. Those sandals. Always clean and neat. Amr sighs again. He thinks disappointment.
"May I see you again?" Malik says that less enthusiastically. He wanted to smile. But he looked to his left quick. Yaseen looked him straight in the eye. Malik looked immediately down. Started fiddling with his collar. He decides to put his hands underneath his bum.
Gadija looks at Malik. She tries to hide an excited smile. She looks down. Then shyly up in Ibrahim's direction. He smiles at her. She smiles back. Then she looks at Malik.
"Insha allah." She smiles.
"Insha allah." He smiles too.
Good News
"So how did it go."
Malik's mother doesn't even wait for her son or Ibrahim to enter the house. She was sitting on the couch. Nervously biting her nails. She hoped that they would have good news.
"Salaam, Ilhaam." Ibrahim says and takes a seat.
"Salaam, Mom." Malik goes and gives his mom a kiss on the cheek. He sits down next to her. He could barely contain his excitement.
"Subhan allah!" He says excitedly. Ibrahim laughs happily too.
"It went well then, I take it?" Malik's mother puts her arm around her son and forces him to face her.
"Yes." Malik answers with a smile. "All praise be to Allah."
"She is beautiful and smart too. She's going to be a psychologist." Malik looks at his uncle. Then back to his mother.
"What else?"
"What more is there to know?" Malik asks with a grin. "She loves Allah and she wants to see me again, insha allah."
"Alhamdulilah." Says Ilhaam and kisses Malik on the cheek.
He gets up and makes his way to the bathroom.
"Uncle, it's Asr. Are you joining me?" He looks at Ibrahim .
"Give me and your uncle a second. You go and take wudhu. Your uncle will join you soon."
Malik disappears into the bathroom. Ilhaam looks at Ibrahim. He looks at his sister. His happy face disappears. She looks at him and stops smiling too.
"What is it, Ibrahim. What is it that you are not telling me?"
"Nothing, Ilhaam." He tries to hide the disappointment in his voice.
"That nothing doesn't mean nothing." She knows Ibrahim well.
"They are... well off. Rich." Ibrahim sighs and removes his topi from his head.
"Insha allah, " he says and walks to the bathroom.
Ilhaam stares into the air.
She closes her eyes.
"Insha allah."
Riedwaan
Riedwaan is sitting in his family's salaah room.
He has just finished his Asr salaah. Several sunnah salaahs after that as well. He was busy reciting the Qur'an. Abdurahman and Yaseen enters the salaah room.
Riedwaan looks up just slightly from the Qur'an, but continues reciting. Two creases form on his forehead. His nostrils widens.
Abdurahman and Yaseen finishes they're Asr salaah and each sits flat on the carpet, in front of their father.
He closes the Qur'an and puts it on a shelf next to the huge cushion he was sitting on. He gives his very extravagant turban a slight touch and just stares at his two sons.
"How many times have I told you to wear clean socks when you walk on this carpet?" His voice is soft. Yet, icy.
"Tamaaf, father." They both say at once and look at each other. Yaseen gives Abdurahman a glare. I'm going to get you, he thinks. Winner takes it all, Abdurahman thinks. He grins. Then they both look at Riedwaan.
Riedwaan breathes in deeply. He blows it out slowly.
Then he smiles. His face immediately cheerful. Almost bright. He hunches closer to his sons and asks.
"Well, what news have you got for me? The usual, I hope." He smiles cheerfully.
Yaseen looks at Abdurahman. You're
the eldest, he thinks. You tell him. Abdurahman gives him a sly look, then looks at Riedwaan. He starts.
"No, father." He coughs and clears his throat. "She likes him." He wants to smile just to make it seem like it was not the most terrible news he just gave to his father. He decides to just keep his face straight. He then looks down and starts rolling his thumbs.
Yaseen coughs and fiddles with his turban and pretends to be reading Ayat Al-Kursi, that is hanging on the wall behind his father. It is framed in a very expensive, and heavy, wooden frame.
Riedwaan's cheerful face goes red.
"Insha allah," Abdurahman says.
"Insha allah," Yaseen says too.
Riedwaan gives a cold stare into thé air.
Baklava
"He is very attractive, Mom."
Gadija slowly peels another layer of the pastry and puts it in her mouth. She smiles to herself. She looks at her mother sitting opposite from her.
They're sitting at the kitchen table. A large plate of yummy desserts, right in the centre, between them.
Rhoda watches her daughter and takes another piece of baklava and puts it on her plate. She skillfully takes a small piece of the baklava using only three fingers of her right hand. Her left hand rests on her lap. She lets the baklava melt in her mouth. Closes her eyes with slight satisfaction. She utters under her breath.
"Alhamdulilah."
She sighs and smiles. Then she looks up at Gadija. Observes her daughter's excited face. Gadija's cheeks were slightly red.
"What do you mean?" She asked curiously. Having seen Malik herself, she would like to know what it is about him that her daughter finds attractive. Why this one? That is what she really wants to know.
Gadija smiles naughtily. Then twists her