Chapter 9

                                    

                                          
Life is difficult. Some things come unplanned, and many are forced. Growing up in the village, Maheen had very little exposure to the outside world. Getting married right out of high school was never her plan. Honestly, all she ever wanted was to breathe without getting suffocated in this village. To run on the large grounds like she used to as a kid, to swing to her hearts content and jump in the lake. 
Freedom was when she cycled in the early morning during her high school days, the mist still clinging to the fields like a lover's embrace. The path ahead was unclear, shrouded in fog, but Maheen would pedal on, her heart pounding with the thrill of the unknown. The village would still be asleep, and in that quiet hour, she would often find her peace, her rebellion against the life chosen for her. She closed her eyes, imagining herself on the cycle not in the wedding attire. 
She imagined the sun peeking over the horizon, casting a golden glow on the dew-kissed crops. She stopped at the edge of the lake. She dismounted, letting her fingers trail in the water, cool and liberating. This was her sanctuary, where dreams weren't tethered by tradition or duty. Here, she was not someone's daughter, someone's wife; she was Maheen, the girl who longed for worlds beyond the green expanse of her village.
The ripples in the water mirrored the turmoil within her. She yearned for more than the domestic life that awaited her at home. Her spirit ached for the bustling cities she'd only heard of, where women could be more than just caretakers. She envisioned herself in those distant places, her aspirations as vast as the city skylines. She wanted to breathe fresh air, where a man wasn't tailing behind her.
"Maheen!" Her mother in law called her. She opened her eyes and saw Fatimah dressed up in a beautiful white suit. It seemed Fatimah and Abdullah were more obsessed with Arabian style because the sharara she wore was different. It seemed like a mix of Arabian design and Indian beads. She went to stand near the bedside table and admired her makeup. It made her face glow, the kajal suiting her brown eyes. The nose ring was small, Fatimah realised her nose was pierced recently, so she let her wear the lighter one. The bangles in her hand were quite pretty. She felt like a bride. But... what about the groom. 
Abdullah. She didn't know what to think about him, she didn't hate him but she couldn't depend on him. She couldn't trust a man who would accept the crazy traditions, a man who would be willing to hurt her for these traditions. And what were these traditions? They were there to keep women in line, nowhere in Qur, and it was allowed to hurt one's wife. 
She sighed, "I wish I was a man," when she was interrupted. 
"Why do you want to be a man?" Abdullah, who was asked by his mother to exit the room with her, asked. 
"Men have everything. They have the freedom to do whatever they want. In hell their would be more women. Imagine living in this hell and dying and going to hell once again. How is that fair?"
"If you were a man, what would you do?"  She looked out, "I would run outside barefoot into lakes a dive headfirst into the water, touch the waterfall, climb the apple tree, and sit on it. Slide and swing in the garden" girls were never allowed to do so in the village. 
Abdullah's presence, a silent shadow by the door, felt like an anchor to a life she was uncertain of. "You see, Abdullah," she continued, her voice a whisper of defiance, "to be a man in this village is to hold the world in your palm, to explore, to err, to live without the weight of a thousand eyes judging your every step."
She turned, her eyes meeting his, a silent plea for understanding. "I want to live, not just survive. To learn, to grow. I want to be the author of my story, not a character written by someone else's hand."
Abdullah's gaze held hers, a flicker of something she dared hope was understanding. "And if I were a man," Maheen breathed, her voice barely audible, "I'd rewrite the rules, not just for me, but for every Maheen that comes after. I'd build a world where freedom isn't a gift, but a right, where lakes and trees aren't just dreams but a reality for all."