Page 2 of First Comes Marriage
Contrary to popular belief about big, joint families, theirs had a positive dynamic – most of the time – and they all fitted together like puzzle pieces. Unique in their own way but a part of a whole. There was Daadi and his parents. There was him and his four brothers – Ashar,Ibrahim, Rayyan and Haroon – and since last year there was Reshma, his wife.
Reshma.
The woman after whom he was supposed to fly to the tropical destination of Mombasa, Kenya, and be a part of her cousin’s wedding celebrations. Celebrations which he was sure would go just as well without him. His hotel deal, however, wouldn’t go just as well without him, but he had no choice now. He’d have to go to Mombasa and that was that.
He didn’t mind going as such. It was more the fact that the timing was off. But given that he hadn’t taken more than a week off for his own wedding last year and hadn’t taken any time off since, he wasn’t sure that excuse would wash.
‘Why are you frowning? Did you know that if you frown like that, you’ll get permanent frown lines?’ Harry said as he observed him, a tea towel tucked in his apron pocket and oven gloves in his hands.
‘I’ve got work coming out of my ears, so much that needs my attention and now I have to go to Mombasa for a wedding because Dad and Daadi have said I have to.’
Harry blinked at him, taking a few moments to process what he’d said presumably, before a slow grin spread across his face. ‘You’re going to Mombasa? When? Can I come? No, wait. I can’t come. I told the guys I’d go away with them for a break. Maybe I can join you there.’
‘Stop thinking so hard, mate, you’ll hurt yourself. I’m not going holidaying. I’m going for a wedding. Dad wants me there yesterday, so I’ll probably be leaving tomorrow, unless he finds a flight for tonight.’ Zafar said it sarcastically, but it wasn’t outside the realms of possibility. ‘Feel free to come out there if you want. Though I’m not sure whatthe accommodation set-up is yet. Maybe let me get there and see how things are.’ He’d never say no to having one of his brothers there with him.
Harry turned back to the worktop and started preparing a salad. ‘Hmm, I probably won’t. It doesn’t make sense to go there but not take part in all the wedding events. That’s the whole fun of it.’ He and his brother had very different ideas about what constitutedfun. If only they could swap out. ‘Reshma will be happy to see you. Tell her I miss her.’
Harry and Reshma got along like a house on fire, bonding soon after Zafar had got engaged to her. ‘Well, I’m going upstairs. I need to pack and make sure I squeeze in a catch-up with the others before I have to go. Are Murad and Ibrahim around for lunch?’
‘I think so.’
Zafar hoped so. He needed to bring his friend and now business partner and his brother up to speed as much as he could before he left. He hated having to do this. He had wanted to be here every step of the way for the hotel deal and having to leave it midway like this wound him up. If Reshma hadn’t gone and …
He paused that train of thought before it gathered momentum. He wasn’t being fair here. None of this was on Reshma. It was just the hand they’d been dealt and the best thing – theonlything – he could do was get himself there, see the visit out and come back so he could pick things up where he was leaving them. Who knew, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad.
2
Reshma
A gentle breeze ruffled her hair as warm water rushed over her feet and ankles, and Reshma breathed a soft sigh of contentment. Since coming out to Mombasa, walking along the shoreline had become one of her favourite parts of the day, imbuing her with a sense of peace which she’d felt had eluded her for some time.
In these moments, with just nature for company, she felt as though all was well with the world. Perhaps she was deluding herself, but it beat the alternative of fixating on things she couldn’t change and had zero control over. Like the fact that her marriage hadn’t turned out anything like she’d dreamt it would. Or that rather than come out to Mombasa to her cousin’s wedding with her – and make a short holiday of it – her husband had chosen to stay behind in London and carry on working, much like he had for the entirety of their one-year marriage.
She huffed a sigh of frustration. So much for feeling content in the moment. Inevitably, her thoughts always veered to the same territory and led to her going through a spectrum of emotions. Well, she wasn’t going to let that happen today. She’d do what she had set out to do before coming out for a walk and that was to focus on her latest work project.
She was working on a new website for a small band that were starting out and she was hopeful that if they were happy with her designs, they might well hire her to work on their new album cover too. She’d love to have some variety in the kind of work she did as a freelance graphic designer. She enjoyed the freedom of being able to set her own hours and location of work and being here in Mombasa, with her family, the beach and uninterrupted sunshine, she’d found that she’d been more productive than she’d expected.
She’d moved further along the beach, brainstorming different ideas and making brief notes on her phone when she heard a shriek which had her looking sharply to the left.
A man had his arms wrapped around a woman’s waist from behind as he swung her up and spun around in a circle. The woman shrieked again, but there was mirth in her tone, which had the sense of alarm Reshma had first felt dissipate as she smiled at the scene unfolding before her.
They were obviously together, given the familiarity between the couple and the affection with which he was looking at her. Reshma felt a pang in the region of her heart at the sight. What would it feel like to be looked at like that? As though all his attention was solely for her. To know with absolute certainty that you were wanted, cherished and loved by a person just by the way he looked at you. Touched you. Held you.
The pang in her chest made its presence felt anew. Shaking her head at the futility of her thoughts, Reshma turned and started making her way back towards the villa, where she was staying. There was absolutely no point in letting her thoughts wander down that particular road because there was nothing but potholes of misery and chicanes of disappointment lying in wait for her. Becausethe truth of the matter was that ifhehad wanted to be here with her, he would have made the effort to be.
‘Reshma?’ She looked up to find her cousin, Saleema, a few metres ahead of her, panting slightly with her hands on her hips. She moved her arm in a come-on gesture. ‘Hurry up. We need to start getting ready and you promised me you’d help me with my hair.’
‘Yeah, come on. I was on my way back anyway.’ She linked arms with her and they both started walking as Reshma tried to banish the thoughts that had clouded her mind moments ago to focus on the present moment and making the most of being in Mombasa with her family for her cousin’s wedding.
‘Surprise!’
Reshma froze on the bottom step, grateful that the loud cheer hadn’t caused her to lose her footing in her high-heeled sandals. She blinked a few times in … well,surprise, as she took in the sight in front of her, slowly cataloguing everyone’s bright smiley faces, her own face sporting both a frown and a smile. It wasn’t a great expression, but that’s what confusion looked like on her.
It wasn’t her birthday and she was pretty sure there was no big achievement worth celebrating recently, so she had absolutely no idea why she was beingsurprisedlike this.
And then her eyes landed on him.
It was Zafar.
