The Untainted
Chapter 96
The girls continued their playful banter, occasionally bursting into laughter as they waited for Balkis to return.
None of them rushed after her.
They knew she needed space.
More importantly, they knew she was hurting.
For years, Balkis had carried the concealed pain inside her without truly allowing anyone to see just how deeply it had affected her.
They all believed she needed someone who could help her look beyond the past.
And, somehow, they believed that person might be Sulaimon.
Hopefully, she would find the courage to let go of what had hurt her and take a step toward the future waiting for her.
On the other side of the university grounds, Khalid was being dragged away by his friends.
Literally.
They had both grabbed him and were pulling him down the corridor before he could do something foolish.
"Let me go!"
"Absolutely not."
"I just want to talk to him!"
"With that look in your eyes?" one of them snapped. "You're not going anywhere."
It took considerable effort to restrain him without creating a scene or attracting the attention of other students.
They knew Khalid.
They knew what he was capable of when his temper took over.
And they had no intention of allowing him to turn the university corridor into a battlefield.
Behind the Building
Sulaimon followed Balkis toward the building opposite the garden.
He knew exactly what she was doing.
She was looking for somewhere to hide until he eventually left.
Unfortunately for her, Sulaimon had no intention of leaving.
Not today.
His heart had been restless for too long.
He needed to say what had been sitting heavily on his chest.
Balkis hurried toward the back of the building, but just as she was about to disappear around the corner, Sulaimon caught up with her.
"Balkis."
She increased her pace.
He quickly reached her and gently caught her by the arm, stopping her before she could run away again.
She glared at him.
"Let me go."
"Only if you promise not to run."
"I didn't promise you anything."
Sulaimon sighed.
There was an open space behind the building, quiet and secluded enough for them to talk without an audience.
He released her arm.
Balkis immediately took a few steps away from him.
Sulaimon cleared his throat and rubbed the back of his neck cheekily
Then he smiled. He took no offence on what she did, he thought she might even rebuke him for holding her hand but what can he do to stop her?
"Bee, I know you might feel overwhelmed right now, but what exactly do you want me to do?"
Balkis opened her mouth.
He quickly continued before she could answer.
"Because I'm like this because of you."
Her eyes widened slightly.
"I can't even go a minute without thinking about you. I'm becoming a completely different person from who I used to be."
He gave a small, helpless laugh.
"My parents have noticed. Even at the office, I can't concentrate properly anymore. You won't believe that I actually zoned out during an important meeting."
Balkis stared at him.
"That has never happened to me before."
"I was trying to give you time, but I honestly can't hold it back anymore."
His expression became serious.
"Please forgive me if all of this sounds abnormal to you, but ever since the first day we met, I haven't been able to get you out of here."
He pointed towards his head.
Balkis's heart thudded.
She hated how easily his words found their way beneath her defenses.
Sulaimon continued.
"I know you're scared."
Her expression changed.
"I know you're afraid."
He lowered his voice.
"And I have a strong feeling that you've been through something terrible. Something unforgettable. Something that left wounds people can't see."
Balkis looked away.
Sulaimon's voice softened.
"Some foolish man hurt you deeply."
He shook his head.
"But I'm not him, Bee."
His eyes remained fixed on her.
"You can't compare me to a man who couldn't recognize a treasure when he had one in front of him."
Balkis's heart skipped.
Sulaimon smiled faintly.
"Actually, I'm almost grateful."
She frowned.
"Grateful?"
"Yes."
He shrugged.
"Because if he hadn't lost you, how would I have found you?"
Balkis stared at him as though she couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"A loss to him became a blessing for me."
She looked away.
Her face remained composed, but her heart was anything but calm.
It was beating like a deer sprinting for its life.
Can somebody please tell this man to stop with that sugary mouth?
She sighed inwardly.
"Sulaimon, wait."
He quieted.
"You might not know this, but I'm not who you think I am."
Her voice weakened.
"I have a past that—"
"Stop."
Sulaimon smiled.
His pearly teeth flashed as he shook his head.
"Do you think you're the only person with a past?"
Balkis fell silent.
Sulaimon walked toward a bench he had noticed nearby.
"Come."
He sat down, leaving a respectful distance between them.
Balkis hesitated before eventually sitting.
"I had a past too," he continued.
"Every human being does."
He looked ahead.
"If we insist on living our present according to everything that happened in the past, then we'll spend our entire lives trapped there."
His expression hardened briefly.
"And I don't think that bastard deserves such power over your future."
Balkis's eyes lowered.
"Unless..."
Sulaimon glanced at her.
"You still love him."
Her answer came immediately.
"No."
The word was calm, sharp and certain.
Sulaimon nodded.
"Then move on, Bee."
Balkis looked at him.
"Give me a chance." His voice was sincere.
"Don't deprive me of what my heart yearns for because of someone else's mistake. I shouldn't have to suffer for something I didn't do."
"I didn't tell you to suffer."
She turned her face away.
Sulaimon sighed. This is going to be more difficult than I thought.
But he wasn't giving up.
"Bee...."
"Stop calling me that."
He blinked.
"My name is Balkis."
"But I like Bee."
"I don't care."
"I own my mouth, and I can say whatever I like."
Balkis frowned.
"Then why are you...., stop calling my name?"
"Because it's beautiful Bee."
He smiled.
"Don't you think it sounds even sweeter when—"
"Just call me Balkis."
Sulaimon paused.
"Fine, Bee."
Balkis glared at him.
He smiled innocently.
She quickly looked away, refusing to meet his twinkling, mischievous eyes.
He's impossible.
Could she honestly say she wasn't affected by him?
No.
She was.
That was exactly why she was being so harsh.
She was afraid.
Afraid that if she allowed him too close, he would eventually bring down the walls she had spent so much efforts to build so high and strong around her fragile heart.
She wanted to push him away.
But Sulaimon seemed determined to ignore every wall she built.
He leaned his back against the wall and studied her quietly.
What could make someone this guarded if not a painful past?
He shook his head inwardly.
What an idiot that man must have been to lose someone like her.
And now that idiot had made things difficult for him.
Still... Sulaimon wasn't afraid of difficult things.
Suddenly, he stood. "I'm going back to the office."
Balkis looked up.
"Did you come from the office?"
"Yes."
"Then why did you come here?"
He smiled.
"Because I was restless." He paused. "I couldn't work. I couldn't concentrate. So I decided to come and find the medicine for my illness."
Balkis raised an eyebrow. "And?"
He smiled. "I found it."
She rolled her eyes.
Sulaimon chuckled.
"I'm good now. I can probably work again."
Even though his words sounded playful, Balkis could see the sincerity in his eyes.
And she noticed something else.
He seemed different from the last time she had met him.
He looks more calm, religious and something she couldn't name...
"Are you still visiting the club?"she asked suddenly.
Sulaimon's smile widened.
"Nope."
"Really?"
"Not after meeting you."
Balkis looked surprised.
"I realized you're not that kind of woman, and I've been trying to increase my knowledge about the Deen. All thanks to meeting you, I'm knowing my Lord better."
He paused.
"I'm trying to become a real Muslim—not just someone who carries the name."
Balkis's expression softened.
A small smile appeared on her lips.
"Alhamdulillah." She nodded.
"I'm happy for you."
Sulaimon smiled back. "Thank you."
He turned to leave, took two steps then stopped.
He looked back at her.
"Oh, and one more thing."
Balkis frowned.
"What again now?"
"I'd like to meet your parents soon."
Her eyes widened.
"What?"
"I can't wait forever, Bee."
He smiled.
"I need you in my life. In my personal space. In my home."
He paused.
"I need you there so I can finally have some peace of mind."
Balkis stared at him.
Sulaimon's expression was completely serious.
"I'm serious."
He took a step backward.
"I'll give you a little time to think about me."
His smile returned.
"Just expect me soon, in shaa Allah."
Balkis's mouth fell open.
"Pray about us."
And with that, he turned and walked away.
Balkis remained seated.
For several seconds, she didn't move.
Then reality hit her.
"What nonsense is this man saying?"
She looked toward the direction he had disappeared.
"Which parents?"
She pointed at herself incredulously.
"Did I tell him yes?"
She shook her head.
"Is he even giving me an option to say no?"
Her eyebrows rose.
"He's practically informing me to prepare myself!"
She scoffed.
"What an overbearing rascal."
Yet despite herself...
A smile slowly crept onto her lips.
She immediately tried to suppress it.
It refused to disappear.
Her mind replayed his words.
I'm not him.
Give me a chance.
I shouldn't suffer for something I didn't do.
Pray about us.
Balkis's smile faded.
She looked down at her hands.
Can I really find someone who will love me without questioning my past?
Someone who would see her as a person rather than the things that had happened to her?
Someone who would value her without making her feel broken or below him just like Khalid?
Especially someone of his status.
Her heart wanted to believe Sulaimon.
Her mind was terrified of doing so.
A battle raged silently inside her.
Emotion against reason.
Hope against fear.
Her heart against her mind.
Eventually, she lifted her face toward the sky and closed her eyes.
She needed to think.
She needed to breathe.
She needed to understand what she truly wanted.
Then...
A shadow fell across her.
Balkis frowned.
Who is that?
Her first thought was Sulaimon.
Did he come back?
She slowly opened her eyes.
The smile disappeared from her face.
Her blood ran cold.
Standing before her was the last person she ever wanted to see.
Her nemesis.
The person who had made her question her own existence.
The man who had shattered her sense of worth and left wounds that time had failed to erase.
The man responsible for the psychological scars she had spent years trying to hide.
The very person she had prayed never to encounter again...
Was standing right in front of her.