SATURDAY MORNING 10: 03AM
Maryam: Someone's at the door, let me get it first. (She opens the door and suddenly stiffens.)
Mustakeemah: As-salamu alaykum, Sister Maryam! (She smiles brightly.)
Maryam: Wa alaykum as-salam... (nervously)
Mustakeem: Can we come in?
Maryam: Sure! Please come in. (She makes way for them, still in disbelief.)
Twin's Parents: As-salamu alaykum! (They check out the house.)
Maryam: Let me go get my parents too. Mum! Abu! You have guests!
Mustakeem: (about to sit when Mustakeemah slaps his neck) Yo!!
Mustakeemah: This is why I think you're too young to be a father. You're the reason we're in this mess, and you have the nerve to sit? Even Mom and Dad are still standing. (She whispers.)
Dad: My friend, will you get up? Senseless fool!
Mom: Sometimes I wonder why I gave birth to you, I swear to God.
Mustakeem: I'm sorry. (He stands next to Mustakeemah, giving her a terrifying stare.)
Mustakeemah: (rolls her eyes and looks away as they await the family.)
Maryam: (joins them in the living room) So sorry, sirs. They'll join you soon. Please, have a seat.
Mustakeem: (about to sit but notices the deadly stares from his family) I wasn’t sitting.
Dad: Thank you, my dear, but we'll stand until they fully welcome us. We don’t even deserve to sit for the pain our son has caused your family.
Maryam: (lowers her gaze and excuses herself with a bright smile.)
After five minutes of standing...
Ummu: (enters the living room) As-salamu alaykum...
Everyone: Wa alaykum as-salam (nervously)
Ummu: Subhanallah! We're so sorry for keeping you waiting. My husband will join us soon. Don’t tell me you’ve been standing all this time?
Dad: Actually, we deserve any punishment. We don’t deserve your kind hospitality.
Ummu: What are you saying? Please, have a seat.
Mustakeem: (finally sits hurriedly)
Mustakeemah: (giving him a deadly glance)
Dad: Mustakeem! Get up!
Mustakeem: But, Dad!
Dad: I said get up before we disgrace ourselves here.
Mustakeem: (sadly obeys)
Mom: (turns to Habibah’s mother) We're so sorry for the inconvenience and the pain he has brought to your family. Please, find it in your heart to forgive us.
Ummu: My daughter made mistakes as well. There is nothing we can do but accept our trials.
Abu: (finally joins them) As-salamu alaykum.
Mustakeemah's Family: (all rise as a form of respect)
Everyone: Wa alaykum as-salam.
Abu: Please, have a seat.
They obey except Mustakeem.
Abu: And you, young man?
Mustakeem: I'm okay like this, sir. (suddenly moves closer and prostrates) Please forgive me for stupidly impregnating your daughter.
Ummu and Abu are shocked and try to help him up, but he declines.
Dad: Please let him remain like that until you forgive him and until we finalize this issue.
Abu: Get up now! Young man! I'm not Allah! GET UP! (raises his tone, making Mustakeem stand by force)
Mom: He's still angry at us.
Mustakeemah: He's not angry, Mom. Your way of apologizing isn't enough. Only Allah can forgive like that.
Ummu and Abu are suddenly impressed with her statement.
Abu: Masha Allah! You seem to be knowledgeable about Islam and Sunnah. (notices her full attire) Masha Allah! This is the type of friend I wanted her to have. Anyway, whatever happened was destined to happen.
Dad; we know… that’s why we are here to finalize on the issues.. and we are ready to perform our responsibility as the parents of your daughter’s unborn child.. please forgive him, he is so foolish and stupid. Abu: it ok… they have done what they wish to do.. and I hope now they’ve finally achieve their aim. Mum: thank you so much for understanding, and ummu Habibah! I am so sorry for how I treated you that day, for defending my stupid son not knowing he is capable of doing more than that… I was just a naïve mother looking out for her children.. please find it in your heart to forgive me. Ummu: may Allah swt forgive us. Dad: so, how do we settle this case? What do you have in mind sir? Abu: (turn to his wife) call her out…. Ummu: (nodded in affirmation) please excuse me. Few minutes after. Mustakeem: (happy to see her but worried about her so much weight loss) Abu: there she is.. have a seat my dear. Habibah: (bright smile on her face as her mother assist her) assalam alakum sir and ma. Mum and dad: walaykum salam my dear, how are you feeling? Habibah: alhamdulilah.. I feel better thanks to my Dad. Abu: alhmadulilah things are falling into place, I never thought moment could happened between this two families but we plan and Allah makes it happen, like we said earlier, what is meant to happen will happen and what really matters the most is learning from our mistakes… especially me. I wasn’t a good father and a husband to my family at all.. I thought if I show them much love, they will be mislead… but look at us now.. even worse.. I was never a good father to my children.. I was so mean to them tll they shiver in fear anytime they hear my footsteps but I was feeling was happiness that they wont dare commit any sins that could land them in great danger.. but I never knew the danger it was digging for me instead. My children fear me so much than a stranger, they are scared of me so much that, if they are being chase a dog and I wanted to save them, they will choose to be bitten by the dog and run after me. i have never for once see them smile because of me.. they never watch a movie with me, they prefer to have their meal in their room rather than eat with me.. but I was so foolishly happy thinking I have everything in tact. The same way she despises me so much that she had to live a wayward life and intentionally sleep with him just to punished me and teach me a lesson which I am learning now. If I was a good father I’m sure all these wuldnt have happened. Ummu: (hold his hand) this isn’t your fault. Abu: yes it is…. I was a bad father! Ummu: no you are not! Dad: same with me.. I was a bad father as well. Mum: no!!! you have nothing to do with this, everything that happened in our family was all my fault.. so don’t blame yourself.. sometimes I don’t even think I deserve to be called a mother, sometimes I don’t think I deserve to give birth to Mustakeemah.. as you can see.. she is so different from the rest of us.. the moment I found out my daughter wore hijab I had hated her so much, on what reason? Because I was blinded by what people might say.. what people might think of me and my family, I thought by preventing her from wearing hijab I thought I was guiding and protecting her but instead she was only try to open our eyes to see the reality.. I have caused her so much pain just because she wants to focus on her deen so bad.. I almost naked her in the street because of that.. I burnt all her hijabs and hit her several times.. I even gave her so much chores anytime she wish to pray.. now do you see that am a bad mom? A very bad mother who want nothing but hell for my family.. we don’t pray at all but she makes me realise the bitter truth about life… (tears streaming down her face) you see this skin of ours? It hate the truth… and the truth must be told.. my body hate the truth so much because of how bitter is it.. the truth is hard to swallow but once we did.. it so incredible and change ones life for better.. and here you are wanting a religious life for your kids but she still choose the wrong path and we have one of us who wanted to guide us and what did we give her in return? Pain! We sent her away! (couldn’t control her emotions)
Dad: We know... that's why we're here to finalize the issues. We're ready to perform our responsibility as the parents of your daughter's unborn child. Please forgive him; he's foolish and stupid.
Abu: It's okay. They've done what they wished to do. I hope they've finally achieved their aim.
Mom: Thank you so much for understanding, and Ummu Habibah, I'm so sorry for how I treated you that day, for defending my stupid son, not knowing he is capable of doing more than that. I was just a naïve mother looking out for her children. Please find it in your heart to forgive me.
Ummu: May Allah forgive us.
Dad: So, how do we settle this case? What do you have in mind, sir?
Abu: (turns to his wife) Call her out...
Ummu: (nods in affirmation) Please excuse me.
Few minutes later...
Mustakeem: (happy to see her but worried about her weight loss)
Abu: There she is. Have a seat, my dear.
Habibah: (bright smile on her face as her mother assists her) Assalamu alaikum, sir and ma'am.
Mom and Dad: Wa alaikum assalam, my dear. How are you feeling?
Habibah: Alhamdulillah, I feel better, thanks to my Dad.
Abu: Alhamdulillah, things are falling into place. I never thought a moment like this could happen between our families, but we plan, and Allah makes it happen. Like we said earlier, what is meant to happen will happen, and what really matters most is learning from our mistakes, especially me. I wasn't a good father or husband to my family at all. I thought if I showed them too much love, they would be misled. But look at us now, even worse. I was never good to my children. I was so mean to them until they shivered in fear every time they heard my footsteps. I mistook their fear for happiness, thinking they wouldn't dare commit any sins that could land them in danger. But I never knew the danger I was digging for myself. My children fear me more than a stranger. They are so scared that if they were being chased by a dog and I tried to save them, they would choose to be bitten by the dog and run after me. I've never seen them smile because of me. They never watched a movie with me; they preferred to eat in their rooms rather than eat with me. But I was foolishly happy, thinking I had everything in order. The same way she despises me so much that she had to live a wayward life and intentionally sleep with him just to punish me and teach me a lesson, which I am learning now. If I were a good father, I'm sure none of this would have happened.
Ummu: (holds his hand) This isn't your fault.
Abu: Yes, it is. I was a bad father!
Ummu: No, you're not!
Dad: Same with me. I was a bad father as well.
Mom: No! You have nothing to do with this. Everything that happened in our family was all my fault. I don't even think I deserve to be called a mother. Sometimes I don't think I deserve to have given birth to Mustakeemah. As you can see, she is so different from the rest of us. The moment I found out my daughter wore hijab, I hated her so much. Why? Because I was blinded by what people might say, what people might think of me and my family. I thought by preventing her from wearing hijab, I was guiding and protecting her, but instead, she was only trying to open our eyes to reality. I caused her so much pain just because she wanted to focus on her deen so badly. I almost threw her out into the street because of that. I burnt all her hijabs and hit her several times. I even gave her so many chores anytime she wished to pray. Do you see now that I'm a bad mom? A very bad mother who wants nothing but hell for my family. We don't pray at all, but she made me realize the bitter truth about life. (tears stream down her face) You see this skin of ours? It hates the truth, and the truth must be told. My body hates the truth so much because of how bitter it is. The truth is hard to swallow, but once we do, it's incredible and changes one's life for the better. Here you are wanting a religious life for your kids, but she still chose the wrong path, and we have one of us who wanted to guide us. What did we give her in return? Pain! We sent her away. (She couldn't control her emotions.)
Dad: I am also at fault! I always focused on their success in this world but forgot they have their own needs too. I didn’t care about the lifestyle they chose. I didn’t urge them to pray but only pushed them to excel in their studies so I could brag to my friends and family. I never gave her a listening ear, and now I can't even look her in the eye because I’m ashamed of myself. But I want her to know how proud I am of her, not just for that, but for keeping herself away from men and protecting herself for her future husband.
Mustakeemah: (already in tears) Dad...
Abu: (sadly smiles) This is how much I want my daughters to make me proud as well. But I wasn’t good enough to them for them to make me proud. I'm ready to fix things and make things right. We are two families at odds, but the amazing thing is that we’ve realized our mistakes and where we are lacking and we're ready to amend and rebuild the family again. (turns to his wife) My lovely wife, I am sorry for everything, for never appreciating your efforts in this family and for being there for our kids even when I wasn’t. I couldn’t imagine how much they would have wanted to even hate us if you had been mean to them as well. It's true what they say, that bad parents build a bad generation. Whatever a child does in society is a reflection of their parents and upbringing. I could see my reflection in my kids. Thank you for always giving them hope that I could still be the best father for them.
Ummu: (short of words, shedding tears of joy)
Abu: (turns to Habibah) My dear, I am sorry for not being the father you've always dreamed of. Because of me, you had to make a choice you never wanted. I promise to make things right this time around and support this child till the end. That's why I'm here to ask you today. Alhamdulillah, the father of your unborn child is here, and I want to hear your decisions about how you two are going to raise this child and ensure this innocent child doesn't feel the absence of your love.
Dad: In fact, if they are ready to marry, then I support it. And we will support him financially too.
Mustakeem: (can't believe his ears) Dad.
Dad: It's the least I could do to make things right.
Abu: That’s very wise of you, sir, but it's not our decision to make. That’s why this gathering needs to take place so we can finalize everything. So, Habibah, what do you want to do? What’s your plan for this baby and for you?
Habibah: (finally speaks) Thank you so much, everyone, for everything. I was such a fool. I was foolish to think I was wise, drifting away from the right path for worldly affairs intentionally just to teach my father a lesson, not knowing I was destroying myself. But I wasn't destroying myself alone, but generations I am yet to create. I was wrong, Dad. And I’m scared at the same time. I never expected to be a mother so soon, despite you constantly telling me to bring my suitor if I'm ready rather than committing zinah. But I never listened. The truth is, I am not ready to be a wife. I might look ready physically, but mentally, I am not. I don’t have what it takes yet to be a wife and a mother like my mom. I still have a lot to learn from my parents. I need to pick up my pieces and resume my journey of knowledge. Yes, I like Mustakeem, but deep down, we both know we are not ready.
Bright smiles on everyone’s faces
Abu: (bright smile on his face) That’s the wisest decision I have ever heard you make. In fact, I was expecting us to fix a date for your Nikkah. You know, you made me realize something. A woman can be prepared physically, but emotionally and mentally she may not be ready to be a wife. I really respect your choice, and we will help you pick up your pieces and guide you to the right path. Come here. (He embraces her while her mother joins them.)
Few seconds later...
Abu: Young man, I want to hear you say something as well. Since we’ve all listened to her view, let's hear yours.
Mustakeem: (takes a deep breath and clears his throat) Thank you so much, sir, for giving me the privilege to speak. I know I don’t even have that right, but thank you. Yes, I messed up really bad, but Habibah was right. We only liked each other and were blinded by urge. But neither am I ready to be a husband. I don’t even have what it takes to be a husband. I also have a lot to learn from my father. I want to be the best father to my unborn child. I want to support her through this journey, but I think we still need time to grow separately before coming together again. And we can't accomplish any of this without your blessing.
Dad: Wow! I never knew my son was this wise until today as well. I am proud to hear this from you, and I promise to guide you right and build you better than my father could ever build me. Come here, son. (He also embraces him.)
Mustakeemah: Would you look at that? Such an emotional moment. Alhamdulillah, this gathering ends well. What we were expecting isn’t what we met. And it's such an honor to be present here today because I really do learn a lot from each and every one of you. Habibah, I still want to be your friend. You and I first met before he came into the picture. I want to be your best friend if you don’t mind. I still want to learn from you as well, and together we can raise this unborn scholar. (Everyone chuckles) What do you think?
Habibah: (hurriedly gets up and embraces her in tears) Thank you so much! Thank you, thank you. And I am so sorry.
Mustakeemah: It's okay. Everything happens for a reason.
Mom: (can't help but admire her daughter) Mustakeemah!
Mustakeemah: Ma?
Mom: (gets up and embraces her) I am so proud of you. So, so proud of you, my dear lovely daughter. (She whispers in her ear) If you are ready to settle down, please don’t hesitate to bring your suitor. I know you are so wise and know how to deal with life situations. I love you so much, my dear.
Mustakeemah: I love you too, Mom.