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Episode Eight
Dhakiyah walked lazily on the street to their house. It was dark already and she was really tired after the day's experience.

She visited the community's library after the meeting with Ali but couldn't comprehend what she read.

She recalled what Ali had said. It was sure that he would never like Hayrah in the way expected.

Dhakiyah was shocked when she heard Hayrah's laughter from the gate entrance.

The lights brightly shone in the compound and the TV noise buzzed from inside.

She cleared her curiousity when she entered the living room. Hayrah was indeed happy.

She sat together with her mom as they watched TV along with a bowl of popcorn.

"Hey dear, I've missed you". She sang happily as Dhakiyah came over to hug them.

"How was your day Dhaki?" Her mom asked.

"Really hectic, and almost futile. Just a tiring day". She yawned, pulling off her veil and taking the bangles from her hand.

"Uh oh. That's sad to hear. Where did you got to?"

"Huh?"

"I said, where did you go to?"
Continue reading https://maryamnittywall..com.ng/2017/09/dhakiyah-and-hayrah_14.html

Episode Seven
Dhakiyah cleaned her sweaty face as she walked along the hot and busy road.

The sun shone brightly and lighted the whole city like candlelight.

She placed her wet palm on each other, longing to leave the busy road and get a breath of good air.

She wondered why she was really hot. It surely would be because of the weather...or the fact that she had a thick veil on...rather, because of her mission.

Hayrah was out to her baking class and Dhakiyah knew that it was the best time to handle things once and for all.

You have to do this Dhakiyah. You can do this!

She murmurs, crossing to the other side of the road and nervously staring at the coffee shop.

It was where they had first met Ali and they both agreed to meet there.

Dhakiyah entered the coffee shop with a feel of relief as the air conditioned room washed over her skin.

She scanned through the room and spotted Ali at the left corner, with his usual bright smile.

Continue reading https://maryamnittywall..com.ng/2017/09/dhakiyah-and-hayrah.html

Episode Six
Dhakiyah and Hayrah got to the restaurant much later than Ali. He occupied a table outside the restaurant.

The strange thing was that he had someone beside him; a male too.

"This is so not going nice, Who is this again?" Hayrah whined as they walked towards him.

Ali used a minute to stare at Dhakiyah and accessed her from head to toe. He had a satisfied look on his face as he kept his gaze on her.

Dhakiyah wished that her friend didn't notice, or more chaos will arise.

"Asalamu 'alaykum. Nice to see you again Ali". Hayrah greeted as he stood and replied.

"Wa'alaykumu salam. Same here. I'm glad to see you and Dhakiyah". He smiled at her.

"Okay, I hate to say this but this date is getting absurd. First, you let me invite my shy friend who insisted on reading for chemistry test tomorrow. Second, there's a strange guy with us". Hayrah complained.

"Oops. Pardon my bad manners. This is my best friend Nu'man. He's more like a brother; just like you two are". Ali said as he greeted both of them.

Nu'man is also handsome and cute as Ali; way more cuter. He is more of the reserved type, just like Dhakiyah.

"I guess Dhaki has found the perfect match". Hayrah smirked as she led her to sit beside him, leaving Ali to scowl.

Ali sent a warning signal to Nu'man to avoid toying with his love. Dhakiyah was someone that he was really possessive about.

"What will you girls like to have?"

"Spaghetti and meatballs". They replied in unison.

"Don't you guys ever get tired of spaghetti? Well, spaghetti you have. Waiter!..."
* * *
It was hours after the date, in their room at night. Dhakiyah sat at the reading table studying chemistry while Hayrah busied herself with the laptop on the bed.

Hayrah felt like screaming as she remembered how the outing went. It was more like a friends hangout, no sign of it being a date.

He kept talking about a lady he loves that didn't feel the same towards him. Hayrah left the place knowing that Ali didn't like her, at least there was sign of it.

He didn't show any sign of attraction towards her at all.

"You don't seem happy. Hope all is well?" Dhakiyah studied her friend as she focused on her laptop in a grumbling way.

"Why will I be? It's obvious Ali doesn't like me. How lucky that lady is".

"Which lady?"

"The lady he loves. The one he wouldn't stop talking about every single minute of the day". She scowled.

"So what are you doing now?"

"I'm looking for solutions. I'm scanning through 'Love and the People' segment on Maryam's Nitty Wall. I need to get out of all this shit". She said, almost in tears.

Continue reading https://maryamnittywall..com.ng/2017/08/dhakiyah-and-hayrah_28.html

Episode Five
Dhakiyah hardly concentrated during lectures. She thought of how awkward the outing would be and if Hayrah would notice that it was actually her that Ali likes.

She regretted convincing Hayrah to visit the coffee shop. They wouldn't have met Ali...they would never have known he even existed and things would have worked out fine as before.

"Dhaki...Dhaki..." Hayrah nudged her with a pen.

"Y..es? Hayrah..." She got startled as she drifted back to consciousness.

Hayrah gave her a suspicious look. "What is wrong with you? You've been acting strange since yesterday".

"I'm fine Hayrah. What were you saying?"

"Seriously Dhaki, I can't believe I've been ranting and speaking to myself for the past thirty minutes.
You can be unbelievable Dhaki". She said as she walked out of her presence.
* * *
It was after lectures and Dhakiyah and Hayrah left school, having the same thoughts. Only that one kept to herself while the other expressed her thoughts freely.

"I can't believe that I'm going on a date with Ali. It's so unbelievable". Hayrah threw her hands in the air, excitedly.
"Yeah. Remember the promise...we won't stay long". Dhakiyah warned.

Hayrah rolled her eyes at her. "I wonder why he even invited you along. You're no fit to outings at all".

"Remember you pleaded that I come along ".


"Oh okay. Just be yourself. Hold a smiling face Dhaki". Hayrah said as they boarded a taxi to the restaurant.

Episode Four
"Wakey wakey sleepyhead". Hayrah pulled Dhakiyah fiercely on the bed as she groaned in return.

"Why do you have to wake me up like this? I hardly had four hours of sleep". Dhakiyah mumbled as she yawned widely.

Hayrah gasped when she saw her bulgy eyes. "Don't tell me you spent all night reading chemistry".

"I didn't have a good sleep". She confessed.

Only if her friend knew that it was Ali that prevented her from sleeping.
"Aww..that's pathetic. I know you hate chemistry but you shouldn't kill yourself because of a subject".

Different from Dhakiyah, Hayrah didn't have to spend time reading. She hardly read for long. She had a high capacity to grasp what she read at a short time. It was something that Dhakiyah envied about her best friend.

"Whatever. Let's go observe subh". Dhakiyah sat down, stretching her hands.

"Oh yeah. Well, I have a little surprise for you. I didn't confess last night but I got bothered when Ali didn't give me a call. I thought he wasn't interested in me till he did this morning. The good news is that he just asked me out on a date and he wants you to come along". Hayrah giggled excitedly.

"Oh..that. I'm not interested. I've got to study". She said bluntly.

"That's not fair".

"What's not fair?"

"Turning down a gentleman's offer. Please Dhaki, do this for me". Hayrah begged.

"Okay, fine. But the date wouldn't last for more than an hour".

"Fine. Love you sis". Hayrah kissed her on the forehead as she hurried to the bathroom to brush her teeth.

Dhakiyah breathe deeply, wondering how to handle the situation.
Her phone buzzed and a message appeared on the screen.

Good morning love. Hope you had a nice rest. I can't wait to see you for our first date. Have a great day ahead. - Ali.

Dhakiyah almost screamed when she read the message. What if Hayrah get to see the message.

There was no restriction to the way they check each other's phone and if she doesn't put a stop to it, Hayrah would surely find out in no time.

Mr. Ali, it would be best if you stop sending such message or you'll damage the whole foundation I have, which is my best friend. Know that I'm coming along with Hayrah because she asked me to and not as your date. If you send such message again, I wouldn't hesitate to block you! - Dhakiyah.
* * *

Dhakiyah watched as Hayrah ate breakfast excitedly. She hasn't seen her that happy in ages. Not after Quwam broke her heart. She knew that she'd be doing a big crime if she love Ali.

Her best friend love him. That was what mattered.

"Hello lovelies". Hayrah's mom entered the dining room all dressed for work.

"Asalamu 'alaykum ma".

"Wa'alaykumu salam," She hugged them, "How are you doing my daughters?"

"We're perfect!" Hayrah quickly answered, dipping a huge roll of bread into her mouth.

Continue reading https://maryamnittywall..com.ng/2017/08/dhakiyah-and-hayrah_16.html

Episode Three
It was night and Hayrah still wouldn't stop talking about Ali. Her bestfriend knew that she had fallen in love with him, more reason why she should take her mind off him.

"I feel different Dhaki, in a way I haven't felt before. More than what I felt when I met Quwam". She said, cleansing her face after the night shower.

"You've said that countless times today. Will you help me concentrate on my book? We're having chemistry test next tomorrow" Dhakiyah scowled, wishing she could digest all the formulas in a second.

She regretted not staying back at school to read. The thoughts of Ali and Hayrah's whimpering wouldn't have distracted her.

"I'm sorry but your sister is in love". She grinned at her, pulling her hair into a bun.

"I think you should go to sleep Hayrah".

"Of course...and dream about Ali". She chuckled, bouncing on the bed and pulling the covers over herself, "Goodnight Dhaki. Please switch off the lights before sleeping.

"Goodnight" She replied.

Dhakiyah thought he could finally concentrate on her reading but she was wrong. The thoughts of Ali clouded her mind, his captivating eyes, smile and the way he had looked at her.

She knew it was wrong liking him because her best friend had liked him first. She had no right to like him.

After series of attempt, she conceded to closing the book and sleeping. At least that would take her mind off him.
Episode Four

Dhakiyah stared at the ceilings in the dark, growing very confused.
Dhakiyah stop this. Hayrah loves him. She liked him first. She made the first move. You were late. Forget about him and move on. She thought as she closed her eyes and tried to catch sleep. She thought.

Just then did her phone buzz. She checked the caller ID and was shocked to see that it was Ali calling.

"Asalamu 'alaykum Dhakiyah". He sang, his strong voice making her shriek nervously.

"Do you know who you called? This is not Hayrah".

Continue reading https://maryamnittywall..com.ng/2017/08/dhakiyah-and-hayrah_10.html

Episode Two
Dhakiyah didn't know what Hayrah could have said but she got him to follow her, holding his cup of coffee.

The thing is, Hayrah was the very bold one. Whenever Dhakiyah liked someone, Hayrah will take up courage to tell him Dhakiyah's feeling.

"Dhakiyah, this is Ali. Ali, meet my best friend Dhakiyah". She said as he smiled at Dhakiyah, taking a seat amongst them.

The three got talking and Hayrah kept talking about herself. She made herself the centre of discussion as she talked about her likes, what she loves to do and about her dreams and aspirations.

Thirty minutes later, Hayrah excused herself to the ladies and Dhakiyah was left alone with Ali.

She felt very uncomfortable not just because she was shy, but because she is liking the same guy with Dhakiyah.

She caught him staring and kept her gaze at the cup of coffee in front of her.

"Your name is lovely. What does it mean?"

"Huh?" Dhakiyah got startled by his question.

"I mean your name. What does it mean?"

"Oh. It means bright, intelligent". She smiled lightly as pink colour flushed her cheeks.

"That's nice. So you guys are best friends?"

'We're literally sisters. We live together". She happily said.

She was proud to tell anyone that Hayrah was her sister. She was someone that has stood by her at all times.

"Wow. You might be sisters but you two do not really look alike. I've spent over thirty minutes here and I haven't heard a word from you. I have known 99% of who Hayrah is but I have no iota of knowledge about who you are". He said.

"Well...you know my name is Dhakiyah. I'm an orphan and I was adopted by Hayrah's Parents. I'm an engineering student and I love to paint during my spare time..." She said as Hayrah returned from the toilet.

"You wouldn't mind my friend Ali," She said, adjusting her veil and taking her seat, "She is really shy but she'll feel comfortable when she knows you better". Dhakiyah said.

"Okay ladies, I'm sorry to tell you this but I have to leave now. I need to catch up with work. Do you mind if I get your numbers?"

"Yeah!" They said in unison.

They exchanged numbers and Ali go up from his seat. 'It was nice meeting you guys. Nice coffee with two lovely ladies". He placed his cup high in the air and grinned.

Ali waved at them and left the coffee shop, leaving Hayrah to giggle wildly.

"Okay Dhaki, what would you say about my choice this time. Isn't he cute?"

"He is". Dhakiyah smiled ruefully.

"I really don't know but I believe he's the one for me. Let's go home and celebrate my breakthrough from being single". Hayrah screamed as she led Dhakiyah out of the coffee shop.

A/N: Hi everyone. So this story will be a really short one; not as long as 'The Letter' and 'Love by Fate'. It won't be a weekly episodal story. It can be posted even thrice in a week so watch out!

Yeah, I got to read the comments of some members of Muslim marriages about my post and there was an argument between two to three people.
The argument was all about people falling in love at first sight. In the first episode, Hayrah said, "It seems that I've seen my husband..."

What I'll say is that there is no one direct formula to falling in love. Love is by destiny. Some fall in love at first sight and some do not till years after they've met. Different stances work for different people.

I hope I get that cleared.


Happy reading!

Never Give Up!
“Most of the important things in the world have been accomplished by people who have kept on trying when there seemed to be no hope at all.” - Dale Carnegie.

A happy Friday to you and welcome to the best day of the week. TGIF!!!
It’s been a while this segment has been published but we’re all glad it’s back again.

Okay, the three lettered words above may be simple to say and believe but difficult to accept.

Most of us have lost many achievements because we gave up, we halted and turned back when passing through the road to success.
There’s hardly anyone who doesn’t know at least three success quotes by memory. It is easier to say or use as a status update but difficult to implement.

We see successful people and take them as our role model. We want to be like them. We wish to be like them. We pray to be like them.
How many of us have read what they experienced to become successful? The simple rule is to never give up!
I’ll give you stories of successful people and how they never gave up on their dreams.

Who is not familiar with the renowned author of the Harry Potter series; J.K. Rowling?

J.K. Rowling had gotten a divorce, was on government aid and could barely feed her baby in 1994.

She was so poor that she couldn’t afford a computer or even the cost of photocopying the 90,000-word novel. She manually typed each version to publishers.

Her novel was rejected dozens of times until Bloomsbury, a small London publisher have it a second chance after the CEO’s eight year old daughter fell in love with it.
J.K Rowling is one of the top richest women in the world and has million copies of her novel sold.

Colonel Sanders is the owner of the popular KFC. Here’s his story;

Colonel Sanders received his first social security cheque of $99 at the age of 65. He was broke, owned a small house and a beat up car.
He made a decision that things had to change. His friends used to like his chicken recipe very much and since that was the novel idea he had, he decided to act upon it.

He left Kentucky and started his travels to different US states to sell his idea. He would tell restaurant owners that he had a chicken recipe that people liked and he was ready to give it to them for free, in return for a small percentage on the items sold. He got rejections, but did not give up. In fact, he got 1000 rejections.

He got to 1009 before he got his first YES. With that one success, Colonel Hartland Sanders changed the eating habits of the whole world with Kentucky Fried Chicken, popularly known as KFC!

I remember vividly years ago when I watched The Teju Babyface Show. He had interviewed the blogger, Linda Ikeji. When asked how long it took to gain the success and popularity, her reply was that she had spent four years posting on her blog. She never gave up. She visited cyber cafes and kept on using her money to post articles till she gained a name.

The rule still remains to never give up! I hope you learn from these success stories and use it to shape your lives... yes, you can read the exclusive interview of a talented artist, Nnadozie Ekene on Saturday.

As always, life is an art. It is beautiful and lovely. Yet behind those aesthetics and design are challenges and disappointments. Life is not always the way we want it to be. Just never give up, laugh loudly, forgive quickly, love truly and never forget anything that made you smile!

Maryam AbdulWahab, Life is an art.
“Never give up, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn”. –Harriet Beecher Stowe.

Suicide Should Never be an Option
"The bravest thing I ever did was continuing my life even when I wanted to die". -Juliette Lewis.
Welcome to another episode of 'Life is an Art'.

I'm sure we've all heard about the death of Linkin Park lead vocalist who died from suicide at the age of 41.

Personally, I don't see any reason in committing suicide. Life itself isn't permanent...so why do we have to end it before it is due on us?

We have no right to the life we have. It was bestowed on us by God and He has the final say on when we end it or not.

I've heard several news of people dying because they missed out on something they wanted badly in life or they got hard broken by someone who they cherished with all of their heart.
Suicide is like telling yourself, "My life isn't worth it. There's no use wasting much time on earth because I'm a failure".

A person who resigns to killing himself feels that he is unhappy compared to the rest who are successful and doing well in life.

The fact remains that everyone, in one time or the other, feels pained. Everyone will face trial, lose a loved one, miss out on something he wishes to achieve and feel unhappy once in a while. Seeing smiling faces doesn't mean that everyone must be happy at all times.
Committing suicide relates to lack of contentment, selfishness ('cos you'll be leaving your loved ones in a devastating state), lack of faith in God and not appreciating the blessings He has showered on you.

My sister once told me about a friend of hers who almost committed suicide. He had lost a huge sum of money and he felt like slitting his arm and ending it there. She had to do a lot of talking to make him feel better.


Well, this segment has been on a hold for weeks and I'm glad to be here again. I've been quite busy for the past months. Combining works with the blog is not an easy deal. The good news is that The Nitty Wall is a year...yay! I thank all the Nitty Wall fans. You all are incredible.
We're rounding up 'The Letter' with just two episodes and a new novel series 'Dhakiyah and Hayrah' is here. If you've not seen it, then you should because it will be more than a week per episode. We could have like three episodes in a week and more so, it isn't as long as 'The Letter' and 'Love by Fate'.

It's a great Sunday and I hope we enjoy every bit of it before Monday comes with its big task.
Life is an art. It is very beautiful and lovely. Although, behind those lovely designs are mistakes and errors. Life is not always the way we want it to be but it is our duty to make ourselves happy.
Remember that life is very short to be unhappy. So forgive quickly, love truly and never forget anything that made you smile!!!

You can check me out through this social media platforms:
WATTPAD: @mareeam802
Twitter: @mareeam12
Nairaland: @mareeam802
Facebook: Maryam's Nitty Wall
You can send a personal mail to mareeam802@gmail.com if you have contributions and suggestions.
Have a great day and be happy!
maryamnittywall..com

Maryam Abdulwahab, Life is an Art.