Chapter 95. Not Your Brother

Ahmed sat in front of her, his posture stiff, his eyes darting nervously around the room. His hands rubbed together in a continuous, anxious rhythm. Beside him sat Amna, pale and weak, her hands folded neatly in her lap. The air in the room felt heavy, laden with unspoken words and unresolved tension.

"So?" Sheharzaad tried to initiate conversation. She did her best to feign ignorance and act as if Ahmed didn't propose to her.

Ahmed opened his mouth, closed it again, and then looked at Amna as though she could somehow rescue him from the moment.

"Ahmed, you can say it," Amna spoke gently, her voice soothing but edged with urgency. "Blurt it out in one go."

Ahmed took a deep breath, visibly steeling himself. "Sheharzaad, actually, I... I mean... I know that... I'm actually here to ask for Amna's hand for marriage!" The words spilled out of him in a single breath, rushed and awkward.

Sheharzaad’s eyes widened, her body stiffening in shock. "What? But you.