I contacted Aria three days before his mother was supposed to come to my house to make sure everything went according to my plan before she left for Umrah—but not before coming to my house. Aria promised that his mother would come as we had agreed. I would tell my mother so she could be ready when Aria's mother came to our house. We chose Sunday afternoon for her visit. This morning, Aria came to help me clean the house where we would eventually live, especially the bedroom we would share after we were legally married. I decided that Aria should live with my mother and me so my mother would have someone to keep her company after I got married. I also didn't want to burden Aria with renting a place, since that would add to our expenses after the wedding. I hoped that by living with my mother, we could save some of Aria's salary and live comfortably later on. “Babe, I'll paint our bedroom door, okay? You paint the walls so everything looks nicer, and our room will become paradise someday, hehehe,” I said, unable to wait to become Aria's wife. “Of course, sweetheart. I'll give my future wife the very best,” he replied while painting the faded walls of the bedroom. This house belonged to my grandmother, my mother's mother. My aunt, my mother's older sister, had lived here with her former husband before, but after saving for almost twenty years, she had finally managed to buy a house of her own with her current husband. I lived here with my mother so that after I married Aria, we wouldn't have to look for a rental place. My mother also didn't mind Aria and me living with her because then she wouldn't be lonely. By noon, I was still painting my bedroom door while watching Aria carefully paint the walls. Soon I would become Aria's wife. I smiled to myself, feeling so happy to be spending the day with him. After the Zuhr prayer, Aria and I went to the market to buy a new rug to replace the old one in our bedroom. I sat on the motorcycle Aria drove, looking at the streets around us as a gentle breeze blew past.
“Babe, this one seems like it would suit our room. The pattern is simple too, and I really like it.” I watched Aria study the other rug patterns carefully before asking the seller about their prices. Maybe Aria was looking for something cheap but nice, I thought. I let out a tired sigh and drank some iced tea I had bought beside the shop. It refreshed my dry throat as I continued choosing which rug to buy. “Sweetheart, what do you think of this one? Does it look right?” Aria pointed to a rug with a checkerboard pattern. “Your taste is so ugly, Babe. Why would you pick something like that? I don't like it. I'd rather go with my first choice, the wood-floor pattern. It's simpler and easier on the eyes.” I always chose whatever I wanted. Even when Aria sometimes disagreed, he always went along with me, and that was what made me fall in love with him. Aria and I chose the rug we wanted and soon went home, both of us happy. When we arrived, Aria immediately and carefully installed the rug we had bought so it would look good in the bedroom we had painted together. At last, he finished putting it down. Thirsty, he drank the cold syrup drink I had prepared for him, his favorite refreshment in hot weather like this. Before I knew it, the afternoon had arrived, and I told Aria to go home and get ready to come back to my house with his mother and family after Maghrib so he could rest at home and pick up his mother.
“Sweetheart, I'm heading home now, okay? Don't overwork yourself. I'll come here with my mother and family after Maghrib to bring the rest of our wedding money,” Aria said with a happy smile. “Okay, Babe. Be careful on your way home, and let me know when you're coming here. I'll wait for you,” I replied, waving at Aria as he walked away from my house.
I immediately showered and got ready for Aria's arrival. He would be coming with his family after Maghrib, and I performed ablution so I could pray Maghrib and ask the Creator to make everything easy for us.
At exactly seven that evening, I waited for Aria and his family to arrive, but there was still no sign of them. I grew increasingly anxious. I checked my phone, but there was no message from Aria saying that they were on their way to my house.
Half an hour passed. “Honey, it's already seven-thirty. Why haven't Aria and his family arrived yet? Maybe they'll come after Isha and bring his family to our house then,” my mother said, looking worried as she waited for her future in-laws, who still hadn't shown up.
Brrt, brrt, brrt. My phone rang. I opened the incoming message and began to read it. My heart nearly stopped when I saw that it was from Aria. “Sweetheart, I'm sorry, but I can't come to your house after all. My mother hasn't been home since this afternoon and still hasn't returned. I don't know where to look for her because her suitcase for her Umrah trip isn't in her room either. Maybe she went to Bima's house to spend the night there, since she's leaving for Umrah early tomorrow morning.”
I never expected Aria's mother to show so little respect for my mother, who had been waiting for her to come and deliver the rest of our wedding money, just as she had promised long ago. I wondered if this was God's way of telling me not to go through with my wedding to Aria. Astaghfirullah, I cried, wondering why this had to happen to me. Aria's mother had canceled her meeting with my mother so casually without saying a word or even contacting either of us. My mother and I truly felt disrespected.
I called Aria and told him that we should just wait until his mother returned from Umrah so she could come to my house afterward. I also told him that I was all right. Deep down, I was disappointed, but I held it in so I could encourage Aria and keep him from becoming stressed by this problem so close to our wedding.
After calling Aria, I lay down on the bed, rubbing my chest and wondering how his mother could be so heartless toward me. I had to tell my mother that Aria's mother wasn't coming so she would stop waiting for her.
“Mom, Aria's mother isn't coming because she has to leave for Umrah tomorrow. Aria just told me that we don't need to wait for them anymore,” I said gently so my mother wouldn't be hurt by the way her future in-laws had treated her. “What? How could she cancel at the last minute without even contacting me? Does Aria really intend to marry you?” my mother said bitterly before entering her room and not saying another word.