His Walls Are High & He's Not My Match
My schedule was pretty open this afternoon, which reminded me of the promise I'd made to my neighbor, Nisa. She wanted to talk to me, so maybe she was going through something. Nisa's life was pretty difficult too, since she had no one to share her stories with except her dad. As far as I knew, Nisa's dad was also a fairly strict man with her, but that girl was incredibly patient in facing life. I often saw her hide her gloomy expression whenever she met the neighbors. She was always cheerful and was even often praised by the neighbors for being able to live independently despite being an only child. Her dad worked out of town, and as far as I knew, she didn't have a job either. She even paid for everything the household needed with the money she earned from selling handmade crafts. That's why I sometimes felt sorry for her. She lived in her own house too. Looking at Nisa was like looking into a mirror. I opened my phone and sent her a short message. [Assalamualaikum, Nisa] I waited a few minutes before she replied. [Walaikumsalam, Sis Nayla. Yeah, Sis, what's up? Hehe], she replied. [Are you busy? I want to treat you to a meal at the new café that just opened. It's really beautiful, Nis. Super aesthetic.] [Wow! Seriously, Sis? This is perfect timing—I don't have any orders right now. Can you share the location, Sis?] [Okay, Nis. I'll wait for you.] I sent Nisa my location.
An hour later, I saw the cheerful girl walk in, looking amazed by the café we were visiting. She immediately realized that I was already sitting across from her, waiting. Nisa walked toward me with a bright smile. "Hi, Sis Nayla. First of all, thank you so much for treating me. This café is so pretty, Sis." "Hehe, you're welcome, Nis. Oh, what do you want to eat? Just pick something." After we ordered our food and waited for it, our conversation began. "Sis, sorry, can I ask you something?" "What is it, Nis?" "Have you ever dated anyone, Sis? Hehe." "I... Hmm... How should I put it?" "Hehe, so you have, right, Sis?" "Is it really that obvious that I've dated someone?" "Of course. You're beautiful, Sis, and you're established too. What guy wouldn't like you?" "Hehe. Alhamdulillah, I'm being called beautiful by someone beautiful too. But, Nis, the truth is, I haven't been close to anyone for almost six months now. Before that, I was close to a former coworker named Keenan, and before him, I briefly went through a ta'aruf process with my younger cousin's friend. Unfortunately, Keenan and I have different beliefs, while Ammar simply wasn't my match, Nis." "Oh my gosh, Sis. That must've broken your heart." "Hmm, that's how it was, Nis. Are you seeing someone? Come on, tell me about him." "Sis, before I tell you my story, can you tell me yours first? Hehe." "Hmm... Okay."
(Nayla's Love Story) [Where are you taking the Busway?], Mr. Keenan replied to my status. [To the gallery, sir], I answered. [I'll come with you.] "Wait, don't you have work?" [How about this weekend?] [The gallery's closed on weekends, sir.] [Then let's just grab coffee.] [Where, sir?] [At the mall nearby.] [I don't like coffee, sir.]
Mr. Keenan often asked me to go out, but I always turned him down. ... Days passed. Then Mr. Keenan started approaching me more intensely, first by frequently sending me WhatsApp messages. Then he started calling me. But I often ignored him.
The feelings I had for Sis Ammar sometimes exhausted me, because my thoughts were filled with him and I couldn't focus on anything else. That included dealing with the ups and downs of my business at the time. Sometimes it was life's demands that wore me out and made me wish I had someone to share my feelings with. If I told my dad, he was already tired from dealing with the story of his new family. Even though I'd told him about my problems a few times, I didn't want to add to the burden in his heart. The same went for all my older siblings, including my two older sisters, Fina and Asiah, and my two older brothers, Isa and Raffi. I was the youngest of five siblings.
Mr. Keenan's presence made my heart shine brighter and brought more color into my life. At first, Mr. Keenan and I were only friends, but he kept getting closer until the two of us grew close.
... [Nayla, what are you doing? I WhatsApped you, but you didn't respond], Mr. Keenan messaged me. [Oh, sorry, sir. I'm still busy handling orders.] [Oh, okay, baby. Keep going.] [Does “baby” mean an actual baby, sir? Am I a baby?], I asked jokingly. [Keep going, sweetheart.] [What's with the “sweetheart”?] [I've liked you for a long time, but you're as stiff as a dried-out chamois.] [Wow, what exactly do you like? Oh, is it because I always finish your assignments first?] [Everything. You've got it all.] [Got what, sir?] "Forget it, Nayla. Don't call me “sir” anymore." [Okay, Keenan.] [And don't call me by my name either.] [Okay, fine, Baby Keenan.] [I don't want to be your little brother.] [Okay, fine, Sis Keenan.] [I don't want to be your big brother either.] [Then what do you want me to call you?] [Sweetheart.] [Your girlfriend's going to get mad], I wrote. [I'm single. I don't have a girlfriend.] [Oh, okay. Fine, Mr. Sweetheart.] [If you're going to use “Mr.,” you might as well call me Mr. Husband. Hehehe.] [Hahaha.]
... The next day, we grew even closer. [Good morning, sweetheart], a notification appeared on my phone screen. I woke up, rubbing my eyes, and looked at the clock. It was already 7:00 a.m. I immediately went to the bathroom to shower, then left for the gallery. I was on my period, so I hadn't set an alarm for the dawn prayer. Once I was dressed, I left for the main road to wait for public transportation. I set Mr. Keenan's message aside for a moment. It had been almost five months since Sis Ammar had stopped contacting me. My phone had become quiet. Although a few new people had tried to approach me, I wasn't ready. The same was true of Mr. Keenan—I wasn't ready for him either. But Mr. Keenan didn't give up that easily. Before I knew it, he'd managed to steal a piece of my heart.