Chapter 6

As usual, after completing her dawn prayer, Nabila headed to the kitchen to prepare breakfast. Upon arriving, she fed her cat, Comel, and patiently waited for it to finish eating. With a soft smile on her face and a calm heart, Nabila watched as Comel ate. Once the cat was done, she cleaned its feeding dish and began preparing breakfast. Afterward, she set the table and went to wake Zalikha and Nadia for breakfast. Zalikha declined, wanting to continue sleeping, while Nadia responded to Nabila's knock, saying she would head to the kitchen shortly.

As Nabila ate her breakfast, Nadia arrived in the kitchen, sat across from her, and served herself nasi lemak in silence. After finishing her meal, Nadia washed her hands and asked, "You're leaving this morning, right?"

"Yeah.", Nabila replied.

Without further conversation, Nadia grabbed her school bag from the living room and left for school. After Nadia left, Nabila washed both their dishes, cleaned up, and then went to her room to pack for her return to her rental home. She gathered her things in the living room before going to the kitchen to collect Comel and its supplies. Just as she finished, Izzati arrived in a taxi. Nabila stepped out of the house, carrying her belongings, and Izzati and the taxi driver helped load her things into the trunk.

After everything was loaded, Nabila said to Izzati, "Ti, let me go back inside for a bit. I haven't said goodbye to my mom yet. You arrived just as I finished setting things in the living room, so I didn't get a chance to greet her.", and she then added to the driver, "Just a moment, sir."

Surprised, Izzati said, "You haven't said goodbye yet? I thought you were all ready to leave!", while giving Nabila a playful glare.

With a sheepish grin, Nabila replied, "Hehe, I was so focused on getting my stuff and Comel to the living room that I didn't have time."

"Hmm, go ahead. I'll wait.", Izzati responded.

Nabila handed Comel to Izzati, apologized to the driver once more, and returned to the house.

Knocking on Zalikha's door, Nabila said, "Mom, I'm leaving now. Heading back to my rental."

With a groggy voice, Zalikha slowly got up, walked to the door, and grumbled as she opened it, "Ugh, if you're leaving, just go. No need to tell me. You're interrupting my sleep."

"Sorry, Mom. But I wanted to say goodbye before I left.", Nabila replied softly.

"Hmm.", Zalikha muttered, extending her hand for Nabila to kiss.

"Alright, Mom, I'm heading off now. Assalamualaikum (Peace be unto you).", Nabila said.

Zalikha returned the greeting, closed the door harshly, and went back to bed. Startled by the loud noise of the door, Nabila gently rubbed her chest to calm herself, but her heart held no bitterness. Instead, she smiled warmly. After regaining her composure, Nabila stepped out of the house, locked the door, and recited a prayer. Watching Nabila pray, Izzati thought to herself, 'God, Nabila… how do you still have such a kind heart to pray for a family that never treats you well?'

When Nabila approached, Izzati smiled and asked, "All done?"

"Yup. Let's go.", Nabila replied with a smile.

"Let's go.", Izzati said.

In the taxi, on their way back…

Izzati asked Nabila, "Are you okay?"

Nabila replied, "Yeah, I'm fine. Why?"

Izzati responded, "Nothing, just asking."

Confused by Izzati's vague answer, Nabila remained silent for the rest of the journey. Upon arriving at their rental home, they got out, retrieved their belongings from the taxi's trunk with the driver's help, and thanked him with smiles. Once inside, they went to their respective rooms to prepare for work.

At their workplace, Nabila and Izzati headed to the attendance area in the staff room, where their supervisor was on a phone call. When they arrived, the supervisor finished the call, and both girls greeted her respectfully.

The supervisor asked, "How did things go with your parents?"

Izzati responded, "Thankfully, green light.", giving a thumbs up. Nabila simply smiled in agreement.

The supervisor said, "That's good to hear."

Nabila then asked, "How's the store and the orders, Miss?"

The supervisor replied, "Thankfully, not too many orders today—just the ones we've already received. Not sure what will come later. Let's hope it stays quiet so you two can take it easy. You must be tired from traveling and coming straight to work."

Nabila said, "Oh, it's no big deal, Miss. The village isn't far, and the wake-up time is the same as here at the rental. I'm not that tired."

Izzati added, "Yeah, Miss. We're good and can work as usual."

The supervisor said, "Even if it's not far and you're used to waking up early, I still don't want you two doing too much today. Take it easy, okay?"

Both Nabila and Izzati grinned and nodded. The supervisor smiled and said, "Okay, punch in first, and we'll chat more after."

They both replied, "Alright, Miss.", before heading to clock in. Afterward, they donned their aprons and made their way to their designated workstations.

As they joined their supervisor at the customer order station, she playfully remarked, "All set with your aprons, I see.", chuckling a little before asking, "How are your study fees? Is your salary enough to cover tuition and daily expenses?"

Izzati answered, "Yes, Miss. We've been saving up, and we're using those savings to cover our diploma fees and living expenses."

The supervisor nodded and said, "Good to hear. Alright, Nabila, you'll be working here, and Izzati, you'll be over there."

Both responded in unison, "Got it, Miss," before heading to their assigned spots. Meanwhile, the supervisor returned to her office next to the staff room.

That evening...

Irman dressed casually and wore a cap to avoid attracting attention as he strolled around the flower shop area where Nabila worked, without any clear direction. He was simply following his feet, hoping to relieve the stress in his mind, which had been constantly working without rest. As he walked, he observed the surroundings and took in the sights. Suddenly, Nabila's name crossed his mind without warning. He sighed, knowing it was impossible for him to reunite with Nabila, and the longing he felt for her still lingered.

He continued walking, his thoughts still on Nabila, but his steps came to an abrupt stop, as if something was preventing him from moving forward. Curious about what was happening, Irman looked to his right, seeing only the road and some shops. But when he glanced to his left, he saw a flower shop and immediately thought of Nabila again. Then, he noticed a worker at the flower shop, and to his astonishment, the worker resembled Nabila. Without speaking a word, Irman was shocked. He recalled Zamir mentioning a flower shop worker who looked like Nabila.

As he stared at the worker's face, a smile formed on Irman's lips, realizing he wasn't imagining Nabila's face. This person really did look like her. His longing for Nabila felt momentarily eased, but his feet still refused to take him toward her. He sighed once more, but this time, a small smile remained on his face.

Without thinking, Irman took out his phone and snapped a picture of Nabila without her or Izzati noticing. It just so happened that no one else was around to see him. After taking the photo, he smiled while looking at Nabila's picture on his phone, then put the phone away. Irman walked away, feeling both calm and sad, still longing for Nabila.

Irman took out his phone and dialed Zamir's number.

"Hello, Mir. Where are you?" - Irman 

"Hello. I'm at home. Why?" - Zamir 

"Oh. What are you up to?" - Irman 

"Just watching TV. What's up?" - Zamir 

"Nothing much. I was thinking of asking if you'd join me for a meal nearby. But only if you're up for it." - Irman 

"Yeah, sure. Give me a minute to tidy up. Where is 'nearby'?" - Zamir 

"The place you went with your girlfriend. The one Rias booked for you last time." - Irman 

"Oh, that spot. Okay. Send me the location in 10 minutes." - Zamir 

"Alright. Thanks, bro." - Irman 

"No problem. I'll clean up real quick. See you there." - Zamir 

"Ok." - Irman

As the last of the orders were completed and no customers were around that afternoon, Izzati took the opportunity to talk to Nabila.

"Nabila, sit down for a bit. I need to ask you something.", Izzati said.

When Nabila sat, Izzati immediately asked, "How was your mom this morning when you said goodbye?"

Nabila, confused, replied, "What do you mean? She was fine."

Izzati sighed and clarified, "I don't mean her health. I'm asking about how she treated you."

"Oh, that. It was the same as usual. Why?", Nabila responded.

Izzati let out another sigh, "I already know what you mean by 'usual.' Let's just leave that for now. By the way, I've got news—I'm also going for a diploma, but at UiTM, Samarahan in Sarawak."

Nabila smiled in understanding, "No wonder miss kept talking to both of us earlier. I was a little confused when she phrased her questions like they were for both of us. I thought I was the only one applying for a diploma. Now it makes sense why you signed me up at Politeknik Kuching and not somewhere closer."

Izzati chuckled, "Yeah, I applied for you there. Even though we won't be in the same college, at least we'll be close by. If I was in Sarawak and you were here, I'd be too worried about you to focus on my studies."

Nabila laughed, "Aww, you really care about me, huh? It's a good thing I'm not picky about where I study, or you'd have a hard time."

Izzati smirked, "See? Where else are you going to find a friend like me?"

Nabila chuckled and teased, "It really is hard to find a friend like you, one who worries about my well-being, my meals, my clothes, my sleep—even my studies. What else?"

Izzati, now slightly annoyed at Nabila's teasing, poked her in the ribs and said, "You're making fun of me, huh? I'm not that over-the-top. But you've been my best friend for so long, I consider you family. Of course I worry about you."

Nabila laughed and responded, "Yes, I was teasing you. But I'm also serious! You've really taken care of me, even down to my clothes and sleep. Like when you bought me clothes even though I already had some, or when you reminded me to go to bed early while I was distracted by TV. That's taking care of me."

She smiled and added, "And I feel the same way about you. You're like family to me, too. It's like we're sisters. If we were really related, I'd say we're twins—since we're the same age." She finished with a laugh.

Izzati laughed and nodded in agreement. At that moment, a male customer entered the shop, and Nabila greeted him with a smile and welcoming words. She began discussing flowers with the customer while Izzati watched quietly, feeling a sense of pride. Nabila, who had once struggled to interact with customers when she first started working at the flower shop, had clearly grown more confident. Seeing Nabila smile and handle the customer with ease filled Izzati's heart with happiness.