Paper Dreams, Real Choices
Zainab's inbox buzzed.
She almost ignored it… until she saw the subject line:
> From Harper Publishing – Your Story Deserves the World
Her hands trembled as she clicked it open.
> "We've read The Real Wife. We believe it can be a bestseller.
Come to London. Let's talk international rights, film options, and global tours."
Her heart skipped.
London.
Book deals.
Freedom.
Everything she dreamed of.
But it would mean leaving Yusuf.
---
That evening, she told him.
He listened—silent, unreadable.
"And if you go?" he asked.
"I don't know what happens to us," she said honestly.
Yusuf nodded slowly. "Then go."
Zainab blinked. "What?"
"Go," he repeated. "You gave up everything for this marriage. If the world wants your story now… give it to them."
"But what about you?"
He smiled—soft, sad.
"I'll still be here. Loving you. Even from a distance."
---
Zainab boarded that plane three days later.
Alone.
But not broken.
Strong.
And as the flight soared into the clouds, she opened her laptop and began her next book.
Title?
> "Becoming Zainab"
Because she wasn't just someone's wife anymore.
She was her own name. Her own story. Her own future.