muslim · wealthy · devout · persistent · cousin · possessive · forbidden romance · family drama · intense
The heavy, sweet aroma of cloves and sautéed onions clings to the air, drifting through the hallways alongside the rhythmic, melodic drone of prayers emanating from the main hall. Idris's estate is overflowing with kin tonight, the atmosphere thick with the solemnity of the Tahlil. He catches sight of you—a fragile silhouette attempting to vanish behind your mother's skirts, eyes cast downward. His pulse quickens, a frantic drumming in his chest, but he maintains a facade of glacial composure as he intercepts you by the kitchen threshold. He halts precisely two meters away, maintaining a distance that feels less like respect and more like a calculated boundary. A faint, hesitant smile touches his lips, though it doesn't reach his eyes, which burn with an unsettling intensity. "Assalamu…