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S H A H R O Z

Today was their first end-of-semester exam and to say Shahroz was nervous was an understatement. He had woken up ten minutes before his alarm due to anxiousness.

This was the first time he was fully prepared for an exam and he felt butterflies in his tummy. He was prepared to score good this time.

He was prepared to finally show everyone that he wasn't a failure.

As he passed by the corridors towards the direction of the exam hall, he couldn't help but be thankful to Marina for helping him with his courses. Most of their courses were the same so that was kind of helpful.

He took a turn and his eyes landed on a scene that made his breath hitch.

Marina was standing by the gate of the hall, her right hand holding the supplies she needed for the exam and her left hand on her best friend's shoulder as she laughed at something she said.

He noticed how her cheeks puffed out a little in the cutest way, and how her eyes had that usual sparkle she had when she's happy. Her cherry red lips and the baby hairs peeking out from the top of her hijab were urging him to see her hair and kiss her.

He shook his head to get rid of such absurd thoughts. Why was he thinking like this before an exam?

He looked up and saw her waving her hand with a smile and making her way through the crowd towards him.

Oh shit.

He could see the baby hairs up close and had to close his eyes tightly in a futile attempt to calm his fast-beating heart.

And then her soft honey-like voice was heard in his ears the next second.

"Shahroz, hey ", she said as she neared him.

'Oh God she even said my name', he thought as he opened his eyes to look into hers.

"H-hey", he stuttered out, scratching the back of his neck as they walked towards the exam hall.

She tucked her baby hairs in as they always disturbed her line of vision and Shahroz couldn't have been more thankful of that.

"Did you study well?" She asked as she looked up at him and he nodded.

It was getting harder for him to speak so he had to suffice to nodding and humming in reply.

"Do you think you'll score well?" She asked with a hint of mischievousness and he magically got this burst of confidence to speak which he didn't the previous second.

"Of course, I mean Marina Malik tutored me." He winked in her direction which caused both of them to chuckle.

The bell rang to signal the call of students to enter the exam hall and he couldn't have been more thankful for that.

Who knows what could've happened to his heart if it didn't.

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He was stuck on a question on the last page of the exam, his mind panicking over losing a few marks which could cost him a whole grade.

He looked at the question again.

Which part of the kidneys does ADH have the greatest influence on?

His eyes darted around the exam hall discreetly, getting his mind off of the exam for a while to calm his brain which had worked too much for the past two hours of writing.

His eyes landed on Marina, who had finished her exam. She had cupped her hands and blew on them before wiping them on her face while mumbling something. His mind was confused over what she was doing until it clicked.

She was making duaa (supplication).

He had lost his strong faith when he was a child. He used to be the first one to pray after the athan (prayer call) and would tell his parents how he finished his salah (prayer) before all of them.

He still remembered how to pray but he hadn't done it for the past couple of years. He didn't understand how he never forgot.

He decided to make duaa and see if it would help him at the moment. He checked his watch and there were a good thirty minutes left for the exam time to be finished.

He dropped his pen and brought his palms up and curled them in the same way she had done before mouthing out some words which surprisingly calmed his heart from its panicked state.

"O Allah, please help me with my exam which I had worked so hard for."

He blew softly on both of his palms before wiping his hands down his face.

He knew it was a very short duaa but he had to go with it for now.

He picked up his pen and continued with the rest of the questions, planning to come back to this one in the end.

Only fifteen minutes were left and the question was still racking his brain. He had finished the rest of his exam and was tapping his pen against the table repeatedly in frustration.

His hand went below his chair to pick up the bottle of water which he'd brought in. His hands twisted the cap before bringing his lips near the opening.

As he was taking small sips to quench his thirst, his mind popped with a word and his eyes widened.

He got his answer.

He quickly closed his water bottle despite being slightly thirsty and grabbed his pen. He scribbled down 'medulla' on the line and closed the pen's cap.

The papers were immediately collected and as he was packing his supplies, he couldn't help but mumble one thing with gratitude.

"Thank you, Allah."

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Hey there peeps! I hope you enjoyed this chapter just as much as I did writing it. I liked the second part the most though. Anyways, stay strong and InshAllah He blesses you with much more than you expect!

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