The Untainted
Chapter 94
The university grounds buzzed with life as students slowly settled back into their routines after the examinations.
Khalid walked along one of the corridors with his friends, his hands tucked inside the pockets of his trousers.
Then he saw her.
Standing in the garden with her friends, Balkis laughed freely as she chased after Folakemi, her smile bright and carefree.
His steps halted.
Inside his pocket, his fist clenched so tightly that his fingernails dug into his palm.
His jaw tightened.
Whenever he caught sight of her, he always took another route. Yet no matter how much distance he put between them, his conscience refused to let him rest after what he had done.
He had spent countless nights thinking of ways to reconcile with her and seek her forgiveness, but nothing seemed worthy of erasing what he had done to her.
He took something so precious from her that could never be bought with money!
She was never someone who could be won over with material things from the beginning.
Even back then, she had always rejected his expensive gifts. The few she accepted were only because he had practically forced them into her hands.
For over two years, he had watched her from afar.
He would continue waiting.
She wasn't dating anyone, nor had he seen any man close to her. Perhaps she was still carrying the wounds he had inflicted.
A selfish part of him preferred it that way.
She is mine...
I'll wait until she forgives me.
Every woman who had come into his life after her paled in comparison.
He still remembered that day...
After sobering up and realizing the gravity of what had happened, shock had barely described what he felt.
Since then, something inside him had changed.
He had gradually lost interest in every other woman. Whatever relationships he entertained afterward felt empty, driven more by habit than genuine desire.
None of them were her.
Lost in his thoughts, Khalid leaned against a nearby pillar, silently watching Balkis laugh and play with Folakemi.
His friends exchanged glances.
Khalid wasn't the same man they had known before.
He had become calmer.
More restrained.
More composed.
Whatever had happened had changed him completely.
He never spoke about it, but they all remembered that dreadful night.
The night he drank himself unconscious.
He had emptied bottle after bottle until dawn before collapsing on the couch, completely broken.
None of them had questioned him.
They assumed he and the girl he never knew he loved had broken up. Just that... he never act as if he loved her. Or....
What else could have reduced Khalid to such a miserable state?
Out of loyalty to him, they kept their distance from Balkis and even chased away any man who appeared interested in her.
Surely, they believed, it was just a misunderstanding between lovers.
They would eventually reconcile.
But more than two years had passed.
Nothing had changed.
Perhaps...
Whatever happened between them was far more serious than they knew.
The group remained seated along the corridor, waiting for Khalid to snap out of his thoughts.
Then an unexpected scene unfolded before them.
"Catch me if you can!"
Folakemi burst into laughter as she sprinted across the garden.
"I'm going to deal with you today!" Balkis shouted, running after her.
Rayyan and Rihannat laughed so hard they sprawled on the grass.
Faridat watched with an amused smile beside her newest friend, Farhan, who had recently joined their circle.
They were all sitting on the field, enjoying the evening breeze.
Their laughter echoed across the garden—
Until the sound of screeching tires interrupted them.
A sleek car stopped beside the walkway.
Everyone instinctively turned.
The driver's door opened.
A tall figure stepped out.
Whitney Sulaimon.
No...
Sulaimon himself.
Every pair of eyes immediately shifted toward Balkis.
She stood rooted to the spot, equally stunned.
Her heart skipped a beat.
Because Sulaimon wasn't looking at anyone else.
His eyes were fixed on her.
He smiled before giving the others a respectful wave.
Walking over to the group, he greeted warmly,
"As-salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh, sisters. I hope I'm not disturbing you?"
Without waiting for permission, he casually created a space among them and sit down.
Completely shameless.
Then again...
Would shyness ever earn him a wife?
Absolutely not.
If winning Balkis required patience, persistence, and a thick skin, then he was fully prepared.
From everything he had seen and heard about her, he already knew she wouldn't make things easy.
Fortunately...
He wasn't in a hurry.
The girls exchanged excited looks, their smiles stretching from ear to ear.
The fact that he had walked over publicly and sit with them without caring who was watching speaks volumes.
Folakemi's mischievous grin widened.
"Balkis..."
"Are you planning to keep standing over there forever?"
Balkis shot her a murderous glare before reluctantly walking over.
She deliberately ignored Sulaimon.
Her permanent frown was meant to discourage him.
Instead...
He found it adorable.
"Won't you greet me?" he asked gently.
Balkis folded her arms.
Silence.
Sulaimon sighed dramatically.
"Oh..."
"Perhaps I should visit your house instead."
Balkis's eyes widened.
"Don't you dare!"
"What exactly do you want from me? I've already told you how I feel."
She turned on her heels and walked away.
Realizing he had pushed too far, Sulaimon quickly stood.
"I'm sorry! Please pardon me for a moment." He told the girls.
Then hurried after her without a second thought.
The remaining girls looked at one another.
Then they burst into knowing smiles.
At the corridor...
Khalid froze.
His eyes locked onto the strange man walking toward the girls.
Then he noticed something else.
The man's attention...
It was entirely on Balkis.
As though she was the only woman standing there.
A dangerous look entered Khalid's eyes.
He pushed himself away from the pillar and took a step forward.
But before he could move any farther—
Two strong hands landed on his shoulders.
His friends.
One of them, who had been the harshest in condemning Khalid's treatment of Balkis years ago, tightened his grip.
Although he had eventually forgiven Khalid after witnessing how much he had changed over the past two years.
None of them had forgotten what happened to him after his breakup.
To them, Khalid had suffered enough.
What they didn't know...
Was that Balkis had suffered far more.
They saw the fury burning in his eyes.
He was ready to fight.
And that would be incredibly foolish.
He had stayed away from Balkis for more than two years.
Now, at the mere sight of another man approaching her, all that patience was crumbling.
The two friends tightened their grip.
"Don't," one of them warned quietly.
"Think carefully before you do something you'll regret."
But judging by the storm raging inside Khalid...
Would he listen?