"Joy does not befit you."

"Joy does not befit you."

Those mocking words escaped Zahra's lips, accompanied by a smirk, after Daliah arrived home with her brother, visibly shattered. Her brown eyes were swollen and inflamed, every breath a sob. All she managed to say was, "He divorced me—for her. I did nothing wrong, I obeyed him, did everything he wanted, sometimes at my own expense. He would disappear, and I would forgive him, thinking he was away for work, but he was with her."

She fell silent, tears streaming down silently. In the ensuing weeks, she kept recalling more, each memory growing more painful. When her sister offered to show her pictures of them together on a trip, Daliah weakly asked, "Aren't you on her side? Won't you cut ties with her?"

"What nonsense are you spouting? She's my friend. I won't end up like you, without any friends," her sister replied with a smile, leaning in close. "Joy does not befit you."

Daliah's eyes widened, meeting her sister's gaze defiantly. "It all began right after the marriage, didn't it? He could never resist her charm." Her sister said.

It dawned on her then that this was all orchestrated by her sister. But why? That was the question she asked herself. Zahra had always been the epitome of beauty in their family, always accompanying their mother to women's gatherings, overshadowing her because she was less attractive. They both had black hair, but her sister's was healthier and thicker, while she struggled with thinning ends. Her sister had clearer skin, free from stubborn acne scars that plagued her. Zahra possessed almond-shaped eyes with sky-blue irises, a rarity in their circle, while hers were round, brown, lacking that sparkle. Her grandmother used to console her, saying, "If there's anything to indicate, it's your warm brown eyes."

Zahra left the room, leaving Daliah alone with her escalating pain due to her sister's words. No one checked on her or offered any words of solace. Her unfortunate mother lamented, "Didn't I tell you to preserve your marriage? You were lucky to get married because of your ugliness, and now he left you for another woman. It's impossible for her to be more beautiful than you, you fool."

Her father advised her to be patient, reassuring her that if she was destined for another marriage, it would come without fail. However, her mother exclaimed, "Another marriage? She got divorced just a year after the first one. Everyone will know she's stupid and ugly."

Ironically, stupidity was what she had battled against all her life. She always excelled in school, graduated from college with honors, yet all her mother saw was beauty, which was deeply frustrating. Then, a man proposed to her through her aunt, and everything progressed smoothly and swiftly. Joy engulfed her; there was someone who proposed to her despite her sister's presence. But as she recalled the scene earlier, she remembered her sister insisting on serving the guests, leaving her to sit as the guest of honor. She recalled overhearing her mother and aunt whispering about rushing things, not understanding why until now. She also now understood her mother's rebuke to Zahra when she bluntly said, "Do you want to cut off her fate? I cannot believe it happened; it will come to you even better."

A full year later, she heard that he had been blessed with a son. She remembered how he had avoided her by saying he didn't want children, recalling his distance from her, his time spent abroad, and his sleep when she was awake. She made him special dishes but always apologized for not eating because he was hungry or because there was an issue with the food.

In the end, she began to believe her mother might be right, "people like you are better off living without any attachment, let alone love. That's why we taught you well, so you wouldn't have to beg when we pass away. Perhaps you will never marry. Are you thinking about love?" That was her mother's reply one day in happiness when she heard the love story of her grandfather and grandmother again. "I wish my husband would love me as my grandfather loved my grandmother."

She remembered how tears silently flowed in her room. She recalled the same words her grandmother uttered the first time she heard the story, "I pray to Allah that you marry the best of men, someone who gives you his love and cannot bear to see you sad, someone who stands by you in joy and sorrow."

Daliah wiped her tears, stood up, and shook off her thoughts. She had lived in sadness for a long time for someone who didn't deserve her. She feared there would be no one beside her in old age, seeing their grandchildren together. She feared such a person would not exist in her life. So, she held on to hope for change. Now, after a year and a half of solitude and deep reflection, Daliah emerged with a realization she had forgotten: "What is meant to happen will happen."

And then, the event that changed her life began.

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