At noon, Khadijah arrived in the town of Damaturu. She slowly stepped out of the vehicle, looking around the entire motor park. She felt dizzy, and the cold she felt was intense. She walked slowly until she left the park.

She looked at the motorcycle taxi riders who kept asking her where she was going. Tears filled her eyes, but she said nothing and kept walking. She didn’t know how long she had been walking until she felt she could not continue anymore.

She saw a tree whose base was littered with pieces of sugarcane. She sat under it, breathing slowly. She placed the envelope she was holding inside her hijab. Soon she fell asleep there because of the cool breeze from the tree leaves.

She didn’t know how long she had slept until the noise of some Almajirai (Qur’anic school boys) woke her up. She quickly adjusted herself and looked around, still holding the envelope.

Slowly and with difficulty, she stood up and continued walking, though she clearly didn’t want to. She felt no hunger yet, only weakness.

After another long walk, she saw a mosque. She took a kettle filled with water and sat at a corner to perform ablution. Then she prayed the prayers she had missed near a nearby shop. After returning the kettle, she continued walking again.

By the time the Maghrib prayer was called, Khadijah was still walking. When she reached a market, she wandered around it. Gradually the market began to close and people left.

She spread her scarf in front of a closed shop and prayed Maghrib and Isha. Then she leaned against the table in front of the shop. Tears ran down her cheeks. She was very cold and shivering.

Soon the market became silent as everyone went home. Even though there were many mosquitoes, she still fell into a deep sleep while sitting there.

She didn’t wake up until the call for Fajr prayer woke her.

She looked around slowly and then stood up with difficulty. She walked weakly as if a breeze could knock her down. Her heart ached terribly. Apart from pain and weakness, she felt nothing.

It was then that hunger began to trouble her badly.

She searched for a mosque that had a women’s section, but despite all the distance she walked, she didn’t find any.

Eventually she sat somewhere, hugging her knees and crying weakly until morning came and people started their daily activities.

With courage she went to the road and waited for a motorcycle taxi. Soon one stopped.

She entered slowly and said:

“Take me to a Central Mosque.”

The driver asked, “Which one?”

She replied, “Whichever is closest.”

After a short ride he stopped near a big mosque. She took out the money she had and gave him one thousand naira. He said he had no change.

Softly she said, “You can go.”

Then she entered the mosque.

She went to the women’s section, performed ablution after using the restroom, and prayed. After finishing she remained sitting there for a long time thinking. When she looked at the clock, it was 9 a.m.

She stood up slowly, took a broom, and helped the people cleaning the mosque.

After they finished, she went out and used her money to buy waina (rice cake) with soup and water. She returned to the mosque courtyard and sat down to eat.

But as soon as she took the first bite, her stomach turned violently.

She ran quickly to the ablution area and began vomiting severely as if she would faint.

After some time she returned to the mosque feeling extremely weak and lay down without caring what people thought. She curled up because of the cold and fever that suddenly overwhelmed her.

She woke up again around Dhuhr prayer.

That night Khadijah slept in the mosque. But the next morning an elderly woman who cleaned the mosque told her she must find another place to sleep because the mosque was not meant for people to spend nights in.

Khadijah lowered her head silently.

Around 11 a.m. she left the mosque. Anyone who saw her felt pity for her. Hunger and fever were clearly tormenting her.

She walked for a very long distance without knowing where she was going until she could no longer move. She thought of finding another mosque to sleep in.

While waiting for transport at the roadside, she sometimes crouched from exhaustion before standing again.

Suddenly she saw a woman trying to cross the road. A fast car hit the woman violently, throwing her into the air before she fell on the road.

Although the accident happened some distance away, Khadijah screamed in terror as if the car had hit her.

After that, she lost consciousness.

---

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself lying in a room that looked like a hospital ward with an IV drip attached to her hand.

She held her aching chest and slowly looked around the room, trying to remember what happened but couldn’t.

Then she noticed a man sitting not far from her, focused on the phone in his hand. Even though he was sitting, his height was obvious. She could see the side of his face, his thick hair, and his long nose.

She tried to sit up slowly, still clutching her chest in pain. Tears filled her eyes.

That was when he noticed her.

He quickly stood up and came closer.

“Hello… how are you feeling now?”

She stared silently at his reddish lips, amazed because she had never seen someone like him before.

He waved slightly and said,

“Hey… are you there?”

She still said nothing.

He left the room and returned shortly with a doctor.

The doctor asked,

“Hi… how are you feeling, madam?”

Seeing them staring at her, she lowered her eyes and said softly,

“Alhamdulillah.”

The doctor smiled and said,

“Masha Allah. Is there anywhere you feel pain now?”

She shook her head slightly.

“Good,” he said before leaving.

The man remained standing there with folded arms.

Khadijah asked softly,

“Why am I here?”

He replied,

“Don’t worry. You’ll be discharged soon. Before that, give me your family’s phone number so we can call them. They must be worried about you. You collapsed this morning…”

She looked at the clock and asked,

“Seven in the morning?”

He shook his head.

“No. Seven at night.”

She fell silent.

Then suddenly she remembered the accident and cried out:

“Oh no! Did the woman die?”

He frowned slightly and replied,

“No. She was also taken to the hospital. I’m sure she’s recovering.”