The Path to You
2) Story Premise – The Path to You is about having faith in one self. Shams, a single mother who has just gotten out of an abusive relationship, and Kabir, high school sweetheart of Shams who only has eyes for her.
Even five years after Shams Marriage Kabir hasn’t loved anyone else besides her. After meeting each other once again; tension will run high between them. As their family are against them getting married to each other. They will have to lean on each other through thick and thin. Their trust is test as family secrets are reviled and will have to come together as they face problems that is out their hand. Shams and Kabir will have to find their own way to each other’s heart as hurdle after hurdle is thrown their way.
3) Historical Background Information or Timeline -
Shams and Kabir were high School Sweetheart but broke up when Sham found out that her parents already had an arranged marriage ready for her with someone else. Shams heartbroken married that person at the behest of her parents as they threatened to cut all ties with her if she didn’t marry that person. Her Husband after finding out she had someone who else before their marriage grew jealous with anger. Having been influence by his friends he soon started to show his true self. It turned out that he was an atheist despite having been raise by Muslim parents. He was also an alcoholic, would at times come back home drunk. Under the influence of the alcohol he would beat Shams until she was black and blue. Shams Faith in Allah come to in question during her marriage as wall develops between her family and friends as she tries to break free from the chains of abuse during her marriage.
4) Main Character(s)1
Shams Abdullah – A Single mother of two kids. Recently just gotten of an abusive relationship with her ex-husband Dawud. After years of being in abusive relationship she suffers form panic attacks and depression. She believes in Allah has come into question within her heart. She struggles to try to speak up for herself against her parents and stand up for herself even as of now as her parents try to get her married to someone else. She struggle to break free form the chains that have caged her hearts and find her own way of living life.
Kabir Noor – Shams’ high school sweetheart after years of being separated from Shams he still has her in his heart. Although Islam says that polygamy is legal, he believes that a person only meets that one person they are meant to love for all their life once in their life time. His parents did try to get him married to someone else but refused threatening that he would break all relations with them if they ever brought the concept of marriage in front of him. Kabir is a firm believer in Allah and his Messenger. He spent the two years after his relationship with Shams ended in Saudi Arabia in a pilgrimage as he devoted himself to the worship of Allah.
Dawud Nasir – Shams’ ex-husband. An Alcoholic atheist despite being raised by Muslim parents. He had two children with Shams. He seems to have believe that Shams was the reason why his parents didn’t want him to get married to his college sweetheart Sarah. Although he doesn’t believe in Allah in his heart, he was afraid to tell it his parents as they are very strict Muslim believers.
5) Supporting Characters
Hani- Shams’ Mom a woman that is 50 years old very old school and completely believes that parents should arrange marriage their kids. She firmly believes that Shams’ marriage fail apart main because she believed that Shams should have to told her husband that she had a high school sweetheart. She has bad impression on Kabir mainly because he fell in love with her daughter and believes that Man and woman shouldn’t be in contact if they are not related by blood. She is against her daughter get married to Kabir even after shams and Dawud divorced and becomes the main reason why Kabir and Shams can’t get married to each other.
Abdul- Shams’ father although he loves his daughter very much. He is also very disappointed with Shams as she had contact with another man that wasn’t related to her through blood. He believed that Shams didn’t have good faith in him being able to find her a husband worthy of her and was against her getting married to Kabir after she graduated from college. After finding out the truth about Dawud he doesn’t have the face to look at his daughter in the eye any more. He now had become shut it even when he knows that his daughter doen’t blame him for forcing her to marry Dawud.
Ramla- Is ten years younger than Shams. She as was able to save Shams when she came to Shams and Dawud’s house to give her cousin the good news that she got into the college of her choice. Upon finding out how Dawud abused her cousin Ramla swore that she should never allow her parents to dictate on who she can marry in her life.
6) Locations
Hospital – The University of Chicago Medicine center for advanced care. Is the hospital where Shams ended up after her Cousin Ramla saved her from Dawud . the Closest hospital to Shams house. She was in hospital for emergency medical care for an entire month as she slipped into a coma from being beaten by her husband. The hospital “provides medical and administrative oversight for the Chicago South EMS System as part of Region 11 EMS. The Region 11 EMS Medical Directors Consortium (MDC) is comprised of four Resource Hospitals that work together to ensure the continuity of emergency medical services within the city of Chicago.” (Chicago South Emergency Medical Services (EMS) System)
Shams parents’ home – the childhood home Shams grew up in. She has lived in that house with her parents for twenty years. That house has many memories for Shams. It is located in the city area only an hour drive from shams house where she lived with her ex-husband and kids. Its located next to a park and is very close to the public school. It a very nice area to raise kids in. the neighborhood is a Muslim community that keeps with itself.
Park – A park in the out skirt of town that Shams and Kabir met each other at after Shams Divorce. The park is well known in the city for hikers. It has river running from south to north. It is a well know place family and friends get together at to spend a reunion at. It has many dense plants and green grass at. There is open space where kids can run about and parents can watch their children play.
7) Additional World Information: Although Shams was in love with Kabir and the two of them were planning to get married once they finished their college education, they were never sexually involved with each other. In Islam it was forbidden for man and woman to have sexual intercourse out of wedlock. As such things are prohibited in Islam. They were firm believers in only being able to be sexually active within their marriage.
8) Story Synopsis – Shams Abdullahi is a single mother of two children. Who just got off an abusive relationship with her ex-husband. After a month of being in a Coma and coming back to the land of the living, she has decided that she will not just nod at her parents every request and agree to whatever plan they have for her. She has decided to live for herself and her children and will not make the same mistake ever again.
Shams is then thrown into a dilemma when her old flame comes back into town. Kabir Noor, her high school sweetheart. After years of being MIA, he is back, and he is as gentle and sweet as she remembered him. Even now Kabir hasn't been married though his parents have tried to make him get married to another woman. And yet he is still very much hung up on his love for Shams. Life will not be as peaceful as she hoped as Shams tries to piece her broken heart together. While her mom decides to marry someone else, she doesn't love once again. Her ex-husband Dawud wants custody of the kids as he uses her depression as an excuse that she might end up hurting them in court.
She is left with nothing but problems as both her parents and Kabir parents try to get in between their love life. It's up to the two of them decided which path they want to take when it comes to the marriage life.
Story Excerpt -
Shams was sitting a bench a red journal in her lap a pen in her hand. She looked across at the lake in front of her in a daze. I reckon that she wasn’t even aware of what she was doing right now. She wore black abaya with white scarf. The wind breezed by even then she was in daze completely unaware of her surroundings. It like was seeing her again for the first time all over again. It was moment like this in high school as she sat in the bleachers that made me notice her that I started liking her. At the time even now it made me think “Mash ‘Allah, what a beauty you are.”
I sat down next to her and watched her from the side. I was drawn to her like moth to a flame. Her face was a bit pale and wiry with worry right now. She must have had a lot on her mind to notice me right now. I had promised myself that I wouldn’t look for her once I got back to the states and yet here, I see her sitting on a bench dazing off. I looked at the open Journal in her hand and in it was written.
Shattered
Shattered into piece
My heart bleed red
As my soul cries out load
No More Ya Allah
No More
Oh, how I wish I was back to the days my life was simple
My soul was free
Free of worry
And free to love whom I wished
No More Ya Allah
No More…
Her poem was beautiful well written. She always wrote what felt in her heart. I smiled and look right back at her and she was still in a daze. I raised my hand close to her ear snapped my fingers twice. She turned her head around in a panic. My knuckles brushed against her cheeks a bit as she moved back bit and her stayed fixed on my faced surprised. I smiled at her.
“As-salaam ‘Alaykum, Sister,” I said.
“Abir,” she said softly a while later. Her voice trembling with uncertainty. Her voice mirroring the sorrow I tried to keep deep within my heart all these years. Tears started to trail down her cheeks quietly a stretched my hand to wipe them way only to stop myself mid-way. How I wished right at that moment to do as I wanted.
“Oh, Abir” she continued and rushed at me and wrapped her hands around my neck as she held on to me continued cry. Right at that moment my mind went blank. She wasn’t the woman who got forced to marry a man she didn’t love. She was just Shams; my Sun, my high school sweetheart who needed me to be besides as she cried herself in my arms. Releasing all of her sadness and anger in my arms instead. She need her Abir, and here I was in front of her, holding her as she broke down after a long time and let her walls crumble in front of me.