2. Remembrance

LEONA'S POV



Leona — Eight Years Ago

Dear Leona,

I don’t think I tell you enough how beautiful you are.

I know we’re just friends, and friends probably shouldn’t say things like this, but I can’t help it.

I like it when you smile.

Why don’t you do it more often?
I know school is a lot. The expectations from your parents can feel heavy. But the world shouldn’t be deprived of the radiance that is Leona.

Yesterday you let your hair down.
Have you ever really seen yourself, Leona?

No… I don’t think you have.

Because if you saw yourself through my lens, you wouldn’t worry so much about what other people think.

Sometimes I wish you could see what I see.

Yours,
Zee

Dear Leona,

Today at school you were brilliant.

I kept thinking, wow… she’s so smart, and she’s actually my friend.

After everyone you’ve turned down, I’m the one who gets to walk you home.

I’m the one who gets to write you letters.
You say it’s old-school, but you’re my pen pal now, so I’m doing it anyway.
And we both know you secretly like letters.

If it makes you feel better… I like them too.

I just wanted to remind you that you’re brilliant.

All creation is waiting for the manifestation of Leona.

I can already imagine you coming up with solutions that will change the world.

How are you so smart?

Don’t let society or culture define you.
Instead, be transformed by the renewal of your mind, okay?

Yours,
Zee

Leonaaaaaa,

You who are fearfully and wonderfully made.

I should thank your parents because every time you smile, something happens to me.

Is it too early to say I think I’ll marry you?
Actually… no.

I will marry you.
I know your views on love and marriage, but believe me when I say I’m willing to wait.

I’m always praying for you, Leona.
One day things will get better.
You’re not your parents.

You won’t go through what they went through.
And remember—perfect love casts out fear.

You don’t have to be so afraid of love.
Especially for someone who reads about it all the time.

Yours,
Zee

Present Day

Leona found herself smiling as she read through the letters. Each page felt like opening a window to another life.

It was beautiful—those years.
For the first time in a long while, she remembered what it felt like to be loved without fear. Without expectation.

Zee had never asked anything from her.
He had simply… loved her.

She leaned back against the headboard, the letters spread across the bed.
Sometimes she avoided these memories because she hated remembering how it ended.

But whenever she thought of him, she couldn’t help smiling.

She wondered where he was now.
Maybe he had finally married.

And if he had, Leona knew one thing for certain—

That girl was loved very well.
The thought made something shift inside her chest.

He had always said he would marry her.
And if there was anyone who meant what they said, it was Zee. But he had let her go.

And even now, years later, the memory stung.

She closed her eyes.
Yes… she had once known a love that had nothing to do with sex.

And maybe that was why it hurt more to remember because the warmth of the memory slowly soured into irritation.

With a sharp exhale, she gathered the letters and placed them back into the small wooden box.

She locked it.

For some reason she had carried that box with her everywhere she lived.
Sometimes she opened it just to remind herself who Leona used to be.

Because Zee had known that version of her.

The real one.

And strangely enough, those letters also reminded her of something else—
God.

She hadn’t spoken to Him in a long time.
But Zee had always believed.
And somehow, his faith had lingered inside those pages.

Leona shook the thought away.
Tonight wasn’t the night for memories.
She grabbed a bottle of wine from the kitchen, took a long drink straight from it, and laughed softly to herself.

Then she pulled out her phone.

Leona: Should I come over, or will you?
The reply came almost immediately.

James: come over, sweetheart.

A familiar excitement bubbled inside her and Leona slipped a coat over her pajamas, grabbed her keys, and headed for the door.

James lived in Ibex Hill.
She lived in Meanwood Ibex.

The drive barely took ten minutes.
He opened the door before she even knocked a second time.

“Hey,” he said warmly, pulling her into a hug. “I missed you.”

“Me too,” she replied quickly yet pulling  away. She didn't quite enjoy hugs

She barely waited before kissing him.
Desperation edged the movement.
She needed to forget.
James pulled back slightly, breathless.

“Whoa… hold on, Leona.”
He laughed, closing the door behind her.

“Do you want something to drink? Something to eat?”

She shook her head.
“Thank you, James,” she said, removing her coat and hanging it neatly.
“But I ate already.”

She walked straight toward his bedroom without waiting for an invitation.

James watched her go, a strange mixture of excitement and fear settling in his chest.

He liked this woman.
More than he should.
And that scared him.

He followed her down the hallway.
When he caught up, he grabbed her hand.

She turned with a playful smirk.
“You caught on?”
“Yes,” he said quietly.

                             ******

Later, Leona waited until James fell asleep.

Then she slipped quietly out of bed and dressed quickly. She never spent the night.

Never.

If she went to someone’s house, she left afterward. If they came to hers, they left when it was over.

Those were the rules.
After Terrence, she had become stricter.
Her friends often asked why things had to be so controlled.

But Leona believed she was being careful. James was the only man she had been with in the two years of leaving Terrence

She wasn’t reckless.Her body meant something to her.

Not everyone deserved access to it.
But that didn’t mean her body count was low either.

Leona simply had rules.
Work always came first.
Which meant taking care of herself.
Taking care of her body.

                          **********
The drive home was quiet.
Instead of thinking about the man she had just left, her thoughts drifted back to the letters.

Back to Zee.
She frowned.

James was supposed to make her forget.
Instead she felt… empty.

Frustration bubbled in her chest.
She almost called her friends just to yell at them.

They were the ones who started this.
Tanya at least understood her.But Mwenya…

Mwenya had always been different.
The prayer warrior.The one you called when life stopped making sense.The one who spoke life into dead situations.

Leona smiled faintly.
If anyone reminded her that God was real—besides Zee’s letters—it was Mwenya.

Then a thought suddenly crossed her mind.

Mwenya would know where Zee was.
She was friends with his younger sister.

Leona gripped the steering wheel tightly.

“No,” she said aloud.
The word echoed inside the car..

“Don’t go there.”, she whispered to herself.

For the rest of the drive, she tried not to think about him.

The next morning, the doorbell woke her at nine.

Bana Rita.

Leona scrambled out of bed, pulling a silk robe around herself before rushing downstairs.

There were very few people Leona feared.

Bana Rita was one of them.
The woman reminded her too much of her mother—warm but strict, gentle yet firm.

“Mwauka bwanji?” Leona greeted as she opened the door.

Bana Rita looked her up and down.

“Why uoneka so?” she asked suspiciously.

Leona laughed nervously.

“Ah…”
Bana Rita shook her head.

“Iwee ufunika mwamuna.”
Leona burst out laughing.

Typical aunty behavior.

Later that afternoon, Leona curled up in bed with a book.

Reading had always been her escape.
Recently she had found herself drawn to Muslim literature—stories that looked at life differently. Today she had picked up A Thousand Splendid Suns again.

And suddenly a memory surfaced.

“You need to stop reading those books if they make you cry every time,” Zee said softly.

He wiped tears from her cheeks as she clutched the book to her chest.
“It’s not supposed to end,” she sniffled.
He laughed—a deep, warm sound.

“Oh Leo,” he said gently, handing her a handkerchief.

“I’m sorry it ended. I’ll get you another one.”

She looked up immediately.
“Really?”

“Yes. But promise me you won’t cry when that one ends.”

“Okay!”, she said eagerly.

“You’re the best pen pal a girl could ask for.”she hugged him tightly. Zee held her for a moment before carefully pulling away.

Even that simple contact required a lot discipline from him.

“Argh!” Leona groaned suddenly, tossing her book aside.

“Why am I still thinking about you?”
Maybe it was nice to remember.

But the ending of that story always left her sad. So she did what she always did.
She buried herself in work.
Leona loved her job.

She didn’t sit behind a desk all day. She fixed things.Engines. Aircraft systems.

She loved watching planes being taken apart and rebuilt.

There was something satisfying about working beneath a massive aircraft in a grease-stained jumpsuit.

That Friday evening, just as she was preparing to leave, her boss called her into hi office

Her stomach tightened. Was it something she didn't do

Being a woman in STEM meant constantly proving yourself.

Twice as hard.

“Come in,” he said.

Leona stepped inside.

“Please, take a seat.”
The office overlooked the glowing lights of Lusaka’s skyline.

Everything inside screamed wealth—glass walls, polished mahogany furniture.

“We’re attending an engineering summit in two weeks,” he said.

“In Abu Dhabi.” Leona  blinked.

“I’d like you to represent us.”,Her heart nearly stopped.

Abu Dhabi.

“Thank you so much, sir,” she managed.

“Send your passport details to my assistant tomorrow so we can begin the visa process.”

“Yes, sir.”

When she finally left the office, she could barely contain her excitement.

Abu Dhabi.

One of her dream destinations.
For the first time that day, Leona smiled freely as she walked across the parking lot.

She couldn’t wait to tell the girls.

Who do we think Zion is and why doesn't Leona like to remember?

Also just for clarity,  this is fiction. Leona or any character here was designed to be as flawed as they are.

Share your thoughts with me in the comments.