Zainab had never seen the world, but she could feel its cruelty with every breath. She was born blind into a family that worshiped beauty above all else.
Her two sisters were admired for their captivating eyes and graceful figures, while Zainab was treated like a burden, a shameful secret kept behind closed doors. Her mother died when she was only five, and from that day her father changed. He became bitter, resentful, and especially cruel toward her. He never even called her by name—only “that thing.” He didn’t allow her to sit at the table during family meals or show her face when visitors came. To him, she was cursed.
When Zainab turned twenty-one, her father made a decision that would shatter what was left of her heart.
One morning, he entered her small room where she sat tracing the braille pages of a worn book. He dropped a folded cloth into her lap.
“You’re getting married tomorrow,” he said flatly.
Zainab froze. Married? To whom?
“He’s a beggar from the mosque,” her father continued coldly. “You’re blind. He’s poor. A perfect match.”
Her lips parted, but no words came out. Her father never gave her choices.
The next day, she was wed in a rushed, joyless ceremony. She never saw her husband’s face, and no one described it to her. Her father shoved her toward the man and hissed, “Take his arm.” Everyone whispered and laughed: “The blind girl and the beggar.” When it was over, her father handed her a small bag of clothes and pushed her away.
“Now you’re his problem,” he said, turning his back.
The beggar’s name was Yusha. He led her silently down the road to a small, crumbling shack at the edge of the village.
“It isn’t much,” he said softly. “But you’ll be safe here.”
That night, something unexpected happened. Yusha brewed tea with gentle hands, offered her his own coat, and slept by the door like a guard dog. He asked her what stories she liked, what foods made her smile, what dreams she had. No one had ever asked her such things before.
Days turned into weeks. Each morning, Yusha guided her to the river, describing the sunlight, the birds, the trees, painting the world with his words until she felt she could almost see. He sang to her as she washed clothes, told her stories of faraway lands at night. For the first time in years, she laughed. Slowly, her heart began to open. Against all odds, Zainab fell in love.
One evening she asked, “Were you always a beggar?”
He hesitated, then said quietly, “Not always.” But he offered no more.
The truth came unexpectedly.
At the market one day, she was shoved by her sister Amina.
“Still alive, blind rat?” Amina sneered. “Still playing wife to your beggar?”
“I’m happy,” Zainab whispered.
Amina laughed bitterly. “Happy? You don’t even know. He’s not a beggar.”
The words pierced Zainab like a blade. She stumbled home in confusion, waiting for Yusha. That night she confronted him: “Tell me the truth. Who are you really?”
Yusha knelt before her, trembling. “I can’t lie anymore. I’m not a beggar. I’m the Emir’s son.”
Zainab’s world spun. Memories flooded her—the poetry in his voice, the dignity in his silence, the kindness too rare for a beggar. She understood now. He had never been what he seemed.
“Why?” she whispered. “Why let me believe?”
Yusha’s voice broke. “Because I wanted someone who saw me—not my wealth, not my crown. Just me. You gave me that.”
Tears streamed down her face. Her father had cast her away like trash, yet here was a prince who had chosen her heart above all.
The next morning, a royal carriage arrived. Guards in black and gold bowed as Zainab, trembling, stepped inside with Yusha. When they reached the palace, the crowd gasped. The lost prince had returned—with a blind wife.
The Queen approached, her eyes narrowing as she studied Zainab. Yusha took her hand firmly.
“This is my wife,” he declared. “The woman who saw my soul when no one else could.”
The Queen was silent for a long moment, then embraced Zainab. “Then she is my daughter.”
Zainab nearly collapsed with relief. For the first time, she felt wanted.
But palace life was not without challenges. Whispers and scorn followed her blindness. At court, nobles mocked her openly. That was when Yusha made his boldest move.
“I will not be crowned Emir until my wife is honored,” he declared. “If she is not accepted, I will leave with her.”
The court erupted in shock. Zainab’s heart pounded. “You would give up the throne… for me?”
Yusha’s eyes burned with love. “I already did once. I would again.”
The Queen rose. “Then hear this: from this day forward, Zainab is Princess of this house. Whoever disrespects her, disrespects the Crown.”
Silence fell. Respect replaced mockery.
Zainab lifted her chin, her blindness no longer her weakness but her strength. She was no longer “that thing.” She was Princess Zainab—chosen, loved, and finally free.