Zainab had never seen the world, but she could feel its cruelty with every breath she took. She was born blind into a family that valued beauty above all else. Her two sisters were admired for their captivating eyes and graceful figures, while Zainab was treated as a burden, a shameful secret kept behind closed doors. Her mother died when she was just five years old, and since then, her father has changed. He became bitter, resentful, and cruel, especially toward her. He never called her by her name; he called it “that thing.” I didn’t want it to be at the table during family meals or nearby when visitors arrived. She thought she was cursed, and when Zainab turned 21, she made a decision that would destroy what was left of her already broken heart.

One morning, her father walked into his small room where Zainab sat quietly, touching the Braille pages of an old, worn-out book with her fingers, and left a folded piece of cloth on her lap.

“You’re getting married tomorrow,” he said flatly. Zainab froze. The words made no sense. Marry? With whom?

“He is a beggar from the mosque,” his father continued. “You are blind, he is poor. A good match for you.” He felt as if the blood had drained from his face. He wanted to scream, but no sound came out of his mouth. I had no choice. His father never gave him a choice.

The next day, she married in a small, hurried ceremony. Of course, he never saw his face, and no one dared to describe it to him. Her father pushed her towards the man and told her to take his arm. She obeyed like a ghost in her own body. Everyone was laughing behind his hands, muttering, “The blind girl and the beggar.” After the ceremony, her father gave her a small bag with some clothes and pushed her back towards the man.

“Now it’s your problem,” he said, and walked away without looking back.

The beggar, whose name was Yusha, led her silently down the road. He didn’t say anything for a long time. They came to a small broken hut on the edge of the village. It smelled of wet earth and smoke.

“It’s not much,” Yusha said softly. “But you’ll be safe here.” She sat on the old rug inside, holding back tears. This was his life now. A blind girl married to a beggar in a hut made of mud and hope.

But something strange happened that first night.

Yusha made tea with gentle hands. He gave her his own coat and slept by the door, like a guard dog protecting its queen. He spoke to her as if he really cared: he asked her what stories she liked, what dreams she had, what foods made her smile. No one had ever asked him something like that before.

The days turned into weeks. Yusha accompanied her to the river every morning, describing the sun, the birds, the trees, with so much poetry that Zainab began to feel that she could see them through her words. He sang to her while she did the laundry and told her stories of stars and faraway lands at night. She laughed for the first time in years. His heart began to open. And in that strange little hut, something unexpected happened: Zainab fell in love.

One afternoon, as he reached for her hand, he asked, “Were you always a beggar?” He hesitated. Then he said quietly, “I wasn’t always like this.” But he never said more. And Zainab did not insist.

Up to a day.

She went to the market alone to buy vegetables. Yusha had given her careful directions, and she memorized each step. But halfway there, someone grabbed his arm violently.

“Blind rat!” a voice spat. It was his sister. Aminah. “Are you still alive? Are you still playing at being a beggar’s wife?” Zainab felt tears rise but stood tall.

“I am happy,” she said.

Aminah laughed cruelly. “You don’t even know what he looks like. It’s garbage. Just like you.”

And then he whispered something that broke his heart.

“He is not a beggar. Zainab, you have been lied to.”

Zainab stumbled back home, confused. He waited until nightfall and when Yusha returned, he asked her again, but this time firmly. “Tell me the truth. Who are you really?”

And that’s when he knelt down in front of her, took her hands, and said, “You should never have known yet. But I can’t lie to you anymore.”

His heart was pounding.

He took a deep breath.

“I’m not a beggar. I am the son of the Emir.”

Zainab’s world began to spin as she processed Yusha’s words. “I am the son of the Emir.” He tried to control his breathing, to try to understand what he had just heard. His mind went over every moment they had shared, their kindness, their quiet strength, their stories that felt too vivid for a mere beggar, and now he understood why. He had never been a beggar. Her father had married her not to a beggar, but to royalty disguised in rags.

He withdrew his hands from his, stepped back, and asked, his voice trembling, “Why? Why did you let me believe you were a beggar?”

Yusha rose, her voice calm but dense with emotion. “Because I wanted someone who would see me, not my wealth, not my title, just me. Someone pure. Someone whose love was not bought or forced. You were all I had asked for, Zainab.”

She sat up, her legs too weak to support her. His heart struggled with anger and love. Why hadn’t I told him? Why had I let her believe that she was discarded like garbage? Yusha knelt beside her again. “I didn’t mean to hurt you. I came to the village in disguise because I was tired of the suitors who loved the throne but not the man. I heard about a blind girl rejected by her father. I watched you from afar for weeks before proposing through your father, wearing the disguise of a beggar. I knew I would accept it because I wanted to get rid of you.”

Tears streamed down Zainab’s cheeks. The pain of her father’s rejection was mixed with disbelief that someone had gone so far just to find a heart like hers. He didn’t know what to say, so he simply asked, “What now? What happens now?”

Yusha took his hand gently. “Now you come with me, to my world, to the palace.”

His heart skipped a beat. “But I’m blind. How can I be a princess?”

He smiled. “You already are, my princess.”

That night he hardly slept. His thoughts swirled: his father’s cruelty, Yusha’s love, and how terrifyingly unknown the future was. In the morning, a royal wagon arrived in front of the hut. Guards dressed in black and gold bowed to Yusha and Zainab as they emerged. Zainab held Yusha’s arm tightly as the cart began to move toward the palace.

When they arrived, the crowd was already gathered. They were surprised by the return of the lost prince, but even more surprised to see him with a blind girl. Yusha’s mother, the Queen, stepped forward, her eyes narrowing as she studied Zainab. But Zainab bowed respectfully. Yusha stood by his side and declared, “This is my wife, the woman I chose, the woman who saw my soul when no one else could.”

The Queen was silent for a moment, then stepped forward and hugged Zainab. “So, she’s my daughter,” he said. Zainab almost fainted from relief. Yusha squeezed his hand and whispered, “I told you, you’re safe.”

That night, as they settled into their room in the palace, Zainab stood by the window, listening to the sounds of the royal compound. His whole life had changed in a single day. It was no longer “that thing” locked in a dark room. She was a wife, a princess, a woman who had been loved not for her body or her beauty, but for her soul. And although in that moment of peace he felt relief, something dark still remained in his heart: the shadow of his father’s hatred. She knew that the world would not accept her easily, that the court would whisper and mock her blindness, and that enemies would arise within the palace walls. For the first time, however, she didn’t feel small. She felt powerful.

The next morning, she was summoned to the court, where nobles and leaders had gathered. Some scoffed when she walked in with Yusha, but she held her head high. Then came the unexpected twist. Yusha stood before them and declared, “I will not be crowned until my wife is accepted and honored in this palace. And if it’s not, then I’m going with her.”

Murmurs filled the room. Zainab felt her heart pound as she looked at him. He had already given everything for her. “Would you leave the throne for me?” he whispered.

He looked at her with a fierce passion in his eyes. “I’ve already done it once. I would do it again.”

The Queen rose. “So let it be known, from this day forward, Zainab is not only his wife. She is Princess Zainab of the Royal House. Anyone who disrespects it will disrespect the crown.”

And with those words, the room fell silent. Zainab’s heart was pounding, but it was no longer out of fear, but out of force. He knew his life would change, but now he would on his own terms. She would no longer be a shadow, but a woman who had found her place in the world. And best of all, for the first time, she didn’t have to be seen for her beauty. Just because of the love he had in his heart.

News of Zainab’s acceptance as a princess into the royal court quickly spread throughout the kingdom. The nobles, initially bewildered by the new princess’s blindness, began to see past her disability. What Zainab had shown by maintaining her dignity, her strength, and above all, her unconditional love for Yusha, made many of those who previously doubted begin to respect her.

But life in the palace would not be easy. Although Zainab had found her place alongside Yusha, the challenges were many. The royal court was a space full of intrigues, of people with their own interests and of those who saw Zainab as a threat to tradition. The murmurs in the palace corridors were inevitable, and the eyes watching her were not always friendly. However, Zainab had learned to see the world in a different way. Although he could not see with his eyes, he could perceive intentions through tone of voice, attitudes, and silences.

One afternoon, as she walked through the palace gardens, with Yusha by her side, Zainab reflected on everything she had experienced. Despite her efforts to accept her, there was always something that made her uncomfortable, a feeling of not being completely welcome. It wasn’t about his blindness, but about something deeper, something related to his past and the life he’d had to leave behind.

“Sometimes I feel like I haven’t been fully accepted yet,” he confessed to Yusha, leaning on her arm. He looked at her with tenderness and understanding.

“I know, Zainab. And while I can’t change what others think, I want you to know that for me, you’ll always be enough. You are not only my wife, you are the woman I love with all my being.

Zainab stopped and looked at him, although she couldn’t see his face, his voice was all she needed to hear. The calmness in her words made her feel safe, although there was still the echo of rejection in her heart.

“I know it won’t be easy,” Zainab continued. My father never accepted who I am. And now, in this palace, I am afraid of being seen only because of my blindness, because of my past. Sometimes I don’t know if I deserve all this.

Yusha leaned towards her, lifting his face carefully and making sure that his tone was soft but firm.

“Zainab, you deserve everything you have. And much more. It’s not your blindness that defines you, nor your story. What defines you is your soul, your kindness, your courage. And because of that, you are the princess, not only of this palace, but of my heart. It doesn’t matter what others say. You are not an accessory, nor a curiosity. You are everything to me.

With those words, Zainab felt a warmth that ran through her. Yusha didn’t just accept her, he loved her for who she really was, no matter her appearance, her blindness or her past. Her love was a force that filled her with confidence.

At that point, Zainab decided that she would not allow the prejudices of the court or her father’s memories to define her. She wouldn’t just be the prince’s wife or the blind princess. It would be much more. She would be the woman who would transform the palace from within, a woman who would prove that true power comes from authenticity, from being oneself no matter the obstacles.

Thus, Zainab began to take an active role in the court. He used his voice, his wisdom, and his sensitivity to begin to change the perception of the nobles. Not with harsh words, but with actions. During court meetings, he dedicated himself to listening to each of the nobles, understanding their concerns, and seeking solutions that would benefit everyone. Gradually, he began to gain the respect of the people, not because of his title, but because of his heart and his ability to unite.

At the same time, Yusha was there to support her every step of the way. Although he was the prince, he was not afraid to share the limelight with Zainab, knowing that his true role was to accompany her on her path, respect her and love her for who she was.

As time went on, Zainab began to feel stronger, more confident. She knew that the acceptance she sought did not come from others, but from herself. And so, over the years, Zainab was no longer just the princess of a palace. She became the queen of her own destiny, transforming not only the court, but the lives of all those around her.

The palace was filled with light, not because of the wealth or power of the crown, but because of Zainab’s authenticity. She had found what she was looking for: a place in the world where she would not be seen for what she lacked, but for what she had to offer.

Yusha, by his side, was always his unconditional support. Together, they created a realm where love, acceptance, and true inner strength prevailed over everything. Because, in the end, Zainab had learned that love is not based on appearance, but on the deep connection between hearts.

End.

This ending shows Zainab’s evolution from being a rejected woman to becoming a leader who transforms her environment, while maintaining her authenticity and self-love. In the end, what really matters is how you see yourself and how you deal with life’s challenges. If you need adjustments or more details, don’t hesitate to ask me.