Neenarh was sitting in the school library, reviewing the lecture they had just attended. Beside her was Ummy Lolo, who was focused on her calculations. Neenarh said, "Besty, it's time for prayer. It's better we perform our obligatory prayers first and then continue with our studies." They both stood up to go to the central mosque on campus to pray in congregation. As they arrived, the call to prayer was made. Before the imam started the prayer, they completed two units of nafl prayer.
Neenarh's phone started ringing. When she checked, she saw it was Zuhra calling. She answered, "Hello?" Zuhra asked, "Where are you? I've been wandering around the school looking for you." Neenarh replied, "We went to the mosque for prayers, but we are on our way to the lecture hall now. Please save us seats; we'll be there shortly." Their lecture was scheduled for 2:00 PM, and the rule in their department was that if the lecturer entered the hall before you, you would miss that day's lecture. Today, they had a lecture in the Political Science Department titled *INTRO TO POLITICAL SCIENCE.*
As they were heading to the lecture hall, they saw the lecturer walking behind them. They quickly hurried to get there before him. Just as they sat down, the lecturer entered the hall. Musa Abdullah Auditorium was a large hall that could accommodate up to a thousand students. It was common knowledge among university students that those from different departments would gather there for lectures. Ummy Lolo was one of the students from the Department of Economics, who were taking Political Science and Sociology as subsidiary courses.
The entrance of the lecturer made the hall go silent. Since the first day he started teaching, he had given strict warnings and laid out his rules, insisting on discipline. Any student who fell into his trap would face the consequences. Malam Abdulmalik was the one teaching their course. He explained concepts in detail, making it feel as if he was pouring knowledge directly into their brains. He also provided examples and references, which made the students proud of him. It was his custom to randomly ask questions at the end of the lecture based on what they had discussed. If a student answered correctly, he would give them marks; if not, he would deduct five marks from their continuous assessment. He never exceeded the allotted two hours for the lecture.
In a day, they typically had three lectures with intervals in between, allowing them time to review what their lecturers had taught them. Ummy Lolo, Neenarh, and Zuhra's friendship started from the day they went to collect their admission letters. Neenarh had arrived first and found the place closed, so she sat on a bench to wait. She was so excited that she hadn’t even slept well the previous night. Ummy Lolo then arrived and saw Neenarh sitting there. She asked, "Hi, Sis." Neenarh replied, "Hi." Ummy continued, "Please, where do we collect the admission letters?" Neenarh asked, "Which department?" Ummy replied, "Economics." Neenarh pointed to a window in front of them and said, "Over there. I'm also waiting to collect mine." Hearing this, Ummy found a place to sit, and they started chatting occasionally. Eventually, more people arrived, and the distribution of letters began. After Neenarh collected her letter, she told Ummy, "I'll wait for you so we can go to the bank together to make the payment." This was the beginning of their friendship. They met Zuhra later in a cafe when they went to register for their courses.