Born in the City of Ali Sabieh, Republic of Djibouti, to a strict Djiboutian Muslim family, Bilal Elmi moved to Ontario, Canada, at the age of nineteen in 2013. Fast forward four years and he was a new permanent resident of Canada, a graduate of Algonquin College's Applied Business Programme, and the co-manager of a Second Cup restaurant in downtown Ottawa. On the surface, the big and tall, caramel-hued, Afro-sporting Northeast African Muslim stud seemed to have it all on under control, but life had other plans.
Bilal found himself at something of a crossroads. The brother from Djibouti had some major decisions to make about his life. This was a major source of stress for the 23-year-old working professional. Who is he supposed to be? What is he supposed to do? Exploring his true self meant going down certain paths which might not be okay in the minds of those who share his Islamic faith and Djiboutian cultural background. What's a Muslim brother to do?
"Bilal, you're a sick pervert, and I can't stand to be with a man like you," shouted Bilal's then-girlfriend Ayaan Jama the day she found his collection of 'female domination' magazines, hidden under his mattress. Bilal pleaded with Ayaan to understand but the tall, curvy, chocolate-hued and lovely but irate Somali Muslim gal would not listen to a damn word he said. She'd made up her mind to leave Bilal, and so she did...
"Ayaan, I'm so sorry, I can't help myself," Bilal cried out, right before Ayaan threw a magazine at him, one which narrowly missed his face. Ayaan exited the Woodroffe Avenue apartment that she and Bilal had shared for over a year, and walked out of his life forever. She would later send her mean older brother Khalid to pick up her belongings. For Bilal Elmi, his cherished relationship was now over. He was on his own, and in a way, it was both terrifying and liberating...
With Ayaan gone, Bilal was free to explore his most forbidden fantasies, or at least, seriously contemplate exploring them. After moving to Ontario, Canada, with his parents, Naima and Yasser Elmi, Bilal stayed with them for a while, then got himself a job, a new place of his own, and then went back to school. As much as Bilal loved his folks, he wanted to do his own thing and that was never going to happen under their roof.
Bilal began to explore all that Canada had to offer, in terms of virtue as well as vice. He went to college, dated cute gals, and partied hard. And then he got bored, and went back to his roots. Along the way, he met Ayaan Jama, the tall and curvy, dark-skinned and lovely, Hijab-wearing Somali Muslim gal who stole his heart. They got along alright, in and out of the bedroom. Until he became fascinated with the world of BDSM. After much deliberation, Bilal decided to take the plunge and explore his desires...
"Mistress Sana'a speaking, who is this, please?" the haughty female voice on the other line demanded, crisp and clear as a bell. Bilal Elmi took a deep breath before replying, and felt his heart skip a beat. For weeks now he'd been carrying the crumpled piece of paper he'd ripped from the back page of the newspaper, the one containing the name and phone number of a certain local dominatrix.
"Salaam, I'm Bill, how are you, ma'am?" Bilal asked, adhering to his habit of shortening his name, like so many Muslims living in the West. The fact that he was almost one hundred percent sure that the lady whom he was speaking also hailed from his faith did little to deter him. As has often been said, old habits most definitely die hard, and Bilal "Bill" Elmi is definitely a creature of habit.
