Sun & Moon: Chapter Fourteen

Life was attractively beautiful, the colors were awe-inspiring and out of this world. She smiled as she saw the jade green of the grass and the cerulean blue of the sky blend to produce a lovely colorful vibrant horizon. She felt alive and kicking, most of all she was breathing. The fields looked startling with the hints of golden yellow hay and emerald green meadows. Her eyes grew wider as she noted black and white cows; they were huge in comparison to those back home, nurtured in her family’s farm. The fast motion made her even more amazed at the beauty of God’s creation. But the rush came as she saw a blue and yellow swish in locomotion. She closed her eyes taking in the flood of emotion she felt. Looking around her, she noticed how fluffy and comfy the navy blue seats were in front of her, next to her and behind her. She felt elevated as the train, she was in, came to a stop; she never went through such a whirlwind of sensations before. Sanaa couldn’t help but fall victim to the charm this new dimension had to bring. Closing her eyes again to heighten the butterflies in her stomach as the train made its way in movement, she inhaled that familiar scent. His alluring charming masculine fragrance mixed with his aftershave. She opened her eyes looking to her side; a set of pearly whites met her glance, with a huge lens covering his eyes.  She felt a gush of affection and warmth flush her cheeks as she heard the sound of her black Nikon camera click. She looked at her knees avoiding the embarrassment she might cause to herself while enjoying the attention she was getting. He continued snapping pictures of her, hiding what his eyes would give away. Looking through the tiny peep hole, he was swept over by her beauty and presence; her tanned golden olive complexion, her fuchsia pink painted nails and her tranquil stare exhibiting her innocent charm.  He fixed his eye on her for a while as she smoothed her blazer from the fold marks and unwanted threads.  He was content with how everything turned out to be, but knowing the past which she shared with him, made him a bit apprehensive and concerned about her. He never wanted to hurt her like Hassan did. He never would want any harm to touch her or cause her pain. He smiled at her as she gathered the courage to pose and genuinely smile for him when he clicked the last picture.  She immediately snatched the camera from him to take a look at the pictures, she leant over and whispered to him ‘This is so cool’ as she showed him a picture of her seeming lost looking at the window.  ‘Thank You’ she said with the meaning and power those two words had. She was thankful that he was there for her, thankful that he never judged her like everyone who did back when she was home with her family and friends. Most importantly, she was thankful for being who he was; a blessing in disguise. ‘Thank You for everything’ she squeezed his arm and tried hiding her vulnerable self by gluing her face to the window beside her. She continued fantasizing of a magical world where times of yore didn’t have to be raw and distressing.  He nodded his head in acknowledgment and chuckled seeing her excitement of being on a train for the first time. Resting his eyes, he closed them wide shut; it was a long way to reach their destination; he needed to rejuvenate and feel refreshed.

He awoke from the screams and stomps he heard. Opening his eyes it was already night, he couldn’t believe how he slept for almost 24 hours. He sensed the commotion happening outside; the stomps, chats and yells. It was too loud to ignore. Bastiaan got up out of bed and headed towards the hallway to see what was going on. He noticed how almost every tenant was out of his room. ‘Fire alarm?’ he asked as it was always a habit that someone would sound the alarm, and being the heavy sleeper he was; it might have gone off but to deaf ears. ‘No man’ he got a response from his neighbor. ‘What’s wrong?’ he said as a police siren rang loud. ‘Pffft, that Arab girl and her problems’ he heard the phrase coming from the common room. Bastiaan feared for the worst as he hurriedly rushed to the staircase to Sanaa’s floor; she was the only Arab girl in their building. He hoped and prayed she was okay. A sudden outburst of tears wanted to make its way to his eyes as he saw paramedics rushing through. He felt his stomach turn with worry as he moved slowly; taking one step forward at a time. Bastiaan feared that he was going to face his worst fears. ‘Please let her be okay’ he prayed as he started biting his teeth nervously. Walking past the green and blue hallway, he saw the crowd of law enforcement personnel gathered along with all the Arabs living in the building. ‘La illah illa Allah’ one of the Saudi guys yelled as he shook his head in despair. Making his way through, Bastiaan closed his eyes praying for everything to be okay. Opening up his eyes, he saw blood drops on the floor. ‘Is this blood?’ he said faintly as he pushed his way into the room. He saw how the door was battered and damaged. He looked around as he saw Sanaa’s majlis area in a mess with the decorative shisha shattered into pieces. He started searching for Sanaa but couldn’t find her. ‘Sanaa?’ he called out for her ignoring the police who tried to move him out of the room. ‘SANAA’ he cried out for her name in grief. ‘Bastiaan?’ his ears were pierced with her voice and his heart got fuelled as he exhaled feeling immediate relief. He turned around in hopes of finding her but couldn’t figure out where her voice came from. Everyone remained quiet as they heard Sanaa’s sobbing sounds. ‘I’m here, where are you?’ he said as he started looking around frantically for the source of the voice. ‘I can’t’ Sanaa said in a muffled voice. ‘Why?’ he was gestured to continue talking with those around. ‘I just can’t’ she said for him to figure out where she was. Sliding the door of the bathroom, he saw her on the white pasty ground, her hands on her face, hiding next to the toilet seat. ‘There I found you’ he said quietly as he crawled and sat in front of her. ‘I’ll never leave you’ he said not even curious of what happened to her. All he knew was he had to protect her and save her from harm’s way, when he pulled her hands away from her face. He felt rage going through his veins as he saw the bruises on her heart shaped face; scarlet, crimson, and purple bruises were visible near her left eye, signs of struggle on her neck and bleeding across her hairline. His heart sank as he felt obliged to calm her cries and wipe her tears. ‘I am here and as long as I am, I promise you’ll be safe’ he said as he kissed her salty drenched in tears and red cherry wounded hands.

‘Hungry?’ Sanaa woke him as she smiled giving him a bag of stroopwafels. ‘Oh thank you’ he took the bag and began feasting on it with no hesitation. Even though, he wasn’t that hungry, Bastiaan could never say no to some sweet delights. They say the best way to a man’s heart is through his tummy and Bastiaan was no exception especially sugary temptations; his sweet tooth always won him over.  ‘I can’t wait for them to sing Viva La Vida’ Sanaa was as excited as a boy when given his very first set of miniature cars. He saw how her eyes sparkled at the thought of tonight with her heavily lined eyes and excessive makeup. He was amazed on how she managed to hide the truth behind how her face actually looked like with the yellowing of the bruises she had.   ‘You know I can’t wait for them to sing Death and All His Friend’ he said as he smiled back revealing the sticky caramel clinging on his teeth. ‘Really? I mean out of all the songs in the album? … You…’ she grew silent not wanting to sound mean, and deciding to settle for a simple smile instead. ‘How about we listen to music?’ she suggested to Bastiaan as she took out her earphones from her pocket. ‘You go ahead, I’ll just read for now’ he said as he showed her some philosophy book he had. ‘I hope she doesn’t find out’ he said to himself as he hid the handwritten A4 paper he held between his left index finger and the middle pages of the book; the written confession he had memorize. ‘Oh Lord please let it be perfect. It needs to sound right’ he said as he began learning by heart the first two sentences 

I swear, since seeing your face, 

The whole wolrd is fraud and fantasy

Staring at Bastiaan who seemed to be in a different world not paying her any attention as he avidly read, she shrugged her shoulders and enjoyed the landscape Mother Nature had to offer. Plugging her sky blue earphones and pressing play, the melody sang a lullaby to her healing soul and played with the strings of her heart. The clouds seemed as fluffy as the chair she was seated in. The red bricked houses were the perfect addition to the green of the field, blue of the sky and the spotless white of the downy clouds. Violet Hill of Coldplay was playing in her ears, the violent guitar strings mixed with the bass, the beat of the drums and Chris Martin’s voice made her drown in what was.

I took my love down to Violet Hill

There we sat in the snow

All that time she was silent still

So If you love won’t let me know

If you love me why’d you let me go?

The chorus struck a chord in her as she rolled her eyes sarcastically. It was ironic how Coldplay was playing in the background and all she could get her head into thinking was how Hassan was. Were his eyes recovering from the cooking spray she used? Was he recovering from the knife she pushed into his right leg? Was he okay? Was he better? Is he back home?

She tried to remove the sense of guilt and detach it from wherever it was clinging on her, but couldn’t. ‘He has done this to you for so many times’ she told herself. ‘He deserves DEATH’ she still felt the panic when he was trying to choke her, felt the anger when she chose to teach him a lesson instead. She felt the serenity when she finally was reborn to a brand new Sanaa. She smirked in content and looked over to Bastiaan engrossed into his book, ‘Now doesn’t he deserve a chance?’ she said enjoying how focused he was reading his philosophy book.

No Matter What: Chapter Fourteen

‘We can stay here’ Jawad told Fajr and Hilal. He was friends with the hospital administration and managed to get an over night stay for the three of them. Fajr still continued praying and tearing as she held Noor’s hand. She wished more than anything if she could time travel to warn them both. She loathed being part of what is happening to her only close friend. She wanted to go back and discourage her from touching the DJ’s hand; the beginning of the very end.

‘Hurry you’ll be late’ she was rushed through the stairs. Time seemed to rush fast and she wasn’t ready mentally for what was to come. Out of her grand aunt’s place, she went to bid farewell.  She was heading to a journey not many people had the privilege for. She hopped into the 4x4 nervous but excited, it was her very first trip out of her country. The country where she was born and raised in, with the occasional forts, castles and petrol stations passing her by, she said goodbye to the land of her forefathers as she made her way to the holy land of Mecca. She was due to fly with her three brothers who were in the car with her. Noor never was ready spiritually for this big step, but she was forced into going the same way she was forced to be an Arabic teacher.

The back door opened, the cold dry air conditioned breeze mixed with the hot quite humid air. They arrived at the airport. Amazed at how it looked like inside, Noor found herself turning around in circles in an awe. She smiled a happy go lucky smile. It was her first; her first time witnessing an airport building let alone being inside it. ‘Passengers boarding Oman Air flight number A592 to Jeddah are requested to proceed to Gate 3’ she heard the airport announcement as her brothers led the way.  At the gate waiting to board the flight, a book was jostled at her. ‘Here, this book has everything you need’ one of her brothers told her. It was a self help how- to book on performing pilgrimage. She nodded her head absently as she laid her eyes on the beautiful afternoon sky. The illuminating rays reflected on something she never saw so close before; the gigantic glistening white and blue plane that was to take her up in the air. Her eyes grew bigger as her mouth opened in astonishment. She was in heaven she thought, in heaven indeed.

An hour and countless minutes later, Noor found herself inside a crowded cabin, sitting beside the window while beads of sweat started appearing on her forehead. Loud cries of toddlers started intensifying disturbing the quiet atmosphere, sighs of frustrations and complaints of anger erupted.  In less than a few minutes the plane turned to a circus, everyone almost grumbled and whined over their situation; they were 40 minutes behind schedule in a sunny humid afternoon. Glasses of cold water with ice were served while the cooling system seemed non-functioning; the air conditioning seemed inexistent even though the plane was powered and its engine running. Noor thought all of this was normal; she was embarrassed to ask any of her brothers who would turn her into a joke. She decided she would patiently wait like everybody else. ‘For crying out loud, what’s taking so long?’ one of the elderly passengers in front of her complained as she grabbed the flight attendant’s arm. ‘We are waiting for a passenger’ the attendant replied assuring the old wrinkled face she was looking at while grimacing with the signature stewardess smile. The long wait was taking its toll on those surrounding her. The yellow distant sun seemed like it was burning a few inches above their heads. The merciless sun shone its evil rays on them causing them to shed off more pints of sweat. The saltiness of the perspiration in her eyes was a blessing. Noor was drowsy and in an instant fell asleep.

Some loud commotion was going on, sighs of relief, and passenger prayers and pleas to their creator were accepted.

‘Finally’

‘It’s about time’

‘Alhamdulilah’

Some of the phrases going about in the cabin. Noor got awoken from her nap as she heard her brother argue with the attendant. ‘But this is my seat. We booked adjacent seats.’ he yelled.  The boarding pass the flight attendant held in his hand had seat number 15 B, only the steward didn’t know that Noor’s brother had an identical seat number in his pass. He just assumed, like the many ignorant passengers, that he sat at the wrong seat. The argument escalated when the attendant was adamant for Noor’s brother to move. ‘I am not moving’ her brother said firmly as he showed his pass. A heated dispute broke out as the late passenger made his way through to where he was supposed to be seated. The quarrels could be heard throughout until Noor thought it through.  She could easily give up her seat for the other one in front next to her other brother. ‘I can move to the front’ she pointed out innocently to them.

And then there was silence, a solution and outlet to the problem was provided. It was an easy fix to something the flight attendant could have easily thought of. ‘If that wouldn’t be much trouble to you Ma’am’ the flight attendant said masking his mistake with the signature steward smile. Picking up her notepad where she scribbled down her thoughts, she scooted out of the tiny leg room available. Noor made her way to the front. She now headed forward only for her coffee brown eyes to meet with the late passenger’s honey hazel eyes. Her heart skipped a beat as she grasped and hugged her notepad tight. It was him, the DJ in front of her.  ‘Here you go’ he gave her space for her to head to her new seat.

He sat and stood, he nervously got clumsy after seeing her. He tried to place his luggage at the over-sized compartment on top only for his hands to lose balance and shake. People started chuckling at his unsteady hands. He would be better off to place his suitcase under the seat in front of him, he though to himself. He took a deep breath as he tried to relax but then she sat right in front of him. Could it be fate or was it a test?  He didn’t know. All he knew was the girl in pink who touched his hand was here. She was even more beautiful and radiant adorning the black abaya. His heart pounded so hard he was scared she could hear. He felt jumpy, he couldn’t stay still. Pressing the inside button on the left of the seat arm, his body inclined backwards along with the chair as his eyes were still fixed at her. The soft delicate scarf brushing off of her hands as she tried to fix it over her head made him remember how her hand felt when their skin touched. Soft, supple and filled with warmth, he grinned. He smiled even wider when he remembered how he prayed day in and day out for them to cross paths again. At least this time he can put a name to the angelic image of her in his mind, he thought. With his eyes catching glimpses of her hand and the plane in the sky, he had his head in the clouds and went off to a fairytale land.

He was the knight in the king’s castle, and she was the princess, the heiress to the throne. He was the son of a blacksmith who lived a tough poor life while she was a lonely daughter of a mighty king wishing for her savior and prince charming. Shihab the knight would set out to fight off all demons and dragons invading the kingdom to win her father’s heart. He becomes the kingdom’s hero and gets the approval from the king to crown his daughter as his wife. And they would live happily ever after, the typical fairytale ending.

PING...

The seatbelt sign blinked bright waking all those who were asleep, it was time for landing. She felt happy yet sad; happy that she was close to stepping foot in another country, yet sad that she would part ways with the mysterious DJ. ‘Shihab’ she thought to herself as his name rang in her ears. She knew his name when he didn’t. He was her favorite DJ and radio show host, she’d always make sure to call just to hear his deep husky voice up close and personal. She reminisced on the ridiculous sums of money she wasted for phone credit to call and dedicate a song to her girlfriends or answer a quiz question on air. Ever since the moment they exchanged gazes at the beach, Noor was captivated. She knew everything about him from Fajr and the radio show he hosted every weekend.  ‘Hi this is Bee calling’ the favorite cue phrase she used on air. ‘He only knows me as Bee his favorite caller and number one fan, but I know him as Shihab, my…’  her thoughts got interrupted by the flight attendant asking her to buckle her seatbelt. She sat praying and scared as she felt her insides reaching up her throat like clothes tumbling in a washing machine from the plane’s descend but then butterflies in her tummy overtook her sensations, she was glancing at his face. He was leaving the lavatory and heading back to his seat. He looked at her and smiled, blushing she smiled back a bashful smile then looked away.

Crowded as ever, white and black was seen everywhere. They were at Jeddah airport waiting for their luggage which delayed for a good half hour. He was in front of her, this time she gathered the courage to stare at him and smile longer. His heart was overwhelmed with warmth. He was happy and determined that he would ask for her name today.  ‘Noori?’ she got called out. Shihab kept on searching hoping that he didn’t mean her. ‘Noori..!!’ her brother shouted this time. Shihab hoped and prayed for it not to be true, but she turned around. Her brother signaled for her that he is heading to the restrooms as Noor waited for the luggage.  She nodded back smiling as her brother gave her a wink and left.  Noor giggled and turned back to face him again. But Shihab felt sick to his stomach, he was disgusted by the whole affair. How could she look at him and exchange flirtatious looks and smiles with him when she was involved with someone else? He couldn’t understand this and felt rage taking over his body. Walking over to her, Noor thought that this was her chance. All her brothers weren’t around and she was all alone standing and waiting. She was ready to confess that she was Bee, that she was his ultimate fan, that she was indeed attracted to him. ‘Make your move Mr. DJ’ she said under her breath while laying her eyes on his nearing presence. She was nervous, her knees felt weak, her palms sweaty as he came closer. He then stopped and looked at her big eyes and her heart just stopped. She prepped herself to speak but soon stopped after seeing his reaction and frown. Shihab looked at her in the eyes then from head to toe as if she was a piece of trash covered with filth and then walked away. Little did Shihab know that he mistook Noori for a pet name when it was her actual nickname.