After the truth

~3~

"I ate potatoes and eggs on Monday aunty Zully. I don't want it. I hate it." Lisa cried out, kicking her legs under the dinning table.

Marwa pinched her forehead as a little voice in her head said 'here we go again'.  She put on a fake smile as she glared daggers at her daughter. Did she pamper the girl a little too much because this little lady misbehaved like no tomorrow.

"Mukhlisa." Marwa gently called out her name as she massaged her forehead.

"I don't want it. I hate it. I want cake and ginger cookies." Lisa screamed, beginning to cry.

Marwa watched from the corner of her eyes as Aaron tried to calm Lisa down but the little girl refused.

"You know what." Marwa pushed her chair back. "Have the cake and the ginger cookies." She nodded, glaring at her daughter who was now quiet. "I am sick and tired of you crying and yelling all the time. Haven't I tried enough or am I a bad person?!" Marwa asked, her voice going a bit high.

"You don't like this and you want that. Have the cake Lisa." Marwa slammed the table, ignoring Zulfa who tried to calm her down. "I am tired. I have had it up to here." She waves her hand under her neck, tears falling from her eyes. "Aaargh!" She exclaimed, letting out an angry hiss as she walked away from the dining table, to the balcony.

Her heart rate had gone a bit high as she paced around, slapping her hands on her thighs whenever she felt really angry. She didn't mean to lose her cool and ever since she felt like crying, she knew things were about to go down.

Marwa felt frustrated. It wasn't easy being a single mother. At that, one to an extremely stubborn child who must have taken after a father she knows nothing about. Despite the fact that Mukhlisa wasn't to blame, she couldn't help but take her frustration out on the little girl who could be very annoying sometimes.

Now she felt worse for yelling and slamming the table. Talk about being polite and having table manners. She was trying her possible best to raise her daughter to be intelligent, independent and well mannered. It was important and also to shame those who had mocked her in the past.

She wanted her daughter to see her do things and want to do them because they were right. Marwa understood she wasn't perfect but she felt hypocritical because she had lost her cool whereas she always lectured her daughter regarding her temper tantrums.

"Hi."

Marwa rolled her eyes at the deep voice. She just couldn't deal with this right now. She sighed before turning to face Aaron.

"You seemed frustrated back there." He said, stuffing his hands in his pocket.

"Why are you here and not with your daughter?" Marwa asked, sarcasm dripping her every time as she made air quotes at her last words. She watched him freeze for a while before composing himself.

"Children are difficult to control uhn?" Aaron asked, coming to stand beside her.

"They don't need to be controlled. Yet they're annoying." Marwa sighed, turning back to the street below.

"Yeah. Right."

"I'm just frustrated y'know. It's like she isn't even seeing that I'm trying my best for her. She just finds the not so perfect time to misbehave and scream my ears off." Marwa mumbled under her breath.

"Even adults misbehave. And are you saying there's a perfect time to do that?" Aaron chuckled.

"Are you supporting her now? I'm the frustrated one." Marwa rolled her eyes, pouting.

"The girl's also frustrated. I mean what's with forcing her to eat something you know she clearly does not like? I don't even like potatoes my self. I'm simply being polite." Aaron shrugged.

"It's healthy for her. She isn't allergic and that's all that matters." Marwa hissed, her hold on the railings tightened.

"It's wrong. Like forcing her to do something she doesn't want to do. How do you think she'll interpret that. What message are you trying to convey?"

"Please shut up and stop being so wise." Marwa chuckled, letting a tear roll down her face.

"What exactly is wrong?" Aaron asked, resting his cheek on his palm. Marwa felt uncomfortable under his gaze.

"It's just how she's this whole person I don't recognize." Marwa sighed, copying his position.

"What do you mean?"

"If she acted like I or any of my siblings did when we were little it would have been much more comforting but no, she had to have her unknown father's attitude or whoever from his family." Marwa hissed.

"I wanted to ask. Her father?" Aaron asked.
Marwa gave a sad smile and stood straight.
"I'll go in now."

******

Aaron watched her leave the balcony. He felt sad. He wanted to comfort her but had no right to.
"It was through rape she had Mukhlisa." Zulfa said, walking in. Aaron stared at her.

"I remember that evening when she walked into the house, tears rushing down her face with her blood stained skirt." Zulfa smiled. "She cried to me and my older brother Zayad. She was just returning from the library and some bastards had grabbed her."

Aaron shuffled his feet. He stared down at the street, listening intently to what Zulfa was saying.

"Zayad said it would be better to hide it from our parents since they were ' important people ' . He said it would be best to take her to see the doctor to ensure she didn't get some kind of disease. That was the most foolish thing I've ever agreed upon."

"Everything was fine until it wasn't. My sister became really ill. Throwing up and having fever was something normal until it was confirmed she was pregnant." Zulfa laughed.

"How could a nerdy, quiet, and painfully shy teen ever do something like that? My parents never asked that question. They didn't want their reputation ruined and so they kicked Marwa out. I thought Zayad would say something but he didn't. He never did."

Aaron felt some kind of anger. Marwa suffered because of some idiot and her coward for a brother.

"I don't think she ever felt okay throughout her pregnancy until she had Lisa." Zulfa turned to rest her back against the railings. "Lisa might be some annoying kid to her but Marwa loves her more than anything and would die protecting her."

  A few minutes later, Aaron stood at the door that separated the balcony from the living room watching as Mukhlisa quietly walked to her mother.

He watched the little girl say something to her mum who then begin to cry. Aaron could hear Mukhlisa beg for her not to cry.

"I'm sorry mummy." The girl tried to whisper but failed. "I'll always try to eat my potatoes."

"I'm sorry too baby. For yelling and slamming the table. It was wrong."

"It's okay mummy. Do you forgive me?"

"Only if you forgive me."

Aaron smiled as the two giggled, holding each other in a hug.

"Do you really not like potatoes and eggs?"

Aaron smiled as the little girl scrunched her nose in the most disgust filled way she could and said "they're the grossest food to ever exist." He just stared, pondering on the familiar words.