Chronical Wounds

Chapter 6: Mixed feelings.

"No way! How come you've never told me this before? Did she actually say that? Wow! Finally, someone that isn't afraid to put you in place." I laughed, scratching the back of my head. "I think she didn't mean it though, because after she was finished she kind of apologized and quickly drove away," I explained.

Since that day, Farah has been on my mind all the time. It felt like centuries since then. The only reason I told Ace about her was that the two of us were on our way to the mansion, and Ace was the only one who also knew of that night. I had tried to avoid her as much as possible, but now I had a meeting with my grandfather and Ace. My grandfather commanded me to meet at his mansion, so I had no other choice.

"Well, we're here, buddy. Let's hope your new friend is waiting inside!" Ace cheered. "I swear one day I will kill you," I murmured. "Well, I don't doubt that." Ace smiled. The two of us entered the house. The door closed behind us, and in a few seconds, the sound of little footsteps approached. "Zain! Ace!" a little girl cheered. Lyra ran to me and jumped into my arms. "Hey, little troublemaker. I've missed you." I kissed my sister on the cheeks and hugged her tight. Another pair of footsteps approached. Farah walked in. Both Ace and I looked at her. "Hi, I'm Farah." she introduced herself to Ace while shaking his hand. She simply nodded to me, while I was still holding Lyra in my arms. "Oh wow. I mean... I've heard about you." Ace started but stopped when he saw the glare that I gave him. "I mean, I've been told that you take care of Lyra," Ace smiled. Farah glanced quickly at me because she obviously knew that that was not what he was about to say. "That's true, but most of the time we just have fun. It's not as formal as you think." Farah winked at Lyra. Lyra started giggling. "We hid grandma's phone, and she has been searching for half an hour now," Lyra laughed. "See, I knew you were a troublemaker." I started to tickle her, but we were interrupted.

"Good morning, boys. I was waiting for you. Are you coming or not?" Bilal was standing on the stairs with his arms crossed. I put Lyra down, and the smile faded from my face. "Yes, sir." Farah noticed the change in my voice and looked at me. My facial expression changed too. Ace looked far more relaxed than I did since he smiled wide. "Good morning, grandfather. We were just finished here" he greeted. The three of us went upstairs.

...

Lyra!" Sarah yelled from the living room. Lyra gasped and hid behind me. Sarah appeared, and I laughed. "Farah, have you seen a stealing little girl? I can't find my phone, and now I can't find Lyra. I think that they might have something to do with each other." Sarah acted as if she didn't see Lyra standing behind me. "Hmm, no, I haven't seen her. Maybe she's in the kitchen." I played along. "Wait, do you smell that? It's the sweet smell of Lyra!" Sarah laughed and grabbed the little girl. She started tickling her, and we were all laughing.

"Mrs. Cain, I was about to bring Lyra to the playground. Would you like to come along?" I smiled. I noticed how Mrs. Cain was always inside the house and never really went outside except to the garden. "I would love to, actually. Let's go." Sarah grabbed her coat, and we left.It was not warm outside, but not cold either. There was a soft breeze. The sun appeared now and then. The park was about ten minutes from the mansion on foot.

"You know, I miss moments like this. I seldom go outside in the company of a friend or family member. Everyone is busy with work or something else. I hardly even have some quality time with my husband." Sarah pouted. I listened to what she said. It was sad that it was like that. But on the other hand, I did understand why people worked so much. Although everyone has their reasons. "I can't imagine that they wouldn't want some time with you. I guess that they're just too busy." I tried to assure her. "You're the sweetest, but to be honest, I don't like it if they work too much. Money doesn't make you happy, and if you really love someone, you make time for them, right?" "No, sometimes you just can't. There can be something that holds you back." I sounded slightly frustrated, but if you looked at my face you wouldn't notice. It became awkwardly silent, and we both watched how Lyra played with other kids.

I didn't mean to react like that, but I blurted it out. I was all too conscious about the fact that I had little to no time with my mother left. I haven't spoken to my father in a long time. My brother has school and works at a pizzeria. My grandfather had already passed away, and the only family member I have any contact with is my grandmother, who's in another country.

"I'm sorry... the topic just hit differently than it should have," I apologized. Sarah was the only one who really supported me at this time. Actually, the fact that Sarah didn't know what was going on in my life and yet showed me all of her kindness meant the world to me. "Darling don't worry. You can let it all out with me. I can see that something is bothering you. Actually, I saw it the first time I saw you. It's not good for your mind and heart to keep it all in. I'm not saying you have to tell me about your personal life, but you have to let your stress out some way." Sarah's words were nothing new for me. People often told me the exact same thing. I knew it was true, but how would I do that? I sighed deeply as I turned to face the woman sitting next to me.

"I'm not good at sharing my thoughts. I wish I was, though, because it would've saved me a lot of discomfort. A lot of people I met are gone." I tried to open up, but I couldn't manage to say a lot. "-I need to ask you a favor, Sarah." I tilted my head up to look her in the eyes. Sarah curiously looked back at me. "Of course, my child. Ask away." she said as she took my hand in hers. "I'm really ashamed to ask because I just started working for you. The thing is that sooner or later there will be a period where I need some time off. I don't know when it will be, but I really would appreciate it if I could take a week or two off. I promise that after that, I will be the best employee you've ever seen." Sarah was silent and with a worried look in her eyes, she examined my face. She exhaled deeply and squeezed my hand slightly. "You have to notify me directly when that period comes, okay? Let it be a one-time thing." Mrs. Sarah answered. I felt a huge relief fall off of my shoulders.

"You should get out, actually," Sarah grinned. Her mind was somewhere else. It was visible in her eyes that she was planning on doing something. I had no idea what she meant. The more Sarah thought, the more she seemed to like the idea. "Get out?" I was unsure about what Sarah meant. "Yes, darling. You should go out. Go to a party. You're young. Have a crazy night. Just to forget everything for a moment." Sarah smiled assuring. I didn't quite like the idea of having a 'wild' night. I never ever had gone out anyway because I didn't have those kinds of friends. That lifestyle was not for me. Yet, I did want to let all the stress go for a moment. "I don't have anyone to go with. Neither do I know a good place to go to" I explained. Mrs. Sarah patted my hand. "I know some people who need to loosen up too. Let's agree to be ready at 10. I'll tell Norah to come to get you at your house, so you can go together.". When Norah's name was mentioned I actually did start to like the idea. Hearing that Nora would go with me assured me that it would be a good time. It has been some time since I tried something new with friends. "Okay, sure. That would be nice." I smiled back.

What was said was done. At 10 in the evening, Norah knocked on the door. Nora wore a red, sleeveless dress with a black scarf hanging loose on her shoulders. Her heels matched her dress, and her hair was in a high ponytail. As I opened the door I saw Norah wobbling back and forth on her heels. "Wow, girl! You look so good," Norah was amazed by how different I looked. I wore a brown, silk, long dress with long poof sleeves. The silver heels matched my earrings. My wavy hair was hanging loose on my back. I smiled wide at Norah. "Well, you're looking good too." the two of us giggled. Norah held my arm, and we walked down to the car.

When I looked at the black car waiting on the sidewalk, my eyes caught two figures leaning on the car. My eyes landed on Ace first, but then I looked straight into the eyes of Zain. My heart skipped a beat. What was he doing here? The tension started to build up. His eyes were so cold. It felt as if he looked right through me. I felt uncomfortable now. Was it too much what I wore? Our eyes didn't leave each other's until Zain turned away and stepped into the driver's seat. I knew this was going to be a long night. I exhaled deeply, only now noticing I was holding my breath. Ace shifted too, and it caught my attention because he was moving towards the back door to open it for us. "Hey Farah, looking good tonight." Ace winked, while Nora got in the car. "Thank you, Ace. You look good too." I smiled back politely. Then I too got in the backseat. Ace got in the passenger seat, and Zain drove off.

"I didn't know you were coming too." I said to the men in front. "We didn't even know we were picking you up. Norah didn't want to say who we were picking up. It's a pleasant surprise though." Ace smiled. The siblings and I kept chatting the whole way to the club. Zain, on the contrary, didn't say one word. It made me slightly uncomfortable. After what I said to him yesterday, I was 110% convinced that he hated me.