Another Forever

2 6 | l i e s

• f a a r i s •

As soon as I walked into the restaurant, my eyes searched for Hayat's familiar face. After looking for some two minutes, I finally found her, sitting in a booth in the right corner of the hall, sipping a glass of water silently and staring at the wall to her left.

I made my way to her and greeted her. "Hi."

"Hi." She lifted her head and smiled, but there was something missing from her eyes. The spark for which Hayat was famous was not there.

"You seem pretty busy these days." She said and I felt guilt gripping me from insides. I had been avoiding talking to her since my marriage because I didn't know how to handle this situation. It wasn't fair, but it was the only way I had.

"I... I had an important project." I lied. I was going to tell her about Noor but first, I have to ease her into this piece of information. I couldn't drop a bomb like that without preparing her first. "Let's order something." I said.

I called the waiter and ordered a beef steak. Hayat ordered Pesto Pasta and once the waiter left, we both turned our attention to each other. "How is Noor?" She asked.

"Um..." I cleared my throat. "She is fine. How is your job going? Happy with the promotion?" I said to change the topic.

"You would have known if you had called." She passed me a sarcastic smile.

"What is that supposed to mean?" I asked.

"They fired me." She said and stared at the table.

"What?" I asked in surprise. Hayat was amazing in her work so it made no sense why someone would fire her. "But why?"

"There was a merger. They cut 60% of the staff." She said.

"But how could they do that? You were just promoted. Why would they fire you?" I exasperated.

"Maybe because the new manager is a racist." She said, leaning back in her seat. The waiter returned with our order and placed it in front of us.

"I... I am so sorry. I should have been there for you." I said and extended my hand to hold hers. She lowered her head and stared at our linked hands with longing.

"You know, I was fired from my dream job and all I could think was the reason why you weren't calling me." She said, making me feel even more guilty. "You are my best friend Faaris. Don't do that again."

"I won't." I said, pulling my hands back.

"Okay, ignore this. I'd find a new job InShaAllah." She said and wiped her eyes that had started to moisten. "You had something to tell me, right? What is it?"

"I..." I tried to form a sentence but my tongue didn't work. I didn't have the courage to shatter her heart after the misfortune she had. Call me coward but I couldn't do that, not to Hayat. "I just wanted to see you. Nothing else." I said.

"Oh." Her eyes brightened instantly. "Me too."

We both exchanged a smile and turned our attention to our food.

°°°°°°°°°°°

When I got home, the delicious scent of Noor's perfume greeted me. I followed the scent to the kitchen when she was standing in front of the stove, stirring a pot. She was dressed in a plain black Shalwar Kameez, her hair tied on top of her head. While stirring, she was humming some music under her breath and swaying her hips slowly.

"Assalamu Alaikum." I walked behind her and she stunned in her place. I waited for her to turn around and once she did, the sight of her blushing cheeks amused me.