The Sky Between Us

Chapter Six - Annoying Younger Brothers

When I finally found my breath again, I could feel the flush of heat on my cheeks, and he was staring at me just as much as I was staring at him, and I just wanted to disappear whilst simultaneously praying that he would never look away. 

"Waalaikumusalam, Amir," his name felt foreign coming from my mouth, and I didn't miss that slight upturn of his lips at his name, a whisper of a smile but not a real smile. 

I doubted he even had the ability to smile. 

Amir's Ama ushered me in, and I sat directly across from Amir, we weren't married yet so it was a complete no to us sitting next to each other, and for that, I was eternally grateful. 

He cleaned up nicely, neatly combed hair and cropped beard, and eyes that you could fall into and never resurface. 

He had a certain intimidating quality about him, but I'd be damned if I was ever scared of a man. 

Allah was the only one that I feared. 

And even then that sort of fear was out of respect. 

"So Khadijah, how are you feeling,?" Amir's Ama asked and I smiled politely, clasping a hot cup of tea that had been given to me.

"Alhamdullilah, I am feeling good Sasi," I didn't miss the slight fall in her expression when I called her aunty, it seemed she wanted me to call her something else but she wasn't my mother-in-law just yet. 

But her frown wasn't long-lasting soon she was smiling again, at her son and then at me, "It will be so nice to welcome you into this family, it will be nice to have another girl,"

It then struck me how little I knew about my husband to be, I didn't even know if he had siblings, whether when his mother mentioned another girl that meant another girl in addition to an already there, or another girl in general. 

I didn't seem to see any siblings, and boy was I mistaken because just as the thought crossed my mind, the door was flung open, and in a waltz in a younger-looking version of Amir, though unlike Amir he had a bright smile on his face, his warmth engulfed the room, and he was all mischief and joy. 

He seemed to stumble in unaware of his surroundings, before he stopped abruptly in the middle of the room, "Oh," was his short spurt of realisation. 

His eyes locked with his brothers, as he ran a hand down his face, "This is today, crap I forgot,"

"Language Yasin," his father scolded to which he hurried out a quick apology. 

That was when he finally looked at me, he was young, probably only on the cusp of 18 and you could see it in his boyish smile, his carefree stance, and the humour in his eyes.

He looked at me for a moment, eyes sparkling before he breathed out a soft, "Wow,"

I flushed, this was not what I had been expecting and I had no idea at all how to respond, but my eyes immediately snapped to Amir's watching as a scowl formed on his face, the reaction in itself was unexpected, and somehow it seemed so very right. 

"Yasin, that's no way to address a guest, she will be your Bhabi soon," Amir's mother chimed in, but Yasin was too distracted to take in her words, he pushed through the sofas and plopped himself down next to his brother.

"You've really hit the jackpot Bhaia," he tried to whisper but his voice was too loud and it carried through the room, Amir stiffened, before turning and glaring at his brother. 

His jaw was visibly clenched. 

"Show some respect," he gritted out, and it was the first full sentence he had spoken, there was a warning in his voice as clear as day but Yasin seemed to be used to the glares of his brother, the threats and the instructions, he just patted his brother on the shoulder before chuckling, "Everyone needs an annoying younger brother to keep them on their toes, even Bhabi,"

Neither I nor Amir corrected him, as we were not married yet, he shouldn't really be calling me Bhabi but I was far too interested in this peculiar dynamic between two brothers that seemed to be so very different from each other. Polar opposites, battling against the attitudes of the other.

"I've already got one of those, " I added my voice light and airy, flowing through the room and drawing everyone's attention back to me as I looked to Yusuf who was sizing up Yasin.

"So I have competition," Yasin retorted with more seriousness than anything he had said so far, his eyes zeroing on my brother, which pulled a laugh from me that I couldn't hold in

At the very sound, I could feel Amir's eyes boring into me, he didn't smile, didn't react, just looked at me, and that's all he ever seemed to do, he hadn't even spoken to me properly other than saying salam and I would be lying if I said it didn't irk me. 

So when he finally spoke to me, I couldn't help but feel a flutter in the depths of my stomach, flutters that had turned into a storm when he had told his brother to respect me. 

"Khadijah," say it again, I wanted to tell him, ask him to just say my name so I could listen to that smooth timbre that if it had a taste would be that of the finest swiss chocolate, "Do you have any plans this weekend?"

I was not expecting that "Oh well um-"

But Ama was already fifty steps ahead of me, "Not at all, she is completely free,"

"I am?" I stupidly said before Ama was pinching my back, to stop me from ruining her plans, so I pretended to remember about my non-existent free schedule, I had a billion things to do, but I guess I no longer had any of that responsibility on my shoulders, "Oh yeah, nothing- completely and utterly free, free as a bird," I cringed at the last part of my sentence, mentally wanting to slap myself, but Amir, despite his stone-cold face seemed to find it amusing I saw that in his eyes, whether it was mockery or humour I couldn't tell.

"Well if it's ok with you Sasa, and Sasi," he turned to my parents who looked like they were already prepared to say yes, which was a first, it had taken me years to build up the trust and report to be able to go anywhere with out 4 business days notice with my parents so this was very new, "I would like to have lunch with Khadijah, with a mahram present of course,"

"Sound's wonderful, Yusuf can join you too,"

"I can?" Yusuf spoke for the first time, looking a little lost.

"I can go if you can't," Yasin piped up and something close to jealously flashed in Yusuf's eyes, something I hadn't seen in a long time.

"No I can, and besides the Mahram has to be her Mahram," Yusuf spoke with all the articulation he usually did but there was an edge to his voice, as I watched on there was a true battle of the brothers, and despite priding myself in being a pacifist I was sure this would be entertaining. 

"Says who?" You could tell Yasin was younger than Yusuf there was a lack of knowledge in his responses, the fickle mind of a young adult that wasn't yet well versed in the matters of the world. 

"Say the- you know what forget it," Yusuf seemed quite exasperated so he wrenched his gaze from Yasin and turned to me, "I'm free Api, I'll come with you."

"Perfect."