Twice His Age

1: Encounter

They stood in front of the ironed door and he turned to see the way his friend, if truth be told, only friend, was grinning while he rubbed his palms against each other. He was so happy, he didn't even have to say it out.

"Are you nervous to get in?" He asked, because that would be the only reason they'd be standing here, for what? Almost five minutes now and Anas didn't make any move to get in.

He turned to him with the most beautiful kind of smile and shook his head. "Do you know how long it has been since when I last saw her, Zaid? Five years! I haven't seen her for five freaking years and I don't even know how to act when I do now. Has she changed? Will she think that I've changed?"

He scoffed and that seemed to stop Anas from rambling on and he stopped midway, maybe figuring how he was talking. "Man, didn't you say she was married?" He nodded his head, there was no use speaking his answer. "Then why are you acting as if she's your long lost love?"

"You won't get it, Zaid..."

He nodded and pulled his hands out of his pockets. "I won't get it and I don't know if I'm willing to. Either we get in now or I swear I'm getting on the next bike I'll see and go back to the hotel. I won't be staying while you can't even muster the courage to get in."

It was either Anas knew him enough to know that he could leave him to his own predicament or he too was tired of all that. He watched as he released a shaky breath, rubbed his palms some more and nodded, probably internally giving himself the pep talk and he walked toward the door with confidence.

"Let's knock first, I pray she's the one that'd open the door for us." He spoke to himself while Zaid watched as he knocked on the door with tentative hands.

Few seconds later, they heard the sounds of footsteps as someone walked over to the door and unlocked it. Zaid could swear Anas had held his breath when that happened until they saw the face that opened the door. It was that of a ten year old boy, smiling widely at them.

"Good evening," the boy greeted and Anas smiled, or if he could do justice to the expression that broke on his face, grinned with mist of tears in his eyes.

"You can't be Waleed, right?" He asked with a voice threatening to break and they both watched the boy nodded his head with curiosity dangling from his eyes. Anas outstretched his hand for a shake and chuckled, "you've grown so well, oh my god!"

The boy shook his hand and he slightly pulled him inside. "Ammi has been waiting for your arrival, come in." He said and rushed inside, probably to inform his dearest Ammi about their arrival.

Anas turned to Zaid with a grin, "I'm so happy right now, Zaid. Can you see how grown up Waleed is? Doesn't time fly so fast?" He asked with a tone that spoke of his feelings and all Zaid could do was flash him a grim as he nodded his head, walking further into the house because he had notice there was no intention of doing that from Anas.

They stood by the door of the living room and heard the shuffling sound of someone rushing to come there. Zaid was the one standing by the door and Anas was was behind him, as he fixed his eyes on the door, his entire body getting frozen as he expected to see the face he had longed for five years. He had missed and wanted to see so badly.

A second away from getting his friend suffocated, she opened the door. And Lord Of Creation! instead of Anas, he was the one that got suffocated instead. She stared at him for a second before her eyes wandered to Anas and her entire face broke into a grin as she rushed to him, hugging him entirely while she burst into tears of joy along with a squeal coming out of her mouth. And Zaid stood there, rooted to the ground while he watched them hug each other with tears in their eyes.