Mentally Occupied

23

Hundreds of questions hovering around Hana's head. How much does she weigh now? Has she become as fat as a liar or thin as a bamboo stick? What is the shape and size of her eyebrows now that she hasn't touched since? Almost and did not bring them closer to politeness and specificity? Has she got a mustache? How thick is it? Malik was affected by Hana's speech. He did not imagine the idea of a person spending an entire year of his age without looking at his face in the mirror a person cannot do without looking in the mirror, even to be sure of his good dress. Is it possible that there are people who do not look at themselves? It may be about to forget about his features?! He does not remember how it must be his face the last time he looked in the mirror and loses himself over time.

If Hana did not look in the mirror, did she not use her phone and photograph herself even once? There are many ways that can be replaced by a mirror. Malik bent himself to remove himself from the circle of questions that befell him, too, and said:

- You are beautiful! I really don't tell you that out of consolation, but it's the truth! You have wide brown eyes. They look like children's eyes. They are brilliant and clear. Your skin is as white as snow. You have such a great big smile that you close your eyes so tightly. Even when you are angry or sad, you have a special sparkle. Do you know?

- What?

- You look delicious to cuddle in this period, and when you look angrily and furrow your eyebrows, I can't take you for granted seriously. Because you look more attractive then. your cheeks get redder whenever the sun is shining and the color of your eyes becomes much lighter then. Your long black hair, when you let it down, highlights more of the beauty of your face with it, you are lucky...

Hana laughed while crying, the smile mixed with tears from excessive happiness, she tried to form a picture of her face in her imagination from the description of Malik.

***

Shortly before noon, Naim woke up to the sound of the doorbell ringing. He tried to ignore the matter, but he remembered that it was a holiday, and perhaps someone had come to congratulate or greet them. He passed the sleeping, unclothed Damiana next to him, looking at her, contemplating her body full of fat at the sides, her belly occupying her stomach, and her sagging breasts. He rubbed his head with his hand. He is surprised that he slept with her yesterday, but he remembers that she was not like that when he embraced her. She was graceful and taller than that, and she was a young woman who was not yet thirty. He did not sleep with that woman, but he was in his arms and in the arms of dreams. This is what he knows.

The doorbell started ringing again, he remembered the waiter at the door and they were going to open the door, he passed in front of the mirror and saw himself completely naked, he was ashamed of himself and opened the wardrobe and picked up his pajamas and put them on while he was on his way to the door, he did not focus on the situation of the house, all that occupied him was the time and the question who insists on it; Did Damiana feel that he was not with her and was with another woman? Did he say her name? Did his wife hear him? He opened the door, and found Naglaa standing with a bouquet of roses in her hand. He opened his arms while smiling, hugged her and kissed her eyes. He took the roses from her while thanking her.

Najlaa does not come often to visit Naim except on special occasions or holidays. She felt suffocated while she was in his lap. She felt a tingling in the place of his kiss. He asked her cordially to enter. He felt embarrassed after she entered his clothes and his wife's underwear lying on the floor randomly and scattered in the place. Nothing was in order or in its place. Najla looked at the crosses and the pictures of the Virgin and Christ hanging on the walls everywhere, the bottles of wine on a bar near the dining table. Naim managed to collect the clothes in a hurry and entered after he heard his wife's voice inside asking about the visitor. He told her that she was Naglaa. Damiana laughed happily as she told him:

- The feast is not a feast unless your excellent student visited us.

His good student?! She is not his student, she is his partner in the sanatorium, though Damiana does not know that.

Najla sat on the edge of the sofa after she had re-arranged her, for the first time she knew why her uncle kept her after the death of her maternal grandfather and did not give her to him, and she understood and realized why her grandfather willingly gave her his name. Styling her newly dyed and ironed hair with her hand, she embraced Najla and kissed her. They sat talking and exchanging congratulations on the occasion of Eid. Damiana got up and said to her:

- We didn't break our fast because we haven't woken up yet.

- Sorry if I disturbed you.

- Do not say this.. We do not feel the feast except when you are present.. I will prepare a quick breakfast and we will eat together.. What do you think, Naim?

Naim agreed immediately while he was inside changing his clothes. He came back after a few seconds wearing a shirt and pants and had regained his usual form. During his entry, he met his wife on her way to the kitchen. He told her that the house was in a deplorable condition. He would take Najla and sit on the balcony until she arranged the house and returned it to its condition. She prepares breakfast and brings it to them there. They all eat it together. Damiana agreed and got busy doing what he asked of her.

They sat on the balcony. Najla looked at him and said directly:

- When will you acknowledge me?

Zahel looked at her, then looked at the closed balcony door to make sure that his wife was not near and had not heard. He said to her in a whisper:

- I cannot admit you.. for several reasons.. but this is not the right place to discuss such a matter, nor the right time.. Tomorrow I will be in the sanatorium, there we can talk.

Naglaa knows that he is evasive, he will not recognize her and will not tell anyone about his relationship with her, he contented himself with giving her a share in the sanatorium and nothing else, she also does not want him to recognize her, and each of them has his reasons, but she wants to put him under pressure, as there in the sanatorium he treats her as if she is just a doctor It is normal in the sanatorium and there is no partner in it. It is true that no one knows about the partnership, even the accounts department does not know anything about this. The only one who knows is the chartered accountant of the sanatorium, and he does not work with it and has nothing to do with it. He submits the tax report and determines the profits of each partner. Naim is deposited What the accountant mentioned in Naglaa's bank account and she disposes of it however she wants, he does not hold her accountable, but rather does not know what will happen to him.

All there is to it is that he does not want her to show her influence in the management of the sanatorium, because that may cause some people to suspect him, and he does not trust Damiana, as she may have eyes there.

His wife opened the door and returned carrying a huge tray with some dishes loaded with different types of cheese, jam and cream. Nagla stood and took the tray from it and helped her arrange the plates, cups and tea set on the table. Sometimes.

After breakfast, they entered the house again. Damiana had arranged it quickly. They drank coffee, and Nagla asked permission after that. Damiana went to see her at the door, while Naim remained unmoved.

Damiana sat far from him, told him that she wanted to go to the children's shelter affiliated with one of the churches, Naim nodded his head in agreement, she asked him to bite the money to buy gifts for the shelter's residents, he indicated to her to take what she wanted from the money place known to her, he was not in the mood Well, he doesn't know why, is it because he was in Damiana's arms last night? Or maybe because Nagla was able to kill him and put him in an unenviable position.

***

Malik became Hana's mirror, she sees herself through him. He was able, by describing her, to get her out of the state of sadness that possessed her and replace her tears with a pure smile. He examined her more as he described to her, saying:

- Your weight is perfect for your great height, and I do not think that your weight has increased recently. It is true that I do not know what your body looked like before, but your clothes still fit you, which means that it has not increased or decreased significantly..

Hana has mixed feelings at the same time to hear those words that made her regain the same self she was in a year ago. She raised her head towards Malik and said to him gratefully:

- Thanks a lot. Thank you for being my mirror that I had lost for a long time. I thank you for helping me see myself through your eyes, and sorry too my exaggeration in my grief, but it was against my will. I promise I will never fall back like this again.

Malik smiled to see Hana so happy immersive. He felt like she had regained the luster she had lost a long time ago. She was trying hard to get it back. He said with a wide smile:

- I hope you to fulfill with the promise you made to yourself right now, be strong for you only.

He looked at her sympathetically, then resumed his speech, saying:

- Actually, there's something important about that place we're going now, but before I tell you about that story, I want to ask you one more thing as we go on our way to there.