BROKEN BUT DESTINED

Love or crush

It was a beautiful Saturday morning. The birds were going about their day chirping melodiously, but their calming sounds got lost in the annoying noises of the busy streets and honking vehicles. Esther woke up that day filled with overflowing optimism. Her father didn't make it home the previous night and as a result, fortunately, she had one of those rare and peaceful nights. It had been quite a while since she woke up feeling so refreshed hence, she was fully convinced that this was most definitely a sign; 'It is going to be a great day!'

Esther sat at the bench by the bus stop, patiently waiting for Hafsa's arrival. The morning breeze blew through her well kept braided hair filling the air with the smell of the coconut oil she used to maintain its shine. Despite being appropriately dressed in a faded black, but still wearable, oversized sweatshirt, grey sweatpants and the white sneakers Hafsa gifted her for her birthday, the chill of the early rise still gave her goosebumps.

More than thirty minutes had gone by before Esther finally saw Hafsa striding towards her from a distance.
"What took you so long? How can you be late on the time you suggested?"

"Sorry. I had to wait for my cousin to get ready. He insisted on tagging along and......"
" Here you go ladies," a deep and seductive voice said, interrupting Hafsa's muttering to a stop.

Esther slightly tilted her head in curiosity to see the source of this astounding voice. Looking past Hafsa's left shoulder, her eyes widened in astonishment and her lower jaw slightly dropped in disbelief.

There, right there in front of her shy self, stood an angel of a man; or so she thought. He had the perfect height with a wide chest and broad shoulders. The slim fit grey shirt he wore revealed his six pack abs and masculine structure like that of a Greek god. He had thick dark hair falling down half his face like vines, with his light brown eyes shining through it, piercing Esther's innocent heart like arrows with every look. The rest of his long silky hair was tied in a messy, yet oddly attractive bun. His beautiful smile revealed a set of immaculately straight and dazzling pearl white teeth hidden behind soft peach pink lips. As the sunshine fell on his bare veiny hands, his glowing light-skin complexion complemented his entire detailed physique. He was perfect; undeniably perfect!

All this while, Esther didn't realise she had been holding her breath for an abnormally long time. It's only after Hafsa passed her the sandwiches bought by the fine young man, did she snap back to reality and take a silent deep breath.

"Well, are you going to introduce us?" asked Esther to the seemingly confused Hafsa who was already halfway done with her avocado sandwich.

"Oh, sorry; Rashid meet my best friend Esther. She's the one I told you about; and Esther meet my elder cousin Rashid. He flew in from London last week and will be around for a while. He wished for a walk around town that's why he came along. Don't mind him; he assured to be of great help."

"Pleasure meeting you. I've heard a lot about you," said Rashid, stretching his hand to shake Esther's.
"Pleasure," Esther mumbled, as though coming down with a cold.

"Wait, you told him about me?" Esther turned to Hafsa in a non-plussed whisper; assuming Rashid wouldn't hear their conversation.

"Yeah, I had to. He wanted to know who I was meeting so early in the morning, on a weekend, so I had to tell him everything."

"WHAT! Everything?" asked Esther in a slightly pitched voice, as she leaned back in disbelief. She had forgotten about the whispering part and turned to find Rashid giving her a somewhat peculiar look.

"Ah...not everything everything," Hafsa chortled, "I filtered out a lot of stuff of course."
At this point, Hafsa started noticing a first time spark in Esther's eyes. Right there and then, she realised Esther actually liked her cousin. It was as clear as day. She was happy about this change in her friend, but why did it have to be with her annoying cousin. All the same, she didn't want to ruin the atmospheric mood; she smiled to herself and let them nibble at their breakfast sandwiches while being completely lost in their own fantasies.