Beyond Desire

5-A certain shade of piercing blue.

"Uhh......" I paused, unsure of how to respond, with three pairs of eyes weighing me down. "Nice to meet you too" I managed to put words together to form a tangible sentence without stuttering.

My type of person could slip into any conversation naturally and awkwardness was never a thing for me, but for some bizarre reason, I wanted to set out running in the opposite direction by just the feeling of his intense gaze on me.

My eyes traced his well-defined jawline, down to his well-toned arm muscles which the white tee he was clad in did nothing to hide. My gaze swept over every part of him but his eyes, I would melt down the minute I looked up at those blue orbs again. Those eyes that contrasted well with his night-colored hair and tanned skin.

I'd forgotten how small he made me look. Instinctively, I took a couple of steps back just so I would get rid of the diminutive. He was tall. And just like his height, his attractiveness seemed to stretch on forever.

"You okay?" He whispered, his tone filled with cockiness only he could pull off while feigning concern at the same time.

It was one thing being handsome. It was another thing entirely being handsome and knowing damn well that you are. He knew to what extent his good looks had an impact on the opposite gender and he was willing to explore every part of it.

As if his gaze was not enough, I could feel my mother's glances filled with questions and assumptions I would have to put up a lot of acts to clear.

"Great coincidence you two met now, Khalidi aren't you traveling to Asia next week?" I was beyond grateful that the conversation was shifted away from me.

"Maybe" He shrugged. I could tell by how his calculative gaze stared at his mom, that he was wondering why she was bringing that up.

Mothers are led by the same spirit.

"So is Jalila, you two can be on the same page while at it" She chimed excitedly, like a child on Eid morning.

"We will see about that" His gaze lingered on me again for a few unbearable seconds and then slid to our mothers, my mother to be precise.

"It is an honour meeting you Hajiya" He bowed again, his smile as calm as the sun in the early hours of the morning. My mother was smitten by his proper manners or should I say an imitation of one, cause I saw him for who he was, a total jerk with an ego big enough to inflate a hot air balloon.

"Allah yayima albarka, may God bless you. Let's not keep you guys, it is getting chilly" My mom stated, hinting at a goodbye.

"Till next time" Hajiya Zara beamed at us at the same time her eldest muttered an "Ameen"

My mother and I stood side by side and watched the duo walk into the car and zoom off in the middle of the convoy.

"No no no, we are not doing this!" the minute they were out of sight, I proclaimed, squinting my eyes her way.

"Hey! You didn't even let me speak" She sounded so mischievous, tapping on my shoulder as she giggled lightly.

"I know that look, I have been putting up with it since I became a lady. Don't even think about it, it isn't going to work" I warned, genuinely but with a light tone.

"A mother can dream about marrying off her baby girl, especially to a nice gentleman with a humble character" She aimed for my cheeks with her giddy hands but I moved out of reach.

Humble my foot.

"A mother can dream, I ain't saying no to that. Just dream in your head"

"Where is the fun in doing that?"

"Who says anything about marriage and fun being in the same sentence?"

"You will not be the end of me" She shook her head.

"Dial the parade, I will get Mahir" She declared, walking back toward the electric door without waiting for my response. Well, at least we are returning home.

I fished my phone out of the overly sized pocket of my maroon boubou and dialed the head of our security team.

The entire premises of the hotel was filled up with vehicles of different sizes and status. We arrived relatively late, so our convoy had to find a spot away from the main event hall. My father would have thrown a fuss if he found out.

While my mother was a carefree woman, who wouldn't even care to take a single security when going out, my father was heavy on that. He wouldn't let any of us match the foyer without security following our every move, especially after he was awarded a minister.

The frustration of having someone breathe in your personal space all the damn time? You just get used to it at some point.

As if on cue, I spotted Mahir walking out of the hall with his mother's hand clad on his at the same time I spotted the lines of Nissan patrol SUVs rolling toward the driveway.

Without waiting for the two, I slipped into the armored BMW 7 series which my father had specifically customised to be bulletproof for our protection.

In beats, mama steps in beside me and Mahir in the front. They were conversing lightly about some Netflix series while I busied myself with my phone, looking through the picture I was just tagged in by the photographer from this event. I looked so done with everything. There were some with Mahir too and some from when I had my hand around my mom.

I refrained from showing it to him, knowing he would request for his to be deleted or report the account at worst.

Later at night, after completing my night ritual of a steamy hot shower and a light meal, I nestled into bed, encircled by layers of duvets and pillows. I found myself navigating through Instagram, searching for the name "Khalid" after I discovered his father's name was "Ladan"

I spent hours doing my research but found nothing that related to him on a personal level. I stumbled upon his mother's official page as the first lady and scrolled through all the two hundred and eleven people she followed, finding his siblings among them but nothing pointed to him.

He had a younger sister and three of what seemed to be step-siblings. Apart from a picture of him, I saw scrolling down his sister's Instagram, there was no single forte to find. He wasn't even tagged in the picture. Just a curt caption that simply reads "Khalidi"

I gave up at some point late at night, opting to drift off to sleep while my sanity was invaded by a certain shade of piercing blue, like the first hint of dawn on a cloudy morning.

It was maddening and unlike anything I have ever experienced

*********

It's like my characters are staging a rebellion against my brain🥲

I had an entirely different initial plan for this story, but noooooo..... Khalid and Jalilah are hell-bent on making their own rules

Who am I to stop them though? I am just a chauffeur on this wild ride. 😮‍💨

So buckle up folks!
And while you are at it, don't forget to

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