Her Encounter | Islamic Story

Chapter 9 ✓

This day from the contemptuous birthday to when after Adrian left, more like when I made him leave, was full of vicissitudes. After Adrian's departure, I couldn't control my emotions and the lump in my throat. It became harder to breathe as the seconds passed by. I was suffocating in that little room of mine. I barely slept that night.

In the morning, I felt exactly the same. I just couldn't go to the college as my emotions were all over the place. Gathering myself, I left the room while sprinting at full speed. I went past people on the street and bumped into a few too, earning quite a shit from them but since I wasn't in the mood to retort I ignored them, and coming from me, that was saying something.

Judging by the looks on people's faces when they saw me approaching, they were probably wondering where in such an emergency would I be running off to. Ironically, I, too, didn't know that. I ran, and ran, through streets, through markets, just stopping occasionally only enough to get my breath.

My legs gave away in a peaceful street laden with a few houses and having trees and grasses grown in their lawns. I was standing at a far corner of the street when nearby I spotted a bench amongst few trees between two houses. I walked towards it.

My breathing became heavy and my body started shaking when I sat on it. My body ached from the run.

After minutes, which seemed like hours, of sitting cuddled up on that bench, I got up to go to my home. I had nothing to gain from sitting here. The thoughts and the idea of being cheated on was crushing. Nothing was going to help it.

I was far away from my place and I had no stamina left to run so I decided to take a cab, only to realize that I was low on budget, thus I took a bus.

After half an hour, I reached the hostel. I slowly trodded up the stairs for I was extremely tired. Just as I reached my floor, I fumbled for the right key on my key chain while I absently walked towards my room. When I raised my head, I was taken aback by shock for a businessman-sort-of man was standing by my room's door.

I could vaguely remember the man's face, but couldn't place a name or associate a memory to.

I kept staring at him and so did he.

Suddenly, I remembered. "You," I exclaimed.

"Yeah. I'm Mr Robert. Robert Statonn. You can call me Uncle Statonn."

"Who the hell you really are? What do you want from me? And why in the world should I call you Uncle?" He was the same man who would pass every now and then by the restaurant I worked at.

He had deep black eyes on a fair skin. He must have been around 5'11. He wore a black suit and seemed to be around the age of 50.

He laughed. "I suspect you recognized me."

"Yes! You better start speaking soon or I'm calling the security." That's when I remembered that there was no security here. But of course I didn't waver from my stance.

"There's a lot of things we need to talk about. I'm not sure if a corridor is a good place for that."

"And why in the world should I trust you?"

"Because I know about your Dad."

"You could be his killer for all I know!" I exclaimed.

"I'm not. And, if you should ask, there's nothing I can do to prove it."

I didn't reply to that. I needed to know about my Dad, maybe this was my chance.

I decided to listen to him so I took him downstairs to the lawn. There was surely no one going to be there. People liked to hang out anywhere but hostel's lawn. Plus he couldn't hurt me in the open. Could he?