--- KING ---
"So you've got no siblings, right?" Ahmad asked me as we walked along the foot path, a cigarette in my hand and a bottle of water in his.
"Yep, only child. Would have loved to have one, but that didn't happen." I shrugged as I thought about what life would have been like if I had someone to share my burden with. But then again, that would have meant that along with mine, another innocent persons life would have been hell also.
"Khayr." He commented. "Like, maybe this way it's better for you?" He explained though he clearly didn't know exactly how to explain it. It made me chuckle.
"Do you?" I asked him and he nodded his head.
"I've told you this before. A little sister your age and a 25 year old brother."
"What school does your sister go to?" I asked him. My school was a local one so maybe I even knew her. He turned his head to me with slightly narrowed eyes.
"Why do you need to know?" He muttered, rolling his eyes before looking back ahead.
"Chill." I laughed out loud at how protective he sounded just by me asking her school. "I didn't ask for her number." I chuckled and he narrowed his eyes at me.
"I don't care. You don't need to know anything about her." He spoke as he released a breath once we turned into the street of the mosque.
"I don't know anything about her..." I trailed off. "Why are you so protective over someone I don't know. It's not like I can harm her in any way" I muttered. I mean, of course there was the stereotype of older brothers being over protective of their younger sisters and whatnot, but to be protective of one who I have no idea of? One who I wouldn't recognize? Yeah, I've never seen that before.
"Gheerah, mate. It's called gheerah. Protective jealousy. Not only for those younger than you, but over all your womenfolk. To protect your sisters, your mother, your daughters, your aunts, your grandmother, your nieces." He spoke.
"Protective jealousy..." I trailed off, the thought confusing me. Why would you need jealousy over your grandmother?
"Looks like we have our new topic sorted." He smiled with a laugh, his energy returning back to normal as we walked up the steps of the masjid and took off our shoes.
I glanced briefly at the women's entrance off to the side, but no one was there. What was I expecting? To see her again of all women that come here? Yeah, I wasn't that lucky.
"Today's khutbah can be gheerah, amo!" Ahmad called to the imam as we walked in and sat down on a corner. It was Friday and so Ahmad had told me today was their special weekly holiday where everyone would come to the masjid to pray and worship Allah. I did notice there were already many more people than usual and more people were wearing thawb's as opposed to normal clothing. People were reading Qur'an and others had beads in their hand that they were counting and saying words of praise to their Lord with.
"I already had a khutbah picked out and ready to go..." The imam trailed off but Ahmad gestured his head to me with a small smile and the imam nodded his head in agreement, mumbling that he'd do the other topic next week.
Some time later, once the masjid was filled, the speakers around the masjid turned on and my heart raced. I knew what was coming. I hadn't heard the adhaan (call to prayer) in so long. I had listened to it a couple of times from YouTube, but no doubt the echo of the sound inside the masjid was a whole new feeling.
YOU ARE READING
Finding Islam
Teen Fiction-- Life works in mysterious ways. King Patterson never really thought about life in depth. He did not care much for his future. He did not plan. There was no use. He would be six feet under today, tomorrow or the day after that. He took each day as...
