When Two Worlds Collide

Chapter 6

Bilal 2002 - Welcome To London

Bilal puts his bags down and looks around the room to check if he has left anything behind. He had liked staying at the hostel but was glad to be moving into a flat with his new friend Abdul, where he was sure he would have a lot more peace and quiet. Abdul puts his head around the door “the cab iz ere”. Bilal picks up his bags and follows Abdul out to the car. Anna the hostel social worker is waiting for them “here are your shopping vouchers, you can use these to buy food only in Tesco, you have to go and collect these vouchers every two weeks from Lowsharmingham Town Hall. Here are your new door keys, Argos vouchers to buy some household items and your registration form to learn English at college. It’s all explained in this information pack ok” Anna pulls Abdul and Bilal into a hug “please take care of yourselves boys and call me if you need anything” She stands back and watches them get into the cab and waves to them as the cab drives. “I is very much liking Anna” Abdul declares without looking away from the window. Bilal thinks about the kindness Anna had shown him during his stay at the hostel and replies “me too”.

Bilal and Abdul finally gain entry to the flat after struggling with the keys and the locks. They both walk around the flat smiling. The whole entire flat is painted white. There brand new cream carpet covering the floors throughout except for the kitchen and bathroom which have white tiled effect lino. The kitchen has a table and two chairs and a back door which leads out to a small garden. There are two bedrooms which both have a double bed, a wardrobe and a chest of drawers. The living room has a sofa and an empty TV stand.  Bilal and Abdul busy themselves with unpacking their stuff. During the night Bilal wakes up to the sound of shouting. He looks out of his window but doesn’t see anyone. He hears a noise from Abdul’s room across the hallway and knocks on Abduls bedroom door, “Bilal, quick come” Abdul is standing over by his window, watching a group of boys messing around and drinking beer out of cans on the green, across the dead end road in front of their flat. Bilal and Abdul stand there watching the group of boys until they start moving away. Bilal goes back to his room, gets back into bed and quickly drifts back off to sleep.

For the rest of the week Abdul and Bilal muddle through with making their flat into a home. They register for English classes at college and visited Tesco’s and Argos for groceries and basic household items. Tomorrow they planned to venture out and find their way to Lowsharmingham Town Hall. In preparation for when they have to go there and collect their shopping vouchers. Bilal and Abdul decide to turn in for an early night. They have gotten used to the group of boys whom hang out on the green making noise during the night, and yesterday Bilal and Abdul got to see them during the daylight for the first time as they were walking back home. Abdul had hoped that they boys would stop them for polite conversation, and was a little bit disappointed when this did not happen, because instead the group of boys instead had stopped talking amongst themselves to openly and deliberately stare at them. Bilal would rather die before he lets anyone intimidate him so he stared right back at them. Once back home they spent the remainder of the day as usual by watching a few hours of TV before going to bed. During the night they had both been woken up by a banging sound because someone was continuously lifting the flap up, of their letter box then letting it go.  Bilal and Abdul didn’t bother to go over to the window to see who it was, for they already knew.

The next morning Bilal and Abdul had fun trying to find Lowsharmingham Town Hall and finding other useful places along the way. They returned home and decided to turn in early because of last night. Again Bilal and Abdul were woken up during the night because someone was banging the letter box and shouting obscenities through it. Every night after that, the groups of boys would come and terrorise Bilal and Abdul from outside their house. They would kick over their bins, shove rubbish, dirty nappies and used condoms through their letters box, they would climb over the wall and into their garden and throw stones at Bilal’s bedroom window all the while shouting out obscenities and ‘go back home’. Bilal and Abdul tried their best to ignore them, caught up on sleep whenever they could and only went out when absolutely necessary.

Two weeks later after the nightly disturbances started, the time had come for Abdul and Bilal to start college. In the morning Abdul shakes Bilal awake “come, we have to go for college”. Bilal wipes his eyes and heads for the bathroom, his tummy rumbles. Back home he wakes up to the smell of food, as his mother cooks breakfast for all the family in the morning. He sniffs the air as he remembers the scent of fresh bread. Bilal steps into the shower and shudders “there are no such tings ere” he says bitterly to himself. After a breakfast of dry toast and tea with no milk, Bilal and Abdul walk down the road to get a bus to college.

The teacher points to a picture of a toilet. She points to the word underneath the picture and says “toilet” the class starts to giggle “come on repeat after me toi-let”. “Toi-let” the class repeats back to her. She then points to a picture of a sink. Bilal sighs is bored out of his mind. He can’t believe he has to attend this class for the whole day five days a week! He has no desire to learn English as his sole goal is to get a job, save up the money, and then start up his own business. He drowns out the teachers and starts to write poems in Arabic on his notepad.

Bilal and Abdul stop off and eat kebabs for dinner before going home after college. They pass the group of boys that have been tormenting them as they get near their house. “Why don’t you just fuck off back home, we don’t need you here” one of them slurs throwing his empty bottle after them. It just misses them and smashes to the floor. Bilal spins round and picks up a broken piece of bottle, “liv us alone” he says pointing at them with the broken glass in his hand. Another boy from the groups steps forward “who are you talking too, you fucking lil foreigner”. The boys start to walking towards them, and Abdul holds his hands up “please, no trouble” he pleads with them, the boy in the front stops walking and hold us arms out to halt the rest of the group “WAIT” he shouts, his face goes red and he contorts in anger “i know this foreign prick aint trying to tell me what to do now”.  Abdul repeats again “please no trouble” “what the fuck” yells the boy in the front and starts running towards Abdul, the rest of the boys start running towards him too. Abdul is knocked down to the ground as they rain punches and kicks down in him. Bilal tries his best to fight them off, and is knocked back by a blow to his face; he remembers the broken glass in his hand and lunges at the boy who punched him. Bilal stabs the boy in the arm and he yells out in pain. The group of boys stop and look at where the noise had came from. When they register what has happened they all start running. Bilal drops down beside Abdul. His face is swollen and bleeding. “Abdul” Bilal puts his hand under and lifts up Abduls head. Abdul coughs up blood onto Bilal’s clothes. “Elp, elp EEEEEEEEEEELP” Bilal screams in to the darkness. He looks around “pliz somebody elp me, ELP MEEEEEEEE” Bilal sobs as he cradles a lifeless Abdul in his arms rocking him back and forth.