Finding Solace

Chapter 10 - Supermarket Scenarios

The next morning was much like my mornings I had been having for the past two weeks. I awoke with a throbbing headache and red eyes, but the nice thing about this morning was that I awoke to the smell of my mothers amazing breakfast!

She was gifted, talented and simply amazing at cooking up a family breakfast!

Whether it was her motherly love or years of experience, my mothers breakfast was better than yours.

I went for a shower, hoping and praying the warm water would remove the redness from from my eyes and would soothe my headache.

Princess Daliyah was still asleep so I took my time, appreciating the massive bathroom I had, in comparison to the one in India.

My heart still missed the orphans, but I knew I had to come back home. I couldn't hide forever.

I changed into black tights and an oversized top, feeling lazy to rummage through my closet and find something else to wear. Then I followed the smell of food all the way down to the outside table that had been set with five placemats.

Mahmoud sat at one end of the table, reading the newspaper and biting into a piece of toast.

When he saw me, he smiled and gestured for me to sit down.

Mahmoud wasn't my most favourite person on the planet.

Sure my mother got married to him after my father, but that didn't mean I had to go out of my way to make him feel welcome. He made my mother happy so I was always polite and smiling when I was around him.

It wasn't that there was anything wrong with him. He and my mother had been together for years now, but still.

I had one father who will always be my father.

I was snapped out of my thoughts by my mother asking if I wanted orange juice.

'Yes please.'

She poured me a glassful while I selected what I wanted to eat.

'Eh this boy! He's going to be late.' My mother said looking at her watch.

'Who? Mouin?'

'Yeah. He normally leaves for work at this time. He wont even have time to have breakfast. I'll go make him his tea in a flask.'

As my mother got up from her seat to go to the kitchen, I told her I would go make Mouin's tea. Striding into the kitchen I located the flask and made the tea. As if on cue, Mouin came rushing into the kitchen.

'Good Morning!'

He was so busy trying to fix his tie that he didn't see me in the kitchen. And when his eyes fell onto me, I noticed how distressed they looked.

'Yeah Attiya okay. I don't have time. I need to go.'

'I know. I made you your tea.' I handed him his flask. He was being so closed off and cold.

'Are you okay Mouin?'

'Am I okay?' I'm not the one who got left on their honeymoon. How could you ask me if Im okay?!'

I was at a loss for words. He sounded mad.

'I just, you just- you just look very tired.'

'Yeah! Well thats probably because I was up all night trying to figure out why you didn't tell me?'

After a pause he said 'Why? It happened one week ago Attiya. You never called. You never said anything. I thought we were closer than that.'

I gulped. He was hurt.