I Can Wear My Hijab

Chapter 13

"Auntie Maymoona stopped by," I told my mom when she had come cack from work.

"Oh, I'll call her back later," My mom said lazily.

"Ok,"

"Did you eat your lunch?" She asked.

"Yup, and I saw baba's Afro," I pointed to the old photo album.

"Oh yeah, those where the days," My mom laughed.

 I finished my homework in the evening then went over to Jedayel's house, he lived only a few blocks away from us, his house was closer to the buss stop. I reached his house and rang the doorbell.

"Hey," It was his brother Jamal who opened the door, and I could clearly see he was drunk.

"Is Jedayel around?" I asked cautiously.

"Maybe, maybe not..." He drawled, in his looks, he looked exactly like Jedayel, they were like clones of each other, the both had the same close cut black hair and small beetle black eyes, they even had the same body build, big and muscular, the only difference was that Jamal was taller and more tanned.

Jedayel came to the door.

"Hey," He said, Jamal went back inside to sit on the couch and Jedayel got out of the house closing the door behind him.

I took a deep breath then let it out again.

"You see him?" Jedayel said angrily, he was literally shaking from anger. "That.. That thing is ruining everything. My parents are trying to cover up that he's drunk so he won't get a bad reputation in the family."

"Jedayel.." I said trying to calm him down, he was walking so fast I almost had to jog to keep up with him. I knew where he was going, it was a small alley which no one ever went to, I hated that place but that's where he goes when he doesn't want any one to see him. He turned into the alley and leaned on the wall, his hand in his pockets and breathing heavily. 

"You ok?" I asked.

He nodded.

"How did he start? Drinking?"

"Some other guys at his college were drinking and told him to try it," Jedayel sighed.

"And that's it? They told him so he did it?"

"No, they called him a wimp, and you know how worked up he gets when people call him a wimp." Jedayel said.

"Oh.. He used to be so different before," I remembered.

"Yeah, more of a jock then a jerk. Now he's just a-"

"He's still your brother," I cut him off.

"And that's just the best part," He rolled his eyes.

"You need to help him,"

"Help him?!" Jedayel exploded, "He got himself into this, it's his fault he thinks too much of himself he can't even be called a wimp, he gave up everything just to prove to a bunch of other idiots that he's not a wimp, now look at our family, my dad loves him so much and that idiot Jamal has the nerve to verbally abuse him? To hell with helping him, man, he's already way out of reach."

"But he's your brother!"

"Yeah, too bad I can't change that,"

"Don't say that." I said firmly.

"Why? You've seen the way he is," Jedayel clenched his jaws.

"You're lucky you even have a brother, I'm the only child, my parents can't even get another child even if they wanted," I burst out.

"What?" Jedayel asked in confusion, scrunching his brows.

"Oh," I said realising what I'd just said, no one knew about me being a miracle child or about my mom not being able to have any kids of her own apart from me.

"Why not?" Jedayel asked.

"Why not what?" I said playing dumb.

"Why can't your parents get other children?"

"My mom had an accident a long time ago, it prevented her from having any kids, but some how I was born.. She can't have any more kids." I sighed

"Wha-" He began but his mobile rang, he took it out of his pocket to see who it was, then cut the phone and put it back in his pocket. "It's my parents, I gotta go, see you on the buss tomorrow Kay?"

"Sure," I said

                                            _________________________________________