GRATITUDE: A Lifestyle (A Short Story) | ON HOLD

Chapter 3: Storm Inside

Manal stood at the doorstep of her new home examining it with a disgusted look on her face. She could hear her family chattering noisily in the background as they unloaded the boxes from a truck.

The old building which had seen several years of bad weather still stool tall in the middle of this old-fashioned city. It was surrounded by buildings as old as itself or even older. Yellowing with age, the place seemed in desperate need of some air and sunlight. The off-white walls had several gray patches of cement from where the paint was peeling off. The dusty brown wooden door had cracks and scratches all over. The metal handle on it had turned rusty. If that weren't enough the cobwebs added to it's horrid appearance. The place seemed no less than a prison cell to Manal.

"Welcome home", her father said grinning as he put his arm around her shoulders. He kissed her on the top of her head and said, "Now remember what I told. You have to perform two rak'at prayer and recite surah baqarah"

"The whole surah?!", Manal asked surprised.

"If you can't recite the whole surah then some part of it. Come on now", he said before going inside.

"Welcome home Manal", she whispered to herself, still looking around wondering what misery awaited her inside.

"Well Manal, what are you waiting for?! Let's get all the boxes inside", her mother called as she went in through the doors. Her siblings were already inside and she could hear lil' Asim running up the staircase.

Clenching the strap of her bag, she entered uttering Bismillah under breath. The door opened to a stair case also made of planks of wood that had turned dark overtime. The railing was metal but old and rusty. The only light entering this space was from the opened door. A light bulb hung from the ceiling but was turned off. Manal searched for a switch. There it was a few steps up the staircase. She switched it on but the bulb didn't light up.

No electricity. Great!

"It won't work. Light's out today. Dad said the electrician will check the meter tomorrow", her sister Maria said standing at the other end of the staircase, "Come let's check out our room"

Upon entering the living room after her sister, she saw a large space filled with their furniture which, for now, was kept in a disorderly manner. The two big windows had their shutters kept open to let in fresh air and light. They opened into the street at the front of the building. It looked warm and cosy. Finally Manal smiled approving of the living room. There was a kitchen on the left but she was eager to check the girls' room first. She entered into a hallway which had three doors. Two opened into bedrooms; one for the girls and other for the parents and the boy. At the end was a bathroom. She frowned at the idea of sharing the bathroom with others. Of all the things that she could get used to, this was going to be the hardest. Still frowning, she entered the bedroom on her right. She paused at the threshold suddenly suffocated by it's small size. It was too small for her liking and felt like the peach coloured walls were closing in on her. A small window in the opposite wall was open but didn't provide enough ventilation. Two beds were kept against that wall and on the right was their huge cupboard taking much of the space.

"Small isn't it?", said Maria, feeling glum.

"Where's my bed?!", Manal asked as soon as she realized it was missing.

"They couldn't fit it this small space. One of us has got to share her bed with Mona", Maria said with a mischievous smile.

"That is so not happening Maria!", Manal turned around. "Mom!!!", she went away to find her mother to talk to her about the situation.

Meanwhile, Maria made herself comfortable on her bed. She didn't like this new place either but it didn't bother her much. She was excited about decorating their new room with all sorts of items; sticking her paintings on these new walls, designing her study corner, placing Mona's stuffed toys in many different corners and even putting up a mirror such that the room looks bigger and brighter. Maria couldn't understand Manal's dislike for this place. It wasn't that bad afterall.