Masked

《12》

•{the four kids}•

Sana's eyes widened to the size of saucers, only very little because of what her brother had told her, and mostly because of what she had seen.

As his hands that lay clenched into fists, her hands covering them, she could feel the subtle trembles that travelled through his skin onto hers. And as her eyes caught the solitary tear leave his left eye, as she silently registered it's movement down his pale cheek, her ears numb to his confession, and her heart more empathetic towards his state.

Why does he look like, how he looked like then?

"What are you saying Saalim? How did this happen?"

She asked, looking into his gaze after her eyes had finally registered the shaky grief through his face.

"I-I don't know. It all just- just escalated so...quickly. I was sitting with Alex, watching a movie, when his mom called."

"And?"

He held her gaze for a minute, before sighing and breaking it to look away, his mind playing the half remembered scenario for him all over again.

"He...he said that word."

Her face lay expressionless until she caught what he was saying. Then backed away a little, her eyebrows forming knots.

"Oh..."

Was all she could mouth out, as she looked away from Saalim's face, stopping her gaze at the grey covers. She hadn't thought that the word was so common--seeing how it was usually used by Asian muslims only. And so she had been relieved over the fact that they lived in a non-Asian and non-muslim country, only because of that word not having to be a bother.

But was she to be relieved now, when her brother had lost his conscious again?

Why is he hearing it so much? Things were okay till now, then why the sudden frequent switches?

She thought, all the while intently staring into the plain designs. Realizing that his hand was still tightly clenched onto hers, and that he was still sitting in front of her, perhaps waiting for her to say something that could calm his nerves, she looked up at him quickly pulling away the frown.

"You must have ran away from the spot right?"

She asked, recalling her previous encounters with him when he was in his worst state. He sighed--not shaky, but a heavy one--before reluctantly nodding, as he tried to recall fragments of the unfortunate night, though he knew he couldn't remember anything from the moment that he had lost himself.

"Y-yeah, I guess. When I regained consciousness, I was in a different area, a dark alleyway. Ms Asmah was, standing in front of me, she looked scared."

Saalim answered, finding himself getting lost staring into nothing again, as he replayed her face in his mind a thousand times before closing his eyes shut from the scene.

She did. She did look scared, terrified, traumatized. I've hurt her. And now she may, never forgive me.

"She was hurt, she was angry, and she even slapped me, for something I did but I didn't."

He mumbled out mindlessly, his eyes still closed, only opening when he chuckled at himself. At his pathetic state.

"I deserve it don't I? Who wouldn't be scared, seeing a monster in front of themselves, who wouldn't hate me after having seen me like that? Had it been someone else, they would have done more than just a slap, but it was Ms Asmah, and she was, I'm sure, too scared to even look at me."