BFFs: troubles within A Year

10. Surprise!

Fatima's POV

I walk back to class as if nothing happened. Halli is following me, she seems like she wants to talk but I don't want to talk to her. When ever she tries to talk to me I just avoid her. I keep that up through out the whole day but I know it won't last long.

Closing time comes sooner than I think. But I don't follow Halli's parent's car. Their driver calls me but I pretend as if I don't hear him.  Thankfully, it's noisy so if we meet again which will most definitely happen, I'll say the place is noisy so I couldn't hear him. Simple!

"Where is Halima? I've been trying to find her for the past thirty minutes but I can't seem to find her." I hear him say. For the past thirty minutes? Where is Halli? It's not like her to keep the driver waiting. It makes me a little worried but I shrug it off. She has decided to misbehave so I'm going to let her be.

Now, don't think I hate Halli because of what she did. Being the responsible one in our friendship has its disadvantages. It means that I always have to be the forgiving one. I have to just let everything roll off my back. Sometimes it's very annoying but if I say I'll allow Halli's childish behavior to affect our friendship, we would have separated a long time ago. So the reason why I am avoiding Halli is that I'm scared that if we talk, we'll end up quarreling with each other.

I have seen Halli heart broken and I don't want to ever see that again in my life, ever. Halli is not just my best friend, she's like my twin sister. I know Halli really well and I know that if she finds out that I might have developed a teeny tiny crush on Amir, she will definitely pick up a fight with me and surely call me a betrayer.

These are the thoughts that keep running through my head as I enter home. But what if Halli heard everything Amir said? What if she didn't hear a thing and she just wants to apologize for invading my privacy?

While still lost in my thoughts, I sit on my favorite cushion in the parlor.

"Nana kin dawo {are you back}? How was school." I just reply with a lafiya {fine}.

"Toh go and bath and change koh?" That's weird. Ammi never tells me to change, I just do it. She knows that I will definitely stand up and do my normal after school routine in the next five minutes at most.

Without arguing with her, I just go up the stairs.

Immediately I enter the room, my blank face morphs into a surprises one.

Halima's POV

I'm really ashamed of myself. I don't know what got into me. Even though I didn't hear a single thing they said I still feel guilty. Just because I have a stupid crush on Amir, I'm already misbehaving. I could've just asked her and if she wanted, she'd tell.

I'm going to make up for my stupidity.

I ask for Mr Ben's phone which he gladly offers then call Ya Sa'eed. After  going into voice mail twice he finally picks. I tell him to please come to school and tell the school that my parents said since the school is about to close and our "flight" is in thirty minutes, the proprietress should let me to go with Ya Sa'eed so that we can catch the flight. He refuses to agree at first but when I say I'll tell him what happened, he agrees to come.

After almost fifteen minutes which seems like forever, he arrives and surprisingly with a note from my parents. How I wish he's my biological brother.

After his act, I'm allowed to leave. He parks a little bit away from school and he turns to me.

"Start explaining yourself." I tell him everything. He looks at me as if I have grown a second head.

"Why did you have to leave school? You should've simply gone up to her and apologize." I reminded him of the fact that she's been avoiding me all day.

I have the perfect plan in mind. I'm sure she'll forgive me when I'm done with what i have in my mind.

"Let's go shopping." Ya Sa'eed looks at me incredulousky making me roll my eyes. I tell him my plan and he agrees, though skeptical about it.

We buy the things we'd need for my plan. But I don't have money on me so Ya Sa'eed pays with a deal that I don't have to pay him back. What an angel he is.

We immediately go to Fatima's house. When Ammi sees me, she's surprised. I expected that.

"How are you out of school before your closing time?" I explain everything to her.

"You this twenty first generation children, kai hasbunallahu wa ni'mal wakeel. What if you're given a test with no make up? Kar ki kuskura ki sake {Don't ever do that again}." I bod timidly.

Ya Sa'eed and I practically run upstairs to Teemah's room and as usual, it's well kept. We start  decorating the room with stickers and balloons. After that, we keep popcorn in such a way that wherever she opens she'll see popcorn.

Fatima loves popcorn more than anything in this world.

By the time we're done, it's already closing time. I thank Ya Sa'eed and hug him he pecks my forehead. He leaves the room with a smile.

Now to organize an apology speech for my dear best friend. I can't even get a sentence in my brain. Teemah is the one good with words, not me. Well  whatever I say should be okay.

It's when I realize that it's twenty minutes after closing time that I remember, I didn't tell the driver I'm going to be here. I face-palm, today all I'm doing is making mistakes one after another.

I'm too lost in my thoughts that I don't notice Teemah is inside. It's the sound of the door softly being closed that tells me of her arrival. I keep my eyes trained on her as she looks around. Her eyes are filled with tears, tears of joy. She's happy, and I'm the reason for her happiness.

"Teemah I'm sorry..." before I continue she pulls me into a hug.

We both change into casual clothes. I usually come over to Teemah's house a lot so I have some clothes at her house and vice versa.

We eat our popcorn while watching student of the year 1 and 2 for the nth time. I make a mental note to tell Amir about how I feel when he brings Kalt for our next sleepover.

But a little voice in my head keeps telling me to rethink things first.