Twice Upon Them

Chapter 1 | Kayla | Why I Chose the Playground

|Author's Note|

Before reading this story, read "Once Upon A Muslim," since this is its sequel. I guarantee you that you'll have NO idea what you're reading.

If you have read "Once Upon A Muslim," then you're amazing!!! The sequel is finally here! I'm so relieved that I can finally start continuing this loooonnnngggg journey (lol sorry guys :P). I'd like to thank ALL OF YOU for making OUAM very successful. Four thousand, five hundred votes?!?!?!? What is life??? #10 Spiritual??? *runs outside to scream in glee* *not really but you get the point* You all know I'm kinda shy and socially awkward...

Anywho...

I hope you enjoy what's in store! *evil laugh*

Dedication: ErajRashid15 for blowing up my notifications with ridiculous yet hilarious messages on my board. (P.S. Our conversations are weeeiiiiirrrrdddd. Don't judge. -_-)

***

"Die, Kayla, die!" A few months ago, those words would have made my heart thump against my chest, just like how an animal struggles to get out of its cage at the zoo. For three agonizingly long months, my heart has been that animal, waiting impatiently for the day that it can run away into the wild. Now, my heart beats normally behind its cage, since it has been in the wild for much too long.

"Oh, shut up," I reply to my fourteen-year-old brother Keith. I stare intently at the television screen. Without looking at the controller in my hands, I use the buttons to navigate my way through the dark alley. My character is shown at the top of the screen, while Keith's is at the bottom. With a quick, forced shove, I cause my brother to drop his controller onto the carpet. He curses under his breath as he retrieves his controller. I glance to my right, being super cautious in case he tries to sabotage my gaming skills (which I have mastered in four months, ever since I came back home). However, the slightest hint of his aggravation are in is his narrowed green eyes which are trained on the T.V.

I hear hurried footsteps from the kitchen. My mom enters the room, a wooden spoon in her hand. She wipes the sweat off her forehead as she breathes heavily. "Keith! Don't say such things. Your sister's still scarred...Oh, Kayla, you must have been scared out of your mind..."

I pause the game, much to Keith's dislike. I set down my controller on the wooden table. I look up at my mom with a serious look. "Mom, I'm perfectly fine. It's been four months. Besides, it's not like I've been hurt or anything." I sigh at my mom's over-protectiveness, which has started ever since the day she took me back home.

"Kayla," she responds with an exasperated tone, "you were kidnapped, for Christ's sake! You also ended up in the hospital and-"

"Mom, I'm starting to think that Kayla's your favorite," Keith grumbles as he takes my controller and resumes the game. I glare at him with a venomous look before turning back to my mother.

My mom lowers her hand a bit more, the one with the wooden spoon. She wipes her other hand on her faded jeans. She sighs as she glances between me and my brother. "What's with all your bickering? Kara's the only nice one in this house, isn't she? She's even reading, and it's summer break! Yet you two are playing video games."

I survey my mom's weary face. Her forehead has stress lines engraved on it, her cheeks are a sickly pale of white, and her eyes look tired, dark bags beneath them. I stand up from my place of the couch and take five steps towards my mom. I rest my hands on her shoulders. She looks at me with a grateful smile before I utter, "Mom, I think I deserve a break after being kidnapped, rushed to the hospital, et cetera et cetera..." Her smile slowly drops. I grin at her widely "Mom, you know I'm just messing with you. You've been working so hard and long today. I'll take over the cooking, okay?"