Some Bittersweet Memories

Chapter Five

Letting out weird-sounding groans, I dragged myself up the stairs to the third floor because the elevator wasn't working again.

My head was throbbing and I could feel beads of sweat rolling down my neck and back as I unlocked the apartment's door with a subtle 'Bismillah'.

"Geez I can't believe I looked like that the whole way home." I cringed when I caught myself in the mirror which stood next to the door.

Avoiding my reflection, I kicked off my shoes before unwrapping my hijab and underscarf cap and hung them on the wall hook. My hair was glued onto my scalp and I frowned before undoing my braids and ran a hand through my dark locks, sighing in pleasure. Ahhh the feeling was so indescribable.

I suddenly tumbled over the step that I forgot existed and let out a yelp. One thing I hated about moving to a new place was that I always seemed to forget about the architecture and would bump into random things.

Another thing I hated was...every time we would get a new place, our house would become smaller than the last. I tried not to think much of it but how couldn't I when I was now sharing a room with mom.

Our apartment lacked any extra space and the only spacious room was the living area. It wasn't cramped—it was just too small. I knew we didn't have enough money to buy bigger places but still, I wished we could somehow afford something better because my mother deserved so much better.

So much.

"No, no. It's okay, it's fine," I mumbled to myself, shaking my head. "Remember what mama says; Qadar Allah wa ma sha'a fa'al. Have patience, everything will get better, everything will be fine soon."

Whispering comforting words, I flung my backpack on the couch but it slipped off. I ignored it and advanced towards my room when suddenly, shuffling noises came from the kitchen and my body stiffened.

I was home alone.

The hair on my neck stood up. I hastily grabbed my scarf and the umbrella beside the door as my exhaustion vanished into thin air.

I covered my face ninja style and stealthily tiptoed towards the kitchen before jumping straight inside and held the umbrella forward.

"Freeze!"

A high pitched shriek had my face twisting in confusion as I saw mother dropping a bowl before placing a hand over her heart with a terrified face.

"Bismillah!" she gritted out, shooting daggers at me through her honey colored eyes. "Daneen! What is wrong with you?"

"Oh I—" shoot, I'm dead.

"Put that umbrella down!" mother commanded, picking up the bowl that she had dropped. "And what is with that face covering? Can you act like a proper human being?"

"I'm sorry...I wasn't expecting you," I mumbled, leaning the umbrella against the counter and taking the scarf off. "You're home early today?" I cheered, attempting to divert mother's attention before she gave me a long speech on human ethics.

Mother smiled at me. "I wanted to spend some quality time with my daughter."

I blinked at her reply. Did I hear correctly? When mother's words registered in my mind, I awkwardly laughed, feeling my face warming up. I had to force a response out of my throat. "Ummi, you really didn't have-"