SEVEN-TEEN
Chapter 26
~ 17 years old~
“ what do you have to offer?”
“Whatever do you mean? You like my brother, and don’t you want Biel…I have her with me.”
“Why should I believe you?”
“because I know you the best, im sorry that I wasn’t there for you through your troubles. But now I know you different and you’ll be here for me if we lose I get killed…”
“fine.. I'll help but only for Biel's sake.”
They shook on it and went their separate ways, the morning of the battle Tim allowed Abdullah to spike up his masters' meal…causing him to feel drowsy during the battle and having the opposition win.
With the other side Victorious and Abdullah not keeping his promise…he made a huge mistake. After the leader's death on Tims side, he became the leader and ruled against the empire making it unstoppable he even defeated Abdullah's gang leaving them like nobody’s… and after Tim refused to fall for Abdullah's foolery the entire underworld changed and two big empires grew, fueled by pain and suffering and the thought of revenge, the only reason Abdullah married Biel…without loving her.
Leaving more hate in the heart of Tim towards his once good friend Abdullah.
***
“ how’s the food?” Tim asks
“ it’s wonderful! How did you master grandmother recipe it’s been year’s and I still can’t do it!” Eric mumbled as he grabbed seconds. The night went on and the next day after fishing they went for a swim, bathing and laughing in the sun.
A weekend well spent, a difficult goodbye to make.
“ you guys go ahead I’ll fetch the last equipment, ”Arylan said rushing towards Aiden,“ let me do it.”
“ why would I allow you to carry something so heavy, ” he said laughing as he went over to lock the van.
They had one last hike around the area then fell asleep on their way back home, Tim driving the vehicle arriving home safely as they crawled into bed agreeing to unpack tomorrow morning, they all found a little spot on grandmothers favorite kitchen carpet covering each other with a blanket before running off to la-la land. Tim watched them as he smiled remembering how they looked when they were still in high school…studying till they dropped and dozed off. Arylan would wake up panicking, Aiden would be tidying up and Eric would sit there laughing at the drool on her face before grandmother would rush in with hot porridge and delicious side dishes for everyone before her morning walk with Tim.
He laughed before silently shedding a tear as he walked into grandmother's garden watering her roses, the roses they planted together. He missed her, how long would he be kept away from her, how long would he have to wait for her to come to him. He was eager to be next to her again but had made a promise to take care of the means made year’s ago.
The morning came, uncle, Tim prepared porridge for everyone with tears in his eyes as he watched them wake up silently, Yasmin and Saleema rushing down in confusion of how they laid on the ground. After everyone struggled to wake up they sat down with their maize meal porridge, smiling at Uncle Tims's gesture, only they knew the sentimental value. After finishing the bowl with tears in her eyes she rushed to work. Aiden and Eric left to clean up.
Arylan sat near the roses thinking about how she doesn’t have a green thumb, a thumb similar to grandmothers, a thumb that grew beautiful flowers in everyone’s chest, some days were harder than the rest, others were easy…some days were too emotional, others were silent. She would have to spend the rest of her life with her memories, with her missing her other half. Aiden walked towards her with a cola, since her memory recovered she hasn’t been her old self.
“ something for the sweet lady,”
She turns towards him grabbing the cola as she wipes her tears with the edge of the oversized hoodie.
“ would you say that you’ve lost yourself?” he asks looking towards her.
“ There is no me without Biel, I’ll never be the same…besides living a lie and whatever.”
“She wouldn’t want to see you hurt over her so much.”
“it's not easy Aiden before everyone…it was me and her against this world…and my father, Lord knows that his destiny led him away from me.”
“Whether we like it or not, we must endure the death of our loved ones eventually. Everyone shall taste death, Arylan…whenever you feel sad, ” he says placing a tasbeeh in her hand, “ call unto him, ”
He wiped away her tears pushing her onto his chest, urging her to let go of the pain she’s been hoarding over the last few months, to allow the river within her to be used in a manner that will make it flow again. It was hard, letting go was hard, moving on was hard, living without her was hard, the truth was hard, everything…everyone around her looked colorless for a while, but she felt someone wipe away her tears as she took a ride home with her new soulmate beside her.
Even if she did not admit it she still could not accept her mother, she could not believe that they walked into her life right after the death of someone she loved. She couldn’t believe what had happened to her in her past, she could not believe that she was old now…that she had to make her own decisions, deal with her own problems…and adult her way through life.
***
“How are you feeling?” Eric asks
“ im okay, ”Tim replies taking his cigarette.
“I told you to stop smoking.”
"Uncle Tim never stopped.”
“im different, I spent half my life hunting down humans and sticking onto a married woman.”
“that’s scary, and im asking if you okay…I saw you come into this garden last night…while I grabbed a glass of water.”
“Don’t we all miss her, someone has to take care of the stuff she once cared for…” he said pointing towards the garden
Eric turned away from him, “ we all miss her…and your right, it’s so difficult…this mornings porridge felt like she was hugging broken child me again.”
“ don’t think about it as much as I do. I loved Biel with everything in me, but even on her death bed…she rejected me. I know how you feel towards that university girl.”
“How did you know about that?”
“I know many things…”