The Call of The Stars (a Kid vs Kat story)

8. Punishment and Engagement

When Ibrahim returned home from the library, Dawood was already waiting for him with an angry face. He crossed his arms and approached Ibrahim but still greeted him.

-Baba, is everything alright? Are you still angry that I'm thinking about studying abroad?

-How could you do this?

-What?

-Magda and Verena, they saw you today coming out of a fortune teller's tent in the market, is this true?

-Yes, it's true. I went to get advice from her. - he confessed, feeling there was no point in denying it further.

The anger on Dawood's face only intensified.

-Why don't you go to Abouna Mena for advice? He is our priest, the leader of our community. Why are you turning to esoteric practices that our religion condemns? I don't understand how as a man you can be susceptible to such quackery.

-Aisha was able to shed light on my situation from a different perspective. I did not intend to offend our faith.

-I had to lie to Magda and Verena because of you, saying I sent you to get an amulet. Just so we wouldn't be shamed. And how long have you been going there?

-6 years since mother...was abducted by the stranger folk.

-6 years? And after all this time you still can't accept that your mother was a martyr, not taken from us by a "stranger folk" who came from another planet. This is unbelief, my son! I feel I've no other choice. You will marry Veronica!

-What? But Baba, I don't love her! And we can't expect her to wait for me while I finish university.

-Oh Ibrahim, we won't wait until you finish university, as soon as you're done with high school, the two of you will be wed. Or if not, you won't receive any support from me for your further studies, whether you continue them here or abroad! And if you never ask for her hand, you'll never work in my shop again!

-This is not fair! I don't love Veronica the way a husband should love his wife. You can't force me into a marriage with someone I feel nothing for!

-Veronica is a good girl, you'll come to love her in time. She will help you return to the right path. This is not just about you, but about the family's reputation, and I won't allow your decisions to further damage the situation.

Ibrahim's heart sank, how could his father do this to him? He didn't understand this whole thing, why they expected him to live in a forced marriage when their parents had married for love. In the end, Ibrahim couldn't hold back, he said what he knew would hurt his father.

-You just don't want us to be happy! Since our mother's death, you've been embittered because you can't remarry because of our faith. - for in the Coptic Orthodox faith, even in widowhood, remarriage is forbidden. For them, marriage is a lifelong bond that even death cannot break.

-Enough of this! Go to your room! - he said angrily, indicating that the conversation was over.

As the day turned to evening, the tense argument between Ibrahim and Dawood had taken place in the pre-dinner period. The other members of the family, Ibrahim's siblings - Lea, Youssef, Rami and Nadia - silently but attentively followed the events. Out of deep respect for their father, and perhaps a little fear as well, they did not dare to intervene in the argument, even if they sympathized with Ibrahim or worried about the family's peace.

And Ibrahim, sitting in his room, made the decision that studying abroad was no longer a question for him. As much as he loves Egypt, he has to leave in order to escape the forced marriage and to find the truth by following his own path.