The Truest Believer-Interfaith Love Story

Chapter One

Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem. In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

Kalila didn't need love, at least she thought so.

The way she saw it, she didn't need the romantic love every girl her age was dreaming about. Life was a pain in the neck already for her with a perfect –grades, looks, and job wise– older brother who just loved to boss her around. And after being forced by her parents to deter away from her dream of becoming a pilot was all the "love" she could take from them.

What Kalila really needed was a nice cold shower, a 48 count box of Ferrero Rocher chocolates, and some vanilla ice cream to help her sulk. But did she get it? No. Instead, her older brother, Baraka, had decided to take her with him to Texas on his trip to meet one of his business partners.

"Right, and this is supposed to make me feel better about not going to MIT?" Kalila said, feeling bitter. She wasn't going to fall for it. Baraka bit his lip.

"I thought taking you away from all your stress would be good for you. Even mama and baba are okay with it."

"Obviously they are. If I asked for a BMW, they'd give it to make me forget they threw out my acceptance letter," Kalila stated, folding her arms over her chest. "I'm not going, Bhai. I'm going to make them regret killing me."

"For Allah's sake you're not dead! Life isn't over just because you can't go!" Baraka shouted, losing his temper.

"You're only saying that because they let you go to Harvard and become the family's first successful businessman!" Kalila shouted back. "While I have to let go of my dreams because I'm a girl!"

Baraka glared at her. "It's not because you're a girl, Kalila. You want to be a pilot! Of all things on this Earth and you decided to choose the most dangerous one, that's why!"

Kalila glared back at him, unfazed by his words.

"How can it be so dangerous?! You're gonna take an airplane to get to Texas. Like that plane's gonna crash, and that pilot's gonna die because that's what happens to pilots. They die," she finished sarcastically.

"You know what? I'm going to let you grow up before I talk to you again."

Baraka walked out of her room, shutting the door behind him. Kalila wanted to strangle him. And her parents, too. Out of her love to be a pilot. All she had to do then was come up with an excuse to her peers at MIT about why she lost her acceptance letter and the all registration that came with it.

Kalila groaned and flopped onto her bed, staring up at the ceiling, angry tears welling up in her eyes. She'd served Allah the best she could all her life and her one material wish to be a pilot was snatched from her. What else was she supposed to do now after eighteen years of dreaming?

Living, and that was the hardest part.

****

Father John had heard enough confessions in his thirty years of life. Enough so that those who returned frequently made him doubt that he was doing the right thing. All men were tainted with original sin, of course, but listening and forgiving them for the past decade made John feel as if their sins had became a part of him, rather than forgiven.

Some days he'd wake up and simply feel nothing. No sadness, no happiness– just emptiness. John certainly couldn't explain it and he would be up at seven till nine in the morning simply praying for the Lord to fill that void inside.

Most of the time his prayers were answered, and he could smile all the way as he walked to church, but the confusion always returned. He would be watching a young mother with her child or an elderly man with a grandchild and his mind would reel back to the same questions: what was he doing? Was he really helping spread the Lord's work?

Such thoughts scared John, and yet he could not voice them aloud lest someone take him for a false or weak Christian, not fit to be a priest. He wanted to seek the truth. And that was what he set out to do.

That day, a friend of his mentioned that one of his business partners would be coming from New York to visit them here in Texas. John politely asked how their business was faring.

"Just splendid, John. I'm planning on having my son do most of the business affairs now. Although I hope he will understand that our partner from New York is not a Christian."

John nodded with the older man. Joseph, the older man's son, was a part-time minister at the church in the next town over and was not familiar with other religions as John knew. He was a devout Christian nonetheless.

"Perhaps you shall invite me to see this business partner, Richard," John said. The older man nodded.

"Yes, I shall," Richard agreed.