Our Stormy Ride

*12 °Dinner Invitations

Dedicated to my little brother, Abdulhafiz. He's such a sweetheart.

Jamal

Things are starting to look good, I managed to clean the house, get started on the shopping mall project and convince Badra to agree to see my parents. Well, maybe not convince, she just couldn't say no to me.

I take my water bottle from the car seat and lock the door. I stride into the gym, flash my ID card at the receptionist and start my workout session.
30 minutes later, I'm all sweaty and tired, my muscles screaming from the exercises. I dab my face with a towel and splash water all over it and wipe it off.

"What a surprise", A deep masculine voice says.
I lower the towel to see Imran, in a tee shirt and training trousers. He has a water bottle and towel draped over his shoulders.

I smile, "Hi. You remember me?"

"I don't think I can forget that accent, hard to come by around here".
He shakes my hand and we share a bro hug.

"So you workout here?", I ask.

"Yeah... I have to keep fit for a certain someone", He replies.

"You just disappeared from the seminar that day." I say, dropping on a chair. He sits beside me, leans back and folds his hands behind his head.

"Yeah, sorry about that. I just had to see my wife" He replies.

"You're married?", I ask in shock. "Uhm, sorry if - -"

"Nah. It's okay, you're probably wondering what I was doing there, right?", He asks.

"Maybe", I respond, trying not to pry into his affairs.

"I own the hall, so I attend most of the lectures, besides my wife wanted to see her friends so bad I couldn't let her go alone. She's pregnant by the way", He informs with a grin on his face.

"Wow, congratulations man, that's amazing!"

He chuckles, "yeah, Alhamdulilah. It is".

"You know, I told my wife about you", He says all of a sudden.

I swallow. "Really?", I ask.

"Yes, she almost cut off my head for not inviting you to dinner. Seeing as you are new and all, I think she just got her chance. I never expected to see you again", He says, cocking his head to one side.
A dinner invitation? By someone I barely know.

"You don't have to go. You must be wary about strangers". He shrugs, as if reading my thoughts.

I smile, "Tell your wife I'll be glad to. Women get crazy when they don't get what they want".

He laughs a deep laugh and clasps my shoulder, "True that brother. Pregnant women tend to be the craziest of them all".

We talk for a while before he receives a call from his wife, bossing him to come back home. He quickly scribbles down his address on a piece of paper and leaves. I smile as he hurries off, Women! They have such power over us sometimes.

I spend an hour more at the gym before leaving. At home, I freshen up and remember I have to go shopping for simple foods and loads of coffee. My phone starts to ring immediately I reach for the doorknob to leave the house .

"Hello."

"Hey Al. I want to know when we're going to your parents", Badra asks over the phone.

"Next week, probably", I reply.

"Uhm. . .well, okay. Bye" She hangs up quickly and I stuff the phone in my jeans pocket, wondering what the short call was about. I offer salat al-Asr at a mosque in town, before leaving for the supermarket.