Sparks of Love ☑

Twenty-Five

"Where are you, Mahad?" Abdur Rehman whispered to himself, looking for his best friend. He needed to drop Mahad home before returning in time for breakfast and the soccer match he had painstakingly scheduled with Mahi, Yahya and Ahmed.

A yawning Mahad finally appeared from the terminal, lazily surveying the area to find Abdur Rehman.

"Doctor saab," Abdur Rehman called out teasingly.

"There you are, mate," Mahad said, his mouth breaking into a grin. "Other than my wife, yours is the only face I would be willing to see this early in the day."

"I'm glad I'm that special for you." They chuckled in unison, doing a half hug. "How did the conference go?"

"Just like conferences are."

"I'm not going to ask you to elaborate on that."

"Thank you," Mahad laughed, falling in step with Abdur Rehman as they headed towards the parking lot.

Abdur Rehman's white car beeped open as they neared, a single white car in a sea of an overflowing parking structure.

"How's married life treating you?" Mahad asked, as if he hadn't only been gone for two days, but for two decades.

"Since when did we start talking about our marital lives?" His best friend teased, propping open the trunk. The friends could go on spending hours without even acknowledging that they weren't single teenagers anymore. Their friendship dynamic was shared interests and goofing off about their memories.

"Since you came to me sobbing about your crush."

Abdur Rehman groaned under the grin he was hiding.

"It's going well," he said, getting into the driver's seat.

"I'm happy for you," Mahad said with sincerity. "We all love a happy Abdur Rehman, because if he's not happy, none of us are allowed to be happy."

"Is that supposed to be an insult?"

"Take it as you may."

"Mahad..." Abdur Rehman fake growled.

"Abdur Rehman!" Tayabba's voice echoed through the staircase.

"Yes, Ma?" He called out, shrugging off the jacket he had worn all morning.

The sun had grown warm in the small duration in which he had dropped off Mahad and returned home.

"Can you drive me to the Farmer's Market?" She asked, standing at the foot of the staircase, tote bag in hand.

"Um." He knitted his brows, consulting his watch. It was 9:05, Rafa and he were scheduled to meet Mahi and the others at 11. "Ma, remember how I mentioned that Rafa and I have to go to the park? Our friends have planned a picnic." And you can always drive yourself in your own car.

"That's today?"

"How about I take you, but we'll be back quickly?" He negotiated, mentally calculating the drive back and forth. It was a stretch, because his mother liked taking her time.

His mother's jaw tightened, but she didn't say anything. Instead, she turned around and wordlessly left towards her own room. Rafa rushed out of their bedroom right then, home robe flying in the air, fuzzy slippers imprinting the carpeting.

"What do you want for breakfast?" she exclaimed, grasping his wrist. "We're getting late already."

"We have two hours to get there," Abdur Rehman assured, glad she had missed the conversation he just had with his mother.