Dare You To Love Me

«29» beneath the surface

A wave of relief washed over Yaseerah as Amina’s familiar face appeared on the camera panel, the tension in her shoulders abating slightly.

When she deactivated and reset the alarm when Amina was inside the foyer with her, she didn’t bother with greetings as she grabbed her arm, and pulled her along with a haste that surprised them both.

“Whoa! Slow down,” Amina said, righting herself when she stumbled slightly. “What’s going on, Yaseerah? You look like you’re running away from a ghost.”

“No ghosts,” she replied cryptically, a nervous edge to her voice. Her gaze darted anxiously towards the kitchen as she steered Amina towards the staircase. “Just... some complications.”

“Yaseerah—”

“Not now,” Yaseerah cut her off, torn between telling her cousin to leave because she wasn’t ready to open up to her and needing her support because she needed her opinion.

“Seriously, Yaseerah, what’s going on? You’re acting like you’ve just committed a crime, and I’m your accomplice,” Amina huffed, as they ascended the stairs, her gaze distractedly taking in her surroundings.

Yaseerah sighed, her grip on Amina’s arm tightening involuntarily. “It’s complicated.”

Amina’s lips rounded, a mix of eagerness and dread flickering across her face, before she settled on open curiosity, as she dug her feet in, prompting Yaseerah to stop. “Are you in trouble?”

Yaseerah hesitated, glancing around nervously as if the walls had ears. “Depends on your definition of trouble.”

“Yaseerah!” Amina’s eyes widened in surprise, before her face broke into a huge grin that had Yaseerah rolling her eyes. “I never thought I’d see the day.” Amina’s voice was low, as she wiped an invisible tear from her eye. “I’m so proud of you.”

“Only you would think my being in trouble is something to be proud of,” Yaseerah huffed, as she hesitated by her door for a few seconds, unsure if she was ready to share Fou’ad’s creation with her cousin yet.

“Don’t be a Debby downer,” Amina pouted, placing a hand over her chest like Yaseerah’s words had wounded her. “Allow me to have this moment, please.”

“Are you done?” Yaseerah’s tone was impatient as she stared down at her cousin.

“Sure,” Amina crossed her arms over her chest, a playful smirk on her face. “Spill it, Yaseerah. I promise not to judge, at least not too much. What trouble did you manage to land in this time?”

“Like I’ve ever found myself in trouble,” Yaseerah mumbled under her breath, as she hesitated by her bedroom door, the weight of unspoken truths pressing down on her.

Opening up meant exposing vulnerabilities she had been forced to conceal, and burying it like she had always done meant she would forever stay locked in the past. But was she ready for Amina to see beyond the walls she’d built?

“Spill, what’s going on?”

Yaseerah bit her lip, unsure of how much she needed to say, as her hand closed on the door handle.

Amina sensing Yaseerah closing up before she even had the chance to open up sobered up, her playfulness turning into genuine concern, as she placed a hand on Yaseerah’s shoulder.

“You know you can count on me, whatever it is, we will figure it out together,” her tone softened.

Leading Amina into her bedroom, Yaseerah took a deep breath, as she sank onto the edge of her bed, her gaze fixed on a point in the distance as she began to think of how to begin to voice out her problems. Perhaps Abbad was right, she needed to see a counselor.