The Dangers of Islam: The Terrorist

Chapter 2: Freedoms

     Amina paced in the kitchen as she looked at Harun, "Why isn't he awake, yet? Do you think he's okay?" "My love, he's tired. He'll get up when he wants to get up," Harun reassured Amina. "Good morning, Mama," Sulaiman said as he kissed his mother's cheek before heading to the breakfast table to join his father. "How are you feeling?" "I'm fine, of course. Where's Mehak? I didn't see her last night," Amina asked Sulaiman. "Now that you mention it, Ali and Umar weren't there to greet their Uncle Dawood either," Harun pointed out. "My children have bed times, Baba. The party wasn't set to a schedule, so my sons could not attend," Sulaiman said simply. "Good morning, Grandbaba!" a cheerful little boy, no more than five years old, said as he came running into the kitchen. "Good morning, Grandmama!" "Good morning, my sweet," Amina smiled. "Where is your brother, Umar?" "Mommy was making him take a bath," Umar said cheerfully before sitting down next to his father. "Hi, Daddy!" "You already said hi to me, remember?" Sulaiman smirked and fixed Umar's messy hair. "Oh yeah," Umar grinned. "Grandbaba, is it true Uncle Dee is back?" Sulaiman's eyes flashed dangerously as he looked at his son, "Who told you that?" "Auntie Jannat," Umar said proudly. "Yep, I'm home," Dawood announced as he entered the kitchen.

     Amina smiled as Umar's eyes lit up once he spotted Dawood. The little boy leapt from his seat and ran to Dawood at full speed. Dawood grinned and scooped Umar up as the little boy launched himself at his uncle. "Uncle Dee! You're finally home!" Umar whispered tearfully as he buried his face in Dawood's shirt. "You crying, little man?" Dawood teased. Umar furiously shook his head in response, "Nuh uh!" Dawood smiled and kissed Umar on top of his head, "You've grown taller, dude." Umar grinned and wiped his eyes before giving his favorite uncle a kiss on the cheek, "You look skinnier, Uncle Dee." "See? I'm not the only one that thinks so," Harun chimed in. Dawood carried Umar back to his seat and then sat down next to Harun, "Well, you guys can feed me oily Pakistani foods again." "You say it like it's a bad thing," Amina huffed as she placed a plate in front of Dawood. "I'm kidding, Mama. Pakistani food is the best. I missed your chicken tikka," Dawood smiled. "Then we'll have that for dinner," Amina said simply. "With rice," Dawood said quickly. "Usually people eat it with naan," Sulaiman pointed out. "Why do you insist on being so different?" Dawood was about to respond when he heard a musical voice call out, "Sulaiman, you forgot your coat in the room again."

     Dawood looked up and smiled as he spotted his sister-in-law. Sulaiman's wife, Mehak, walked in with Sulaiman's coat in one hand and her youngest son, Ali straddled on her hip on the other side. "Dawood," Mehak breathed in relief as she spotted him and smiled, "you're home." "Hi, Bhabi," Dawood called out, using the Urdu word for sister-in-law instead of her name as a sign of respect. "I'm sorry I couldn't be there to pick you up or last night at the homecoming party," Mehak apologized before she sat down next to Umar and placed Ali on the table. "You don't have to apologize," Sulaiman said simply. "You were with the children. I think our children's well being is more important than a soiree." "It's fine, Bhabi," Dawood said as he rolled his eyes. "I ask you all to remain civil, at least while we're eating," Amina scolded while she put a plate of fried eggs, sunny side up, on the table. "Mama, you know I hate these eggs," Sulaiman complained. "I'll make you something else, my love," Mehak said as she stood up and went into the kitchen. "Watch Ali, please." The toddler recognized his name and giggled before he looked at his father and reached out to him.

     Sulaiman scooped his youngest son up in his arms and smiled. Dawood shook his head as he watched his brother. He despised Dawood, but when it came to his own family, Sulaiman was the perfect spouse. He loved his children, he loved his wife, and he worked hard for them. Dawood took a moment to look at his eldest sister-in-law. She was Irish by birth, but of Pakistani descent as well. Mehak was the daughter of a very close family friend in Ireland whose marriage was arranged with Sulaiman when they were both in their early twenties. Even though Dawood and his siblings had every right to choose their own spouses, all of his siblings agreed to arranged marriages instead. To them, they felt that their parents' life experiences trumped their own experiences. They were sure that Amina and Harun could help greatly when it came to finding their soul mates. However, even though they agreed to arranged marriages, the Khan siblings still had final say if they wanted to get married or not. "Hey, Bhabi," Dawood called out as Mehak poured herself a glass of juice. "Yes?" Mehak smiled. "Where were you born?" Dawood asked with a mischievous smile. "Really? We're doing this now?" Mehak asked with a sigh. "Really? We're doing this now?" Dawood tried mimicking his sister-in-law's accent. "Oh God," Mehak sighed as she shook her head. "It's so awesome," Dawood began, "your accent makes everything sound cooler."