Our Space

Chapter 27

"Well, I just hope he says yes though I think the chances are very slim. Thank you for breakfast by the way," Radia said, putting her phone away.

"And thank you too," Sami replied. In a slightly awkward silence, they began to eat.

"The tea!" Radia suddenly remembered.

"Shall I make you some?"

"No, I don't like tea with fried eggs my mum and dad always have to start their day with tea and I thought you might want to as well but then I forgot to make it for you," Radia said causing Sami to frown.

"It's okay, tea's not so necessary for me. Well, not in the mornings anyway."

"Oh, okay. So I don't need to freak out about it?" Radia asked, settling back into the sofa again. Sami chuckled as he shook his head.

"No, you don't need to freak out about it." They finished their breakfast and Radia settled against the back of the sofa, pulling her feet up. Sami leaned back against the sofa too, getting comfortable. Radia stretched out to get her bag which she had left the previous evening on the adjacent sofa and she went through it, taking out some mints. She popped some into her mouth and offered some to Sami.

"I like eggs, but I don't like the eggy breath which follows," She said and Sami smiled as he took a mint for himself. It was quiet again and Radia leaned her head against Sami's shoulder. Instinctively, Sami tensed and he hated himself for it. He sincerely hoped he wasn't giving off the impression that he didn't want Radia to be close because the was the total opposite for what he wanted. Rather he wished he could stop himself from reacting this way and hold her close, the way he'd been dreaming of doing for so long.

"Sami, is it an appropriate time to ask you about your family now?" Radia asked and Sami was taken aback.

"What do you mean?"

"How is your relationship with your family? How do you feel about it?"

"It's fine."

"How fine?"

"It's good."

"Is it good enough that, for example, you could make a face in front of Manahil?"

"I don't make faces in front of anyone."

"Really? Why not? Try it! It's expressive," Radia said and Sami smiled as he shook his head.

"No thanks."

"Fine, your loss."

"I'm just not type of guy." Sami thought about whether he should tell Radia everything. Was it too early? When would it be the right time? Sami knew that Radia would understand if he told her. She seemed to already have some things figured out and she wasn't pushing him too much for detail. He decided he'd just be honest since she seemed genuinely concerned. "My family's a little bit messed up to be honest."

Sami told Radia about his lonely childhood and his support from Uncle Ahsan. He told her about how he'd blamed his mother for so long, only to find out she was suffering from severe depression while he was a child. He admitted the absence of his father in his life. He confessed he'd never had a relationship with Manahil until recently. He'd even managed to admit that the nasheed he sang yesterday was because he felt unable to say no to Manahil. After so long, things were better between the family members and he would put himself in that position to stop there from being any tension.

"I have never felt so embarrassed in my life. Your mother and two of your sisters were there. At one point, I started feeling a bit dizzy and sick. But then I blocked them out and concentrated on the words I was saying and turned it into a heartfelt du'a. But yeah, we've come a long way and I'm happy about that. But I don't think we'll ever become a normal family."