Beloved

14.

We were waiting for Mr.Hamza in his house while he was packing. When we came to pick him up, he said he had just started packing and asked us to wait. Karim Sir and Saba started chatting away so I went to the balcony to give them some time to talk in private. I looked at the plant I had gotten him and saw it blooming beautifully, he must be taking care of it.

'You seem to like this place' Mr.Hamza called out from behind suddenly and I turned around to look at him.

'Did your mother leave?' I asked him instead.

'Hmm, she wanted to see you again but she had to leave... let's go' He replied and walked away.

'I'll sit in the back' Mr.Hamza opened the front passenger door for Saba to let her sit next to Karim Sir. He then opened the door for me to sit in the back, once I took a seat, he followed to sit next to me and shut the door. I placed the bag that was resting on my lap and put it in between us, apparently, it made him chuckle.

'So...did you tell your to-be husband that you're going away for two days?' Mr.Hamza said to me in a low cutting voice a while later once the radio started playing and Karim Sir and Saba got busy talking.

'His name is Zaid and why does this concern you?' I kept looking outside the window, even though I knew his eyes were on me.

'Because whatever concerns you concerns me' He said, and I felt my heartbeat getting faster. I knew I shouldn't let him get to me, but the truth was everything he did, everything he said was affecting me.

'Mr. Hamza...' I said his name to warn him but before I could do that, both Karim Sir and Saba stopped talking and that's when I realized that I almost shouted his name.

'Yes...Ayat...is everything okay?' Mr.Hamza pretended as if he had no idea what was going on.

'What happened?' Karim Sir asked at the same time.

'Nothing...I just wanted to know how long it will take us to get there?' I randomly said to change the subject.

'About four hours or so' Saba told me.

'Oh...okay, thanks' I smiled at her.

'What kind of volunteer camp is it Karim Sir?' I asked him.

'It's more like a clothing drive. There executive director of the organization used to know my father, every year his organization collects winter clothing from different places and distributes them to people in need. We'll be visiting homes throughout the town and giving out winter jackets, shoes and some school supplies...the families are very nice...you guys will enjoy the camp' Karim Sir explained.

During the drive, there were a couple more things that I learned about Mr.Hamza. One, he loved books...when I pulled out a novel from my bag to read, he looked at the title and told me more about the author and his work. He then recommended more books to me and instead of reading my novel, we just ended up talking non-stop about literature. Two, although he was from the city, he had a heart for the valley, he looked so excited whenever he saw the waterfalls, mountains and the locals. When he saw me staring at him, he told me that he ever since he came here, he feels like he has found a soul connection here...he told me he finally found his missing piece. He didn't say anything after that and I didn't ask him anything either. 

'Ayat' I felt a soft nudge on my shoulder.

'What happened' I woke up immediately.

'Didn't mean to startle you but we are here' Mr.Hamza smiled at me and got off the car. There was a soft beige-colored shawl on me that I noticed when I moved to get my bags. It wasn't mine, but it was very cold outside, so I wrapped it tightly around me and got out of the car. Without asking Mr.Hamza grabbed my bag before I could reach for it and took it inside the hotel.