The Illusion of Us

Chapter 14

Mina couldn't bring herself to stop staring, her laughter becoming excessive now as she watched Khalil's eyes widen, his jaw unhinged like that of a snake, as he took in the gigantic mass of glass and dark oak wood that was her home.

When she had opened the door and found him gaping on her doorstep she couldn't suppress a mile-long smile, and watching him stumble about from the entryway to the living room, to the kitchen and back again was pure entertainment.

It was like watching a three-year-old with no self-control let loose in a toy store, and it was absolutely adorable.

"You have a pool?" He exclaimed, glancing back and forth between Mina and the glass patio door that led to the backyard, as if he were waiting for her to yell out, "April Fools!" and that all of this was just one elaborate joke.

"Yes?" Mina laughed in confusion, making her way past Khalil's astonished figure and towards the open archway that led to the kitchen, calling out behind her as she went, "Do you want a snack?"

"Yeah, sure." Khalil said, following after her like a lost puppy into the large kitchen.

"I-I just can't believe you live here! This place is amazing" He exclaimed with a loud humph as he took up a spot on one of the stools at the granite island counter in the middle of the room.

Mina laughed, her back still towards him as she rummaged through the contents of her fridge.

She had never seen him so comfortable, so vocal, so ecstatic. She should have invited him over ages ago.

"I think the nicest thing we had at my house was a light switch with dim settings."

"Really?" Mina turned around, a look of confusion on her face and a jar of pickles in her hand. She pressed her back up against the open fridge door and pushed it closed. "Aren't they doctors?"

"What?"

Now Khalil was the one sporting a confused expression, but it disappeared as fast as it had appeared in a matter of seconds as he began to realize his mistake, but Mina didn't miss his hesitation.

She couldn't deny that she hadn't believed Khalil's story he had woven that day at the lunch table, but she tried to give him the benefit of the doubt in the situation.

Maybe he had a reason for lying about his parents, though she still couldn't help wondering why he had never mentioned a thing about them.

Surely, he had to have other family.

"Right!" Mina could practically see the gears turning in his head as he attempted to come up with a reasonable explanation for his hesitation. "They are doctors - but things are a bit....um-complicated right now." Complicated. That's what he was going with?

Mina decided to drop it, she wasn't interested in burning yet another bridge, not like the one she had just burned with Noah.

"Mhm." She hummed to herself quietly, setting the jar of pickles down on the counter in front of him as she moved around the kitchen gathering other ingredients.

"What are you making?" He asked in an attempt to change the subject.

"Sandwich." She answered curtly.

She had to tell herself to let it go.

"With peanut butter and pickles?" He scoffed. "Not to be rude or anything, but that sounds absolutely disgusting."

"Um-excuse me. You haven't lived if you haven't eaten one of these bad boys." Mina exclaimed, holding up the slice of bread she had begun to spread peanut butter on.