Salaam everyone!
Only two weeks until the launch of our paper! InshaAllah we need to meet before Friday to iron out all of the details so the design team can finalize everything. I can only do Tuesday or Thursday after Maghrib, so please let me know which one works for all of you.
Brother Houssam, I have attached the remaining questions that I need to complete my interview.
Barak Allahu Feekum
-Hana
Hana reread the email, pressing send before she could change her mind about including the interview questions in there. She had decided that she couldn’t meet with him anymore, and even emailing him by themselves was too much. At first she had been hesitant considering both Hisham and Kalthoum were on the email list, but this way there would be no questions about what was happening between them. Kalthoum had made a remark the previous night about how close she was to Houssam, and while her friend tried to pass it off as a joke, Hana knew her well enough to realize that she was serious.
After answering another few emails, two of which were more rejection letters from a newspaper and magazine she had applied to, she pulled up her article on Houssam, rereading the paragraph she had written that morning.
While Houssam has international fame, is recognized wherever he goes, and has six MVP titles to his name, he never forgets where he came from. Where he started. His heart is always with those that he loves, and he even recalls the toughest moment in his life was when he had to leave Santa Barbara for LA, leaving behind his family and his friends.
‘Every single person that you meet, whether you’ve known them your whole life, or just met them, brings something to your life. But it is those people, those who loved you before you were famous, who cared for you when you were just an annoying punk who babbled on about his dreams, it’s those people who you carry fully in your heart, even if you are miles apart.’
She quickly closed the computer as she felt the prickling of tears behind her eyes. She had been trying so hard not to cry ever since finding out about him and Kalthoum. But their fight seemed to push her over the edge, and she had cried for the past two days. She knew she was being stupid, after all they had had no relationship for her to mourn. It’s not like they had been together and broken up. He had never loved her, and yet she had a hole inside that felt as if he had torn his love away. His words swam around in her mind, taunting her even days later.
Why can’t you for once just open up!? I’m trying! I really am, but it’s like you don’t care! I’m done making an effort.
But perhaps it was his last words to her that had made her heart crack.
I’ve spent the past eight years trying to figure out who in my life was fake and who was real. And I never ever saw it coming that you would be one of the ones that turned out to be fake.
Ya Allah.
Those words had hit her as hard as if he had struck her with his own hands. Even though being around him hurt her to her very core, she had let him in. Granted it wasn’t as much as he had wanted, but it was more than she let anyone else in, and the fact that he had dismissed her so easily, was hard to accept.
It had taken everything in her power not to burst into tears in the middle of Kareem’s room. When he had said her name, her heart had begun to beat so fast that for a second she had been worried she was going to have a heart attack. But thankfully she had managed to get to her car and park down the street before she began to cry.
She was jolted out of her thoughts by her phone indicating she had a text, and as she opened it and saw a text from Kalthoum, she stifled a groan.
Hey boo!
Salaam Kalthoum. How are you?
Oh my God I am amazing. I can’t even tell you. I met with Houssam for the first time yesterday and let me tell you, he is even sexier up close! ;)
Hana’s mouth dropped open in shock that her friend was talking like that.
Kalthoum!
Well I can’t help it! You would feel the same way if you were engaged to him!
Yeah like she needed a reminder that she wasn’t with Houssam.
So how did the talking go? Learn a lot about him? Hana asked, more the fact that if she didn’t appear interested her friend would get suspicious, and less because she actually cared.
Hana he told me about his house in LA and omg it sounds beautiful! He said that if we got married InshaAllah I could have unlimited funds to decorate it as I pleased! Ahhh isn’t that so cool!
So you only talked about his house?
And his cars lol. He has a limo and driver Hana! And a Benz and Beamer! Oh and he said we could get a motorcycle! How hot would we be riding on it!?
Hana frowned. Her friend was sounding mighty superficial.
So you didn’t actually talk about things?!
Well I mean we spoke about boring stuff I don’t really remember it. Listen, if he asks you what my favorite flowers are tell him the Juliet rose.
Omg Kalthoum! Those are like a million dollars!
So? It’s not like he can’t afford it. I did some research into how much NBA players make and one who has been drafted this long like Houssam makes so much that a million dollars is like the equivalent of a dollar to us! Also, my favorite jewel is the ruby.
Hana shook her head in utter disbelief. How her friend could be acting so snotty, Hana had no idea! I mean she had always cared about her clothes and things like that, but she had never been this bad!
Hey, good call sending the rest of the interview questions on the group email. It would be kind of weird for you guys to still meet after we are talking.
How was Hana supposed to answer that!? But Kalthoum wasn’t done.
I mean I was thinking, and maybe it’s better if you don’t watch Kareem anymore. I’m not sure I’m comfortable with you working with Houssam like that.
Hana felt her anger rising.
Kalthoum, I won’t leave Yusra hanging like that. Plus I see Houssam for like two seconds when we pass over the baby to each other. We don’t even talk.
Well now that they had gotten into a fight they weren’t talking, but she wasn’t going to tell Kalthoum that.
You could recommend to Yusra that she asks me to do it! That way I could see my fiancée more often.
Hana’s stomach sunk all the way to the floor.
You guys are engaged already?!
Well not officially, but we are going to get there InshaAllah! So are you going to tell Yusra to ask me to take over?
She couldn’t BELIEVE that Kalthoum was putting her in this kind of situation!
Kalthoum, I really like being with the baby and helping them. You’ve never even held Kareem!
It was a full ten minutes before Kalthoum replied.
I see. Are you sure it doesn’t have to do with Houssam?
What are you talking about Kalthoum?
I’m talking about how I’m beginning to think you thought there was something going on between you two. After all don’t think I didn’t notice that you were wearing his jacket at his birthday dinner.
Hana’s mouth dropped open in shock, and she just stared at her screen.
He gave it to me because I was outside in the cold. I didn’t ask him for it.
You didn’t have to keep wearing it inside.
What are you accusing me of Kalthoum?
I think you mistook his niceness for something else. You guys are just babysitting together.
Just babysitting?
Just bab…
Holy snap.
Hana’s thumbs moved furiously across the screen in unrestrained anger.
It was you!? You were the ‘source’ who talked to the tabloid?!
I’m sorry! I couldn’t let everyone think you were with him! After all you might start to get the wrong impression then get your heart broken! I was looking out for you!
This was before Houssam even asked to talk to you.
I liked him, I couldn’t let you try to go after him first. It’s like when we both wanted the last cupcake at the bake sale, and you told Miss Malika that I was looking for her! So when she called me into her classroom, you bought the cupcake!
Oh my god! This was nothing like that! People around the world read this!
Hana couldn’t believe it. This girl was supposed to be her best friend in the world!
Exactly! That’s why I had to clear it up! Come on Hana, I was just trying to beat you to the punch before you got feelings for him or something. Don’t take it the wrong way I didn’t mean anything by it :) You know how much I like him and I was just jealous about your relationship with him.
How was she supposed to handle this?
I have to go Kalthoum.
Aw Hana don’t be mad! Please?! I’m sorry my jealousy got the better of me. It was obvious that he thought of you as a good friend, and he barely knew who I was!
Well that wasn’t true.
She threw her phone on her bed in annoyance, staring up at the ceiling, tears in her eyes. She couldn’t believe this was happening.
She really couldn’t.
As her phone began to buzz again, she grabbed it angrily, though when she saw Ilham’s name, she relaxed slightly.
“Hello?”
“Hana? Habibti are you okay?”
So Hisham had told her. She had been wondering when she would hear from her sister.
“Alhamdulillah for everything.”
“Well yes Alhamdulillah for everything, but that doesn’t answer my question. Are you okay?”
“Um, I’m trying Ilham. I really am, I think I just need a little bit of time.”
“Come over.”
“What?”
“Come sleep over, I don’t want you to be alone with your thoughts. Dawud’s class has a bake sale tomorrow and needs me to make two hundred cupcakes. Come make them with me and we will talk thinks out.”
Hana smiled.
“Okay. Let me get my things. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
As she began to gather her things, her phone dinged indicating she had an email, and when she saw Houssam had responded, she felt her heart quicken when she realized he had just responded to her.
So you can’t even email me anymore?
She stared at the email for a good few minutes, before pressing delete.