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A/N: Thank you so much for 1K reads! You're all amazing! ❤️❤️
I did go back and add a playlist for this story. Hope you enjoy the chapter!
-daizie
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PAST
Laughter from you, Kaveh, and Alhaitham fill the air. The three of you are playing in your backyard, reenacting a fantasy movie the three of you just watched.
"I'll protect you, Princess Y/N," Alhaitham says while swinging a stick at Kaveh like a sword. Your brother dodges while laughing.
"Is that all you have, knight?" he taunts. Alhaitham smirks.
"I've only just begun!" he yells as he turns to you. "Stay put, Princess," he says before charging at Kaveh.
From the porch, your parents and Alhaitham's parents smile, watching you three play.
"I think you were right," Alhaitham's mom starts as she glances at her son with nothing but love in her deep green eyes. "It was good for us to introduce Alhaitham to Y/N and Kaveh. He's hardly this expressive with other kids and only has a few friends at school."
Your dad responds with a hearty laugh. "Maybe they just have a way to get him to open up."
"Definitely," your mom adds. "Those two can easily befriend anyone."
"Well, speaking of friends," Alhaitham's mom mentions. "We were thinking about moving closer to you guys. It's getting to be a bit of a hassle to drive across town this often for our kids to play together." Your parents smile with glee as Alhaitham's dad furrows his brows.
"Honey, we've only discussed this about a handful of times behind closed doors," Alhaitham's dad says with annoyance in his voice as his orange eyes narrow. "We're not even close to making a huge decision like this." Alhaitham's mom waved him off.
"Well, it's not set in stone, and I'm telling them so that if there's a house for rent here, they'll let us know," she replies nonchalantly. "Besides, if we do move here, at least Alhaitham will be comfortable in the neighborhood." Noticing the tension starting to rise between the two of them, your dad clears his throat.
"Actually, one of our neighbors is moving out soon. They want to rent it out and are looking for a tenant." Alhaitham's dad clenches his jaw as his wife sends your parents a smile.
"Wonderful," she says. "We'll think about it." She sends her husband a look, her emerald eyes meeting his orange orbs. He walks off into the house, and Alhaitham's mom turns to watch the kids play.
Kaveh is lying in the grass and Alhaitham is standing over him.
"You've thwarted my plan, Sir Alhaitham!" Kaveh cries dramatically.
"Sir Alhaitham!" you exclaim as you run to your gray-haired friend. He pulls you in for a side hug as you wrap your arms around him. "You've defeated the evil wizard."
"Of course I did, Princess. It's my duty to protect you." He says as he looks at you expectantly.
"What?" you ask.
"Well, at the end of the movie, the princess and the knight kiss." When he hears this, Kaveh quickly sits up. He did not want to see his best friend kiss his little sister.
"There's no way I'm kissing you! You're too old!" you yell. Your brother sighs in relief.
"I'm going to be nine soon. That's not old," Alhaitham says.
"Well, what if I don't want my first kiss to happen now?"
"Then, I'll wait for you," your silver-haired friend replies with a smile.
Not knowing how much more of this conversation he could listen to, Kaveh makes gagging noises. Both you and Alhaitham turn your attention to him.
"Sorry, but as the oldest here, no one is going to be kissing anyone."
Your eyes face lights up, an idea planting itself in your brain. "Oh, Sir Alhaitham," you say. "I thought you killed the evil wizard."
"I guess he tricked us," he says with a smirk. "Good thing I still have my sword."
Kaveh's eyes widen as Alhaitham starts to run towards him.
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PRESENT
It has only been six weeks since the semester started, but Alhaitham has been quite stressed lately. He had submitted an essay just to be assigned another, which happened to be a huge part of his English grade. Normally, he'd plan out his essay, but the prompt for this particular one stumped him.
He had to write about his favorite childhood memory and reflect on its importance.
The silver-haired man sighs. He'd been sitting at his laptop for the past two hours, brainstorming what he could possibly write about.
His childhood was a rollercoaster of ups and downs. Rather than playing with other children in the neighborhood, he stayed inside to read – it quickly became his favorite pastime. Anything he got his hands on became reading material. His thirst for knowledge isolated him, as most didn't understand his fascination for learning.
The first time he didn't force himself to socialize with other children was when he met you and Kaveh. You two made sure he was comfortable, and neither of you judged him for his lack of social skills.
In return, he tried to make an effort to open up to you two more. He showed you the apple tree in his backyard, the one he loved to read under. Though it doesn't seem like much, it was progress.
From there, he felt himself start to change. The biggest change was he found it easier to keep conversations with other kids at school. He wasn't too interested in making and keeping friends, though. He didn't want to befriend them if they weren't willing to treat him the way you and Kaveh did.
When he was nine, his parents told him they were moving, but they never mentioned where. His parents expected him to be uneasy, anxious even, because they're moving away from everything Alhaitham has become familiar with.
He didn't feel that way at all.
Alhaitham felt relieved. It was a fresh start for him. The weeks leading up to the move, he tried to keep expectations low, but he secretly hoped wherever they were going, the people would be more open minded.
The last thing he expected was the moving truck to pull up to a house across the street from you and Kaveh. You two – his best friends – were now his neighbors, meaning he could see you two every day.
He thought this was a dream. The first night he moved in, he was so scared to fall asleep, in the fear that when he woke up, it wasn't real. He didn't think he could bear that disappointment. A housewarming party quickly reassured that this was in fact his reality, his new reality.
Settling into the neighborhood also meant familiarizing himself with his new surroundings. The biggest change for him was attending a new school. Again, he had very low expectations, but a small part of him couldn't help but feel excited. After all, he kept his expectations for his new neighborhood low and look how much joy it already brought him.
He certainly didn't expect you and Kaveh to introduce him to your group of friends, nor did he expect to fit into the group so easily. Everyone seemed so easy to talk to, making it simpler for him to befriend them.
An easy life was all Alhaitham ever hoped for from this move, and he's received way more than that.
Before he knew it, he was ten. He had been living in that neighborhood for almost a year, yet it felt like much longer than that.
He was happy in his new home because to him, home was more than the place he lived. It's a place for him to grow, and with the support of his friends and parents, that's what he was determined to do.
Because of this mindset, he was blissfully unaware of the warning signs. He ignored the slamming of doors and constant arguments from his parents. Even if he noticed and asked them about it, they'd both pretend like nothing happened, but behind closed doors, their screaming matches would continue. Instances like these only continued to escalate until his world imploded.
One day, the argument between his parents got so bad that his dad left the house. Alhaitham watched as he grabbed his car keys and left without a goodbye and without looking back. Alhaitham's mom was in tears, sobbing at the loss of her husband and the uncertain future she'd have to face with her son. Alhaitham ran to his mom and embraced her, not knowing how to comfort her or stop her tears.
The silver-haired man blinked, pulling himself out of his thoughts. His document was still empty and he felt numb. He didn't want to remember one of the worst experiences of his life. Though he knows how much he's grown from it, it still hurts him.
Alhaitham groans, putting his head in his hands. He knew he wasn't going to get this essay done. He takes his phone and before he can think clearly, he presses your contact.
"Hello," you say from the other side of the phone.
"Y/N, is it okay if I come over?" he asks with a twinge of sadness in his voice. "I really need someone right now."
"You know you don't have to ask," you reply. "You're always welcome at my dorm."
"Thank you," Alhaitham mumbles before hanging up.
He quickly grabs his bookbag, laptop, and notebook before rushing out. He mindlessly goes to the elevator and presses the button to go to your floor. As the elevator door opens, he spots you waiting for him. Your (E/C) eyes look at him, worry and concern etched on your face.
Wordlessly, he wraps his arms around you, pulling you close to his chest. You mirror his actions, wanting him to know you're there for him. Of course you've seen Alhaitham be vulnerable with you, but it's always been behind closed doors, a stark contrast to now, in the middle of a hallway where anyone could see.
"You don't need to talk about it, if you don't want to," you whisper. You hear him hum in response. "Why don't we go back to my dorm, yeah?"
"Alright."
You pull away from the hug first and offer him your hand, which he gladly takes. He lets you lead him to your dorm. As soon as you two enter, you lock eyes with Ayaka, who is grabbing a snack from the kitchen.
"Ayaka, he's gonna spend the night here. Is that okay with you?" you ask your roommate. Her frost blue eyes take note of Alhaitham's current state.
"Sure," she says. "He can sleep on the couch."
"Thank you," Alhaitham replies.
The two of you go to your bedroom and you shut the door. You make a beeline for your bed with Alhaitham following.
Your gray-haired friend notices your study table littered with papers. "I'm sorry if I interrupted something."
"If it was important, I wouldn't have let you come over," you reply with a soft smile. "What's up?"
Alhaitham sighs. "It's stupid."
"If it's affecting you this much, then it's not." His viridian orbs scan your face, care and gentleness embedded in your expression.
"I have to write an essay and the prompt is-" his voice trails off. "Let me just show you," he says.
He takes his laptop out from his bookbag. After clicking a few keys, he turns the screen to you. You skim over the prompt before putting his laptop down.
"Haitham?" you whisper.
"This prompt made me think about what happened with my dad again," he starts. "I know I shouldn't dwell on it, but I just can't help but wonder if he's satisfied with the choices he made."
"Curiosity about the situation is normal, but try not to obsess over it," you pause and see that Alhaitham is staring mindlessly at the wall. You put your hand on his shoulder, causing his eyes to meet yours. You felt an ache in your chest, seeing how he stared at you with a distant look in his once vibrant eyes.
"Alhaitham, you're truly one of the strongest people I know. You don't deserve all the things that happened to you and despite that you try to take it all in stride and learn from it. You don't know how much I admire that about you."
Unexpectedly, he pulls you in for another hug. Ironically, for an English major, you know Alhaitham was not the best at verbalizing how he felt, but it didn't matter to you. You two could read each other's body language like a book.
You mirror his actions, wrapping your arms around him, holding him tight. You don't have to talk about it.
His hand stroked your hair. Don't go. I don't want to be alone now.
In response, you bury your face in the crook of his neck. I'll always be here for you.
The two of you stay in each other's embrace for a while before he pulls away.
"Would it be okay if I wrote my essay about you?" he asks with an uncertain tone.
"Haitham, it's your essay. If it's something that makes you happy and you really want to write about it, I don't mind," you respond with calmness and sincerity in your voice. Alhaitham's emerald orbs glance over your face. Your features are full of care and warmth.
"Thank you," he says. "I don't think I say that enough."
"You don't have to. That's what friends are for," you reply with a smile while getting up from your bed. "I'm gonna go back to my desk, but you can stay here."
"Alright," the silver-haired man says as he gets comfy. The tapping of laptop keys quickly becomes background noise as you are left to your thoughts.
Friends.
Whether it was his arm around you or hugs that lasted a bit longer than they should have, you and Alhaitham have always walked a very thin line between friendship and something more. A line that, at times, you both were unaware of.
One thing was for certain, though, being around Alhaitham was like coming home after a long day – relaxing and comforting. A feeling of warmth never failed to envelop you whenever you were in the same room as him. Growing up, you believed that was normal. He was your friend after all.
There's that word again. Friend.
Your mind drifts back to the first time you met Alhaitham. If memory serves you right, you and Kaveh met Alhaitham in the spring, the season of new beginnings, and like the flowers, your friendship bloomed. As spring days melted into summer afternoons, the bond and trust between the three of you only grew stronger. By the time fall came, it felt like you'd all known each other for years. You three were ready to brace the harsh cold that winter would bring. That hasn't changed, but everything else seemed to as you all got older.
You glance at the silver-haired man, who is typing away on his laptop. You turn back to your books and take a deep breath.
Anyone would be lucky to have Alhaitham by their side. It's no secret that he's incredibly smart. When you were kids, his intellect left you baffled as to how someone can be so knowledgeable in a wide range of topics, but now, you admire it about him.
Admiration, you think. Maybe that's what this is.
With a sigh, you go back to your homework. Why do feelings have to be so confusing?
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The blaring of your alarm pierces the silence in your bedroom. Thankfully it was a weekend, but you had quite a bit of homework to finish. Reluctantly, you turn off the alarm and get out of bed. After quickly making your bed, you leave your room.
A slight frown formed on your face as you noticed the empty couch. Your eyes scan the room, and caught a glimpse of your roommate's frost blue hair.
"Ayaka," you call. "Where's Alhaitham? I thought he was sleeping on the couch last night."
Ayaka looks up from her tea. "He left about an hour ago. He didn't want to wake you up."
"Oh," you say, slightly disappointed you couldn't see him before he left. Noticing your demeanor, Ayaka sighs.
"Don't forget about girls' night at Nilou's. It'll be a fun way to relax before midterms next week." You smile at her.
"Yeah, I just need to finish a bit of homework before then." You go back into your room and close your door. You grab your phone from your nightstand and open your messages.
You
good morning
hope you got back to your dorm
Haitham 💚
I did. Thank you for letting me stay the night.
You
no problem!
i didn't do much but i hope that was able to help with your essay
Haitham 💚
Don't say that. You helped a lot, and because of you I'm actually almost finished with it
If you're not busy later tonight, would you like to hang out?
You
i'd love to, but i have plans tonight
girls' night at nilou's 🙂
Haitham 💚
I hope you have fun.
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You felt something tugging at your heart. This feeling was new and unfamiliar, but as much as you wanted to ignore it, you didn't. A gentle smile found its way to your lips as you got ready for the day.
Whether or not you're prepared for it, change is inevitable, especially behind closed doors.