I said I would update this in 3 days...it's the end of May, and I'm still in school. Don't blame me. I don't feel like explaining, so just enjoy Zahra's POV. AND I'M TYPING THIS AT 8 IN THE MORNING. AWESOME.
***
Moving into a house is as equally as hard as cleaning a house before the day of Eid. Or maybe harder.
I thought my parents rented a condo since we'll stay here for six months, but Mom must have convinced Dad that we needed more space if we'll stay for such a long time. No matter how we ended up having a spacious house, I love it, even though I always confuse the garage door with the bathroom door. Our new house is what seems to be a Victorian house. It has elaborate door frames, four capacious bedrooms, three scented bathrooms, a comfortable living room, an ornate dining room, a garage, a basement, and my favorite room of all: the sunroom.
Every night before dinner I'd go to the sunroom to watch the sunset. The golden sun always sank beneath the horizon while countless, blended shades of orange, pink, and red laced the horizon. I've always enjoyed sunsets and sunrises. They're one of nature's most stunning and captivating wonders.
I grunt as I lift the heavy cardboard box. I stumble and hear the slight chiming of glasses. Oh god, not her special glasses. How about if the box accidentally slips from my hands and falls on the floor, breaking the glasses that we'll only use once in our whole entire lives?
She'd kill me. My mom would kill me.
I finally reach the house and place the box on the floor, nearly shattering the glasses into pieces. My back aches and my breathing is getting labored. Who knew that carrying boxes in an out takes so much effort? I walk back outside to the moving truck but just then my phone rings in my back pocket. I take it out and answer. "Hello?" I ask, not knowing who's on the other line since I haven't checked.
I just hear breathing. And then shrieks. I hold the phone inches from my face and close my eyes. "Zahra, it's Kayla! She's in trouble. We were kidnapped and then they let us go, buttheykidnappedpoorKaylaagain!"
"Bonnie, you're not funny. I'm in the middle of unpacking and you know that you can't scare me that easily. If she's really kidnapped, she won't pick up the phone when I call her."
"Fine," Bonnie huffs. "But you're being so insensitive. You're going to see that I'm not lying. This is serious!" she says with desperation.
"Stop screaming then!" I breathe out a sigh at how immature my friends are becoming without me around. I really miss them, I do, but the sooner I get back to unpacking the more time I get to rest. I think I'll strain a muscle at this rate.
"Zahra! What are you doing? Take the box in front of you and continue bringing in the boxes," my mom shouts at me from the house.
"Okay Ma, hold on a sec." I get back to Bonnie. "I need to go. And please, just stop with this childishness. Bye." I hang up before she even gets the chance to. I heft up the box at my feet and fortunately, it's lighter than the other box I just carried. I continue on carrying the boxes into the house to the point that I feel dizzy and dark spots appear before my eyes. I rub them and sit down in the moving truck, just right where my dad was handing me the boxes.
"What's wrong habibti?" he asks sincerely as he notices me sit down with my back hunched.
I lean my head against the cold metal of the truck and close my eyes. "Moving is just too much work."
"Then go to sleep in your room. Just take a nap." He pats me on the back before taking yet another box in. I groan. I have to get up, walk into the house, get upstairs to my room, and lie down on my new comfy bed. Although how promising it sounds, I don't feel like getting up.
A harsh wind whips at my face and all around me. I snuggle my sweater closer, almost forgetting that it's December. Here in Florida, it's all tropical unlike Minnesota, which has a lot of snow. But right now it's a little chilly and it's reminding me of back home.
I hope Kayla went to the diner with Bonnie and Veronica by now. I know that girl will move on some time soon because she's strong. She has been played with her emotions by Nick, who lied to her. It actually crushed her when she found out the nasty truth about him. But now, she's standing her ground and not taking any more crap. She won't let anyone else mess with her feelings.
I hear someone running and Zubayr comes into view with a blanket wrapped around him. He looks up at me with red eyes and sniffs persistently. I sigh and get off of the truck and bent down to reach Zubayr at eye level. "What's wrong?" I ask softly.
He pulls the blanket around him tighter and lets out a sob. "I need a tissue." I nod and head into the house with him ahead of me. I grab a tissue box from the first-floor bathroom and hand it to him. He takes a handful of tissues gingerly and blows his nose.
"Now, what's the problem? Zakariya is bothering you again? I'm going to go slap him if he is," I assure him, even though I wouldn't hurt my other little brother like that.
He shakes his head. "It's not that." He suddenly stops crying as he dries his eyes of his nonstop tears. There's a silence as he wraps the tissue into a ball. And then he laughs. He was crying and he now laughs. "I tricked you! Finally! You always do that to me but today I tricked you!" He laughs in my face and I can't help but feel that my five-your-old brother fooled me.
I cross my arms and look at him angrily (mockingly, of course). "How dare you do that to me, Zubayr? I'm your only big sister and I was worried that you were actually hurt. You honestly lead me to believe that someone would harm a precious boy like you, but no. You're just adding on to the list of your shenanigans."
Even though he must not know half the words I just said, his lip quivers and he looks down. "I'm...I'm sawwy sis. I didn't mean to."
"Now go help Mommy unpack the boxes, okay? Tell her I want to take a nap for awhile." He nods solemnly and heads off to the kitchen while I giggle a little to myself. I admit, I don't like making my brother sad but he kind of did the same thing. I walk upstairs and see my dad and this other guy hauling my dresser into my room. Well, I guess I can't sleep in my room.
"Zahra, is someone watching the truck?" my dad asks me as he spots me at the doorway. He and the other guy, who's apparently one of my dad's friends I guess, place the dresser against the wall facing my bed.
My eyes widen. "Shi-I mean, I forgot. But you did tell me to take a nap," I complain.
"Okay, go then. Oh, and this is Roger, my co-worker. He's going to help us move in a few things since your brother is caught up in his studies." I nod and say hi to Roger and run down the stairs, my back still sore and stiff.
I walk out barefoot and see a guy...speculating the truck. He peers into it and looks around the furniture and boxes placed carefully inside, ready to be unpacked and carried in, not necessarily in that order. I roll my eyes at the thought of a guy checking out a truck. Ew, that sounds wrong. "Hey!" I shout out to him as my feet touch the cool gravel of the driveway. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!" I inquire him as I slightly push him away once I reach him.
"I'm... looking after the truck. In case someone steals anything inside." He shoves his hands in his pockets and flashes a cocky smile. His auburn hair hangs in front of his eyes and I scrunch my face in disgust.
"First of all, you seriously need a haircut. And second, you're a bad liar. I know you're a thief, " I accuse him.
He gives me a knowing smile. "Chill, I'm just trying to help someone out. Oh, and welcome to the neighborhood."
"Whatever," I grumble. "And I don't need help, no thank you." I take out yet another box from the truck. He gets one himself and I almost drop the box I'm holding while yelling at him. "What did I tell you? You are a thief."
"Damn, calm down. Is it bad giving my new neighbor a hand?" he inquires, the smile still plastered on his face. I shoot him a look but just brush it off. I walk ahead of him into the house and I see my mom walk towards us in the foyer.
"Uh, who is this?" she hisses quietly when she sees the guy setting down the box.
"Our neighbor. He kinda offered to help," I explain nonchalantly, even though my mom wouldn't have approved in the first place.
"Hi, I'm Daniel. You must be her mother, nice to meet you," he says, sticking a hand out to shake my mom's. Awkward silence stretches when neither of them say a thing and my mom doesn't do so much as graze the boy's hand.
"I'm sorry. My religion has a strict rule of no physical contact with the opposite sex unless they're your spouse or relative, not counting cousins. But, hello Daniel." Way to be blunt.
He just gives her a tentative nod before looking back at me. "You still need help?" I glance at Mom who waves her hand dismissively. I nod, and the next ten minutes is full of unloading the truck of its contents. We make some conversation and when it's finally around Maghrib, I head to the sun-room after bidding goodbye to Daniel.
"Oh, you never told me your name," he tells me quietly.
"I know."
"So...will you tell me?" he asks. I hear a hint of hopefulness in his tone, but I just think I'm just imagining. Carrying boxes all days has surely gotten me exhausted.
"Megan Fox. Now, can you leave me alone? I need to watch the sunset."
"Haha, very funny. You watch sunsets?" There's a hint of curiosity in his voice. It's only now that I realize his voice is deep, yet melodic.
"Yeah, they're beautiful. I usually watch them since they're so soothing and peaceful and full of life." I stand there awkwardly as I wait for his response.
"That's deep. Well, Megan Fox, I need you to remind me to watch a sunset myself. I better head back home; my parents freak if I'm not home without telling them."
"Tell me about it," I mumble. "Today has been...more stressful than I thought it would be."
"I'm glad to hear that. See you some other time?"
"Sure. Do you go to Lanesville High School? My parents enrolled me there for the remainder of my junior year." The winds seem to be calmer than in the afternoon. They die down and become gentle, welcoming me to the Florida breeziness. Maybe living here isn't going to be too bad.
"Yeah, what a coincidence. I happen to be a junior too," he replies with a sly grin. "Maybe we'll have a few classes together." Is he seriously trying to flirt with me?
"I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that things won't end up with you being my lab partner," I shoot back, satisfied that I at least lowered his self-esteem. Unfortunately, Daniel's smile didn't falter.
"I like your humor. Well, see you then, Fox." He salutes me mockingly and walks down across the street. And turn around and head back to the sun-room once I see him turn the corner.
I take my seat comfortably as I pull out my phone. I remember the short phone call I had with Bonnie and call Kayla. The phone rings several times before it puts me through voice mail. I try several more times and just shrug. Maybe Kayla's playing along with their stupid little prank.
My eyes flit around the room as I observe the eerie evening light spill out onto the sh furnishings in here. The only room in the whole house that has all its furniture and decorations is this very room. My mom must have known very well about my fondness of sunsets, because somehow my favorite seemed to be the first one refurbished.
A smile dances on my lips as I think about Daniel. No, not in a mushy, lovey-dovey way, but in a more appreciative way. I already made a friend-should I call him that?-before I even spent a whole week here in Florida. Now, I won't feel like such a loser on my first day and have no friends.
The orange ball in the sky dips deeper and deeper into the horizon behind an obscurity of palm trees. I close my eyes, and bask myself in whatever light that is left. I love how sunsets and sunrises work; one includes lights receding back into nothingness, while the other one includes light ascending forward into existence. I relax my shoulders once I realize how tense they are. This is what moving can do to a poor girl like me.
I sigh and lay my head back on the loveseat I'm sitting in. Next week, on Monday, I'll officially start attending my new school. Anxiety rushes through me and I hope that my high school experience won't end up like Cady's in that relatable movie, Mean Girls.
Well, all I can say is, "Insh'Allah."
***
C.O.N.T.E.S.T.----- Okay, any of you people into graphics and all that cool stuff? Well, I'm having a contest for all those cover-making, banner-distributing artistic (I think) geniuses. I'm in desperate need of a new, fresh cover that stands out, ya know? So, entries start now up until....Let's say, June 15? Sounds good? Okay.
All you have to do is compose a creative cover for OUAM, and it may have anything. But please, no bright colors, unless they look pretty decent for the cover. Well, forget I said that. FEEL FREE TO DO ANYTHING AND ERRTHING.
PM me the links to the covers and I'll examine all of your entries. Note: any number of entries is acceptable. But, if you blow up my inbox with 20 entries under your one username...well, just don't do that.
OH, AND THANKS FOR THE 15K READS OR SO!!! LOVE Y'ALL TO BITS AND PIECES.
~Fayfay :*