London, 2008.
Hamdan pushed the kitchen exit door that led to the alley and stepped outside into the night. Breathing heaving, he looked around trying to find her.
"Finally!" Said Layla.
He recognized where her voice was coming from but it was too dark to see.
"What took you so long?" She asked while stepping out of the shadows and into the light of a street lamp, wearing denim shorts, black and white striped t-shirt and a across the body bag.
"Security." Replied Hamdan. "I had to wait until they were gone and then I had to take the stairs." He took a deep breath. "Are the clothes okay?" He asked while pointing at himself.
Layla looked at him from head to toe with a smirk on her face, he was wearing jeans and a dark blue shirt.
"You look good, I guess this is as casual as a prince can get." She joked.
He gave her an unamused look. "Stop calling me that."
Layla chuckled. "That's what you are now." She took his hand and pulled. "Let's go!"
On the busy street, they got into the first cab they could get and after the twenty minutes ride, they found themselves in the heart of a bohemian neighbourhood with sidewalks filled with young people smoking and laughing. Layla took Hamdan's hand one more time to guide him as he absorbed an atmosphere he had not been in before. She looked back as they walked and saw him admiring the mural painted on the building wall across the street.
"You need to see something else besides fancy hotels!" She called.
They walked another block and the street became quieter, taking a sudden right turn, Hamdan slowed down his pace and pulled her to do the same as soon as he saw the deserted alley.
"Where are we going?" He asked.
"Come on!" She urged. "We're almost there."
Layla turned the handle on an unmarked black door that led down to a darkened staircase. The noise intensified as they got closer and closer to the basement-like pub. An indie rock band was on the stage and Hamdan held Layla's hand harder as she made her way through the crowd. She stopped once they were close enough to the band.
Layla stood on the tip of her toes to speak to Hamdan's ear. "The drummer is my friend!"
Hamdan glanced over to the guy who had a sleeveless t-shirt on, both arms covered with tattoos and a shaved head. He could not understand what the point was, to be there with no space to move or sit, music too loud to speak and the heat was starting to form sweat drops on his hairline. But then, he saw Layla and she had never seemed happier and brighter; jumping up and down, singing and shaking her head from side to side. She looked at him and turned her body in his direction, inviting him to do the same she was doing.
Hamdan shook his head. "No! I can't!" He yelled.
"Why not?" She called back.
He didn't have an answer, it simply wasn't in him.
Layla put both hands on his shoulders and stared at him.
"Look!" She instructed and lifted both arms up on the air to let out a scream that lasted for a good five seconds.
Her joy and thrill bursted out of her in the form of laughter and she wrapped her arms around Hamdan's neck.
"You can do anything here." She said to his ear. "You can be anyone, nobody cares! You can be free, Hamdan!"
She then pushed herself away from his body to take his hands and continue her dancing. Hamdan looked around and realised that what she just said was true. Not one person in there seemed to care about what anyone else was doing, they all looked like they were on a mission to just enjoy themselves.
He looked down at his arms and relaxed them to follow Layla's move, the energy climbed up to his shoulders and then all the way down to his legs, he closed his eyes, surrendered entirely and for a moment he wasn't thinking, he wasn't aware of what his body was doing, he wasn't worried, he was there and he was free like she said. Nothing occupied his mind, just the energy that was produced when he was doing something just for fun, because it felt good. It was the same sensation as when he jumped out of a plane with a parachute, people always asked him why did he do it and nobody seemed to understand when he replied that he did it simply because he liked it.
They stumbled out of the pub a couple hours later, drunk with happiness since the only drink they had was water.
"Woah! I cannot hear a thing!" Said Hamdan, covering both ears with his hands.
"It will pass." Layla replied.
Layla's favorite fish & chips spot was within walking distance, the place was about to close for the night when they arrived but the waiter knew her well and allowed them to be the last customers of the day. Two big baskets filled with chips and cod landed on the table between them and they began devouring them, while revisiting the pub experience.
"It was amazing." Said Hamdan.
Layla beamed. "I'm glad you enjoyed yourself."
Hamdan stared at her as she joyfully sipped on her soft drink.
"You're truly happy here, aren't you?" He asserted.
Layla smiled ready to say yes but stopped herself when she noticed the hint of nostalgia on his face. He knew. He knew that she was happier there than in Dubai.
"I mean... It's just that I feel like I can do so much more here, like I can be so much more, you know?" She explained.
"So, you're not coming back?" He guessed.
Layla shrugged. "I don't know. Is there anything for me in Dubai?"
"I suppose I'm not enough." He lamented.
She chuckled. "Are you kidding? You're probably the only one that could convince me to go back."
It was difficult to take her attempt to make him feel better. He missed her every single day she was away and the past two years he found himself eagerly waiting for the Summer to arrive because that's when they got to spend more time together in the UK. But it seemed like that distance was not meant to be shortened any time soon.
After eating, they walked aimlessly through the streets, not really wanting the night to be over. The temperature was dropping and Layla wrapped her arms around Hamdan's left arm. He tried to think of something else but Hamdan could not shake the thought of what was happening with Layla after she finished school.
"What are you going to do after your graduation?" He insisted. "Are you really staying here or do you want to go somewhere else?"
"I have no idea but it's so exciting!" She squealed. "I feel like I can do anything I want!"
"Yeah... I don't know what that feels like." He mumbled.
"What would you be?" She asked him. "If you could be anything in the world, what would you choose?"
"Huh, let me see..." He tilted his head to the side and took a moment to think. "I think I would be a vet, a wildlife vet."
Layla opened her eyes wide. "Seriously?"
He nodded. "Every time I see them work with the animals back at home or during my trips to Africa I can't help to think that it has to be the best job in the world."
"That is so cool! I think you would be a great doctor Hamdan."
Layla smiled but deep down inside she felt sorry for Hamdan like she had felt so many times before. He had all the needed resources to do anything with his life, yet his fate was already decided by someone else.
"Is it too much, Hamdan? Being Crown Prince? Do you even want to be the Emir?"
She was probably the first and only person to even ask that question.
"How could I say no?" He shrugged.
"Like this: no."
He chuckled.
"Can I be completely honest with you?" She continued.
"Are you ever not honest with me?"
"Right." She agreed. "Okay, here it is; I thought Maktoum was going to be appointed and not you."
Hamdan stopped on his tracks. "What? You don't think I can do it?"
Layla pulled him to keep walking. "Don't be silly! I know you can, I'm not sure you want to though."
"Why?"
"Because I feel like you're more like me and that there are so many other things you actually love doing like skydiving and traveling and horse riding and poetry and falconry and should I go on?"
"But I'm still doing all of those! I mean, yeah... I will get a bit busier but I feel like I still have time before I have to commit myself to more duties."
"I guess you're right..." She trailed off.
A dimly lit park was across the street, they decided to walk through it and ended up sitting on a bench.
"Do you really have to leave tomorrow?" She wondered, resting her head on his shoulder.
"Yep." Hamdan checked his watch. "It's past midnight so that's happening today, actually."
"I suppose I'll see you when I go home for Winter break."
Hamdan reached for her hand and held it between his own, Layla lifted her gaze to meet his eyes, he slowly leaned in to plant a soft, short kiss on her lips and then pulled back just a little bit.
"What are you doing?" Whispered Layla without moving.
"I don't know." He whispered back. "But it feels good."
He held her face with one hand and leaned in again for a longer, deeper kiss than sent electricity down her limbs.
Layla straightened her body and pushed herself to the other end of the bench. "What's happening?" She asked.
Everything was changing, that was happening. He had been appointed Crown Prince, it was time to get serious about his job, Layla was no longer living in Dubai and she was probably never going back there permanently, just when he felt like he needed her the most. In reality, he didn't know if he was ever going to be ready to become the Emir, he wasn't even sure about how he was going to perform as the Crown Prince, but his hopes for the future became clearer when he imagined having a companion like her by his side. Layla was not only a great listener, she was also a great adviser, she knew him better than anyone else, she challenged him and kept him grounded and he was deeply in love with her.
"I, uh, I--" He stuttered, made a pause and exhaled to put himself together. "Layla, I love you."
She sprung up from her seat and started pacing around. The electricity she was feeling before turned into sheer terror when her head rushed to the implications of what was going on. "No, no, no, mama is going to kill me." She said to herself.
When she turned around to face him, Hamdan was also standing up.
"Don't tell me you don't feel the same." He dared. "Because I have loved you for so long that I don't even know when it all started."
She froze in place and in a matter of seconds her entire relationship with Hamdan flashed before her eyes; the laughs, the fights, the sweet treats he always got her. She would trust him with her life, Hamdan was her best friend and she could no longer deny nor hide the deepest love she had ever felt.
"I love you too." She confessed. "Since always."
With a throbbing heart, Hamdan took two long steps, pulled her body onto his own and kissed her again, tasting every inch of her soft lips.
For Layla it was overwhelming and she broke the kiss to hug him and bury her face on his chest. It was impossible to shake the thought of what Sheikha Hind and the rest of the family might think. Her eyes filled with tears and those soon rolled down her cheeks.
Hamdan held her face with both hands. "Everything will be okay." He assured her, as if he was reading her mind. "Just come back to Dubai."
"What?" Layla frowned. "What do you mean?"
"After you finish school, come back to Dubai." His eyes begged her. "Come back to me, Layla."
---
Now you know what happened!
Well... sort of.
Lol! It's not fun if I tell you everything at once! But maybe you'll find out more in the next chapter...
By the way! This is the last flashback, I loved writing those (:
XOXO,
Sophie.