#Chapter Ten#

My hand flew to my mouth in embarrassment. 

Oh my God, Sameena. You did not just call him Mystery Man in front of both your family and his.

Yes. Yes, you did.

Dammit!

It had been two minutes! Two minutes and I had already made a fool of myself.

“Well if you prefer that to be my name, then so be it,” Tariq smoothly replied, making everyone in the room chuckle. I could feel that my cheeks were a flaming red at this point and I tried to laugh along with them. In reality, I felt like crawling into a hole and hiding for the rest of my miserable, humiliating life.

“Sorry, I don’t know where that came from.” 

Well I do, but let’s not dwell on that for now.

“It’s not a problem,” he ensured, although I could see he was still trying not to laugh. His lips were twitching, causing the slightest of dimples to appear at the corners of his mouth.

“Please, take a seat,” baba said, waiting for everyone to sit before he did himself. I planted myself next to Ziad and I didn’t miss the odd glances my siblings were throwing my way, probably wondering what that comment was all about.

I gave Sarah the ‘I’ll tell you later’ look, before turning back around to face the front. I didn’t fail to realise how the empty seat they had left for me was conveniently placed right next to Tariq. We were sitting diagonally from each other, both sitting on the corner of our separate couches. I was still hot with embarrassment so I tried my hardest not to look at him from my peripheral vision. 

“I’m sure I’ve seen you somewhere,” Sarah started, directing her comment to Tariq.

“It might’ve been at the High Tea.” 

“Ah yes! You were the one bravely defending Sameena,” she practically sang.

I tried not to smile when his cheeks began to tinge red. “Yes, that was me. Although I can’t say I regret it; that man had no idea what he was saying.” 

I glanced at him to find that he was already staring at me; gauging for my reaction probably. I cleared my throat awkwardly and blanked on how to respond. 

“Well that was very nice of you,” baba spoke up, saving me from saying anything. “But I must say, other than that lad, the evening went quite well, wouldn’t you agree Tariq?” 

“Yes it did. I met some very nice and outspoken people that night and each one of them were telling me how happy they were that they had a platform to speak their views.” Tariq shifted in his seat to get more comfortable, stretching his legs out just a tad. 

Don’t look, don’t look, don’t look. 

I looked.

And I was actually impressed. 

He was wearing a pair of black hi-top combat boots and I couldn’t help but slowly take notice of the rest of his outfit. He was wearing black chino pants with a casual white tee underneath a navy suit jacket. 

Very stylish, I thought.

Mira would be impressed!

When I looked up I was met with curious grey eyes and I hurriedly snapped my head in the opposite direction. 

I’m just going to pretend that he didn’t just catch me staring. 

“So I hear you’re a doctor. Tell me, how do you like your job?” questioned Samir. 

“I love it,” he answered without hesitance. ”It’s both rewarding and challenging at the same time, as with most jobs. It’s funny because I used to despise hospitals as a child; mum will attest to that,” he paused as his mum let out a laugh. “But subhanAllah, as I grew older I realised that I despised it because I never knew of a way to help every sick person I saw. Once I had finished my schooling, I was adamant on becoming a doctor and alhamdulillah, it’s been my passion ever since.”

“I couldn’t handle being around sickness every day. I admire your willpower,” Ziad praised and I nodded in agreement. 

“Thank you.” He smiled humbly. “I think at the end of the day, for me, it serves as a well-needed reminder that we really don’t have control over our bodies. Only Allah SWT does and soon enough, we will all be returning to him.” 

“Masha’Allah,” baba added. 

“So all in all, yes I enjoy my job very much. It can be boring some days and err, interesting others.” His eyes strayed towards me and I had to stifle my oncoming laughter as I recalled the way I had walked into that hospital room. 

I was elated that this meeting was running so effortlessly. It was clear that Tariq was a great conversationalist and along with my joke of a brother Ziad, there was never a dull moment or awkward silence. I found myself relaxed in the comfortable atmosphere and it almost felt like we were just socialising with good old friends. 

I don’t remember the last time I had really enjoyed one of these meetings. 

I think it really did help that it wasn’t my absolute first time seeing Tariq today. I know we had one met twice before and very briefly, but it was like a mutual bond was already formed between us, as silly as it sounded. 

“This is my favourite! How did you know?!” I excitedly picked up my fork and pointed at the strawberry cheesecake in my hands. I know they must’ve brought it as a ‘gift’ with them; it was common for the suitors family to bring sweets or flowers over. And I knew we had none in the freezer - I had checked before they came. 

He ruffled his hair and looked into my eyes, his own sparkling. “It was just a lucky guess.” 

I smiled up at him. 

Before either of us could say anything else, a loud cry penetrated the air around us and I jumped slightly at Abir’s unexpected voice. 

“Sorry, that would be Abir,” Sarah explained, placing her plate on the table before jumping to her feet. “I’ll just go attend to her.” 

“Oh, please, don’t apologise,” khalto started. “We’re excited to meet the little one!” 

Sarah laughed. “Let’s hope she’s not grumpy then!” 

Five minutes later, she walked back in with a surprisingly beaming and laughing Abir. A collective laugh vibrated across the room as Abir squealed loudly before smashing her lips against her mother’s cheek. 

At the same time that khalto reached out her hands to take Abir, Tariq stood with his own arms outstretched, smiling broadly at a wiggling Abir. “May I?”

“Fine Tariq, you can hold her first,” khalto said, reluctantly pulling away with a playful pout on her lips. 

Sarah handed her over and those of us who knew what usually happened when she was departed from her mother, winced in anticipation of another yell. 

To our astonishment, Tariq managed to easily scoop her up into his arms and as soon as she was situated on his hip, her small, chubby arms reach out to touch his beard. 

“Looks like she’s found an object of interest,” Ziad commented knowingly. “Good luck trying to pull her away now.” Unlike Tariq, Ziad’s face was bare of any hair. Tariq had a shortly trimmed beard and as she had only seen a greying beard on her grandfather’s face before, she was understandably intrigued by Tariq’s dark one. 

The chatter continued swiftly for the next half an hour. Abir had been passed around like a toy from one person to another, eventually landing back into Tariq’s lap. She was resting her head against his chest, her arms laid out before her. She sighed loudly, as if to testify how much we’ve all exhausted her.

“It’s beautiful weather and the night is still young. The workers have set up a dessert buffet in the terrace outside, so shall we?” Baba stood up and indicated towards the our garden. 

“Oh, why did you go through all that trouble?” Khalto spoke excitedly, getting all flustered.

“I assure you, it was no trouble.” 

We all huddled outside, into the cool air of the night. Like baba had said, tonights weather was amazing; it was one of those nights where you could lay down against the soiled Earth and stare up at the sky. A night where you could go swimming in the crystal, calm waters of the ocean. A night where bikes were ridden down tracks. A night where you could sit back and observe as the airplanes took off and landed down the runways. 

“Wow, this set up is beautiful!” 

Khalto’s comment sucked me out of my useless daydreaming and I found myself absorbed in reality again.

I mentally agreed with her comment; the workers had done a marvellous job. The candy bar was themed purple and white, chosen most likely on the basis that purple was my favourite colour and the design was coupled with real flowers that were spread across the edge of the table. Various jars were topped with lollies and a wide range of cakes had also been laid out. 

I knew it was probably a little much, especially for the first visit, but Linda, another great worker of ours had insisted on letting her work her magic for tonight and hey, who was I to stop someone from letting their creative juices flow. Since our kitchen workers focused on actually cooking the food, they didn’t get much of a chance to do any set-ups, so to speak, so I felt a little bad. 

I made a mental note to ensure they were given different projects to work on every few weeks or so, just so they wouldn’t die of boredom. I could possibly even start up a weekly competition for them with give-away prizes and everything!

“Sameena!” Samir exclaimed, whilst nudging me in my side. 

“Sorry what?” 

“That’s the second time you’ve zoned out in the last five minutes,” he realised, raising his eyebrows up at me suspiciously. “What’s going on?” 

I rolled my eyes. “Nothing, just my thoughts going wild as usual.” 

“Well tame your thoughts. Khalto called your name twice and you didn’t respond.” 

“Oops,” I muttered, hurrying to where she was.

I made some light conversation with his mother as we both filled our plates with sweets. Once we were all seated, we somehow got onto the topic of aquariums, which followed with fishing from the boys and lastly, fish themselves.

Random, I know.

“It’s not that I don’t like fishing,” Tariq pointed out, addressing Samir. “I actually love everything from within the ocean, but I rarely have time to do luxury hobbies such as fishing.” 

“So what are you going to do when you become a husband or father? How will you make time for the little things that count?” 

He just had to be so damn straight out, didn’t he?!

Tariq gulped, his eyes widened just a tad, obviously caught off guard by the question. I knew it was a bit of a trick question from Samir and I wouldn’t even be surprised if he was working all this talk to this point, just so he could ask him that question.

Although Samir was calm and polite in his manner, it was Ziad if anything that looked intimidating. They were both sitting side by side, however Ziad had his arms crossed over his chest and I didn’t think he realised the intensity with which he was staring at Tariq. His expression screamed, ‘if you don’t answer this the way I expect you to, then say goodbye buddy!’ 

Despite all that, I couldn’t deny that it was a valid question and one I had been contemplating on last night. It was sort of an unspoken yet official piece of knowledge; everyone knew that doctors had no life. 

“Well,” Tariq paused to clear his throat before continuing, “I think that once it’s time for me to settle, I would definitely prioritise my wife and kids ahead of work, even if that means cutting down on my work hours or stepping down from a position. I’d hope that if I ever did fall short, my wife would be there to not only remind me of my shortcomings, but understand my flaws and I would of course, return the favour. A man shouldn’t be afraid of having a wife who keeps him in check every now and then.” 

My the end of his little speech, my mouth was slightly agape. I mean, come on. Compare this guy with Mr Zayed. 

I was in awe. It was clear that Tariq had a few years of wisdom behind him and if anything, I think an occupation like his would mature you pretty quickly.

“I agree. It’s a two-way road. Don’t get me started on the amount of times Sarah’s bullied me because I forgot to put the very specific, three and a half spoonfuls of sugar in her morning coffee. But it’s OK, because I understand that short temper is a flaw of hers,” Ziad joked and everybody laughed at his remark, Sarah simply punching his arm. 

“Actually, Sameena’s got a little pond further into the backyard if you want to see it Tariq,” baba mentioned randomly.

“Ah, yeah sure, that would be nice.” 

“It’s even adorned with glowing fish. Sameena, why don’t you go show him?” baba urged and it was my turn to be caught off guard.

“Erm, OK then.” 

Look at baba being all sneaky!

I slid from my spot, eyeing Tariq as he stood up too, perching Abir back onto his hip. Yes, all this time she was still sitting quietly on his lap. I lead him the few metres to our small round pond that was fashioned as a fountain of sorts. Lights made their way all around the dome shape, accentuating each and every fish that was in there. 

“I don’t see any glow fish,” he voiced, bending down to stare into the water.

“That’s why there’s this!” Pushing a small button that was implanted under the dome, the lights all turned off and as most of the fish disappeared in the darkness, five particular fish lit up in hues of red, green, yellow and purple. 

“SubhanAllah!” Tariq exclaimed immediately, his face beaming at the scene before him. “That’s amazing!” 

“I know right?!” I rolled on the balls of my feet enthusiastically. “Once I had heard about these fish I just had to get them straight away! I mean, I already had so many fish in here but it wouldn’t hurt to add them to the collection. They’re of course, genetically modified but believe me, I did my research into this and it really has no negative implications, as far as I’m concerned! But how pretty do they look?!” I pointed back into the water, tracing one with my finger as it swam along, as if Tariq couldn’t see it for himself. 

Oh God.

As my go-to move when I felt like I had just humiliated myself, my right hand flew to my mouth as I realised how much I had just rambled. I couldn’t be more grateful that we were in the dark right now…I’m sure my cheeks were two big tomatoes.

I expected Tariq to be gawking at me or running like his life depended on it but instead, he was staring at me with, I dare say, a nostalgic gleam in his eyes. He had a soft smile playing on his lips, but it was different; not as amused as he was earlier in the evening. He shook his head, peering back down into the water. 

“They are stunning and they really add to the relaxed ambiance of your garden.” I nodded at his comment, too embarrassed to open my mouth again. We stood there a bit awkwardly in silence, until Abir broke it by blowing spit bubbles from her mouth. An involuntary smile made it’s way onto both our faces as we watched her. She yawned, before wrapping her little arms around Tariq’s neck - not that it reached all the way around - promptly resting her head against his chest again. 

“She’s precious masha’Allah,” he mumbled quietly.

“She is, isn’t she,” I said, looking at her with a fond smile. 

He proceeded to swipe a small curl off her forehead and I had to practically shout at my heart to stop beating so fast. 

It was a beautiful sight. 

“So, no migraines since the last incident?” he asked. 

I shook my head. “Nope, alhamdulillah.” 

“That’s good…” he trailed off, his eyes flickering to someone behind me. “Um, there’s a man over there, practically staring into my soul.” 

I threw my head back and laughed when I realised he was referring to Salem. “That’s Salem, one of our security personnel. Don’t mind him.” 

“That’s easier said than done. He looks like he wants to launch himself at me. I’m pretty fit but I don’t think I can take on someone of his size!” he jeered and I chuckled.

“Salem is really good at reflecting his intimidation. It’s why you see people flocking away from me at uni.”

“Ah, well, the way I see it, it’s their loss.” For the umpteenth time that night, I felt my face heat up. I busied myself with switching the lights back on in the pond, averting my gaze from his face. “Well, I think it’s time we head off. This ones almost asleep and we’ve trespassed upon your time too much.” 

“Oh, no, you’re welcome to stay. I can head up and put her to sleep.” At that moment, I became distinctly aware of how much I actually wanted Tariq to stay. I was enjoying myself and I could see that the families were getting along well too. 

“No, no, it really is late and we all have work tomorrow. Plus I recall that Samir is leaving tomorrow, so I’m sure you and your family want to spend some more quality time with him before then.” 

“That’s awfully considerate of you. Thank you.” 

In the ten minutes that it took for the families to bid each other farewell, with promises to contact each other within the week, I truly comprehended the fact that not once in those ten minutes, did the smile leave my face.

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