Your Imperfections

Chapter 12

I huff and puff, dumping the stuff I was carrying on the wooden floors.

“In which language would you understand, THAT I AM HERE TO CARRY OUR STUFF, AALEYAH!” Adian yells in my face, giving me a little shake. He hates when I don’t listen to him, but what harm is being done to me if I just carry some bags from the taxi into our new apartment in Birmingham?

I shake out of his grip—not too tight—and roll my eyes, proceeding into the apartment.

“I am not glass, Adian. I wont break so easily,” I hiss.

The interior catches me with awe. I trail a finger along the marble slabs attached to my left, and walk into the kitchen that comes first. Something straight out of a movie, the walls are white, the counter also of white marble, and the smell—oh! The smell is phenomenal! And so familiar. . .

Adian follows behind me.

“I got your favorite itr sprinkled everywhere,” he drops the news so casually that I look at him in disbelief. He didn’t just say ‘kitchen’, rather he said everywhere.

“Do you have any idea how expenisive that is?” I stare at him with my mouth on the floor. He really knows all the ways to make me mad.

He shrugs. “Wasn’t that expensive.”

This man can be impossible sometimes. Well, most of the times. I don’t know how, but he manages to get my blood boiling in seconds, if not minutes. But I cant stay mad at him for longer. When he smiles at me, everything inside of me melts to a pool of affection. When he laughs, he lights up my surroundings. Was it really possible to fall in love with someone in less than two weeks?

Was this really love?

I didn’t know. Or maybe I had loved him for a long time, yet how oblivious I was to notice the sudden changes within when I was around my husband.

“I’ll go check our room,” I wave at him, and he winks, grabbing the water bottle from the counter.

I unzip my jilbab just when I reach the bedroom door. As I push it open, I stumble back startled, and scream when I see there’s someone in my room. Their back is to me—whoever the man is—and before they turn around, I run back towards Adian with my jilbab clutched tightly in my hands.

He immediately drops the bottle and grabs my arms.

“Someone—someone is in the room!” I shout, my heart beating wildly. The rush of adrenaline has me panting and gasping for breath.

“What the—who is it?” He pulls me behind him just when that door opens, and a man probably in his late fifties strides out.

And suddenly I stop breathing.

Memories

Memories I had locked inside my head and thrown them away

Memories I had dared to never remember

Memories which kill me over and over again when they flash through my eyes

Those memories come rushing back like a gush of water from a stream. I scream, so loud that everything around me disappears, I watch Adian’s lips moving, his eyes panicked, his face frantic, but all I hear is my cry of pain.

And all I see is the man who had ruined my childhood forever.

Aaleyah refused to her Mum. Again and again.

“But why?” her Mum argued. “Why don’t you like Uncle Sohail? He is so nice with you and he even gives you presents.”

What her Mum didn’t know was that Aaleyah didn’t like anything about Uncle Sohail. She didn’t like how he always smiled at her, how he always asked her to sit just beside him. She didn’t like how he always had a hand on her back, or more specifically when it got lower.

She was fourteen. She knew the difference between right and wrong. But maybe he didn’t mean her any harm, she always thought. Maybe it was because of all the movies and stories she had read that led her to think Uncle Sohail was a bad man.

“I don’t like presents. And besides, why am I even needed at the wedding?” She didn’t think it was necessary to attend every wedding, and there were usually 15 a year.

Her Mum tightened her ponytail, and Aaleyah clenched her teeth.

“Your cousins would be there, and you didn’t attend Safa’s elder brothers Nikah. They specially told me to bring you with me,” Mrs. Shehroze said. She looked at her daughter in the mirror and gasped. “MashaAllah! You look absolutely gorgeous.”

There was no doubt in that. Aaleyah’s lips were painted a soft colour. She had swept the mascara wand several times on her lashes and the results were showing; they looked long and thick, giving a touch of false lashes. Her long dark hair were tied back in a high ponytail, and her Mum had made it look neat by applying some gel to the front of her head. The dress really complemented her body, a tea pink skirt and a white blouse was specially made for her.

She knew there was a lot of staring going to happen today.

Someone knocked on the door. Aaleyah’s frown from earlier dissolved and a smile crept up on her face, as she saw her twin sister standing in the doorway, smiling back at her.

“Oh, look at your sister, Maheen! Doesn’t she just look so beautiful?” their Mum cried, holding her face between her hands.

“Okay Mum, please don’t start crying now,” Maheen rolled her eyes, because she knew her Mum just was in search of situations where she could cry. Not in a bad way, though.

The twins made their Mum leave. When they were left alone, both of them giggled.

Maheen was the exact copy of Aaleyah. There was no doubt about them being identical. But where Aaleyah could be cold, and mean (sometimesarely), Maheen never raised her voice. She was always willing to back away in a fight, and make the most compromises.

To make things fun, they dressed the same, so they even looked the exact same. The only difference that could be spotted was the promise ring that Aaleyah always wore which was gifted to her by Maria, her best friend. Aaleyah never wore any jewellery. She just didn’t like it. But the ring she wore, a silver thin band with a little white crescent on it, always was dear to her.

When the Shehroze family arrived at the wedding, the hall was jam packed.

Aaleyah let out a groan, linking her arm with her Dad.

“Ugh, Dad. Please lets just go to McDonalds and then go back home,” she whined as they walked inside.

Her Dad gave a pat on her hand. Maheen linked her arm with their Dad’s free one.

“I don’t think that’d happen, joonam. To your Mummy, family means everything.”

He was right, the twins thought. Mrs. Shehroze would never miss any family function. Ever. And it could be proved by how she dragged all the four sons along with her. Despite them being boys, they still went along. Well, they didn’t have a choice otherwise.

“Oh look! That’s Uncle Sohail!” Shahdab jumped excitedly, running towards Uncle Shafay whose face broke out in a grin upon seeing them. no, not them.

But her.

Aaleyah.

Bile rose in Aaleyah’s throat. She managed to swallow it, and hid behind her father.

They exchanged greetings. The wedding continued, but Aaleyah’s mind was still stuck on the weird look Mr Sohail passed her. She tried her best to ignore the unwanted feeling, but seemed like today wasn’t really counting in her favor. At all.

“When we get home, I’ll make bread pudding,” Maheen gave her twin sister a little nudge on the arm.

Little did Aaleyah know, that she would never get to make pudding with her twin ever again.