Flawed Hearts

Chapter XXI: Friends, Foes and Family

Najmah’s eyes drooped low as she stared out into space, her mind traveling back to two days back when she got her heart possibly broken. She hadn't had an ounce of sleep since then, it had merely evaded from her. And now, her eyes had begun to drop and exhaustion began to overcome her. As she gave in to the world of oblivion, she thought she saw the silhouette of the person who had become the topic of her worries but mayhap, her sleep-deprived mind was playing tricks on her.

True to his words, he stayed out of her way and hadn't been around. He simply disappeared and she couldn't bring herself to ask any person about his whereabouts else she'd risk them finding out about their problems.

***

She woke up at dawn, stretching on the bed with newfound energy she got from her sleep. A smile etched its way to her face as she thought about ways to make up for what she did.

In Najmah’s mind, she knew that Aslan was right and she was acting selfishly. She wouldn't let her SPD get in the way of her happiness anymore. If he was willing to accept her with all of her flaws then why was she pushing him away?

She padded towards the bathroom and took a shower then got dressed in a pair of jeans and a white shirt which had the inscription Hakuna Matata on it. The weather was a bit chilly, so she grabbed a black hoodie and shrugged it on then walked out of the room.

{••}

She sauntered into the kitchen and found a redhead sitting on the island absentmindedly munching an apple, totally engrossed in the book she was holding. Najmah had wanted to step out but the title of the book caught her attention, so she walked in and right that moment, the redhead glanced up from her book and settled her gaze on Najmah.

"Harry Potter and the cursed child huh?" Najmah smiled at her.

"Yeah," the redhead beamed, placing a bookmark on the page before setting the book on the island. "Have you read it?"

"Of course," Najmah bobbed her head, smiling widely. "HP is one of my favorites."

"Amazing, mine too."

"Sorry," she thrust her hand out to her. "I'm Najmah."

"Alev," she bounced off the Island, engulfing Najmah into a hug. "A pleasure to meet you. Aslan's told me so much about you."

"Did he now?" she mumbled, her face falling but was quick to mask it with a fake smile. "Good things I hope?"

"Of course, of course," she bobbed her head, her red curls bouncing up and down.

"Twirl," Alev uttered, munching the last bit of her apple.

Najmah stared at her in confusion, wondering what she meant by that. Alev grinned, gesturing for Najmah to twirl around.

Najmah twirled, still in confusion then raised her eyebrow up at Alev urging her to explain why she had asked her to spin.

Alev brushed her off, grabbing her hand then walked out of the kitchen together, heading towards the living room.

"Now tell me has he been treating you right or is he gloomy with you? Though it is hard for him to, he sang praises of you," Alev grinned, clasping her hands together mischievously. "Whatever you are doing, I commend you for it."

"Uhm..." Najmah shifted uncomfortably, playing with the hem of her hoodie.

"Forgive me, I tend to blab a lot. I am making you uncomfortable right?" Alev's face fell. "It's just that I am so happy that he has finally found happiness, we all are."

"It's okay," Najmah smiled at her.

"Alev!" Lale shrieked, engulfing the said lady into a light hug then kissed her on both cheeks. "When did you arrive?"

"If it isn't my billionaire friend," Alev grinned, returning the hug."I arrived a few hours earlier and you my dear look absolutely dashing."

"Thank you, though I prefer the term billionairess," Lale winked at her, looping her arm with Najmah's.

Alev rolled her eyes at her, playfully shoving her. The trio walked into the living room, indulging in a conversation about the weather and what not.

{••}

As they walked in, Najmah's gaze locked with Aslan's obsidian orbs. Her heart thudded in her chest as he stared unabashedly at her before returning his gaze to Alev. His face lit up into a smile and he scrambled up to his feet, striding towards them.

"Alev," he engulfed her into a hug as she placed a kiss on his cheeks.

Najmah felt a pang of jealousy as she saw the two embrace intimately but again she reminded herself that it was a Turkish friendly gesture though she couldn't get past the fact that he embraced a lady in front of her.

"Glad to see that you have missed me," Alev teased, pinching his cheek lightly.

"You wish," he rolled his eyes, moving towards the seat he had evacuated from totally ignoring Najmah's presence. The exchange hadn’t gone unnoticed to Lale but she decided to brush it off, mayhap it wasn’t anything serious.

'Ouch, that kinda hurts' she mumbled inwardly, sitting on the couch next to Alev and Lale.

"Look who the cat dragged in," Afet drawled, walking into the living room. "If it isn't daddy's favorite girl."

"Hello to you too sister," Alev uttered sarcastically. "Nice to see that you've still got the attitude. Anyway, Baba is here thought you would like to know."

Afet's face froze at the mention of her father and she quickly walked out of the living room, shooting Alev a look of disdain. She had forgotten about the family dinner taking place and thus the possibility of meeting her father had evaded her mind.

Lale raised a delicate eyebrow at Afet's sudden departure but Alev shrugged and turned her attention back to the television.

The call of the Adhan was what disrupted their little gathering and they shuffled to their feet, heading out of the living room.

{••}

The clicking of silverware and cutlery was the only sound heard in the dining room as everyone filled their plates and began to eat dinner. Soon enough, a loud chatter could be heard as the people present began to converse with each other.

Najmah sighed for the umpteenth time, wishing she could run back to her room and eat in silence. She felt inferior under the scrutinizing gaze of the guests who oozed of money and power, and she wondered just what kind of family she married into.

She glanced around the room, her gaze falling on Aslan who was a couple feet away from her. He happened to be in the company of a group of ladies and for the second time in the day, he was smiling freely with them. Her heart ached as she watched him laugh with the other ladies but what to do, she only had herself to blame for it.

She stepped out of the room knowing that no one would miss her and headed towards the garden, stroking Lulu's head.

{••}

"I thought you said you had it under control!" Mr.Orhan spoke, banging his hand on the table. "What is going on here?"

"The marriage happened on a whim," Afet spoke quietly, scared that she might infuriate him even more. "We were only notified after the Nikkah."

"What have you done to disrupt this arrangement?"

She kept quiet, nervously playing with her fingers. She knew that she was in for a lot of insults and disappointments though years of abuse being hauled at her had made her grow a thick skin and become immune to his words.

"Çokutanılacaksın..."  (You are such a disgrace...)

'Here we go again' she thought, bracing herself for whatever was coming next.

"The only reason why I let you stay with the Sadeks was so you could coax that son of theirs to marry you," he shook his head, advancing towards her. "I should have known that you would disappoint me."

She took a precatory step backwards, putting as much space between them as possible, not wanting to take any chances; who knew what he would do to her?.

"If you get married to Aslan, the Sadeks' fortune is as good as mine," he stated greedily.

"Baba..."

"Don't father me young lady! You are no daughter of mine! You disappoint me over and over again. What have I done to deserve such a useless daughter like you? Why can't you be like your sister?"

She couldn't help herself when he compared her to Alev, the anger that surged through her was palpable as she stared at him, refusing to let the tears that well up in her eyes the chance to flow;she would no longer give him the satisfaction of seeing how much his words affected her.

"Eğerbanaiyibir baba olsaydın o zaman belki de sanabirhayalkırıklığıolmayacaktı,"  she spat venomously, clenching her fists tightly. (If you had been a good father to me then maybe I wouldn't have been such a disappointment to you.)

"Sen nankörsün..." he strode towards her, raising a hand to hit her. (You ungrateful...)

She stared at him defiantly, waiting for the impact of his hand on her cheek but it never came.

"If you do not disrupt that marriage and get yourself married to Aslan, find someone to be your father. You will no longer bear the Orhan name."

She gasped, wondering if he was actually her father. 'How could he be so cruel to me? I am his daughter.' she screamed in her head, sliding down the wall.

The tears she had fought so hard to reign in began to flow down her cheeks, blurring her vision. Her body shook with each silent sob that escaped from her lips. The sounds of distress she emitted were raw and unhidden as she cried her eyes out.

As she wept, flashes of her childhood memories began to resurface making her sob even harder. Her tears soaked her dress but at that moment, she couldn't bring herself to care about a ruined dress. She wept for a broken childhood, a messed up family and all the pent up emotions she had kept inside; she let them all out.

She missed the feeling of happiness, of being loved but most importantly, she missed her mother. At that moment, she wished her mother was still alive and she was still her father's daughter but it was just her wishful thinking; he would never love her but mayhap he would if she did what he wanted her to do after all, it was a win-win situation to both of them. She would get the man she has loved all her life and her father would get whatever it is he wanted from the Sadeks.

She dried up her tears then checked herself in the bathroom mirror, to compose herself; she wouldn't risk anyone seeing her tear stricken face. Afet Orhan never cried. She fixed her face then hurried off to her room.

She took a quick shower then relaxed on her bed, thinking of ways to disrupt Aslan and Najmah's marriage. It was the only way to earn her father's respect.

'I'm sorry Aslan, I have to this. It is the only way' she thought as she succumbed to darkness.

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