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Behind A Smile 178
Languidly, Zynah stood by the kitchen's door; her gaze scanning her now messed up kitchen - the floor was decorated with grains of rice, mixed with vegetable oil. On the counter, were broken eggs, with shells hanging around. Horrifically, her eyes widened and her hand flew over her agape mouth, when she realized the cooker was turned on and a pan, covered by an oversized lid was placed over it, the acrid smell of burnt food filling the air. Beside the counter, were two stools - one placed on the other. Zynah quickly walked over to the cooker and turned it off. Without thinking, she placed a hand over the lid in an attempt to lift it, but immediately her hand touched the overheated cover, intuitively, she pulled away, a little too vigorously as her skin sizzled, pushing the pot off the cooker, accidentally and making the concoction splatter all over the place. Zynah heaved an exasperated sigh and shook her head in disbelief. She knew the children were mischievous, but she ne
Behind A Smile 179
Zynah sat down on her perfectly made bed and massaged her temples, with a hand. In all the years she had had to take care of her children alone, she had never gotten that angry at them for a mistake before, but today, inexplicably, she had lost her temper, and even threatened to hit Adnan. "Is this paranoia, like Ramlah said?" In an attempt to get rid of the thought from her head, she shook her head and picked up her phone from the nightstand and stared at her screensaver - a cherished photograph of Bilal and Adnan she had captured, while they were sleeping. It was certainly one of her favorite pictures of all time. Each time she was stressed out, a glance at the picture, was all it took for her to calm down. It made her feel her late husband's presence - as if he was assuring her that she wasn't alone. That he was with her in spirit. "Would things have been much easier with you here?" she whispered, her voice filled with longing. Years had passed, yet the void in her heart rema
Behind A Smile 180
Zynah raced to the gate, her heart thumping fast in her chest. She found the lazy gatekeeper sprawled out on his bench, as usual. His eyes were closed, but it didn't seem he was asleep; he had an earpiece in his ears and was humming a tune. Zynah called out his name, but due to the obvious reasons, he didn't respond. Frustrated, she kicked the bench, startling him, and causing him to almost fall off the bench. He quickly removed the earpiece from his ear and sprang up. Then, he apologized; "I'm sorry, ma. I didn't hear you calling." Zynah suppressed the urge to roll her eyes him. "How would you, when you had stuff in your ears. Is this what I paid you to do for me? It seems you're beginning to forget your purpose here." "I'm so—" Zynah held up a hand, silencing him. "Keep your apology to yourself. I don't need it. It doesn't even matter now. Where are my children? Did they leave the house?" "Yes," he replied, his voice flat. Zynah couldn't believe her ears. It sou
Behind A Smile 181
"How could you allow two children - two little children out of your sight and later claim to care about them? What sort of a careless mother are you! Had it been I'm a kidnapper or a ritualist, have you thought of what the repercussions would be? Did you think of what would have happened to these innocent kids? You're lucky. Lucky to have been blessed with kids, but instead of taking care of them, like you should, you take them for granted." He lectured, his brows tightly furrowed. "That little boy over there," he pointed to Jr. "Has been crying for his mother. It took a while, before I could calm him down and this boy, right here," He remarked, referring to Adnan. "He looked so sad and when I asked him what was wrong, he told me he doesn't want to return home. Only Allah knows what torture you and your husband put these innocent kids through. Careless people, such as yourselves, don't deserve to be parents!" The man's words, like sharp knives, tore through Zynah's heart. She felt
Behind A Smile 182
Zynah's eyes narrowed as she took in the unexpected visitor. The sight of him just standing casually in front of her door sent a shiver down her spine. "What are you doing here?" Zynah questioned, her gaze trailing to the huge clock, hanging on the wall. "At this time of the day too. Don't tell me you actually fo—" an involuntary gasp, escaped her mouth. "What do you want, mister?" "Good evening, madam,' He greeted, with a hardened demeanor. "I didn't know you live here, otherwise, I wouldn't have come. After the last encounter we had, believe me, seeing you again is not on my bucket list," he said, his tone flat. Zynah huffed, suppressing the urge to roll her eyes at the stranger. "Then can you kindly explain to me why you're here? At this time? Who even let you in?" "Obviously the gateman," He deadpanned. Zynah shook her head in disdain and gnashed her teeth. She made a mental note to fire him the next day. She was done with him. "What do you want?" she asked again. "To j
Behind A Smile 183
The morning sun was hot, extremely hot. The ray of light from the sun, penetrated through the window and shone on Zynah's face. Her brows arched and intuitively, she raised a hand to block the invasion. Her eyes slowly opened, then widened in the next second. She sprung to a sitting position and fumbled around for her phone on the nightstand. Zynah's eyes widened even more, when she saw what the time was. She had gone back to sleep, after fajr prayer. Her head snapped to the side and she discovered Bilal Jr was not lying there anymore. Unlike Adnan, he preferred to stay close to his mother. He was so used to her company, he couldn't stay away, for more than an hour. He was such a clingy little soul. Zynah wasn't complaining though. She loved the attention too. The first thought that crossed her mind, was the possibility of them up to another mischief again, but on a second thought, she believed it was not the case. Not after what happened the previous day. She shook her head. Sh
Behind A Smile 184
When Zynah returned with a tray, containing a can of Malta and a glass cup, she was surprised at how unconstrained Adnan had begun to act with Ibrahim. The sight of them fist bumping, brought a small smile to her face. She cleared her throat, making her presence known, and then, went ahead to place the tray on a stool, in front of him. "I can see you two are having a grand time catching up," she remarked, her voice calm. "We were but that was before you interrupted us," Ibrahim responded, his grin widening. "I've missed this young man a lot. I'm amazed at how sharp his memory is. He actually remembers me. Can you believe it?" Zynah only smiled in response. She wasn't surprised because she knew he still remembered things that happened when he was only three. "Adnan, take Bilal to your room and brush your teeth," she instructed, her voice firm yet gentle. "While I talk to uncle Ibrahim, okay?" "Okay, Mommy," Adnan replied, his hand finding Bilal's. "Let's go to the room,"
Behind A Smile 185
"I wish you nothing, but the best in life," Ibrahim said, a small smile tugging at his lips. "Be happy, always. More than myself, I wish you all the happiness in this world. I hope you open your heart to a deserving person soon." "Thanks a lot, Ibrahim," Zynah said, smiling bank at him. She was still trying to digest everything he had told her. "I truly appreciate your concern. May Allah make your marriage successful, and bless you both with righteous children. I really can't wait to meet Sumaiya." "You really want to meet her? Are you serious?" Ibrahim asked, raising a brow. "of course I am," Zynah chuckled. "I want to tell her how lucky she is, and that she must take special care of you. I can do that, right?" Ibrahim nodded. "You can do anything, Zynah. You want to meet her, you will meet her soon. I will make it happen very soon. I see you too becoming close friends in the near future." Zynah also nodded. "I can't wait. I'll keep reminding you. Congratulations again. Ma
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