May and Kaifar (REWRITING)

26

        "I still don't get it and I'm trying here really." Kari says looking up from the book he was trying to read and I look up from my sketchbook.

      "I know you are, keep trying you'll understand it soon." I say and he shakes his head "All I see is words swimming around in my head, it's not as easy as it is for you guys for me." He says folding his arms.

      We were in Kari's room working on our project, Kaifar decided that it'll be best if we reread the book and underlined the parts that projected our theme.

      We divided the book into three parts with Kari taking the first part, I took the second part and Kaifar the third part.

      We were done with our parts with the exception of Kari who still haven't gone past his first page.

      "Maybe you should go grab a snack downstairs." Kaifar says dropping his books and Kari gets up and head out.

      "Don't ask." Kaifar says and I raise a brow, "Ask what?" I snap looking up from my sketchbook "Why it's hard for him." He says giving me a knowing look and I shrug.

      "Dyslexia." I say and he frowns "Did he tell you?" He asks and I raise a brow "We're friends and I'm observant, plus I sit with him in most of my classes. I know the signs." I say and he nods.

      "So.." he begins "So nothing, get your fatass here and come look at this." I say and he snickers. 

    "It's for Kari." I say and he shuffles a bit closer to me and I show him my sketchbook and he skims through it.

     "You're creating a comic on Native Son?" He asks and I shrug "Kari has less of a hard time reading comics for some reason, I think it's because he imagines them as films or cartoons, so I figured why not?" I say and he nods.

         "That's really neat,what do you need from me?" He asks and I raise a brow, "You're offering to help me, willingly?" I ask and he shrugs, "What you're doing for Kari is really cool and he's my brother so yeah." He says and I nod.

         "You could kind of help me with the narration, I'm almost done so it won't take too long." I say and he nods.

    "In the meantime, we'll both have to figure out how to teach Kari in ways that he'll understand." He says and I nod  "Yeah I know, the comic is for exams." I say and he nods just as Kari works in with a box of donut and three cans of soda.

        "What's going on?" He asks sitting down and pointing at the both of us "Nothing." We both answer and Kaifar goes back to his seat.

        "My head's killing me, it's been overworked." He says and Kaifar sighs before dropping his book.

        "Pass me your text." He says and Kari hands it over eagerly to him before he sits back down comfortably.

          "Close your eyes and imagine this like it's a movie." Kaifar says and Karim does so.

        "Chapter one. Now imagine this..." Kaifar begins.

         "That Bigger dude was sick in the head." Kari says sitting up and writing in his note.

        " You would be too, if you lived the way he did." Kaifar says and I scoff " Environment or not, he was sick, that was pretty much obvious from the moment he killed that rat." I say and Kaifar glares.

          "I'm not saying that he wasn't sick, I'm simply saying that the conditions he was forced to live in made him like that." He defends and I nod.

       "He wasn't the only one living like that,his mother,his siblings and lots of blacks lived like that but they didn't go about killing did they?" I ask and he seethes.
    
           "You of all people should understand the problems that people like Bigger faced.." he says and I grin "People like Bigger are called black's. And I should understand that because? My mum's black? I'm neither black nor white?" I question and he squirms.

          "I didn't mean it that way...." He says and I scoff "Yeah right." I mutter and he glares "I already apologized you know?" He says and I do a double take.

        "You did? When?" I say in feigned shock and he turns to Kari, "You heard me apologize didn't you?" He says and Kari immediately bites a donut.

         "Coward." I mutter before turning to Kaifar, "You never apologized, you simply went all I didn't mean it that way." I say and he folds his arms.

          "That's an apology." He says and I shake my head as I grab my things and stuff then into my bag before zipping it up.

"For someone who wants to work with words, you do not know how to use them very well. An apology sounds like this; I'm sorry I used you and your mum in an effort to support my stupid ass point." I say.

       "My point wasn't and isn't stupid." Kaifar says and I sigh, "Of all the things I said, that was the only thing that you caught?" I ask and he glares while I go back to my sketching.

        "May?" Kam calls and I turn to look at him "I'm here." I say and he moves to the doorway, "Your brother's here to get you." He says and I frown.

       "To get me? We live just across the fricking street why'd he bother?" I ask and Kam shrugs "He said it's important or something like that...iono,he's downstairs with Miriam." He says and I grab my stuff.

      "Well we were done for today already, so I guess I'll see you guys tomorrow." I say and they all nod  in agreement.
   
        "Bye May." Kari mutters and I turn around to stare at him, brows raised, "Now you can speak?" I ask him and they all chuckle including Kaifar, and all I can think about is if it's weird that I made Kaifar Al Hassan laugh...

    Is it?