"You're doing it again, Z," he spits out my nickname like it was poison. I wince. "And on the same day." He started clapping slowly. I swallow the lump and my throat and ignored the sting of the tear that slid down my face. "And when I thought we we...
As I stepped nearer, I was engulfed by the smell of sweet flowers. Purple and yellow flowers were everywhere. The clear lake sat in the middle, surrounded by trees that reflected off its surface. In the distance, I could see mountains, making the sight ten times more magical.
"Woah," I breathe.
"It's beautiful, isn't it?" Ali exclaimed.
"Yeah, mashallah (God has willed) it's gorgeous," I said, still taking in my surroundings. "How did you find this place?"
He stayed silent for a moment. Then he uttered quietly, "my dad found it."
"Oh," I swallow down the lump in my throat. I started becoming uncomfortable with the tension around us. "Um, I need to pray," I stated, desperate to change the topic.
"Okay, and?" He said, sounding irritated.
"Which way is the Qibla..?" Since he had come here before with his dad, I assumed he would know the direction. If possible, the tension became thicker.
"It's that way," he said, pointing towards a tree and walking towards the lake.
"What about you?" I call out to him. He just ignored me and sat down at the edge of the water on a rock.
Weird, he never missed a prayer. Maybe he already prayed.
I looked down at my clothes, I was wearing some loose jeans and a tunic. I didn't have a praying skirt around me or a prayer mat. I sigh and start my prayer anyway. Ya Allah (God), accept my prayer.
Once I finished, I went towards Ali. His body wasn't as tense as he was in the car. His muscles relaxed, and he looked content. Not wanting to disturb him, I sat down on the grass, gazing at the nature around me.
We stayed like that, for I don't know how long until he broke the silence. "Remember when we played in the snow and ended up getting grounded."
I chuckle at the memory, "yeah, and it was my 11th birthday too."
"Your poor dress got ruined," he snickers.
"I wonder who's fault that was," I jokingly glared at him.
"Hey, you didn't like dresses anyway." he defends himself.
"At least I wasn't the one who ended up getting sick afterward." I laugh, remembering him complaining about how I didn't get a cold.
"Now, you can't deny that wasn't fair." He pouts.
I laugh again, "guess I was lucky." He looks away, pretending like he was upset. "But that was my best birthday, so thank you for that," I said softly.
He looks at me smugly, "that's what I thought."
"But your snowman was horrible," I mutter quietly.
"Leave Berry the snowman out of this."
"Why did you even name it a Berry?" I laugh.
"Because the eyes were blueberries, plus I was 11. And I'm not the one who built a 'snowman' from mud when it was raining." He teases, the smile never leaving his face.
"I was only 8," I crossed my arms. "Remember when we walked into your house soaking wet because we were playing with the hose." I laugh.
"We got in so much trouble," he laughs along with me. "Or that time you fell into a puddle of mud face first." He said, clutching his stomach laughing.
"You pushed me." I huff.
"No, I didn't, you were clumsy." He said, wiping the corner of his eye from laughing so much.
Suddenly my phone rings, breaking us out of our memories. I pick it up without looking at the contact. "Hello?"
"Where are you? Is Ali being lazy again? I've been out here for 10 minutes, hurry up. Baba needs me, something about the car motor." My eyes widen. I look at Ali in panic, he stares back at me with confusion.
"I-I'm coming out, just give me a bit."
"Alright, I'm waiting." I quickly hung up.
~•~
Asalamualaikum! Hey! This chapter was only about 600 words. That's really short, and I feel bad, so tomorrow I'm going to update again! ;)
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