Your Grace - Burak Çelik

CHAPTER 17

"Assalamu Alaykum, Ayedah."

Ayedah did not respond to her brother as he stood in front of her, holding the door open, whilst their aunt stood behind him- her expression was unreadable, and she was not saying a word. She did not meet Ayedah's eyes, and simply looked down at the ground. Ayedah did not even notice she was there- her eyes were fixated completely on Aarif, standing right there in front of her like nothing had ever happened-

like the fact that they had not been in communication for more than two years was non existent.

She looked up and down at him- he seemed slightly taller than he was when he had last seen him, and was very handsome too. He had grown leaner, his frame strong and muscular, his sharp jaw possessing a soft, light scrub of facial hair. But his eyes were still the same- exactly like hers. The same roundish-almond shape, the same roasted brown color. Despite the old, dreadful pain renewing itself in Ayedah's heart as she eyes fell upon her younger brother, beneath it all was a spark of sisterly pride that glowed due to how much he had grown up. But she made no show of it, and kept her silence, her jaws locked together as if she had never once opened her lips before.

Burak looked from her to Aarif, though his presence did not seem to have been noticed; he narrowed his eyes slightly, sensing the tension- but kept his silence out of respect for the two. Aunty Gab too, did not say anything, did not explain how Aarif happened to have been there. She stood loosely at the back, hidden from view.

After an excruciating few minutes of silence, Aarif spoke up; "I..er..." he swallowed, as if he found it difficult to speak. "I arrived at noon, if you were wondering," he said in what he evidently thought was a casual voice, though to Ayedah it sounded more of an uneasy stammer. "I tried to contact you but Gabriella said that you were busy-" "I believe Aunt Gab or Aunty Gabriella is a more respectful way to address her," said Ayedah quietly, her voice barely perceptible. "Or you could call her Mak Ella, like you did before."(Mak is a term used for 'Mother' or 'Aunt' in Malay/Indonesian, a common Southeast Asian language). Aarif nodded awkwardly, scratching the back of his head. "But yes, I did try to contact you," he repeated himself rather daftly, making Ayedah's brow furrow. "I waited quite a while here." "I have my phone turned off at work," she said coldly. "And I was staying late." Aarif sighed, and moved forward slightly as if he wanted to touch her, and Ayedah stepped back hurriedly, nearly tripping over- thankfully, Burak had been standing behind and prevented her from doing so.

"Ayedah? Are you alright?" Burak leaned down and whispered to her, gently grabbing hold of her elbow from behind to steady her. His expression was concerned as Ayedah looked up at him, making Aarif frown as if he were annoyed. "Excuse me, but who are you?" he demanded, looking half-defensive, half-confused. "Her boyfriend or something?" Ayedah went red, but Burak merely frowned at him, and said, "I'm her colleague- and her friend. I offered to send her home from work today and we just arrived." He looked up and down at Aarif, realization dawning upon his face- but he still asked the younger man the same question back anyways. "And as her friend, may I ask who you are?" he asked, his tone steady yet cold. "I'm-" "He was my brother," interrupted Ayedah, answering for Aarif. Her voice was firm and stony, holding no emotion whatsoever- yet her lip did seem to tremble slightly, though Burak was the only one who noticed. "And I do not recall that he was invited here."

Aarif's expression grew slightly colder, though there was a hint of sorrow as he took in her words. "I came here to find you, Ayedah," he said. "Is that so wrong?" Ayedah scoffed. "Don't know about wrong, but it sure is confusing," she said icily. "I never expected that you'd want to, after nearly three years." "I just want to talk," said Aarif. "Please." His eyes held a look of deep longing and pleading as he looked into his older sister's; Ayedah's expression softened, but she remained tense. Burak noticed it and gripped her arm a little tighter.