Heart in a storm (Little Birdy)

Little Birdy

(10 am)

Tick tock tick tock

One last strike hit from 9:59 to 10:00 in the morning, sitting quite patiently at the café balcony whilst absorbing the warm winter sun Rahim awaits for his...person?

Tapping and humming along to the tunes playing at the café he'd slowly take a sip from his refreshing coffee, then check his watch or his phone at the table; repeating the cycle for the last 5 minutes. He was beginning to get subtly anxious because that's just how Rahim was, always dislikes being late, yet something was tweaking him a little different today.

Was it the morning uneasiness or the trace of emergence in the tone of the text that he picked the night before? The cuckoo sang sitting on the branch that almost touched the balcony railings, he loved the moment but the bird was way closer than his liking.

Picking his phone he messaged "are you here yet?" mumbling under his breath as he wrote it, and the immediate ding of a brief "yes" brought him a beautiful smile. Asking for a refill of his coffee he ordered her favourite drink too, knowing all too well for some time now. Sighing contentedly he placed his hand over his heart checking his watch one more time while the familiar sound of boot heels knocked over the wooden floor around the almost empty café; 10:10 am sharp.

"Jo..." he called with a smile, turning his head towards the approaching figure whilst stepping forth for a hug; immediately realizing something in the rigid return of that hug.

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"Here's your all-time favourite Irish coffee" He said gently pushing the cup to her with two fingers, "I'm so happy to see you, Jo. Definitely coming off cheesy I bet, but I've missed your touch for ages now." Rahim put his chin over his hand on the table animatedly poking hers with a big smile on his face.

(12 pm)

Small talks have always been a pain when you know the vibe isn't anywhere around in the air, it was nearing afternoon but the cold weather made everything around sound quiet except for the birds chirping around.
Rahim's heart was full of joy at that moment to meet the person he's been in love with for the last four years but it wouldn't take a fool to pick on the eerie silence that Jo's aura carried that day. Retracting the hand placed over hers he observed her, sipping his second refill of the hot beverage, "It isn't the same for you, is it?"

Like a deer caught in the headlight Jo's eyes seemed to snap back to reality, Rahim's words passed through her very noticeably making both of them frown; for being caught and the other for catching.

"Are you feeling okay?" Jo gave a curt nod to his question, "Do you want to tell me something because you are aloof, my love?"

Jo looked into Rahim's dark innocent eyes filled with questions which she couldn't decide which to answer first, it was running miles in a second for her "No, Rahim I missed you too I just couldn't take out time to see you with school and everything-"

"And everything?" Rahim questioned with his 'know-it-all' smile that Jo sometimes hated, because it was always hard to lie to him. "You know I can read you enough to know you aren't feeling easy right now? Definitely something's up because I know how busy your school schedule is and I don't ask much from it."

She nodded to his words and swallowed the constricting lump in her throat. She delayed meeting him long enough but knew it couldn't be pushed back further, taking a deep breath her clouding hazel eyes spoke apologies', "I hate that you know me too well but yes I do have things to tell you..."

"Then go ahead without looking like you're guilty for something," little did he know that Jo was indeed guilty for what she was about to utter and break it to him. This somehow squeezed into her heart more viciously. 

"Rahim I-I think I like someone else."

There it was out in the open, however, contrary to Jo's thinking Rahim only gave a subtle raise in one of his brows as a reaction and cleared his throat, "You think?"

"I do," "Oh you do" He nodded looking down, once again surrounded with nothing much but the coos of the little birdy over the tree branch and their two hearts beating simultaneously fast and loud. "Rahim, I know this is hurting you but I really don't know when did it all start. Oliver and I have been friends for so long, it all just clicked when he asked me to be his girlfriend one day and I-I-"

Rahim looked away, her words slowly becoming impossible for him to listen to. Shaking his head at the stab on his heart whilst he held the warm mug of coffee in the hopes to get some sort of solace. He opened his mouth to say something unbeknownst of how deeply hurt he was to a point where words weren't coming out.

"Why did you come to see me in person? Don't you think it'd hurt the same even if you'd text me. It's not even like we're going to break up or something"

Jo ran out of words and Rahim's head began to spiral with the glimpse of their memories. Millions of emotions were felt when realisation came crashing down like a storm. "You never called me your boyfriend, Jo. I kept thinking that you might just need time to get used to all the things about us . You made me hold onto the hope that you'll say it back to me someday."

"My dad likes him" Jo effortlessly uttered those words like piercing ice-cold spear right through him and every syllable felt like the twist of the weapon on Rahim's heart, "Oliver...they know each other and he intern's at my dad's law firm, so dad approves of him with no trouble."

"And I'm just a mere sous chef in a petty restro. Isn't it? Okay, I understand that your father likes him and approves, but do you love him, Jo?" He desperately questioned while his eyes searched for any kind of hint in hers that would say it's all a joke, but she looked away and the silence answered all of his questions. Making him scoff at the bizarre circle they at last fell into, "Oh Joanne, Joanne, you're in love with him. Look at you. I have been played."

Rahim couldn't fathom the thickness in the air as he shut his glassy eyes to find comfort and compose himself. Everything that they've had just made sense to him; being claimed only behind closed doors, the unlabelled tie between them, and the constant empty promises that he allowed to slip away. "It was never me for you, it was never me for anyone too. I guess I'm not good enough to be entitled the tags of love-"

"No, what we had was real, Rahim. I don't want you to be hard on yourself, my feelings for you were true-"

"Until it wasn't!" Rahim stated with a shrug as he stood up and hastily gathered his belongings to walk out, "Didn't have to take the pain of driving miles long just for this, I'd be fine not seeing you 'for the last time' or whatever just so you don't have to be guilty later-"

"Rahim it isn't like that, I care for you" Jo stood up calling out after Rahim, slowly getting shattered herself. It was too late, Jo has already broken the guy with her cold words. Rahim turned one last time before walking away to catch a glimpse of his lost first love. There were unshed tears in his eyes along with his last words as he felt completely humiliated for giving too much into an unlabelled relationship.

"Thanks for being honest, now please do not disrespect me with petty words. A little birdy has always taught that you should leave the nest the moment you feel unattended and here I gave you four years of my life."

"I'm sorry Rahim, I wish things didn't turn this way-" 

"Jo" He uttered with a sigh in an attempt to stop her. "May you have a good approved life with Oliver."

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Hello people, I hope you all are well. It's been a while since I've uploaded anything and this short story was sitting in my draft for a year. Now, here it is for you. Hope you like it a little bit.