The Shift

Chapter 1

Much, much earlier...

Mother serves the dinner for an indifferent Farraj, lost in his thoughts. As if he wasn't even there. For Ms. Ferdowsi, this wasn't not usual. Her heart aches seeing his son fallen into this abyss of a state. 

Thrash!! The utensils break as they touch the floor, the food spilled all over. Ms. Ferdowsi is yelled at over an insignificant change of taste in food by her only son before he leaves for his room to lock himself inside. An unsuspecting her sustains a cut as she gathers the broken pieces, but nothing spiteful comes out of her mouth. 

Farraj, in him room, gazes out the through the window at the pavement that leaves out to open, free meadows. Depressed him hardly ever goes outside, or socializes to someone besides his mother. Being introverted and reflective, he often grapples with inner demons.

He awakes from an unsatisfying short nap. Realization of the grave mistake of a behavior he exhibited earlier dawns at him; goes up against his mother's room where she is seen sobbing. Peeking through the door reveals her holding a picture of their happy and complete family as she caresses it. Upon entering, Farraj pleads for forgiveness, and is forgiven.

Nothing has been the same since his father died. The mother is habitually observed often sobbing over the loss. It has been years but it's like she is never gonna be over the loss of her husband. The loss wounded Farraj too emotionally, but what his mother has become frustrates him even more. The change might be unexplainable if you ask him, but it's there. Ms. Ferdowsi was once a household name in politics, but this isn't the case anymore.

"He had to die right when we needed his support the most, didn't he?", Farraj says, "I get it, you two were close. But why have you to go over him over and over again? Is it not enough that I'm here for us? He never stayed with us for long even when he was alive ...''

These were some of the questions Farraj had. But Mother was always adamant in her belief that he was a good man at heart. "You will understand one day", Ms. Ferdowsi exclaims, "then maybe you won't hate him that much as you do now", she pulls his head closer to her lap to calm him down to comfort, while she asserts "cherish your loved ones. That's all that matters, for after a while you'll miss them, but all that's left of them is the feel of their presence, how they were, and the sense of onesness with them, even though your memory of how had their faces looked like vanishes after a while...

Knock! Knock! 

It's the door! Ms. Ferdowsi urges him to hide himself away at once. She answers the door at which two cops stand. They greet the nervous Ms. Ferdowsi and ask about the missing boy. "Have you happened to see this boy ma'am? Neighborhood bears the rumors he was seen around your house", the policemen ask as they show her the photo bearing the portrait of none other than Farraj himself. Ms. Ferdowsi denies vehemently and police had to leave, not having a solid proof or a search warrant or anything of that manner. 

Inside comes she, calls her son to come out of hiding and tells him to "pack your stuff now! We gotta leave this town too, people are getting suspicious. And at once, leave the "skin" you are wearing to where it belongs, its parents must've been worried to death". Farraj replies "but I like this one, and you know I despise my own body". But Farraj knew it was time. We see his true body, hanging on the hanger that hangs down in the basement, as lifeless as one's body can be after his soul has left.

Picks up the body in his arms, and goes lookingfor the solitude in the forest. The Shift takes place, and we see thelifeless of a body that hung in basement earlier ago, stand up and move about,but it's Farraj that abides in it now. He falls to his knees as he cries outloud in the newfound pain and agony he has acquired from that host body. Thisold skin, or should you say rented body, is later reunited with his family. Farraj knows what he does is not ethical, andhe will have to keep dealing with this identity crisis of his, but it's like anaddiction that one keeps on doing even after knowing the harms.

The mother andson leave that night to look for a new place, as they have done several timesin the past every time their situation had been made compromised by thisaddiction of Farraj's. Ms. Ferdowsi though still keeps advising his son alongthe lines of "what you have is best for you. Behold those who don't have theconveniences that you have. We be thankful for the blessings Allah has bestowed upon us beforehand and has He promised to grant us even more"...