Everything has changed

Extra: It's nice to have a friend

The night was pretty silent, Najma sits in the living room area. She sighs, she think about her brother, he was gonna be so upset with her. Just then Khalil enters with a tray of tea.

"Hey you put Amir to bed?" Najma asks.

"Yup" Khalil answer sitting down in the couch as well as laying down two cups with tea , "You think it'll work?"

"Not One hundred percent.." she sips her tea, "But they'll atleast face the things they were afraid to face."

Khalil chuckles,"You're right, Kalim has always been a coward when it came to Jamil."

"Well those two have their own ways of doing stuff you know."

Khalil also grabs his cup, "Yeah, it's like those two always talked in a way no one understood."

"I wonder what it's like?" Najma asked.

"Like what?" Khalil tilts his head.

"What it's like to be as in love as those two."

Khalil flushed at the sudden question, "H-huh, what got you wondering?"

Najma chuckles, "I'm aware of why you're here Khalil."

Khalil lowers his gaze, "Haha guess you are..."

In fact both of them knew, Khalil stuck around because he liked Najma, and Najma didn't particularly do anything about it. Najma knew, that if she did she would hurt her bestfriend.

But now is different, it's gone off for long enough...

"Khalil, I can't keep leading you on for so long.."

"I know.." Khalil sighs, "I knew you didn't feel the same, but I stuck around because you let me." His head turns to meet Najma's gaze, "It hurt I'm not gonna lie, but to me as long as you were my friend... That was enough."

"I'm sorry." The only words she can mutter.

"For what? You can't exactly control how you feel." Khalil smiles at Najma, it somehow stung Najma a little bit. The boy she knew since childhood that had fallen for her, and yet try as she might she just does not feel the same.

"I just... I've never felt that way about you, nor anyone really. I- I don't know... Sometimes I think there's something wrong with me for not falling for you, you know, like how fairytales go?" Najma gives a little nudge to Khalil.

He responds, "Well we're not in a fairytale, even with us and those two... There's just some things we can't change." His tone drops hinting sadness.

Khalil always knew that Najma will never return his feelings for her. He knew and he still stuck around because love made people stupid like that. He felt the tears form but he knew he couldn't let them fall, he would only make Najma feel worse if he let his tears fall. Really, she was a wonderful woman, and he loved every bit of her. But sometimes... Fates don't exactly align. Khalil has always looked at Jamil and Kalim. He always knew that they were in love, and that became his perception of love.

"I guess I was just kinda projecting on you anyways..."

Najma's head tilts her brow raised, "Projecting?"

Khalil takes a deep breath "Well those two- they were so perfect for each other, every time you're in a room with them it's so easy to tell. Unconsciously I started looking for the same kind of love... I wanted someone to look at me the way Jamil does to my brother. I wanted the care and the gentleness that they gave each other..." He pauses.

"I unconsciously put you in a pedestal thinking you were the *one* without any regard for your feelings, if anything I should be the one apologizing."

Najma puts a hand in his shoulder, "Look I get what you feel okay? I really thought you were the one as well, but I guess we're just the same, we both just wanted what our brothers got."

"I wanted to believe it was real." Khalil speaks, it was like a thousand feelings all summarized in a few words.

"I did too." Najma pauses and meet his gaze, "But really I guess we were both just trying fill something in our hearts."

Najma adds, "But I do care for you, and I do love you, just... Not in a way that you'd expect me too."

When Khalil first pursued her, she felt flattered, and she felt special. She caught an eye of an Asim! That was something to be proud of! But soon reality set, she was happy, but she knew Khalil wanted more. More than what she can give. If she accepted she would have to live a lie, and if ahe refused she would break the heart of her bestest of friends.

So she stalled.

For years.

She thought that Khalil would eventually find another girl. But he didn't, so she finally lays out the words unsaid for years.

"I wish I could love you," Najma says. "But I can't, If I could I would and maybe I'll feel complete then."

"You don't need to love me to feel complete, Najma. You're plenty great yourself! I don't know... Maybe hinging our purpose on love got us here."

"What makes you say that?" Najma questions.

"Well, all this time we all just looked for the "unconditional love" we saw from those two not knowing that, that's not all there is to those two. We hinged on the fact that love would make us happy and complete not knowing the actual challenges it came with." An uncharacteristically mature thing to say from Khalil. Maybe the boy she knew really had grown up.

"Man you've grown... But you're right, we saw getting together as an 'end goal' rather than just natural progression but you know..." She stops, "Maybe it's not the 'love' we expected but I like being with you."

Khalil's heart swells, Najma did not love him in a romantic sense, but he still had a friend, "I do to, we're still gonna hang out right?"

"Course, need a spy for "Operation: Jamikali get together!!'" she jokes.

Khalil chuckles in turn, "Well I'll be your guy!"

Maybe it wasn't the love they both expected but they cared for each other and looked after one another. Khalil would argue that they're relationship is already stronger than most.

He loves her.

She loves him.

Not in the way fairytales would describe love. But that's okay! Love isn't a set-in-stone thing! Love can be anything and maybe that love is sitting in the living room having tea and a heart to heart talk about how you perceive love differently.

Najma and Khalil was laughing at the end of the night.

They had each other and that's more than enough.