Deen Queens

fourteen [saleena]

SALEENA

Saleena woke that Saturday morning with a stretch of her limbs, feelings a little more refreshed than she had been in a long time. The previous day had been extremely busy with meetings and a guest appearance on a popular TV programme but thankfully, her schedule was fairly empty that day. Usually Yusuf would be bouncing up and down on the mattress by seven o'clock, willing her to wake up so she could praise the picture he had just coloured, crayons hiding amongst the bedsheets. But for once, he wasn't snuggled up beside her.

A wave of panic automatically surged through her, remnants of the nightmare she'd had a few hours ago still lurking in the shadows of her mind. But it soon faded away, thoughts gently falling as the aroma of warm milk and eggs wafted through her room. Jabar was up and as long as he was around, both siblings were safe.

As soon as she had moved into the new bungalow she'd impulsively purchased, Saleena had gotten to work straight away. It had been rather fun painting the walls and redecorating the entire house – especially as Yusuf lit up like the sun at every grown-up task she had allowed him to do.

She'd also brought brand new furniture for the garage, having been impressed with the way the previous owners had converted it to a large en-suite bedroom. It was perfect for Jabar, making him close enough to keep an eye on her as expected but also separate enough for each of them to have their own personal space. As it hadn't come with a kitchen, she gave him full reign of using her own when needed. He'd initially been very hesitant about it, saying he didn't want to make her uncomfortable by being around too much but she had only laughed in response. After all, Saleena did pay him to technically stalk her all day.

With a final stretch, she sat up and rubbed her eyes, making her way to the bathroom. Her fingers delicately ran over the smooth tile as she removed all her clothes, stepping under the burning water of her shower. As soon as she had finished, gotten dressed and brushed her teeth, locks of dark hair wet against her shoulders, Saleena followed the light aroma of warm food.

To her utmost surprise, her brother was laughing. His head was thrown back, hair falling all over his face and the widest smile she had seen in a long time. It wasn't that he didn't laugh of course, but rather, he only ever did when it was just her around. Jabar was grinning, wearing a faded tank top and shorts as he expertly flipped something that looked suspiciously like a green blob into a plate in Yusuf's hands.

"What's goin' on?"

Yusuf immediately bounced off the stool he'd been sitting on at her voice, beaming brightly. He ran up to her, holding the plate up as though it were made of gold to show her the contents. "Look, Leena baji, we made green pancakes because green is my favourite colour again. Isn't that silly? They're green! But they taste so yummy!"

Whilst Yusuf had never really shied away from Jabar as much as he did with others, having gotten used to the bodyguard's presence over the ten months she'd been a star, he had never been this forthcoming around him. The thought that perhaps he was getting a little better warmed her up, until she felt like sunlight flitted through her veins. Perhaps the move was exactly what they needed. "That's really cool," she cooed, running her hands through her brother's hair as she eyed the green suspiciously.

"It's just spinach," Jabar explained, his lip curling up in one corner. "I don't usually make green protein pancakes but Yusuf seemed excited that it was possible so why not?"

She wanted to make a face of disgust but with the way her little brother was shoving as many green blobs in his mouth at a time made her pause and consider nibbling on the edge of one. To her surprise, it wasn't bad at all. In fact, if it had a little sugar, she wouldn't have known it was healthy at all. The thought of him adding sugar made her grin; for as long as she had known him, Jabar had been a complete health nut, scarfing down as much vegetables he could manage and working out at every opportunity. She supposed he had to in order to look the way he did – her gaze flickering over his broad shoulders, at the way his tank top rested in the indentations of his oblique's and the curve of his toned biceps beneath the tattoos. It wasn't just the aesthetics of his body of course, she realised, but also the fact his fitness regime made him faster, stronger and ultimately, more able to protect her as he was supposed to.