[Different Leagues]٭

Hi?

2011-04-21T13:49:00.002+03:00

Good morrow to all and sundry! *wipes dust off of blog*

I'm aware that I've said this many, many, MANY times before. *sadface*

It's been so bloody long, I've literally forgotten how to ramble. Surely that's a sign leading to the impending apocalypse!

My apologies for the sudden disappearance. I honestly have no other excuse other than a sudden lack of creativity and time.

I'm thinking of writing again, not sure why. Need to find yet another way to procrastinate, it seems. You know, 'cause all the time I waste on World of Warcraft isn't enough already. (Yeh, I play WoW, what of it? Hmph.)

I suppose more than anything, the point of this post is to see how many people are still reading this. So... holla' at me if y'all still be readin' this, yo'. No? Not fitting? Fine.

- Lilo.

Foolish Games.. (26)

2009-10-01T22:23:00.000+03:00

I’m sorry it took so long! I’ve been spending so much time reading, totally lost track of everything else :x In my defense, uni starts on Sunday and I won’t have time to read then, or do anything since I did something very smart/stupid with my schedule. Not sure which yet, but yeah. In light of this lack of time-ness, I’ve decided to bless you all with a post (A) I'll try to post when I can, though! Enjoy, yeah? And comment, I had to re-write this twice *sigh* apparently, the teacher knew what she was talking about back in IT classes when she told us to save our work constantly, shocking.

______________________________________

I tapped my foot impatiently as I stared at the clock over the whiteboard with avid interest. Five minutes left. Of all professors available, I had the great misfortune of being stuck with the one who refuses to leave one nanosecond before the time is up. Hate summer classes. Three minutes, thirty seconds. I picked up my pencil and chewed on the eraser, it's a horrible habit but having my ass glued down to a chair for an hour five times a week wasn't exactly a walk in the park either, my fidgety nature refused to allow me to sit still. I substituted the pencil with the pad of my thumb and gnawed at it. Two minutes, here we go. It's not as if I ever broke skin, all I was ever left with is a set of tiny indentations where my teeth have previously been. Very unattractive. One minute to go! I squealed a little internally and suppressed a smile. I synchronized my blinks with the passing of every 5 seconds. 55.. 50.. 45.. 40-

"Ghala, is there anything particularly fascinating on the wall?"

Twenty-nine pairs of curious eyes shifted in my direction, including Yousef's, who looked especially eager to hear my answer. I feigned confusion and he answered by periodically blinking his eyes at five second intervals with a clueless expression on his face. The class erupted in laughter and I felt a sudden rush of heat invading my face. Ass.

"I.. Uh.. My lenses were dry?" I ventured, hoping everyone would divert their attention elsewhere.

He raised an inquisitive eyebrow and I heard a few poorly stifled giggles. "You're wearing glasses." He flatly stated and waited for my response. More laughter. Great. Smooth, Ghala. Real smooth. It seems as though the floor never quite listens to me when I beg for it to open up and to suck me into an alternate universe.

"I.. Ah, what I meant-"

"Sir?" A male voice interrupted, "I'm sorry to interrupt but class is over and I have to get to my next one, can we leave?"

Yousef to the rescue. Did I mention how much I loved that man? A few voices echoed his request and I held my breath.

"Yes, of course. Have a nice weekend everyone." I sighed in relief, packed up my things and left class as fast as I could before he asked any more questions I couldn't answer. Or any I would answer stupidly.

I found Yousef leaning on the wall outside the classroom, "Your lenses were dry?" He asked in an amused drawl.

I felt a blush staining my cheeks again, "Don't you have a class to get to?" I asked haughtily as I walked past him.

"You're welcome." He answered sarcastically. "Where are you off to?"

"Book shopping!" I answered with barely contained glee, "Wanna come with?" I don't know why I even bother asking, I'm always greeted with horrified expressions when I offer.

"Believe it or not, I have better things to do than watch you sniff, fondle and stroke your books."

"I like the way they smell!" I defended indignantly, "And I don't 'fondle and stroke' my books, I feel the texture of the paper. Big difference." I concluded with a pout.

"The answer is still no." He said firmly.

"Whatever, your loss." I said as I childishly stuck my tongue out.

"Hardly!" He returned with a smirk.

______________________________________________________________________

I walked determinedly past all the aisles of music, eager to get to my destination. My inner nerd emerged and performed several somersaults at the sight of all the books before me.

I picked up a romance novel and decided to test out Haifa's theory. She thought that as women, we were genetically programmed to open up romance novels and randomly find the "dirty parts". She always said it was a talent we intrinsically possessed. I soon found that her theory proved itself to be true and started giggling as I read on in interest.

I heard someone's coughing interrupting my concentration and I looked up to find a man staring at me with a raised eyebrow. Apparently he had witnessed my little giggling fit and was now looking at me questioningly. I blushed and raised the book back up to hide my face, hoping he would look away. I waited a couple of heartbeats and tried to subtly peek at him from over the book, I was greeted with his smirking face again and I quickly re-adjusted it to cover my eyes.

Now what? I suppose I could put the book down and walk away.. But no. I needed it to cover my face. The heat proved itself to be too oppressive at the beginning of the summer and on impulse, I ended it up getting half of my hair chopped off at the hairdresser's. Admittedly, not my brightest move. I missed it acting as a veil between me and everyone else when I needed it to. It would've been very helpful now, I wanted to get a better look at the guy in front of me and what better way to accomplish that than from behind a curtain of hair?

I chewed my lip indecisively as I debated my next move and decided to grow a pair, figuratively speaking, put the book down, catch a quick glimpse of him and gracefully walk away. As gracefully as my feet would allow me, that is. I put the book down and looked up, only to find him gone. How long had I been debating, anyway? Weird. I turned around to walk away and encountered a wall, or at least what I thought was a wall.

"How about you watch where you're going?" A deep, angry voice suggested.

The apology I was intending to offer vanished and was replaced by annoyance at the stranger's rudeness, "How about you-"

The rest of my response died on my lips as I met the stranger's eyes. It was the same guy from before, I would recognize that eyebrow anywhere, lifted cockily in the same questioning manner as it was earlier. What I hadn't been prepared for though was how attractive he was, or the swift change in my train of thoughts as I stared, quite unabashedly, at his face.

"You were saying?" He said impatiently.

"What?" I asked, finding my voice.

His smirk returned, "You were in the middle of what I'm sure you thought was a scathing retort before you looked up and decided to ogle me instead."

I gasped as his offensive, and quite correct, summation of what just happened. Nothing like the embarrassing truth to catch someone off guard. I won't give him the satisfaction of knowing the accuracy of his rude reply. I will deny it until my dying breath, I vowed.

"Don't flatter yourself." I managed to spit out. Not the most creative comeback but I decided to add a little eye-rolling for dramatic effect and walked away triumphantly. Ha! I was feeling quite pleased with myself until I heard him talking again.

"You might want to take your wallet and phone with you," he said as he gestured to where I forgot them atop the books, "unless you were planning on paying for your books with your more of your witticisms." He added, sarcastically.

"Bite me." I practically snarled as I picked up my things and silently cursed my absent-mindedness.

He laughed mockingly, "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

My face turned a few thousand shades of red as I plugged in the forgotten earphones I had hanging around my neck to block out anything else he had to say, and walked away. I took my iPod out of my pocket and pressed play as I replayed the scene that just happened and by the end of it, I was practically shaking with anger, embarrassment and at the same time, I had the strangest urge to laugh! How bizarre.

I put the compelling stranger out of my head and devoted all my energy and attention to finding books. Forty-five minutes later, I was happily humming as I walked out of Virgin Megastore and headed to get some coffee. I had a long night ahead of me.

I ordered my drink and had to repeatedly assure the waiter that I wanted three extra espresso shots. You work in the coffee business, to think you would've seen it all by now. Or at least sampled the coffee and knew that it was bland, I needed the three shots for it to have any effect at all.

I leaned against a wall as I waited for my order to be up. I felt my phone vibrating in my pocket and took it out to find a text from Khaled. I smiled as I replied excitedly, he booked his flight back and was coming back next week with a "surprise". I tried to get him to admit what it was but my attempts were futile, not even Mya would help me! I was hoping she would take pity on me and ease my curiosity, no such luck.

"64!" The short Philipino woman called. I picked up my drink and walked towards the exit, trying to balance my drink, wallet and heavy bag of books in one hand while texting Khaled back with the other.

Needless to say, the spilling of my coffee on a poor, unsuspecting stranger was more than inevitable. And to my extreme misfortune, the stranger just happened to be the same guy I had bumped into before. Would this qualify as a good enough entry to post on www.fmylife.com? I wonder.

I gasped in horror and he let out a loud expletive. I hurriedly put my stuff down and attempted to wipe the huge, obvious stain off his white shirt as I apologized profusely. He groaned in frustration as I only seemed to be helping it spread all over the place.

"Are you going to make a habit of this bumping into me thing?" He demanded, furiously.

His anger only fueled my own, I was already berating myself for my inattentiveness and he only made it worse.

"I already apologized, now stop pouting like a baby and get over it! There's no need to be rude and insufferable." I ground out.

"No need to be rude and insufferable?" He echoed my words and looked up at me with incredulity emanating from his eyes. He grabbed the napkins from my hands and took over the task of drying himself off.

I closed my eyes and sighed in exasperation. Let's try this one more time. It was going to physically hurt to be nice to someone so rude, but I suppose it was my fault and I owed him a proper apology. This blows.

"Look, I'm sorry, okay? I should've been paying attention to where I was going and I promise I'll make it up to you. I'll pay to get your shirt cleaned!" I offered as I took a better look at the damage, "Actually, on second thought, how about I just get you a new one?" I offered as I smiled at him.

He looked at me like I was crazy, shook his head in disbelief and turned his attention back to his shirt. "You're not buying me anything."

He said it in a way that suggested that women weren't allowed to pay for anything. I opened my mouth to let him know what I thought of his chauvinism but apparently he wasn't done shocking me yet.

"But," he paused as he threw the napkins in the nearby trash can and came back to face me, "I do like the idea of you making it up to me, though."

I was almost afraid to ask how but curiosity got the best of me, "What did you have in mind?"

He lifted a corner of his lips in a half-smile at my hesitancy and simply stated, "Have coffee with me."

Now it was my turn to question his sanity. "What?" I asked, completely baffled at his suggestion, "Why?! You haven't had one nice thing to say to me from the second you opened your mouth and now you want to have coffee with me? Are you out of your mind?"

He opened his mouth to talk but I cut him off with a warning glance, "I'm not done yet! Why on earth would I have coffee with you? Why would I even consider it! I don't even know your name. Besides, you're rude, obnoxious, arrogant-"

"And you have absolutely no sense of coordination and you don't quite know when to shut up." He interjected with a genuine smile that left me just a tad bit speechless. "All you've done is prove that nobody's perfect. Even me with my alleged arrogance. Now how about that coffee?"

Maybe I was still stunned by his invitation or his smile, I really couldn't say. And if anyone were to ask me, I don't know how I'd explain my reaction, but before I knew it, I found myself nodding and agreeing to his ludicrous suggestion.

"Good. Not here though, their coffee tastes like piss." He declared as he walked and motioned for me to come with him when I stood still. "Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf okay with you?" He asked as I joined him.

"It's fine." I replied quietly, not sure of what to make of this turnabout in events, "And could we do without the vulgarity, please?"

He shrugged in a noncommittally and we walked side by side to the parking lot in silence as I contemplated how surreal the situation was. I didn't normally do things like this, I'll admit to being too impulsive at times but that rarely ever bordered on stupidity. And that's exactly how I was acting now, stupid. Going to get coffee with a complete stranger. But then again, I've been doing a lot of uncharacteristic things lately.

We reached the parking lot and went in separate ways to get to our cars when he suddenly turned around again.

"It's Fahad, by the way." He called out.

"Huh?"

"My name, it's Fahad." He clarified.

"Oh!" I bit back a little smile, "I'm Ghala."

He inclined his head a little in acknowledgment and turned around to make his way to his car. I then let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding in, made my way to my car and smiled, this time without any restraint. Hmm, Fahad.

Foolish Games.. (25)

2009-09-05T09:49:00.001+03:00

Greetings! I’m continuing the story 6 months from “the breakup”. This post is basically just to clear things up for you guys! Oh and stop hating me, yeah? Thanks.

__________________________________

*6 months later*

I felt like a fundamental part of me was missing for the longest time, it constantly seemed as if I was reaching for something, only to have it slip through my fingers in the last second. I was never one to dwell on the past, but despite how things ended, my relationship with 3azeez meant too much for me to pretend to be cavalier about it and brush it off as if it were nothing.

Commitment issues. To anyone on the outside, that’s what it must’ve seemed like. I didn’t even know where to begin to clear up those wrongful notions, so I offered noncommittal shrugs and kept to myself. Truth is, I had no problems with commitment, not anymore than the normal person would. Okay, maybe a little more, but what kept me paralyzed with fear was abandonment. I couldn’t very well let him pass up such an amazing opportunity and leave him saddled by my side, wondering what could’ve been. I didn’t have it in me. But it wasn’t completely selfless on my part; I couldn’t let my world revolve around him knowing he might be harboring some resentments towards me that will inevitably tear us apart.

Where would that leave me?

*6 months earlier*

“Wow.” he said and laughed humorlessly. He breathed out and I realized he had been holding his breath since he asked the question. I felt another fresh shot of guilt rushing to my stomach. He loosened his grip on my hand, but didn’t quite let go of it. I stared down at our hands, unable to look at him yet.

“I’m sorry.” I said earnestly, I doubted the words held any significance to him, but it was all I had to offer.

“So am I.” He replied as he stared pensively into the distance.

We both knew it was too late for us, the words had already been put out there, we couldn’t take them back at this point, even if we wanted to. The silence was deafening, I knew I owed him an explanation but didn’t find the correct words to verbalize my reasoning. I knew what he must be thinking and all the misconceptions forming in his head with every silent second that passes, but I just couldn’t bring myself to straighten it out. The damage had been done.

I mustered enough courage to look up and face him. And then our eyes met. And for the merest seconds I felt all my justifications fly out the window. I wanted nothing more than to throw myself in his arms and take it all back. It was all very cliché but I tried to memorize his face in those few seconds, I knew pictures didn’t do him justice. They weren’t able to capture the intensity of his gaze, currently tainted with pain and, despite the predicament we were in, love. It was my undoing.

I felt a tear making its way down my face, wound my fingers around his and squeezed his hand tight. “I’m not ready to let go yet.”

“Come here.” He ordered gruffly, pulled me into his arms and hugged me. I hugged him back and held on tight, as if it would magically make everything right again. “I love you.”

“I know,” I whispered back, “I love you, too.”

“But I won’t chase you.” He said determinedly.

“I know that, too.” I said and I smiled a little to myself. Mission accomplished, right?

I don’t remember who initiated it, but our arms gradually loosened from around each other, until they fell altogether. And in the silence and awkwardness that ensued, we didn’t have any options but to walk back to Khaled’s apartment. We made idle chatter on the way back, no time like the present to start acting like acquaintances. He said he would go back to Kuwait in two days to pack his things and say his good byes so he could relocate as his father had already arranged for an apartment for him, knowing instinctively he’d take the job. And why wouldn’t he? He asked if he could see me when I got back there, I told him it wouldn’t be wise of us and he readily agreed.

He hugged me one last time outside Khaled’s door, “If you ever need anything-” he started.

“I know.” I said, interrupting him. But we both knew I wouldn’t reach out to him for any reasons, it was difficult enough as it is.

“Take care, kiddo.” he said with that crooked grin I came to love.

Strangers. We should live our lives as complete strangers from now on, there’s no reason for me to be affected by his “kiddo”. I smiled back one final time and entered the apartment. Mya had already left, we must’ve been gone for longer than we thought. I found Khaled sitting on the counter and I walked over to him and sat beside him. He pushed a pint of ice cream and a spoon in my direction and I accepted without preamble and dug into it.

I found my voice a couple of spoonfuls later and asked him, “How did you know?”

He reached out, put his arms around me and simply stated, “I know you.”

Foolish Games.. (24)

2009-08-27T20:43:00.001+03:00

“I love how suddenly everyone makes ‘the best cupcakes ever’ like they didn’t come right out of a Betty Crocker mix!” Mya said as we sat on the kitchen counter watching Khaled make chicken nuggets.

“I know, right? Like it took some divine magical ability for them to combine water, eggs and oil into a bowl with the dry ingredients and mix!” I replied in annoyance as I swiped a few fries from the plate next to Khaled.

“I know!” She exclaimed as grabbed a few herself.

“Great, now there’s two of them.” Khaled said sarcastically to no one in particular, “I can’t wait for their periods to sync up.”

I giggled as I heard Mya reply with yet another threat to pour the hot oil down his back if he didn’t shut up.

“Really, your obsession with BDSM is getting a little out of hand.” He replied dryly. “You might wanna tone it down a bit.”

“HA! Never!” She answered, “What’s taking you so long? I’m starving, I haven’t eaten since breakfast!” she added dramatically.

“You were munching on jellies when I called you after class.”

“Okay but I haven’t had anything since then!” She conceded with a pout.

“I had lunch with you!” He reminded her, “I sat across the table watching you practically inhale your cheeseburger.”

Her eyes widened in shock, “That was THREE hours ago! Are you insane? That doesn’t count!”

He shook his head, gave up trying to reason with her and turned his attention back to our dinner. I saw him smile to himself as he moved the food around the pan and couldn’t help but feel a smile spread on my own face, too. I genuinely couldn’t remember another time when he seemed so happy with anyone and I’ve seen the parade of his girlfriends ever since he discovered that girls didn’t have cooties. This was different, I could hardly believe he was the same guy head over heels for Haifa months earlier.

“So did you guys have fun?” he asked us.

“Surprisingly, yes. Even though she refused to stop singing ‘London Calling’ the entire time and jumped up and down while the bus was moving when the tour guide pointed out the studio where Hendrix recorded Purple Haze. Even though she kept eying the only other Arabic man warily whenever he shifted his eyes. Even though she stopped paying attention when it started raining and tilted her head all the way back chanting “Hallelujah! Hallelujah!” repeatedly. Even though-”

“That’s enough already!” I cut him off. “You can’t blame me for the rain thing, I live in Kuwait. God knows when I’m gonna see that much of it again!” I justified. “Besides, you completely lost your right to complain about anything when you hauled your ass on a plane and came all the way down here just to see me.”

Khaled’s head suddenly snapped up and he faced 3azeez. “You didn’t tell her?” he asked in an accusatory tone.

3azeez’s warning look was received a little late by Khaled who stood there with his arms crossed, waiting for an answer.

I felt the smile I had plastered on my face earlier wavering as my heart started beating at a frenzied pace. My mind immediately jumped to a thousand different conclusions in those few silent moments. I tried pulling it back to the present situation but my efforts were unheeded as I found myself contemplating the possibilities. Was he in trouble? Is he sick? I pushed the fact that he lied to me to the back of my head momentarily, forced myself to remain calm and keep the nervousness out of my voice as I took a deep breath and asked, “Didn’t tell me what?”

My gaze shifted between them and I took in their contrasting expressions from Khaled’s angry one to 3azeez’s pained one. I glanced at Mya’s direction to find her deeply absorbed with her fingernails, not able to look me in the eyes. It dawned on me that I really was the last to know. Something was going on, something that obviously concerned me in some way and everyone was privy to the details except me. And just like that, the realization effectively silenced my nerves and fueled my anger.

I turned to 3azeez with hardened eyes, temporarily forgetting my previous worries and asked again in an infinitely more steady tone, carefully enunciating each letter, “Didn’t tell me what?”

I knew I was being irrational but I hated being kept in the dark, my mind was still going into overdrive, exploring all the different prospects of what the secret may be.

He took a deep breath and started to explain, “Ghala, I-”

“No.” I interrupted calmly, surprising myself as much as I surprised him.

He looked up at me quizzically, “No?” he asked as I nodded

“No.” I repeated, taking in his confused expression, “I’m a woman, being fickle is in my nature, sue me.” I added with a shrug. “I’m not sure I want to know yet, I need to think.” I wrapped my scarf around my neck and pulled my boots over my socks, “I’m going for a walk, I’ll be back soon.”

“I’ll come with you.” Khaled volunteered.

“No, don’t. Really, I’m fine! I don’t even know what the big secret is yet, remember?” I asked teasingly, hoping to fool him. “I just need a little air, that’s all.”

“Are you sure?” He asked as he looked intently at my face, looking for signs of insincerity.

“YES!” I answered, “Get back to finishing the food before Mya passes out from hunger.” I added

“THANK YOU!” She cried out with a huge smile.

“I’m coming with you.” 3azeez stated.

“You guys are making me feel like a drama queen, enough! I need a little quiet, that’s all, I don’t need babysitting.” I pointed out

He smiled gently at me, “I know, but I’m not about to let you walk out alone at night in a foreign city. I won’t talk, I promise, not until you’re ready for me to.”

I eyed him suspiciously, not knowing if I should trust him to keep his words. I help up my pinky finger and waited for him to assure me. He rolled his eyes and linked pinkies with me.

“I pinky swore! There, you happy?”

All I could do was smile in response as we walked out together in perfect silence. It wasn’t deafening, it wasn’t heavy with accusations, it wasn’t uneasy. It was exactly what I needed it to be, comforting. I didn’t even think of what he had to inevitably tell me. I cleared my mind and concentrated on the feeling of the icy night air calming me down.

True to his words, he didn’t speak a single world as he walked with me, following me unquestioningly. I rubbed my hands together at one point and he silently took them into his own and warmed them up. I walked into the supermarket to buy junk food and he mutely shadowed me, not uttering a single syllable. I walked into a pharmacy and dumped condoms and various other birth control items into a basket, just to see if he can maintain his silence. He laughed, put everything back and forcefully ushered me out.

I lost all sense of time, I had no idea how long we were walking for. I only remember my legs finally giving out and collapsing on the nearest bench with 3azeez soundlessly following suit. The subject couldn’t be avoided much longer.

“You didn’t come here for me.” I stated. We’ve been walking in silence for so long, the sound of my voice was foreign to my own ears.

“I did. The radio was on when I was driving back home after I dropped you off the day before you left and that song you like by The Script came on. I couldn’t even hear the lyrics, all I could hear was your voice screeching “I’m not moviiiing” at the top of your lungs and I couldn’t stop smiling. I knew I could wait out the two weeks but I didn’t want to.” He paused to take a deep breath, “I wanted to be with you.” He added simply.

I bit back the smile tugging relentlessly on the corners of my mouth, instinctively knowing there was more to his explanation than that. “But?”

“I told my parents I was going to visit a friend there and my dad told me about this job at his friend‘s firm. It’s weird, it’s an entry-level type of thing, but it’s actually challenging! It pays twice as much as I’m making now and I wouldn’t care if it paid half as much. It’s really interesting and the thing is, they’re setting up a branch in Kuwait in two years.” he paused to gauge my reaction and continued, “So my dad figured I could work there for now and his friend guaranteed him I’ll have a spot at the Kuwaiti branch when it opens up.”

My heart sank with every word he spoke. Maybe I should’ve let the silence drag on a while longer, I certainly wasn’t prepared for this. I put on my brightest smile and feigned happiness for him. I knew I would be eventually but not that moment, not today. “Mabrook! It seems like a great opportunity, I‘m sure you‘re gonna kick some major English ass!” I said as enthusiastically as I could and looked down to hide what I’m sure was a shattered expression.

“I didn’t accept the job.” he clarified, “Yet.”

My had snapped up and I met his eyes, “What? Why not? You seem really excited about it..”

“A couple of months ago, I would’ve jumped at the opportunity without as much as blinking an eye. Now, however, I have more than myself to think about.” he said as he locked eyes with me, daring me to blink.

Then it all became clearer and I checked the impulse to run in the opposite direction. “Me?” I asked tentatively and he nodded in response. Alarm bells started sounding off in my head, this was not happening.

“Yes, you.” he answered. “There’s no way I can make this decision without involving you, I told you time and again, I’m serious about this, about us. But I’m not silly enough to pretend we can make this long distance thing work.”

I didn’t know what to reply, it was a lot to take in, to put it mildly. I opted for the playing dumb routine and asked, “What are you saying?”

He took one of my hands and pressed a kiss onto the palm and held on to it. “I’m saying I love you. I’m saying I’m happy to stay in Kuwait with you and decline the job offer, but I need reassurance in return. I know I’m asking you for a lot, but I need to know if you think there’s a future for us. It’s only been a few months, but there’s no doubt in my mind, I’m in it for the long haul. Question is, are you?”

I blinked back the tears searing the back of my eyelids, seeking release. Cleared my throat and said the only thing I could, “No.”

Foolish Games.. (23)

2009-08-14T23:46:00.000+03:00

I know, I know, I'm sorry *pout* don't hate me! Finals in two days, so I had to post. Also, a very persuasive letter from Carpe Diem forced me to finish this post so voila!;p I didn't proofread, I have a million past exams to read through *sigh* let me know if you find any mistakes, yes? It's very rushed, I sorry!:( Love you guys :*

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"And I want French toast and chocolate chip pancakes with vanilla ice cream and hash browns and cinnamon waffles and.." I trailed off as I continued my perusal of the menu. The breakfast I ordered back at the hotel was long forgotten after 3azeez's unexpected arrival. We ended up at some diner with Khaled and his new girlfriend, who turned out to be pretty cool, I quickly let go of any reservations I might've had before.

"Is she gonna eat all that?" 3azeez asked Khaled incredulously, I stifled a giggle at his bewildered expression.

"Nope." He answered.

"Aaand milkless cereal.. Actually, could I possibly get chocolate milk instead? Thank you!" I flashed a smile at the flustered waitress.

She smiled back uneasily and turned to Mya, "What will you be having, miss?" She asked politely.

"What she said sounds good, I'll have the same!"

"The cereal part?" She ventured hopefully.

"Psh no, all of it!" She corrected, as if it was the most natural thing in the world to eat that much for breakfast.

I looked up to see 3azeez's gaze darting back and forth between me and Mya, then finally settling on Khaled, seeking assistance.

"And she won't be eating all that either." He clarified with a wry inflection in his voice. "Two coffees please." He added to the waitress who grabbed the menus and scampered off quickly before we think of anything else.

"So how does this work?" 3azeez asked, referring to the huge breakfast we just ordered.

"Well," He started as the waitress quickly came back with out cereal, "They'll both finish their cereals.. Ghala will take a bite or two out of everything before announcing she's full and she can't possibly stuff anymore in her mouth.. Mya will give it a little more effort than that but will also be full in 5 bites or so after that and she'll ask if she can undo the top button of her shorts." He said as he rolled his eyes.

"Are you calling me fat?" She asked with her mouth full of cereal and pointing the spoon threateningly at him.

"Not at all, babes." He answered sincerely and she eyed him carefully for a few moments before going back to happily munching on her cereal.

"What happens to the rest of the food?"

"Ah, well at that point, Ghala will turn to us and beg us to finish it all, saying something like, "Think of all the poor children in Africa!"" He said in a voice that was supposed to be an imitation of mine. "And Mya would say something like-"

3azeez interrupted him, "Let me guess, "Let them eat cake!"? Close enough?"

"Haha, no, more like "Let them starve!" Isn't that right?" He asked her, smiling down at her affectionately.

"Meh," She answered with a shrug, neither agreeing or disagreeing.

______________________________________________________

We parted ways with Mya and Khaled, who had classes to get to and were walking aimlessly down the street, blissfully unaware of our surroundings and just happy to be together. Two days apart seemed much longer than they actually were. This news wasn't received well by me, not at all.

"What do you want to do first?" He asked as he reached out for my hand.

I chose that particular moment to fix my hair, "Hmm, I want to make phone calls from the red phone booth things."

He started laughing and immediately stopped when he saw my unsmiling face, "Are you serious?" He asked as he reached for my hand again.

"Yes, I'm serious!" I replied as I lightly smacked his arm. "It's just something I've always wanted to do." I added with a shrug.

"And who are you gonna call?" he reached out and put his arms around my waist this time. Dammit. This one's going to be hard to get out of.

I twirled out of his arms and spun myself around a few times, "I don't know, I'll think of something. Oh my God, can you believe we're actually here together?" I squealed a little and looked back to see if he bought my act. No such luck.

"What's wrong?"

Busted. "What do you mean?"

"What do I mean? You've been flinching away from any form of contact between us, am I missing something?"

How do I go about this? Don't touch me? Nah, too rude. I would appreciate it if you didn't touch me? Mm, too formal. Maybe I can do it Emperor Kuzco style? Sort of like "No touchy" Or-

"Ghala? You still here?" He asked as he waved his hand in front of my face, effectively pulling me back into the current situation.

"Yeah, what's up?" I answered brightly.

"Explanation..?" He said, refreshing my memory.

"Oh right! Sorry. Guess I just have to come out with it, yeah?" I started, "Me and PDA, we don't mesh well? I'm uncomfortable with it, yeah. Uncomfortable." I nodded for emphasis and looked up to gauge his reaction.

"That's all?" He said, smiling.

I wasn't sure what he meant by that, "And my lips go insanely pouty after I eat red chili peppers?"

He laughed and repeatedly pulled down strands of my hair and watched them bounce back up, "Since you have such a strong aversion to being touched, I guess I'll just have to stick to pulling your hair." He teased, "That should help you get over those PDA issues, don't you think?"

I rummaged through the contents of my bag until I found a pencil and secured my hair in a bun. I turned to face him and smirked.

"I don't have "issues" as you so eloquently put it, I just think it's fine for us to be all gross and lovey dovey on our own time but it's completely unnecessary to showcase it for the entire world to see! I'm secure enough in our relationship to not need that type of public validation.." I looked up to see his amused expression, "Okay fine, I have issues." I conceded with a scowl.

"Come here." He invited as he held his arms open.

I rolled my eyes at him, "Did you hear anything I said in the past five minutes?!" I demanded.

"Imbala, I've just chosen to disregard it, that's all." He replied and waited patiently.

"What makes you so sure I'm going to hug you?" I asked, baffled at his certainty.

"Because, I came a the way to London for you. You wouldn't deny me the pleasure of having you in my arms, would you?" He answered with a disarming smile. Dammit.

I made my way over to him, all the while mumbling complaints under my breath and walked into his arms as they closed around me and pulled me in closer. I made no effort to hug him back, I was just happy to be standing there, inhaling his intoxicating scent and secretly smiling into the fabric of his jacket.

"See? That wasn't so bad, now was it?" He asked rhetorically as he let go and kissed the top of my head.

"I wanna go on the tour bus thingies!" I said as I pouted, "I was going to yesterday, but then I noticed a scary looking arab guy buying a ticket, so I changed my mind and went shopping instead!" I complained.

He looked at me incredulously and shook his head, "Hatha w you're an arab! What are the foreigners supposed to think?" He chastised.

"I can't help it!" I defended, "He was covering his face retardedly with his scarf and he was really skinny but had a huge jacket thing on, it could've been loaded with explosives for all I know! And he had a beanie on. You know how I feel about those."

He laughed at my deductions, "Ya3ni may9eer bardan? You had to skip to terrorism?"

I glared at him, "I'm telling you, he had terrorist written all over him! And he bought a ticket for one, who does that?!"

"You were going to!" He exclaimed.

He had a point there, but I wasn't about to let him win. "It's different, I had my reasons!"

"And isn't there the slightest possibility that he may have had his reasons too?" He asked in a horribly logical manner.

"Yes, I suppose he could have." I conceded, "If those reasons included him blowing up the bus."

He sighed in exasperation, "Then please explain to me why we haven't heard anything on the news about a terrorist attack on a tour bus?"

Dammit. I couldn't weasel my way out of this one without employing some good old fashioned phrases I picked up in the third grade.

"Oo you'd like that, wouldn't you?" I retorted.

"That doesn't make any sense!" He cried out.

"You don't make any sense!" I shot back.

I took a step back as his expression turned murderous. Oops. He closed the gap between us, tilted my head back and kissed me. I pulled away quick and took a step back.

"What was that?" I asked, surprised.

"That was the most effective method I know of shutting you up that doesn't include physical violence." He answered. "I forgot how infuriating you could be."

I forgot to feign shock and act offended and retaliated in kind, "Well I forgot how tall you are. Could we please sit down for a bit? My neck's starting to hurt from constantly looking up."

He obliged and pulled me down on the bench next to him. He took out a cigarette, lit it and watched me silently as I took it out of his hand, put it out and placed it in a nearby rubbish bin. I casually walked back to my place, sat down next to him and rested my head on his shoulder. He was surprised by my voluntary actions and tentatively wrapped an arm around me. I smiled, leaned up and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"You're not really mad at me, are you?" I asked.

"Nah, I can't be. I kinda love you, if you hadn't noticed." He said with a lopsided grin.

I looked down demurely and played with a button on his jacket, "And just because I don't feel like throwing up in your mouth when you say things like that, I think I might kinda love you too. You know, or whatever." I replied with a smile of my own.

He removed his arm from around me, took my hand away from his jacket, pressed a kiss into my palm and pulled me up.

"Yalla baby, we have a terrorist-free tour bus to catch."

I Didn't Mean To Take Up All Your Sweet Time..

2009-07-19T07:25:00.000+03:00

I'll give it right back to ya one of these days hahaha ♪

Yes, I find it necessary to sing along with the laughter in songs as well :$ KAIFI! For those of you who aren't familiar with the song, SHAME ON YOU!

I mean, It's Voodoo Child - Jimi Hendrix♥ Amazing riffs. Word.

I can't concentrate walla I really do not KNOW how to study, please don't ask me how that's even possible, I just don't! I have no attention span whatsoever when it comes to holding a book/paper/whatever and understanding ot acknowleging that I read any of the information. I think I'm going to resort to sleeping with the book under my pillow in hopes of magically absorbing the info into my brain by the end of the semester. Thank you, Noodles. Seriously summer semester is shite, I think I can almost see my brain cells escaping from my head and dying midair.

Oh, Oh, and I remembered why I don't let myself wear shorts much, my thighs are too distracting! Not on the "Fudge, I have sexy thighs!" sense, noo! They just look so cleaaan.. and such a good place for me to draw on :( So I'm "studying" for my quiz, right? And I read about Spot Markets (ftw?) so I have my pen in my hand, underlining the definition and any other words that seem important and it goes something like this..

"Spot markets are terms that refer to markets where assets are being bought or sold for OMG I WANT TO DRAW ON MY THIGHS!"

Needless to say, after that I abandoned my handout and focused on my canvas. When I was convinced that I had sufficiently graffiti-d my thighs enough, I uncross my legs and stretch them to see how it looks like from a different angle (don't ask, you don't wanna know *rolls eyes*). THEN, I realize that my legs are strangely long for my height? I'm not short or anything, I'm like 165 cms, even though the pharmacy insists I'm 160, mu kaifkum? yes? kthxbye. But I digress, anyway! Yeah, so I walk about my room shwaya, hiking up my shorts even more in hopes of discovering that it's all in my head, but no! So I decided to study, satasfied with my newfound discovery and then I uncross my legs, again -.- And then I start wondering how high up my legs can go? so I spend half an hour, give or take, trying to hook my right foot behind my neck so that it rests on my left shoulder? Naturally, every time it ends up with me rolling all the way back and dissolving into fits of giggles -.- I can't stop laughing, seriously, what's going on?

People should not post on saturday.. cuz I will ditch studying and read your updates instead. But please continue doing so anyway, you guys rock ♥

I want a baby dinosaur like the ones in Ice Age 3? So cute, I die! I keep saying it and getting the response of "THEY'RE EXTINCT" from my sister.. Inzain, I still want them? God, people *rolls eyes*

I just realized I should've posted this on my other blog, it is rambling after all -.-

I apologize to anyone who read this thinking it's related in any way to my story *looks around* but secretly, I have the desire to point at you and go "kaaaaaaaaaaak!" Yes, I will resort to kaaaak-ing, I've been hanging around Kuwaiti guys far too long. I'm not complaining, they're cool, they're cool.. Oh did you guys know I'm not Kuwaiti? :O

I don't even know why I'm sharing that, I don't wanna get up and change. My quiz is at 8, so that ship has sailed, I hope my friends don't read this til they get home.. I wonder if I can use the whole "I overslept!" excuse on them? Problem is, they know I don't sleep! I will not underestimate your intelligence and lie to you guys, I love you guys *flicks halo back in place*

W bas? Yes? Oooh new blog? Yes? I feel all lonely being the only follower, so read and FOLLOW:@

http://delusional-soul.blogspot.com/

I love you guys! *insert huge goofy grin here*

Thanks for reading? Or whatever?

Hahaha I just got a message from Noodles saying she might not do the quiz either.. aaaand I'm out of the doghouse! YAY! I change anyway, class at 9.20 -.-

Peace! :*

-Lilo.

Foolish Games.. (22)

2009-07-11T20:10:00.001+03:00

Hello! I have a quiz tomorrow, so naturally, I chose to type up a post instead of studying! Procrastination at its best *sigh* I love my blog. And my new layout. I hate the color pink, but I do love my layout. In fact, I dedicate this post to my layout *blush* Even Ghala's outfit is a tribute to it! Sad, I know. Kaifi!
I had to delete the thingie I posted yesterday cuz blogger is being a bitch and not posting this? Kept saying "Finale?" was my latest post! Then I found out that deleting it didn't work either -.- Don't question the logic, made sense at the time?
Enjoy! Or not..? Love you guys! ;*
And I love cherry tomatoes.

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I woke up to the intrusive sun rays shining through the curtains and immediately hid back under the covers. I was hoping I could trap my sleepiness under the covers before it completely went away but it was no use, once I was awake, it was practically impossible for me to go back to bed again. I contemplated the merits of spending the whole day vegetating on the bed for a few moments before hauling my tush out of bed, showering and getting ready for the long day ahead of me. None too quietly, may I add. I grumbled enough obscenities to make a sailor blush. I couldn't help it, isn't the point of a vacation to laze around and do nothing? Not to get scared out of your wits and wake up cranky with only an hour of sleep.

I made my bed and picked up the phone and called room service. Mark, the concierge picked up.

"I can't believe your shift isn't done yet, it's been almost 24 hours now!" I exclaimed when I heard his voice.

"Haha, I don't mind! I volunteered to pick up 3 extra shifts so I have about 6 more hours to go. This way, I get to have a whole week off." He explained.

"Oh hey, that sucks. I'm not gonna get to see you anymore before I leave!" I whined. Granted I've only known the guy for a day, but he was a sweetheart. He kept me company for a while in the lobby and he did try to unsuccessfully calm me down for half an hour last night. He was in his final year of college, studying hotel management and taking an internship in the hotel as a final project. He alternates between different places for the duration of the semester, I was lucky enough to catch him while he was filling in as a concierge.

"That's what phones are for, love! You'll get to see me don't worry, I haven't had my fill of crazy stories from Kuwait just yet."

I loved his accent, I could literally listen to him talk all day. It used to make my ears bleed but it grew on me! Note to self: make 3azeez pick up the British accent.

"Yay! Okay, the day after your many shifts are up, we'll go out, you show me the real London and I'll tell you all you need to know about K-town, how's that?" I suggested.

"It's a date! My supervisor is glaring at me, did you want something specific? Or are you still having trouble with sleeping?" He asked.

"Oh oops!" I forgot he was still technically working, "Sorry! I actually managed to get in an hour, I'm calling about breakfast! I want hash browns. And bagels. And red bull!" I added.

"Red bull? Are you sure? That doesn't sound very healthy, love. Can I interest you in some grapefruit juice instead?" He offered.

"You may certainly not! I'm on vacation and I plan on getting fat and ugly." I declared huffily.

"Haha, I don't think that's possible. Alright then, there's a package that came for you this morning too, do you mind if I have them send it up with the breakfast tray?"

A package? I wonder who it's from. I crossed my fingers and hoped it was from a psychopathic secret stalker. It could make for an interesting twist for my short vacation. Get a little, "the call is coming from inside the house" action going on. It's easy for me to joke about these things when the sun is up, where was my sense of humor last night?

"Not at all, thanks Maaark!" I called out and hung up.

I rummaged through my bags for my clothes and settled on my grey leggings and light pink pullover. I towel-dried my hair, brushed it and left nature to run its course and afrosize my curls. I grabbed my laptop and jumped excitedly on the bed. Anticipation was building up as the blue and green fat msn icons danced around each other indicating that I was signing in. I shut my eyes tightly and crossed my fingers, hoping to find 3azeez online and squealed when my laptop pinged, telling me I was online and I saw his name across the screen. My excitement was short-lived when I realized his status was set to "Away". 3azeez was one of the very few people I knew who actually meant it when they set their statuses to "Away". I sighed and signed off quickly before anyone else would start talking, forcing me to make idle chatter.

I heard a knock on the door and called out for whoever it was to come in while I put my laptop neatly back in my bag smoothed out the creases I left on the bed.

"Good Morning Miss-" the bellhop stopped mid-sentence as he gazed, stunned, around the room. "I'm sorry, the room looks cleaner than it did when you checked in!" He stated sheepishly.

I laughed at his comment, "It really isn't, just more organized! I have a mild case of OCD, no biggie!"

I flashed him a smile and took the tray from him and set it down on the table. He stepped outside for a minute and came back with a box. I took it from him and waited for him to turn his back before bouncing excitedly with it in my hands. I forgot he was still in the room and proceeded to mimic the freaky throaty sound the spirit makes in "The Grudge" and shake the box simultaneously. I looked up to find him staring at me quizzically. I quickly dropped the box and grinned widely, hoping to make him forget the scene he just witnessed. He shook his head and left the room, chuckling quietly. I felt my face burning up, why do I do these things?

I opened up the box and felt my heart constricting. The amount I missed 3azeez at that particular moment was too intense for me to withstand. I picked up the stuffed penguin with the goofy grin and hugged it as tight as possible. I could smell his scent on it. I looked down to find that there were more things in the box. I picked up the DVD cases and laughed hysterically. It was too cute for words, he put in Madagascar 1 and 2, Surf's up, Happy Feet and March of the Penguins. A note fell from between the cases. "Didn't know what you were in the mood for, so pick your poison! Am I forgiven?" it read.

"Hell yeah you're forgiven!" I yelled at the note as I ran my fingers over his handwriting affectionately. I almost wanted to throw up at how sentimental and mushy he makes me, but I have to admit that I secretly enjoyed it. I was belatedly baffled at how he managed to get a package sent here all the way from kuwait in less than 4 hours. I suppose he could've ordered it all online and had it shipped but the note was handwritten.

It didn't occur to me that he may have hand delivered it until I heard a light tapping at my door. I instinctively knew it was him and felt my heart racing, trying to break through my ribcage and run into his welcoming arms. I placed both my hands over it, trying to contain its excitement. But the pumping only got louder with every step I took towards the door. I managed to free one of my hands to open the door and was greeted by the man I love leaning against the door frame and flashing me one of his devastating lopsided grins.

"Hi." I said in a barely audible whisper.

"Come here." he commanded as he pulled me closer and wrapped his arms around me.

This moment, I want to freeze this moment for all eternity. I'm mourning its loss even as I find myself engulfed in his warm embrace, but I quickly push that thought to the back of my mind as I inhale his distinct scent and surrender every entity of my being to this man.

"Aakh." He breathed out. That single sound effect caused my heartbeats to escalate even more.

"That much?" I asked, intuitively knowing what it meant.

"W akthar ba3ad." He simply stated.

"I missed you more." I said as I pulled away to look at him. "I can't believe you're actually here. Kharoof." I teased.

"Na3am?" He asked in mock-seriousness.

"Kharoof? Not familiar? The animal? Sheep? Baaa baa?" I clarified. I really needed to stop it with the sound effects.

"No, baby, I know what a kharoof is, I just can't believe you actually pronounce it "kharewf"" he shot back.

I glared at him, "No actually, I pronounce it like this!" I said while flipping him off.

He burst out laughing, "Intay w ba3dain ma3ach? Mita btit2adibain?" He asked.

I rolled my eyes at him haughtily.

"La khala9, I've appointed myself to give out some disciplinary action. How do you feel about a little spanking?" He joked while wiggling his eyebrows at me.

I laughed at his comical expression, "How do you feel about hugging me again instead and we'll call it even?" I asked

He quickly obliged and we moved our little reunion back inside my room.

Foolish Games.. (21b)

2009-07-05T21:05:00.000+03:00

To Gutter Flower, whose comments and amazingness are both sorely missed :* And to all of my patient readers, sorry walla, I know masakht'ha! But hopefully it's worth it? And I'm already working on part 22 thanks to the incredible powers and many threats from Lost aka Stitch aka Ritaj! <3

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I attempted to get all the touristy activities out of my system in the first few hours right after I checked in, I figured it would be wise to avoid becoming the subject of Khalood's jokes for the next two weeks. He always teases me mercilessly about my reactions to seeing anything for the first time, apparently my excitement tickles him and inspires an uncontrollable need to share it with anyone who would listen.

It felt great to unwind in a foreign city after finals, I could almost feel all the worries and stress shedding away with every step I took and quickly being replaced with the elation associated with the independence I suddenly felt. It dawned upon me that I was free to explore at my leisure, no restrictions, no limitations, just me and the city. The possibilities were infinite and yet there was still something tugging at my heartstrings, stopping me from reaching any further stages of bliss. Him.

I was stunned at the realization that he was the key component missing in making these two weeks live up to their potential of being the vacation I will ever have. My fingers itched to reach into my pocket and dial his number but I came to my senses and realized that I never was one to fall under the cliche of the clingy girlfriend and I wasn't about to begin now. I gave myself a mini pep talk, tried to sweep thoughts of him under the rug and continued with my little adventure by myself.

"I can have fun without him." I chanted to myself repeatedly. I checked the urge to roll my eyes at myself the moment after the words left my mouth and carried on. Despite my valiant efforts to conclude my adventure, exhaustion inevitably took over by 7 o'clock and I headed back to the hotel. The bed called out to me the instant I walked through the doors and I found myself bewitched under its seductive spell. I didn't even bother changing or removing my shoes, I just walked straight to it, lay down and allowed myself to be engulfed by the crisp white sheets as all the sounds around me disappeared and I drifted off to sleep.

_____________________________

I woke up two hours later to the incessant vibrations of my phone, I checked to see the cause of the nuisance and discovered 5 messages from Juju, a message and a missed call from Khalood and an unknown number. To my consternation, I had gotten nothing from 3azeez, I sighed and called Juju without reading her messages. I figured they were all something along the lines of, "Dear Ghala, I hate your stinking guts. You make me vomit. You're the scum between my toes. Love, Ritaj." The Little Rascals was one of our favorite movies growing up and we had a falling out once in the 2nd grade because I didn't share my purple crayon with her. In my defense, she always left bite marks all over them and assumed they were edible! She found it fitting to retaliate to my refusal to share with the letter mentioned in the movie, only with our names instead. Last year, Juju was helping me pack when we were moving to our new house and we found the letter that had somehow survived 11 years and she used it as a reference whenever she was mad at me for any reason. Forgetting to let her know I arrived safely probably fell under that category.

"La walla? Look who finally decided to grace me with her call!" She admonished as soon as she picked up the phone.

"You can't see me right now but I'm working on the most adorable apologetic look in the history of the world!" I replied sheepishly.

"Uff fine, I'll take your word for it!" She said as she sighed resignedly, "How's the Big Ben treating you?" She asked excitedly.

"The big what now?" I asked

"The Big Ben! You know, like how New York is the Big Apple? London's the Big Ben!" She explained patiently. "Feels so good teaching you something!"

I honestly didn't know whether to laugh or cry. This is worse than the time she told me Kenya was in Japan.

"Honey, Big Ben is a landmark IN London, it's not a nickname." I clarified.

"No way!" She replied, "You'd think they'd teach you something like that in school!"

"Um yeah.. education systems these days!" I played along.

"OH EM GEE. Yes, I just said all the letters separately and you will not complain because what I'm about to say is going to ba-lowww your mind." She screamed into the phone.

"Juju, baby gooly ily tabeena but for the love of god and all that is holy, volume control! Have mercy on my poor disoriented state of mind. And my eardrums. And my boyfriendlessness. And my uneven eyebrows. And-"

"OKAY FINE! Oops! I mean, okay fiiiine." She whispered into the phone. "So remember when I was in the states this summer visiting my aunt in the hospital? Once, I went down to get coffee and on my way up, I passed by Mr. Johnson's room and I saw this nun with the creepiest smile ever walla the whole atmosphere changed around her! It was soooo damn eerie! Anyway, she walked by and smiled at me. Two minutes later, I heard someone call a code thingie and like I went to see and he just flatlined! So I go talk to the head nurse and ask her if there's a church in the hospital and her eyes suddenly widen by like a whole inch and she asks if I saw a nun! Spooky much? So then she told me that every time someone dies in that hospital, they see this nun passing by, the SAME one! Oh my god, goosebumps!" She exclaimed as she paused for air.

I suddenly felt chills running up and down my spine, I rubbed my arms vigorously but I couldn't shake away the goosebumps that invaded my skin. "Ya kalba, I'm staying in a hotel all by myself, w Khalood is in the other side of the town, WHY WOULD YOU TELL ME THAT?!"

I heard her laughter ring out from the other side, "Jeez Ghalooy, don't be such a baby, lemme continue! The scary part is, the other day, I was checking all these freaky ghost sites and what not and they basically have a map of everywhere in the US and they flag down areas with paranormal behavior reported and what not or anything of this sort. And guess. what. The hospital was flagged down and they mentioned something about the nun! You have my permission to freak out now!" She concluded happily.

"I hate you. I fucking hate you. I never want to speak to you again." I said as I jumped out of bed and ran over to switch on all the lights, as if they could somehow keep any killer nuns at bay. "I hope you realize the only reason you're still on the phone is cuz I'm freaked out beyond words right now!"

"Hahaha shouldn't have said that Ghalooooy," She said in a weird dracula-inspired voice. "I'm hanging up now, make sure to keep your doors locked, not that it would do you any good. Muwahahahaha." And with that she hung up and left me to listen to the dial tone.

I was officially scared. I don't usually scare easily but when you add the whole "alone in a foreign country" factor into the equation, it kinda changes everything. I called room service with nothing in mind and ended up chatting with the concierge for about half an hour. I grabbed a book and decided to go read it in the lobby. Surrounded by many people. You never know what might happen! But 5 hours and 2 books later, I was still no where near calm enough. I finally decided to grow a pair and try to go back to sleep. My eye kept wandering off to the nearby clock, 2.40.. 2.45.. 2.50... 2.55.. Screw this. I picked up my phone and punched in 3azeez's number, cliches be damned!

"Baby?" He answered confusedly.

I sighed in relief. I immediately felt better. I took a deep breath and launched into an explanation. "So you know how in The Exorcism Of Emily Rose the demons madri satan madri whoever it is comes out at 3 am? Yeah well it's 3 am ila 1 minute and 45 seconds and I know that means it's about 6 3indikum and I'm sorry, but Juju told me stupid stories earlier and I can't sleep and if something comes out to take me from under the bed or like sucks me in to a parallel universe through the bed, I want you to be on the other side of the phone listening to my screams, mmkay?" I said all in one breath.

"God, I miss you so much." He breathed deeply.

I smiled and shoved my heated face into the pillow, "Also, I want penguins." I mumbled into the phone.

I felt right at home when I heard his bark like laughter through the phone, "Mu tawwich you're scared and on the verge of tears, shyab penguins bilsalfa?"

"Kaifi!" I replied, "Besides, shako you tell me you miss me? This isn't a lovey dovey "I love you, I miss you" phone call! The purpose of this call is for you to make me feel better and to comfort me! Penguins comfort me, deal with it!" I replied. I realized I was being highly irrational but in my own retarded way, it was my way of telling him that I missed him too.

"Inshaalla.. Bacher ayeelich w inroo7 inshoof ilpenguins, shrayich?" He offered.

"Don't tease me, you're like a bajillion miles away!" I whined.

"True, true.. ma 3alaih. Wait, did you hear that?" He whispered suddenly.

"Did I hear what?" I asked with a worried inflection in my voice.

"Wait wait.. " he said and I held my breath while waiting for him to come back, "A3OOTHO BILLAH!" He yelled.

"WHAT WHAT?" I asked frantically.

I heard his laugh once again and realized he was only making fun of me, "You're too cute, wallah. You're making this way too easy."

"Baby.. you know what was funny about that?" I asked calmly.

"What?"

"Nothing." I answered and hung up. I felt quite satisfied with my immaturity for the day and decided I could sleep now. Right on cue, I saw his number flashing on my phone and decided to let him sweat it out for a while. 1 missed call, 2.. if he made it to 4 I decided I was going to pick up and I ended up doing so.

"Khair?" I answered coolly.

"I love you." He said with the utmost sincerity in his voice. And just like that, all was forgiven. I hated that it was that simple, but it was. 'Frailty, thy name is woman!'

"I love you too."

"Good night baby."

"Good night."

Foolish Games.. (21a)

2009-06-14T20:05:00.000+03:00

HI! *hides under sheets*
Sorry for taking too long :( Forgive me? *puppy eyes* Please?;*
I really thought I'd be able to post this before finals, but turns out I can't! Still working on the next part of it, so I guess I'm gonna do the whole part a and b thing? yeah. Don't say it's too short, it's only half a post :( Better than nothing, no? Sorry! Will try to post as soon as possible, I promise.. Still rusty though, it says I started working on this post on the first of June. 2 weeks and this is all I could come up with! And not even alone! Grr.
Oooh notice the addition of a fellow blogger to the story ;p
THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR HELP SLOUCHYPANTS, LOVE YOU! <3

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"Are you sure you don't want to crash on our couch?" Khalood asked teasingly as he drove me to my hotel after dropping off his family at their appartment. "My roomate's not that bad once you get past the cape!"

I rolled my eyes exaggeratedly for his benefit, "As chivalrous as your invitation is.. I'm going to have to pass! You know I live for hotel sheets and pillows!"

"Afa! So when it comes down to it, you choose pillows ever me?"

"Hotel pillows, K, hotel pillows." I clarified.

"Ma3thoora! Actually, how do you feel about me joining you there?" He asked jokingly.

"Haha, I don't think 3azooz would like that very much!"

"Yeah, come to think about it, I don't think Mya would appreciate it either." He casually added.

I stared at him incredulously, "M-who now?!"

"Umm my girlfriend, Mya." he said as he adopted an inscrutable expression and stared blankly ahead, waiting for my reaction.

Minutes passed in total silence while I absorbed the bomb he callously dropped. I was positive that with a little more focus, I would be able to hear the sound of my eyelashes fluttering against each other. In the back of my mind, I knew my reaction was a little extreme considering my comprehension of the whole Haifa/Khalid fiasco and the odds associated with it, but I couldn't push that thought forward enough to get past the shock of him moving on after years of pining for her.

"I don't understand, last I heard, you were still into Haifa, what happened?" I said, finally breaking the silence.

"Nothing "happened".. I just realized that my feelings for Haifa might've been nothing more than a crush blown out of proportion.. I guess I just got caught up in the romanticism of unrequited love and all that bullshit." He shrugged and flashed a grin at me.

I tried to find the merest hint of bitterness in his voice, but he genuinely seemed to have let go of whatever feelings he had for her once upon a time. I was surprised to find myself admitting that he seemed content with his new found revelation. I quickly abandoned my disappointment and played the role of the encouraging best friend again.

"And? Tell me about her! Seriously Khalood, am I going to have to pry the information out of you? SPILL!" I demanded and held up my fingers to pinch him again. He quickly got the message and put his hands up in a surrendering motion.

"The thing is, you wouldn't believe me if I told you!" He exclaimed.

I raised my eyebrows threateningly, "Btitkalam wela shlon?" I asked.

He signed resignedly, "Fine. But if you don't believe me, I'm going to throw you in the street right now and leave you to fend for yourself, agreed?"

"Agreed!" I confirmed.

"So I was going up to my apartment right? And I saw this girl, couldn't be more than 14 years old, sitting in the stairwell all huddled up and playing with some action figure of some sort, I thought she was a relative of one of the neighbors, so I said hi and she barely acknowledged my existence and went back to stuffing her face with the lion bar she had.." He said before I interrupted him.

"PEDOPHILE!! Why were you trying to chat up a fourteen year old??" I exclaimed.

"Shako! I was being polite. And if you interrupt me again, I'm not finishing the story." He threatened.

I pretended to zip my mouth shut and threw away the invisible key, looked up at him pleadingly and motioned for him to finish it. He rolled his eyes at my pathetic attempt at cuteness and continued.

"I waited for a few moments for her reply but she was too busy trying to inhale her chocolate, so I gave up and went inside. Minutes later, while I was changing, I heard someone banging on the door. So I run to see who it is and as soon as I unlocked it, I was greeted by the same girl.. she came barging into the apartment with her hair pointing in every possible direction. She pointed at one of the rooms and yelled "what's that coming over the hill, is it a monster? IS IT A MONSTER?" I didn't react to that, cuz standing up and talking, it was clear that she wasn't fourteen.. and that she was quite attractive.."

I interrupted him again, "I'm sorry but can we please skip this part? Is this really essential to the story??"

He laughed and shook his head, "Guess not.. Anyway, She stared at me for a few minutes waiting for a reply but I couldn't offer her any, so then she asked me to use the bathroom.. Without even thinking, I said yes. She comes out minutes later, flashes a smile at me, calls out a "Thanks, home slice!" and leaves, banging the door behind her." He concluded in a way suggesting that was all there was to the story.

I waited, not so patiently, for the rest and he eventually gave into my pathetic squiriming and continued.

"I went back into the hall to find her, she seemed like an interesting character, to say the least, but she wasn't there anymore! Later that night, I went to the bathroom and discovered that there was water outside the door.. I opened it to find the whole floor flooded. I went inside to see the source of it and was greeted by her doll, which turned out to be a Pikachu, stuffed inside the toilet."

I had a feeling my eyebrows reached my hairline at that point. "YOU LIE!" I screamed incredulously.

He swerved the car into a bus stop and the brakes came to a screeching halt, "Barra." He calmly ordered.

"Screw you, Pinocchio, I'm not leaving!" I replied petulantly and crossed my arms. "If you touch me, I will tell your mom about the vase that mysteriously went missing. Now continue the story."

He sighed resignedly and drove off.

"Nothing for a while, I looked for her for the longest time ever! I was dying to know the story behind the flushed doll but no such luck! Then one day I was in kinky little sex store, the one in front of vue cinemas, getting some stuff on a dare and surprisingly enough there she was!" He concluded with a huge smile.

I was clutching my sides and laughing hysterically. I always thought how I met 3azeez was unconventional but their story danced circles around ours. "Please tell me she had a part time job there or something!"

He shook his head fondly in memory, "I wish I could, but to quote her, she was there for "research". That's all I ever got out of her, but I will admit that I'm more than just a little bit scared. Scared enough not to stupidly ask and get any information I would've been better off not knowing! We talked a little, flirted inappropriately and I asked to see under circumstances that were a little less crazy, she agreed and that's pretty much it."

"I aww now?" I said while beaming.

"If you must." He said, knowing the inevitable conclusion to his story. "But first, nizlay!"

"You can't kick me out, I didn't say anything!" I yelled.

"I know, but we're at your hotel. I'd help you check in but I have to get to class babe." He clarified as he stepped outside to get the bags out.

I sighed theatrically, "Fiiiine! Wait for my aww though!"

"Ma 6alabty shay!" He agreed as he got in the car and drove off. I silently cursed the back his car as it disappeared into the traffic. I sighed, flashed a smile at the concierge and followed him inside.

Foolish Games.. (20)

2009-05-07T20:35:00.001+03:00

Alright, as I mentioned on my other blog, I'm going through a slightly wai3 time right now? I'm saving up all the adjectives for the story so "wai3" will have to suffice for now *rolls eyes* anyway yeah, I'm not really up to writing Ghala&3azeez's story right now.. unless you guys don't mind me killing off all the male characters ;p so I'm leaving you all with one final long post for now. I admit it's not my best work so if a lot of you guys don't like it, let me know and I'll rewrite perhaps? I love you guys, I'll be back soonish inshalla :*

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I sat on 3azeez's bed shivering, covered up in his sister's oversized bathrobe. I silently envied the beautiful giant for her looks and physique as I waited for my clothes to dry. To my consternation, I kept seeing Noor's laughing face and 3azeez's shocked one and blushed in mortification all over again. I was relieved for the option of hiding up in here away from everyone. My relief proved to be short-lived a few moments later when I heard a light tapping on the door.

"Ghalooy.. are you decent?" 3azeez's voice called out.

"No." I snapped as I hid my face in his pillow. I wasn't quite ready to face him yet.

He ignored me and came striding into the room, smiling as he nodded at my attire.

"3azeez! What the hell?!" I exclaimed, outraged. "What if I was naked ya3ni?? Ha?"

He raised his eyebrows and lifter a corner of his mouth in a crooked smile. "Then I'd be considered one lucky bastard." he replied with a wink.

I grabbed my bag and threw the contents at him individually as he laughed. I finally hurled my bag at him and hid under the covers and repositioned my face into the pillow. I couldn't help but catch a whiff of his lingering scent on it and breathed it in.

"Aw, come on baby, 3adi!! We've all been pushed by 3baid in the pool at one point or another!" He said as he attempted to lift the covers.

I tightened my grip around the corners of it but my attempts were unnecessary and ineffective, given the inevitable outcome. He threw away the covers and hugged me tightly. I hid my face in his chest the instant he let go.

I felt his chuckle vibrate through his chest as he attempted to push me away. "Wareeni wayhich!" He demanded.

"Mabi!" I mumbled, my response was muffled by his clothes.

"7abeebti we both know you're no match for me, I'm about three times your size! I will resort to tickling if I have to." He threatened.

I immediately lifted my head and looked at him. He burst out laughing again and I attempted to hide my face in my hands. He intertwined his fingers in between mine, taking away that option.

"Uff! Kil hatha mista7ya?" he asked teasingly. "I haven't seen that shade of red anywhere outside the tomato family!"

"Fashlaaaaaa!!" I whined, "Broo7'ha your sister seems to hate me and now this!"

He looked caught of guard as he replied sheepishly, "Oh, you noticed."

I looked at him disbelievingly, "Seriously? I would've had to be blind NOT to notice. You know what, 3abdulla probably noticed and pushed me purposely into the pool to amuse her!" I concluded.

"Yeah! I totally witnessed them communicating that by blinking!" He played along.

The door opened and I immediately jumped off his lap and landed awkwardly on the floor. I got up quick and sat down on the bed away from him as he shook his head and chuckled quietly. Noor came in closely followed by an apologetic looking 3abdulla.

She put down my clothes on the bed and nudged 3abdulla forward. He stared at his hands as he came up to me and shyly whispered an apology.

I smiled at him and bent down to his level, "I'll forgive you if you give me a kiss!" I offered and he readily accepted, giving me a big sloppy kiss on my cheek. He immediately giggled and ran away the second he was done, leaving me alone with 3azeez and his sister. We sat in awkward silence for a few moments before Noor cleared her throat and spoke up.

"Um.. Ghala, I wanted to apologize for my rude behavior earlier. I was quick to judge you based on what I've heard from other people.." She admitted, ashamed. I instinctively knew she was talking about S3oud's brother, he never liked me and had no problems making his feelings clear every chance he got. "I'm extremely protective of my baby brother but I can see that you have genuine feelings for him and if you don't mind, I'd love a chance to get to know you when you come back."

I had a feeling 3azeez had something to do with his sister's change in attitude but I didn't question his part in all of it. I smiled at her and replied, "I would love that too."

She beamed back at me and 3azeez, "I was hoping you would! Alright then, I'll leave you two alone now.. behave." She added as she gave 3azeez a warning look and she left.

I grabbed my clothes and ran to his bathroom to change as soon as she left. "Finally!" I exclaimed as soon as I came out, "Allaaah, my clothes are so warm and toasty!" I said as I hugged myself.

"Umm.. Would you like me to leave so you can feel yourself up in private? Or do you mind if I sat and watched?" he asked teasingly.

I laughed and smacked him playfully. "Ghala, you're really starting to worry me. Hair pulling, choking, pathetic attempts at beating me up.. are you into S&M?" He asked in mock seriousness.

I burst out laughing and fell back on the bed. I tried to contain it but failed miserably time and again. It wasn't that funny, but the expression on his face was hilarious. I finally managed to pull myself together and stared at the ceiling, smiling,

3azeez broke the silence, "I love the way you laugh." He said

I hooked one of my fingers between his buttons and pulled him down on top of me, "I love the way you make me laugh." I whispered back.

"I love the way you blush."

"I love the way you smell."

"I love how your voice drops a few decibels when we're all alone."

"I love how you always manage to notice the little things."

"I love all the little things there are for me to notice."

"I love you."

My eyes widened the minute the words left my mouth. I seemed even more shocked than he was by the words I had spoken, which was saying something considering the disbelieving look etched on his face. I immediately got up and pushed him away.

"What?"

"What?" I replied stupidly.

"Shgiltay?" He asked again.

"I said, "what"!"

He rolled his eyes, "Before that!!"

"Something about you noticing the little things?"

He glared at me impatiently, "After that?"

I gave up. He obviously wasn't going to budge no matter how dumb I played, I opened my mouth to utter the three words I never thought I'd be able to say back to him, "I love you."

I saw his face stretching into a huge smile and he leaned in closer to kiss me. I pushed his face away from me and got up.

"No! Wai3, stop smiling!! You better not have changed your mind and you better still feel the same way, you can't take it back! Also, don't think this changes anything or expect me to suddenly turn into the perfect girlfriend or anything or that you can control me in any way or dictate anything, 'cause I won't let you, inzain?" I said as I glared at him.

"You done yet?" he asked with a bored expression on his face. "I love you, too."

"Yeah well.. good." I finished lamely.

He laughed and pulled me into his arms, "Inzain, laish m3a9ba?" he asked, amused.

"Madri!" I replied honestly, "I never have appropriate reactions!"

"Really? You don't say?" he said sarcastically, "Is it alright if I kissed you now?"

"I love how you ask even though you're going to end up doing whatever you want anyway, you know, this is really starting to-"

He clamped my lips together and I tried to mumble protests. "Baby, sweetie, honey.. chub."

He leaned in closer and covered my lips with his. Every kiss with 3azeez was a new experience, the only similarity was the result of having me breathless and weak in the knees during its aftermath. This kiss was slow and sensual, he wordlessly conveyed to me the depth of his feelings and I savored every sensation as I responded and allowed his mouth to wreak havoc in every fiber of my being.

We eventually came up for air and he rested his forehead against mine as he tried to catch his breath, "How gay is it of me to be having the urge to beg you not to go?"

"Just about as gay as it is for me to actually be considering not going to stay with you." I answered. "I'm really going to miss you."

He sighed deeply, "Two weeks."

"Two weeks.." I echoed as he pulled me in for another kiss.

_______________________

"Are you sure I can't tempt you to come spend your last night with me?" He asked as he pulled up to my house.

"Honey, you can tempt me to do A LOT more than that, which is precisely why I should spend the night in my own home, as far away from you as possible." I replied.

"Really?" He asked intrigued, "I'll be sure to remember that when you come back." He teased. I shot him a look and he threw his hands up in the air, "Kidding, kidding!! Do you need a ride to the airport tomorrow?"

"No, Juju's spending the night and she's dropping me off tomorrow before she goes home.. besides, I'm meeting Khalood's mother and brother 6alal there so it'd be best if I didn't show up with you, don't you think?" I asked.

"Definitely, I wouldn't want anyone getting the wrong idea of you.. So, I guess this is goodbye?"

I cringed at the finality that word represented, "Not goodbye.. just see you later! Don't scare me!" I exclaimed.

He laughed and kissed my forehead, "See you later, tro7een witrideen bilsalama 7abeebti."

I couldn't help myself, I threw my arms around him and gave him a final hug, "Allah isalmik." I promised to call him before I got on the plane and I made my way to the front door. He refused to leave til he saw me go inside, I unlocked the door and looked back to find him still waiting. I walked backwards into the house so I can memorize his face one more time before he left. He waved to me and I blew him a kiss.

"THERE YOU ARE!" Ritaj screamed as she slammed the door shut after me and leaned against it. "I've been waiting since forever!!"

"Juju, 3azeez is outside, wakhrayyy!" I said as I tried to move her.

"Mako! You're obviously not going to close the door 'til he drives off and he won't drive off 'til you close the door, so I took matters into my own hands. Now march before me young lady, up you go!" She said, pointing at the stairs.

I pouted and sulked all the way upstairs, I kept trying to go back to the door and Ritaj would stop me and threaten to decapitate me if I disobeyed her again. I sighed resignedly and walked into my room.

"Hach, this is my list." She announced.

"List? List of what?" I asked as I looked down at the piece of paper she handed me.

"The list of things I want you to bring back from England, duh!" She answered.

I quickly scanned the contents and looked back at her, "Juju, I can't bring you back Orlando Bloom." I said as I rolled my eyes.

"Why the hell not!" She screeched.

"Ouch, Juju, volume control! Lana awalan, wai3. Thaniyan, Haifa already asked and I said no!" I replied.

"Hffft, fine! You never do anything I ask you to!" She whined.

"Yes, I'm the worst friend ever." I added.

"Woy, no 7abeebti laaa2! You're the bestest best friend ever! I'm going to miss you wayid!!" She said as she pulled me in for a hug.

"I'm going to throw up hugs walla, I've been squeezed way too much these two days!" I said as I hugged her back.

"Oooo.." She said as she wiggled her eyebrows, "Do share!"

I laughed and filled her in on the details of the day, she inserted appropriately timed "aww"s and gasps and made threats when needed.

"Bitch. I don't care if she apologized, I still don't like her!" She announced when I was done.

"Well lucky for her, you don't have to! She's 3azooz's favorite sibling, I'm going to have to try to find away to get along with her and I could use your help, so be nice!"

She sighed theatrically, "Fiiiine! Let's go make brownies and eat them with cookie dough ice cream!" she suggested enthusiastically.

"You're trying to make me throw up bilplane, aren't you?" I asked suspiciously.

"Nooo, you're going to sleep bilplane which is specifically why I'm going to keep you up all night. We're eating that cuz I won't get another chance to pig out 'til you come back, so come on!"

She ended up sleeping half an hour after we baked the brownies but I took her advice anyway and stayed up all night. I took a nap at one point and she woke me up by throwing a water bottle at me.

"Goomay! It's 9, I can't believe you let me fall asleep! I only have two hours left with you!" She yelled.

"Juju, I'm going for two weeks and coming back, it's not like I'm going to drop off the face of the earth, enough with the drama!" I replied crankily.

She pouted, "Whatever, if I was 3azeez you'd probably be all "awww babyy, la tiz3al, ta3al let me flash you!" bas ana I get told I'm being dramatic!" She said huffily.

I laughed and threw a pillow at her, "First of all, ew? Second of all, 3azeez doesn't throw cold objects at me while I'm sleeping!"

"Fine, go take a shower, I'll get breakfast started and we can watch Finding Nemo, I already sent your driver to the airport with your bags so you don't have to worry about that, yalla bsir3a we're running out of time!"

I didn't dare disobey her. When Juju had a plan, she meant business. I ran to the bathroom and took a quick shower, I went back down 20 minutes later in a pair of jeans, a red hoodie and my kelly green converses. I saw Juju's face light up when she saw me.

"You wore them! You finally wore them! Aww you look like christmas, I LOVE YOU! Look at all the colors!!"

I rolled my eyes, poured some coffee and sat down to watch the movie. She french braided my hair while we watched because she insisted a bun would be too much of a hassle during the flight and before we knew it, the two hours were up and she drove me to the airport. Khaled's mother and older brother, 6alal, got there earlier than we expected so I didn't get a chance to call 3azeez.

"Deeraw baalkum 3alaiha!" Ritaj unnecessary asked them before she left.

"Shda3wa Ritaj, she's family, mala da3i twa9eenna 3alaiha!" 6alal replied defensively. 6alal was convinced we were lesbians and Juju's overprotective act wasn't helping him in forgetting that theory.

"I knoww but she's my baby! Akhaf 3alaiha!" She replied. "Call me as soon as you land, take care of yourself and if you come back with an accent, so help me god, I WILL murder you!" She hugged me one final time and left before she unleashed the waterworks.

I texted 3azeez explaining why I didn't call but he didn't reply, I guess he was still asleep. We boarded the plane and surely enough I was asleep minutes after takeoff. The events of the flight were a blur to me, I distinctly remember being woken up a couple of times by the flight attendants. And I remember being force-fed a stale croissant by khalti Sara at one point, but that was pretty much it.

I stumbled out of Heathrow Airport half an hour later to find Khaled leaning against a car, smoking a cigarette. I couldn't believe he was standing there in front of me, even as I saw his mother and brother greeting him and getting into the car, a part of me still thought there was a possibility I was dreaming all this up. He came up to me and snapped his fingers in front of my face.

"Ghalooy?" he asked. I took his hand and pinched it as hard as I could using my nails.

He yelped and snatched it away, "What the hell, Ghala! Laish??" he asked, surprised by my action.

"I was just checking if this was just a dream!" I defended.

"You pinch YOURSELF to check that, not other people!" he shot back.

"Oops?" I offered.

He shook his head and pulled me into his arms and twirled me around. Just like he always did. I squealed and demanded he put me down. Just like I always did. We pulled back and stared at each other and laughed for no apparent reason. I smiled at the familiarity of the picture we painted and snuggled back into his arms. He apparently had other ideas. He carried me like a football under his arm and walked towards the car.

"Mi'lady, your carriage awaits!" He announced.

"Yes, cuz nothing screams royalty like being manhandled at the airport." I retorted.

"Well Ghalooy, you know me, I always go the extra mile!" he said and threw me into the back seat of the car and grinned. "7emdellah 3ala ilsalama!"

Foolish Games.. (19)

2009-05-03T22:35:00.001+03:00

Khalas. I'm dropping out of jam3a. Kil youm? Seriously? SERIOUSLY? Hfft. Wija3. I don't care that it's awal youm of the fucking week, I'M DROPPING OUT, who's with me? Anyone? No? Okay :(

Inzain, I need to say a few things before ilstory, mu lazim you read bas yeah, here goes :

1. Stitch/Lost- I love you wayid and I've been where you are right now and it majorly sucks, hang in there *hugs*

2. Jam3iiya(L)- are you still alive? I miss you like... wayid :( Do you hate my story now? Is that it? *sobs hysterically* I love you *sniff*

3. Gutter Flower- I miss you wayid :( Please come back to us? *holds up razor to wrist* please?

4. SlouchyPants- LOL kaifi, I just wanted to mention you again ;p I love that girl -.-

5. My friend just started blogging ilyouuum.. she's telling "her story" fa if you're interested.. http://bsquared44.blogspot.com/ commentaw!

W ba3ad? I want to mention wayid things but I have to write now or I'm going to forget my ideas and leave you postless! Oh you guys, I'm loving all the stories walla, you guys have no idea how much, but right now.. let's all stand up w give a round of applause to Cupid;*! w 3ashat cupiiid, 3ashat cupiiid *giggles* so talented mashalla and incredibly sweeet! love youu :* bas khalas, time for the post!

A7ibkum! Thank you for all your comments walla, couldn't kamil if it weren't for you peopless :*

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"You have 2 hours, keep your eyes on your papers, good luck." The professor announced and sat behind his desk.

He signaled for his watchdog, the TA, to go make her rounds around the room to ensure nobody was cheating. Yeah right, like that was going to help. If there's one thing most college students learn how to perfect before their time is up, it's cheating. Everyone excluding the small majority of people like me who can help others expertly, but are too chicken to as much as glimpse at somebody else's paper. Can you say pathetic?

For 30 minutes, I sat down quietly taking in the atmosphere of the silent room. I saw students attempting to copy off each other's papers and shifting their eyes guiltily. I saw others staring at their papers with horrified expressions plastered on their faces and I saw Joori, seated two chairs down from me shooting me worried looks. I tried smiling reassuringly at her but it did nothing to lessen her uneasiness. I decided to put her out of her misery and opened the question booklet.

Half an hour later

Ah, the joys of being prepared. And by prepared, I mean tutored relentlessly by a sadistic but hot boyfriend. I smiled at the thought of him and took out my phone to text him. Naturally, fate had another plan in store for me, my lack of attention brought me face to face with yet another embarrassing encounter; I ended up walking right into a pole. I felt a pair of hands holding me up, I wobbled a little on my feet as I regained my balance.

"Are you okay? A frantic voice asked. I looked up to find Yousef's bewildered face staring back at mine. I couldn't resist the urge to laugh at his concern.

I met Yousef during the first month at university in our TA's office. We had been given assignments straight away by our math teacher and being oblivious to this, he had rewarded himself with an extra week of vacation before starting classes. He had missed the homework and asked me if I could give him mine as the professor had ran out of copies. To his misfortune, I had forgotten to bring mine that day. He asked me if I could possibly e-mail it to him. I immediately sympathized with him and agreed, us newbies had to stick together after all. He e-mailed me back a thank you and struck up a random conversation, eventually he added me on his buddly list and we became fast friends. He was now one of the very few people in university I felt like I could trust and felt comfortable around.

"Yasoof! I've known you for almost two years now, how can you still manage to be surprised every time something like this happens?!" I asked, amused.

"Shasawee ba3ad, allah hidach, you should be surrounded by orange cones at all times, you're a disaster waiting to happen!" He exclaimed

I pouted exaggeratedly. "Shda3wa! I have my guardian angels, they're just taking a break most of the time!"

He flashed his winning smile at me, "Hey! I'm done with finals, how about I volunteer my services as one?" He asked. "Free of charge ba3ad and I'm willing to work into the wee hours of the morning if needed!" He concluded his statement with a wink.

I laughed at his attempt, "I won't be needing them anymore thank you very much, but good try!" I replied encouragingly, "Keep working on it, you just might fool some poor girl into accepting your advances 3ala youm." I teased.

"Afa! Are you trying to tell me that you're off the market?" He asked, surprised. "Laa shino hatha? 7a6amty amaaly!"

I loved his dramatic streak and found myself laughing at his theatrics, "We both know that's not the case Ywaisef, it's always about the chase ma3ak a9lan!"

"You know me too well Ghalooy." He replied as he chuckled, "So tell me, mino sa3eed il7ath?" He asked as he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

My face broke into a huge grin. "3azeeeeeeeeeez!" I exclaimed. Just saying his name made me happy, I resisted the urge to throw up at my sudden mushiness.

He laughed at my excitement and waited expectantly for the rest of the details, "Aaand..?"

I blushed and looked down at my feet as I answered, "And he is heart! Walla Yousef he's so sweet and caring and tall and umm.. right there." I concluded in surprise as I looked up to find 3azeez walking through the gates.

"Huh?" Yousef asked with confusion written all over his face.

"He's right there!" I repeated excitedly as I walked over to him.

"You don't have "final-face"!" He announced.

I burst out laughing, "I told you, I never do!" I said with a smile.

The night before during our conversation, I told him the best part of exams is finishing early and seeing people's faces when they leave the exam rooms. Most of them manage to acquire "final-face", which is very similar to the face one would have after being anally raped. Then there's the few who can't manage to have an appropriate reaction, namely me, who leave the exam room smiling and cheerful, regardless of how they did.

"I can't believe you're here! Stalking? Really? Is that what we've come to?" I teased.

"You really do think the world of yourself, don't you?" He asked sardonically, "I'm here to pick up my cousin Joori? Skinny? Pouty? Lots of eyelashes?"

My face burned up at my misplaced presumptuousness.

"Ya chathab! You just texted me asking if Ghala khali9at imti7anha!" Joori came out of nowhere and announced. I laughed and raised my eyebrows inquisitively and opened my mouth to blurt out "I told you so!"

Joori interrupted my victory dance in its tracks, "Wintay 3ala6ool t9adgeen?? Are you forgetting that I picked you up this morning?" she asked incredulously.

"Ooops?" I offered lamely. She rolled her eyes and asked how the exam was.

"Piece of cake!"I replied as I shot 3azeez a grateful smile and motioned for Yousef to come over.

I made the hasty introductions, they exchanged pleasantries and Yousef excused himself to go to a family gathering.

"Tro7een witrideen bilsalama, stay out of trouble!" He called out as he walked away.

"Allah isalmik, I always do!" I replied defensively.

He rolled his eyes disbelievingly at me and made his way to his car.

"So what really brings you here?" I asked 3azeez as we all walked to the parking lot.

"I wanted to spend time with my girlfriend before she travelled, mamnoo3?" He asked.

I smiled widely, "What did you have in mind?"

3azeez rudely stared at Joori and motioned for her to leave. Joori remained oblivious and stood there waiting for him to answer. He cleared his throat. She pretended not to notice. He looked at his watch, she informed him that it was 12.35.

Finally after 5 minutes of 3azeez dropping hints that Joori purposely pretended not to understand, he gave up. "Shrayich t'thlfeen baitkum?" He asked in a polite tone.

"Was that so hard? All you had to do was ask!" She replied teasingly as she got into her car and drove away.

"Do you wanna go back to my place? My sister took 3abood and his cousins out for the day so it should be empty, we can watch a movie or something?" He suggested.

"Yeah.. or something sounds great." I replied as I winked at him.

"Don't start." He warned.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" I replied innocently and pretended to adjust my invisible halo.

He shook his head and laughed at me, 10 minutes later we arrived at the house. To our utter dismay, his sister's car was parked out front. We went inside to find her lounging on one of the chairs and the children playing in the pool with their little floaties.

I hesistated a little at the door, 3azooz reached out to hold my hand and reassured me I had nothing to worry about. I instinctively trusted him and followed him inside. "Insalim w ni6la3 bas." he whispered.

"Isn't that a bit rude?" I asked worriedly.

"It's my last day with you and I'm not in the sharing mood." He clipped.

I smiled, strangely satasfied with his sudden possessiveness. I gave his hand a quick squeeze and I let go to straighten out the creases in my top and make sure there wasn't any dirt or dust on my jeans.

"Nooro? I thought you were going to be out all day ma3a your sister in law w 3abood?" He asked.

She turned around and eyed me curiously while she answered, "That was the original plan.. but Hind got called in for a meeting and I volunteered to bring the kids back here instead, the weather's warm enough for swimming today."

I was taken aback by how gorgeous his sister was. I expected her to be, but nothing could've possibly prepared me for this. I took in her neatly swept up hair, her sharp features, her perfectly applied makeup and manicured nails and felt incredibly frumpy. I could've been wearing rags for the level of self-consciousness I was suddenly in. Out of nervousness, I started biting my nails. There was something in the calculating look in her eyes that made me feel like she thought I wasn't good enough for him. Where's my fairy godmother when I need her? 3azeez smiled at me and motioned for me to come forward.

"Come closer, I won't bite.. Ghala, is it?" She called out nonchalantly.

I nodded and laughed nervously, "I didn't think you would. I'm just not sure what the appropriate way of saying hello is under the circumstances.." I said with a smile.

She smiled coldly, "Well, you can't go wrong with a handshake."

"I guess not." I replied as I stuck out my hand. She shook my hands and I quickly let go.

"KIDS! ta3alaw, there's someone I want you to meet." 3azooz called out.

They immediately made their way out of the pool with the help of their nannies and came running over.

"3abdulla, Nadia.. this is my friend Ghala." He said and pushed them forward.

Nadia leaned up on her toes to try and kiss me, I bent down to pick her up and bring her closer to me.

She leaned in closer to me and cupped her hands around my ears, "You're pretty." She whispered.

"Awww! You're prettier, you have very nice eyes." I whispered back and she blushed and hid her face in my chest. I laughed, hugged her and put her down.

3abdulla stared fixatedly at my hand the entire time. He pointed at them and I understood later that he was pointing at my red nail polish.

"FIRE!" He screamed and pushed me in the pool.

Foolish Games.. (18)

2009-04-28T00:33:00.000+03:00

Alrighty! So, this was supposed to be posted like.. 2 days ago? But I totally got sidetracked and stuff! *slaps self* bad Lilo! But there wouldn't have been anything to post anyway since I just started working on it, so yeah -.- I'm sorryy, I'll askit now and start typing. You know, there's this purple ribbon thingie I wear around my wrist everyday and I took it off yesterday before going to "sleep" and by sleep I mean reading in bed, anyway I couldn't find it this morning! I just found it wrapped around one of the porcelain dolls' heads, bandana style, and now I can never get it back! :( They creep me out, akhaf I reach out to untie it and it suddenly comes to life and bites me or decapitates me or something along those lines *shudders* creepy! I hate those dolls wai3 wai3 -.- Someone come untie it for me? Please? *sniff*
But I digress! Next post now? Yes? Alright! Mm this post is very blah? Inshalla next one will be better, I just really don't know where things are going now so I'm buying time shwaya until I do! Love you guys! :*
Ma7ad proof-read this, itha fee mistakes, let me know!:(

___________________________

Ritaj's procrastination ranged from constant coffee/chocolate breaks, to removing her nail polish and suddenly acquiring the memory of an elephant and telling me stories she conveniently "forgot" until she had to answer a question or recite a formula. Even through her exercising every method available to deter us from studying, we miraculously managed to finish the previously agreed on chapters with time to spare.

"That's it?" She asked disbelievingly with widened eyes. "No way!"

"Yup and we would've finished about an hour ago if you would've paid attention for more than 10 minutes at a time!" I admonished.

She rolled her eyes and threw an empty water bottle at me, "Shasawee?! It's boring! Kila numbers w formulas w tables w definitions and YUCK!" She defended.

"Well nobody forced you to take it, you're majoring in English Lit. and you insisted on wasting a free elective on it! What possessed you to do so, seriously?!" I asked incredulously for the millionth time that semester.

"Madri, I thought it'd be a piece of cake! I figured a-ccounting.. counting! Who can't count, right?" She asked as she got up and stretched.

I stared at her blankly for minutes in silence.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing, your logic just knocked the wind right out of me, that's all." I replied.

"What-e-verrr, I'm gonna go take a shower, 1o minutes I promise, I feel like my hair stinks of numbers!" She exclaimed as she walked away shuddering.

Instinctively, I knew there was no way Juju would be done in less than 20 minutes and I debated the merits of calling 3azeez for about a split second before I picked up the phone and punched in his number. It rang once.. twice.. three times... I felt like I was being too pushy and was about to hang up when I heard his groggy voice through the phone.

"Hello?" he barely whispered.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry! Khalas go back to sleep!" I whispered back.

"Hmm bossy, I like it." He teased. "Hala bilGhala kila."

I giggled involuntarily and ignored his comment, "Did you know that there isn't a word in the english language that rhymes with month?"

"La walla?" He asked surprisedly, "Wait.. Bonth, conth, donth, fonth, sonth, tonth.. ee walla, chena mako? How'd you know?"

"I have a lot of free time on my hands, I read it somewhere online I think?" I replied.

"Hmm interesting, but I doubt you called to share random facts with me, what's up?"

"Nothing.. I figured I'd play the part of the dutiful girlfriend and let you know I'm going out.. and there might be a slight chance that I'm using that as an excuse to talk to you 'cause there might be an even SLIGHTER chance that I might be missing you. Bas shway. Stop smiling."

I heard his contagious laughter through the phone and resisted the urge to slap myself for my uneccessary confession.

"Baby, I miss you more, trust me." I smiled a little smugly at his insistence, "Wain ray7a?"

"Chocolate bar.. It's Juju's reward for finishing the first 3 chapters of the final! Joori's picking us up in about 10 minutes or so." I added.

"La walla? How'd she get out of the family gathering?!" he asked.

I laughed at his irritation, "Madri but I'm so glad she did! I love that girl, she's such a sweetheart!"

"I'm beginning to think maybe you hooked up with the wrong cousin.." He trailed off teasingly.

"Me too!" I joined in and laughed, "Wait, she's calling me, this is my cue to ditch you!"

"Khalas 3ayal 7abeebti, go have fun. I love you."

My heartbeat accelerated to a frantic pace, I don't think I'm ever gonna get used to hearing him say that.

"I.. uh.. love your dimples." I replied awkwardly.

He burst out laughing, "WHAT?"

I blushed and berated myself for my lame response, "I gotta go, take care, bye!" I said quickly and hung up. I covered my face with my hands while I waited for my heartbeats to return to normal. I looked up to find Ritaj looking at me questioningly.

"You love his dimples?" She asked, amused.

"Chub. Joori barra, yalla!"

I applied concealer and blush in record timing, threw on a grey cardigan over my white top, pulled a pair of grey boots over my jeans and ran to the car.

"Call waiting, haa?" She asked as she wiggled her eyebrows, "Who were you talking to?"

"Who else?!" I asked exasperatedly and attempted to pull my hair out.

She laughed, "Laish?? Shimsawee!"

"Nothing, he's just so.. madri!!" I replied and proceeded to communicate in sound effects and "aww"s

"Umm.. ee 7adda!" She replied confused.

"Nevermind me, how's you?" I asked enthusiastically, it felt weird talking to Joori about her cousin so I seized the opportunity to change the subject.

"I'm great! One more week left til freedom, any plans?" She asked.

"EE! Baroo7 London 3ind Khalood for 2 weeks!" I exclaimed as I drew hearts in the air.

"Aww yaay! Allah i3een 3azooz!" She said teasingly.

I laughed and replied, "I'm sure he'll do just fine. I told him to come with, don't think he's going to though."

Ritaj finally decided to join us and we made our way to chocolate bar with Joori providing entertainment in the form of lame jokes.

At the table..

Joori was acting strangely jumpy the whole time. She kept checking her face in the mirror or looking around the place expectantly.

"That's what's different!" Ritaj exclaimed suddenly, "I've never seen you with that much makeup on before!"

"Is it too much?" Joori asked worriedly as she checked her face again.

"Noo killish!" I reassured her, "It's just different than usual, you look really good."

"Aww thanks!" She replied and turned around to scan the room again.

I exchanged confused looks with Juju, "Are you expecting someone?" I asked curiously.

She hesitated a little before answering, "Ha?" She asked and giggled nervously, "Why would you think that? I'm not."

Ritaj shot me a knowing look and turned to give Joori her undivided attention, "What's his name? Spill!"

She still seemed a little hesitant to share any details about whoever she was waiting for. I forgot that she might be put in an awkward position considering that I'm her cousin's girlfriend.

"You don't have to worry hun, whatever it is, it's not my story to tell!" I reassured her.

She smiled understandingly, "Wahab." She said as she turned 7 shades of red.

"Awwwwww!" We exclaimed in unison.

"What are you awwwing about! I still didn't say anything!" She said as she mock-glared at us.

We burst into a fit of giggles and composed ourselves before waiting patiently as she filled us in on the details. Apparently they had met 2 years ago and have been together ever since. They were both attending the same lecture and he encountered her on the stairs where he told her, and I quote, "Tara intay 7ilwa." Joori was caught off guard by his random statement followed by his laughter, missed a step and fell on the stairs. She ended up breaking one of her heels so she stayed put and he sat down next to her. She kept on ignoring him but it didn't stop him from talking to her, she eventually gave in and they spend the hour in the quiet stairway talking about everything and nothing.

"Aww are you clumsy ba3ad? I think I'm falling in love with you more and more!" I said.

"Haha, sorry but no! I was just shocked, I mean, who says that!! You know?" She explained.

I laughed, "Yeah, we get it." Ritaj replied smilingly.

Joori's eyes were staring at something by the door, we followed her gaze to find a guy standing there smiling lovingly at her. We silently whispered awws to eachother as she motioned for him to come to the table. He didn't as much as look in our direction, it was clear that he only had eyes for her. He belatedly realized she wasn't alone and took a step back, she told him it was okay and he came over. She blushed as he kissed her forehead and sat down.

"Wahab, this is Ritaj and this is Ghala.." She made the hasty introductions.

"It's nice to finally put faces to the names! Wait.." He said as he turned to face Joori, "THE Ghala? 3azooz's girlfriend?" He asked and she nodded.

"Wow, I'm famous!" I joked lamely to hide the surprise that he knew about me.

"I grew up with 3azooz, we're good friends, it's not like the whole world knows 3annich, bas ana, I didn't even know your name ila min Joori." He clarified.

I sighed in relief and smiled. Juju managed to work her magic and break the ice between us and Wahab very quick and we got to know him a little better. He was funny, easygoing and very down to earth. Most importantly, he seemed to worship the ground Joori walked on, and she told him with every look she gave and every secret smile she hid that she felt the exact same way. It didn't take a genius to see that they were a match made in heaven.

"You know what would be funny?" Juju asked out of the blue, "If 3azeez was to come in here to surprise G and find his close friend sitting with his cousin all lovey dovey and what not.. okay maybe not funny as much as OH EM GEE but yeah!"

"He wouldn't..would he?" I asked Joori

She exchanged a secret smile with Wahab and told him she'd call him when she got home, we said our goodbyes and he left. The moment he left Joori let out a big contented sigh. She remained that way for most of the day, she was on her little happy cloud, barely acknowledging anyone's existence, lost in her own thoughts of Wahab.

I waited expectantly for 3azeez to "surprise me" but he never showed up. I didn't even go to sleep early in hopes of him coming through my window at any moment. No such luck. I was just about to call it a night when my phone vibrating.

1 New Message

Remember Me?

Outgoing message

I should be asking you that, I was beginning to think you gave up on me ;p

1 New Message

Not in a million years :*

Outgoing Message

You expect me to believe that you'll always be waiting for me?

1 New Message

For as long as it takes, yes.

Outgoing Message
Why?

My phone vibrated again. Incoming call. I took a deep breath and answered.

"Hi." I whispered.

"Because your eyes disappear when you smile."

"Huh?" I asked confusedly.

"Your eyes, they disappear. And your smile takes over your face, and for those few moments, nothing in the world matters as much as keeping that smile plastered on your face." He paused to take a breath, "You're worth the wait. Goodnight."

Foolish Games.. (17)

2009-04-23T01:04:00.000+03:00

As promised! :* Feedback is encouraged! Midterms were major rapeage and I'm not allowing myself to care lana I'm SO glad they're over! This post is 7ag my very special study buddy Noodles aka Joori ;p Anyway yeah, story time? Yes? Ok :D It's a little shorter than usual but I promise another one within the next 2 days, love you guys :*

________________________

"OH. MY. GOD!" Ritaj exclaimed as she jumped excitedly on my bed. "What did you say?!"

I muffled my response through a pillow as I filled her in on my reply to his confession.

"Ha? Speak up I can't hear you!" She ordered as she smacked me with a pillow.

I lifted my head from pillow and repeated, "I said, 'Am I being punk'd?'"

Her eyes widened and she covered her mouth after she let a horrified giggle escape, "You didn't!"

"Don't start, please! I already feel like a big enough idiot, I think I've filled my requirements for the millenium!" I pleaded.

"Awwww baby laiiish?" She asked as she hugged me.

"Madri! Lana I wanted to say it back?" I confessed.

Ritaj's eyes widened even more and I instinctively knew what was coming next. I shot her a warning look to prevent her from saying her inevitable response, needless to say, my warning was completely ineffective.

"AWWWWWWWW!!!!!" She screamed and hugged me tighter, "You're in love with him? How did that happen? WHEN did that happen? How did I not know!"

I tuned her out while I let her come to her own conclusions as she fired one question after another and escaped into my own thoughts. I hated that I couldn't trust his words and let myself bask in the warmth of his quiet, confidently spoken statement. I hated that I had to bottle up my feelings and leave him waiting for me to form a coherent response. Most of all, I hated that I couldn't allow myself to be vulnerable for a millisecond and tell him what was in my heart.

*****************
The Day Before..

"I love you."

I froze. I didn't know what to say. I looked away and stopped breathing and waited for the punchline, for him to take it back, anything! No such luck. The silence stretched out between us, I could feel his gaze burning holes into my head as he patiently anticipated my response. I looked up into his expectant face and offered a lame attempt at lightening the atmosphere.

"Am I being punk'd?" I asked.

He looked at my quizically.

"Punk'd? The tv show thingie? Ashton Kutcher? That 70's Show? Dude, Where's My Car? No? Nothing?"

"I know what punk'd is, I'm just confused about why you'd think I was joking." He clarified. "I meant what I said Ghala. I don't expect you to say it back or anything and I understand if you're not ready, I just.. had to say it."

I bit back a smile. "La walla? Was someone holding up a gun to your head ya3ni?" I asked teasingly.

He smiled at me. A smile filled with tenderness, love and promises. "Actually yeah, you did. Your words, your actions, your character, all the little things that make you who you are. You've had your finger on the trigger since the beginning and I've finally found the common sense to let things be."

His response tugged on my heartstrings and unleashed the sissy within. I felt involuntary tears stinging my eyes and belatedly attempted to blink them back. The attempt proved to be futile and I settled on smacking his arm instead.

"You need to stop saying things like that!" I exclaimed.

He laughed and pulled me closer to him. I rested my head on his shoulders while he spoke.

"I don't mean to scare you, I really don't even though I know you're thinking of escaping this very moment. And I want you to believe me when I tell you that I don't want you to feel pressured into saying it back. I'd rather it came from you when you felt the time was right rather than you saying it for the sake of doing so."

"I really got lucky with you, didn't I?" I asked as I stared at the tiles on the floor.

I could almost feel the presence of his smile. "Yeah, you did. You better sink your claws into me baby, from what I've been hearing lately, I'm considered a catch!" He teased.

I laughed and playfully smacked him again, "Laygi9oon 3alaik! You should be thankful you have me, madri who else would have the patience to deal with you!" I teased back and faced him, "Besides, you're not going anywhere. You love me, remember?" I asked as I put my arms around his neck.

He smiled and leaned in closer. "It's kinda hard to forget." He whispered as he kissed me. It was a different kiss than our earlier ones. It wasn't passionate, just infinitely sweet. More than anything, it was his way of reassuring me that everything was going to be okay.

"I really have to go now.." He said.

I nodded my understanding and he kissed my forehead before getting up. "Take care of you." I called out.

"You too 7abeebti, I'll call you later tonight if you're still up." He replied.

And just like that he was gone. I sat on that floor for the better part of an hour contemplating how it could've gone differently. What the outcome would've been if I confessed that I did indeed love him back, but I still couldn't wrap my head around the fact I was lucky enough to be loved by him and that stopped me from being capable of doing anything other than smile at the memory of his words.

*****************

"So how long are you going to make him wait?" Ritaj asked curiously as she was stirring the melted ice cream in her bowl.

"I'm not MAKING him wait!" I defended, "I honestly don't know if I can say it back."

"May I make a suggestion?" She asked and continued before she got my permission, "Tell him how you feel! I know you can't help but make comparisons between him and Assface, but they're completely different. Besides you and 3azeez.. you just make sense! I don't know how to explain it! And I've never seen you this happy before, I don't know why you insist on punishing yourself like this!"

"I'm not punishing myself Juju, shako? I want to tell him I really do, I mean I look at him and I just know this is where I'm supposed to be. With him. He smiles and I automatically melt. He speaks and I die a little more everytime." I said as I twisted 3 strands of my hair into a braid, "Everything about him seems to have this gravitational pull on me and I find myself inexorably drawn to him and responding to him, the outcome was inevitable. I love him, I know I do, I feel the words on the tip of my tongue when I'm talking to him! But I open my mouth to say them and I choke everytime." I sighed in despair and fell back against the matress.

Juju mimicked my movement and turned to face me, "I don't know hun, I hope you figure whatever is holding you back from saying it soon. This amazing guy who you're crazy about just told you that he loves you! You shouldn't be feeling this way."

I smiled at how Juju always seemed to dictate the way I should and shouldn't feel/do. I sighed and got out of bed and forced her to do the same.

"Enough procrastination!" I exclaimed and threw a pillow at her, "We've dished, we've ice-creamed and we've self-therapized ourselves, studying time?" I asked.

Ritaj rolled her eyes, "Only cuz you asked SO nicely!" She said as she threw one back at me.

"You're not going to suck me into another pillow fight to avoid studying! Not again!"

"Am I that transparent?" She said as she pouted.

I laughed as I picked up all the pillows and stashed them into my closet, "No, I just know you too well. Yalla let's at least get 3 chapters done 3ashan we meet up with Joori for chocolate shots!"

And just like that I grabbed her full attention, she immediately sat down and opened her books. I felt bad for my white lie and decided to make it happen, I knew there would be hell to pay if I didn't deliver on my promise. Joori confirmed my plan and said she'd pick us up at 6.

I beamed at the sight of Juju reading the accounting book and punching numbers into her calculator. I went to get my book from my stand and turned around to face her. Her face was transformed from the serious mask she had on to a giggling one.

"Since when do you find accounting amusing?" I asked as I raised an eyebrow.

More laughter.

"Since I remembered that if you punch in 8008, it looks like boob!" She said and disolved into another fit of giggles. "And 55318008 upside down looks like boobless! Remember, G? Remember?"

I sighed, tied my hair up and took 2 tylenols. This was going to be the longest 3 hours ever.

Foolish Games.. (16)

2009-04-17T20:05:00.002+03:00

Okay, so after this post I won't be working on anything until after the 23rd! Sorry sorry *dodges tomatoes* don't be mean! I have midterms w they're really hard *sniff* stupid major subjects! I love you guys, be kind to me :(

Ooh oh! Warning! Fee a like semi-explicit part? Well they're only kissing bas details might be wayid? I'm sorry in advance w don't blame me! It's put specifically there for F, she's been requesting it min awal ma I started blogging, if you have any hate-mail, direct them to her. Keep loving me! Okay? Okay!

____________________________

"So we have to book each other in advance is that it?" 3azeez concluded.

"It seems that way! I mean ilyoum dewaniyat ubook and there's no way in hell you can get out of that! Bukra I have to study with Juju all day for finals, the day after that you start your new job and you have finals, the week after that I start my finals w then the exams are spread out over 2 weeks? So yeah. See you in two weeks?"

I idly twirled a wet curl around my fingers while lying down on the bed discussing potential times to see my boyfriend. It still managed to surprise me everytime I said it.. Boyfriend. How bizzare.

"Don't even joke about that Ghalooy, shino two weeks?!" He exclaimed.

I smiled a little smugly at his outrage, "Ya3ni shino il7al? I'm open to suggestions!"

He mulled it over for a few moments. "Sh'hal imti7an ily bitdirseenla all day?" he asked.

"Accounting!!" I replied as I attempted to choke myself with my hair.

"Ulla! Ma yabeela akthar min sa3tain, dalaa3!!" He replied.

"HEY! IT'S NOT DALA3 IT'S JUST NOT FOR EVERYONE, OKAY??" I screamed into the phone.

His laughter boomed out. I could almost see his eyes crinkling and his dimple making an appearance. I resisted the urge to "awww" at my mental image.

"Ha! W ba3dain ma3ach? Ga3adtay ilneighbors, zain chithee? Wain your parents 3annich?" he teased. I heard rustling in the background.

"God knows, I think they're in Marbella? Could be mistaken.. they told me to join them there in two weeks so I'm guessing yeah. What are you doing? Sh'hal iz3aaj?" I asked.

"La walla? Msafreen? So much for romantic gestures!" He replied, irritated.

"Huh? What are you talking about?" I asked, confused over his statement.

I sat up in bed and stretched my lazy muscles. I looked around my room and spun my head back to something that caught my eye. My heart stopped for a few moments and my eyes widened in shock.

"No. Freaking. Way." I said incredulously.

He laughed and motioned at the window, "You planning on getting that?"

I ran over to the window and opened it. "Omg you freak! How'd you get up here? I mean where'd you get the ladder from!!" I asked, still talking through the phone.

"Malich shighel, I have my resources." He replied.

"Aww how very Dawson Leery and Joey Potter of us!" I exclaimed and jumped a little excitedly.

That seemed to effectively wipe the smile off his face. "You watched Dawson's Creek?"

I shifted my eyes around my bedroom and back to him, shrugged my shoulders and replied with a, "No?"

He stared at me for a minute and started to make his way down the ladder again.

I burst out laughing and ran closer to the window, "Hey! Yalla 3ad come baaack!! Stay!" I pouted.

He laughed and came back up, "I'll stay only if you kiss me." He replied impishly.

"HA! Ghal6aan, tara 3indina neighbors, ha? Yalla dish bsir3a before someone realizes there's a maniac climbing up a ladder to my room and calls my dad!" I ordered.

"Yes, ma'am."

I glared at him and waited for him to change his answer.

"I meant yes, beautiful young unma'am-like creature!" He amended.

I giggled and asked him if he wanted to hang up now, he replied by immediately hanging up.

I grinned goofily and whispered, "Hi."

He smiled back and came up to hug me, "Ahlain, nice glasses."

"Nice gesture." I retorted.

"Nice PJs."

I looked down to find my Winnie the Pooh nightshirt on and squealed. I tried to get out of his arms to go change but he wouldn't even budge, he just held me tighter and laughed.

"It's cute, leave it on. It actually reminds me of a joke.." He started.

I wasn't interested in hearing his joke, I was too busy blushing in mortification. My hair was probably pointing in a 100 different directions, I was in glasses and I was in my favorite childhood pjs that were washed so many times that they finally shrunk up to my knees.

"Why did tigger jump into the toilet?" He asked.

I raised my eyebrow and moved back to look at his face. This couldn't be the joke he was referring to, could it? "Why?"

"Because he was looking for Pooh! Get it?" He said expectantly, waiting for me to laugh.

I gathered all the strength I had and pushed him away. "GET OUT OF MY ROOM!" I screamed.

He laughed. I waited patiently.

"Come on, you know you wanna laugh!" He ventured.

"Na3am? Laugh 3ala shino inshalla! Where on earth did you get that from? This is strictly a no malaqa zone, BARRA!"

"I heard it from my nephew, you should've seen his face when he said it!"

I glared at him. "And you're repeating it?? He's TWO! You're turning TWENTY-THREE!"

"And since we're stating the obvious here, you're adorable when you're angry, come here." He invited.

"Mabi."

He walked over to where I was and I backed away with every step he took til he had me pinned against the wall. He picked me up and threw me down on the bed and I squealed.

"Hi." he whispered and quickened my heartbeats.

"Hi." I said, trying to put as much hostility in my voice as possible.

"You're out of excuses, are you going to kiss me now?"

"No." I replied teasingly.

"Why not?"

"Why not? Because I have a very good reason and don't you for one minute think that I'm just dragging on my explanation by saying meaningless things to buy me some more time before I get right down to it, 'cause I'll have you know that the reason why I don't want to kiss you is that-"

At that precise moment my phone started vibrating. I grinned up at him. He sighed exasperatedly and rolled over.

I sat up and reached for my phone.

Unknown Calling.

My eyes widened as I instinctively knew who was calling.

"KHALOOOD!!!!!!"

"GHALOOOY!!!!!!" he screamed back in what was supposed to be an imitation of my voice. "How the hell are you! It's barely been a week bas walla lich wa7sha!"

"Aww, don't make me cry! I don't think I'm ever going to get used to you being away from here!" I replied. "Why don't you graduate already!"

He chuckled, "Well I would graduate a lot sooner if I didn't come back to Kuwait every single vacation I had and are you aware that when I graduate I'm going to be a pilot and travelling all over the world anyway?" He asked, amused.

3azeez sat up on the bed, put his arms around me and kissed my neck. I momentarily lost my train of thought. I looked back to smile at him and he smiled back.

"Umm.. no, I'm not aware of that! And if I keep denying it, it'll never happen so shh!!"

"Haha fine. Inzain what was that message you left two days all about?" He asked worriedly.

3azeez continued raining kisses on my neck and went up higher to my ear. Then he started nibbling on my earlobe, effectively killing my response on my lips and turning my carefully formed words into unintelligible "Umm"s, "Uh"s and other nonsensical syllables. I turned around to face him and looked at him pleadingly, silently imploring him to stop weaving his seductive spell on me. He replied by gently kissing my lips. At the first contact of his lips against mine, I forgot that I was on the phone and let it soundlessly drop on my mattress. I gave up all pretense of breathing , closed my eyes and kissed him back. His hands came up to remove my glasses and frame my face. He held me still while his tongue came out to teasingly lick my lips for a few moments. I couldn't play this game with him any longer, I was weak with desire and wanted him to unleash the full power of his sensuality on me. My lips parted under his without much prodding, he pushed my back against the bed and my arms came out to lock themselves around his neck.

We were transported to another world once again. We couldn't get enough of eachother, couldn't taste enough, couldn't feel enough, couldn't get close enough. We rolled around on the bed. Nothing could tear us apart, our legs were locked around eachother, we were wrapped in eachother's arms, nothing could've come between us or slow us down in those moments. Nothing except my back encountering my phone and magically activating the speakerphone button.

"Um.. Ghala? You still there?" Khalood's voice boomed out into the quiet room.

We immediately sprang apart like two kids caught doing something naughty. We exchanged guilty looks as I picked up the phone, deactivated the speaker and held the phone up against my ear.

"Yeah, sorry kani!" I said enthusiastically, I was so out of breath, not even I bought my own act.

"Um.. did you just run a marathon or something?"

I burst into a fit of giggles, "Yeah, something like that! What were you saying?" I asked as I attempted to fix my hair.

"The message? Two days ago?" He repeated.

"OH! Long story Khalood.."

"Short version being..?" He asked.

"Umm.. I sorta ran into S3oud and I uh.. I guess I finally got closure." I replied. "I'll tell you everything later I promise but I really wanna hear about you now!"

"Where do I start?" He began.

We talked for about 15 minutes, 3azooz left to go get "study food" for me while I caught up with Khalood. He told me about his new appartment and his roomate, who apparently wore a cape indoors at all times. He told me about the 2 hour phonecalls his mother's been having with him for the past 3 days, crying over how she missed him and he filled me in about some girl who's taken a shine to him and her desperate attempts to hook up with him. I glared into the distance as if she was in front of me and urged him not to settle for the first bimbo who's interested and not to give up on Haifa. I finally felt more comfortable talking about S3oud while 3azeez was gone and I told him everything that happened that day.

"Wow. Small world. Are you guys okay now? You and 3azeez I mean?" He asked.

"More than okay, we're great! He was um.. he was actually here a while back when I stopped replying.." I said as I blushed in memory.

"Oh? Khalood replied, I could almost hear his left eyebrow shooting up and I could see his knowing smile spreading on his face. "Well now everything makes sense, I guess it's safe to say you don't have virgin lips anymore, huh?"

I blushed even more as I giggled, "Shh!! We are SO not talking about that!"

He burst out laughing, "I'll take that as a yes. Are you happy babe?" He asked seriously.

I sighed in response. "Ecstatic, walla he's more than I could've ever wished for. He's a little lame and cheesy but yeah, I heart!"

"That's great, I'm really happy for you, I knew it would work out. Hope it stays that way. Do you think you could give him up for 2 weeks?" He inquired.

"Why? What did you have in mind?"

3azooz walked in with the supplies, I smiled to him and mouthed a "thank you". He looked surprised to still see me on the phone, I covered the phone and laughed. "Sorry, just a few more minutes I promise!" He rolled his eyes disbelievingly and smiled.

"Well, I was thinking maybe you could come here after your finals for a bit? How does that sound?" He asked.

"Are you kidding? It sounds amazing! Oh my god! I'd have to trick the parents into going there of course first but if they'd agree, that'd be incredible!!" I replied excitedly.

He laughed at my excitement, "You don't have to actually.. My mom's coming down with one of my brothers, not sure which one yet, your parents wouldn't mind if you came with her, we've travelled together before!"

"You are a genius. I worship you! Omg, I'm so excited!"

"Yes, I can hear just how much!" He said tauntingly, "I gotta get going to class but run it by your parents and let me know, alright?"

"Definitely!! Take care sweetie, I love youu!" I called out.

"Love you too babes, bye." He said and hung up.

"You know, if you're not careful, I'm going to end up being seriously jealous of Khalood." 3azeez said.

I laughed, "Why would you be! He's like a brother to me, unless you're into incest, I seriously suggest you drop all thoughts of jealousy this second!" I replied teasingly.

He sighed theatrically, "Fine!" He said resignedly then dropped his voice to a whisper, "So now that I finally have you all to myself, what do you wanna do?" He asked suggestively as he put his arms around me.

I bit back a smile, linked my hands around his neck and whispered back, "You know exactly what I want to do."

He laughed and pulled me even closer, "Maybe so, but I want to hear you saying it." he teased.

I feigned shyness, bit my lips and looked down, "Well.. what I really want is.. is.."

"Don't be shy, tell me." He said encouragingly.

I stood on my tiptoes and cupped my hand around his ear,"I really want you to teach me accounting." I whispered and pushed him away. I looked back to see his shocked expression and burst out laughing. "What were you expecting? Enough naughtiness for the day yalla!" I said in mock seriousness.

He sighed resignedly and made his way over to my desk and pulled up a chair, "Yalla cham Ghala 3indina!"

"Awww!" I exclaimed and put my arms around him, "Thank you!" I dropped a quick kiss on his left cheek and sat on the other chair.

That day proved to be a test of patience for both of us. He had to deal with my confusion over every little thing in accounting and I had to practice enough control to keep my eyes and hands off him at all times. I kept finding myself drawn back to the way his lips moved when he spoke. Or the gestures his hands made while he was explaining something. Miraculously, I managed to understand and answer questions despite my distracting thoughts.

We took a break 2 hours later and went downstairs to make sandwiches. He took a bite out of an apple while he waited for me to get the ingredients and motioned for me to take one too.

"Mabi, they hurt my mouth! Kila I expect to find all my teeth stuck on the apple when I pull the apple away!" I complained.

He laughed at my despair and motioned for me to take a bite again. I vigorously shook my head. "Yalla 3ad, I already started it, it's easier to bite now!"

I took a small bite to avoid his nagging.

"There, shoofay? Your teeth are still all in place." He teased.

"It's a valid fear!" I defended as I smacked him with the bag of bread. "Let's take all this stuff upstairs, I don't want to come back for it all later. Do you want anything extra?" I asked.

"No thanks, here let me help you." He said as he took some of the stuff away from me.

"Well, aren't you my knight in shining armani!" I exclaimed.

"Haha, I try!"

We made our way to the stairs and I managed to miss the second step and trip. To his credit, he didn't laugh. He wordlessly helped me back to my feet, then picked me up and threw me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.

"3azooz! Put me down!" I protested all the way back up to my room and he ignored me until we got there and he threw me down on the bed. I glared at him while waiting for an explanation.

"What? It's the only way I can keep you in one piece!" He defended. I hated to admit that he was right so I ignored him.

"So what were you so excited about on the phone?" He asked later as he took a bite out of his sandwich.

"I might be going to London after finals with Khalood's mom! I can't wait, I hope my parents don't mind!" I said and filled him in excitedly on the details.

"Aha, that's nice." He said when I was finished.

"No, please, you're killing me with your enthusiasm, what's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing's wrong!" He said as he chuckled, "I'm just going to miss you, that's all."

My heart melted on the spot. I resisted the urge to envelop him in a giant bear hug and never let go.

"Aww, you could always come with me you know.." I suggested.

He raised his eyebrow. "You serious?" He asked.

"Why not! If I know khalty Fay, she's going to be busy shopping for the next 10 years or babying Khalood, and Khalood has uni all day, so I'm going to be alone most of the time.. Not that I mind but it'd be fun to explore the city with you."

He grinned. "I don't know, I'll think about it. But I really have to go now.."

I pouted and pretended to sulk, "So soon?"

"Yeah, I'm afraid so babe, I have to go get stuff for tonight and I promised I'd be there early. But call me if you need help with anything and I'll talk you through it."

"I will." I said as I leaned up to hug him. "Yalla, I'll walk you down."

As we made our way to the door, my knees seemed to find the timing perfect for them to wobble and make me lose my balance. I mumbled complaints angrily to myself and crossed my legs.

3azeez burst out laughing. "I understand you falling down on the steps but baby what on earth did you just trip on!"

"Madri?" I said as I pouted, "Air? You know it really doesn't help being with someone so coordinated, tadri what you're supposed to do when I fall?" I asked.

He shook his head and I grabbed his leg and tried to shake it. My efforts proved to be futile, he barely budged.

"Baby, what are you doing?" He asked exasperatedly.

"I'm trying to make you fall so I look less stupid." I replied.

He burst out laughing again, "All you had to do was ask!" He purposely fell and landed on the floor right next to me, "There! 6ay7a a-la-Ghala. Do you feel better now?" He asked teasingly.

I nodded and grinned widely. He reached out, tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and did the unthinkable.

"I love you, Ghala."

Foolish Games.. (15)

2009-04-08T18:05:00.004+03:00

Yes! Another post =O See how good I'm being? T7ibooni? (a)

________________________________

I knew I couldn't stand one more minute in that house without inevitably softening towards S3oud or stomping upstairs and demanding to know what was stuck up my "boyfriend"s ass. I settled for sitting on the steps leading up to the house and rested my head on my lap and thought about the drama-filled evening I just had.

I missed Khaled. I smiled at the thought of him coming to my rescue, marching up into the house and bashing their heads against each other and pummeling them to the ground. I rummaged through my bag and found my phone. I punched in his number and waited for him to answer. I got his voice mail. I sighed resignedly and left him a message.

I gathered as much enthusiasm as I could and injected it into my voice. I knew it wouldn't make a difference, Khalood always had this ability of picking up my mood from the way I said "hi". I decided not to burden him with my issues, he already had a lot on his plate so I settled for giving him a daily dosage of randomness.

"Did you know that if the steps on a staircase were off by as much as HALF a millimeter, it causes people to lose their balance and can cause accidents? So in actuality, I'm NOT clumsy, I blame modern architecture. Now all I have to do is find an excuse for tripping on air and I'll die happy. I love you, I miss you, hope you're settling in okay and that you're doing well. Call me when you get a chance, did I say I loved you? Yeah, well I love you! Bye."

I rested my head on my lap again and felt someone's arm wrapping itself around my shoulder. S3oud, no doubt.

"S3oud, go away. I'm all talked out. I'm not re-opening that chapter with you again, please leave me alone" I said as I shrugged his arm off my shoulder.

"W ana? Are you going to re-open it with me?" 3azeez asked.

My head snapped up and I was greeted by an adorable lopsided grin. This would be much easier if he wasn't so.. 3azeez. I'm doomed.

"No, but I will smash your head on the pavement if you touch me again." I threatened and turned away.

"Can we at least talk about it?" He asked.

"You can talk, I can listen." I clipped.

"I'm digging the attitude, its very reminiscent of us 3 weeks ago."

I didn't reply, I wasn't going to make this any easier for him. I still wasn't over the shock of his accusation and I wanted an apology. No, I needed one.

"Are you gonna look at me?" he asked.

"Are you going to get on with the explanation?"

"Ouch. Look Ghalooy, I'm sorry. I'm an idiot, I admit it. It's just that I really like you, more than I want to show, more than I thought I could. I walked in and saw his arms around you and I flipped, I know what type of guy he is and I jumped to all the wrong conclusions and I want to make it up to you if you'll let me."

I raised an eyebrow, "And what type of guy is that?"

"Ma lah da3y agool, suffice it to say that you don't fit the profile of the girls I usually see him with." He answered diplomatically.

"I'm going to disregard what you're insinuating and tell you that I was with S3oud for about a year, give or take, and other than the way we ended things and the last few weeks of it, he was nothing less than a perfect gentleman, things between us never escalated further than hugging, you kissed me after 3 weeks of knowing me, what does that tell you?" I replied defensively before realizing what I was saying.

"You're conveniently leaving out the part where you kissed me back Ghala, I wasn't exactly forcing myself on you." he defended.

I laughed derisively and stood up to walk away from him, he grabbed my hand and pulled me down on his lap. I struggled to get up and he forcibly wrapped my arms around my body and effectively stopped all my squirming.

"Wakhir!!" I exclaimed indignantly.

"Forget it, we've had misunderstanding after misunderstanding from day one and I'm sick of it. I won't let that ass ruin everything between us, fahma? Now you will stay there quietly and listen to my apology and accept it, we clear?" he asked angrily.

I resisted the urge to kiss that adorable frown away from his forehead and kept quiet.

"Ha! Ridday, we clear wela la2?" he asked again.

"Oh, so now I'm allowed to talk?" I replied

"You're such a brat tadreen?" He asked rhetorically as he lightly kissed my neck, "Yabeelich discipline."

I laughed nervously, "You are so not the man to be giving it to me." He replied with another kiss, "3azooz, your apology? The one I'm supposed to be accepting?" I reminded him.

"Ha? I'll get around to it, but you smell really good." he replied as he nuzzled my neck.

I couldn't take it anymore, I managed to free one of my arms and elbowed him as hard as I could, "3azooz! I want my apology! W use your words! You can't just kiss all our problems away!" Translation: You could very easily kiss all our problems away but I don't want you to know the effect you have on me.

He sighed and moved his head away from the general vicinity of my neck, "Fine. I'm sorry walla I just couldn't stand hearing you defend him anymore, not after I heard what he did to you. And no, I wasn't spying, I don't think you realize you were screaming at him. And I'm really sorry you had to go through that, he's an ass and he doesn't deserve any of your precious tears."

I was so close to throwing my arms around him and forgiving him completely but I didn't for two reasons. One, his arms were still holding mine prisoners. Two, there was still a question I needed to ask.

"But why were you so quick to believe the worst about me and think I was up to something? I mean, I understand it was a compromising situation to walk into but you should know better than that, the fact of the matter is; you don't trust me." I stated.

"Baby, no, don't think that, please. It was just a stupid overreaction, it's not going to become a habit, believe me. I trust you implicitly, it's just the beginning of a relationship and I don't know, there aren't any words to describe how beyond idiotic I was." He admitted.

I bit back a smile and eyed him suspiciously, looking for any signs of insincerity.

"Lail7een mu m9adga? Do you want it in writing?" He asked as he raised an eyebrow.

I giggled at the absurdity of his suggestion, "Magool la2."

"Is that a laugh I hear? Ya3ni rithaitay 3alay?"

"Ya3ni." I replied as I shrugged my shoulder petulantly.

I turned my head around to see his face break into a huge grin and mine couldn't help but to mirror his elated expression. No words needed to be spoken, it was clear that all was forgiven. He let go of my arms and hugged me. I hugged him back for a few moments then grabbed a fistful of his hair and pulled it hard, he looked at me with a bewildered expression drawn on his face.

"If you ever, EVER think about accusing me of something like that again, I assure you, they will be the last words you will EVER speak, fahim?" I threatened.

"A7! Ghala, min wain nazil 3alaich hal violence?! Let go!" He exclaimed as he laughed.

I pulled his hair harder, "FAHIM?" I asked again, louder.

He laughed helplessly, "Fahim, walla fahim!"

"Good!" I replied as I dropped a quick kiss on his lips, let go of his hair and settled back in his lap. His arms encircled me and I put mine over his.

He laughed again, "Well, that was a side I've never seen before." He lamented.

"Yeah, I'm full of surprises, you better watch your back!" I said warningly.

"I'll bet." he agreed as we exchanged smiles.

"Oh yeah, there's something else I wanted to ask!" I exclaimed.

"Shoot."

"I'm your girlfriend?"

"Yeah, do you mind?" he asked teasingly as he held me closer.

Melting, seriously melting. "Not at all." I replied as I blushed.

"Good, so what do you say we go back inside and try to salvage what's left of our evening?"

I burst out laughing, "Honey, I think we're WAY beyond that point, besides, unless I'm mistaking the vibrations coming from my bag for the past 5 minutes, Juju is outside. And unless you want her to come marching into here with an assortment of knives and shotguns, I think it's my cue to leave.."

He looked disappointed, I felt bad but it was his fault after all. I hugged him one last time, got up and straightened my dress.

"No goodnight kiss?" He asked.

"Hmm.. not tonight I'm afraid!" I replied, "Ba3ad, if I'm going to train you I'm going to have to put together a reward/punishment system!"

"Train me, huh?" He asked, amused.

I laughed and started walking away backwards, "Goodnight!" I called out and blew him a kiss. I turned around and made my way to the car.

I got inside, looked at Ritaj and smiled brightly, "Hi!"

She stared at me silently for a few minutes, unfastened her seatbelt and reached for the handle on the door.

"JUUJ!" I exclaimed, "Wain ray7a?"

"Ray7a as2al il7mar shimsawee, laish bachya??" She asked angrily.

I laughed, "Juju drive babes, it's a long story."

She studied my face for a few moments, concluded that I was fine, re-fastened her seat belt and drove off, "Can I at least get the Cliffnotes version?" She asked.

"Hmm.. let's see, S3oud was there, so screaming, crying, hugging.. 3azooz accused me of cheating so more screaming, insulting, restraining, hugging, kissing, pulling hair.. Oh and I'm his girlfriend!" I added enthusiastically.

She braked the car in the middle of the road, "WHAT?!" She shouted.

"Juju!!! Driiive!" I ordered, shocked at her impulsive move. "Maynoona? Shnawya 3alaina!"

"Ice cream and red bull?" She asked as she shot me a dirty look for not giving her details.

"Ice cream and red bull!" I agreed.

We spent that night in my room, having a spill session over our favorite snacks. We had our appropriately timed "OMG"s and "awww"s over different parts and just in time for the tale to end, 3azooz messaged me.

-1 New Message-

Thank you for waiting for Ritaj to drive off before telling her anything, I half expected her to walk into my living room with an axe at any moment.

-Outgoing Message-

Yeah, you got lucky this time! Marra thanya I'm unleashing the full power of Juju on your ass.

-1 New Message-

lol.. la 7abeebti, that's where you're wrong, I got lucky the day I met you ;*

-Outgoing Message-

Cheesy much? The bunny on my slippers could've done better than that.

-1 New Message-

lol, ee it's easy to feign indifference when you're hiding behind text messages, can you honestly say you're not blushing right now and smiling at the phone?;p

-Outgoing Message-

Chub;*

Foolish Games.. (14)

2009-04-06T17:35:00.000+03:00

Hey you guuuuys;* I'm taking a cue from Change and mentioning Gutter Flower-O who has decided to stop posting until she gets more comments.. WHY AREN'T YOU COMMENTING? I feel responsible ba3ad lana kila minny w my not-so-bright ideas -.- I won't post til you comment 3indaha.. and 3indy! ;p sorry I love her posts!! She's amazing walla, tbacheeni! :( W I never understood the importance of feedback before blogging so yeah, even though my comments are infrequent and I AM sorry walla, kila I read things in a hurry and forget, but I do read! But I digress! So..

http://sunshinedownthegutter.blogspot.com/ COMMENTAW... please (a)

Okay, So I worked on this during my classes today! I surreptitiously dakhalt the earphones mal il IPod under my clothes, hid them carefully and wrote this down on my notebook w now I'm typing it up here! You better like it lana my hand is gonna detach itself from the rest of my arm.. seriously! Lana I wrote like half a page, decided I didn't like it and tore it up.. then I did that twice again before deciding on this one! So enjoy.. or not, kaifkum! Oh yeah, midterms soon, wish me luck :(

__________________________

I will not overreact. I will wait for him to explain. I will not freak out. I will open my mouth and reply. I will.. I will stand there like an idiot and stare at him blankly. He looked at me expectantly, awaiting an answer. I couldn't offer him any. I couldn't find the words to verbalize the million feelings rushing through me at that moment. He gave up and turned his attention to S3oud who was yet to take his hands or eyes off me.

"Mi7lawa 7abeebti," He said as he pulled me closer, "I've missed you."

I involuntarily felt a lump rising in my throat, I forcibly removed his arms from around me and backed away. "You lost the right to say any of that a long, long time ago S3oud."

He reached out and grabbed my hand, "Ghala, wait-"

"S3oud, I've been patient so far, but would you mind taking your hands the fuck off my girlfriend and explain?" 3azeez asked angrily.

His question captured our full attention and effectively stopped S3oud's unnecessary touching.

"Girlfriend?" We asked in unison.

He ignored the question and waited for S3oud to answer his. S3oud still seemed to be shocked at the G-word 3azeez dropped so carelessly.

"Uh.. I asked Fahad if I could stay here while Noor was gone, I thought you were traveling for the week?" He asked, confused.

3azeez looked meaningfully at me before he answered. "I had a change of plans." He clipped.

I finally understood the situation I was in and looked for confirmation, "So he's your sister's.. brother in law?" I asked 3azeez.

"I think we established that," he replied snidely, "what we haven't is how you know him."

Now it was my turn to be all flustered and caught off guard again, this really wasn't the way I hoped this evening would turn out.

"S3oud's my ex." I answered in a small voice that sounded foreign to my own ears.

"Ah, I see.. and I interrupted you cozy, intimate little reunion?" He concluded as he eyed me and S3oud in all his semi-nakedness. "Well by all means, go ahead, don't stop on my account." he said as he leaned against the table and folded his arms.

"I don't know what changed or what I've done to deserve such a low opinion from you but I don't have to stand here and take this shit from you. Call me when you manage to pull your head out of your ass, or you know what, don't."

I finished off my mini-speech and stormed off. I took the stairs 3 at a time, thoughts were beyond me, I only knew that I had to get away from there and away from them. Only I would have the extreme misfortune of running into my ex on a date with another guy. In his house. Seriously, what are the odds? I quickly texted Ritaj the address and asked her to pick me up as soon as possible. She replied saying she'll be there in 10 minutes max, no questions asked.

"Ghala, wait!" S3oud called out again as he shoved his arms into the sleeves of a jumper and buttoned up his jeans.

I turned around to face him, "You know what S3oud, I DID wait. I waited hours on end for you, just stupidly standing there wishing you'd show up already so we could celebrate our anniversary together. But you didn't. You were too busy screwing one of my closest friend's brains out. So forgive me if I seem a little bit reluctant to wait for your explanation. What could you possibly have to say for yourself?"

And just like that, the recollection of past events caused the waterworks to begin. I didn't realize I was crying until I tasted a salty tear on my lips, then I felt it all. I felt the intense heat of the scalding tears running down my face. I felt my heart's poorly stitched wounds open wide and I felt it shattering into a million tiny pieces all over again. I couldn't breathe, I felt the suppressed agony of his betrayal weighing down on my windpipe, cutting off my air supply. I heard my tortured sobs echoing through the empty house and then I heard something else.

I looked disbelievingly through the layer of moisture covering my eyes to see his face etched with remorse on every single millimeter. I stood transfixed as he reached out to wipe my tears. He kissed the top of my head and whispered, "Baby, I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I am so god damn sorry."

He reached out to hug me and I let him. I let him wrap his arms around me and hold on for dear life while I stood there lifelessly and remembered all the times he held me in the past. I remembered how he refused to let go of me after my grandmother's sudden death and how he cradled me in his arms all night long. I remembered how he lifted me up and spun me around when I got accepted into university and for a second, I closed my eyes and let myself feel how great it was to be held this way, to experience the amazing gifts of being loved and wanted. But then I saw something else, I saw the same arms wrapped around HER instead. I saw his hands running all through her body and I pulled away as if I was electrocuted.

I calmly wiped my tears away. "And I'm sorry that you hurt me so deeply enough to diminish the significance of those words. Goodbye S3oud."

Foolish Games.. (13)

2009-04-02T00:25:00.000+03:00

Okay, so ams some of you were under the impression that I posted and deleted it.. I didn't lol I just wrote the title and accidentally published it, realized my mistake THEN saved it as a draft ;p Bas here you guys go, as promised! Love youu ;**

____________________________

"Why so far away?" He asked as he patted the empty place between us, "Ta3alay, gi3day yammy."

"La, I don't wanna crowd you while you're driving, I'm fine over here!" I reassured him. Translation: I want to hold on to what little self control I have left and moving as much as an inch closer to you will compromise that.

"Shda3wa, do you hear me complaining?" He said with a disarming smile. I couldn't keep looking at him, I shrugged and looked out the window, pretending to be absorbed with the scenery and eventually escaping into a daydream where no self control was needed. Until I was interrupted by the throbbing pain in my toes.

"Penny for your thoughts?" 3azeez asked, bringing me back to reality.

"Feet." I replied automatically.

"How romantic," he said sarcastically, "anything in particular or just feet in general?"

"Why would I think about feet in general?"

"Why would you think of feet on our first date?" He shot back.

I laughed, "Aww, did I bruise your ego? Were you expecting something along the lines of "your eyes" followed by a long sigh? Or your smile? Or your-"

"I get the picture," He interrupted my taunting, "mu 3an, but it was a very random answer."

I giggled, "Not really, I was contemplating whether it was acceptable for me to change shoes and whether or not you were going to rat me out to Juju if I did, hence, feet!" I explained.

He shook his head and laughed incredulously, "By all means, go ahead."

I was yet to fully grasp the situation I was in. I couldn't believe the obnoxious hottie from the sultan center was the same guy who held me tenderly while I cried my eyes out, the same guy who gave me my first kiss, the same guy who was taking me out on an official date.. and the same guy who was driving me to distraction with the lazy circular movements of his fingers around my hand. I quickly snatched my hand away from his and pretended to fix my hair. He gave me a confused look, I smiled to confuse him further. He shrugged and turned his attention back to the road.

I sighed inwardly and realized that he wasn't responsible for the state of my raging hormones. I blew my bangs out of my eyes, closed the gap between us and reached out to hold his hand and simultaneously wrap his arm around my shoulder. I snuggled in closer to him and breathed in his heady scent and heard him laughing. He leaned down to kiss the top of my head.

"I still don't know what to make of you," he confessed, "you seem to be the weirdest mixture of kitten, fairy and minx."

"So I'm a flying fur ball of sluttiness, dala3 and dependency?" I asked, thoroughly appalled as I moved away from him.

His bark-like laughter boomed out, "Shako!" He exclaimed, "I only meant you're a sexy, playful little creature who keeps me wanting more." He clarified with a wink.

I glowed over his compliments and repositioned myself under his arm. "So ma giltly, where are we going?" I asked excitedly.

"Impatient, are we? Why can't you just sit back and be surprised?" He asked.

"Lana, I need time to practice how to react accordingly! My face does the weirdest things when it's not prepared, I hate surprises!"

"Laa?" he said with a huge smile, "Now this, I've got to see."

"Noo walla I'm serious, chithee lazim I make a conscious effort not to have any facial expressions which is going to make me look robotic and.. well, constipated!" I blurted out.

He stared at me for a minute and burst out laughing, "Wow Ghalooy, you really know how to turn a guy on, first feet and now constipation? Ib9ara7a you're on a roll, an9i7ich, don't stop." He teased.

"Hey!" I exclaimed and pouted, "Don't be mean to me, I can't control my word vomit, I'm nervous! I know you must be used to it, but I haven't done this in over a year, I totally forgot how everything's supposed to go!"

He smiled tenderly at me, "It doesn't go a specific way 7ayati, just let things be, don't overthink it and just have a good time, there's nowhere else I'd rather be and I'd love it if you were to join me here instead of retreating into your own thoughts, is that too much to ask for?"

I smiled back and shook my head. How could I not be crazy about him? I belatedly realized we had come to a stop and looked out the window. We were parked in a garage. He really meant it when he said he didn't want to share me I guess..

"So is this okay?" He asked tentatively.

I looked around, "Um.. sure! A garage first date, can't say I've heard of one of those before, 10 points for originality!" I said, trying to pump up as much enthusiasm into my words as I could.

He burst out laughing, "You think this where I wanted to spend our first date?" he asked disbelievingly.

"I don't know what to think!" I confessed.

"You're too cute," he said as he got out of the car and came to open my door, "remember I told you I lived with my sister and her kid while her husband was away studying?"

I nodded, finally comprehending the direction he was heading in.

"Well, he's on a break right now and instead of coming down here, they flew out to spend the vacation with him.. I already asked her and she said she doesn't mind me bringing you here." He explained.

"OH! That makes sense." I said, relieved at the cleared up misconception.

He smiled and helped me down from his car. "Yeah, I've brought you back to an empty big house, I hope you won't take advantage of me." He said suggestively

I burst out laughing, "YOU bring ME to an empty house and YOU'RE afraid of me taking advantage of you??" I asked incredulously, "Isn't it supposed to be the other way around?"

"Right," he said as he stared me down from head to toe and back up again, "and aren't you afraid I'm going to be taking advantage of you?" he asked slyly.

"We'll see how the evening goes, you never know, I might wind up wishing you would." I said as I winked and twirled away from him.

He caught me around my waist and pulled me closer to him, "Be careful what you wish for, you might end up getting more than you bargained for." He warned.

My gaze dropped to his lips, "Calculated risk." I whispered and moved away from him.

"You're going to be the death of me, I swear." He mumbled, "I cooked dinner for us, do you want to brave it and be my guinea pig for the evening or do you want to order out?" he asked.

"Are you kidding?" I asked, "Of course I want to try your food! What did you make?"

"Well, I kind of asked Ritaj for help and she said your favorite was Chicken Alfredo, so I tried making that, haven't tasted it yet, I want you to do the honors!" He beamed, obviously proud of himself.

"Aww that was very sweet of you! Have you ever cooked before?" I asked, trying not to sound scared.

"No," he answered, "but I figured, how hard could it be? You just follow the instructions and that's it, it's like math, math of the food." He explained.

Uh-oh.

He led me to the kitchen and we made our way to the stove where he opened up the pot and held out a fork for me, I smiled and tentatively speared some of the pasta and held it up to my mouth. I saw the expectant look in his eyes and I stopped inhaling the scent, hoping that it smelled worse than it tasted. No such luck.

"Hmm, that's really.. wow, really! I think you might've discovered a hidden talent here, aww I can't believe you made this for me!" I threw my arms around his neck in an effort to distract him. No such luck.

He pried my eyes away from him and I saw his crestfallen face, "You hate it." he didn't ask, he stated it.

"No!! I don't hate it, it just.. has an acquired taste about it! I'm sure it'll taste better after a few more bites!" I said in what I hoped was a reassuring manner.

He raised his eyebrow at me, "And now you're trying to spare my feelings?" he said, with an amused inflection in his voice.

I gave up my pathetic attemps at making him feel better, "Alright, fine! That was the most vile thing I have ever tasted in my life, there, you happy?" I said as I glared at him.

I expected a wounded look, perhaps even a sarcastic comment, I did not expect him to wrap his arms around me and laugh. "Thank you for trying to sugarcoat it for me." He said, "Was it really that bad?" he asked with a twinkle in his eyes.

I held out the fork, "See for yourself." I watched his facial expressions change from excited to amused to wary to downright disgusted.

"I am so sorry for subjecting you to that.. that.. I can't even call it food!" he exclaimed.

Now it was my turn to laugh, "It's fine! Listen, let me go rinse the taste out of my mouth and fix my makeup, shh you didn't hear that part! Then we can cook something together, how does that sound?" I suggested.

"Perfect!" He replied enthusiastically, "Bathroom is the 3rd door to the left down the hall. No, wait, the downstairs bathroom is being remodeled. You can use the one upstairs, 2nd door to the right, inside my bedroom." He instructed.

"Ooo how forward!" I exclaimed, deliberately misunderstanding what he said.

"Baby, don't start." he warned.

I laughed, took my purse and made my way upstairs. I opened the door to his bedroom and looked at the photos on his table. They were pictures of him and his nephews and nieces and siblings. I found one of him and Khalood and held it close for a few moments. I kissed the picture and put it back where I found it and made my way to the bathroom. As I reached out to open the door, it pulled back by itself. Startled, I took a step back and a man emerged before me in nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. I looked up to see who it was and I couldn't believe my eyes. I blinked a few times to make sure, but he didn't go away.

"S-S3oud?" I asked disbelievingly.

"Hala walla," He said as he looked at me appreciatively and smiled, "I always hoped you would come back to me, but never in my wildest dreams did I imagine it would be this easy." He said as he put his hands around my waist.

I cringed and took a step back and heard 3azeez's voice calling from down the hall, getting louder with every step he took, "Babe, what ingredients do you need? Akhaf fee shay nagi9 aw-"

He opened the door and stopped mid-sentence. He took in the scene before him and raised an eyebrow.

"What's going on here?"

Foolish Games.. (12)

2009-03-31T01:45:00.001+03:00

Hola! Shorter than usual, I know :( But I do plan on posting another one within the next 2 days or so? I promise! Bas itifaqt ma3a Lost to post a part tonight, so here goes, love you guys! ;*

__________________________________

My sweet, adorable, loud little friend has been taken over. By whom you ask? NaziJuju. My parents were away for the weekend and Ritaj intended to take full advantage of the situation.She really gets into the roles of her alter egos, I'd like to say I was surprised to see her marching into my living room in army-print cargo pants and a bandana wrapped around her head, I really would, but I'd be lying the biggest lie of the century. I bet soldiers don't rock the smoky eye makeup like she does though, but she always does have to add an extra touch to everything. She ordered me to go take a shower and to "report right back for duty". Douche.

-1 hour later-

"MY GOD, GHALA! IF YOU DON'T STOP IT WITH THE MINI EYE-SEIZURES, SO HELP ME GOD I WILL STAB THE EYELINER BRUSH IN YOUR EYE AND MAKE SURE TO MAKE YOUR PUPILS MATCH THE REST OF IT, FAHMA?" Ritaj screamed at the top of her lungs.

I whimpered a little and pouted, did I mention that I was terrified of NaziJuju? I made a conscious effort not to move a single muscle and was rewarded later when she finally let me look at myself.

"Now do you wish you would've stayed still in the first place like I politely asked you to?" She asked snidely.

I laughed, "Actually, I still wish I had the common sense to lock the door."

She glared at me. "I'm kidding, I'm kidding!" I quickly ammended. I reached out to touch my straightened hair as I studied my reflection in the mirror and marveled at the stark difference between my appearance now and how it was back when I was with S3oud. S3oud. How typical of him to pop up in my thoughts on a day like this. I quickly shook the thought of him away. I'm over him, He can't hurt me.

"What are you thinking of?" Juju asked, raising an eyebrow.

I quickly plastered a smile on my face, "My outfit, duh! Have you decided which one I'm wearing yet?" I asked, feigning eagerness.

"Yes. And don't lie to me, I know that look. You were thinking of S3oud, weren't you?"

"Mmm, I plead the fifth?" I ventured.

"Uh-uh, not gonna cut it, spill! Why now hun?" She asked as she plopped down on the bed.

"Madri Juuj, I guess I'm feeling a little blah about this whole thing with 3azeez? Madri, madri."

"Honeyyy, don't do this to yourself walla I'm telling you, 3azeez is NOT a S3oud." She stated. Once the wounds had healed initially, we turned S3oud into an adjective, a synonym for asshole.

"Yeah, but who would've suspected that S3oud would turn out to be a S3oud to start off with? Madri, I know everything's perfect and when I'm with him, I don't have a doubt about where I should be.. but when I'm left alone with my thoughts, I can't stop myself from over-analyzing everything.. it shouldn't be this way, right?" I asked uneasily.

"Bil3aks, you're at the beginning of the relationship, I'd be surprised if you DIDN'T have any doubts, don't overthink it hun, everything's going to be amazing, mark my words, 3ala goltich, "you're in it for the long haul", mark my words!" She said reassuringly.

I found her words comforting and felt a much better once I had her input. I put on the cream colored babydoll dress Ritaj laid out for me, the purple tights and the matching 4 inch cream stilettos. I stood up and wobbled a little bit.

"Juju? Shnawya 3alay?" I asked, confused at her choice of shoes.

"Whaaaaaat?" She said as she flashed an angelic smile, "I just figured that losing your balance worked SO well for you last time, might as well repeat the scene!" She winked at me suggestively.

I blushed wildly and looked away, "Chub Juju! Inti shayfa his lips? You so would've done the same!" I defended my actions.

"Oh, I have no doubt that I would've! I'd gladly do the same any given day ba3ad!!" She said, a little too enthusiastically.

I glared at her. "Hey!" I picked up a pillow and threw it at her as I pouted, "Go fantasize about kissing your own man!"

3azooz showed up half an hour later in a shirt that complemented my dress. Sigh, we're so in sync. I held on to the banister for dear life as I slowly walked down the stairs, careful not to make any sudden movements. It was consuming every last drop of my energy not to abandon my senses and go running to him. He looked good enough to eat. Maybe I'll just settle for chewing on his lip. Yum. Snap out of it, G.

"You look.. stunning." He breathed.

The way he was looking at me made me forget to breathe for a while and intensified the effect of the butterflies in my stomach. I tried not to blush and failed miserably. Note to self; thank Juju profusely for her efforts later!

"You look.. clean." I replied, surprised.

He burst out laughing, "Was I covered in mud the last time I saw you?" He asked teasingly, I opened my mouth to explain myself but he interrupted me, "I'm just kidding babe, chill. I shaved." He clarified.

I remembered the scratchy feel of his stubble against my face when we kissed and blushed involuntarily. "Na3eeman." I said quietly, still lost in my thoughts.

"Allah yin3am ib7aalich, are you going to come say hi properly? Or are we going to remain 10 paces apart all evening?" He taunted.

I laughed and walked over, I wasn't sure what he meant by 'saying hi', so I just reached up and kissed his cheek. Even in my stilettos, I still had to reach up. Sigh, this man. His lips curved into a smile and my thoughts returned to our kiss. Okay, this needs to stop..

"Come on now, you can do better than that!" He urged on.

I was surprised at his prodding, "3azooz! We can't.. in front of Juju!"

He laughed again, "I was thinking more along the lines of a hug.." His voice dropped to a whisper, "But it's good to know the direction your thoughts are heading towards tonight."

Embarrassment, much? I smiled and hugged him and stifled a sigh when he hugged me back. I was feeling a little lightheaded. I stepped back a little and he kept his arms around my waist.

"Hi." I whispered to his chest.

"You know, my buttons aren't gonna reply to you, if you have something to say to me, I suggest you look up." He said cheekily.

I grinned and looked up into his eyes, "Hi." I repeated.

"Hala walla," he replied with an answering grin of his own. "You ready to go?"

I nodded and turned around to mouth a "thank you" to Ritaj and left.He opened the door for me, helped me up into his car and got into his own seat. I was impressed, chivalry wasn't dead after all!

"I made a little change to my plan.. I know I said I wanted to show you off, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized that I don't want to have to share you with anyone, do you mind?" He asked out of courtesy, it was obvious his mind was already made.

I smiled gratefully, I wasn't too thrilled about the idea of having to compete with the other girls for his attention, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

He reached out and held my hand, our fingers intertwined and I waited anxiously to see what he had planned for our first date..

1st commentor place reserved for lost! Forever! lol

Foolish Games.. (11)

2009-03-25T20:30:00.000+03:00

Oooo confession time? For those who haven't figured it out yet, tara ana Lilo! I keep getting confused and commenting from wrong accounts so just wanted to let you guys know! enjoy.. or not, kaifkum!;**

_______________________________

We walked hand in hand along the shore. Our footsteps fell into rhythm, our heartbeats melded into one and we threw caution into the wind as we took the first steps into what was bound to be the beginning of something wonderful. He spoke of his dreams and I saw a future so bright in his eyes, I had to mentally blink several times to withstand the intensity of it all. He told me secrets he's never shared before and I saw another side of him, a vulnerable one that allowed itself to manifest, showing me that he trusted me implicitly. I silently vowed to never abuse that trust and to put as much faith into his character as he was putting into mine.

For a few hours, the world disappeared and gave us some much needed privacy. It was as if we stepped into a parallel universe where we were in our own little bubble, free of any distractions from the outside world. My ears tuned out all noises and amplified the volume of his voice. My breathing automatically synced itself to his. My senses limited themselves to his overwhelming scent and the feel of our intertwined fingers.

"Your feet must be killing you," he said as he nodded towards the direction of my shoes.

"What, these?" I asked as I looked down at my feet, "I don't know what you're talking about man, they're sneakers!"

He gave me an incredulous look. "You mean to suggest that you're COMFORTABLE in them?" he exclaimed.

I laughed at his shock, " No, but I am trying to convince myself that my feet aren't in an excruciating amount of pain! You know.. walking on a flat surface is hard enough, can you even begin to imagine how much of an effort I'm putting into not falling down?" I asked.

He laughed, showing off that adorable dimple. "7asafa 3ad, I was hoping you would fall," he said, flashing a mischievous grin.

I gasped theatrically, "What? Laish inshalla!"

He smiled sheepishly, "'Cause.. It would give me an excuse to have my arms around you again.." he trailed off.

I blushed and laughed nervously, "Well, in that case.."

I purposely stood on the heels of my pumps and automatically lost my footing. Sure enough, his arms reached out and held me around my waist. I wrapped my arms around his neck for extra balance and looked into his eyes. Bad idea. The smoldering passion in them robbed me of breath.

"My hero." I managed to whisper

"You're crazy, you know that?" He whispered back

Words were beyond me at that point but I found enough strength to nod weakly.

"And I'm crazy about you.. you know that?"

This must be what melting feels like. I couldn't move a muscle, I didn't dare to. Nor did I dare take my eyes off of his. I couldn't blink, I couldn't breathe, all I could do was helplessly close my eyes as he inexorably drew me closer and brushed his lips ever so gently against mine. Even though I had been expecting it, the contact still managed to startle me into pulling away from him. My eyes fluttered open to find him staring right back at me, questioningly, waiting for a decision. I couldn't formulate any thoughts to express the turbulent state of mind I was in. All I could do was gaze longingly at him and get sucked into the depths of his big brown eyes. Out of its own volition, my gaze dropped to his lips giving him all the permission he needed to pull me to him closer than before and meld his mouth into mine. This time I didn't hesitate and I kissed him back with all the passion I had locked inside of me for so long. I was instantly transported to another place, a nameless one where nothing existed but this man, these arms and those lips.

______________________________________

I looked back into the shocked faces of 6 girls with their jaws dropped open, listening avidly as I finished recounting the events of the day.

"YOU DIDN'T!!" Ritaj exclaimed, clearly in shock.

I blushed and shoved my face into a pillow, "I SO did!"

"As much as I hate to be saying this about my own cousin, but awwwwww!!!" Joori said enthusiastically.

"You sure you don't mind?" I asked tentatively as I peeked at her from behind the pillow.

"Mind? Are you kidding? I've been fantasizing about this ever since the day I met you and found out you knew him!" She replied excitedly.

"Really?" Darine asked, amused, "You've been fantasizing about your cousin kissing your friend for 3 weeks now? Don't you find that a bit odd?"

"That's not what I meant!" Joori clarified as we all laughed, "I meant I've been waiting for them to finally get together!"

I was taken aback by what she said and looked up from my pillow. "But.. we aren't together.." I said confused.

Sara gasped from across the sofa, "What do you mean you're not together?? Granted we only re-connected but I refuse to believe that you go around kissing random hot guys at the beach!" Sara was the mutual friend me and Joori had that I lost touch with, I introduced her to the group and they all automatically took a shine to her adorably innocent face and bubbly personality.

"It's not like that!" I quickly defended, "It's just that the topic of us being 'together' was never really discussed.. I don't know what we are!"

"Ask him!" Haifa spoke up.

"What is she supposed to do? Call up the guy and go 'hey! I was just wondering, are you my boyfriend or what exactly?'" Ritaj shot back.

"Eh.. good point." Haifa replied.

"You guys.. I think we're all missing the important issue here!" Dana said.

We all looked up at her expectantly, waiting for her issue to be verbalized.

"Was there or was there not tongue involved??" She asked impatiently.

We all simultaneously threw pillows at her.

"Hey! It's a legitimate question!" She defended herself.

"And a very personal one, don't you think?" I said, trying to dodge the question.

"Hey, don't be mean!" She said and attempted to pout, "I need to live vicariously through you, now tell me!" She replied insistently.

I looked up at all 6 of them who suddenly seemed very interested in the answer. "Well, at-"

The sound of the doorbell interrupted my almost confession and I smiled gratefully at the sky and got up to see who it was. I laughed as the pillows were now being thrown in my direction and walked to the door.

I opened the door to find 3azeez standing there looking at me, I was taken aback, to say the least, by his unexpected arrival.

"Is that how you always answer the door?" He asked as he took in my attire.

I self-consciously pulled down the shorts of my PJs and cleared my throat. I wasn't quite able to look him in the eyes without blushing about what happened earlier.

"What are you doing here?" I asked, trying my best not to make it sound like my heart was about to fly out of my chest.

"Well," he started with a sweet smile, "I kissed this girl at the beach today and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it all day."

"Oh?" I said as I bit back a smile, "And you have the gall to show up at my doorstep and tell me about it?"

He laughed, "Well, it occurred to me as I was smoking, replaying the scene in my head over and over again, that I've never officially asked this girl out.. and I was wondering if that made her feel a little insecure or unsure about my feelings for her.." He trailed off.

I would've laughed if he didn't look so serious, how did he know? "I'm sure the thought never crossed her mind.." I assured him.

"Yeah? Well, just in case she has any doubts about anything, I was wondering if you could deliver a message for her from me?" He asked playfully.

"Depends on what the message is.." I said, playing along.

He took a few steps towards me and closed the distance between us and took my hand into his, "Would you tell her that I've been feeling strangely possessive of her from the moment I laid eyes on her and that those kisses earlier on only reassured me that she is mine now and for always as far as I'm concerned? And that if she wouldn't mind, I'd like very much to take her out tomorrow and show her off to the whole world?" He whispered into my ear.

I blushed and looked down at our hands, "I'm sure I can find a way to let her know." I whispered back.

He tucked a loose strand of hair behind my ear and tipped my chin up, "You do that. Good night."

"Good night." I replied.

Just like that, he kissed the top of my head and walked to his car and drove off. I went back inside the house, closed the door and leaned against it. I found Juju, Joori, Haifa, Sara and the Double D's looking back at me, obviously they had witnessed the whole thing. I finally let out the smile I was hiding from him, squealed and melted against the door. My message tone beeped and I looked down to find a message from him, I opened it.

1 New Message.

Mine;*

I quickly hit the reply button and answered back..

Outgoing message.

Yours;*

Foolish Games.. (10)

2009-03-19T19:15:00.003+03:00

You guuuuuuuys!! I love you guys! *blush* Thank you for all your comments! This is going to be an extra long post cuz you guys freaking rock! So this is dedicated to all of youuu! Hope you guys like it;***
Oh and to answer your questions, I take so long to post lana I'm juggling more subjects than I ever have before at uni and it's totally rape!! :( So, I'm sorry for posting 1.4 times a week but I'll try to post more, pinkie swear!
And Wa7da Qabiya.. still can't help but feel it's offensive to repeat it! ;p Why'd you cry? :O It was a happy post, no?
Aishah.. you're too cute! lol I read your comments as I was writing this!
SlouchyPants.. just wanted to publically mention how amazing you are ;p
I really wanna reply to all your comments bas like.. wayid and I'm lazy.. and I have to finish writing this, bas I'll reply to kilhum next time!
Did I mention that I freaking love you guys? Especially my regular commenters! You guys know who you are;* And all my silent readers.. ah, what the heck, I LOVE KILKUM :p Especially lost! ;* Oh and the anonymouses, too cute lol thank you for speaking up! w RE-CONSIDER PLEASE, LOL you have no idea how much I laughed when I saw your name <3
Okay, next post! Enjoy!

______________________________________________________

-2 weeks later-

It was here. The day I've been dreading since that phone call two weeks ago. It was inevitable and sort of looming above me this entire time but its arrival has just made the reality of facing what's to come so much harder than I initially thought. Khalood was leaving and my heart was shattering into a million tiny pieces.

"You awake?" Juju asked groggily from across the room. "What am I thinking, of course you're awake and showered too if my nose isn't playing games with me."

"Yup." I replied sullenly

"Allah are you using the new shower gel we got last week?"

"Yup."

"Yay, so using it when I find the energy to get up, you smell yummy! And I mean that in the most un-lesbionic sort of way!"

"Thanks."

"You're not up to using full sentences yet, are you?"

"Nope." I confirmed

"Aww baby!!" She cooed as she got up and jumped into bed with me. She wrapped her arms around my shoulders and hugged me tightly, "Don't worry, he'll be back before you know it, I promise!"

I gave her a disgruntled look in response to what she said. Before I know it isn't soon enough, It isn't the same when he's not here. I know that he'll always be there for me no matter what and that he'd drop everything the instant he sensed there was something wrong, but it doesn't compare to the security I feel knowing that he's right around the block, should I ever need him. But it isn't about me and I have to suck it up and not make things harder than they must already be for him.

"Ya 7mara ya3ni mu tarsa 3ainich? Won't I do for the next couple of months? Hmm?"

"Meh." I replied to infuriate her as I shrugged. She gasped in outrage. I hugged her back to make ammends and show her that I was kidding.

"Come on, I know there's nothing more comfortable than your fuzzy robe but you need to get dressed! You said you'd be there at 9 to make breakfast, so yalla! I'm gonna go jump in the shower, try not to fall apart while I'm gone, kay?"

"Shda3wa Juju, I'm fine!" I said as I rolled my eyes at her.

She gasped loudly, "Words! Multiple! Aaaaah!!" She hugged me again and went to the bathroom.

I took a cue from her and got up to get dressed. I didn't feel like dealing with my curls so I towel-dried them, applied a little leave-in conditioner and hoped to god they wouldn't go frizzy. My face on the other hand needed a bit more work, I barely recognized the girl in the mirror, Note to self: Get some sleep!! My skin had a grayish cast to it and my eyes were in desperate need of concealer. I moisturized, applied a little concealer and blush for color. I stared at my mascara for a few minutes and decided I could benefit from a little bit of that too. I shoved my legs into the first pair of jeans that fell out of my closet and paired them up with a black turtleneck and a jean vest. Khalood's parents were travelling and his brothers already said goodbye before they left for work and university that morning.

"Lose the flats, put on the black patent pumps, wear the gold necklace thingie I was wearing yesterday and for the love of god, lipstick!! No negotiations. Stop pouting and do it!"

"Bossy, much?" I asked, she smirked in reply.

I didn't feel like arguing so I automatically did everything she told me to, "That's my girl!" She said as she beamed at me, "Go warm up the car hun, I'll be there in 5!"

I couldn't help but laugh incredulously, "Really? 5 minutes? You're fresh out of the shower and you expect me to believe you'll be ready in 5?"

"Hey!" she replied indignantly, "I'd throw a pillow at you but I don't wanna mess up your face, don't underestimate me bitch, I can do it!"

I laughed and went to the car to do as she said, surprisingly she made it in 10 minutes. Granted, it wasn't the previously discussed 5 minutes but still, quite impressive. I decided to put on a happy face and try to make it a good day. It could be much worse after all, right? We got there 15 minutes later and found 3azeez's car parked out front. I involuntarily felt a smile spreading across my face.

"Oooooo look who's coming around!" She exclaimed as she wiggled her eyebrows at me as we walked slowly through the garden to the house.

I giggled. "Shh, Juju bas!"

"Ghalooy bala malaqa, I haven't done this in over a year! How's it going between you guys 9ij? You never talk about it!"

"It's going well I think, I haven't been talking about it 'cause I really do not want to jinx it? But yeah, it's going okay, we're getting to know each other, he's incredible.. we're taking things slow." I said as I smiled a little to myself.

"Really?" She asked as she raised an eyebrow, "And do you want to be taking it slow?"

She knows me too well, "I don't know? I mean, I don't wanna rush things, but I can't help but feel we're falling a little into the "friends" category? He said he doesn't wanna come on too strong, maybe that's it? He's just giving me space but I don't know.." I trailed off uncertainly.

"Awww look at you all adorable and insecure about you guys! Honey, I've seen the way he looks at you when he thinks nobody's looking, trust me, you are NOT his friend!" She assured me.

I blushed a little, "You really think so?"

"Honeyyy, which one of us has only had one really bad relationship?"

I glared at her, "I am?"

"Right, and which one of us is in a successful two year long relationship?" She asked

"Doing a little backdoor bragging, are we?" I asked, amused.

She laughed, "Maaybe, but that's not the point, trust me when I tell you, the boy is utterly smitten!"

I smiled, feeling much better and rang the doorbell, Khalood answered seconds later with a huge smile that went away when he saw me.

"You look like shit." He said as he wrapped me in a giant bear hug.

I laughed, "Ouch? Thank you very much!"

I looked up to find 3azeez looking at us as he walked to the door. He smiled and I thanked God Khalood was hugging me 'cause at that moment I could've sworn I was going to melt. That face, that dimple, that man. Sigh. I smiled back and mouthed a "Hi."

"7aram 3alaik, she looks pretty damn beautiful to me." He said with utter sincerity. How could I have ever thought we were just friends? I blushed and looked away, my eyes met Ritaj's and she gave me "told you so" smile. I rolled my eyes and squeezed Khaled back tighter before I let go.

"How're you doing?" I asked him

"Better than you are, obviously! What's all this? Laish mu nayma?" He asked, slightly angry.

"I need to get new friends who HAVEN'T known me since I was a kid! I'm fine walla, I'm allowed to be a little sad!

"A little?" he said disbelievingly as he hugged Juju.

"Kaifi! I'm going to go get breakfast started, you better like it!" I threatened as I walked to the kitchen.

I went to the fridge and got out the eggs I needed to make pancakes, waffles and well.. eggs. When I closed the door, I found 3azeez standing behind it. I gasped and accidentally dropped two eggs. Just my luck!

"Sorry," I mumbled as he laughed, "you startled me!"

"Then I'm the one who should be apologizing, don't you think? He asked as he took some of the eggs from me.

"Thank you!" I said gratefully. "How've you been?"

"Not bad, I've missed you though.." He answered.

"Oh?" I asked, "But we talked last night, haven't you had enough of me?" I said, attempting to make it seem like I didn't miss him too.

"We only talked a little and I haven't seen you in days! Besides," He said as he came behind me and whispered in my ear, "I'll never have enough of you."

I blushed and looked up at him, he was directly behind me and our faces were, once again, inches apart. Chills were running up and down my spine as we looked into each other's eyes. We've had many of these moments in the past two weeks, perfect settings for our lips to lock and put me out of my misery. He needs to stop doing that to me, I've never given much thought to my first kiss before but with him, it seems to be all I can think of. His gaze dropped to my lips and I gave up all pretense of breathing. This was it. His turned me around to face him, wrapped his arms around me and leaned in closer as-

"Am I interrupting something? Khalood's voice asked from the kitchen door.

I looked up to find Khalood and Juju's faces looking back at us with very conflicting looks. Ritaj was all jumpy and her eyes were twinkling mischievously, while Khalood looked.. pissed off? I was surprised at his reaction, he seemed to be perfectly fine with the idea of Me and 3azooz in the past.

"3azooz, ta3al wiyay, bakalmik shway." Khalood clipped as he headed for the direction of the living room.

"Busteeeeeeeed!" Ritaj's voice sang out from the door as she skipped happily to me.

3azeez's arms involuntarily dropped from around me and he followed Khaled to the living room.

Ritaj giggled next to me and I smacked her arm lightly, "Chub! Shfeeh Khalood? This isn't like him, what do you think he wants to say to him?" I asked anxiously.

"Shdarani, probably something along the lines of "and if you ever hurt her, I'll cut your thingies off and staple them to your cheeks!" "

I laughed, "Way3a Juuj! Mental image, yuck! He wouldn't say that!"

"Why not, I would! He's been meaning to have that talk with him for a while now but I guess the seriousness of it all just hit him? Plus, he doesn't have much time left, so yeah!"

"What? Min mita? You've known about this w mu gaylatly? Oh my God, walla fashla, he's gonna scare the guy off!"

She burst out laughing, "Wild horses couldn't drive the guy away, 7adda he's gonna be around for a while, I can feel it!" She said, bubbling with excitement, "So if Khalood hadn't interrupted you guys, you would've.." She trailed off suggestively.

I blushed at the thought, "So not ready to talk about it yet! Come on, grab a glass, let's go eavesdrop!"

She giggled excitedly and whispered, "We haven't done this in ages!"

"I know, right?" I whispered back, "Shh I can't hear them!"

Meanwhile...

"What the fuck do you think you're doing?" Khalood asked angrily.

"I thought you didn't have feelings for her?" 3azeez replied calmly.

"Not in the way you think, she's my sister, the least you can do is respect the fact that I'm trusting you with her!"

"Calm down, shda3wa Khalood? I've been nothing but respectable ma3aha, I'm not playing with the girl!" he yelled back.

"Not playing, ha? And what do you call the scene I witnessed earlier? Are you serious about her?"

3azeez drew a deep breath, "I'm crazy about her man, she's not like other girls, there's just something about her that keeps drawing me back to her, I don't know what it is and I don't wanna question it or put a name to it."

"You've been like a brother to me and I respect and value you very much, but if you should hurt her in any way-" Khalood said warningly.

"I know." 3azeez interrupted, "We okay?"

"Until you give me reason not to be, yeah we're cool. Sorry if my reaction was extreme, I just need to leave knowing she's in good hands."

"She is, trust me man, I've never given you reason not to in the past." 3azeez reassured Khaled.

Outside the living room..

"My ears stopped working!" Ritaj whispered to me, "Can you hear anything?" She asked as she pressed the glass harder against the wall.

"Juju, I think I hear footsteps," I said as I stood up straight and away from the wall, "Wakhray quick before-"

The door opened and the guys were standing there, looking at Ritaj with amused looks on their faces.

"Ritaj?" Khaled asked, urging her to explain herself.

"Um.. um.. I uhh," she replied unintelligibly.

I stepped in and took control of the situation, "It's just that we felt like drinking freshly squeezed orange juice and we just got our nails done yesterday and you guys know how clumsy I am, wouldn't wanna chip a nail!" I lied expertly, "So we figured, maybe you boys could put on some cute little aprons and squeeze them for us?" I asked coyly.

3azooz smiled indulgently at me, like he would at a child, said sure and headed for the kitchen right away. Khalood on the other hand looked at our faces, mumbled, "Chipped nails, my ass." and followed 3azeez to the kitchen. Ritaj mouthed a quick thank you to me and we skipped off together after the guys.

The guys left as soon as they finished making the juice, saying that they were "in desperate need of man time" and went off to play videos games. Yeah right, "man time", I rolled my eyes inwardly. We interrupted their game 40 minutes later when we called them in for breakfast, we sat at the kitchen table and ate gigantic stacks of pancakes and Khalood munched on his special waffles, they were his favorite.

As soon as they finished eating, the guys got up to continue their "tournament". We followed them to find out they were playing Street Fighter on the Xbox 360.

"I WANNA PLAY, I WANNA PLAY, I WANNA PLAY!!!" Ritaj screamed excitedly.

I laughed and joined in, "Me too, me too, me too!!"

Ritaj's eyes widened, "Oh my god! GHALA SHOULD TOTALLY PLAY AGAINST 3AZEEZ!!!"

We laughed and looked at each other, "Mm, I'm not sure how much 3azeez'll like me after I embarrass him by kicking his ass.." I taunted.

The guys burst out laughing, "Yalla, wareena sha6artich." 3azeez said, accepting my challenge.

Needless to say, he won. Four times in a row. And yet, I kept asking for rematches! After the sixth time I gave up, "Hey! You wanna see how we used to play when we were kids??" I asked.

He laughed, "Sure, show me!"

The fight started and I proceeded to randomly push all the buttons simultaneously and jumped non-stop, getting closer to the screen every time. Surprisingly it worked and I ended up winning a round for a change. 3azeez couldn't stop laughing at the ridiculous picture I painted, but effective is effective! So I tried it again and ended up losing this time.

"Not fair, it worked the first time!" I said as I pouted.

"Yeah, but the first time, your controller was actually on." He said as he indicated the button wasn't lit anymore.

"Oh, oops." I replied embarrassed and gave up. We gave our controllers to Juju and Khalood and sat down while they screamed at each other just like they did when we were younger.

3azeez got up and changed his seat to the one right next to me on the sofa. I felt goosebumps all over my skin as he looked at me and smiled. He took my hand off of my lap and dropped a kiss onto my palm. I blushed harder than I ever have before and waited for him to let go. He didn't, instead he turned my hand, placed another kiss there and wove his fingers in between mine. My heart quickened at our contact and I knew it would never beat at a normal pace again if he kept looking at me that way. So i broke eye contact and rested my head on his shoulders, I was already getting dizzy from his intoxicating scent.

"How're you feeling?" He asked.

"I'm alright, I've definately been better, but having you here is making things way better." I said and he wrapped an arm around me. I snuggled in deeper against his chest.

"Mm you smell incredible, it's distracting." He murmured into my hair.

I giggled, "A7san, I don't want you to be thinking of anything else but me." I whispered.

"Trust me, ever since I met you, I've practically been unable of thinking of anything else." He replied.

"Uh.. I hate to interrupt your moment, but it's time for me to leave." Khalood announced.

"Already??" I asked as I sat up.

"Yeah babe, I told you I had to be there by 11, it's already 10.30, we really need to get going." He said with a sad smile.

"Are we going in two separate cars?" Ritaj inquired as she fixed her hair in the mirror.

"It makes no sense for us to do that, how 'bout we go in 3azooz's car, and he'll drop you guys off back here later?" Khalood suggested.

"Sure but I already have a ride back, Mshary's picking me up from the airport, do you mind G?"

"Not at all hun, shda3wa, I'm sure 3azooz doesn't bite." I said in a lame attempt at a joke.

He smiled sympathetically at me, picked up Khalood's bag and we all headed to the car. He kept glancing at me through the rear view mirror the entire time to check up on me, I was touched by his concern but hoped he would stop, I wasn't used to being showered with this much attention. It was nice but also a little unsettling, I couldn't let my guard down for one second.

The trip to airport was much shorter than I expected, I reluctantly got out of the car and followed the guys and Ritaj to the departure hall. I still wasn't ready to say goodbye to Khalood yet and briefly debated the merit of buying a ticket, just so I could have a little more time with him before he left.

"So, I guess this is it.." Khalood said as he smiled sheepishly at me.

I couldn't hold back my tears anymore, and started crying silently as he wrapped his arms around me. "Come on Ghalooy, you'll be fine! You have Ritaj and 3azooz, don't worry!" He said in an attempt to comfort me.

"Mabeehum, ikhith'hum ma3ak!" I replied.

He burst out laughing, "Afa! Yalla sweetie, I think we have to let go now.."

I quickly wiped away my tears and let go of him. "I'm going to miss you so much, call me as soon as you get there, I'll never forgive you if you don't!" I threatened.

He laughed again, "I love how you give me the same warning everytime, don't worry, I will. You take care kiddo, alright?"

I nodded. He hugged Ritaj and 3azooz, "You guys take care of her for me, alright?"

"Duh! Like you even had to ask!" Ritaj answered. I looked up to see that she was tearing up as well.

"You can count on it." 3azooz replied, "Bilsalama."

"Allah isalmik 7abeebi." He looked at me, "Are you going to be okay?"

I laughed, "Psh, I'm always okay, you worry too much!" he smiled, unconvinced, but he couldn't do anything about it. He gave me one final hug.

"Alright then, ma3a ilsalama." He took his bag from 3azooz, smiled at us and walked away.

"Mshary's outside, I have to leave as well, you're gonna be fine!" She assured me as she hugged me, "I'll sleep over tonight, we can pig out and talk about boys!" she grinned and left too.

I stared at his figure as he walked away, I couldn't tear my eyes away. I couldn't help but feel a little lost without him, he's such a big part of who I am and the distance kills me. But I had to learn how to depend on myself, I needed to be stronger and to not fall apart whenever he left. As much as I loved him and knew that he loved me too, he wouldn't always be mine. I accepted that, but it still didn't stop the tears from running down my face with every step he took. I kept watching him til he disappeared in the crowd.

"Ghala.. yalla 7abeebti we have to go.."

I looked up, I had forgotten that 3azeez was there the whole time. I silently walked over to him, put my arms around him and cried into his chest. His arms automatically wrapped around me.

"Baby, this is torture walla, I can't see you like this, jad it's killing me." He whispered as he wiped away my tears.

"I'm sorry," I managed to stammer and tried to control myself, I knew I couldn't as long as we were at the airport, "yalla let's go."

"You don't look like you're in any state to drive.. how about I take you home and I'll bring your car to you?" He suggested.

"Actually, I don't think I'm ready to go home yet.. Do you mind dropping me off at the beach?" I asked tentatively.

"Not at all, do you mind if I joined you?" He asked smilingly as he reached out and held my hand.

"Not at all." I replied as I smiled back.

Foolish Games.. (9)

2009-03-14T13:25:00.001+03:00

You guys! I'm contemplating being mean and not posting itha you don't comment, cuz I'm starting to think the story SUCKS! I heart feedback =( fa change my mind! ;p

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I laughed off the sudden chills that rushed through my spine, "You're not supposed to talk! It defeats the whole purpose of covering my eyes!" I said nervously.

He removed his hands and I turned around to face him. "I had no idea 'guess who' had so many rules for me to follow," he replied with a cheeky smile.

"It's common sense, bozo." Ritaj said from behind him, mimicking my voice perfectly.

He looked at me with the most confused expression on his face, it took all my strength not to burst out laughing. It was as if he thought i was a ventriloquist of some sort, my mouth didn't move but he was certain the words came from me. I settled on a smile and motioned for him to turn around.

"Oh! The Ritaj Ghala!" He said as comprehension suddenly dawned on him.

"The Ritaj Ghala?" Juju asked with a raised eyebrow, "Are you forming an obsession with my best friend that leads you to add her name to everyone elses?"

He laughed. "Not quite, but if i did," he paused to look directly at me before continuing, "do you blame me?"

I could feel my blushes reaching all the way down to my toes, i tore my eyes away from his and looked at Juuj instead who was looking quite impressed by his answer.

"Nicely done, my friend. You were right about him, I totally approve, G!" She said while winking at me.

He was still facing me and his smile widened into a huge grin. I mentally shot Ritaj a warning look to watch her words. I was aware of the fact that she probably wasn't going to get it but stranger things have happened, right? His standing in front of me right now was proof enough of that.

"So, you've been talking about me, huh?" He asked teasingly.

"Hey! NO! Flirt later! That's the second time I see you and we still haven't been properly introduced, you need to officially meet me so that one day lama the press comes to interview you can tell them how awesome it was and how awesome I am, followed by a "..and that's the day I met Ritaj Al-Flani.." you know?" she said with a huge smile.

"Planning to set the world on fire are you?" He asked with a smile of his own.

"No, just Kuwait! I'm going to be a wazeera some day." She informed him.

He shot me an amused look before answering her, "And you want the guy who's interested in your best friend to state how wonderful you are? The guy who you met at some random party? A mixed party?"

Ritaj looked horrified, "Riiiight.. This conversation never happened, I was never here!" She said as she backed away slowly into some guy, knocking his drink over.

"Ohmygod i'm so sorry! Here I'll get you another one!" She apologized quickly before looking up at his face, "OH inta! Hi! 3adi 3ayal Come on let's go!" she said as she was tugging on his arm.

Mshary looked at me with an exasperated look on his face and nodded a greeting. I laughed and waved back before Ritaj whisked him away.

"Who was that?" 3azeez asked curiously.

"That was the future Mr. Ritaj." I stated confidently as I smiled at him.

"You look incredible."

I laughed nervously and looked down, I didn't want him to see me blush! "That was random."

"Not really," he said as he tipped my chin up so I could face him, his expression seemed sincere, "I've been thinking it all night. My eyes have been glued to you ever since you walked in, I've just been waiting for an opportunity to say it."

My blush intensified, "Thanks, you don't look too bad yourself!" I replied lamely.

"Come on, you can do better than that," he teased with a flirtatious smile, "stroke my ego a little."

I looked at him disbelievingly, "Honey, in all honestly, your ego doesn't seem like it needs much stroking to me."

He laughed, "Am I that transparent?"

"Only a little bit!" I replied. "Wain Khalood? I haven't seen him all night."

"He left right before I came to talk to you, supplies were running low, he went to get more food for Jen."

"Oh, alright. And how do you know Jen?" I asked politely, dying to make any conversation that didn't make me nervous or blush stupidly.

"Well, in a moment of utter stupidity, I was her older sister's boyfriend back in high school. It lasted about a month? We're good friends now."

"Oh?" I asked, slightly disappointed. In the back of my mind I knew it was unrealistic for me to expect him not to have a past, but I didn't want it to be someone I could put a face to. At least that way, I could pretend she was hideous with 6 toes on each foot and warts. Lots and lots of warts. All over her face and body.

"Yeah, we all have skeletons in our closets, right?"

"Truer words have not been spoken." I replied as I took another sip of my drink.

"Oh?" It was his turn to seem disappointed now, he looked utterly dejected, I found it slightly offensive.

"You can't have a past and expect me to have a clean slate, double standards, much?" I said defensively.

"Down girl," he said teasingly, "I don't have any expectations of you, I just don't like the idea of you with anyone else, would it be to soon to admit that I'm jealous?"

I smiled, slightly mollified, "Probably, but i'm glad you are." I said honestly.

"I don't know about you, but I could use some fresh air, do you want to take a walk?"

Did I want to take a walk? Seriously? At this point I could follow him to the ends of the earth! But still, I was a little hesitant and he seemed to pick up on it.

He gave me another charming smile, "I'm not a closet rapist and I don't have a history of killing women, stuffing them in my trunk and driving off to an undisclosed location to bury them. Now will you please come with me?"

I couldn't stop laughing, "Gee, I don't know.. Your description seems a little too accurate for comfort!" I said teasingly.

"Then I guess you'll just have to take a leap of faith milady." He said with another grin.

"Alright, you charmed me into it, lead the way!"

I took out my phone to let Ritaj know where I'd be, just in case she tries to find me.

Outgoing Message

Juuj! Going for a walk with 3azeez!

1 New Message
Juju;*

Ooo don't do anything i wouldn't do ;p wink wink

Outgoing Message

lol! wiggle wiggle ;p kharaaab! ya kalba shh don't give me ideas!

1 New Message
Juju;*

I stand firmly by what i said! hmph.

We were outside now, 3azeez stopped suddenly and I walked into him. "Sorry, I have no sense of coordination whatsoever!"

"It's alright, Khalood told me a couple of interesting stories about that," he replied teasingly.

"Which ones?!!" I exclaimed, my face burning with embarrassment.

He laughed, "I'm not at liberty to say! But," he paused, "there's something I've been dying to do all evening."

"Oh? And what's that?" I asked nervously.

He closed the space between us and leaned in so that there was only an inch or two separating our faces. I stopped breathing, I wanted to ask him what he was doing but I couldn't seem to form a coherent sentence. Was he going to kiss me? Was I going to let him?

"Close your eyes." He instructed.

I looked at him incredulously, yeah right I was going to close my eyes. I shook my head. I wasn't ready for this!

He looked amused, "Trust me?"

I shot him another disbelieving look.

He laughed, "Alright then, make a wish."

I wish you'd get whatever it is you're doing over with already!

"You done?" he asked, I nodded. "Alright, which side?"

"Huh?" I asked confused.

"It speaks!" he teased and repeated insistently, "Your face, which side?"

I had no idea what he was doing, I just pointed stupidly at the right side. He brushed his finger over my right cheek, and showed it to me.

It was an eyelash.

Yes.

An eyelash.

I could've died of mortification right then and there.

He blew it away and smiled knowingly at me, "According to superstition, your wish is going to come true." He winked and continued walking.

I just stood there, staring at his back. Then what just happened hit me and I felt incredibly stupid. I didn't even have it in me to blush anymore, I gave up all pretense of feigning normalcy or nonchalance and burst out laughing. I covered my face with both my hands and just kept on laughing til I lost the ability to breathe.

He looked back at me and joined in until my laughter eventually died out, "Your laughter is very contagious but I'm dying to know what's so funny?"

"I can't believe i thought you wanted to-" I couldn't even continue the sentence and I dissolved into another fit of giggles.

"You thought i wanted to what?" he asked curiously, but it was obvious he knew what I was going to say.

"Never mind!"

He laughed, "You thought I wanted to kiss you?"

"Don't laugh!" I said as my face turned red again, "I don't know how these things work!"

"You don't?" His face lit up, "You've never been kissed?"

Mortification. "Shh, why don't you alert the media! No, I haven't, why are we discussing this?!"

"Alright, I'll let it go under one condition.."

"You're gonna make me talk about myself, aren't you?" I asked, already dreading it.

"Start at the womb and don’t you dare miss a detail!" He said teasingly, repeating the same words I said to him at starbucks.

"Aah Karma, you've got me, once again! I can't talk about myself you're going to have to ask me questions, I'll answer honestly! Pinkie swear!"

We walked for about two hours on the beach, it wasn't as awkward as I expected it to be. I felt really comfortable and safe around him for some reason, untouchable. I also felt naked, the questions he asked seemed to pierce right through all the walls I'd put up and I had no choice but to answer honestly. He laughed when I told him about the all kinds of trouble I got into as a kid with Juuj, promised to tease Khalood about how we first met, sobered up when the situation with my parents was clarified, and glowed with pride as he told me that I did a great job of raising myself.

"You implied earlier that you've had previous bad experiences with relationships.." He trailed off.

"Previous bad experience," I corrected, "Just the one relationship."

"Oh?" He seemed a little pleased with my answer, "Care to elaborate?" He inquired.

"Some other time?" I asked pleadingly, "It's just been so perfect and I'd hate to spoil the evening with talking about him."

His face lit up, "Perfect enough for us to exchange numbers?"

I laughed at his eagerness, "More like, perfect enough for us to exchange e-mails."

"I don't see any reason why we can't exchange both.." he said suggestively, "come on, how much longer am I gonna have to wait?"

"I'm not playing games with you 3azooz, but are you aware it's barely been a week? Don't you think things are progressing a little too fast?" I asked, worried.

"I know I should be, but the chemistry has been there since day one. I thought we were inevitable the minute I pulled that pencil out of your hair, and my suspicions were confirmed later on that night when I picked Joori up and reconfirmed again everytime I hear you speak, or learn something new about you. I know it might scare you, but I can't seem to get you off my mind. And I don't think I want to. I'm not going to pressure you into anything, I'm certainly not forcing a relationship on you, but everything about you seems to captivate me and I just want to get to know you better, so what do you say?"

I couldn't tear my eyes off of his, the intensity of his gaze was overwhelming and for a few minutes, I seemed to have forgotten how to draw breath. I silently held out my hand. He understood and placed his phone in it. I punched in my number and gave it back to him, never breaking eye contact.

"I hope you realize that this isn't something I do very often, or at all and that I'm trusting you with this."

"I do and I promise I won't abuse that trust." He said as he smiled reassuringly.

"Thank you." I smiled back, "Juju's been texting me for the past 10 minutes or so, she's waiting for me in the car.. So I guess this is goodnight?"

"For now? Sure, goodnight. But I want you to be the last person I hear from before I actually go to sleep, do you mind if I call to hear you say it again later?"

"Only if you stop looking at me like that, you're making it harder for me to leave.."

"I can't, but I will close my eyes for exactly 10 seconds for you to walk away without having me looking at you, how's that?"

"I'll take it!" I said enthusiastically and walked away as fast as I could. I looked back once, only to catch him looking at me and quickly closing his eyes, trying not to smile and failing miserably. I laughed, shook my head and walked faster.

I got into the car with the goofiest grin on my face and sighed.

"How was it?" Ritaj asked excitedly.

"Magical."

Foolish Games.. (8)

2009-03-07T23:45:00.000+03:00

So, so, so sorry for being late! forgive me? =(

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“Well, you seem like a resourceful man, I’m sure you’ll come up with something.”

Really? What was I thinking?! I can’t seem to stop mentally kicking myself for the stupidity of my words! Sure, it seemed like a good idea to be a little standoffish at first but is it too soon to admit that I miss him? It’s only been three days, but did I really want to be playing these games with him? Maybe he’ll change his mind about wanting me? I keep fantasizing about different scenarios, where would we be if I had given him my number…? But in all honesty, I wouldn’t have been true to myself and I would’ve been kicking myself for completely different reasons.. Maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea after all, I might treat myself to some ice cream later when we’re done with brunch, maybe cookie dough, or rainbow, or pralines and cream, or-

“Ghalooy, is there any particular reason why your eyes have suddenly widened about 3 inches?” asked Khalood, interrupting my thoughts.

I giggled, “Would you believe me if I said I was debating which ice cream flavor I’m treating myself to?”

“7imdillah wilshiker,” He said theatrically, “So what’s the verdict?”

“You’re so mean, it’s a fundamental part of our lives tara! Where would we be without those never-ending spoonfuls of iced chocolate comfort to nurse us through really tough breakups? Or like that huge inviting tub of strawberries and cream at the end of an especially long day? Or like, the strangely yummy texture of cookie dough melting in your mouth to celebrate the very wise decision of not seeming too available to a guy who’s smart, funny, gorgeous, and into you-“

“You sure “celebrate” is the correct word? You do realize that your little speech got a little less enthusiastic with every word you used to describe 3azooz?” Khalood said with an amused grin.

“3az-who now? I don’t know what or who you’re talking about.” I declared as I rolled my eyes.

He raised a challenging eyebrow, “There’s no use denying anything babe, from the looks you two were giving each other the other day, it’s a wonder you didn’t set the place on fire.”

I blushed, was I really that transparent? Were the alleged looks I was unwittingly receiving real? Or was this going to turn into another monumental mistake?

“Besides, what you didn’t tell me, I’ve already filled in with bits and pieces I’ve gotten from Ritaj or the object of your desire himself, so are you going to drop the act and let me Dr. Phil you through this? I really have perfected the accent you know..” He trailed off with another grin.

I shoved my face into one of the pillows on the sofa and mumbled, “Do I have to?”

“I’m afraid so,” He enunciated in a perfect imitation of a heavy Texan drawl, “What has been troubling you?”

I burst out laughing and smacked him with the pillow, “You really have been practicing, I can’t take you seriously with that accent!”

“Khalaa9 3ayal, I’ll drop it, but I’m sure you have about a million questions in your head, so ask away, get some of them out of your system!”

“You know me too well,” I said as I glared at him and proceeded to launch into a series of questions, “What has he said about me? Do you think he really likes me? Is he a good guy? I mean, 3inda suwalif minnee or minaak? Has he asked about me lately? Does he currently have a girlfriend? Is he messing with me? I mean, we just met, how can he know that he “wants me”? How tall is he? Does he-“

“Tadreen, 7addich mu kafo a7ad ikhaleech tis2ileena ay shay! I know that I let you paint ONE toenail turquoise in a moment of extreme stupidity over a decade ago, but I’m not turning this into a he said/she said session, you have Ritaj and Haifa for that!” He said, feigning irritation.

“But Khaloooooood-“

“La “but Khalood” wala ghaira! Bismillah, sh’hal as2ila, do I look like a psychic to you? W shako 6oola bil salfa!” He asked, incredulous at the question.

“What?” I said looking down at the floor, “I’m curious, sue me!”

“7imdillah wilshiker,” he said as he shook his head and laughed, “you trust me, right?”

I nodded, “Wholeheartedly.” I said with complete sincerity.

He smiled, “Good, then believe me when I tell you that he is not S3oud.”

I looked away and fiddled with the zipper of the pillow.

“No, babe, look at me.”

I looked up reluctantly, I couldn’t help but feel a little uneasy whenever he was mentioned, that’s one thing that hasn’t changed in the past year.

“I know 3azooz very well. He is not a good guy, he’s a great guy and one of the very, very, VERY few people I’d trust with my little sister, so trust me on this one, okay?”

I nodded and smiled tentatively, “What if I get hurt again? What if he ends up being like S3oud?” I asked.

“He won’t be,” He said with absolute confidence, “but if he does, 7saaba ma3aay.”

“See? That’s the other thing! I don’t wanna come between you guys, what if this doesn’t work out?”

He smiled, “Typical Ghala! And what if, you drop the pessimism for once and take a chance on something that could turn out to be everything you ever wanted?”

I laughed, “I’m still not buying it man, you gotta give me a little more to go on! What has he said about me?” I asked again.

“How ‘bout you come out with us tonight and find out for yourself firsthand what he really thinks about you?” He said with a huge smile.

I should’ve known he had something up his sleeve the whole time. I rolled my eyes, “What did you have in mind?”

“Well, remember Jen from school?” He continued without waiting for confirmation, “She’s throwing a party in honor of, well, herself. We’ve both been invited and maybe you could come? Ghayray jaw at least and you can get to know him better, what do you have to lose?

Oh, nothing, just this fragile little thing beating erratically in my rib cage, but other than that? Nothing. “Alright, I’ll go, but only if I can bring Juuj!”

“Whatever gets you there!” He said, grinning triumphantly.

--- 3 hours later---

“I have no clothes! How come I never have clothes? Do I ever go shopping?!” I asked Ritaj furiously later on that night.

“Religiously, almost as often as breathing actually!” she said teasingly, “You’re making a huge deal out of this, it isn’t that important, really!”

We were in my room, surrounded by a huge pile of clothes that didn’t seem adequate enough for tonight’s party. “What do you mean “isn’t that important”?” I said as I gasped loudly.

“I mean, lighten up! You’ll look gorgeous in whatever you finally decide on and as long as you’re there, I really don’t think he’ll mind!” She assured me, “What about this?” She asked, holding up a short, bright turquoise dress.

“I want to impress the guy, not blind him!” I said skeptically.

She laughed and threw a pillow at me, “Shda3wa! Bil 3aks I think the color would look great with your skin and it’d really bring out your eyes! Plus, it’s short, and we all know how well your legs were received the last time they were on display!” She said, wiggling her eyebrows.

“Very funny.” I said dryly, “It’s too tight anyway, I would like the ability to breathe in his presence thank you very much!”

“HA! Breathe, it’tha7keen, you did such a great job at that the time he picked up Joori, I thought you were going to pass out from lack of breath!”

I blushed, “Do you blame me?”

“Not even a tiny bit!” she sighed and we both dissolved into giggles.

“Okay, let’s narrow it down!” I announced, “Jeans or dress?”

“Dress!” she answered with a little too much enthusiasm.

“Tights, no tights?”

“Tights!” she screamed again.

“Purple or-“

“Purple!”

“Juuj!” I exclaimed sternly.

“Sorry I got a little too excited!” She said, unrepentantly, “But you really should wear purple, in fact, you should wear the dress with the poofy skirt thingie!”

“Grey jersey top thing? Plum, dark grey and pink blocks on the skirt?”

She nodded excitedly, “With grey tights and your short purple cardigan thingie!”

“I love you, I think it might work! Heels or flats?”

Her eyes lit up, “CONVERSES!”

“Juju!” I laughed and threw back the pillow she smacked me with earlier at her, “Tone down the excitement? I’m not butchering the outfit with converses, I’m cutting you off, no more red bull!”

“You suck!” she cried out, hugging her almost empty can tightly, “It would’ve looked awesome with green converses, you’re just allergic to color, that’s all!”

“And you apparently eat rainbows for breakfast and color your wardrobe accordingly, that’s all!”

I left everything in the hands of a very hyper Ritaj who ended up choosing purple flats and arranged my hair in curls and waves framing my lightly makeuped face; concealer, mascara and lip gloss. I figured he’d take care of the blush part. I didn’t want it to seem like I put too much effort into my appearance for him, I’ve decided to set the bar low, well, semi-low.

My thoughts proved to be correct an hour later when we arrived at the party. My radar seemed to have instantly found his whereabouts and I was greeted by his extremely appreciative gaze, I blushed wildly under his close scrutiny. He nodded and smiled at me, flashing that dimple and making my heart beat at a frenzied pace. I smiled back tentatively and followed Juju to go say hi to old friends and acquaintances.

Not going to make the chase easier for him. My words echoed in my head. He’ll come find me. And he did, half an hour later when he closed his hands over my eyes and I heard the deep timbre of his voice, “Guess who?”

Foolish Games.. (7)

2009-02-24T09:45:00.002+03:00

I had no idea where to start. I couldn’t stop looking at him, if I kept this up I wouldn’t even have to explain to Khalood the predicament I’m in, he could easily guess it all. He started walking toward us, sending my mind into overdrive trying to think of one sentence to summarize my sudden uneasiness. I debated the success of attempting to turn back time with my eyes, but after a few squints, I realized it wasn’t getting me anywhere.

“Ghala.. you know that thing you do where you talk in your head and expect everyone else to hear it and understand?”

I nodded absently, still staring back at 3abdil3azeez, “What about it?” I managed to whisper

He adopted my hushed tones and whispered back, “Yeah, it’s not working babe, you’re gonna have to use your words.”

I gave myself a mini-pep talk in my head; Alright G, words, sentences, structure, coherency, you can do it, GO!

I managed to tear my eyes away from his, hoping that I’d regain my composure and the ability to speak properly, words G, WORDS! I looked back at Khalood.

“Mmm boy..” I said unintelligibly as I subtly moved my head in 3abdil3azeez‘s direction. Right, so much for coherency. I decided to try again, “Phone fell, he stepped on battery! Pencil in hair, he pulled it out! Ritaj’s friend’s cousin!!!!”

“Right..” He said as he nodded at me, pretending he understood.

I nodded back emphatically, easily fooled and quietly thanking god for my ability to communicate so well under pressure. Idiot.

“Hold that thought, thiwany bas w arid..”

“Okay.” I mumbled, fighting back the urge to latch myself onto his leg and make him take me wherever he was going, he CANNOT leave me here alone with him, it’s a disaster waiting to happen, it’s unbelievable, inconceivable, un-

My train of thoughts crashed and burned as I saw him walking up to 3abdil3azeez with a huge grin on his face and the next thing I heard was..

“Bo S3ayed!” He exclaimed as they hugged briefly, enthusiastically clapping their hands on each other’s backs.

“7imdillah 3ala ilsalaama!” 3abdil3azeez replied, with his own grin plastered on his face.

My ears switched off as I retreated to my own thoughts again. Wait, what was happening here? What was I missing? I imagine I looked quite silly sitting there by myself, staring down at my coffee cup waiting for it to answer back.

It didn’t get the chance to utter a response. Two large figures cast shadows on my table interrupting my thoughts once again. I looked up expectantly to find Khalood’s face smiling brightly at me and 3abdil3azeez’s smiling at me.. Apologetically?

“I want you to meet my friend, 3azooz,” Khaled said to me.

He stuck out his hand, I looked at it questioningly before deciding to shake it. I hoped to god neither of them saw my sharp intake of breath. The contact sizzled, his hands were so warm and I couldn’t help but feel a little lightheaded at the mere thought of his hands on mine. I reluctantly withdrew my hand and bit back a smile. We touched. For the briefest of moments we touched and it was perfect. Snap out of it G!

“3azooz, this is my better half, Ghala.” He said teasingly as he winked at me. I rolled my eyes.

“Umm.. We’ve actually already met,” 3azeez informed a surprised Khalood.

“Really? You don’t say?” He said as he lifted an inquisitive eyebrow, “It wouldn’t have anything to do with pencils, cousins and broken phones, would it?”

I blushed and stared at my lap, pretending to be absorbed with the fabric of my dress. It’s just like Khalood to say something like that and inadvertently make me feel stupid.

I heard 3azeez’s uneasy laughter, what was wrong with him? “Yeah man, about that, I’m-”

“Hold on! Sorry, I really have to take this phone call” He said, interrupting 3azeez.

Something weird was going on, why did 3azeez look so guilty? What was he about to say? I looked up to find him staring at me, he quickly looked away when he saw me. Weird. He was different today, not teasing, not flirtatious, not the 3azeez I knew. Well, barely knew. I felt like saying something about how he found us, but I didn’t really owe him an explanation, after all, who was he to me? Barely an acquaintance, granted, my feelings might be running a bit deeper than that, but I still felt like I didn’t owe him anything. I decided to make small talk.

“So how do you know Khalood?” I asked politely.

“Huh?” He looked at me blankly. I guess I must’ve intruded his thoughts, he obviously wasn’t paying attention.

“You? Khalood? How do you guys know each other?” I repeated my question.

“Oh, sorry, guess I must’ve spaced out.” Again with the apologies, this was getting weird, “We met a couple of years back in the summer, he came down to the states, we met through mutual friends and sorta hit it off.”

Interesting choice of words. “Oh? And who asked who out?” I said teasingly, hoping he’d return to his old self.

“I didn’t mean it like that!” He said while laughing.

Better, much better. He smiled at me, flashing that dimple, when he stopped laughing, I’m glad he finally felt comfortable again, he seemed really tense. I smiled back and his smile seemed to fade almost instantly. What the hell?

“Listen, I need to apologize, 7addi miftishil madri where to start..” He trailed off.

Apologize? Miftishil? Min shino? My eyebrows furrowed as I waited for him to reply.

“Umm.. Ghala?”

I belatedly realized I hadn’t asked those things out loud, “Sorry! I was talking in my head, forgot you can’t hear me! Why do you need to apologize? Laish miftishil?”

He opened his mouth to reply and Khalood showed up, “I’m really sorry to bail on you like this G, bas il3ayla ilkareema showed up unexpectedly at our house and I can’t get out of it.”

I laughed, “It’s fine hun, shda3wa? At least I got to see you!” I said as I beamed and got up to hug him, momentarily forgetting 3azeez’s presence. He squeezed me back and kissed the top of my head. I noticed 3azeez looked away.

“You don’t wanna come with?” He asked, with his arm around my waist. Khalood had all brothers, his parents always said I was the daughter they never had and were used to me being over at his place.

“And have to deal with your pervert cousins? NO, THANK YOU!”

He laughed, gave me a final small hug and said, “I’ll call you after your exam, shiday 7ailich, haa? Make me proud!”

“Yes, mom!” I said in my most perfect little school girl voice.

He laughed and addressed 3azeez, “Shift shlon ilrespect? Yalla 7abeebi inshoofk ha?”

“Ee akeed, allah ma3ak.”

“You guys should hang out, get to know Ghalooya shway, she’s pretty damn great once you get past the brattiness!”

I checked the impulse to flip him off and decided to stick my tongue out to further display my alleged “brattiness”. He just laughed and walked away.

-Awkward Silence-

He wouldn’t as much as LOOK in my direction. I touched my hair to make sure it wasn’t replaced any snakes. Nope, still me! Not going to turn anyone into stone! I sucked in some air and decided to make the first move.

“You’re still sitting down, do I interpret that as you taking Khalood up on his suggestion?” I ventured.

“Not quite.” He clipped.

Okaay, dagra much? I looked down embarrassedly. He was just making innuendos and suggestions two days ago what happened? Inzain itha mu 3aajbik, GET UP! This is MY table after all.

He realized what he said and quickly amended, “No, I don’t mean it like that, I just don’t think it’d be very wise of us to have a friendship of any kind considering our past? Or your present.” He looked at where Khaled was standing as he said present.

I was beyond confused, “I’m not sure I understand..?”

“Look, I’m not that guy okay? I won’t be stealing my friend’s girl and I sure as hell won’t be sneaking around his back with her, alright? I wanted to apologize for overstepping my limit the other night, I had no idea you were taken, in my defense, you made no move to signify that you were. You may not have any qualms about cheating on your boyfriend but I do. I might want you, but I won’t do that to Khalood.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa… WHOA! Hold your horses, do I at least get to explain before I’m branded with the scarlet letter? Or whatever letter, I’m not really an adulteress, okay maybe wrong metaphor, anyway, YEAH! Can I explain?”

He looked slightly amused but trying to hide it, “Go ahead.” He clipped.

I didn’t know where to start, what was I explaining again? Oh yeah, I’m contemplating cheating on my boyfriend Khalood with 3azeez. I burst out laughing, really? Khalood, my boyfriend? Just thinking of it sent me into another fit of giggles.

“I’d appreciate it if you didn’t laugh at me.” He looked so serious, it was adorable, I wanted to pinch he cheeks suddenly and the thought of doing that to the same man sitting in front of me with the stony eyes and hard jaw and beyond pissed off face was so funny, I started laughing again.

He got up to leave, “I see that it’s no use even trying to carry out a proper conversation with you.”

“No, no, no! I wasn‘t laughing at you I swear,” I quickly sobered up, “Stay, please? I‘d hate for you to leave with so many misconceptions”

I bit back a smile while waiting for his reply. He said he wanted me. He. Wants. Me.

“Many misconceptions?” He asked.

“TONS!” I replied as I bit back another smile. I knew in the back of my mind I should be offended by his implication that I would ever cheat, but I understood how it must’ve seemed like to him. And I was too busy being flattered by the fact that he wants me. He. Wants. Me.

“I’m listening.” He clipped. He needs to stop being so abrupt with me, it’s strangely making me want to jump on him.

I didn’t know where to start so I just began with the biggest misconception, “Khalood’s not my boyfriend.” I looked up to gauge his reaction, he looked like he didn’t believe me! “Walla! He’s my best friend of thirteen years. He’s the brother I never had. He’s an invaluable member of my family, but he most certainly is not my boyfriend.”

I saw a smile dancing around his lips. Yes, baby, you can do it! Smile for Ghala! Come on, come on!!! Success. He smiled. Sigh.

“You really should stop doing that, you’re tempting me to stuff cotton balls into that dimple!” I said, pretending to be mad at him.

His smile turned into full-blown laughter, now THIS was more like it. “Okay, now I really DO owe you an apology.”

“Oh, yes you do.” I said teasingly. “But I have some thoughts on how you can make it up to me.”

“Oh?” He raised his eyebrow, “How am I gonna do that?”

“Well,” I started, “I have two hours to kill before I need to be heading back to uni and I’m in desperate need for entertainment! So, story of your life, GO! Start at the womb and don’t you dare miss a detail!” I threatened.

He burst out laughing, “You’re crazy, you know that, right?”

I sighed, “I’ve been told, don’t change the subject!”

“Alright, alright..” It was very informative to say the least, he could surprisingly remember a lot of details. I discovered he was the youngest of 5, and was graduating this spring. He was also studying business, double majoring in finance and accounting. Wow. He regaled me with stories from his childhood and pranks from his middle school days and , to my utter dismay, stories about girls from his high school and early college days. I glanced my watch, it was 5:10, I freaked out!

“No, no, no, no!” I said as I looked up. “My midterm is in 20 minutes! I really need to get going! I’m sorry, I lost track of time.”

“Don’t apologize, that means you were having fun. And having fun with me, even better.” He said as he smiled at me flirtatiously.

There was something about his smile that never failed to make me blush, I looked away as I got up and straightened out my dress.

I saw him eyeing my legs and raised his eyebrows at me.

“Don’t even start!” I threatened.

“Hey, I’m not complaining.” He said as he stretched. I glared at him.

I threw a sugar packet at him, where did the sudden familiarity come from? He laughed at my indignation.

“So, not with Khalood?” He asked again.

“Definitely not.” I answered smilingly.

“So, I’m free to pursue you? So to speak.” He asked flirtatiously.

I laughed, “I won’t make the chase any easier for you..” I warned.

“Afa! Inzain, how bout we start with a number?”

“Hmm, how bout we don’t? Bye 3azeez.” I flashed him a smile as I walked away.

“Come on, you have to give me something!” He called out.

I turned around, “Well, you seem like a resourceful man, I’m sure you’ll come up with something.” I winked and walked away.

That day opened up a lot of maybes. I was proud of myself for not automatically reciting my number for him, I marveled over my self control. Maybe it could in fact be this easy. Maybe it didn’t have to end in heartache. Maybe I won’t be disappointed by him. Maybe I shouldn’t put so much hope into this but maybe, just maybe, my hope’s not misplaced this time.

Foolish Games.. (6)

2009-02-19T09:45:00.001+03:00

“You sure you don’t mind?” I asked Haifa on the way to Starbucks.

“La, it’s fine, shda3wa? It’s only Khaled.” She replied and flashed a smile.

It’s only Khaled. Right. If she only knew.

I smiled back and hooked up my Ipod to the sound system.

“Be my DJ?” I asked smilingly as if bestowing a great honor. I never let anyone choose songs while I’m in the same car and while finding a song to suit my mood, I let everything play for the span of two seconds before changing it, or coincidentally, just long enough for someone to get into it before changing it! It’s a coincidence, honest! But I can see how it may be perceived as infuriating by some.

She grinned widely and grabbed the Ipod, “BABY! I thought you’d never ask!” Seconds later, the speakers were blaring her newest obsession, Pitbull-Krazy.

We sang along to the repetitive lyrics while dancing and laughing and soon arrived at our destination. Haifa called her driver and instructed him to pick her up in half an hour. We walked in and greeted the staff.

“What can I get you?” Asked the giggling Philipino behind the counter. He was by far Haifa’s favorite member of the Starbucks family in all branches.

“Hi!” She beamed brightly, “I’ll have a double mocha macchiato and she’ll have a caramel macchiato.. What about Khaled?” She asked me.

“I’m almost tempted to get him a macchiato ba3ad to keep the trend going but he just woke up and if I want him to make any sense whatsoever, I need to get him something STRONG!” I thought out loud, their coffee is pretty weak anyway but I had to pick something, “Umm, a double shot espresso please!”

We paid and went upstairs to sit down, the place looked like it was deserted but we didn’t mind. It’s more comfortable this way anyway. Haifa got out a piece of paper with formulas on it and started revising.

I played with my phone while waiting for the drinks and Khalood to arrive. I’m very fidgety by nature, my fingers have to be moving at all times, whether I was playing with my hair or clicking a pen. I also have a tendency to bite my thumb, not suck on it, not bite the nails, just a habit of biting the skin on the pad of it, I have no idea how it started but it’s been that way for as long as I can remember.

I heard footsteps coming up the stairs and glanced up hopefully, I wasn’t disappointed. There he was, my Khaled, my family. I remembered how he stood by me during all the fights over the past years, how he’s always been my rock through all the drama I’ve been through and how I knew I could always count on him to make everything better. I saw his face stretch into a grin and felt an involuntary lump rising in my throat and and my eyes welled up with tears, it was as if all the pieces have finally fallen into place and I was finally home.

“Waaaaaaai daloooo3aaaaaaaa!” Haifa teased when she saw me at the verge of tears.

“Hehe, chub!” I sniffed and carefully wiped a tear that was precariously close to spilling down my cheek, smudged eyeliner does NOT become me. I got up when he reached our table and he enveloped me in a giant bear hug, effectively cutting off my air supply. My feet were no longer on the floor and were thrashing about wildly.

“Khalood! Put me down!!” I demanded.

As always, he ignored me and proceeded to spin me around, “Btibcheen?” He asked forcefully as he stopped, held me up and shook me.

“La2, walla la2!” I said as I squealed, my peals of laughter filling up the empty café. He set me back on the ground and I wobbled a little while regaining my balance. I held on to his arm for support.

“Zain, I didn’t want to have to resort to tickling you!”

I gasped dramatically and smacked his arm, “AKSIR EEDIK!” I threatened.

“Laa? Gimna inhadid ashoof? Ashwa innich 6ool my thumb!” he said disbelievingly as he put his arm around me kissed the top of my head. I stuck my tongue out, pushed him away and sat back down again.

“Haifa shlonich?” He inquired as he took the seat across from her and smiled warmly.

She returned the smile and replied, “Tamam il7imdilla, inta shloonik?”

“Doum inshalla, ana bkhair damich bkhair bas jetlagged!”

“La 3ad, sh-hal 3ayara? Kilha 3 sa3aat!”

“7ata law! Tifrig!” He insisted.

She laughed her musical laughter, “If you say so!” She agreed, still not convinced. Her phone rang and she picked it up. Turns out her driver was outside and came earlier than she expected. As if on cue , our drinks arrived the same moment she got up. “Magic, I swear! Khalaas 3ayal, I’ll see you at 5?”

“Sh3indikum at 5?” Khaled asked.

“Midterm accounting!” She pouted.

“Aha, allah i3eenkum,” Khaled said in an amused tone, accounting was a piece of cake to him, but then again, he didn’t have our teachers! He turned to look at me, “Wintay rahya ga3da itsolfeen? Ma tgomeen tdirseenlich cham kilma wayid a7san?”

I rolled my eyes at him, “You know I’m incapable of doing that!” I said as I threw a sugar packet at him. I got up to hug Haifa, “Bye 7abeebti, good luck!”

“You too, don’t be late!” She ordered, “Bye Khaled, 7imdillah 3ala ilsalaama!” She added belatedly.

He gave her another huge smile, “Allah esalmich. Biltawfeeg inshalla.”

“Thanks, bye!” She said and walked away.

I looked at Khaled and saw him watching her walk away, not checking her out, just watching her longingly, reverently almost.

“Still?” I asked him.

“Always.” He clipped with a sad smile. “Enough about that, shlonich ba3ad? What’ve you been up to? M6al3a your legs ilyoum? Shnawya 3ala shabab il Kuwait? Mi7lawa Ghalooy” He teased in an attempt to change the subject.

I blushed at his compliment. Khaled’s been in love with Haifa for 3 years now, unrequited love. Haifa doesn’t talk to guys in a more-than-friends capacity. I used to be that way before I met S3oud. He was everything I could’ve asked for in a guy and then some. Our relationship was beyond perfect, but I always had a niggling doubt about there something being off about it. His pursuit of me was so relentless, so resolute. I was flattered by it and didn’t think much of it, but having more experience, Juuj didn’t feel too good about it. Turns out she was right, the entire relationship was a farce, a game between him and a friend of his whom I had rejected. He claims that he developed genuine feelings for me in the process, but I wasn’t in a particularly forgiving mood. Shame on you if you fool me once, shame on me if you fooled me twice. He left a pretty big scar behind, but I was over it. He manipulated me and weakened my resolve, he knew my deepest secrets and used them against me. Worst of all, I let it happen and I never forgave myself for it. Haifa isn’t like that, she’s very much set in her opinions and I’m very proud of her for being that way. I respected her beliefs and admired her conviction, but I don’t know if I’d return to my previous beliefs, should the right person come along, if he ever did.

Be that as it may, my heart ached for the predicament Khalood was in, being so close yet so far away. I still have hope for them though, maybe somewhere down the road, Khalood can have his happily ever after with Haifa. I decided a long time ago I would do whatever I could to facilitate that, it was the least I can do to repay him for being all that he is.

“Earth to Ghala?” He said, snapping his fingers in front of my face.

“Sorry, sorry, what were we saying?” I asked, “Oh yeah, you noticed the length? Hatha winta tawwik raad from abroad, you should be used to it! I really should change before my midterm!”

He snickered, “I was just kidding babe, it’s not that short, just shorter than what I’m used to seeing you in for uni.”

I told him about the tights and rested my head on his shoulders while I filled him in on what I’ve been up to. I told him everything and nothing, from the new workout program I’ve been using to the test I aced last week in uni. He never once complained about the amount of details I was giving, he was just happy to be there and I was ecstatic to finally have him back, even though it wasn’t going to last very long.

“W bas!” I concluded, carefully leaving out any details about 3abdil3azeez or our brief meetings, I wasn’t sure why I did that, maybe I didn’t want to jinx it yet? “Enough about me, adri I fascinate you bas I wanna know what you’ve been doing min waraay!”

He laughed, “Ya3ni lazim a6ali3 ilfathaayi7 kilhum? He asked.

“Uh.. YEAH! No summaries, no shortcuts, detaiils! Lots! Spill!” I commanded as I got up to take a sip of my coffee.

“Someone’s gotten very bossy while I was away,” he said as he raised his eyebrows, “too much Ritaj, I think?”

I giggled, “Laa you can never have too much Ritaj!” I said as I drew a heart in the air with my fingers. “Don’t change the subject, yalla, your turn.”

I rested on his shoulder once again and he looked down at me and smiled, I smiled back and looked away. From anybody else’s point of view, it would’ve seemed like a very intimate moment between two people in love.

And that was the precise moment I saw a guy standing at the top of the stairs, our eyes locked and he lifted the corner of his lips in a mocking smile. 3abdil3azeez. My heart literally stopped beating. Well, this was a new look for him, his reaction baffled me, then comprehension dawned on me and I realized what it must look like to him.

I lifted my head off his shoulder once again, never taking my eyes off him and cleared my throat, “Umm Khalood.. There’s something I forgot to tell you…”

Foolish Games.. (5)

2009-02-18T13:50:00.002+03:00

Hey you ;* ee intaw, my lovely readers <3 I honestly didn't think anyone would be reading this ghair my little advertiser/cheerleader, Lost! A7ibich ;** Basich da3ayaat! Anyway, I wanted to thank you for following/reading/commenting! Love you guys ;* This part was supposed to be longer but I have to leave now, so inshalla I'll post another one tonight, enjoy!

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“And then what happened?” Haifa whispered with avid interest two days later in Human Rights. We had given up trying to understand what the professor was talking about lessons ago, his accent was too thick for us to even attempt to decipher. Besides, when we did stupidly pay attention, we’d end up laughing really loud and getting reprimanded for it and as a “punishment” we weren’t allowed to sit next to each other. We sat a few seats apart for a week, then gradually got closer until only a table separated us, technically we were still carrying out his wishes!

“And then nothing! Khift itha ga3adt I’d ask him to father my children, fa I said goodnight and walked away!” I answered as I banged my head on the desk in front of me.

I heard Haifa try to cover up her laughter with a cough , “Walla innich mu 9a7ya! I doubt you would’ve said that min awalha Ghalooy!”

I gave her an incredulous look, “Would you be willing to place money on that? You’ve known me long enough to see how much trouble my impulsiveness has gotten me into in the past! Maybe I wouldn’t have said that exactly, but definitely something to that effect..” I trailed off as I got lost in my thoughts once again.

I spent the last two days attempting to study for my midterm later on today and I succeeded, for the most part. But ever so often, I would find myself spacing out and thinking of him, then all prospects of continuing to study would be shot to hell and I suddenly develop the attention span of a goldfish. I wasn’t sure where my infatuation with him was going but I was dying to find out. I couldn’t wait to see him again, I didn’t know when that’d be but the thought of it gave me all kinds of butterflies and then some! As a result, I slept very little those two days and the added stress of the upcoming midterms didn’t help whatsoever.

I was debating whether I should go home and change after class as my dress was a little shorter than I originally thought. I was running late that morning and couldn’t find thick tights and opted for sheer ones. When I asked Juju that morning if it was okay I was given the reply of “LEGS!” accompanied by her widened eyes. That was the same response I got when I later asked her if I should change into flats at least, followed by a threat to decapitate me if I did.

I saw everyone in class gathering their things and walking out, i looked at my watch, 12.30, he let us out early for once! I threw all my books into my bag quickly, afraid that he’d change his mind if we didn’t get out of there fast enough. We were done with classes for the day and had our midterm next in 5 hours. The girls were meeting up at 3, I didn't want to go over the material yet again, I knew i would end up confusing myself, so to avoid temptation, I didn't bring the books with me. If I didn't know it all by this point, there was no hope for me.

Ritaj called to see if I was going to change my mind about joining them, after a lot of useless prodding on her part, she decided to give up, my refusal was beyond vehement.

"I think I'm either in the mood for coffee or McD's, but i can't decide!" Haifa announced.

I gave her an amused look, "Yes, I can see your dilemma, after all they are VERY similar!"

"Malat 3alaich, inzain? PICK or baroo7 atghada at home!" she threatened.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," I said as i fluttered my eyelashes unrepentantly, "Coffee? Then have lunch at home and meet up with the girls, so khalty doesn't complain about you being out for too long?" I suggested.

"You're a genius! Ta3alay let's make nicknick," She said as she wiggled her eyebrows. I can understand how people may get the wrong impression of us sometimes, we're just messing around but it doesn't help that I have a friend that licks my hands still and another one that keeps propositioning me at every turn.

I giggled and feigned shyness, "Haifaaaa, not here! I'll make it up to you later though," I promised as i wiggled my eyebrows back at her.

She burst out laughing, "Kinky! Ghalooy, you're such a tease!" She said jokingly.

"Eee that's how I roll baby, always keep 'em wanting more," I said as I put on my sunglasses.

We giggled as we walked to the parking lot, well, she walked, i mostly barely kept myself from stumbling to the parking lot. My phone started vibrating in my hand. I looked down to see who was calling, it was Khalood! His kuwaiti number, I couldn't believe he was back! I squealed and picked up the phone.

"KHALOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!" I screamed into the phone.

"Aaii! Mu chithee Ghalooy, you warn a man before doing that so early in the morning!" He said in an annoyed tone, but I knew better.

"Bite me, you know you missed it! Besides, it's not morning anymore ya tambal, it's almost 1, GOOM!" I ordered him before i launched into a series of questions, "Laish ma giltly you're back?! When did you get back to Kuwait? How was your flight? Why didn't you call me? Is everything okay? You miss me? Did you get me chocolate? How's the girlfriend?"

I heard his laughter at the other side of the phone, I missed him so much it wasn't even funny. I haven't seen him since last year, he couldn't make it back for summer break. Khalood was a pilot-in-training, he was currently studying in the UK. He's always been my hero and the only man I could ever count on. My relationship with my father was practically nonexistent and painfully formal, suffice it to say it left a lot to be desired. I didn't doubt for a minute that my parents loved me, I just never saw them, my dad was a dedicated workaholic and when he finally got home, he would go out with friends. My mother always away at some social gathering or travelling with friends. I've tried to make an effort to be closer to her a countless number of times, but her world of fakeness, glitz and glamour is just one that I am not meant to be in. Being an only child, the void where my family is supposed to be was quickly filled up by Khalood, Ritaj and Haifa years ago and I thank God for their existence every day of my life, I honestly don't know where I'd be without them.

"EE! Shrayich 3ayal? Akeed I miss my energizer bunny, w yes I got you all the chocolate you can eat! The girlfriend is out of the picture, ma giltlich I'm back 3ashan i surprise you, adri mat7ibeen bas kaifich 3ad! I wouldn't have heard hal 9arkha il7ilwaa itha giltlich in advance. Ha did I answer all your questions?" God, I missed his voice.

"Ya 7maar I love youu! When am I seeing you?" I asked excitedly.

"Mita ma tabeen, ana ta7t amrich!"

I covered the phone with my hand, "Do you mind if Khalood joins us?" I whispered to Haifa. She looked a little hesitant but she nodded her consent.

"How does right now sound? Join us for coffee?"

"Fooga," He replied, "Mino wiyach?"

Shit. "Ma7ad, bas Haifa, meet us at Starbucks kaneesa?"

"Ah, okay. Alright babe, I'll see you in about 20 minutes."

"Yaaaay! Oh yeah, Khalood?"

"3yoona"

"7imdillah 3ala ilsalama!!!"

"Hahahahah taw ilnas! allah isalmich 7abeebti, bye." Click.

Foolish Games.. (4)

2009-02-15T07:50:00.003+03:00

How does he do that?! I’m a smart person, I really am. I’m more than confident with my speaking skills, what I would like to know is, how on earth does he manage to turn me into a stuttering, blithering idiot every time he looks at me?! I furrowed my eyebrows while thinking of an appropriate response, every thing I wanted to say died on my lips before I had the chance to get it out! This is not happening again, words! Anything! Where’s a black hole when you need one?

“Yes, nemesis,” I replied as I rolled my eyes, “now if you’ll excuse me, Catwoman has to leave now, I’ll see you in the next issue.”

I heard his bark-like laughter, “Come on now, Catwoman doesn’t give up that easily, does she?” He said teasingly, “Stay a while, sharpen those claws on me if you want to, I’m more than happy to act as your temporary scratching post.”

La walla? Did he really just say that? Did he just give me permission to tear his shirt off? Cuz that’s what it sounded like to me. Easy now, down girl. Metaphorically, he means metaphorically. Too bad.

I could see his smile widening and eyebrows lifting almost as if he heard the trail of my inappropriate thoughts at his suggestive words. Oh my God, CAN he read my mind? Never mind, too much twilight!

“You wish.” I replied in a very desperate attempt at damage control, “What are you even doing here?” I can’t believe I almost forgot to ask!

“Your powers of deduction amaze me,” he replied with the same flirtatious tone, “I’m Joori’s cousin, and that makes you.. Ritaj?”

As if on cue, Ritaj came out of nowhere saying, “No, I’M Ritaj! ANA!!” while jabbing her thumb in her direction and accidentally poking herself. “Ow!” she yelped. Karma finally decided to get Ritaj back for all the jokes about my clumsiness.

“Finally! The cosmic justice system is coming to my rescue! Juju, if you keep going at this rate, you’re gonna make me look like a swan by comparison,” I taunted her.

“Ee walla, shiftay shlon? 9ij allah ma yirtha!” She sounded so devastated, I couldn’t stop laughing, she’s such a drama queen.

“I’m enjoying the attitude and the scathing replies but I’m also finding myself drawn to your laughter and smiles,” he said.

Was he flirting with me? I felt my face getting hotter and the blushes reaching all the way down to my toes. There was no use pretending that I wasn’t flattered so I retaliated in kind, “Bas my laughter and smiles?” I used the same teasing tone he seemed to prefer while speaking to me, “I could’ve sworn it was my sparkling personality, twice in one day? Who’re you fooling?”

His laughter again. I had to make a conscious effort to stop myself from sighing.

“What can I say? Seems like the universe is trying to tell us something..” He trailed off suggestively.

“That I should start using regular hair accessories like everyone else? Yeah I got it.” I looked up in the sky and called out theatrically, “You can stop now!”

More laughter.

“Should any of this be making sense to me?” A confused voice asked.

Oh my God! Joori! I can’t believe I forgot about her, “It’s a long story,” I replied, “I’ll tell you later but I’m sure umm.. Your cousin-”

“3abdil3azeez.” He interjected.

“I’m sure 3abdil3azeez can fill you in on the way to your grandfather’s house.” I said, putting emphasis on his name. “I have to get going too, it was great meeting you hun, I’ll see you on Thursday inshalla!”

“Ee definitely, I can’t wait! Sara’s gonna be so surprised!”

We hugged and said our goodbyes as I temporarily faked forgetting about 3abdil3azeez while he consumed my every thought.

“Wait!” He called out as I was making my way to my car.

I looked over my shoulder making sure he was talking to me, “Yeah?”

“You know my name,” he stated.

“Well, thank you, Captain Obvious! I also know the alphabet and all the numbers from 1-10, would you like to hear that too?” I cheekily replied, lifting an eyebrow.

He flashed another dimpled grin, “What I meant was,” he continued, completely unhindered, “you know my full name and knowing how girls are, I’m sure my cousin will supply you with my address and a full biography on me in no time, in the spirit of fairness, shouldn’t I at least get a name? A letter? Anything?”

Why did he have to be so cute? I felt a reluctant smile tugging at my lips, “Ghala. But that’s all you’re getting!” I said teasingly.

“3ashat il asaamy,” he said and proceeded to fake-bow, “Couldn’t ask for more, Your Highness!”

Cute. Disgustingly cute.

To my horror, I heard myself giggling. “3ashat ayaamik.”

“T9b7een 3ala khair, ya Ghala.” He said, deliberately emphasizing my name and with an intense look in his eyes, daring me to move.

It worked, it was as if I was under a spell. My feet were glued to the ground. I couldn’t for the life of me even ATTEMPT to move an inch. I just stood there. Eyes locked, I returned his penetrating gaze. I don’t think my name has ever sounded that good before. Something about the tone of his voice suggested that he knew I’d go back home, throw myself into bed and do nothing but lay down there all night and think of him.

“Winta min ahla..” For some reason, it seemed appropriate for my voice to drop while saying that. You’d think it was pillow talk rather than exchanging a standard “good night” with an (almost) complete stranger.

Now this would be the perfect time for me to give a final smile and walk away, leaving him standing there watching me longingly, right?

Wrong.

Our silent eloquent stares were interrupted by my phone vibrating accompanied by my ring tone blaring loudly in the quiet night. I was irrationally nervous, as if I just got caught red handed committing a crime, I ended up dropping my phone. Again.

He chuckled and I bent down to collect the pieces. Again. Only this time, he got there before me and reassembled it for me.

“Here you go,” he said with a disarming smile, “A fitting ending, don’t you think? We started off the day with your phone falling and now we’re ending it the same way, full circle.”

“More signs, I assume?” I said, picking up what he meant by that.

“Exactly.” He replied, while giving me back my phone.

The intense look was back. I had to get out of there before I made an even bigger idiot out of myself.

I tucked in a wayward strand of hair behind my ears, smiled noncommittally but secretly hopeful and said, “Goodnight.”

“’Night.”

I could feel his stare piercing holes in my back as I walked away. Please don’t trip, I pleaded with myself. I somehow managed to get into the car in one piece and drove away sighing.

Irrational as it may be, I don’t think I’ve ever been this happy before.

Every alarm sounded in my head as I drove home that night, but I couldn’t care less. Something about him drew me to him inexorably like a moth to a flame, the attraction was so intense, the chemistry sizzled, the connection was just so effortless and the thawing of my heart for him.. Inevitable.

Foolish Games.. (3)

2009-02-11T08:25:00.001+03:00

I pulled up to Ritaj’s house and was greeted by the sight of her younger twin sisters skating around their courtyard, they saw me with the bags and came up to help me. We exchanged hellos and pleasantries and they told me to go right in as no one was home. I love her sisters, they still manage to be shy around me after all these years, but I know they think of me as member of their family and that feeling was mutual.

“Juuuuj!” I screamed the minute I got inside. I heard her running around upstairs and knocking everything down in her path. I’m afraid my clumsiness might be rubbing off on her.

“Kaani, kaaani!” She yelled back and I saw her skipping down, taking the steps two at a time. Her hair was all in tiny braids, A-Keys style, and she was in an oversized hoodie and shorts.

I took in what she was wearing and quickly got into character in accordance with her outfit, raised my eyebrows and said, “Sup, ma nigga?”

She burst into another one of her famous hysterical fit of giggles and replied. “ Nothin much homie, just chillin’. Gimme some respect!”

I willingly obliged and knocked fists with her and joined in with her contagious laughter. My skin tone is a mixture of my father’s darkness and my mother’s porcelain skin, as a result, I turned out with naturally tanned skin. Ritaj was obsessed with getting darker, so much to the point where she wants to be the next Rihanna. A far stretch from her milky white skin. Of course she’s no where near her goal color, but she definitely has the talking part down. As soon as we regained our composure she pulled me into a giant bear hug. She can squeeze really tight for such a tiny person.

“Where are we studying?” I asked her, “In your room or downstairs? And where’s everyone? I thought you said I was late!” I looked at her accusingly.

“Well..” she began, with the most angelic look on her face, “ I lied! I miss you, we haven’t had us time in forever, I’m always busy with uni or work or with what’shisface, I just feel like so much has happened and we need to catch up!”

I didn’t think she noticed and I didn’t make a big deal out of it, I always knew that at the end we’d find our way back to each other amidst all the craziness, “What’shisface?” I asked amused, “ Don’t you mean your precious MshMsh?” I pretended to stick my fingers down my throat and made gagging noises.

“HAHAHA, I’m gonna play the “good girlfriend” and defend him shwaya, hmm, let’s see.. Ya 7mara! Ma artha 3ala Mshary, MshMshy 7abeeebiiii!” She said as she playfully smacked my shoulder.

I rolled my eyes at her, people in love made me a little queasy. Scratch that. Juju in love made me a little queasy, but I could sense that this relationship was different and that she was in it for the long haul and was really happy for her.

“So do you wanna start pigging out now or when the girls all get here” I inquired.

“Khaleeha ba3daiin I’m in the mood for chay 7aleeb!” She announced with a huge smile on her face, I knew where this was heading and went to the kitchen with her. I sat up on a counter while I waited for the water to heat. She put teabags in two mugs and sugar and added the water and proceeded to play our favorite childhood game.

She got the canned condensed milk and started adding it little by little asking, “Is this your color?” repeatedly to which I would reply with a shake of my head until we got the exact shade and grinned at each other, thinking of the past.

When we were kids, Ritaj was fascinated by how we had different skin tones and marched up to me in kindergarten stating that I was the exact same shade as the very grown up tea with milk she had that morning and demanded that she tastes my skin to see if I indeed tasted like it too. Being the new kid I was terrified by the girl in front of me and absent mindedly gave her my hand. She licked it, nodded briefly, stated that she was wrong and sat down next to me and said the words that would signal the beginning of an everlasting friendship, “Hi, my name is juju and you’re going to be my best friend.”

I took an instant liking to Ritaj as a kid. Unlike the other kids, she never made fun of me for always speaking in English. She did the opposite, she appointed herself to be my personal champion and defended me to anyone who dared speak or even think an unpleasant thought about me. Her and Khalid.

I met Khalid while playing doctor in the sandbox. No, it’s not what you think, it wasn’t the “show me yours and I’ll show you mine” variety. I was crying and valiantly trying to save the butterfly with the torn wing by applying cello tape. In retrospect, it might not have been my brightest idea, but in my defense, I was only four. He came to me with a worried expression on his face and asked if I was okay, at that point words were beyond me and all I could do was look at him and point at the butterfly. He gently put his arm around my shoulders and said that his dad explained to him that sometimes, things or people die but it’s okay because they don’t feel pain anymore and they go to a better place, with monster trucks. I remember looking at him with an incredulous expression on my face and asking what could a butterfly possibly want with a monster truck. I’ll never forget the look on his face with his eyes open as wide as saucers as he said “They’d be GIANT butterflies and they’ll carry the trucks on their wings!” I laughed with him and instantly cheered up and we gave the butterfly a proper burial service in the sandbox.

“So, SPILL!” Ritaj demanded, snapping me out of my reverie.

I feigned innocence and pretended to be absorbed with my tea and milk as I took another sip, “Hmm? Wassat now? Tell you what?”

She glared at me, unleashing the full power of her dark hazel eyes at me, “You know exactly what yal 3ayyaara! The guy? With the voice? Who was it! I want every little detail, I can see you blushing behind that cup so I know there’s much to tell!” Again with the jumping to her own conclusions, but as was the norm for that day, she was correct. Dammit.

I knew I couldn’t keep anything from her for too long so I put down my mug, and banged my head a little too hard against the cabinets behind it, to Ritaj’s credit, she managed to stifle her laughter and waited for me to continue, “Ouch! Ritaaaj, he’s amazing! I can’t believe I just said that, I don’t even know the guy bas that he’s funny, charming in a weird way, speaks perfect English, has way too much confidence and makes me drool!”

“What else is there to know? GO FOR IT!” she yelled at me.

“Go for what? Intay 9a7ya? You do realized that what you heard was the end of the conversation, right? And that I probably wont ever see him again?”

“Ilkuwait sgheera babes, you never know,” she leaned up and kissed my cheek, “these things have a way of working themselves out, you’ll see!” Her predictions sometimes actually happened and if I allowed myself to be honest I would have to say that I was hoping that this would be one of them.

I let out a sigh and concluded that conversation with a simple, “We’ll see.” I asked Ritaj how she’s been and what she’s been up to lately and she gratefully took the cue and launched into about 892 stories that I’ve missed that month, it was great catching up with her and I made a mental note to exert more effort into making time for us alone in the future.

Soon it was two o’clock and Haifa finally arrived, uncharacteristically, right on time. She was in a navy blue tracksuit with Popeye the Sailorman showing off his muscles in the back. Even in a tracksuit, every inch of Haifa screamed femininity. We got up to hug her and made idle chatter. I remember how intimidated I used to be by Haifa when I first met her, she was so beautiful and well groomed I couldn’t help but feel dowdy around her. I quickly discovered that despite her unapproachable air, she was as sweet as they came and I immediately took a shine to her. Haifa’s mother was a family friend and after several failed attempts of forcing us to be friends, our mother’s finally succeeded at a wedding we were both invited to when we were thirteen. I soon introduced her to Ritaj and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Haifa and Ritaj weren’t as close as I had hoped they’d be but they still got along great.

As soon we sat down after exchanging not so formal formalities, the door bell rang again.

“Ohoo ya3ni cham marra lazim agoom afich ilbaab?!” Ritaj complained.

“Yalla 3ad bala 3ayaara, goomay show off that sexy nonexistent ass for us! Yalla!” Haifa urged Ritaj on.

I couldn’t help but laugh, that’s the other thing Ritaj really wanted. Some “junk in the trunk”.

She pouted and got up, shaking what little she had in that area all the way to the door, encouraged by our whistles and cat-calls. She opened the door, kissed her friends, grabbed one of them by the hand a pulled her to the center of the living room. She turned her around and announced huffily, “SEE? Fee cases MUCH worse than mine!”

The person on display suddenly shrieked and threatened, “Ya 7maara ana awareech!”

We all started laughing and Ritaj smiled angelically, “You gotta admit, it’s an interesting way to go about an introduction!” Did I mention how much I loved that girl? “Ghala, Haifa, these are Dana, Darine and Joori.” She pointed at each of us as she said our names.

“I refuse to let this be awkward so hello, my name is Darine! I already like you guys cuz you’re short!” She said as she gave Dana and Joori dirty looks, “Let’s get started, shall we?”

My earlier thoughts were right, the girls weren’t so bad, in fact I might even go as far as to say that I really liked them. It was hard not to, we soon gave up studying and started singing karaoke to blow off some steam. While a horribly off-tone rendition of Duffy’s Mercy was being sung by Dana and Darine, I got to know Joori a little better. Seemingly quiet at first, she turned out to be hilarious and in complete contradiction to her innocent looks- she was an evil genius. We discovered that we had a mutual friend I lost contact with ages ago after I moved to our current house and she suggested that we all get together that weekend after mid-terms. I felt comfortable enough around Joori to accept this invitation and exchanged numbers with her.

At 8 the Double D's announced that they had to leave and offered to drop Joori off home with them, she politely declined and said that her cousin was going to be picking her up soon and taking her to her grandfather’s house. He had just gotten out of the hospital and the whole family was gathered there to welcome him back. Her cousin called her apologizing and saying that he might be a little late, so we took advantage and decided to bake.

I occasionally caught Joori “accidentally” putting twice as much chocolate and sugar indicated in each recipe and laughed to myself, she looked up and we exchanged conspiratorial winks signifying that it was to be our little secret. An hour later her cousin arrived, It was just me, Juju and Joori. I was a bit miffed at him, not that I didn’t enjoy having Joori around, but because she felt like she was an imposition and I hated that she felt that way, I thoroughly enjoyed her company.

We belatedly realized that the D’s had left their books, I offered to help Joori carry them to the car and she accepted. I put the books in the backseat when I noticed the silhouette of a man smoking a few meters away from the car, “It took you long enough.” He said teasingly.

I froze. I recognized that voice. It couldn’t be.. Could it? No, of course not. I glanced back in his direction anyway to make sure, and I met his gaze. Even in the dark, I had no doubt that it was him. My Mystery Man.

He looked as shocked as I was to see him, if not more so, but he quickly recovered. He put out his cigarette, put on that devastating smile that had been playing in my head all day and said, "So, we meet again.."

Foolish Games.. (2)

2009-02-10T15:50:00.003+03:00

Again with the conflicting feelings. Say something. Yalla! Yell, slap, drop-kick him, anything! Despite the blush that claimed my face at that moment, I refused to open my mouth and give him the satisfaction of knowing that he managed to ruffle my feathers. I could still feel the precise spot where his fingers briefly brushed the nape of my neck and the imprint of his finger on my shoulder. When did I become so sensitive to every little touch?

I belatedly realized that Ritaj was still on the phone and was making an effort to laugh quieter now as she heard what he had said and knew how loud my phone was, “Ya 7mara ridday!” she whispered, even while whispering, you could hear the authority in her every syllable.

I decided to take a cue from him and made a big show out of clearing my throat like he did and said, “I wasn’t aware that I had appointed you as my personal lost and found service,” perfectly clipping my words to ensure the discouragement of any further replies, “And I would appreciate it if you kept your hands to yourself next time.”

I heard Ritaj tsk-tsking in my ear, “WAIT! Take it back! I’m not sure I approve of the attitude, unless he’s ugly! Wait, is he hot?”

I wasn’t sure how I could answer that with him still looking at me with cockiness emanating from every inch of him. I sure as hell wasn’t going to tell her that at about a head and a half taller than our 155 cms he was indeed very hot, with him listening. Or that his features looked like they were carefully chiseled out of stone. Or that even beneath his shirt, it was obvious that his body could only be described by comparing him to a greek god. Or that his scent was insanely dizzying. Or that my mere proximity to him was driving me crazy. Or that, as cliché as it sounds, the deep timbre of his voice was sending chills down my spine. Nope, definitely not going to say that.

“Why aren’t you answering me? Ashkara he’s hot.” She sounded pissed but clearly she came to her own conclusion, I fought back the urge to smile, I love that girl.

“I’m not sure I understand,” he stated with a smile of his own, god help me, I think I see a dimple, I looked away and waited for him to continue, “are you telling me that pencils in your hair is a regular thing, or that I might be seeing you sometime in the near future?”

His smile got even wider. Yup, definitely a dimple. Allah yaster. Why aren’t my feet moving?! What do I say? I could feel my bones liquefying as I continued watching him smile, silently begging him to stop.

I let out an unladylike snort and shot back, “Don’t count on it.” I plastered a fake smile on my face and walked away.

“The nerve of some people!” I started complaining to Ritaj as soon as I got out of earshot. “La, w il presumptuousness, na3am 7abeebi? I didn’t choose my words carefully enough 3ala6ool he assumed abi ashoofa again? Wai3 wai3 shyabii!”

“Ooo someone managed to get under your skin,” she said teasingly, “I can already tell you like him, CHUB! IMBALA! I know you better than you know yourself, and you know it! I can’t wait to see you blush while you tell me all the details I missed! he’s hot isn’t he? Describe please wanseeni shway!” Ritaj was one of those people who could have an entire conversation with herself out loud, all it takes is an occasional sentence to keep her going and I guarantee you, she wont stop. She’s my red bull, it’s hard not to get hyper around that girl.

“Jeez juuj, keep it in your pants? Please? I will call up your boyfriend.” I tried turning the tables by threatening HER for a change!

“Hahahaha 7abeebti go ahead! You don’t scare me you midget! Ooo someone’s already possessive of her man-to-be!” She continued her little childish taunts. She kept going on for the better part of the 10 minutes it took me to pay for the stuff and get to McDonalds. I used her previously mentioned “ability” to my advantage and tuned her out and drowned in my own pool of thoughts.

I was quiet as I waited for the order to finish, occasionally letting out a “hmm” or “haha no way!” or an “I know, right?” to keep Juuj going. I kept hearing his voice and the teasing lilt it had to it, I kept seeing the puzzling expression on his face as he stared fixedly at me, I kept seeing the way his shirt molded to his muscles as he made the slightest movements. Strike that, I kept trying to block out the previous thought to keep from drooling. But most of all, I kept seeing that infuriating smile drawn on his perfect face and to my utter dismay I found myself finally letting out the smile I kept trying to hide all day. My smile soon turned into a full-fledged grin and I found myself involuntarily sighing. I liked the bantering, it was fun, but in all honesty, as small as Kuwait was, what were the chances of me ever running into him again?

I heard a knock on the window snap me out of my trance-like state and I rolled it down to pick up our order. I told Ritaj I had to hang up and I’d call her as soon as I got to her place, we said our see-you-soons and I drove away, oblivious to all my surroundings and thinking up fake scenarios of chance meetings between me and my mystery man.

Foolish Games.. (1)

2009-02-09T10:14:00.004+03:00

I’d love to say it was one of those “love at first sight” things, but as palpable as the instantaneous attraction was, the most overwhelming feeling was annoyance. Supreme, unparalleled annoyance. We met in November, unofficially of course. It was around the time mid-terms were starting at uni and I was in the Sultan Centre getting study food for my cram session with my best friends Ritaj and Haifa. I left the house in the hurry in jeans and a huge pullover with Cornell emblazoned on it, my father’s Alma Mater <3 I was vaguely aware of something holding up my hair but I made no effort to check if it was still intact before rushing out.

I parked my car in the first empty space, went inside and proceeded to dump various contents of junk food into my basket. While I was debating whether I should get ginger cookies or chocolate chip, I felt holes boring the back of my head, I’ve always considered myself a bit of a clairvoyant, but it doesn’t take a psychic to acknowledge that the sudden rush of heat I felt is that which can only be brought on by sombody’s intent stare. I casually turned my head to the right and saw him.

He didn’t even attempt to keep up the pretense of being busy with something else, he just stood there impudently returning my level gaze. I flirted with the idea of continuing our little game for a while longer but realized I was probably making more of it than there really was. So I chalked it up to paranoia and moved on to the next aisle. There he was again. It was maddening, really. He didn’t even seem interested, just amused and slightly puzzled. I didn’t know what to make of his reaction and the vibrating of my phone interrupted my train of thought. I gasped and accidentally dropped it, causing the back cover and the battery to go flying across the floor, right at his feet. Great. Just great. I walked over as calmly as I could and picked up the cover, I looked for the battery and couldn’t find it, I saw a hint of something silver under his shoe and realized he was standing on it!

“Do you mind?” I furiously bit out, “My battery is under your shoe.”

“Not at all!” he cheekily replied as he smiled at me and moved his foot. I picked up the battery, mumbled a “thanks” and moved away as far as I could before I started reassembling the parts of my phone. I could still feel him staring with every step I took and wondered what could possibly be holding his interest for so long, did I have something stuck in my teeth? I realized the ludicrousness of that thought as soon as it finished, he was after all staring at the back of my head and didn’t even see my mouth!

I checked to see who called, it was Ritaj. I called her back and heard her scream into the phone as soon as she picked up.

“Where the hell are you?! You better not still be at home," she threatened, “I WILL cover you up in a red blanket and throw you in an arena with 5 bulls!”

I laughed, it’s so like her to make empty threats, she has an unbelievably strong violent streak in her, I’m just thankful she’s passive about it! “I’m getting YOUR study food, bala 7anna, I’ll be there in 10, do you want anything specific?”

“Well, now that you mention it, your forgiveness would be greatly appreciated!”

She informed me that a few other girls will be joining us, she knew how uncomfortable I was around girls I didn’t know very well but I trusted her judgment and knew they couldn’t be all that bad. I told her it was fine and insisted on bringing lunch along with the junk food.

“Are you sure? We could just order when you get here, it’s fine, REALLY!”

“Don’t be silly, it’s already on my way! Besides, there’s nothing that gets the brain working better than junk and fast food, we took that in biology, remember?" I asked.

I heard her laughter ringing out from the other side, “I’m not sure we were listening to the same thing hun, the message probably got jumbled up with your other million thoughts, how about McDonalds?” she suggested.

“Perfect, what should I get?”

“Okay, do you have a pen and paper on you? What am I thinking, of course you do, along with a bottle of sanitizer no doubt,” I could almost hear her rolling her eyes!

So I might have a slight case of OCD, it’s not a big deal, there’s nothing wrong with a healthy fondness for organization and cleanliness! A little sanitizer and post-its never hurt anyone. I took out my notepad and rummaged through my bag looking for something to write with.

“Uh-oh, I think the “curse” might finally be lifted! I, your best friend of 15 years, left the house without a pen or a pencil! Not even a highlighter!” I sounded extremely appalled, even to my own ears.

I heard her hysterical laughter once again, I managed to make out a distinct “maa9adiiiiiiiiiiiiig” in between her squeals.

Suddenly, I felt a light tapping on my shoulders and my hair being undone, I turned around startled. There he was again.

I heard him clear his throat, still looking thoroughly amused and saw him holding out a pencil, “I believe you were looking for this?” he asked with a wry inflection in his voice, “ I hate to interrupt your little tirade, but I found this in your hair.”

I felt my face being flooded with about 12 shades of red. Oh crap.

Foolish Games.. (Intro)

2009-02-09T05:25:00.000+03:00

I’ll never forget the day I met him. The day that irrevocably and inevitably changed my life forever. For better or for worse is yet to be decided as I don’t quite relish the thought of someone entering my life and in the blink of an eye, turning it all upside down. I knew he had me the moment he sardonically lifted his eyebrow challengingly, I’ve never been known as one to easily bow down and I most certainly wasn’t going to start now. I kept trying to convince myself that that was the only reason I was getting myself into this, but I knew in the deepest recesses of my mind that I wanted this. That I wanted him. He riled my temper, he ignited a passion in me I thought was long dead, he knew nothing about me and at the same time, he knew everything there was to know. There was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes when he smiled at me, I’m still not sure if I liked it or not, but I’ll tell you this much, it was definitely disconcerting. He saw me studying his face while contemplating what to make of him and he chose that exact moment to grin at me, flashing all pearly whites. I felt an answering smile creeping up on me, but I quickly checked the impulse to smile back and busied my mouth by taking another sip of my coffee and looked away.

Challenge accepted, game on.