Give fate a chance 23

Umm.

He called again, I hesitated at first but I ended up answering.

Me: aloo?

Khalid: hala wala hala Lama shlonich?

Me: el7mdla bkhair..

Khalid: ha shlon umich o uboch?

Me: el7imdla tamam 3amy baghait shay?

Mala da3y en6awil elsalfa.

Khalid: ee Lama, uboch galich 3an el mashroo3?

Me: ee

Khalid chuckled: ee, fe cham shaghla aby agolicheyahum gabil la yistimir el mashroo3.

Me: tefathal..

Khalid: agolch hal mashroo3 bainy o bain el CEO's ely eb sharikty, bs oboch yally o galy dakhilny bl mashroo3 tukfa o 3a6any 20,000Kd first payment 7ag ras elmal.

What the hell?

Khalid: 3ad ana gitla ent rifeejy o badakhlik, 3ad ba3dain ga3adt afaker bil mawthoo3, may9eer adakhla bilmashro3 wakhaly ystfeed o ana shakh9iyan ma astfeed!

Me: bas 3a6ak 20,000!!!

Khalid: haha hathaila mu 7agy agolich hatha ras mal el mashroo3!

Ok latzifny :(

Khalid: o fakart gilt flos? Maby floos 3ndy khair o n3ma el7mdla. Shnu aby yaraby shnu??

Lama: 3amy taby tkalim uboy?

I have no idea why I said that :s

Khalid: la!!

Lama: ok 3ayal shnu taby?

Khalid: aby akhthich 3ala sinat allah o rasoola

I blurted out: shnu?

Khalid: Lama fakray feeha, ubooch galy enkum khisrtaw floos o enkum b7aja 7ag hal mashroo3. Elmawtho3 kila eb eedich. Etizawjainy, akhaly uboch bil mashro3. Tarfitheeny, a6rid obooch. Fakray 3adel o ma3 esalama.

Khalid: ee gabil la asida, tara kalamt uboch o gal ena ma3inda mani3 etha entay rethaytay.

He hung up.

*

I woke up the next day with the biggest headache in the history of big headaches. Why? Maybe because I spent most of last night thinking and crying my eyes out. Or maybe because a grown man as old as my dad wants to effin marry me. Seriously, I feel like my life should be turned into a Turkish series.

I texted Dalia yesterday telling her that I won’t be able to attend breakfast. I had to make up a lie because I just can’t tell her the truth!

I spent last night thinking about what Khalid said.

"Etizawjainy, akhaly uboch bil mashro3. Tarfitheeny, a6rid obooch. Fakray 3adel o ma3 esalama. Ee gabil la asida, tara kalamt uboch o gal ena ma3inda mani3 etha entay rethaytay."

My heart and my mind were having one of their daily feuds.

Heart: I don't believe Khalid for one second, my dad would never do that! He would never sell his own daughter for money!

Mind: But, he was so excited about the project, he would do anything to be a part of it.

My father spent his life sacrificing everything for my mom and I. He worked day and night just to provide for us. My father worked really hard for this project and getting kicked out will cause unwanted humiliation. However, the question here is did my dad tell Khalid that he was ok with a 40 something year old man to marry his 22 years old daughter?

If it is, then I honestly don’t know what to feel or think. What would any girl in my situation do? Oh right, I don’t think any loving father would put his daughter in such a situation!

Thinking about it is mind throbbing. I honestly don’t know how to handle such matters. If I refused Khalid, my dad will be kicked out and we will suffer while living with small amounts of money. Yet, if I said yes my dad will continue in his project, we will have money and everyone becomes happy again .. except for me.

My phone vibrated, Wahab was calling.

I forgot about Wahab and Saud, what’s their role in this whole Khalid situation. My decision will not only affect me but it will affect Wahab and Saud. Well, maybe not Saud because we don’t really know each other.

Me: aloo

Wahab: hala walla

Me: hala feek

Wahab: ha shfeech ams adig 3alaich wadizlich messages matrideen? Ra7 ra9eedy kila hahaha

Me: umm madry nimt

I didn’t want to tell Wahab about Khalid.

Wahab: ee, enzain magilteely shisim hatha elly yabech?

Me: umm Saud Al*****

Wahab: a77

Me: haaw shfeek?

Wahab: madry ebtarftheen hatha 3ashany?

Me: umm ee?

Wahab: its either I’m a very lucky person, or this is just a dream

Me: shda3waaa!!

Wahab: wallaa!

Me: way wahab

Wahab: enzain sim3ay, we both love each other right?

Me: eee?

Wahab: ok laish mankamil 3elaqatna bil 7alal? Ya3ny nitzawaj bsr3a? Laih meta binkalim ba3ath chithy bil khash wildas, ya3ny e9ara7a ana marthaha 3ala ekhty wala arthaha 3alaich..

I stayed quiet..

Wahab: Lama la tifhmeeny ghala6, bs e9ara7a ghala6 elly ga3deen ensawy ya3ny we both love eachother why wait when we can get married now?

Me: la Wahab mafahmtik ghala6 bil3ax I totally agree! Haha kubart eb 3ainy e9ara7a

Wahab: ashwa zaain! Khalas 3ayal ana bagol 7ag umy edig 3ala umich.. bs enyeelich enshallah 3ugub hatha Saud

He almost spat after saying Saud’s name I can feel it.

Me: haha shfek 3a9abt

Wahab: bs karih Saud mo zain ashoofa

Me: enshallah matshofa :p

Wahab: ok khalas 3ayal ana basida al7een o etha fe emergency kalmeeny ha?

Me: enshallah

Wahab: so this is goodbye..

Me: more like a see you later..

Wahab: ee.. Lama

Me: hala?

Wahab: deray balich 3ala nafsich o latkhaleen Saud egi9 3alaich ha?

Me: haha don’t worry about it

Wahab: faman allah

He hung up.

I’m going to miss talking to him, but what he said is right. What we’re doing is wrong and we will make it right by actually getting married.

My phone vibrated, my mother was calling..

Me: alo

Mom: aloo lama?

She was shouting in the phone, 7ada ez3aj 3indaha!

Me: eee yuma shhal ez3aaj??

Mom: ana bilsayara ma3a khalatich Ghanima o Mothy binroo7 360 o Ghanima mu9era ennich etyeen ma3ana

Me: la yuma maly khilg

Mom: yalla 3ad 3an edala3 o ta3alay ekhthay sayartyy

Me: yuma please!!

--: Lama?

Me: alo?

-- : 7abeebty ana khaltich Ghanima yalla 3ad mama badlay o ta3alay ba3ad murt wildy enshallah lazim ag3ad ma3ach shwaya

Oh my god?

Me: hehe khalty

Embarrassed is an understatement.

Ghanima: yalla shgiltay?

Me: enshallah khalty al7een ayelikum

Ghanima: 3afya 7abeebty yalla na6reenich

She hung up..

Ugh, I dragged myself out of bed, changed quickly, and left.

I called my mother as soon as I reached 360.

Mom: alo

Me: hala yuma wainkum?

Mom: e7na eb cacao

Me: ok kany yaya

I parked my mothers Benz and walked to Cacao. As soon as khalty Ghanima saw me she grinned and stood.

Ghanima: hala eb Lama hala wala bil channa

This is awkward!

Me: hehe hala feech khalty shlonich?

I kissed both her cheeks, and did the same to khalty Mothy and my mother, then I sat down.

It was fun, hanging out with my mother’s friends. They were funny and they made it really easy for me to join in with them. Of course, khalty Ghanima made sure that I wouldn’t forget that I would marry her son. I don’t know how hard she’s going to take it when she finds out I don’t want him. Halfway through the afternoon a guy walked to our table.

Ghanima: hala yuma Saud shlonik?

My face was like this “:O”

What is he doing here? Khalty Ghanima kept looking at me and flashing me mischievous smiles. FASHLA.

Ghanima: ta3al salim, hathy khaltik Khalda o hathy Mothy o hathy Lama bint Khalda.. she nudged him.

Is this some kind of set up?

He looked at me and smiled.

Let me say this: he is CUTE!

He is tall, not very bulky he was good, his hair is long it reached his neck and he has this baby face. He looks so much like his mother.

Ok now I have to stop staring. He chatted for a while then left, I was blushing the whole time and he wasn’t even talking to me. Shortly after Saud left, the women and I left Cacao and started shopping. We entered Bottega Veneta, everyone spread around the shop. I looked at the small clutches and instantly liked a blue colored clutch. I turned to my mother

Me: yuma shofay hathy

She inspected the bag..

Mom: ee 7ilwaa shofay cham si3irha

I turned to the sales woman and asked: hi, how much is the clutch?

Sales woman: 560 KD

I looked at my mother and she looked back at me. My mother lowered her head and there was an expression on her face that I can’t quite put my finger on. It was like it hit her that we couldn’t actually afford anything with that price anymore.

Mom: uhm la china matiswa

I have never heard my mother say this sentence before; she always gave me some other excuse but never this one.

Ghanima asked my mother: allah 7ilwa el clutch eb takhtheenha?

Mom: la ma3jibat Lama

Ghanima: wee ma3indich salfa etyanin! Ekhtheeha lich Khalda malich shighil eb Lama

Mom: haha la wain ana malbis’ha 7aram akhith’ha o a7i6ha bil kabat

Ghanima: wee min meta hal kalam Khaldo hehe

Ok let me tell you something, my mother and her friends define the term “shopaholics”. They buy everything and anything they like never minding the price. My mother used to be like that but now she has to cut down on buying. That’s why I’m not surprised at all that she lied to khalty Ghanima, because under normal circumstances we’d be paying for the bag by now. I know its crazy buying everything, but not being able to buy simple things makes my mother sad and I don’t like to see her that way.

Khalid came to mind.

*

I was pacing back and forth in my parents’ room, I was so nervous.

Dad: yuba shfeech yalla ta7achay!

Mom: tara khara3teeny tgolelina bsr3a bagolikum shay muhim o sa3a 3ala ma t7acheen!!

Me: ok ok al7een agool

My heart was going so fast, I can't even feel it beating anymore.

I took a deep breath before I said: yuba, ana mwafqa.