Hajara POV:
"Hajara!" Sarah yelled her lung out.
"What?" I whined as Sarah jumped on my bed. I bobbed up and down, I just wanted peace for few minutes but no, my family had to come and make sure that I was busy with something.
"It's Saturday, November the third," she yelled. It's been two months already since school started and things are getting harder each day and exams are coming closer. Exams?! Yup there goes up my stress level.
"Wait, is it my birthday?" I asked sleepily.
"YES," she grinned wildly as I got up stretched my arms. "HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!" Her long silky hair was tied in a long ponytail that jumped alongside her. She's sixteen but still acted like my baby sister.
"SARAH, KEEP IT DOWN, people in China can hear you." my mom yelled from downstairs. "Oh and happy birthday sweetheart!"
I grinned, "Thanks, mom."
"Sorry MOM!" Sarah yelled back rolling her eyes. "Get up sis we have a big day ahead of us." She smiled with that wild grin of hers as she jumped off the bed and pulled me down with all her energy. "Get up lazy bum, you have to have fun on your birthdays not sleep!"
"Sure," I groaned.
My life's a mess!
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After getting dressed, I headed to the kitchen, "Hey mom, what are you baking?" I questioned sniffing the aroma.
"Your birthday cake. Why don't you have the chocolate pancakes that Sarah has made for you." She smiles warmly as I return it. Yes, we weren't that religious. Birthdays were still celebrated in my family even though I hated it.
My mother was a Makeup artist and my father was a pilot. He was barely around with us, he traveled and bunked in other countries all the time. He's a lucky man, but I miss him quite often.
"Dear, did you do your dour (revision of the Quran) after praying Fajr?" My mother interrupted my thoughts.
"Yup."
"Good cause if you don't review your juz then you'll forget the Quran and it will literally wipe out from the heart and I don't want that to happen." She lectured sternly. "You worked really hard to achieve it."
"Chill mom, I did it in the morning. I spent three hours reviewing." I replied bluntly making her relax.
I sat at the table picking at the pancake Sarah made. I loved Sarah's pancakes, they were always awesome. "Mom, I'll miss Sarah's pancakes when she's married in few years." I joked.
"Ya you sure will." She smiled sadly with a look I couldn't really detect.
"Mom, is everything okay?" I asked sensing something mysterious.
"Yup dear." She said looking away, "Anyways, Sarah wants you to go outside with her. She wants to spend the day with you." She quickly changed the subject but I guess... I'll let it go this time if she's not willing to share.
"Okay." I finished my breakfast and started heading upstairs.
"Hajara!" my mom called sounding sad again.
"Yeah?" I turned around and gave her a questioning look.
She looked away again. "I think you will be separated from Sarah and us, soon." Clearly holding back her tears.
"What do you mean?" I cocked my brows.
"Nothing. Forget it, just get ready."
What does she mean?
I headed upstairs to my room, Sarah had already picked out an outfit for me and put it out on the bed. I quickly wore it, applied a little makeup and topped it off my headscarf, and ran downstairs.
Sarah was already there wearing the same outfit as me leaning against the door, while she gloomily tapped her fingers against her arms.
"Wow sis, you look great!" She grinned brightly when her eyes fell upon me.
"Thanks!" I grinned back, "By the way, why are you always late for school but not other stuff?"
"My stress level doesn't allow me to be early."
"Says the person who doesn't even care about her studies," I replied back, rolling my eyes.
"Excuse me, is I do care?" She twirled the side of her hijab dramatically and placed a hand on her heart. She took a sip of water from her water bottle.
"Well, the last time I checked, you had doodles for answers, not math equations. Miss smartie!" I challenged, flicking her forehead.
She choked on her drink and spat it out. "What the hell? How did you know? I mean what the hell? I never did that, you were probably hallucinating. My poor old sister always seeing things weird things." She sighed dramatically, clearly lying.
"Sure sis, whatever you say." I grinned, rolling my eyes. We both got out of the house when my mother came running after us with a camera in hand.
"Girls, say cheese. I need to take a picture of this VERY moment. " My mom said waving her camera at us gesturing us to lean against the wall.
"Cheese? Where's the cheese?" She still treated us like kids when I was almost eighteen.
"CHEESE!" Sarah yelled, flashing her dimpled grin.
"Okay girls have a fine time." My mom said kissing both of our foreheads.
"Okay mom." we both said nonchalantly.
"So Sarah, where are you taking me?" I asked curiously as she dragged me the entire way with extreme excitement.
"To the mall, of course." She answered cheerfully. To be honest we looked like twins wearing the same outfit. But our eyes were the main source that differentiated us; she had onyx eyes and I had oceanic ones.
"Sis, what do you want for your birthday?" She squealed. The thought of my mom popped into my head, she thinks I'll be separated soon. What does that mean?
"To be with my little sis for the rest of my life." I smiled making her giggle.
She dragged me to the nearest shops so she could buy me a ring. Apparently, in her theory, we should wear similar rings permanently so we can remember each other often. Weird right? Well after all... she's my weird little sister.
"Wear it?" she commanded holding a ring in front of my face.
"Mhmm."
"Okay, it's pure silver its never going to get ruined or fade away." She said inspecting it closely. Before I knew it, she quickly bought it and slid it on my finger. "With this you can remember me for the rest of your life." She gave a sincere smile.
Before I could say anything more, I was being dragged by her again to the next store when I bumped into a familiar figure, a slender woman with a pink scarf. She abruptly turned around and hugged me as soon as she realized who I was.
"Hajara." A familiar voice said.
"Aunt Mariam." I hugged her, she was my mom's older sister and also my dad's brother's wife. "Aunty!" I breathed giving her the longest and bone-crushing hug ever, clearly not even caring about my surroundings. When I pulled away I noticed that Sarah wasn't there anymore, she probably was still in the store and never noticed me leaving her side.
I loved my aunt, she's the sweetest and craziest person in my family after Sarah of course. "Happy birthday, dear! I was going to come over to your house today but since you are already here, here's your present!" She said handing me a gift bag that contained a bracelet and makeup box.
"Thanks!" I replied hugging her again, we were suddenly interrupted by a manly figure who began clearing their throat breaking us apart. I looked up to see the guy that I bumped into the other day at school standing right beside my aunt. Yeah, I remember his name...Yusuf, I think.
"Go away dear, we are having our private conversation." She glared sternly, shooing Yusuf away who just raised his eyebrows before walking away.
"Sorry about that!" My aunt chuckled nervously. "That's my ... neighbor!" Yeah right! I knew she was lying because my aunt never lied, she stuttered whenever she did.
"Suuuure", I rolled my eyes.
"See you around. I gotta go now." She said in quick haste leaving me there with Sarah again. There was something fishy that my family is hiding from me. Why was Yusuf there with my aunt?
I'm nervous.
There is certainly something big and mysterious.