I helped Ti to take the food out of the container and place something like two dozen plates, bowls, and baskets on the table. It smelled fantastic. Something that looked like very thin pita bread. Dumplings covered in yogurt and sprinkled with mint leaves. Small skewers with meat, onions, and peppers. A stew, with a strong smell of cumin. Rice mixed with fruit, vegetables, and long, thin strips of grilled meat. Little cakes filled with a kind of porridge and dried fruit. And more. So much more.
For someone with hands like excavator buckets, Ti was exceptionally careful with each plate and bowl. He made sure that two plates with the same dish ended up on opposite sides of the table. Made sure that half a dozen sauces, dips, and oils with herbs were distributed evenly. Arranged the slices of bread like a fan.
"You're doing great… I'll be right back…"
I walked over to the couch. Cat and Narges were sitting next to each other, holding hands, Cat's head on Narges' shoulder. Friends. I was relieved.
"Hey, Daddy!"
"I think you should… talk to your guest."
"Yes. I will. But… where was I?"
Narges whispered something.
"Oh, yes. Nana: Biggest. Shit. Ever."
Narges snorted into her hand.
"Catherine!"
"No, seriously. Got fucked by a man, now I can shit like a man."
I put my finger on my lips. Cat looked at me, then at Ti a good 15 feet away at the table.
"And of course: got fisted by a psycho."
She kissed Narges on her cheek. Narges returned the kiss on Cat's cheek. So sweet. So chaste. I had real hopes for the evening. (Hold that thought).
—-------
"Ti, I want to apologize. I was not okay to lie to you. I'm sorry."
"I… I really dunno. What do you want?"
"I promise I will explain. I promise I'm not… like… messing with you."
"OK"
"But…can we eat first?"
"OK"
We sat down. The dining table was big enough for ten guests. And it looked like we had food for ten. Narges gave a short introduction for each dish, telling us which ones go together, which ones were spicy or sweet.
And then we ate. For an hour. It was delicious. Every single dish was an explosion of foreign flavors, some so spicy we had to gulp down whole glasses of the yogurt-like drink Narges had brought. It tasted sweet and salty, with a hint of lemon and black pepper.
Ti: "This is really good. Thank you… Nana."
"You are welcome, Ti. If you like I can give you the recipes for some of these."
"Oh… we do not cook much. And my dad… he wouldn't…"
Ti fell silent, looked down. His face was already red from the spicy rice with peppers, but now it turned a different kind of red. The embarrassed kind of red.
Cat: "I know, Ti. It's ok. We know about your dad. The whole school knows."
"He is… he is a good man. He is my dad. But he has his… ways. And he doesn't allow…"
"Foreign food?"
"Yes." Almost inaudible.
"Made by foreigners?"
"Yes."
"It's ok. You are here. You are eating with us. He doesn't have to know."
"If he knew… I mean… I thought I was just picking up a laptop…"
"If he knew you were eating with…"
Ti shook his head.
"You can say it. I will not be offended. I promise. We try to be honest with each other here."
Ti just stared down at his plate. A piece of bread, dripping with spicy sauce, in his hand.
"You are eating with niggers."
Me: "Cat!"
"No, it's ok… Ti?"
"Yes. I'm sorry."
"Don't be sorry. This is your dad. What do you think?"
Ti looked up. Not angry. But like someone who has been pushed one too many times.
"He is not wrong about all of it, you know?"
"Nobody is wrong about everything. But you do understand that I don't like this word?"
"Yes."
"Then all I'm asking of you is that you do not use it for me…"
"OK"
"...unless I ask you to."
"What?"
Cat winked at him. "Just kidding. Food is getting cold."
"A lot of it is cold. It's supposed to be served like this, Catherine."
"Of course, Mother Superior."
"Ti… do you think I am a… you know?"
"It is… not the… same…"
"What do you call me?"
Ti looked down again.
"Please, look at me."
Narges tried to touch his hand, but he drew it back.
"I heard… raghead?"
He shook his head.
"Terrorist?" She said it with fake doom in her voice.
He shook his head.
Cat: "Sandnigger?"
Ti nodded. Looked down on his plate.
This time, Narges leaned forward and grabbed his big hand with both of her hands.
"I don't like this word either. But I think… you can't really hate what you don't know. If you or your dad knew anything about me… I'm not a sandnigger. I'm a mountain nigger."
Cat spit out a mouthful of food. Ti looked up, his face halfway between crying and smiling. Narges looked at him and squeezed his hand.
"My god, Nana has made a joke. Like a real joke."
"Please be quiet, Catherine. Or we will have another… fistfight." She winked at Cat.
"Ti, please look at me. I think you are better than that. I think you are a good man."
Ti smiled. Shy. This mountain of a guy smiled like the moon in old children's books.
"Let's eat. When we have our mouths full, we won't be tempted to say silly things."
And so we ate. In peace. At some point, I noticed that Narges was still holding Ti's hand.
—-------
"I should leave."
Cat: "No, please, stay."
Narges: "Yes, Ti. I would like you to stay. Please."
"For what it's worth, I would like you to stay, too. Feel free to leave, but just know that you are among friends here."
"OK."
Pause.
"Cat… you promised… Why am I here? What is this?"
"Yes, I promised. Let's play a game. Truth or Dare. If you get Truth, you will get the truth. Deal?"
"OK."
We left the dining table, there would be quite a mess to clean up later. We moved over to the living room, I pushed the table to the side and took four large cushions. We put the cushions on the floor, sat down on them. Ti opposite me, Cat to my left, Narges to my right.
"Let's play."
Ti: "Cat… Truth."
"This is not how this…"
"Why am I here? Truth."
"Fine. We have something in common. We've all been bullied. We've all been bullied by the same person."
Ti looked at Cat. Looked over to Narges. Looked over at me, but I just shrugged.
"The Evil Queen."
Both Ti and Narges looked down.
"Evil Queen?"
"Mikayla Mauss. Head cheerleader. Blonde. Tall. Tits and ass for two. Evil incarnate."
"Mauss? I think that's German for 'mouse'"
"And?"
"So… it's Cat and Mouse?"
"Damn… talk about fate and all."
Ti: "What about her? I have nothing to do with her!"
"Ti, Truth. What happened at the 5-mile run?"
"No. Don't."
"Ti… it's true. Your turn."
Pause. Ti looked at her. His lips are a thin line.
Narges: "I go first. Truth. I love swimming. But… I don't want to wear a bikini. Or a swimsuit. Because… you know…."
We all nodded.
"I have this special swimsuit… like…"
"Burkini?"
Narges laughed. "No, not a burkini. They look horrible. It's like… what divers wear?"