Page 9 of She will Always be Mine

Averting my gaze, I focus my attention to my aunt and uncle, who are busy talking to each other, oblivious of the tension swirling in the air. There’s no sign of Zain around us. I’m grateful for that single mercy because while Riaan will never harm me, no matter how angry he’s at me, the same cannot be said about his younger brother. These days, he’s a loose cannon. Unrestrained and vindictive.

A shudder racks through my body as I remember his betrayal from last night, making Riaan’s eyes narrow into slits.

In that exact moment, my uncle’s gaze lands on my mom and I standing at the entrance and a wide smile graces his lips. Immediately, I mask all the emotions that Riaan evoked inside me just a second ago and easily tip my lips up in a fake smile while my mom does the same.

“What a pleasant surprise, Sara!” exclaims my uncle, pulling my aunt’s attention to us, and she covers the distance between us with her arms wide open.

As soon as she’s close, she pulls me into a warm hug and I have the urge to not let go because since last night, I’ve been craving solace and comfort that I can no longer seek from my mother. But all too soon, she pulls away to turn toward my mom and repeats the same.

“It’s so good to have you here, Sara,” says my aunt warmly. “I’m always telling Rohan how long it’s been since you visited us and that we should invite you,” she says while pointing toward Uncle, who nods in agreement.

“We’ve always wanted to come but Rohan’s work always got in the way,” explains my mom politely.

My aunt pulls me closer and leans her head against mine in a sweet gesture as she replies, “Well, now that your daughter is here, you have no more excuses. I expect you to stay with us more often. I miss spending time with you all.” Then turning to me, she excitedly asks, “So, did you like your surprise, darling?”

My body tenses and my smile comes out awkward, although my aunt doesn’t notice as I lie in a cheery voice, “Of course! I couldn’t believe my eyes.” I look at my mom when I say the next words, “She might not believe me, but I needed her badly this past week. I-I missed her.”

For a split second, her eyes soften and stare at me warmly before she looks away. It’s true that I missed my mom when everything was crumbling around me.

The cruel messages, fighting my feelings for Riaan, and feeling so lonely. I had never felt so suffocated and even though things have only gotten worse, a part of me feels free from the burden of constantly lying to her.

My future may be uncertain and bleak but at least she knows now.

“Aww, sweetie,” whispers my aunt. “I didn’t know things were rough with you. You could have come to me.”

I wipe away a lone tear that falls from my eyes as I grin. One would think I would have run out of tears by now but I’m proven wrong. They are seemingly out of my control. I twist toward my aunt to assure her.

“It’s okay. I’m better now,” I lie once again and she nods before giving me a bright smile.

I almost forget my uncle and Riaan are still in the same room when I look up just as my aunt shifts to the side.

Uncle Rohan has a comforting smile on his face while his older son’s face is a blank mask, yet my heart thunders just the same.

I know he heard every word I said just now and I realize my mistake. My slipup inadvertently gave him confirmation that his suspicions are correct.

I’m aliar.

And I’m hiding dark secrets.

My mom clears her throat to pull my attention away from Riaan and stares pointedly while distracting my aunt. “Let me help you with breakfast. I told you to wait for me.”

“Oh shush,” says my aunt. “You enjoy spending too much time in the kitchen. It’s my turn to take care of you now.”

She’s right because my mom loves to cook and if there’s one thing she loves even more, it is feeding others. Sometimes, we literally have to pull her out of the kitchen and force her to eat. My mom shakes her head with a laugh at my aunt’s chiding and it sounds so genuine that I can’t help but stare because it’s been so long since I heard the sound.

The three of us walk farther into the room and as soon as my mom is close, my uncle stands up from his perch and moves forward to pull her into a warm hug.

My eyebrows pull into a frown when I see Mom become tense as soon as they embrace.

“Time passes by so quickly.” My uncle reminisces when he pulls away. “Can’t believe both of us have grown up kids now. We’re lucky they are as close as we used to be.”

He doesn’t even realize he’s unknowingly stepped on the wrong nerve because my mom looks close to fainting as her face pales and she becomes still as a statue. I’m about to come to her defense by pulling my uncle’s focus, when Riaan beats me to it.

“Please don’t bore us with tales of your childhood, Dad,” he says dryly. “We’ve heard them enough times now.”

Uncle easily becomes distracted as he turns to Riaan and replies to him. I step toward my mom and rest my hand on her lower back so that she snaps out of the shock and I count my lucky stars that my aunt missed the whole exchange. She has her back turned away while she moves in the open kitchen, preparing breakfast for us.

My mom’s reaction scared me to death, indicating she’s not as fine as she’s pretending to be. It takes her a few seconds before she’s relaxed and calm.

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