The warm sun hit the school parking lot after classes, full of noisy students ready to go home. We were all there: Fari, Daina, Hani, Adeline, Jasmine, Shazia, and Aziza. We were hanging out by the bike racks. A few feet away, the boys were doing the same: Mustafa, Sajjad, Tirth, Fahad, Asad, and Hassan. Zoya was missing for a minute, grabbing something from her locker.
Fari, our usually quiet friend, had a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Remember how they pushed me?" she whispered. "Let's get them back." Her plan was to push Zoya into Sabeehulla when she came back. It was a simple, funny idea, and we all loved it.
Zoya came out a moment later, completely unaware. We quickly pulled her into our group. Daina and Adeline started talking to her, keeping her distracted. On the other side of the parking lot, we gave a signal to the boys. Mustafa, Sajjad, and the others got it. With a lot of exaggerated arm-waving and secret signs, they moved a very confused Sabeehulla into the perfect spot.
"What are you guys talking about?" Zoya asked us. But it was too late. Daina and Adeline moved away, and we gave Zoya a little push. She stumbled forward, right into Sabeehulla. It was a mess of arms and legs. To our huge delight, her lips brushed right against his cheek! Sabeehulla froze, his eyes wide like a cartoon character.
Then, just as quickly, Zoya suddenly got up. Sabeehulla's face went bright red, and Zoya looked a little embarrassed. We started teasing them loudly from our side. "Oooooooh!" we chanted. "Sabeehulla got a kiss!" Zoya then turned back to face us, and she gave Fari and the rest of us a furious, death-stare that could have set us on fire. She shouted "You fucking bitches, just turned and ran away as fast as she could. Sabeehulla was still frozen in shock, touching his cheek and trying to process what had just happened.
Later that afternoon, Zoya was still fuming. Her revenge had to happen, and it had to be perfect. She came up to Fari, acting all sweet and innocent, a look of fake worry on her face. "Fari," she said, her voice soft. "I need your help with something. It's really important."
Fari, being the innocent soul she was, immediately agreed. "Okay, what is it?" she asked, her eyes full of concern.
"I need you to come with me and talk to Mustafa about something," Zoya said, hinting that it was something serious. Fari's heart fluttered. She felt nervous, but also a little excited at the idea of talking to him alone. Maybe this was a chance for a new moment, a sweet moment, after all the recent awkwardness.
They started walking towards Mustafa, who was standing alone by a locker. As they got closer, the air seemed to get a little bit heavier, a little bit more charged with a hopeful, romantic feeling. Fari's face was flushed, her hands were a little sweaty. As she walked, she looked down, pretending to search for something Zoya had "lost." It was the perfect trap.
When they were just a few feet away, Zoya gave Fari a mighty shove! Fari was sent flying, completely off balance, and fell straight into Mustafa.
For a split second, it was a movie scene. Their eyes locked, the world faded away, and Mustafa's arms reached out to catch her. It was going to be a perfect embrace. Fari's hands were on his chest, and his hands were on her waist. The moment hung there, full of romantic tension, for just a heartbeat.
Then, everything went wrong. So, so wrong.
Fari's hands, trying to steady herself, slipped. Her right hand, in a clumsy moment of pure panic, slid down and landed with a firm, solid THUD on Mustafa's... well, let's just say his most sensitive spot.
Mustafa let out a sound that was half a squeak and half a moan of pure, unholy pain. His face went from normal, to pale, to a sickly shade of green. His eyes bulged out of his head, and he doubled over, clutching himself. He looked like he was about to faint and float right up to heaven. It was the kind of pain that makes you question your entire life. His expression was a priceless mix of shock, agony, and a deep sense of betrayal. He looked like his best friend had just punched him in the gut.
Fari immediately scrambled off him, her face a horrified, fiery red. "OH MY GOD! MUSTAFA, I AM SO, SO SORRY!" she shrieked, her voice full of panic. Then, without another word, she ran away as fast as she could, disappearing behind a row of cars.
Zoya, on the other hand, stood there for a moment in stunned silence, then burst into the loudest, most hysterical laughter we had ever heard. She bent over double, clutching her sides, tears streaming down her face. Her revenge was a complete, chaotic success.
For the rest of the day, Mustafa was a tragic, funny figure. He walked with a stiff-legged wobble, like a pirate with a peg leg, wincing with every single step he took. Zoya spent the rest of her afternoon laughing uncontrollably every time she saw him struggling. Fari, meanwhile, was a picture of utter embarrassment. She hid her face behind books, behind friends, behind anything she could find whenever Mustafa was near.
But a strange, beautiful thing happened. Even though Mustafa was in intense pain, his eyes kept searching for her. He looked for a glimpse of her face, a hint of her shy smile. He actually seemed to think her shyness was cute, which was a huge change for him. He wanted to see Fari, even if she desperately didn't want to be seen. The pain was real, but his feelings for her were somehow even stronger.