The Dangers of Islam: The Terrorist

Chapter 11: Decay

     Dawood awoke with a start and growled as he looked at the clock on his nightstand. It was two in the morning and his war flashbacks were still giving him grief. He glanced to his side and noticed that Annie wasn't sleeping next to him. "Where'd she go?" Dawood yawned as he rubbed his eyes. They had been home less than two weeks and he realized that he had become accustomed to Annie being around quite easily. He stumbled out of bed and yawned before pulling on a shirt and shuffling towards the door to their room. He headed down the hall and spotted Annie sitting in the living room, talking on the house phone. She looked right at home as she sipped on what Dawood could only surmise as being tea while she propped her feet on a nearby ottoman.

     He quietly descended the stairs and watched as Annie obliviously continued talking on the phone. His inner child got the best of him as he decided to surprise his wife instead of calmly walking up to her like an adult would do. He nearly reached Annie in relative silence, but tripped over her shoes, alerting her to his presence. "Dawood!" Annie cried out in surprise as she turned off the phone and helped Dawood onto his feet. "Well, I wasn't as smooth as I thought I'd be," Dawood smiled and clutched Annie's hand to get off the ground. "What are you doing here?" Annie asked in confusion. Dawood dusted his shirt before crossing his arms across his chest and smiling, "I should ask you the same thing. Secret phone calls and tea in the middle of the night? If I didn't know better, I'd think you were cheating on me," Dawood teased Annie.

     Annie raised an eyebrow at Dawood, and then shook her head, "I thought you were serious. I was going to hit you for doubting me." Dawood grinned and held Annie's hand before sitting down on the couch, "Oh yeah? Then why is your heart racing? Are you actually cheating on me?" Annie frowned and pulled her hands out of Dawood's grip before wringing them together and whispering, "I can't believe you're doubting me." "Whoa, Annie," Dawood grinned and pulled Annie onto his lap, "you're freaking out. Are you seriously cheating on me?" Annie frowned and began to get up from Dawood's lap, but stopped as Dawood gave her a hug and said, "Kidding. Kidding. Sheesh. Why do you get so serious?" "I don't like being doubted, Dawood," Annie said with a huff.

     "Do you know why I joke with you?" Dawood asked as Annie sat down next to him. "Why?" Annie asked as she picked up her cup of tea and took a sip. "It's because I never know what you're thinking," Dawood explained. "What do you mean?" Annie asked as she glanced at Dawood. "I'm a soldier and one skill you learn when you stay in the army for a while is how to read people," Dawood began. "How is that a skill that a soldier needs or develops?" Annie asked with a laugh. "Oh you're laughing now, but reading a person's expressions and body language is what has kept your husband alive and well while in war zones. We use body language as a key indicator to figure out what could be wrong or if we are going to be backstabbed by informants. Simple things like not making eye contact, can alert us that something is wrong," Dawood explained as he looked into Annie's eyes.

     "Anyone looking into your eyes would be unnerved," Annie sighed as she averted her gaze. "Why's that?" Dawood asked and looked at Annie expectantly. "Your eyes, they-they seem like they've seen things that no human should see. They're mysterious and unnerving at the same time," Annie whispered. "Pretty sure I've never heard that before. You're making me sound like some sort of boogeyman," Dawood said with a grimace. "You're different, Dawood. Much different from the person you were portrayed as, to me," Annie explained. "Is that a bad thing?" Dawood asked as he looked at his wife. "No, of course not. I was under the impression that you'd be this overbearing white guy who wanted his wife to always be in the kitchen," Annie sighed. "That's a stereotype if there ever was one. Honey, go make me a sammich!" Dawood said in jest and chuckled. "You realize that I'm not one of those stay-in-the-kitchen types, right? I might make you a sandwich, but that's only because that is something I want to do. Not because you told me to do it," Annie said with a raised eyebrow.