Winter's Last Stand {COMPLETED}

Chapter 26{Past Before Us}

What is she like?
I was told—

She is like
the sun to the night,
a momentary gold.

A star when dimmed
by dawning light,
the flicker of
a candle blown.

A lonely kite
lost in flight—
someone once
had flown.  

She was knitting gloves for Dani. He specially requested for the blue ones. It was one of his favorite color. Sky blue. It became her favorite when she first encountered him. She still remembered how his sky blue shirt complemented his emeralds.

'We have guests. Come on.', Amma came bringing her back out of the trance.

'Who?', she said untying the wool out of her fingers.

'The guy at the stadium, they are asking for you.', she said jolting her senses.

'What and you just let some stranger in?', she said looking at her in bewilderment.

'With his brother, I guess.', she said nonchalantly draping a shawl on a shocked Hoore and turned to leave.

'Dani isn't back yet?', she asked and at that precise moment the doorbell rang.

Hoore gushed towards the door and opened it to face a sweaty Dani. He came inside with sluggish steps and slumped on the chair in the veranda with a loud thud.

'Careful.', she said now coming towards him, taking him in her arms arm en route to her room.

'Hoore, come on they are asking for you.', Amma said gushing into the room.

'Tell them that she doesn't live here.', she said taking Dani's shirt off and moving him to the bathroom.

'Too bad now I told them you live here.', she said looking at her pleadingly.

'Who's here?', Dani asked while washing his hands.

'I don't know.', she said taking out his clean pajama shirt from the cupboard.

'Then go and check.', he said peeking out of the bathroom.

'Don't dictate me around and shower with the soap and shampoo, you look very dirty.', she said making a nasty face.

'No it burn my eyes.', he said making a puppy face.

She just glared at him and he got inside smoothly to do his business. Now she looked at Amma and raised her eyebrows.

'They are asking for you child, now come on.', she said hurriedly, it was getting late.

She sighed and looked at the bathroom door.

'I'll come after dressing him up.'

**************

'What if it's not her?', he said dreadfully and Umar just glared at him.

It was the eighteenth time and he was asking the same question from the last twenty five minutes, relentlessly. The woman who opened the door led them to a compact room furnished with small  cream colored sofa set, a wooden table in the center and long white curtains on the windows that kissed the grey carpeted floor.

'Why is she not coming?', he asked and now Umar thought it was a mistake to bring him here. He could have done it on his own. He kept his head down and mentally tried to block his ears.