Between the Grapevines

14. Arba'atu 'Ashar

By his third day at the hospital, Riyad no longer required his blood pressure lowered by medications or his consciousness drunken on intravenously infused drugs. He was fully awake as he lay his head back against the pillow, watching the girl who sat on the couch tearing chicken into smaller bites above the white rice. In his monitored recovery time, Riyad and Harakat had spent more time together than they had in their entire marriage. He'd grown accustomed to having her at his side, knowing she would be there if he looked for her whether asleep or awake.

She poured the broth over the rice in silence, using the silver spoon to mix everything together for easy consumption. Riyad's eyes skimmed over the slight dimple between her eyebrows as she took extra care not to allow any bit to spill over the edge of the bowl.

The couch creaked when she rose, making her way over to sit beside him on the hospital bed like she always did. Every afternoon since he'd woke, Harakat would assemble the food when it was brought and feed it to him herself, careful not to allow anything to drip onto his chin.

"I can feed myself now," he whispered. Though enough of his strength had returned, Riyad found no reason to raise his voice past a faint murmur in the silence of the room. Harakat's gaze shifted between his in question before she pushed the bowl closer to him and slid the spoon to him.

With a breath, Riyad lifted his hand to grip the cool handle of the spoon, tugging it out from beneath the rice. Harakat watched the silverware slide beneath the mixed meal, trembling as he lifted half a spoon full up then realized that his posture was inconvenient for feeding himself. She rolled her eyes and took it from his hand before he had the opportunity to drop anything on the freshly washed sheets covering his body.

"I just... need another day," he mumbled unhappily.

Harakat leaned forward to shake her head so that he might see her silent response. She placed the bowl on the table beside her and wrapped her fingers around Riyad's wrist, tugging his left hand until his knuckles rested against hers. Their rings shimmering side by side. He met her gaze as she motioned between them then interlocked her pinky finger with his.

Together.

He ran his tongue over his canines. "You shouldn't have to-."

His words drifted apart when she reached forward with one hand to gently grip the front of his jaw, putting a stop to his complaint. Riyad's breathing hitched in surprise as the girl lifted his head to connect their eyes. She pointed to herself then pressed her finger into his chest one last, lingering time before pointing above both of them.

Her, him, and God.

Riyad narrowed his eyes at her for a moment before one corner of his lips began to betray his amusement. When she saw his softening expression, Harakat's smile grew over her lips until he saw her straight teeth. Riyad tried not to linger for too long on the fact that his may the first time he'd seen her smile so widely. "We almost seem like we're really married, don't we?"

Her grin sat on her features for another moment before she lifted a spoonful of food to his lips, carefully sliding it past his teeth. Riyad had eaten a little more than half the bowl when he raised his hand, unable to swallow any more broth-flavored rice. Harakat hummed at his rejection then ate the remaining bites, oblivious to the way Riyad's eyes caught on her as she placed the spoon between her lips that he'd just eaten from. A gesture that had been unnoticeable to her but hypnotized him. Riyad could do nothing except watch her finish the food from his spoon.

"You're awake," the doctor entered the room with a chaste knock. Harakat quickly swallowed the last bite and hurried off the bed, leaving the sheets beside Riyad's legs cold. "I came by earlier but you both were still sleeping. How do you feel, ami?"