Mending the Broken

Chapter 1

AMAL

AGE: 16

I always suspected that something was wrong with my mother. I’d seen the way she looked at people when they weren’t looking at her. Fake smiles were always planted on her face with people around, but at home, I knew how she really was.

I never really understood what her deal with Baba was. They both lived downstairs ─in two separate rooms─ but I hadn’t ever heard them exchange a word since I was . . . Well, since forever.

Baba had become sick over the years. He was bed-ridden and only occasionally conscious. I had once seen Mama slip a pill in his drink. At that time, I didn’t think much of it and supposed it was for his illness.

But as I grew up, I saw the weird stuff she was involved in.

I had seen her with a few men on various occasions but that wasn’t the worst of it.

One day, I was casually walking down the stairs to go to the kitchen downstairs when I heard murmuring from inside her room.

With what started as a curious peek through her slightly open door, ended up scarring me.

I had read books, of course. In fact, most days I was buried in fantasy worlds through the pages of books that I barely had any idea what was going on inside mine.

But magic was supposed to be like a fairytale. Like what happened with Cinderella. It was supposed to transform you from a maid to a princess; to make you meet a real-life prince who fell head-over-heels for you.

It wasn’t supposed to be like this.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. My mother’s bedroom ─the evil stepmother, that’s what I was going to call her─ was like the road on a misty night; unclear, yet still detectable with the help of the car’s headlights.

It was an out-of-the-world experience. The evil I saw and felt nearly drove me insane. I bolted upstairs as fear crawled up my spine in the endless dark of my bedroom.

The lights were on, yes. But there was this general dark aura inside that house. After that, I decided one thing.

I had to get out of there and move to some place peaceful.

. . .

AAHIL

AGE: 25

I scrubbed two hands over my face, trying and failing to answer Dad. What was I going to choose as my career? Good question. And one I’d gladly answer if I had any idea myself.

In terms of choosing a subject, I had been pretty confused my entire life. Anyone who knew me already knew this fact.

In O-Level I took up Sciences and IT.

In A-Level: Psychology, Business, Biology and Add Math.

For Bachelors, I had no idea what to choose. Math? But how could I make a career out of that? Biology? No, thank you. I hated the plants’ chapters. Psychology? The only reason I had taken that up was to understand the human mind better and never planned to study it further.

That left me with Business. So that’s what I did and here I am. A Bachelors’ degree in Business and Finance in one hand and in the other hand? Well, a large Mocha with skimmed milk and 1 teaspoon sugar.

Right.

What was Dad’s question, again? Masters’. Do I want to do my Masters’ and if yes then in what?

I stared at Dad. “Business?” It came out more like a question.

He raised his eyebrows. “You know you’ll have to take over our family business one day, right?”

I nodded. “That’s why I’m taking up Business,”

“Son, I have full faith in your abilities. You’ve proved yourself capable of taking my position more than once.”

Where is this going?

“And?” I probed.

“I think you should take over,”

I looked at him in disbelief, though I’m sure my expression didn’t give that away. I probably had a straight face. “Right now?”

He nodded. “The sooner you take over, the better.”

“What about my studies?”

He gave me a look that said ‘what about your studies?’ “You can continue studying if you want to. Study whatever you want, you already own a company.”

Whatever I want? Now that seemed like a good idea.