"I think women are foolish to pretend they are equal to men, they are far superior and always have been." - William Golding

Chapter 2 - Irked.

You know what the amazing thing about books is? Their ability to completely transport you into this 'other' world - a world that's sometimes only possible in your dreams. Now I'm a bookworm and don't get me wrong, reading is a hobby of mine - but sometimes I read because I need to escape my own thoughts and get away from reality, even if it's just for a few minutes. 

And that's exactly what I was doing in an attempt to distract myself from Zach and Noah, my idiot of an older brother. Sometimes, I think they make it their life mission to annoy me. They were sitting on the couch whispering and snickering to each other about something or other, and every few minutes one of them would burst out laughing. At one point Noah's laugh was so loud, he may have pierced both my eardrums. To say that I was getting frustrated quickly was an understatement, especially when the book in my hands was Pride and Prejudice, one of my ultimate favourites. 

I looked at them, both laughing like hyenas. Have you guys ever seen the national geographic video where the antelopes are just grazing and enjoying their time when suddenly, a lion leaps out from within the bushes and rips them to shreds? Yeah well, I was imagining myself doing that to both of them right now.

"Hey Yasmine."

"Hey."

"Hey Yaz."

Keep calm Yasmine. Keep Calm. 

"YASMINE!" 

I slammed my book shut and threw it on the table. It landed with a loud thud.

"Yes, dear brother?" I replied with a tight-lipped smile.

"We're hungry. Can you make us sandwiches? Please?" I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow at him. "If you don't, my stomach might concave and then who knows what horrible things could happen after that. My humiliation. Your humiliation." Was this guy actually twenty-one years old? A valid question to be asking, I think.

He was trying to give me his 'you're the best sister in the world/pity me' look. I peered over at Zach, who was sitting there slouched back, arms folded across his chest and a knowing smirk on his face. 

Traitor, he knew exactly how to piss me off. I glared at him and his smirk widened.

"What's wrong Yasmine? You look a little red."

"Oh shutup." I huffed and walked off into the kitchen to make their sandwiches - because I was an awesome sister and friend like that. Maybe if I overfeed them, they'd go into comprehension mode. You know that period after you've eaten so much, you just sit there like a beached whale and try to understand how and why you consumed all that food? 

At least it might shut them up. 

Ha, yeah right, I thought, smiling to myself.

After a minute or so Zach came strolling in. "What are you smiling about?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" 

"What's the bet you were imagining how to kill us," he stated knowingly.

"Oh no that was before. I was just devising how to shut you both up. But good try." He laughed out loud, a real, genuine laugh. 

I looked over at him and smiled, realising how little I hear that laugh anymore. I must have been staring at him for a while cause after a minute he said, "what?"

I shook my head. "Nothing. Have you seen Jacob today?" His smile immediately dimmed.

Zach has an older brother, Jacob who's twenty. They used to be really close but approximately eight months ago, Jacob became so reserved to the extent that he barely speaks to his own family anymore. Unfortunately on a trip to Ramallah with his friends, he witnessed his friend being shot dead by one of the Israeli soldiers, just because he didn't have his I.D. on him and wanted to pass a checkpoint. It was his best friend and you could say he's well...traumatised.

None of us blame him, we just wish he would open up a little. Zach's mother is especially worried about him.

"No he went out last night and when I left he still wasn't home. If only I knew where he was going..." he said, rubbing his face in frustration. I frowned and exhaled sadly. I saw Jacob as an older brother and I hated to see how much he'd changed lately. 

I can't even begin to imagine how conflicted Zach is at the moment. To see your older brother slowly deteriorate in more ways than one would be extremely upsetting.

"Hey, I know you miss him and you're worried but just give him some time. He needs some space. Some people only need a few months to get past something but others, longer. Everyone's different. Imagine if you were in his shoes." 

He looked up at me then, his green eyes holding as much emotion as yesterday evening, if not, more. He ran a hand through his black hair, before shuffling his feet uncomfortably.

"Yasmine if I ever...if I ever lost you I don't know what I'd do." He had slightly mumbled the sentence and when I finally caught on, I was quite taken aback. I definitely felt the same, but the way he said it, and the amount of intensity in his manner shook me a little.

To break the awkward atmosphere that had suddenly formed around us, I laughed and said, "ha, see I knew you wouldn't be able to live without me. I'm the only person that complements you in life. True story." 

He smiled and shook his head at me.

"Hey where are our sandwiches?" Noah said, strolling in. Talk about an impatient brother, it's only been ten minutes. I put two sandwiches on a plate for each of them and handed it over.

"At your service." They both grinned at me, showing their pearly whites and sat down to eat. I couldn't resist smiling back and walked out to go find Adam, my little brother.

 ****

I had two twin sisters under me, at the age of fifteen, Nadia and Rida, my sister Deana at seven, and then my little brother Adam at three. To say my house becomes a zoo and falls into complete anarchy everyday, would be an understatement. All my sisters were at a family friends house, being tutored English and Math and I could just hear Adam waking up. I walked into my parent's room to find my mother cuddling him against her chest.

I smiled at both of them and sat down next to her. "How's my little baby this afternoon?"

He huffed and looked up at my mother. "Tell her I'm a big boy mumma." I laughed and kissed his little cheek.

"Careful, I think he's getting sick." I looked at him closely and he did seem to be a bit pale. I put the back of my palm against his forehead and realised he was very hot. "I tried to get him to sleep but he woke up within an hour."

I looked at my mum and observed the wariness and fatigue present in her face. It was one oclock, and she comes home from work as a nurse at noon everyday, so it's understandable. I took him out of her arms and he immediately wrapped his little legs around my waist and put his arms around my neck.

"Let's go make you some hot chocolate. How does that sound?" As soon as he heard the word 'chocolate' his head shot up, his eyes widening.

"Yes, yes, please Min please!" I laughed and kissed his cheek. He was irresistible. Adam was the most difficult of children to scold, simply because he made the most adorable and heartbroken faces whenever someone was upset with him. 

Mum smiled up at me appreciatively. "Thanks habibti. I'm going to head into the shower. Have the boys eaten anything?" I nodded a yes and went downstairs back into the kitchen, passing the boys as they played on the x-box. The dishes had been washed and dried and I knew that was courtesy of Zach.

His mother raised him well.

After making Adam his hot chocolate, I went to relax with him in my lap and decided to just watch the boys play GTA. The best thing about this game was being able to run over people. Noah, Zach and I were all worryingly sadistic like that.

I looked between my brother and my best friend and was glad they got along so well. It would've been awkward if they didn't.

When Noah had come to pick me up from school one day, back when I was still thirteen, he saw me and Zach sitting together on the benches. Zach and I had known each other for two years by then and Noah immediately went into overprotective brother mode and was extremely wary of Zach. After that he used to walk me to school and back and would constantly ask me about 'that boy'. I remember thinking, what is there to even worry about?

Now that I'm seventeen and older, I understand why Noah would be worried. No matter what, I was his baby sister and especially in the circumstances that we live in, his first instinct was and is, to protect me. Although he keeps an eye on us now, he trusts us both. He's usually with us most of the time since I can't be alone with Zach, considering he's a non-mahram, but sometimes the inevitable does happen and we end up alone.

My thoughts were cut short when the door was slammed open and three girls came barreling in.

'Here we go,' I thought.

****

Definitions:

Ramallah: A city in Palestine - in the West Bank

Gaza: Another city in Palestine and where Zach and Yasmine live

Habibi: a term of endearment similar to 'my love'

Mahram: someone who you cannot marry such as your grandfather, father, brother, uncles etc