Arina - the.writer (unputdownable books .txt) 📗

already gathered that.

"I'm sorry, Baba."

"For what? It's not your fault you still dream about your mother. Sometimes, I do too." And that was true.

"No, Baba. Not for that. For everything: Making you wake up in the middle of the night because of my foolish dreams, for you having to look after me just because you married Mamma, and for today, when I was rude to you in front of the man." She sat up in her bed and looked down at her fingers as she said this.

"Arina, it's okay." Isaak was stunned; he didn't know what to say. He never knew Arina had ever thought about things so deeply. He wasn't good with conveying his emotions so instead, he waddled back to his bed. "Get some sleep for tomorrow."

"Baba?"

"Yes?"

"Am I going to live with that man?"

"Yes, Arina."

"Am I going to have to leave my friends at school?"

"Yes, Arina."

"What about you, Baba? Are you going to visit me?"

"I don't know, Arina."

"I hope you do, Baba."


Chapter Two

Sitting on the hard chair waiting for Mustafa felt like a lifetime. Both Arina and Isaak silently anticipated his arrival. For some strange reason, Arina had a small feeling of excitement rushing around her body; surely because she didn't have a clue what was in store for her.

Isaak rocked back and forth in his chair glaring at the door, hoping for some kind of life to knock on it. It wasn't that he couldn't wait to get rid of Arina, it was merely the fact that he wanted to get this "business deal" over and done with. He couldn't bear to see Arina go; he had always had a soft spot for her, though it was one that he didn't often show.

"Baba, what will I be doing when I go with Mustafa?" Arina shattered the growing silence.

"I don't know, Arina." When he saw this answer was insufficient for Arina's wondering mind, he moved beside her. "All that matters is that you're going to have a better life. Okay?" He began stroking her hair subconsciously. Arina looked up at his disconsolate facial expression.

"What's wrong, Baba?" Her expression now matched his and the room's atmosphere was now almost unbearable.

"Nothing, nothing at all." He took a moment to compose himself. "Remember what I say next always. Don't ever let anybody do anything to you that you don't agree with. Do you understand, Arina?"

Arina had a bewildered look on her face now. She scrunched up her eyebrows and drew her finger to her temple in confusion.

"Why would anybody do anything to me that I don't agree with?"

Isaak sighed, unsure of what to say.

"Just as a precaution remember what I said. Always."

"Baba, I'm going to miss you. Please visit me everyday," Arina's words of affection were left unanswered due to the fact the doorbell was heard. Isaak was grateful of the timing; he wouldn't have to reply with the emotional response that he, so badly, wanted to state. The duo looked at each other in a split second, before Isaak got up and rushed off to open the door.

Arina sat alone in the living room pondering what her new life would consist off. Would she have a new, paradisiacal room? Would her friends be better than the friends she had here? Or would they bully her like the girls from the older years?

Her thoughts came to an abrupt end when she saw Mustafa standing opposite her. She looked to see where Isaak was, and saw him shuffling around in the doorway, looking down.

"Come on. It's time to go and no funny business this time." Mustafa grabbed her by her sleeve wrist and steered her out of the room.

"Bye, Baba," she managed to conjugate.

Isaak couldn't lift his gaze from off the ground; he looked far too grief-stricken.

"Remember what I said, Arina," he reminded her with tears in his eyes.

Before she could respond, Mustafa had shut the door; creating the barrier, that would forever grow, between Arina and her step-father. Mustafa continued to grasp onto her sleeve down the stairs of the small flat, until they had reached the bottom.

"You're going to be a good girl, aren't you Arina?" He said, his stale breath filling her nostrils with the most abominable odour. She coughed in a reflex action and nodded.

“Good. So I can let you go and you won’t run away?” Again, the smell was overtaking.

“Yes, Sir.” A part of her only obliged to this man because she wanted to impress her step-father. She wanted Mustafa to go back and report great news to Isaak about her wonderful behaviour. The other part of her only obliged to this man because she was scared of him.

“You don’t have to call me “sir”. That’s too formal for you and I. We’ll be getting to know each other far too well for you to be referring to me as “sir”.” He let out a calculated laugh that told Arina he smoked too much.

“Okay.”

“Call me Mustafa. But everybody else, call them whatever they please. Do you understand?”

Arina was confused. She didn’t know what other people she’d have to talk to. She then figured Mustafa meant her new friends.

“Of course, Mustafa.”

Mustafa arrogantly nodded to himself in accomplishment. He was proud he’d got such a great deal.

The car they were headed to sat parked illegally partly on the pavement. Arina stared at it. She was astonished by its sheer appearance.

Its shiny, metallic frame created a circular shape for the roof of the car. The six doors plastered around the car conveyed luxury in every way, and the tinted windows added that little touch. It clearly did not match its current surroundings; a luxurious car in a broke down estate.

Never had Arina seen such an expensive car. She got excited at the thought that this car was just a glimpse of her new life. What other great things would Mustafa have in store for her?

“Get in the car,” he said but Arina was already running towards the car, amazed. At first she placed her hands over the exterior and began feeling it.

“Wow!” She exclaimed.

Mustafa stood and watched the young girl. He let out a chuckle.

“Yes, I know. It’s great. Now get in.” He said after quickly getting bored of watching Arina stare at the car; he did not have enough patience to wait for her.

She backed away from the car and took the image in for one last time, in awe. Then only did she merrily hop into the car. He shut the door behind her and got in the front, seatbelts undone.

“How much did the car cost, Mustafa?”

“Money you'll soon be earning for me.”

Mustafa’s cryptic response only confused her further. She wished he’d give her direct answers; she hated when adults didn’t answer the questions understandably.

As he began to drive off, Arina enthusiastically watched the landscapes pass her by until her incitement wore off and slowly, she drifted off to sleep.

*****


She woke up with a start. She had banged her head on something. When she forced her eyes open, she saw nothing but black. Rubbing her eyes in haste, she realised it wasn’t black she was seeing; it was the back of a man’s jacket- upside down. She was lying over some new man’s shoulder and he was walking them both up the path. Arina wriggled around to escape this strange man’s clasp.