#toherembrace

FoB Meme

Darius peered at his former mistress in confusion. To be him? The fatherless son of a cook? A personal steward whose master was imprisoned? He would have laughed, but it wasn’t funny. Darius had known Rookheeya for half his life, but he would never have guessed that she wondered what it was like to be him.

Even now - perhaps especially now - as they awaited the day Nadir was released from prison. Darius now worked in Sogand’s kitchen, but his new mistress treated him with the same kindness that Nadir had extended to him. Under the pretense that he was visiting his aunt, uncle, and cousins who worked for Rookheeya’s brother, he was allowed to accompany Sogand and her husband, Ali, to Rookheeya’s home and occasionally, everyone turned a blind eye to their conversations, as they did now.

Rookheeya and Darius strolled through the garden while others were at dinner and Darius found himself wondering the same thing. What is it like to be you? She had endured so much loss, but endured nonetheless. She was still brilliant, bold, beautiful. He wondered sometimes if she, too, cried out in anger at night sometimes. If she, too, thought Nadir’s sacrifice had been in vain and that they would have all been happier if Erik had been marched to the gallows and their family left alone to carry on as it had for all those years before the magician cast his curse over them. She seemed so much more forgiving. Perhaps she was in a position to be. She had family to return to, instead of being snatched up like property before the government could confiscate Darius along with Nadir’s signet ring and livestock...

“What it’s like to be me? I wonder what it must be like to be you,” Darius told her. “I don’t think there’s a person on this planet I admire more except my mother and...”

@toherembrace

Over their spring break, Christine and Reza headed for the seaside for their own small vacation. It was nice to get out of the city, to breathe in some cleaner air than the New York streets. Reza had driven and Christine fell asleep in the passenger seat with her hand resting across the console to rest on his leg. She was woken up with a kiss and they spent their afternoon on the beach, walking along the water.

After checking into the hotel and having dinner that night, Reza and Christine headed back to the beach with a blanket and sat in the tall grass on the fringes of the sand. They laid down on their blanket, Christine’s head resting on his stomach. For awhile, they were quiet. Reza played with her hair as she gazed up at the stars, letting the salty air fill her lungs. The ocean tide slowly and quietly beat against the shore, offering a rhythm for her breathing. 

“I’m really glad you had this idea,” Christine murmured, closing her eyes as he twirled a chocolate lock around his fingers.

“My pleasure, Christine.”

“Is that so?” Darius asked. “I- er - hadn’t noticed, mistress.”

Of course he’d noticed. Everyone in the household had noticed how often Rookheeya and Erik clashed with one another. Neither yielded and most often, Nadir was left to intervene. Which left Darius to listen to Nadir’s frustrations about the whole mess. He averted his gaze. He knew Rookheeya well enough to know that she’d know he was lying. He just hoped she knew him well enough that he was doing so to avoid inadvertently insulting her.