Masqué Chapter 25

I moved my plans to tomorrow night so I'm free today, which means one thing of course, I'll be able to post! :D Hows your summer so far? I hope you all are having a lovely summer and I hope you'll enjoy this chapter, reminder, this is a fiction story, not a real one, so anything is possible (so keep an open mind about the events, they're not based or portrayed on actual Kuwaiti lives, it's just from my imagination).

Another reminder, my stories will have romance, all fiction but that doesn't mean my stories should encourage any of you girls or boys to date, I believe in fairy tales if only it was done in the right way, keep that in mind. Oh and after this story, I'm going to introduce a new one 3la6oul enshallah. :D


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 "Yuma, were the twins adopted?" My voice trembled slightly.

"Y-yes." Mom's voice quivered, her eyes were clouded with shame and they wouldn't look into mine.

"It explains why I can't remember the twins.." I sighed, digging my fingers into the roots of my hair, rubbing my scalp to calm myself down. Bibi and Turki felt like siblings to me, even though they might have not had the same blood as me, they were still my brother and sister.

"Amal.. tawich 6l3tay men el ma5far, entay al7een t3bana and a lot has happened to you in such little time. Don't stress yourself out with the twins situation, please. They're my children, even if they're not related to me by blood." Mom's usually beautiful eyes looked weak and vulnerable. Tears slipped out of her eye sockets and trickled down her cheeks, showing her devotion and love towards her adopted twin children.

"Abe a3arif shloun you adopted them, do they have my father's last name? Do they know?" The questions kept rolling off of my tongue. Mom brushed her tears away carelessly and propped herself over my bed, sitting right next to me.

"They don't have your father's last name.. and yes, they know they're adopted but we only told them once they reached the age of 12, when they were able to understand." Mom sighed. "Their parents were very good friends of ours but they didn't have any other relatives. Their parents died in a car accident, allah yer7umhom and in their will, they said they wanted us to be the twin's guardians. The twins were only 2 years old, they didn't understand much and they got used to calling us Mom and Dad, we never told them otherwise, they were the kids I wanted but didn't have.. it was refreshing to have children again after you were taken away from me Amal.."

There were so many thoughts racing around in my already stressed out head. Did the twins suffer in school because they were adopted? Did people question why they had different last names compared to their current parents? Did they get bullied? How did they handle it, learning that they're true parents had died?

And most importantly, I wished I was there for them, I would have been there for them through every step of the way but I was in Switzerland, not knowing anything about my true past, living in a life that was full of lies.

"Amal? Shfeech tene7tay?" Mom stuttered, her eyes reddening.

"La2 yuma ma feene shay, bas ga3da afaker." I hesitated, not wanting to make it any harder on my mother. She had been through enough.

"Shitfakreen 3an?" Mom urged on, her eyes searching for an answer.

"El7amdellah 3la kel 7al, I can't ask for a better family." I gave Mom a genuine smile, grabbing her arm to pull her in for a hug. Mom's warm arms wrapped around me, cradling me for a few minutes, reminding me of how it felt when I was a child when she used to hold me in her arms.

"Bibi w Turki ma y3rfoun enich entay et3rfeen bas sooner or later they'll know it by instinct, can you not bring the subject up with them? Saway rou7ich ena wla shay teghayar beinkom, okay? Yishofounich as their big sister, they need someone to look up to." Mom's arms released me and she faced with a serious expression as she stated her words.

"La t7ateen, they're still my sister and brother, w ma ra7 agoul shay." I reassured Mom, letting her leave my bedroom with a satisfied smile drawn onto her face.

That night, I shut everything off. Lights were out, my clothes were thrown onto the ground, curtains drawn tightly and my body tucked in under my soft covers, letting my bed hold me in it's soft embrace.

You know when you're angry at the people who treated you so harshly? Knowing that you didn't deserve the treatment you got? I was angry at A7mad. I was angry at Asmaa. I was angry at my fake parents. I was also angry at innocent Hessa, just for the glare she gave me back in the aquarium.

But that night, I let my anger dissolve. I forgave each one of them, not letting my emotions and time get wasted on those people. People don't deserve your hatred, your time, your thoughts if all they ever wanted to do was to ruin you. I couldn't stoop down to their levels, I couldn't hate them forever, I knew I was better than that.

And soon enough, I fell into blissful sleep with my mind finally at peace,  my heart open with wide arms for the new people who could venture into my life, the people I deserved to meet, the people I knew that wouldn't betray me as others did. I was ready for a new beginning, ready to start a new life as myself, as the Amal I truly was, not the Amal who was trapped under a false illusion back in Switzerland.

I've changed.

For the better.