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With Eid came the long list of dinner parties.

The families started to invite their friends and acquaintances in their homes in the name of social obligation.

And for Farrah that meant getting out of her room and socializing with people she didn't even want to acknowledge existed.

She scrutinized her reflection in the mirror.

She was wearing a light pink embroidered salwar kameez, with golden earrings embedded with rhinestones. Her hair had grown past her shoulder, almost reaching her mid back. Her eyebrows were almost starting to meet in the middle again. Her skin was breaking out due to lack of regular moisturizing. It's been a while Farrah had taken care of herself.

On the other hand, her kameez complimented her warm skin well and her clothes still fit her perfectly even with the lack of exercise.

Despite the shortcomings, Farrah thought she looked nice. She caressed her drooping earring one last time and walked out of her room.

Her parents had been waiting for her downstairs. They quietly got into the car as her father gave their chauffer the directions. Things between them had were incredibly awkward, more than ever.

Farrah didn't even remember which aunty's house they were at, the extravagance, the gossiping, sickening amount of food were all starting to blend into one another for her.

The girls were occupying one of the bedrooms of the house. The older Ahmad sisters were into one of their heated arguments about some reality show they were watching.

Malika and Lily were teasing Dahlia with some heavy-handed hints Farrah couldn't quite figure out. There were numerous other conversations going around the room, all of which went over her head.

Soon enough, Farrah began to wonder when had she completely fallen out of loop with her friends.

At some point, some girls started talking about their Ramadan.

An ugly realization was sinking into Farrah's heart.

What had she done this Ramadan?

Watch TV shows, read books and sulk in her room, that's what. She was so busy swallowing in self pity that she did absolutely nothing to utilize this month.

Now Farrah blinked, and Ramadan was gone.

Dahlia left her band of sisters and plopped down besides Farrah, the look of deep irritation etched into her face.

"What's going on?" Farrah asked, leaving behind her thoughts.

"Don't even ask," Dahlia replied, throwing a dirty look over her shoulder at her giggling sisters.

"It's another Kaveh thing," Lily spoke up. "Poppy realized we can see into bedroom through our lawn."

"Lily!" Dahlia chided.

Farrah darted her confused gaze back and forth between them. "This is the second time I'm hearing about Kaveh. Wait, are you guys a thing?" she asked, her eyes widening in surprise.

"Of course not!"

"Oh my God. How did I not hear about this before?!"

"For God's sake, there is absolutely nothing. This is just my sisters being stupid." Dahlia said, shooting the girl's a harsh glare over her shoulder. "Anyways, what's going on with you?" she asked briskly, desperate to change the topic.

Farrah threw her a knowing look. "Nothing as interesting as what's going on with you, apparently."

"Fari!" Dahlia pleaded. "Just ignore it, please."

"Fine," Farrah let it go momentarily, taking pity on the poor girl.

Dahlia let out a laboured sigh. "So how are things at home?"

The air between them shifted. The playful tone between them became tensed.

Farrah raised a shoulder and dropped. "Worse," she replied. "We have been avoiding each other. I mean, usually we do it peacefully." She rolled her eyes. "Now there is an underlying hostility."

"Did you talk to Rani Aunty?" Dahlia asked.

"She's been talking to the whole neighbourhood." Farrah snorted. "Mom has been on the phone non-stop."

"That's not what I meant, Fari. I think you should talk to her," Dahlia told her, a hint of worry appearing on her face. "I don't mean pass comments or talk to your friends about your mom. I think you should have a real conversation with her."

Farrah stared back at Dahlia with absolute disbelief. "You want me to talk to my mom?" she asked as if it was the most ridiculous idea on the planet.

"Yeah," Dahlia insisted.

"Dels, you have clearly forgotten what she's like."

"The day we went to see you, she seemed so sorry and lost, like she deeply regretted how things went."

"There's no point. My mom really isn't the understanding type," Farrah said, rolling her eyes.

"Remember how bad things used to be between me and my family?" Dahlia said. "I have realized over the years that just trying to communicate my feelings, no matter how hard it seems, tends to make things better."

"I know, it's hard," Dahlia repeated, seeing the look on Farrah's face. "And it may seem like at first that even trying to explain things to them is futile, but trust me, my relationship with my family has improved so much over the years."

"I realized my parents aren't my enemies, they're just ignorant," Dahlia continued. "They want what they think is the best for me, even though it doesn't always coincide with what I want for myself. But their heart is in the right place."

"Dels, my parents aren't your parents," Farrah said. "I'm glad things worked out for you, but I just don't see this working for me like that."

"I guess," Dahlia replied with a sigh. "I was just trying to be helpful."

"I know."

Silence fell between them and Farrah felt that restlessness again. She glanced at the clock, it was still too early to leave, but she no longer had any interest to remain.

Farrah swiftly got up and stealthily left the room, hoping to be able to leave before her friends started to notice.

Farrah stood under the massive archway of the house entrance, dialing her mother's number.

She had been calling both her parents non-stop, but neither of them were responding. As she listened to the steady ring on her phone, her teeth gritted in frustration.

Farrah couldn't just leave because she shared a ride with her parents here. She also didn't want to disappear without letting them know in case they needed her for something.

But the dial tone was starting to get on her nerves, so Farrah gave up on trying and just hung up. She decided waiting for them was futile and started to leave.

As she stepped out of the door, she ran into the last people she ever wanted to see - The Osmanis. Rashid Osmani stopped dead in his tracks at her sight.

Cursed. I must be cursed. She thought, dread rising to her chest.

Farrah bit her tongue and forced herself to smile at them.

Nur Osmani was a lot more cheery than Farrah recalled. The woman caught her in a grip of death, making unnecessarily sweet greetings.

Rashid Osmani, on the other hand, looked just as awkward as she felt. Shoving his hands inside his pockets, shuffling from feet to feet, the guy barely met her eyes.

She glanced at him, through the haze of Mrs. Osmani's talks, and wondered if she should thank him in person for all he did. Farrah hadn't forgotten him since The Evening of Disasters. His polite concerns, gentle smiles, and favour to her afterwards were somethings she would never forget.

To top it all, Farrah was so rude to the man. She wanted a chance to fix things.

But Farrah knew better than to say anything. Things would just grow awkward between them.

Nur Aunty kept asking her endless questions about her family. The air outside was hot and heavy. Farrah's eyes peered towards the guarded gates, the narrow street outside promising her freedom.

"Salman?"

Farrah snapped her head to look at the crowd again. She realized they weren't alone anymore, the group had stumbled into the Bashir siblings.

Malika was standing with one hand on the door. Salman had his back to her. It looked like they were starting for home as well.

"Nur Aunty," Malika smiled and strode towards them, hands extended towards her aunt.

The two enveloped in a brief embrace. From the corner of her eyes, Farrah saw Salman turning to face them. He quietly observed them, the look in his eyes screaming absolute displeasure.

The aunt and niece released their embrace, then held each other at arms' length while exchanging a few words.

"Farrah darling, how are you going home?" Nur asked, shifting her attention towards Farrah again, releasing Malika.

"I was thinking of calling an Uber," she replied.

"There's no need for it." The older woman swatted a hand, her bangles tinkling in the process. "We'll drop you."

"We could too, Fari," Malika piped in, pointing at Salman's car over her shoulder.

"It's fine guys..." she started.

The youngest Ahmad cousins walked into the scene, their padding footsteps informing of their presence. Everyone turned to look at them. Ibrahim's eyes darted around the scene, Dahlia closely following him behind.

"Thought you guys left?" Malika asked.

"The cars were so full, we didn't fit. Thought we'd take an-"

"Uber?" Malika interjected. "So was Fari."

"What is it with you children and Uber these days?" Nur said, shaking her head softly. "My son and I can give all of you a lift."

"Thanks, Aunty," Ibrahim responded. "But ours is already on its way. Hey, Farrah, you can carpool with us," he offered.

Farrah darted her eyes between the parties, hesitant. "I appreciate the offers, everyone," she glanced at the older woman specifically, adding politely. "But I'll be better off calling for my own ride."

"We'd be more than glad to accommodate you, Farrah," Rashid spoke for the first time.

Farrah lifted her gaze to meet his, surprised and hesitant.

"It's okay." Shooting him a gentle, compensating smile. "I'll be fine."

"Her house is on our way," Salman spoke up for the first time.

Farrah looked at him, astonished. He hadn't said anything so far, not a word. And Farrah's place was definitely not on the way to the Bashir's home.

Farrah's heart raced. What was he upto?

"It'd be easier for us to drop her."

Farrah saw confusion bloom in Malika's eyes as she glanced at her brother. She swept her eyes at the Ahmads' to see Ibrahim staring at Salman with his brows pulled together.

"Her house is on our way as well," Nur insisted.

"It's not, though," Ibrahim spoke up, looking at Salman. "The Hussain residence is like, at least a half an hour of extra drive to the East from your place."

Salman faced Ibrahim, the expression on his face falling flat.

"Oh, right," Nur spoke again, realizing Ibrahim was speaking correctly.

"You must have miscalculated," Ibrahim continued. "But it's right on the way of our route though." He said, facing the main crowd again.

Here we go again. Farrah felt like tearing her own hair out.

"I said I'll do it," Salman said assertively, locking his eyes on Ibrahim, nodding his head to gesture for her to get in. The big guy shot him a muddled look.

Farrah looked around with confusion. It was such a silly mess. She glanced at the mother-son duo briefly, then at Salman. Farrah quickly strode towards Nur Aunty's car.

"I think I'd just ride with you guys," she told the Osmanis, before more confusions could be created.

Before she could change her mind, Farrah stepped into the car. She didn't want to disrespect the elder woman's offer, and Farrah had a feeling if she chose to ride with any of her friends instead, she might end up hurting her feelings.

The door shut after her with a soft thud, she could hear movement and more talks outside. Farrah peered through the tinted glasses and saw the parties coming to a conclusion and parting ways.

The Osmanis stepped into their cars and Farrah's eyes met with the boy her heart ached for.

There was a look in his eye she couldn't recognize. A dejected look that was uncharacteristic to Salman, a look she had seen on him only once before.

Before Farrah could comprehend or decipher what it meant, the car started moving.

This is the last of the Eid chapters; which means I'll stop posting everyday and go back to my regular schedule of Tuesday and Friday as announced both on my message board and Instagram (if you're not following me there yet, you really should!!). See you again in two days, in shaa Allah.