Life is not as we think. Things happen that usually shake our world, sometimes beyond repair and then we are forced to take steps that we would have not taken otherwise. That is life, that is what each and every human faces and that is what shapes the world that they eventually live in.

Raiyan bit his lower lips, trying not to let his mind overtake. He was sitting in the court, where the lawyers were speaking for him. He was fine, he was confident, he was aware of what was happening but the minute Alessia stood up to represent him, his heart lost ease. He doubted his action, his intention, he started to curse his mind. The more Alessia talked, the more Raiyan wished to stop it. He did not wish for them to go forward, he wished to bury the case then and there but he had to respect the honourable court. He stayed input and calm, letting them do their work, however his mind was not making things easy for him. Nevertheless, slowly his heartbeat reduced to normal; slowly he started to breathe normally; slowly his mind calmed down. He was yet not sure if he was on the right path but he was no more willing to take a hasty decision.

When the court was dismissed and a new date was set, Raiyan could not calculate the time that was invested. For him, it was the longest session of his life, where the time seemed impossible to move. He closed his eyes for a few minutes before he stood up and left. He was soon joined by Alessia and Haajar. Alessia discussed the case, reassured him and then excused herself to meet a fellow lawyer who was her friend. As she left, Haajar turned to Raiyan and frowned in concern. She tiled her head and said, "Are you alright? You seem worried. Do not think a lot, we did not lose it. We have a fair chance. Believe in her. Trust me she is the best."

"I agree that she is. But I am afraid it is not her or the chances of victory that is bothering me. I am having doubts about the whole case. I feel like I made a mistake. I shouldn't have taken this route. I should have been wiser." He looked up and found Haajar frowning which made him shake his head. "I am just feeling low. Do not worry. I think Alessia is calling us. Let's go."

Within five minutes the matter was closed and everyone was ready to leave. Raiyan took his car to work and the women took Alessia's car to work as well. Half of the day was spent at the court and the other half was swamped with work. Before leaving Alessia suggested they took a short break which Haajar was glad to accept. They went to a cafe near to their building, trying to not exhaust themselves. Alessia let her hair down and shook her head, relaxing her forehead and her mind. Haajar turned her head to the left and then her right before rotating it softly. They slipped their coffees for some time, allowing silence to be the third friend. Then Alessia abruptly smiled and looked up at Haajar, "I am so happy that I am tired. I loved it today. I was back in the court. It was so fun. I loved every bit of today and I am so glad I am tired! So glad." She giggled as she said, "It's weird. A good kind of weird."

Haajar smiled as she rested her cup on the table. "Funny how I actually can relate to it. I loved today as well. It was fun. I am tired and I like it. Is it stupid of me to wish to be this tired always?"

"Yes," Alessia shook her head. "Work is important, you must love it but you need to have limits. You cannot overwork yourself. You cannot take case after case. That won't give you happiness. That will only stress you. So wish for a few days a week, not always. Where will you take all that money with you if you do not have a minute in peace? Be careful of the small wishes that you make. If they come true you won't be happy." 

Haajar shook her head in approval but when she remembered something she leaned forward and said, "You know Raiyan seemed a little odd today. I feel he is regretting filing the case. I think he does not want to go forward with it. What if he withdraws the case?"

"Hmm. We need this case, we need to win too but not at the cost of a client. We cannot force him, there needs to be a line but," She looked up at Haajar, "He needs to make a decision that is right. Right now he may feel withdrawing the case is right but who is to say that? What if he regrets it later? What if that cost, not just him but us." She shook her head. "I will talk to him. We need to be wise and at the same time honest. We need to balance this. We cannot be too entrepreneur-y and we cannot be too sensitive either. Let's talk to him. Today we are late, tomorrow, we will talk to him."

The rest of their visit had no words related to their work. They talked about life as it was. Alessia talked about the upcoming family function and her stubborn children, while Haajar talked about her guest and the complicated relationship that she had with his family. It was half an hour of a break but the two parted feeling better than when they entered the cafe. Their hearts felt light.

Haajar pulled her coat closer as a cold breeze touched her face. She shook her head, wondering how, after more than twelve years she still found it difficult to resist the cold weather. She shivered as another blow came her way. Looking up at the sky she asked Allah to stop the hit. To distract herself Haajar started to look around. She engaged her mind at the colour of the leaves, at the height of the trees, at the smiling faces of the kids, and at the dog that walked like a king. She looked around and surrounded her mind with the objects she saw. As her thoughts flew she felt at ease then soon a vision made her smile. She found Amal sitting on the swing, looking at her feet. She quickly walked to her. 

"What is a young girl as beautiful as you doing here all alone? Do you know how dangerous beautiful girls are? You can cause an accident. What if a boy gets enchanted by the scene falls? Will you take responsibility? You will be legally liable."

Amal frowned and chuckled as Haajar sat on the swing next to her. "What is up with you today? You do not talk like that."

Haajar shook her head, "Sometimes we should talk not like us. It helps with the mood. What are you doing here all alone? Do your mother know you are out in the dark and all alone in this lonely park."

"There are kids and their parents. It's not that lonely, though it is a little quiet. Do not tell my mother. She thinks I am with you at your house. Do not get me wrong, I did go but you were not there, so I came here."

"You should have called me or gone home. But it's okay. This park is not that bad either. But you could have waited at home for me. My mother would have loved it."

"I know but I was not in a mood to talk to anyone. So I said I am going home and left."

"What is it then? I am listening."

"Nothing major." She paused for a few moments. "I do not understand, am I the wrong one or am I being wronged? Why am I always on the other end of the rope where I am either angry or guilty or both? I feel I am right at expressing my anger but maybe my way is wrong. I can say the same things in a better way but the world can behave better as well. Can you tell me one thing?" She looked at Haajar. "Why does everyone assume? Why is it that no one tries to think from my perspective? I may be wrong in my reaction but why did I react that why? Why was I grumpy? No one talks of why. There needs to be a reason. No one is grumpy without one."

"That is how this world is. None of us thinks of why. We are too busy reacting to other's reactions. We all do that, even you would someday react that same way, not because you hate them or maybe you think they are wrong but because you haven't seen the world from their eyes. You don't even know that a world like that exists. We do not know other's battles, that is why we do not think of the why. We think they are grumpy, rude and insensitive when in reality they are just reacting the way their world is making them. We all do that love, unintentionally of course and it hurts. But no one is out there to get each other. We are all just trying to survive. Nothing more." 

"What can we do then?" Amal was looked at Haajar with hopeful eyes and without blinking. "What is the solution? We cannot keep hurting each other like that. We cannot be like this."

"We cannot, " Haajar shook her head, "That is why we must take charge of ourselves. We cannot make others see our world, or I would rather say, we do not wish to show them our world then we cannot expect them to know and understand. So in this case we must be the ones to handle the situation and not let the situation handle us. It sure is hurtful, we sure will get angry and upset but let's remember they aren't doing it on purpose. Yes, as humans we must not assume or react every time but we all have our things going on. Even they are upset or angry and if someone else is also being grumpy what else will they do? Two negatives can be added but they do not become positive. Both the parties need to understand and handle it, we cannot expect the other one to be always doing that. Both need to understand each other's situation and condition. We need to be considerate. But here in a situation like yours, we cannot take control of them, so why not take control of our own selves? That would be the only solution for us. That is how we can lower the impact, for I do not think we can immune everyone from it. Life happens so does our reaction." Amal sighed before closing her eyes. Haajar observed her for a minute before giving a slight push to her feet. As Amal opened her eyes in response, Haajar said, "You can always tell me why you are upset or grumpy. I am always here for you. You are not alone. The only reason I do not ask you is that I want to respect your decision. I do not want to force you but also do not feel like I am least bothered. I am always here to listen. Take your time, or maybe never tell me, it is okay but if you wish to, then you have my number and my address and my debit card. Return it!" 

Amal chuckled before shaking her head. Taking a deep breath of relief she looked up at the sky, feeling the presence of her lord. They stayed in the park for another ten minutes before Haajar escorted her niece to her house. In another ten minutes, she was home, but unlike she wanted she could not escape the guest of the century. 

"This is the time you are returning? Why are you so late? Did you come with Sufyaan, I saw him outside a while ago." 

Haajar lifted the glass of water from the kitchen counter before she said, "He was returning home from work and found me on my way, so he came to drop me. We met just at the corner of the street."

"He must need to work hard to survive, as his friend said. Of course, he finds that difficult. People look for expansion, but I think he needs to work on survival first and then think of thinking about expansion. Baby steps."

"Since when is working hard bad?" Haajar tried not to change her facial expression. "He is working for an honest living, that is something to be proud of, not something to degrade."

"It is a disgrace that even after so many years he is still struggling. Zvya must be rethinking her decision." Haajar frowned as deep as she could and her nose blew big. She kept the glass on the table and was about to march on when her mother took hold of her hand. "Let it go. I will talk to him, you go inside. Go." Haajar tried to rebel but her mother managed to send her to the room. She banged the door loudly before sitting on the bed. She tried to control her anger but as she failed she laid down on the bed trying to forget his words.