Chapter Thirteen

I wore my one piece Victoria Secret swimwear with a flip flop, Braided my hair in a cute English braid. Took my mint color towel and my iPhone and ran to the basement.

I placed my towel on a table in the basement. Tugged my mobile in my apple stereo dock and set the music on shuffle, ran so fast and jumped a heavenly jump to find my body crashing the waterline.

The only thing that can match and surpass the feelings that I am getting while swimming and throughout the day is the love for Faris. I feel like I am going to explode sometimes when I am swimming from all of the joy I am feeling. While plowing my way through the water my mind turns to somewhat of a "Zen" feeling. There is a calamity and peacefulness that flows through my body as my cruise control turns on. In my mind I start to focus on stroke, stroke, stroke, stroke and then all of a sudden I just hit this pace and rhythm. Then my mind goes clear of all the chatter of the day, any worries I am having, how far I am in mileage, everything, and I am THERE. I am actually 100% in the moment. In that water swimming, I find peace. I get into deep thought but at the same time not being sucked into the worries. Everything in the world seems achievable and possible. I no longer doubt myself at what I am doing.

I spent the whole day swimming and diving, enjoying every moment in the water, fun and relief is all I felt.

One direction's song came up in the stereo, Tell Me a Lie. I hurried to turn the volume higher and got myself back to the pool dancing on their great music and great voices.

Suddenly, I felt a bone hand squeezing my head into the water. I tried to pull myself up, to rise above the waterline but I couldn't. The hand kept squeezing me in.  Terror filled my soul that second, for a moment I was close to death. I lost all of the oxygen I kept in my lungs and started unintentionally drinking water filled with chlorine. 

I dived in the water, tried hard to swim to reach the swimming pool edge and finally got myself out of the pool. I lay on the wet cold concrete, breathed so hard and screamed my sister's name hoping for her to hear me.     

My body was cold, I was so exhausted and scared, I tried to stand up and walk but I fell on the floor.

I screamed Dalal's name again, no answer. The noises lagging have to take the blame.

I felt the cold skinny fingers holding my barefoot. I groveled to the table where I put my phone in without looking back at the creature that was holding my foot. I felt that thing crawling my body, I then automatically turned my head and saw something I've never expected to see, never even though of seeing.

I saw a skeleton crawling my body, I froze in my place. Where did that skeleton come from and why is it moving?

   I remembered the day my mother read the huge ancient book when she was trying to heal me, the day the incident happened, the day I froze all of the living existences. When she read the book she said something about necromancers and necromancy; the power of raising dead bodies. She also said that I am a necromancer and that my powers are uncontrollable, so is it the reason I brought that skeleton alive from death? I kept wondering but I at the end found out that there is no use of wondering.

I finally reached my phone and dialed my mother's number.

"Yemmaaa bsr3a ta3alay ilsirdab," I cried.

"Haw smillah 3alaich shfeech?," she was scared.

"Mama bas ta3alay magdar atkalam al7een,"I said kicking the skeleton.

"Ana al7een bilwafra mara7 ou9al bsr3a," she said.

"Yemmaaa I accidentally raised a dead body, a skeleton actually shasawe," I wept. After that came a dead silence.

"Yemma sima3teene," I said.

"Eeeh mama 7awlay tfakreen b mokhch inna tkhaleen il jitha trja3 mokan'ha," she finally spoke.

"yemma is this a kind of a riddle mafahamtch," I got mad.

"Sim3eene 3adl, takhayelay inch ga3da t7arireen ilbody. Takhayelay iljitha ga3da trja3 mokanha," She said.

I set the call on speaker. I started to picture the body passing to the other life, the afterlife. Nothing happened because I couldn't concentrate with that body crawling my body.

I stood on the table, high enough for the skeleton to reach me, or I thought so.

The skeleton's fingers was scratching my leg, digging in it causing cuts in my leg.

I inhaled and exhaled. Closed my eyes and played on my mind a scene, the skeleton was digging in the concrete and crossing to the other life.

I imagined the skeleton happy with its huge family. It sounded weird but I'm trying to do what my mother asked me to do.

Then I realized that there was no fingers scratching my skin anymore, I opened my eyes to see that poor skeleton laying on the floor.

"I did it yemmaaa I freed its soul," I screamed partying.

"7abeebte I knew you can do it," She said, it cheered me up "Al7een intay zaina? Mafeech shay? Ta3awartay?,"

"La al7amdillah ana zaina," I looked at my bleeding leg. Yes I was lying.  My mom was going through a lot of things and I didn't want to make her even more worried than she is right now.

"yalla ana 45 dgeega wakoun bilbait," she hung the phone up.

I have to hurry up and clean myself before she gets to the house. I covered my leg with my towel, wore my flip flop, took my phone and ran to my bathroom.

My sister saw me before I got to my room.

"Rawa shno hatha reelch ga3da t9ib dam," She said in a shock.

"I'll explain everything later bas please latgouleen 7ag mama 3an il blood," I tried to convince her.

"Okay mara7 agoulaha." She said

"maykhalif tnathfeen il dam ili 3al arth please?," I asked gently.

"eeh akeed," she said with a smile.

"Okay follow the blood trace mn il basement laiman hne, ta'akiday inna mako dam 3al arth illa wintay mnathft," I said as I closed my room's door behind me.

I took a black Hollister sweat pant and a purple aeropostale hoodie to wear, I had to wear something long enough to cover the cuts. I also took a tissue pack to clean my leg from the blood.

I entered the bathroom, showered in cold water and cleaned the bleeding cuts.

In the bathroom, I got a phone call from Faris, I ignored the call and decided to call him back when I finish dressing myself up.

When I opened the bathroom's door and entered the room, I found Faris sitting in my room's balcony. 

"Good morning," he said welcoming me.

"Ay morning ay ba6eekh. Ana mo nayma shay," I laughed sarcastically.

"Wana agoul laish intay online bil whatsapp mn 9ba7 allah khair," He murmured.

"9j ilsa3a cham?," I asked. The last time I checked the time was before I went to the basement.

"Wa7da ," he said.

"Olaaaaah ya3ne I swam taqreeban six non stopping hours," I said.

"7abeebte lama tisb7een nadeene, tadreen inne amout 3al siba7a,"he said with a huge grin.

"Mno 7abeebtk?," I said, weirdly.

"Ya3ne mno ya3ne fe ghairch," he walked to get himself closer to me. I took a few steps back.

"Faris inta mn 9jk? I didn't approve on us," I said strictly.

I am not ready for a relationship and I won't be any soon.

"Bas intay gltay inch t7beene," he was shocked.

"Eeeh 9j inne glt bas mo ya3ne abe n9eer boyfriend/girlfriend," I said with a tear falling from my hazel eyes."maykhalif ta36eene wagt afaker feeh?,"

"inzain shfeech tabcheen," He looked so cute and my reason not to be with him or not to go any further with this relationship is silly and selfish. He's the most adorable caring creature in this entire world. I can't let him go and I won't.

"I'm going through a lot Faris wallah I'm so depressed I can't think clearly," I said.

He took a tissue from his pocket and wiped my tears. I told him about what happened today and about Jassim being my brother in law. He was angry at first because he wanted to know what happens directly but then I assured him to call him and tell him if something huge or strange happened immediately.

"Sim3ay, al7een 9aleelch rik3tain w khalte Mariam ta7at galatle gabl ma a93ad foug anadeech ehya btkhalmch, ana al7een barou7 sharekatna oboy yabeene asa3da b shay bas bilail ra7 ayee baitkom w yemken anam," he said.

"Ok bas tara ana ra7 akoun nayma fa mara7 anzl lik," I lied, I needed time and I needed to be all by myself to think clearly, I needed to distance myself away from him.

"Oh okay," he frowned. "Yalla 3ayal ma3a ilsalama,"

"ma3a ilsalama," I replied.  

He left the room and I took my thoub and seyada and I started doing my prayers.

While praying, I heard Mus3ab telling Dalal that he's going to swim right now and he was inviting her to swim with him.

I remembered that the skeleton is still in the basement, I totally forgot to hide it or do something. I was just about to get out of my room when I heard him screaming.