The sound of a water drop falling in a bucket…a new Facebook message has arrived. Khaled jumped to his feet when he heard the sound. The cat that was perching on his nap flew and protested with a low mewing. Her feelers—that can detect earthquakes before they actually happen—failed to detect Khaled’s blazing feelings which turned into a human earthquake when he heard the Facebook notification. To him it was similar to one of Richard Clayderman’s pieces.
The message drove him crazy. It was from a teenager still wishing that the account owner was a girl disguised as a man. Out of depression mixed with cruelty, Khaled blocked him instantly. As if that was just all he needed!
Waiting…waiting… He always hated it. Death is always better than waiting for death. Huda! Tell me everything is over, and I will spend the night complacent about you and myself. Tell me you are alright, and I will rejoice for that. Show up, please! Do not disappear suddenly as you appeared suddenly. Surprising beginnings are marvelous, but surprising ending are not.
Why have you arrived in my life if you were going to leave me this fast?
Was I late for the rendezvous? Yes, I was late, but if you listen to my excuse, you will understand the situation. What about the old saying, ‘Try to find your brother a thousand excuses; when they ran out, try to find another excuse in addition to the thousand’.
A sarcastic laughter escaped from him without him noticing it; here he was… a man who thought that he had reached the peak of his strength seemed like a teenager whose girlfriend dumped him because he wore a blue shirt while her favorite singer Tamir Hosni wore a red one.
He tried to occupy his heart and mind with the robbery of Zahrliza. He had called Mahdi in the afternoon to check on him, and that the preliminary investigation had gone well. Mahdi told him that he was indebted to the security cameras which showed his spontaneous movements that testified to his innocence for the time being at least.
The robbery, according to Mahdi, was carried out quickly and quietly. The three gangsters stood in different corners of the museum. Each one released a barely recognizable sleeping gas putting all people in the museum into an unconscious state excepts for the gang.
The sound of the drop once again disrupted the flow of his ideas.
This time it seemed to Khaled as an insult echoing in his ear. He did not turn; anxiety mingled with frustration made his nerves worn out. some moments later, he looked at the seductive red box from his place in the kitchen trying to know the sender without having to draw closer to the computer because his motto for the night was, ‘No more disappointments’.
As the easiest thing ever is to disregard mottos, Khaled did not stay for long in the kitchen. He found himself going close to the device to see well and know the sender…
It is her! It is Huda! Huda is calling him. It is the first time he realized that Facebook has added the feature of ‘transmitting emotions’. Huda’s emotions have reached him with one word… he imaged Huda pronouncing it… Khaled! It was full of confusion…fear… apology…longing…expectation…yearning.
Full of love?
Facebook unfortunately did not answer this question. It is time he sends his reply abounding with his emotions.
He wonders if his response has reached her as her message did. Have all his feelings flown through the blue world to overwhelm her in particular?
She explained to him everything, and so did he. She promised him she would return in a matter of days, and he promised her he would be there waiting for her arrival.
The chat went on, and the night became darker. When Huda logged out, the blue world became as black as the night of Tangier. Khaled went to his favorite window and sat opposite to the lights of the port as he usually did. Meanwhile, the sky gave the land of Tangier its first autumn drops as a present.