Free Straightening Ali by AMJEED KABIL Page A

an outsider. He wanted to be secure and protected, and that’s what this family offered.
    “ I know you will, Ali. Anyway,” she said, her voice turning less serious. “I’ve heard you’ve turned down the job from that imbecile Javed?”
    “ Shazia!” her mother gasped sounding shocked. “That is no way to talk about Javed in front of the men.” Shazia smirked wickedly in response.
    “ Yes, I’m sorry about that,” Ali said not feeling at all sorry. “It was really Yunus who explained to him that I couldn’t take up his job offer.”
    “ Good on you,” Shazia said, rewarding Yunus with a smile. “That man is an idiot. I don’t know why my parents feel that they have to be so nice to him because of something that his parents did for them over thirty years ago.”
    “ Please don’t talk so rudely in front of guests, Shazia,” her mother admonished, trying to rein in her daughter’s unruly tongue.
    “ Well, Mother, you know what I think of him. Anyway, is there someone else you would like to meet, Ali?” Shazia asked mischievously.
    Ali couldn’t help but smile at her teasing. “I don’t know. Do you think there is someone else I should meet?” he replied.
    “ Well, I know someone who is dying to meet you. I’m sure you must be just as curious. Mum and Dad have agreed that you can see her for five minutes in the garden. I’ll be keeping an eye on you both throughout, so make sure you behave yourself,” she said half seriously.
    “ Okay,” Ali said, suddenly feeling nervous again.
    Yunus moved up closer to him on the sofa. “When you meet her try to behave like a fucking man,” he whispered into Ali’s ear. “If you say anything out of line, I’ll make sure that you never walk again.” The smile on his face gave everyone else the impression that he was offering Ali some good brotherly advice.
    “ Well, come on. We haven’t got all day you know,” Shazia said, opening the patio doors, which led into the garden. “If you wait outside, I’ll fetch her.”
    Ali went into the garden and waited. He felt anxious not knowing what he was going to say to his fiancée. Should he tell her the truth about his sexuality and admit that he’d been forced to agree to the marriage? “What am I going to do?” he thought. All of a sudden, his mind felt like it was in a chaotic maelstrom of indecisiveness. This was his final opportunity to stop the wedding or at least to be honest, but he didn’t know how to make use of it. The confusion was exacerbated by the fact that he now knew Sajda’s family, and he didn’t want to let them down.
    The garden was as bleak and depressing as the thoughts racing through his mind. It was covered in large, concrete paving stones where you’d normally have expected a lawn to be. Even the fence was made from concrete slats slotted into concrete posts. A child’s football lay punctured and disused in the corner next to a pile of rubble. Among the drabness, two salwars hung on the washing-line breaking up the grayness by flapping in the wind like large red and yellow kites that danced together elegantly, joyously untempered by their surroundings.
    Ali tried to wait patiently for his fiancée. He watched the salwars tease each other as they tried to escape the wooden pegs holding them tightly to the line. When Sajda finally appeared, it felt almost intrusive as he tore his gaze away to look at her.
    Standing next to her sister, she appeared a couple of inches taller. She looked just like she had in her photograph, except in person she appeared tall, awkward and gawky. Even her shoulders were stooped, giving the impression that she lacked confidence.
    He felt just as awkward as she, not knowing what to say. He stood staring for a few long seconds before pulling himself together. “Hello,” he finally managed to stutter nervously at her, as Shazia went into the house and stood watch behind the patio doors.
    “ Hello,” she replied, smiling nervously at him.
    Ali did