summary: (f/n) and Nadeen have known each other since childhood. But as (f/n) was forced to move away due to her parents' job, they kinda got out of touch. What happens when they finally reunite?
warnings: violence if you squint
word count: 1.101
Author's note: Feel free to check out my Masterlists and make requests. No reposting please! Reblogging, comments and requests are always appreciated <3 If you like the story/my writing, please don't be shy to say it via comments or asks! It takes you a few seconds and might make my day. It's the best appreciation you can show to a writer you like.
Requested? Yes
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Being back in my hometown after seven years was strange.
I had left my friends behind once again to follow my parents career.
I was still trying to get the hang of the time from the jetlag, fighting the constant exhaustion.
But my parents did not grand me a break to get used to being back. Instead I had to transfer to a new school in the middle of the year.
Standing in front of a class full of people who knew each other to get introduced. I just wanted to crawl back into my bed and make it all go away.
I did not bother to scan the faces of my classmates, but sat down as soon as I could.
Most people quickly fled the room when the school bell signaled the beginning of the break. I on the other hand took my time packing everything away. They did not need to notice how lost I was.
“(f/n)?” I looked up to see the face that belonged to the voice.
To my surprise her face seemed familiar. It still took me a few seconds to connect the dots though.
“Nadine”, I realized.
“So you do remember me after all”, she noted, wearing her signature grin.
She had grown so much since I had last seen her and yet it felt like old times again.
“I never meant to stop talking to you, you know? My phone got busted and I didn't remember your number”, I enlightened her.
“Seriously?”, she shot back. “I can't believe we got hit by technology.”
“Well … has never been our best friend”, I recalled.
“True”, she agreed. “Since when are you back?”
“A couple days. I haven't even finished unpacking yet”, I proposed.
“Need help with that?”, she offered.
“Can't say no to you coming over”, I supposed.
“I'll text my mom then and accompany you after school?”
“Sure!”
“Come on! I'll show you around campus”, she encouraged me.
From that moment on I did not dread school anymore. Nadeen and I started hanging out pretty much every day like we used to when we were kids. All of that only made me aware how much I had actually missed her.
I stuck with her when Sarah let her down. I was supporting her throughout the elections. I was finally a part of her life again after not talking to her for years.
After spending the night at her house we went to school together and I could not quite grasp it but something was off. The hallway was too quite.
Then I saw it. The way the election posters of the other candidates had been violated, only Nadeen's spared.
“What's going on?”, Nadeen wondered shocked.
“Looks like somebody wants to frame you”, I concluded.
Suddenly Sarah appeared, claiming that she needed to talk to Nadeen. But that did not happen as dozens of students came storming toward us, Marwa and Tasneem at the front.
I had only been at this school for a few weeks now, but it was obvious that trouble was close with those two around.
“You've messed with me. Now that's enough”, Marwa declared.
“Back away! I haven't done anything”, Nadeen proclaimed.
“So why don't you tell me why nothing has happened to your posters?”, Marwa requested.
“Do you really think I did that?”, Nadeen questioned. “It's obvious that someone else did it and is trying to put it on me.”
Tasneem laughed at that. “Oh, sure! You've been framed. You've been watching too many action movies, Nadeen.”
“Do you seriously think Nadeen would be this stupid?”, I intervened. “I mean … why should she leave her own posters unscathed to make her the culprit for everyone? She's smarter than this. Besides we were hanging out the whole time at her place. She has an alibi.”
“Because being with the newbie is such a reliable alibi”, Hiba taunted me. “Come on! You'd easily lie for her.”
“That's enough”, Marwa raged and grabbed Nadeen by the collar. “If you didn't do it, then who did, huh?”
Out of reflex I took a hold of Marwa's wrist to push her away from Nadeen. Now the former was glaring dangerously at me.
“Let go”, she growled.
I did, not wanting to anger her any further. Plus, I did not have any reason to hold on to her.
“How am I supposed to know who did it?”, Nadeen shot back. “I wasn't here when it happened.”
“This will have consequences”, Marwa threatened and walked off after sending another death glare our way. The others quickly followed, leaving Nadeen, Sarah and me behind.
“You okay?”, I worried.
“Yeah”, she assured me. “Thanks for standing up for me. Nobody's ever done that.”
“Always”, I promised, an encouraging smile planted on my face.
“So what did you want?”, Nadeen addressed Sarah.
The latter sunk her head. “Nothing”, she mumbled and left as well.
The next day we found out why. Sarah had been in on it, had actually partly been responsible for the vandalism.
Nadeen quickly walked off after confronted her with it, running outside for fresh air while chaos was erupting among the rest of the students. Of course I followed Nadeen.
I settled myself next to her on the bench.
“I can't believe she did that”, Nadeen mumbled.
“I'm sorry”, I proposed, placing my hand on hers in a hopefully soothing manner.
“Why do they all have to betray me? I just don't get it. What did I ever do?”, she ranted. “Everybody's always leaving.”
“You don't deserve that”, I remarked. “I'm sorry that I left you, too.”
“It wasn't your fault or even your choice”, she reminded me.
“Still ...”, I uttered.
“I'm just glad you're back”, she confessed, smiling softly at me.
“Me too”, I agreed.
Somehow I could not take my eyes off of her as she did neither.
“I don't ever wanna be separated from you again”, she proposed and inched closer to me.
“I'll do anything I can to assure that”, I whispered.
“You promise?”, she reassured.
I nodded.
All of a sudden she closed the last gap between us, her lips meeting mine.
For a moment we were in our own bubble, blending the madness around us out.
Everyone was too busy fighting inside to notice us kissing out in the open. For once I was grateful for their drama.
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Guys! I finally made it! I hope it was worth the wait.
summary: A lot had changed over the last months, especially (f/n)'s twin sister Hiba who seemed to hate (f/n) now. When (f/n) has given up on making any new friends, Nadeen suddenly intrudes her life in the best way possible.
warnings: bullying
word count: 1.161
Author's note: Feel free to check out my Masterlists and make requests. No reposting please! Reblogging, comments and requests are always appreciated! If you like the story/my writing, please don't be shy to say it via comments or asks! It takes you a few seconds and might make my day. It's the best appreciation you can show to a writer you like.
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“Head in the books once again?”, Hiba mocked me, snatching the book out of my hands.
“Cut the crap, Hiba”, I shot back annoyed.
Why did she always have to get on my nerves?
Her friends were staring and laughing at us, obviously enjoying the show.
“Just give it back”, I requested, stretching my hand out to her.
“Nah”, she uttered and threw the book over her shoulder to the front of the classroom.
Without another word I rose and got it back, not granting her the satisfaction of seeing my inner turmoil at her behavior.
“I can't believe she's your sister”, Tasneem proclaimed chuckling.
“Me neither. She's such a loser”, Hiba noted.
It had not always been like that. There had actually been times when we had loved each other more than anything else. But I guessed that had died together with mom.
“Here you go”, Nadeen stated after picking up the book for me and handing it over.
“Thanks”, I mumbled, forcing myself to smile at her when everything inside of me wanted to scream.
“That book looks cool”, she remarked, eyeing the cover.
“It is. You could borrow it if you want to. I'm almost finished anyway. Should only take the break to wrap it up”, I offered before even thinking about it.
“Great”, she rejoiced, sending a grin my way.
I kept my promise by giving her my book in the bus, before moving to a seat as far away from Hiba as possible. I was not keen on triggering another outburst of cruelty.
Yet I could not escape her when it was time to get off the bus. But instead of talking to me, she brushed past me making sure to bump into my shoulder in the process.
Luckily we had separate rooms. Otherwise I would probably lose my mind.
I threw myself onto my bed and checked my social media, talking to some of my friends. Unfortunately they were attending another school than me and lived a thirty minute drive away. So I did not see them too often.
I almost dropped my phone onto my bed when it suddenly started buzzing. But my mood quickly brightened at the name and picture of my best friend on my display.
“Hey, Sam”, I greeted her, the nickname automatically falling from my lips.
It was a video call and therefore I could see her frown at me.
“Hey, what happened? You look like shit”, she proposed.
“Thanks”, I replied sarcastically. “Just the typical stuff.”
“Hiba again?”, she reassured.
“I dunno what's up with her. She just loves taunting me”, I assumed.
“Still hard to believe that she turned into such a bitch”, Sam pointed out. “She used to be so sweet.”
“She just doesn't talk to me anymore”, I enlightened her. “I never know what's running through her mind.”
“Tell me about it. My siblings are the exact opposite, but still getting on my nerves in another way”, she claimed. “And here they come.”
Her two little brothers had burst into the room, creating chaos everywhere around. I did not question it when Sam hung up without any warning.
I sighed as I let go of my phone. Lately it was all feeling so worthless. I had pretty much no social life.
I spent the rest of my day staying in my room and reading another book. It was the only thing that could keep my mind from spiraling.
The next day Nadeen settled on the bus seat beside me. “Hey! I started reading the book and it's awesome. How did you pick it up?”
“I got it from my mom's collection”, I revealed.
“You have a whole collection?”, she questioned astonished. “What a life ...”
“You could always borrow one if you want to”, I offered.
“Are you kidding?”, she reassured.
“Of course not”, I promised.
“You're the best! Honestly I kinda feel bad though. I don't wanna use you for your books. How about hanging out sometime? But please not at your place unless Hiba isn't home”, she considered.
“I could come over to yours”, I suggested.
“Great! Just give me your number and I'll send you my address”, she agreed.
Said and done.
Afterwards Nadeen moved over to her usual spot next to Sarah. So I decided to listen to music with my headphones. The only thing that could compete with my love for books.
The school day passed by excruciatingly slowly, like time used to do for me by now. That was the thing when you did not have anything to look forward to.
But it changed when I got a message in the afternoon. A simple “Hi, it's Nadeen. Here's my address (…).”, followed by: “You can pretty much come over whenever. Even today if u want to.”
So it was a decision between reading and potentially making a new friend. Spending most of my free time in my room for the last few months was making this decision easy.
My phone was telling me that Nadeen's house was about a thirty minute walk away. So I did not have to consider to bike over. My bike was not exactly my best friend for countless reasons.
“Hey! You made it! Come on in”, Nadeen encouraged me as soon as she had opened the front door.
She did not hesitate to lead me to her room, getting a glass of water for me on the way.
The minute I entered her room my eyes were drawn to all the posters on her walls. A room could tell you a lot about the person and Nadeen seemed to be a fan of true crime and horror.
“Want some popcorn? I just started watching a movie”, she offered while sitting down on the bed and pointing to a bowl.
“Oh, yeah. Thanks”, I shot back taking some.
“You know you can sit down, right?”, she reassured, her voice slightly laced with amusement.
“Right”, I remarked and dropped down onto her bed. “I haven't been at someone's house for so long. It feels like I don't know how to hang out anymore.”
“Well with me it's basically chilling on the bed and watching some movie or talking, maybe playing some games or reading together”, she enlightened me.
“Sounds great”, I noted.
“Glad to hear that”, she proposed. “So what is it with you and Hiba?”
She took herself a hand full of popcorn.
“Sibling stuff, I guess. She turned into a jerk and I didn't wanna support that. Now I'm basically her nemesis and everyone stays away from me to not get on her bad side”, I explained.
“Wow ...”, Nadeen uttered. “Nah, I'm not scared of her.”
“Glad to hear that”, I repeated her words from earlier.
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Next Chapter
So here's the first chapter of my new Nadeen series. What do you think about it? It will also be a lot about the relationship with Hiba. So it's kinda a two in one.
I was currently eating my breakfast, waiting for time to pass. It was a Sunday morning and Nadeen and I were going to hang out later again. Somehow it had turned into a routine. We were meeting up almost every day.
When I was finished eating I settled on the couch to continue reading my book. It had been one of mom's favorites and I had probably read it a dozen times since she passed.
Suddenly the book was snatched out of my hands, Hiba glaring at me as she was holding it above my head.
“Why are you always reading those?”, she questioned annoyed.
“What's your problem?”, I shot back.
“Well … they aren't yours. The book is from mom's collection. Stop going through her stuff”, Hiba complained.
“She isn't here anymore, Hiba”, I reminded both of us softly.
“Oh, you think I don't know that?”, she taunted me. “Which is exactly why I don't need you to push that reminder into my face all the time. Reading her books won't bring mom back.”
“I do feel closer to her though”, I confessed.
“How does that change anything?”, she yelled at me.
“Hiba ...”
She interrupted me: “No! You just don't get it!”
She stormed off, leaving me behind confused. What was up with her? She had even taken the book with her.
A frustrated sigh left my lips.
I missed my sister so much. The one who told me bedtime stories when I could not sleep. The one who suggested to start our own band. The one who never let me down.
We had been inseparable. Losing mom had been inevitable. She had just been too sick. We had expected it. But I had never considered losing Hiba, too.
The grief was too much. Like I was about to implode any second.
So I decided to go on a run.
I was not the fittest person, but the burning of my muscles and lungs were a welcome change for the emotional pain I could not get used to. Before I knew it my phone vibrated, signaling me that I had run 7k.
I came to a halt, bending forward as my abs were too tired to hold me upright. I was panting heavily, not even sure where I was. I had not paid attention to my surroundings at all.
And to top it all off I only had 15 minutes left before Nadeen was expecting me. So I searched for the way to her house and ran over there as well.
“Hey, what happened to you?”, Nadeen wondered.
After all I was completely out of breath, barely able to lift my head to look at her and I was still a bit late.
“I ran more than 10k”, I enlightened her panting.
“Why the hell would you do that?”, she exclaimed. “Well … come in first. I'll get you some water.”
“Thanks”, I uttered and followed her into the kitchen where I could not help but drop onto one of the chairs as soon as I could.
I hurried to gulp the water down, only realizing now how thirsty I had actually been.
“So why would you torture yourself like that?”, Nadeen inquired, her brows raised.
“I just needed to let it all out, ya know”, I stated.
“Hiba?”, she assumed.
“Mostly, yeah”, I confirmed.
Now she was the one sighing. “It really sucks that you can't even wind down at home”, she considered.
“But I'm not home right now, am I? Let's do something fun together”, I changed the topic.
“You could take a shower if you want and then we could watch a movie together”, she suggested. “Not that I'm saying you should shower, but I guess it would make sense.”
I pulled onto my sweaty shirt. “Yeah, you may be right about that. I don't have any clothes with me though. And I'm not sure if your clothes will fit me. I'm pretty tall after all”, I considered.
“Nah, I have some oversized clothes. Don't worry about that”, she assured me.
When all of that was settled, we sat down on her bed to watch one of her favorite movies.
Of course I did not tell her that horror movies were freaking me out. But I regretted that after about half an hour into it as it was surprisingly hard to suppress my startled reactions.
“Everything okay?”, she questioned with an amused grin when I grabbed onto her arm at one of the jump scenes.
“Uh-huh”, I muttered, my eyes pinned on the screen of her laptop.
I did not let her arm go again though, which she did not seem to mind.
“You could've just told me that you're scared of horror movies. We could have watched something else”, Nadeen pointed out when the movie was over.
“No, I wanted to see your favorite”, I remarked.
“That's cute”, she noted. “But the next pick is yours.”
I smiled up at her as I had ended up half-laying against her.
She reciprocated my smile and I found myself lost in her eyes. I did not even register that she was not looking away either.
Before I knew it, my lips were on hers. I had no idea how it had happened and who initiated it, but nothing had felt this right for years. So I was enjoying every moment of it.
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So what do you think about the story? I decided not to turn this one into a slowburn. Do you have any suggestions for future chapters?
summary: Everything changes for (f/n) when a nasty rumor spreads. Will Nadeen be able to help her?
warnings: bullying
word count: 882
Author's note: Feel free to check out my Masterlists and make requests. No reposting please! Reblogging, comments and requests are always appreciated <3 If you like the story/my writing, please don't be shy to say it via comments or asks! It takes you a few seconds and might make my day. It's the best appreciation you can show to a writer you like.
Requested? Yes
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When I entered school everyone was looking at me and whispering. It was not anything unusual. After all I was friends with Tasneem, was part of the popular girls.
But the way Hiba and Tasneem looked at me when I walked over to their desks made me anxious.
“Hey guys! What's up?”, I inquired, trying my best to act casual.
“Why did you do that?”, Tasneem accused me.
“What?”, I replied dumbfounded.
What the hell were they even talking about? What was up here?
“Don't play the dumb one now”, Hiba proclaimed.
“I'm not”, I insisted. “What's going on?”
“We know what you said”, Tasneem stated. “That you told everyone I was buying followers. As if I needed to do that. I thought you were my friend, (f/n). How could you do that to me?”
“What? No, I didn't! I swear”, I proposed.
“Everyone's talking about it and you want us to believe you? Honestly I expected more from you”, Tasneem noted.
“Now go away and leave us alone”, Hiba ordered. “We don't want a traitor like you around.”
For a moment I was frozen in place, shocked at what had just happened. How did that rumor even spread? There was no truth in it.
“Are you deaf?”, Hiba taunted me. “Go away!”
I stumbled a few steps backwards, accidentally bumping into another desk.
From one minute to the next I had just lost all my friends. And what for? I had not even done anything!
I could not stand being in the same room as them right now. So I fled into the hallway, continuing outside until I reached a bench I could collapse on.
My upper body crouched forward, my head buried in my hands.
“(f/n)?”, a familiar voice called out, although I could not grasp who it belonged to. “Are you okay?”
Reluctantly I looked up to face Nadeen. How ironic.
To word it a bit dramatic she was basically Tasneem's nemesis. As such I had mocked her countless times before.
Was this her way of payback? Making me confide in her, only to laugh at me afterwards?
“What do you want?”, I mumbled.
“Checking on you? No offense but you look like shit”, she remarked.
“It's nothing”, I brushed it off.
“Doesn't look like it”, she insisted.
“Are you always so pushy?”, I wondered.
“Nah, only when needed”, she claimed. “I heard about the rumors.”
“Then you know what's going on. So what? You think that I made a move against Tasneem and now you want me on your side?”, I assumed.
She sighed. “Like I just said I want to check on you. You stormed right past me in the hallway and I'm not the kind of person to ignore something like that.”
“So you're a saint?” I scoffed.
“Alright then. Don't tell me”, she shot back and turned away from me.
“No, wait! I'm sorry”, I confessed. “I don't know what's up with me. I don't wanna be like that.”
“Then don't”, she considered.
“It's not that easy”, I remarked.
“It actually is”, she proclaimed. “You just need to know what you want and work toward it. For starters surround yourself with the right people.”
“Like you?”, I questioned.
“Maybe”, she stated. “I mean if you want to.”
“Why are you so nice to me? I was nothing but a jerk to you”, I recalled.
“I wanna see the good in people. That's all. Everybody deserves a second chance, you know?”, she enlightened me.
“Impressive”, I noted. “Alright! Teach me then!”
She did. And honestly she had been right. It was not hard. Except for the part that I was on the receiving end of the bullying now.
Hiba and Tasneem were pushing me around all the time now, calling me a traitor. It hurt, especially because we had been so close before.
But Nadeen made me push through it. She was truly incredible and I could not help but admire her.
She was one of the few people at school who was actually acting like herself and standing up for her values.
She was also defending me from my ex friends despite the trouble it caused her.
And over time I noticed how my heart was skipping a beat when she was doing that. Or when we were hanging out and she smiled at me. Or when she was so close to me that I could easily stretch out my hand to stroke back a strand of her hair that had fallen into her face.
When she was looking me in the eyes it felt like I was an open book to her. Sometimes that was scary and yet I was yearning for her in a way I had never done for anyone before.
I was wondering if she was feeling the same way. But after losing my friends merely a few weeks ago I did not dare to ask Nadeen about it. I was afraid of losing her, too. No matter how often she told me that she was not going anywhere.
Maybe she could help me to heal enough to tell her one day.
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So what do you guys think about it? Please tell me in the comments or asks!
I was not alone at school anymore, had somebody to rely on. For the first time in months I was not closing myself off.
“Hiba isn't home today. Wanna come over?”, I asked Nadeen.
She had not visited me once because we had both enjoyed the peaceful solitude at her place. I had not had that for a long time after all. But I also wanted to introduce her to my four walls full of memories and personality.
“Yeah. Can't wait to finally see what your place is like. And you promised me some great books”, she recalled.
“Of course!”, I agreed excitedly.
“Oh, look at those two weirdos getting along”, Hiba taunted us as she and her friends were passing by in the hallway.
“Let's go”, I addressed Nadeen and encouraged her by slightly pulling onto her hand to follow me.
But Hiba did not allow that, of course. She grabbed my shoulder and forcefully turned me back around again.
“Don't dare to ignore me”, she threatened.
Nadeen immediately slapped Hiba's hand away. I sent her a small smile and nodded at her to show her I could stand my ground.
“Aren't you tired of this?”, I wondered, making eye-contact with my sister.
“You know what? Actually I am. But that won't change anything, will it? You'll still be my sister, appearing everywhere I am. At home, at school. You're clinging to me like a parasite I can't shake off”, she proclaimed upset.
“Wow”, I muttered, trying to suppress the shaking in my voice. “So that's what you're truly thinking about me. Fine then. Just stop taunting me. Then we won't interact anymore, remember? Because that's the only way you're approaching me by now.”
Without waiting for her reaction I walked outside, in desperate need for some fresh air.
“Hey, you okay?”, Nadeen inquired, quickly running after me.
I only stopped walking when I arrived in a small path between two of the buildings. Nobody was here which was exactly what I needed right now.
I let myself slide down the wall, my knees close to my chest.
Nadeen sat down next to me, waiting for me to take the first step.
“I don't get it, you know? Why does Hiba hate me so much? We used to come along so well”, I enlightened her. “She completely changed. I just miss her so much sometimes.”
Instead of replying anything Nadeen placed her hand on my knee, making me look over to her. She was holding her arms open for me.
I hesitated for a moment. The last time I had been hugged had been years ago, by my mom. My dad was pretty distant in that matter and Hiba had closed off.
Despite my slight anxiety I gave in and dived into Nadeen's embrace. It was creating a turmoil inside of me as several emotions were battling.
I clung onto her, not able to let go anymore now that I had gotten a taste of it. It felt like I had been starving before without realizing.
Silent tears were flowing down my cheeks, although they quickly subsided again.
“Thank you”, I whispered after a while.
“What for?”, she questioned, smiling down at me.
“For being here”, I clarified.
“It's not a big deal”, she brushed it off.
“Yes, it is”, I insisted softly.
For the rest of the day Hiba actually ignored me and I tried not to let it bother me, to focus on the positive aspects of my day. Like looking forward to Nadeen coming over.
When we arrived at my door step, nobody was home. Dad had always been a workaholic.
I led Nadeen through the house and ended the tour in my room which she was eyeing curiously.
“You have an electric guitar?!”
The way her face was lightening up at the sight was warming up my heart.
“Well, yeah. Hiba has drums. We used to play and sing together. Mom played the bass and ...”
I could not continue. Not when that time was beginning to feel so close through my words and was yet unreachable.
Nadeen appeared to take note of that and did not urge me to continue.
“Can you play something for me? It's okay if you don't want to though”, she assured me.
I considered it for a few seconds before picking up my guitar. I had not played in so long. Despite that my fingers were gliding over the strings like I had never taken a break. The music was burned into my whole being.
Without thinking about it I played my favorite riff, losing myself in the rhythm of the sound.
“That was absolutely awesome”, Nadeen declared when I was finished.
“Thanks”, I shot back with a grin. “I could teach you if you want to.”
“Are you serious?”, she reassured, earning a nod from my side. “That's so cool!”
“But for now let me show you our library”, I suggested.
“Sounds like you want to keep me here forever”, she joked.
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Next Chapter
The last line sounds so much like my friend Nadeen. I knew it would happen! Nm. How do you like the story so far?
