FICTION

PART 17 (part 1) (part 2) (part 3) (part 4) (part 5) (part 6) (part 7) (part 8) (part 9) (part 10) (part 11) (part 12) (Part 13) (Part 14) (Part 15) (Part 16) (part 17) (Part 18)

Subject: [Dear Brother]
From: Pejman, pejman4444@hotmail.com
To: Payam, payamp@phtechnology.ir
November 2, 11:47:02 p.m.

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Dear Brother:

I left you last with hope and happiness that I could go on with my life both making my wife and family happy and at the same time fulfilling the emotional emptiness that has plagued me through my friendship with Kati. Well, I have now woken up from that dream. It didn’t take much. Just some good old-fashioned jealousy. The gut-wrenching, night sweaty kind.

We were out one night to some cheesy little nightclub in Richmond Hill with Nassim, her ubiquitous pal Mitra, Sam and his girlfriend Lissa, and Mitra’s date, none other than DOCTOR KEYVAN. You remember what a joke that guy is? Well, Mitra was hanging on to him like he was the most precious treasure. That girl is so desperate to get married, to someone, anyone, it is hilarious. I was getting ready for another night of boredom when to my shock, Kati showed up.

Right away, she said she felt like dancing and took Sam’s hand, both of them almost sprinting to the dance floor. Mitra turned to Lissa and acidly spat:

-- “Uh oh, are you sure you wanna just let her steal your boyfriend?”

Lissa smiled and played along with the alleged joke but I suddenly felt very uncomfortable. I went to the bar to get a drink and from that vantage point, I could see Kati and Sam dancing together. From time to time, she would get close to him, whispering something in his ear and they would both laugh. I knew they were childhood friends but still, every time Kati’s mouth approached Sam’s ear, or her hand went against his chest, I felt a chill. Mitra chose that moment to sidle up to me and hiss:

-- “Funny how they can remain so close uh? If I were Sam, I would never have forgiven her. But I guess Kati has that effect on men, where they forget all the rules, doesn’t she Pejman?”

I did my best to control myself. I turned to her and laughed as carefree as I could muster:

-- “I don’t know about that but she sure seems to have an effect on you. Maybe you should go back to the table, I think your date is getting whiplash trying to twist his neck so he can watch her dance.”

Mitra seethed with anger and stormed back to the table to make sure her prey didn’t escape. After the elation at discomfiting Mitra wore off, I spent the rest of the night in a state of uneasiness, wondering what Mitra’s words meant. What had Sam to forgive from Kati. I couldn’t help it. I asked Nassim about it on our way home.

-- “Oh, didn’t I mention it to you?” She replied nonchalantly as she looked at herself in the passenger mirror, “Sam is the one Kati dumped two weeks before their wedding. When I think about it, I still get so angry at her! Mom and dad had already paid the caterer. No refunds!”

I felt like I had bit into an apple, only to feel wiggling worms inside my mouth. It took all my self-control to continue driving home, as if nothing was the matter. That night and every single day after was pure torture for me. I felt betrayed both by Kati and by Sam. How could they have kept this from me? In all our conversations, in all our interactions, never any hint of their prior relationship. How long ago had they been engaged? How long had they been lovers? Then the thought that they still may be lovers crossed my mind. The way they danced and laughed together, sharing an intimacy that I had worked so hard to achieve with Kati, and which I thought I was the sole owner of…

Unfortunately, it was around this same time that Kati left town for a month or so to go to a native Indian retreat with Geraldine. She was studying with her to learn about alternative forms of healing practiced by the various tribes that still exist in Canada. This meant that I did not get to see her and ask her about her past with Sam. As for him, I could not bring myself to question him. His sight became unbearable to me and I started avoiding him as much as I could at work.

I did not see Kati again until Halloween night. We had all been invited to a friend’s house, which he had turned into a spooky mansion. The whole house was dimly lit with candelabras and torches giving it the effect of a sinister old castle. People wondered about the main salon as well as the corridors and rooms upstairs, all filled with ghostly surprises: Ghosts, mummies, the works. The theme of the party was “masks” so there were a lot of black cats and panthers, exotic birds and insects. There were also a lot of superheroes, thieves and pirates. Nassim went as a Venetian belle from Casanova’s time. I reluctantly dressed up only because she goaded me, settling on the Phantom of the Opera. In the crowd of partygoers, I immediately noticed Kati, draped in the beautiful dress of the Ancient Greeks, an antique theatrical mask on her face.

I surreptitiously ditched Nassim and started following Kati as she went upstairs. When I felt we were safely out of sight of the other guests, I gently took her by the elbow, whispering in her ear that it was me, and led her to one of the bedrooms, closing the door behind me.

-- “Why did you wear that mask?” I asked her, my heart thumping in my chest, as I removed both our masks slowly, “It is hiding your beautiful eyes.”

She giggled, a bit nervously, but seemed pleased.

-- “You find my eyes beautiful?”

-- “They are like the sun. I am almost afraid to come too close or I might get burned.” I replied, as I approached her face, put my hand under her chin and softly drew her in, until our lips touched. We shared a kiss that was made of honeycombs and jasmines and made my head go dizzy with desire for her.

Our rapture was rudely interrupted by a knock on the door, which Kati used to disentangle herself and run away from another exit. As I sit here writing to you brother, I know that I will never be able to let go of that kiss. I am done with trying to please everyone and everything except for me. I am tired of being hungry and thirsty and waiting for crumbs and drops from the few moments I manage to grab with my soul mate. Because I know for a fact now that Kati and I are each other’s soul mates. That kiss gave me Kati’s secret as clear as day. She loves me as I love her. No one could respond the way she did if it wasn’t a mutual feeling. I am ready to go after her and do what it takes to make her mine.

I am not writing for your advice or your permission. I know what I must do and what I will do. I am only writing to let you know so that you can prepare yourself and our parents for what is surely to be a real upheaval in our lives. I can only hope that you will be supportive of me. I know you wouldn’t want your brother to give up the only true happiness he has ever known in his life.

Best wishes to you and yours,

Pejman >>> Part 18

(part 1) (part 2) (part 3) (part 4) (part 5) (part 6) (part 7) (part 8) (part 9) (part 10) (part 11) (part 12) (Part 13) (Part 14) (Part 15) (Part 16) (part 17) (Part 18)