Soledad

Hi mates Here is the story of Soledad that I've been writing and planning for the past few weeks. I'll be posting 'episodes' of the story every week-end. Enjoy reading.

Please do not comment on this post but rather on this one.

https://blida-english.bbactif.com/t2130-soledad-group-discussion

Soledad

The echo of silence resounded in a room beautified by a huge oriental chandelier which devided the light into various geometrical shapes decorating the walls. Soledad's father loved the reflection of these lights...A reflection of the past?...A far past. Soledad was sensitive to her father' sighs but experience taught her to put up with feeling them without further questionning them. She turned gracefully to caress her young cousin Micipsa who came to put down his head on her knees. She smiled at him as he looked up and raised to whisper something in her ear. The touching scene was interrupted by the Bacha's grunting voice.

'There is an empty room there Pipsa! Go with her and stop disturbing us!'

Soledad turned angrily to her father and said:

'Dad! His name is Micipsa! Don't make fun out of him please.'

The Bacha riposted immediately:

'Pipsa? Micipsa? They are all meaningless names! Hum...God Damn his name and yours!'

Soledad was never affected by his bitter words, she just smiled ernestly and walked away carrying Micipsa. The little boy put his little arms arround her white ivory neck and kissed it. She closed the door behind her and put the little boy on her bed. She sat near him and said smiling:

'I have something for you little devil'.

She took her Louis Vuitton bag, searched it to finally pick up a small box shrouded in a silver gift wrap decorated with a long black ribbon. One could stare at it for hours for it was so harmoniously packed. Soledad had indeed the delicate art of pleasing others and endowed with a refined taste. The boy apparently was too young to calm his agitation to appreciate the gift wrap. His eyes shined with excitement as he was opening it.

'Thank you Solé! I love you, I love you!'.

Soledad enjoyed watching her 'little devil', as she would often call him, overwhelmed with happiness.

'Come to me, You'll play with it later.'

The boy came to hug his cousine. He sighed and said:

'Solé, why does Bacha say my name is meaningless?'

The question annoyed her, but as was her attitude towards any annoying matter, she laughed it out and said:

'Hum! He doesn't know anything about history and kings ! Your name is the name of a famous courageous Berber king...'

She lingered her account making it heroic by adopting a dignified tone which made Micipsa's eyes shine out of excitement... something more than excitement...something that could have been confused with pride if the innocent smiles didn't decorate his condide face.
Soledad couldn't hold herself from laughing seeing him adopting that heroic expression.

Soledad's phone rang, she searched her bag quickly. Micipsa stood up firmly on his chubby little feet.

'Yes...How are you aunt Leila?... Are you on your way home?...Why so? You said you would drop by... Okay, I can do that for two other days. Wait, Micipsa want to talk to you.'

'Mama! When are you coming to take me? I'm missing you...No, I'm having a good time with Solé. Mama, she said she will take me to the zoo tomorrow. Can we go all together with dad?...Okay mommy, I will. Bye mommy, I love you.'

'Yes, I thought it would be refreshing for him to go see some wild devilish animals of his kind!'. Soledad burst into a tearful laughter to change the tense atmosphere.

'Bye aunt Leila, please do take care of yourself.'

Soledad laid down on her bed with Micipsa and started listing all the animals they would see. She tried also to explain to him why his parents would not come to share the fun.
She had the talent of turning any gloomy and sad situation into a funny one and the precious delicacy of drawing smiles on the poor candide face of Micipsa.
The child was not 'born under a lucky star'...Instead, fate said: 'an unloving and stormy family would do!'

.
.
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His mum, aunt Leila, thought that by marrying the first comer, she would bury her sorrow...her first love.
'You will forget!' Bacha said, 'when you have kids...Yes! You will forget'. Aunt Leila might have cried all her body's tears, protest in all possible ways, there was no reversing on the decision. CASE CLOSED.

Soledad, though teenager at the time, witnessed how Bacha had mercilessly swept the issue and learnt not to stand up to her father. She will not commit the same mistake her aunt did! On this matter, she was firm, she was unshakable, or so she thought...
Aunt Leila had fallen in love with a modest safety officer. 'It was incompatible!' thought Bacha, 'she is an educated woman! An engineer for God's sake! What was she thinking of?!', Bacha growled out.

Incompatibility... On this view, Bacha had sharp and convincing arguments which Soledad, at least, seemed to 'digest' quite easily. Yes! You 'digest' the Bacha's arguments, you don't discuss them, they are not suggested to you.
The best way to avoid a severe indigestion is to learn how to 'digest'. Aunt Leila did not excel the art of 'swallowing bitterness' as Soledad did. She had always seen Solé as a heartless hypocrite who would do anything to please her father.
Soledad knew pertinently what her aunt thought of her, but she didn't really care. Or maybe she did care but there was no use 'to rub salt on the wound' as they say.

What could she have done for her? Nothing! So let it go and let all pain disperse in silence. Soledad had always assumed that ignorance, silence, and maybe laughter too will heal the poor devastated aunt Leila. However, in adopting such an attitude, she was again the heartless hypocrite.
At times, Soledad wanted to shout out: 'I'm not heartless! How can I be heartless seeing you in grief?! How can I forget your cries which had often woken me up at numerous nights?! It was a relief for you to cry but it was a torture for me to cry quietly so that you would not hear me. So many times, I've ... anyways!'

Now Soledad' thoughts were abrubtly interrupted by Micipsa's cute hums.

'Come little devil, I'll get you into your bed', Soledad whispered.

'umm...NO! I want to sleep here!'

'Hush. Okay, okay but just tonight.'

Soledad's phone rang again, only this time it was not her aunt. She picked up quickly and asked Micipsa to get back to sleep as anything was likely to 'feed' his agitation.

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'Mum! How nice...No, dad might be sleeping now. Forget abut him and tell me how are you doing?... No mum, why do you insist? I told you he does not mind me talking to you. It's just that...See, I am going to take Micipsa to the zoo tomorrow and...Yes, he is still here, and I may drop in. Okay then. See you tomorrow. Buenos noches'

Life delivers too many blows. Soledad's mother was one of those blows. Soledad closed her eyes as if her soul had to absorb something...As if it had to regain after it had lost consiousness. How dear and bitter this voice was for Soledad.
It had bamboozled her peace, a peace she had strived to maintain for the last fortnight.

'What shall I do now?' she soliloquized as she would often do when baffled. 'I can't see her tomorrow. Micipsa might allude to our visit in Bacha's presence. Estoy cansado. So tired and groggy. I'd better sleep.'


She opened her hairgrip letting her dark black hair fall over her shoulders and lied in her bed. The darkness of her hair produced such an exquisite and unusual contrast with her white ivory skin. She was neither blonde nor brunette. The fluttering lashes
of her azure eyes were the wings that would truss up any heart in a glimmering dance. Her beauty had never been perceived in the streets of Casablanca so far. She knew that. Bacha knew that. She was the beauty of her family, she was Bacha's pride.


The radiant visage turned to look at Micipsa who had fallen asleep for a while now, and whispered near his candid little face: 'Who can understand you better than me?... You too, I know, you feel me'. Soledad had always felt close only to this little boy.
They had both tumultuous families and their lives have been inevitably tormented by selfish parents.
On such a quiet night as this, William Blake might well have written his Cradle Song to cradle comparable souls in their so often campanionless and lonely nights.







Not few hours have passed that Soledad had jumped with fright to switch off her phone's alarm. She turned to wake up Micipsa who spent the night clinging to her arm.

'Wake up my dear. Let us get ready'.

She carried the chubby little boy to the bathroom as silently as possible so as not to disturb Bacha in his precious sleep.

'Is the water too cold? Umm... I can't switch on the water-heater, it will make a lot of noise. Okay, wait here. Don't make any noise please.' Micipsa nodded.

These precautions which Soledad got Micipsa used to, were not envisaged to protect herself from Bacha's anger, for she was used to it, but rather to protect Micipsa from hearing any hurtful words that would make him miserable...more than he actually was.

Soledad returned with a saucepan of hot water and helped her little devil toiletry. She carried him back to her room, put him on her bed and started dressing him up with excitement.

'You will see, it will be wonderful Micipsa!'

Soledad was in fact what we would have called bonne vivante. She enjoyed the good things in life and having fun. Despite everything, she had pleasant moments outside this house...behind these walls. 'I will invent the event' was her slogan.
She had solemnly decreeded a happy memorable day, like those days she had often invented with fantasy for herself. This time it was for her little devil, her protégé Micipsa.

hey Salamo 3alaykom
I follow you footprint hhhhhh and I got the place where you hide your story hehehe so goooooooood I won't leave you till I see the rest of the story come onnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn
we've been waiting for 6 days ................keep it up Sister

Wow! Look who's here KARIM !!!!!!! Such a nice surprise heheheh
Your words cheer me up, really. I'm gonna post an episode very very soon inchaAllah. I would be honored to see you join our reading group Karim here

https://blida-english.bbactif.com/t2130-soledad-group-discussion

Oh yes, and please please Karim bring your rap poems here please!!!!!!!!! Blida's mates MUST see them!! WOW

yeah I'll and I did know that Bklida's forum is great like this I'm just wooooooooooooooooooooow

New episode (Please comment HERE
blida-english.bbactif.com/t2130-soledad-group-discussion )






Soledad suddently shifted her attention from Micipsa to her dear self. She unloaded her bag engorged with cosmetics,some brand-new pearls, and some peculiar sewing materials she found in a design studio...which she though Farid would hopefully like to use in his workshop. Soledad's ways were very messy indeed but then she was still delicate and gracious... At least, that's how her little devil perceived her.

Seeing all these colorful glitteting stuff of different sizes and shapes, the chubby little boy stoop up and couldn't help his couriousity. All of Soledad's things were so precious to her that she wouldn't let even aunt Leila touch her trifles. But, Reader, that was never the case for Micipsa. He was different... He was her own reflect. The reflect of her past, her present, and probably her future. He was one of those rare persons to whom Soledad could refer to, and thus felt close to.

Soledad getting ready, the little devil took advantage of the situation to explore the new trifles.

'Solé...What is this?'
'Umm... What? Which one?'. Too busy to look at him.
'This one Solé! Look!'
'That's a lipstick little devil'
'You need it?'
'No'
'And this one? Look! And this one? What is it for?'
'That's a blush'. Having just finished dolling up herself, she turned to him radiantly smiling 'This one is practical. If you are not a shy type, you just put some and here you are! Perfectly shy and cute!'

The boy bursted into a sweet candid laughter which Soledad loved admiring and backup in her tiny corridor of cheerful memories.

***

The previous night Soledad had told Bacha, or rather negociated, the plans of a day out with Micipa to which he has agreed to with contempt as he would often react to any of her projects.

Reader, you want to know her reactions to his fierce ways?
Reader! Relativize! Relativize! That's what she would tell you.
She has completely understood him, got used to him but she certainly did not understood those who don't understand him...those who don't understand him, just like her mother, or like YOU Reader!

She is her father's daughter. Yes, here you are! Unmistakenly, her father's daughter.

She got used... She heard somewhere that 'Habit is what keeps you going'. And she kept going.

Four years since her mother left, four years since her mother got tired of relativizing and left her relativizing alone.

When it came to her mother, Soledad had still a reprehensible bitterness governing her heart. 'She abandoned me', as she would often soliloquize when feeling her despicable heart sweeten. 'She left me alone with him. And yet, why? Bacha is not that hard to handle', trying to convince herself though pertinently knowing that no living person could bear his moody temper. No living person, except Soledad. Bearing anything except loneliness. Loneliness...was her name.

***

Having long hesitated in the taxi whether to visit Maria or take Micipsa to the zoo, she finally asked the taxi driver to drop them off on Quartier Racine, the most "bon chic bon genre" quartier of Casablanca.
She turned to Micispsa confused but smiling.

'Micipsa...We will go to see my mom first. I miss her... You miss your mommy too, right? You promise me not to tell Bacha?'

The little boy nodded though not really grasping her words, his attention being too absorbed by the the adventures his cousine
has listed last night.

When the taxi parked, Soledad was no longer herself, her harmonious gestures were mechanical, her expressive smiles were
suddenly empty. A mysterious force within her assisted her to go into the luxurious building, get into the elevator. She has forgotten about Micipsa who was commenting on almost everything he saw for the first time. She has forgotten about the whole world. She approached the door bell and took a long breath and whispered :"let us have this done".

A beautiful woman, who seemed to have known better days, appeared and clung tenderly to Soledad. The latter smiled briefly and with a discreet gesture getting herself out to put an end to what seemed to turn into a cathartic scene.

'Look who came with me!", trying to shift her mother's attention to Micipsa.
'Oh! Mon enfant! Come to me!". Maria kissed him and turned to Solé and whispered:
'He will tell your father'
'No, he won't!', annoyed by the remark.
'I was just worried that...'
'Don't be', Soledad cut her off.

Following Maria, the visitors entered a warm and cozy Moroccan/Spanish living room decorated with wooden beams making an exquisite contrast with the white ceiling and walls. Micipsa could not wait to be invited to sit on the brown leather chair and touch the zebra ottoman.

Soledad saw nothing of that.At least, Maria could feel proud of her apartement staring at the little boy who was exploring the weird decorations on the table.

'So...How are you?', Solé finally said.
'Oh, I'm fine...When you come, yes. I am'

Soledad turned her face, as if to look for that mysterious interior force.Consternation struck her unwillingly this time as Micipsa picked up a doll that Maria has apparently forgotten to hide:

'What is this?!'

Maria looking quite confused replied:

'Oh, it's your cousine Sophia who brought the...these days...well, she brings her daughter and ...'
'What?!You really...?'
'Oh! Stop that immediatly. She is my niece and I told you! Why don't you treat her as such?!'
'My cousine?'
'Solé, you are so selfish! I stayed here for you and I left my people for you'
'No Maria! Oh no! You left them for dad!'

Maria seemed very hurt when Solé called her by her name and reminded her of Bacha. Having realized that, Soledad decided to
make a 'truce'.

'Okay mom, that's just too much for me. I will not come again if she comes too. We are different and...'
'Different? I'm your mother! Why don't you understand? Why doesnt' your father understand this?'
'Don't talk about him'.
'Why does he...'
'I told you, don't talk about him! What do you want him to understand?'
'Understand that she has a cute girl with someone she loves!'
'So that's how you call it? I will tell you how I call it: that Sophia is sick, she clung on a married man who is her father's age and had a... had a girl with him'
'Soledad!', Maria gnowled.
'I told you we are so different', laughing as this seemed to heritate her mother more and more.

Maria trying to justify added:

'I did not say that I am approving of her conduct but she is my niece and she is your cousine.'

At this moment Soledad wished if she could say one of those bitter words that one would often regret having uttered and just
thought :'I wish I didn't come at the first place'.

'Mom, let's do this: Do whatever you want and I will do so and we will be both very happy.'

At such instances, Soledad ironic smiles were indeed so annoying as they denoted a fake sincerity.

'I must go now', searching her bag for no reason except avoiding her mother.
'Come on, don't be silly Solé', said Maria holding her hand.

That bitter voice again Reader within her 'Silly indeed as I came here'.

But then she just smiled and said:

'I have too many things to do today and I have to go to the workshop.'
'Oh! How are things going? And how is Farid? Are things serious between you two?'
'Yes, very serious. Work is serious they say, no?'
'Come on! You won't tell your mommy?', trying to bribe her daughter.

'We are friends mom. And please don't talk to him about me when you go there... Look, it's never going to be serious as long as my family does unserious things'. Now Solé looking very sad, tried to avoid her mother and get to the door feeling she would
cry if she won't go out quickly.

'Wait!', Maria holding her hand 'Mi hijo, wait! Why do you say that Solé? Did he say anything about Sophia?'
'No mom.'
'So what is it then?'
'Nothing mom! I have to go. I will call you. Come Micipsa. Say bye'.

Maria kissed the boy and turned to her daughter and whispered:

'Do you need...?'
'Money?. No, thanks. Kiss me mom. Bye'
'Bye! Say bye Micipsa',trying to put on a happy face.

On the elevator, Soledad could not help shedding a tear. Alluding to Farid, Maria made the visit as painful as ever.
Soledad wished she could open up to Maria but then she would have called her 'selfish' again.


To be continued.