Chapter One

"Oh, my sweet Amira," gushed my Aunt Fatima. She wrapped me in a tight embrace and stroked my hair. "You are the spitting image of your mother. Just beautiful," she murmured.

"Girls!" commanded my aunt. "Come hug your cousin."

One scrawny girl with ringlets surrounding her face stepped forward. She scrunched her nose. "Your scarf is weird," she declared.

"Rima! Hush," hissed my aunt.

The girl gave me a light hug and immediately returned to her mother's side.

"Yara, now!" my aunt's voice took on a disturbing tone.

A plump girl with stick straight hair gave me a smirk. "You are pretty." She hugged me and fell back in line next to her sister and mother.

I shifted uncomfortably as I felt three sets of chocolate brown eyes stare at me up and down. Unable to keep eye contact, I cast my gaze to the floor. I had only seen a handful of pictures of my aunt and cousins before. We all had a similar complexion, skin the color of the desert sands after a rain, and thick dark hair. The three of them had brown eyes, while mine were hazel with flecks of gold. My mother had the same eyes. I blinked back a tear and forced a picture of her smiling out of my mind. There would be time to cry later.

Breaking the silence, my aunt gave a toothy smile. "You must be starving, dear. Would you like to go get something to eat?"

"That would be really nice," I said. I had been too nervous to eat on the plane.

My stomach continued to flip and flop as we walked to the parking garage.

"Do you need help getting your suitcases in the back?" asked Fatima.

I shook my head. "No, I've got it," I said as I managed to pick up and load both suitcases into the trunk.

"Strong girl," said Fatima with a surprised look on her face.

My cheeks flushed. "My fa-" my voice quickly trailed away. I wanted to tell her my father encouraged me to stay fit. Unlike a lot of girls in my country, I was allowed to participate in sports, debate club, and I was treated the same as my brother.

Aunt Fatima squinted, studying my face. "Shhh, let's get in the car and you can tell us about that once you're ready to, okay?"

I blinked back the tears and nodded.

After a short car ride, we pulled up next to an unfamiliar restaurant. Of course it's unfamiliar, it's not home, I thought as I unbuckled my seatbelt and followed my aunt and cousins inside.

An employee in a fitted pink dress showed us to an oversized booth.

"Josh will be right with you," she said with a smile.

"I want the clams for a starter," said Rima as she scanned the menu. "Then I'll have the pasta with tomatoes and mushrooms. Ooh! And I'll have the triple layer chocolate cake for dessert."

My eyes widened. My family wasn't wealthy, but we lived comfortably and on special occasions, mother and father would take us out to eat at a local restaurant. Never in a million years would any of us order that amount of food in one sitting.

Yara cleared her throat and nodded at me.

"What?" sneered Rima. "Have you ever even been to a restaurant?"

"Y-y-yes," I stuttered.

"Rima, hush," hissed Aunt Fatima.

The girls looked at each other and giggled.

My cheeks burned as I ordered a salad and a glass of water with lemon.

The rest of the lunch proved uneventful and before I knew it, we were back in the car and heading home.

"I think you'll find your room comfortable," said my aunt as she showed me through a door and into a small room with a twin sized bed.

"Thank you, Aunt Fatima. This is really nice."

My cousins giggled from the hallway.

"You must be tired," said Fatima. "Why don't you unpack your belongings and have a rest?"

I nodded. "That sounds like a good idea."

Aunt Fatima spun on her heel and left me alone in the room.

As I put away my belongings, I could feel someone's presence in the room with me. Turning around, I came face to face with Rima.

"This used to be my closet," she said with a smirk. "Now I have to share with Yara."

"I- I- I'm sorry," I stuttered. "I can move somewhere else, if that helps?"

Rima rolled her eyes and left the room without another word.

The tears that had been welling up in my eyes spilled over as I sat down on the edge of my new bed. A sharp pain shot across my chest and settled in my stomach. I miss you, I thought to myself, picturing each of my family members. I miss you all so much.

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Thanks for reading the first chapter of Amira and the Red Bottom Shoes!

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