M A H A

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I. This Non-Disclosure Agreement, hereinafter known as the 'Agreement' created on _______ day of _______________, 20__, is by and between Yusha Azlan Zaber, hereinafter known as '1st Party' and Maha Ifa Ayat, hereinafter known as '2nd Party', and collectively known as the Parties.

II. WHEREAS, this Agreement is created for the purpose of preventing the unauthorized disclosure of confidential and proprietary information. The Parties agree as follows:

III. TYPE OF AGREEMENT:

Mutual- This Agreement shall be Mutual, whereas, the parties shall be prohibited from disclosing confidential and proprietary information that is to be shared between one another.

IV. RELATIONSHIP. The Party A's relationship to Party B shall be described as ____________ and Party B's relationship to Party A shall be described as _____________.

V. DEFINITION. For the purpose of this Agreement, the term 'Confidential Information' shall include, but not be limited to, documents, records, information and data (whether verbal, electrical or written), drawings, sketches, photos and other information associated to the other Party.

However, Confidential Information does not include:

(a) information generally available to the public;

(b) information rightfully in the possession of the Parties prior to signing the Agreement.

VI. PERIOD OF CONFIDENTIALITY AND NON-USE. Party A should keep all the confidential information related to Party B under strict confidence and vice versa for as long as the latter Party wants. Penalties can be imposed if confidential information is leaked without proper consent.

VII. THE CONSEQUENCES OF A CONFIDENTIALITY BREACH. A breach of confidentiality could result in sizeable compensation pay-outs or legal action, depending on the scale of the breach.

VIII. THIS AGREEMENT IS VALID FOR THREE MONTHS PERIOD, STARTING ON THE DAY THE INVOLVED PARTIES HAVE SIGNED. IT WILL AUTOMATICALLY TERMINATE ONCE THE TIME EXPIRES.

NAME: YUSHA AZLAN ZABER

SIGNATURE:___________________________

NAME: MAHA IFA AYAT

SIGNATURE:___________________________

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1. The 2nd party has willingly volunteered to bear all adversities on behalf of her family that the CASE may bring about in exchange they face no affliction because of IT.

2. The two Parties should keep their interactions strictly professional at all times while the INVESTIGATION on the CASE is on progress.

3. The 1st Party pledges to maintain the other Party's full safety against all circumstances as long as it is within his ability while the INVESTIGATION on the CASE is on progress.

4. Both the Parties are prohibited from inflicting any sort of harm upon THEMSELVES while the INVESTIGATION on the CASE is on progress. This includes, but is not limited to, consumption of drugs, alcoholic drinks, illegal or unprescribed medicine; physical injury; etc.

5. The Parties are in a need-to-know basis. Neither Party should withhold ANY information which is likely to benefit the INVESTIGATION. If, for instance, Party A, fails to apprise Party B of a crucial piece of information, the formal shall be indebted to the latter until Party A repays it in the way Party B wants.

6. The involved Parties should respect and maintain peace with one another as long as the Agreement is valid.

In the week that followed since Yusha has emailed me the soft copy of the contract, I've studied the NDA (Non-Disclosure Agreement) a gazillion times and discussed and added my own clauses to the existing ones.

Yes, I know. Offering myself up like a sacrificial lamb is extreme. But if I have faith in Wissam, which I do, I have nothing to worry about.

For the second clause, I jokingly warned Yusha to be careful, saying that people tend to get easily addicted to me because of my lovable personality. To this Yusha claimed, somewhat smugly, that he's spend the majority of his life emotionally detached from humanity and then added that I should worry about myself.

During our first meeting to discuss the NDA, I had asked Yusha what kind of circumstances he is expecting might arise which I can't deal with myself. In this modern century, damsel in need of rescuing is sort of insulting to womankind.

"It's not meant in the sense that I don't think you're capable of protecting yourself. I'm just not going to take the risk to find out if you are." Yusha had responded. "I will take discreet measures to ensure your safety but, all the same, I need you to stay alert."

"Because, of course, it would be such a shame to have one of the key witnesses die in the middle of the investigation." I say drily.

"Glad you understand." He'd replied, deadpan.

"After all the effort you put into convincing me to help you, are you trying to scare me off before I've even signed the contract?"

Yusha had looked up at me from the tab in his hand. "Are you scared?"

"No."

"Good." With that, he went back to staring at his tab.

Today is our fourth meeting and we are sitting on the comfortable couches in Yusha's office.

"It says here that the Agreement automatically terminates three months after we've signed it. But there's no guarantee we'll done by then."

"Then we'll renew the contract." Yusha answers simply. Then adds, "Of course, that is if you're willing to continue the investigation."

Yusha seems to pause and contemplate something.

"Hey, do you want to wait for a few more months? Until you graduate? I realized I might be being too selfish. I understand that it'll be mentally taxing, not to mention distracting, to do this amidst your studies."

I skim through the calendar in my phone.

"My finals are a little less than three months away and, with the basketball tournament also around the corner, it's true I'll be busy." I admit, already feeling a tad bit exhausted at the thought. "I'll give it some consideration and try to touch base with you soon."

I find Mom and Pop engaged in an apparently serious conversation when I walk into the kitchen.

"Oh, Maha! Good timing." Mom says. "When is your graduation day exactly?"

"20th Jan. Why?" I cross over to the fridge and grab a bottle of cold water.

"We're considering moving to Istanbul after you graduate." She says brightly.

Silence follows this announcement as my eyes swivel between my parents.

"Close the fridge." Mom says.

"I'm sorry but, what did you say?"

"Close the fridge."

"No, before that."

"Istanbul, Maha. We're thinking of moving back."

"Nothing's finalized yet." Pop adds.

A moment passes as I let their words sink in.

"Why? What about your work?" I ask Pop. "And Kaif? He's yet to finish his senior year. I doubt he'd want to transfer school."

"We already spoke with Kaif, and there's no need for him to transfer." Mom answers calmly. "He can stay with your Aunt Nabiha and Uncle Ikram. Emad will be moving into his own apartment once he gets a job, and he's okay with lending his room."

"And it'll be just for a short while." Pop says. "Once Kaif gets into college, he'll be able to stay in dorms."

"And your work?"

Dad smiled. "I'll retire."

"Retire? But you're only fifty-four! Why?" I scrutinize my father's face. "Are you seriously ill or something?"

"No, no. I'm great, Alhamdulillah." Pop answers hastily, exchanging a quick glance with Mom. "But I can be better if I can eradicate the stress and anxiety of work."

"And we think it'll be nice to live close to your grandparents and our relatives."

I clomp into my room, shutting the door behind me, before changing into one of my PJ pants and a long-sleeved black and white striped tee. My loose hair spills around my head as I carelessly drop down on my bed, pressing my cheek against a pillow.

Dinner was uncharacteristically quieter, with only the clattering and tinkering of cutleries against plates and the occasional request to pass a dish.

In the kitchen, I pull on a pair of grey rubber gloves and start squirting dish detergent on the plates.

Kaif joins me in front the double sink, pulling on another pair of rubber gloves.

"Thanks, but I got this." I say, declining his assistance. I intend to make use of the distraction.

"I took the dishwasher to the store earlier today." He says, picking up a plate. "It should be fixed my tomorrow."

"Oh." I say lamely.

"I think you can move on to another plate." Kaif says, and I realize I've been scrubbing the same plate for a quite some time.

"Wanna talk about it?" He ask hesitantly.

"What?" I cut my eyes at Kaif.

"The reason you've been frowning and being atypically subdued."

I shrug, unsure what to say.

"Want to go out for ice-cream? My treat."

I raise an eyebrow at him. "It's a school night."

"I know."

Once the last of the plates have been made spotless, I go my room and change into jeans and throw on a black cape over my tee. Wrapping my signature black scarf without pins, I grab my phone and purse before joining my brother.

"Did you tell them?" I ask as we step out, referring to Mom and Pop, and Kaif nods.

I proffer my debit card to the cashier before Kaif could bring out his wallet. When he is about to protest, I hold up a hand to quell him.

"I'm not broke yet."

We buy our ice-creams, Pistachio for me and mint chocolate chip for Kaif, and decide to take a stroll as we savor them.

"Come to think of it, you are yet to tell me about him."

"Him?" For a moment I think he means Yusha. Then Rayman.

"Wissam."

"Ah." I muse over what to say but in vain. "21 questions? I don't know where to start."

"Fine. Make sure to answer as elaborately as possible."

"I'll try. Fair warning, though, I might not be able to stop once I start."

Kaif ponders his first question. "What was it like... at home... when he was there?"

I peel the wrapper around my ice-cream cone further down and take a bite. Tipping my head back slightly, I relish the creamy and crunchy combo, while letting my mind scroll back several years into my memory.

"It used to be loud," I start, "but not like in an unpleasant way. I suppose a better word would be boisterous.

"The morning would commence with Wissam and me engaged in a pillow fight or a tackle and tickle, until we're wide awake and ready to start our day. At the breakfast table, we would be clanking our spoons in a faux sword fight. At night, Pop would sometimes quiz us on general knowledge. We'd keep score 'cause whoever had the highest number of correct guesses by the end of the week would gain a certain advantage. Occasionally, Mom would partake too, and that's how Wissam and I would end up mopping the floor or peeling vegetables or running errands and such. Yes, they were utterly dreary tasks. But, between Wissam's wisecracks and my mischief-monger younger self, the pair of us somehow managed to make them fun." I chuckle, remembering those times.

"Saturday nights were family game nights. Charades, Monopoly, and Snakes and Ladders were most commonly played. Every win and lose would trigger a dramatic response, and you'd join into the general excitement by squealing and jumping, like you understood exactly what was going on.

"This one time you fell asleep and we started playing without you. When you awoke and discovered us all huddled together you threw crying fit."

"Really? I can't believe I don't remember all that." Kaif says, looking lost.

"It's not that strange. Nobody remembers every day of their life. Besides, you were like... five or six back then." I say with a shrug.

"I should remember at least some of this, but no," Kaif shakes his head subtly, "it's like a tiny fragment of my childhood is completely deleted from my head."

"Don't overthink it."

We amble in silence for a minute.

"Oh, I just remembered!" I exclaim, spilling my ice-cream a little. "We used to do an interview every month."

"Interview?"

I nod, grinning.

"I think it was his seventeenth birthday when Dad gifted Wissam a camcorder. Wissam was elated. He'd then proposed the idea of doing an interview at the end of each month where we'd all share what new stuffs we learned, our personal highlights of the month, etcetera. It was like our own little family show." I feel a dull ache in my chest as I reminisce this.

"That sounds fun." Kaif comments. "So, why don't you guys talk about him? To be honest, I searched our photo albums and couldn't spot his face anywhere. It sort of felt like you all wanted to pretend he never existed."

I plop the last of my ice-cream cone into my mouth, using it as excuse to stall my answer.

"It somehow ended up that way." I finally say. "We had some family photos displayed on the shelf in the dining room of our previous house. A few months after Wissam went missing, we had a new neighbor. A couple. The wife came over one afternoon with sweets, hoping to get along with us, and she noticed the photos." I sigh. "Well... lets just say Mom had a difficult time trying to explain what happened to her eldest child.

"Mom and Pop didn't intend to erase Wissam from our lives. They merely wished to avoid speaking about the incident."

"It seems my family has been through a rough patch, and I'm only learning about it now."

"The conversation was long overdue." I admit.

We allow a short intermission, enjoying each other's quiet company.

"Did you here about the... moving?" Kaif ask.

"I did." I reply, swing my arms. "Mom and Pop dropped the bomb right after I came home."

"What do think?"

"Well, I wouldn't say I'm delighted." I confess.

"You could stay, can't you?"

I stop short and pivot to face my brother, who too has stopped.

"What I mean is, if you somehow manage to snag a decent and well-paying job here, and with my income from tutoring, we may be able to rent a small apartment..." Kaif trails off.

I quirk an eyebrow. "We?"

Kaif fidgets on his feet. "To tell you the truth, I'm not exactly thrilled at the idea of living with Emad's parents. Don't get me wrong," He hurriedly adds, "they're very welcoming and all, but..."

"It won't feel like home." I finish for him, and he nods.

"I want to be with my family but I also don't want to leave the life I have here. I'm being selfish, aren't I?" Kaif seems to concede. "Just forget what I said. Also, I think it'll do our parents good to have at least one of their children near them. Especially now that I know a little more about my family's past."

Sprawling on my bed, I end up spending the better half of the night mulling over and assimilating everyone's words-- the discussion about the NDA with Yusha; the moving to Istanbul; then my chat with Kaif.

Then, finally, I come to a decision.