Age 16, Ahmad
Leah POV (Age 16)
Leah received the call at three in the morning, her eyes bleary as she reached for her phone to silence it.
Scam calls in the early morning were to be occasionally expected, though one from Fatin was certainly not. Texts, yes, but Fatin liked her mate to sleep and would never dare to call. So, when Fatin’s caller ID was staring back at her Leah immediately swiped the screen and lifted it to her ear.
Heavy breathing met her on the other side, mixed with the occasional sniffle.
“Hey, are you okay?”
Another sniffle, this time followed by a sob. It was broken, unlike Fatin entirely. Leah could count on her hands the number of times she had seen or heard her mate crying but never had she sounded this distraught.
“Fatin, are you okay babe?”
“Ahmad is in the hospital.”
Sitting up, the bleariness dropped from her; replaced by shock-induced alertness. “Where are you?”
A hiccup left her mate. “The hospital. I- Leah I-”
“Can you text me the hospital name? I’ll get dressed and head over with Dad.”
“It’s t- too early to w-wake him.”
“I’m up. Text me, I’ll be there soon. Do you want me to stay on the phone?”
“No, it’s- it’s okay. We need to talk to the doctor-” Another hiccup. “Soon.”
“Okay. I’m hanging up, but I’ll be there soon.”
“Thank you,” Fatin said, sounding so consumed by tears that a lump lodged itself firmly in Leah’s throat like a jagged rock.
Unsurprisingly her father was not keen on being woken at such an hour, though as soon as Leah told him why he was up and tugging on a t-shirt both inside out and backward.
Her father was never a safe driver- not like her mother at least. Kurt always had a heavy foot on the accelerator and drove like he was always in a rush. It meant that when he was actually in a rush, Leah feared his arrest.
“Dad, slow down.”
“Did Fatin say what’s wrong with him?”
“No, she was struggling to speak because she was crying so much. I don’t think it’s good.” As Kurt pressed down on the accelerator again Leah chided him once more.
“Kid, no cops will be patrolling these roads so early in the morning.”
“You never know, and if we do get pulled over that’s an extra thirty minutes to get to the hospital.”
He eased his foot off the pedal with a huff of agreement.
Leah played nervously with the string of her hoodie, rolling it between her fingers as she replayed Fatin’s voice down the phone in her head. Her mate’s worry festered in her own chest through their bond, feeling stronger than it ever had. It left her own eyes tearing up as Kurt pulled into the parking lot.
Grabbing the bag that she had packed in haste, filled with bottles of water, food, and some spare clothing for Fatin, they headed into the building.
“Fatin’s going to be quite emotional, just brace yourself. Bonds can have a very strong effect on mates, and whilst it’s a gift it can sometimes be hard to cope with.”
“I know, I’ve had this thing for a while.”
“You’ve had a bond with a very stable mate for a while. Fatin gets a temper with people sometimes, but I have yet to see the girl cry often,” Kurt said.
“She cries. Just never… not like this.”
“The only time I saw her cry was when you were in the hospital. Even then I wasn’t too worried because you were on medication that would have muted the bond for you both. Now you’ll feel it in full force. It’s okay to ask for help or support. When your mum saw you in the hospital years ago, I had to get help; her emotion was felt so deeply that I struggled for weeks. Whilst bonds bring us closer together it doesn’t mean that it does not have a mental strain on us.”
“I’m fine.” The tears streaming down her cheeks did little to enforce that as truth. She wiped them away with the back of her hand and lifted her chin. Regardless of the weight of their bond, Leah had to remain strong for her mate.
They found Fatin in the hallway, curled up on a chair with her knees pulled under her chin. She appeared smaller than Leah had ever seen her, someone you would likely miss as you passed them if it wasn’t for the crying that alerted you to her presence.
Leah was used to her mate commanding a room, garnering attention and envy. She certainly wasn’t versed in how to handle this, nor should she be... not at this age. Mate bonds were tricky for anyone to deal with, let alone in teens whose emotions were felt like tidal waves.
“Fatin, hi.” When she didn’t respond Leah rested a hand on her puffy cheek. “Hi.”
Instead of replying Fatin stood on wobbly knees that threatened to give out, looping her arms around Leah and leaning into her. Her cries grew louder as she buried her face into Leah’s neck and Leah bit back her own in an attempt to be the stable force her mate needed.
“You’re okay. I’m here, my dad’s gone to find your dad.”
“Ahmad he, L-Leah he-”
“Breathe.” Leah nuzzled Fatin’s neck, rubbing her nose across her pulse point until she calmed enough to breathe again. “What happened?”
“Dad found him in the night, vomiting and sweating at twelve. He bought him here then my mum drove us d-down because he was having an emergency operation.”
“Why are they operating?”
“Appendicitis. They said it should be fixable but because they caught it later, they’re worried. He was really sick. I’ve never seen him like that his face was so-”
“Hey, breathe. He will be okay; Ahmad is a tenacious little shit as you always say. He’s a fighter.”
“He pissed off his doctor by calling him an asshole when he was taking blood and now my mum is pissed because he picked it up from me.”
Leah couldn’t help but laugh at the idea. “I’m sure that’s a welcomed distraction for Rana right now. I doubt she is actually angry after your dad inadvertently taught him the C word.”
“You can say cunt, Leah.”
Shaking her head, Leah pulled her against her. Fatin was weak like putty in her arms, barely holding herself up.
“Is he in the operation theatre now?”
“Yeah. He’ll likely be another hour.”
“Okay, in that case, let's get you a drink and I brought you some clothes.”
“You brought clothes?”
“Yeah. I figured that you’d be here in your pyjamas if you rushed.”
Luckily, Leah was right. Fatin was there in silk pyjama trousers and a shirt with leopards on them.
“God, I love you.”
Her heart thudded in her chest, eyes widening. “You-”
It was hardly surprising, they were mates. Then again Leah had never heard those words uttered by Fatin, and definitely had not expected them to be said now.
Fatin seemingly realised what she said, standing a little straighter as her eyes widened. “I-”
“I love you too. Come on, let’s get you dressed.”
“I can dress myself.”
The reality was that Fatin could not, she was drained and tripped over as she tried to tug the sweats on that Leah had brought with her.
“Here, let me.” She kneeled and helped her mate into them one leg at a time before moving to put on her shirt and the hoodie, untucking her hair when her head popped through. “Gorgeous.” She kissed her nose, nuzzling it after. “Let’s grab you a coffee.”
“The canteen is shut.”
“There’s a vending machine down the other hall,” Leah said, tugging her along.
Any worry felt through their bond began to dissipate. Whilst it was still there it now felt manageable, not like it was threatening to knock her out with its force.
“This coffee is so gross,” Fatin complained as she sipped it.
Leah sat beside her, combing her fingers through her hair. Gestures like that always helped Fatin. When they had their first major fight Fatin was broken, not like this perhaps but a broken of its own kind, and Leah had figured out that her touch soothed her more than she realised.
For so long Leah had assumed only she was calmed by such until Fatin had been emotional enough that she felt her ease through their bond as soon as they kissed. That night she spent hours combing her fingers through Fatin’s hair until she fell asleep. The argument had harmed Leah, she was angered and hurt. Yet no part of her realised just how much Fatin had hurt herself in the process too until she turned up at her door.
Leah’s emotions had been so vast that she had failed to register that Fatin was somehow even more devastated by her words.
So now as she ran her fingers through her hair, with Fatin sighing and curling up against her side, she knew just how much her presence helped her also.
“Drink your coffee, you’ll want to be awake for when he gets out.”
With a sigh Fatin sipped it again, her breaths falling shallow as her body sat limp.
“I’m so fucking tired.”
“If you want you can sleep now, I can wake you when he’s out.”
“Promise?”
“Promise.”
Fatin fell asleep only minutes later. It always surprised Leah how fast she could do so, Leah often listened to music and daydreamed for hours before she drifted off.
Rana appeared later, hair astray and shoulders slumped. “Leah?”
“Hi, are you okay?”
“He’s out. They’re hoping all should be well now, but it’ll depend on how he is when he wakes up. Is she sleeping?”
“Yeah, I said I’d wake her up when he was out.”
Rana sighed. “Wake her in thirty minutes? They’re getting him transported and the room set up, she will only get in their way before that.”
“Okay.”
“Thank you for coming. Samad was meant to be sitting with her, but he got called in by a nurse to go over Ahmad’s medical history.”
“She seemed pretty worried. I think part of it was that she needed sleep. Often, she gets antsy when separated from them anyway.”
“I know,” Rana smiled. “She’s very protective of her family. Doesn’t help that all of those hormones will only make her more so.”
Such was obvious; especially when it came to Leah. Fatin had grown more and more defensive of her in the past months to the point that people in their school rarely joked about the omega. Even Ian zipped his lips when it came to making comments about his friend knowing that Fatin was easily angered.
Whilst she loved it, Leah hoped with time she would calm down.
“Give her a year and she’ll be back to normal. Samad said he was a terror the first rut year.”
Leah woke Fatin twenty minutes later, not wanting to wait for thirty. “He’s out and should be all set up soon.”
Ahmad looked gaunt and ashen where he lay. He was already small but now appeared tiny, years younger than he actually was.
They sat in his room for hours with the sun eventually rising outside; only highlighting how different he appeared.
A stomach rumbled beside her, and Leah’s fingers halted their movement through her hair.
“If you want, I can run out and grab breakfast quickly. Your mum could use something too.”
Samad had left an hour ago, taking Kemar with him to get some sleep. The young boy had become irritable and distressed at the sight of his brother.
Fatin paused, chewing her cheek.
“It will take me ten minutes, I’ll be fast.”
“You’ll be fast?”
“I will. The café just up from here should be open, I’ll grab us drinks and some breakfast.”
She debated mentally, weighing up the options of having Leah leave her side and be fed or keeping the comfort of her close.
“Okay. But be-”
“Fast,” Leah finished. “I will. I love you.”
Rana peered between the two as the words left Leah’s lips from across the room. She raised a brow at her daughter whose face heated as she averted her eyes. “I love you too.”
After fifteen minutes Leah returned.
“You were gone too long,” Fatin grumbled, clutching at Leah’s clothes to pull her closer. Her nose pressed against her stomach, inhaling the scent of perfume on her.
“I was gone fifteen minutes, I set a timer.” She pressed a kiss to Fatin’s hair and ruffled it.
Her mate’s nerves had been felt as soon as she left so Leah had done her best to get everything quickly.
“You said ten.”
“Yes, but I got lunch for us too so I don’t have to leave again in case you need me here.”
“You got lunch?”
“Yeah, I just grabbed some boxed pastries and pasta as it seemed the safest thing to leave out of the fridge.”
“Thank you.”
Leah pulled out the blueberry porridge pot, passed it to Fatin, and then moved to pass a toasted sandwich to Rana. She dished out the drinks: Rana’s usual morning latte and an iced coffee for Fatin.
“Did you find something that you liked the look of there?” Fatin asked.
“Yeah. I just got a plain cheese toasted sandwich and a tea.”
When Ahmad woke, he was tearful and groggy; blinking away the sleep as Fatin took his small hand in her own, holding it tightly.
“How long am I here for?”
“A few days,” Rana said. “Then you can come home.”
“A few days? I have school.”
“They will sign you off, it’s fine.”
“But it’s Pokémon week. We’re all building our Pokémon after an animal we like.”
“I’m sorry sweetie. I’m sure your teacher will let you build one when you get back.”
“Everyone will be done by then.”
Come lunch, Fatin decided to go home with Rana to shower and grab some clothes. Leah opted to stay, saying someone should stay with Ahmad and that her dad was picking her up at three anyway.
He was teary, the medication making him more vulnerable to emotion than he normally was.
“I don’t want to miss it. It’s the only cool thing we get to do all year, Josh is making his like a spider crab.”
“What if I head out and grab some bits from the store and then we can make one here?”
“We could do that?”
“It will depend on what they have but I’m sure I can find something.”
Leah ended up taking a twenty-minute walk to get to a toy store. She grabbed a basket, trying to think of what she could get that would be allowed in the hospital.
She grabbed crayons and a sketchbook, then ended up at the clay section. Clay would make one hell of a mess, but polymer clay would hopefully be fine; Leah had used it before and there was no residue. One of each primary colour went into the basket, followed by a pack of neon feathers.
It would be expensive, but Ahmad was like a brother to her. It was not just Fatin who was saddened by his sickness.
As she walked to the till, she spotted a Pokémon stand. Two single packs of mystery cards went in the basket, along with a stuffed toy oshawatt.
Hopefully, that would brighten up Ahmad; she was sure Rana would bring him gifts, but she was still in too much shock and sleep deprived. She was a mother stilled by her son’s sudden turn, after all, more worried about him healing and breathing.
She made it back to the hospital before Fatin and laid a tray out that she had stolen from the canteen for him to build his Pokémon on. The red plastic tray rested on his lap as he began to unpack the bag with wide eyes.
“What is this?”
“It’s a kind of clay that goes hard and looks more like plastic. You’ll have a toy you can play with after you build it, I’ll have to take it home though to put it in the oven. It hardens when you cook it.”
“You got me an oshawatt!”
“Only one left there. Think it was a sign he was meant for you.”
“Thank you!”
Over the next thirty minutes, they drew out plans for their creatures; then worked to construct them out of the clay. At one point a nurse came in and Ahmad grinned at her, the unease of the morning lost to a newfound chipperness.
“What are you two doing?” Fatin asked when they got back.
“We’re making Pokémon. Leah went to the store. Look, mine is based on a tiger, and Leah’s is based on a water bear.”
“A water bear?” Fatin asked.
“Tardigrades. They’re micro animals. A spaceship took them to the moon, but it crashed and accidentally spilled them everywhere. It’s cool because they can withstand pretty much any element but need water. So, if water ever spills on the moon water bears will technically be the first living species on its surface. They can be brought back to life even after decades of dehydration and there are some up there that may have survived. They actually tested to see if they could by firing a load of them in a gun shell, whilst many died they said there's a chance that some are up there.” She held her phone up with an image, blushing when Fatin simply stared at her.
“You got supplies to make Pokémon with him?”
“He didn’t want to miss the class. I said I’d drop his Pokémon in for him tomorrow once it has dried so his friends can see it.”
Wiping her eye discreetly Fatin nodded.
“They look great,” Rana said, taking a seat by his bed as Ahmad enthusiastically talked about his Pokémon.
Fatin silently watched Leah and she had a feeling she had done something wrong. She was off even as they walked to the bathroom, Fatin checking the stalls.
“Are you okay? Did I do something wr-”
Lips muffled her own, Fatin pushing her up against the sink as she kissed Leah deeply. Her hands gripped Leah harder than usual, nails biting into her hips making her hiss.
“Shit, sorry, forgot I had this fucking manicure.” Fatin leaned in again; kissing her until Leah was breathless, lips swollen. “Thank you. When we left, he was so upset and now he looks… normal. His weird bubbly self.”
“I just bought some supplies from a store. It was nothing.”
“It wasn’t nothing. It was perfect.”
Relaxing into Fatin’s grip she blushed as the door swung open, Fatin pulling her hands from her hips as an elderly lady entered.
“I need to pee, but then you should tell me more about those bears on the moon.”
“They’re not big bears. Microscopic really.”
Fatin snorted. “I love you. Do you want to sleep over tonight?”
“I’ve already asked Dad to drop my overnight bag at yours in case it was needed.”
She leaned into Leah, kissing her neck once. Fatin let out a heavy breath, shaky and unstable as Leah held her up again.
“He’ll be okay.”
“I know,” Fatin replied. “He seems better already. I’m worried that I should have caught it earlier. I was watching him yesterday and thought he was being dramatic when he said that he felt sick.”
“In your defense, Ahmad takes after you- he does love his drama.”
“Hey!”
“Saying that there’s no way you could have seen this coming. All that matters is that he’s here now, and already doing better.”
“I just think that I-”
“Fatin,” Leah took her chin between her thumb and forefinger. “No one would have seen this coming; it was a random event. You do so much for your brothers, for all of us, this is not on you.”
A tear dripped down her cheek and Leah caught it with her thumb, wiping it away. Her head dropped against Leah’s chest, Leah holding her as she cried.
“Is she okay?” The elderly lady asked, peering over her glasses as she came out of the stall.
“She’s fine. Been a rough day.”
“You’re mates, aren’t you?”
Fatin peered up from her chest, mascara coating Leah’s shirt.
“Yes,” Leah answered.
“I thought so. You’re lucky to have found each other when you did. I only got two years with my husband when he was seventy-five and we met at a bingo night.” She smiled. “Regardless of what you go through, you will always be stronger for it.”
A sniffle left Fatin after the lady exited. “She seemed sweet.”
“She did. Come on, let’s get you back to Ahmad.”
Fatin paused, wiping her lipstick from Leah’s mouth. “My mother will be pissed if she thinks that I left just to make out with you.”
“Did you?”
“Obviously.”