“Look man, I told you Cilantro will not work when we come without girls; no one is coming to take our order, Islam complained to his friend.
Mohamed picked up his keys and asked, “You want to go to Beanos?
“I am bored. Let’s go to the Nile Hilton order a pizza, eat it and then throw up in the bathroom.
Getting up, Mohamed responded, “Yalla. That’s disgusting. We can go to the mall and walk around, he suggested.
Realizing I just caught a conversation as I walked in before even getting a table, I felt chuffed with myself. But when I got my gear out and got ready for the real stuff, I got disappointed when after my third mug of coffee; still nothing was of interest to note.
Three young boys walk in and sit noisily in the corner but were shortly interrupted by a plump short lady in red nail polish and orange hair.
“Marawan what do you think you are doing?
Shocked, he jumped to his feet and gasped, “Mum? I am just having coffee with the boys, what are you doing here?
“And you have the nerve to respond? We have been all over looking for you, its 9 pm and it’s a week day where do you think you are living? In a hotel?
The geeky looking friend shouldered their third friend in the shin, and stood up to help Marawan, “Ya Tante Nouran, don’t worry we were just taking a break after studying.
“Ibrahim you get out of this, your mum is too busy working that she does not even notice you are gone.
She picked up the phone and aggressively dialled a number, “Aywa ya Hani, I found him. Fein ya3ni like we imagined, I found him in the street, yalla we are coming home now, and you can punish him.
With that they both left in an instant.
I ordered a coffee and picked up some left over magazines close by before I noticed the young ladies sat next to me.
“So Marwa remember that guy you dated when we were in college? Nasser I think was his name?
Making a duck face she asked, “What about him?
“How was it that you found out that he was cheating on you? At the time you were so devastated no one dare asked.
Laughing she said, “Oh he was a genius in lying, and I was a daft fool, stay away from Leo men, I warn you.
Playing with her key chain she continued, “I will never forget the time when we were having lunch and he got a message that read, ‘Gouna is beautiful, the sand so soft, the sea cuddling all that is missing is you, wish you could come. Sharm’
“Can you believe that he convinced me that it was a message from a group of his friends in Gouna, and it was sent off a phone of a European friend of theirs, Charmaine, where he convinced me her name was spelt Sharm in short where in reality his girlfriend was asking him to join her in Sharm El Sheikh!
Laughing again, “you know I laugh now, but then I cried so hard, it was not till years later that he was caught in the act, and even then he just told me that he was too tired to talk now, and that it would have to wait, and of course he came back with a lousy story.
Then she teared up and said “Lina can you imagine with this veil on my head and my pious nature, he actually made me believe for a whole year that every time I called him at 5 am on weekends that the reason he was in the street was because he was praying Fajr in the mosque, while he was out getting drunk.
“You must be kidding, I need more coffee. Lina said as she motioned for the waiter.
They ordered more coffee, and I asked for my bill.
