She...a short story by Sharif Ali

Once upon a time in the crowded city of Male', there lived a girl, an element of the feminine kind not quite like the others. Her name was Sheeza but she didn't like it. She despised her parents for calling her such a, in her terms, godawful name, so unfitting for a pretty girl like her. What she didn't realise was that her uncle came up with it. It's amazing what parents go through when they have to name their child, all the research, and sometimes quite unfortunately settling for the most unappealing name. Well, too much choice could lead to wrong decisions. Sheeza loved it when she was referred to as Shizu, She, Shizy, Za. She thought they were kinda cool. What she didn't realise was that all these nicks were all derived from her godawful name.

She was good-looking. She had what it takes to make any man, with the exception of right-minded men, her willing slave. She was tall, fair, had lovely curly hair and a voluptuous figure. She would dance in front of the mirror for ages. She had black eyes and wished they were blue or green or violet or yellow maybe. Something different. Something nobody else had. But yellow and violet were out of the question, she thought. At least she had the mind to figure that out. She wore heavy make-up whenever she stepped out of her majestic, four-storey house. Even during a dog day afternoon. Well, she saw collisions right before her eyes, motorbikes and motorbikes, bicycles and forklifts, cars and pedestrians. Once, a man strolling with his 7- and- 1/5-month old baby in a baby-carriage slammed right into a lamp post. How pathetic that even paternity hadn't taught him a lesson. The event would have been all the more spectacular had his wife accompanied him. Good for him. Sheeza sniggered in conceit, wondering how disastrous her mere sight was. Men! She thought. What she didn't realise was that it only happened to some men, not all.

In terms of men she was in full swing ever since she was 16. Sweet 16 they say. Makes you wonder what 15, 17 or 21 are. Bitter? Sour? Sweet but a tad bitter? Sweet and sour? Why 16? Heaven knows. Sincerely, we don't wanna know. It's best if we leave some things to mystery. Otherwise the world is gonna be such a dull place where every Tom, Dick and Harry knows everything. Anyway, she found love at 16 but even before that her life had a taste of sweetness. Men of all stature pursued her. Tall, dark and handsome; tall, fair and handsome; tall, dark and homely; short, fair and handsome, the list goes on. She was enormously proud of the wonderful reception she was enjoying. She didn't know what they were but how they looked. What she didn't realise was that handsome was as handsome does.

Sadly for her, her dad was a bit restrictive. You've all the time in the world to mingle with men, just hang on until you're through with O-level, he advised while caressing her hair. He was bald, husky and just plain hot-blooded. If you mess with my girl once again I'm gonna bake your butt for breakfast, he yelled at a guy she grumbled about. Well, not the exact terms he used but something like that.

First came Ahmed just after she completed secondary education. Ammadey, in modern context. Some called him Madey. Apparently, ey is a necessary suffix for male nicks. He said she was pretty. She wasn't pleased much. She said beautiful sounded better. He was average-looking, charming and a little distant. She complained he wasn't devoted enough. Of course he didn't bring her flowers everyday, call her up every hour and buy her gifts every other day. He was smart enough not to put himself in the scrapes. He believed in keeping a gap in relationships in order to avoid being taken for granted. She believed in keeping a gap from him for the rest of her life. Not to mention she had every certainty she could have a better looking man anytime. You and him, come on, this place is full of attractive men, aren't you ashamed moving around with him, her best pal Gumreesha advised. Gum was gorgeous and had a boyfriend half her height and thrice her flesh.

It didn't take long for Sheeza to connect with Hassan at the expense of Ammadey. Hassan-ey. He was good-looking, poor and dedicated. He said she was cute. She thought that was an excuse to say she wasn't beautiful. He walked his way to pick her up for their first date. You expect me to hoof it all the way, she whined. What she didn't realise was that their destination was only a few steps away --129 steps maybe. For the next date he borrowed a motorbike and had to return it half way through. She didn't utter a word and gave him a scowl. He shrugged with a pitiable look on his face as if he heard all the things she had to say. She shrugged him off. In actual terms it had nothing to do with his motorbike-less nature but to check out Niyaz.

Niyaz. Niya, for a change. He looked decent, wore tight shirts and was a bit... feminine. He was loving, caring and behaved oddly in intimate circumstances. She always had a sinking feeling. He confessed he was gay before he met her. He said that was the first occasion where he was attracted to a woman. She was flattered but couldn't stand the revelation and the sarky comments that came piercing at her on the street. Beauty and the Fag, one fella commented. She wanted to spit in his face but restrained herself in fear of consequences. She knew he was mean enough to take a leak on her feet right on the spot. Anyways, it was too embarrassing a relationship that she called it quits. Hapless Niya. He was ready to leave his past behind and move ahead in his transformed state. That was the first and the only instance where a woman made him cry. He vowed never to look at a woman again.

Nazim stepped in. "Joadey." How fascinating. What could possibly be the reason for one to be nicknamed after a cup? Let's not waste our valuable time and energy in trying to figure that out. Joadey rang her up on his mobile and topped up every other day. By the time they were about to go on their first date he was broke. He sought a loan to no avail. The month was pushing an end. He said he had no appetite and ordered a drink. She knew what was going on. Listen, I want someone who's responsible and who can take care of me, she said in displeasure. He promised it would never happen again. She promised herself not to see him again. Only if those demented guys gave more serious thought about first impression, she wished.

But that was only an excuse to hook up with Hamid. Hamittey, bass guitarist from Hysterically Obnoxious, one of the upcoming rock bands in town. He was tall, skinny and had long hair which she thought was sexy. He played bass guitar for her until she drowsed off. She thought that was the only thing he was bothered about. She needed someone who'd always be at Her Majesty's service, someone for whom nothing mattered more than her. Hamittey was deeply in love with her but he had his own career to think about. He was definitely talented and couldn't possibly forgo his guitar for the sake of Sheeza. Inevitably she had to forgo him. She felt he wasn't good enough for her. What she didn't realise was that she wasn't good for anybody.

Well, here's a girl who was hard to please. If there was anything she was content with, it's her beauty. She was a commodity in high demand and reaped maximum benefits out of enthusiastic investors. She took no more than a fortnight to get into a relationship and found a way out just as soon. Only if she showed some concern for the feelings of all the innocent, loving and committed men she led and then brushed off.

The only person she felt cut out for her was Nazim. "Bog-ey." Man, that stinks! She met the person she was always craving for. The perfect man. Mr. Right and prince charming. Two in one. Bogey was exquisitely handsome, well-off, devoted and charismatic. The man she always hoped would fall out of her dreams into her life. Days of unbounded love and joy passed. All heaven broke loose. He said she was beautiful. He whispered the warmest sentiments in her ears. He promised he'd always be at her side. He brought her flowers every night and gave her expensive gifts. One month into the relationship her room was a gift store. He made passionate love to her. He drove her back and forth in his Mazda. Basically, he took her to the moon and back. She loved him with all her heart. It was a strange feeling, she thought. The first time she was head over heels about a man. The first time she felt the desire to hold on to a relationship. She couldn't possibly afford to lose him.

She was the happiest girl ever until she began to sense a touch of betrayal behind his tender smile. One fine day she dropped in at his place to find him in the arms of a drop dead gorgeous. Doomsday lurked in on Sheeza. She cried until she dried herself of tears. That was the first time a man ever made her cry. The first time she was cheated on. The first time she felt she was the loser. The first time she felt inferior. The first time she knew love wasn't a game. The first time she felt she wasn't beautiful enough. The first time she understood the power of true love. The first time she realised how much she'd hurt Ammadey, Hassaney, Hamittey, Joadey and Niya.

Love, the most powerful thing in the world. Love kills, love makes you feel alive, love lifts your spirits, love mellows you down, love makes you happy, love makes you cry, love pains, love heals, love makes you complete, love makes you feel empty, love unites, love parts, love gets you going, love makes you give up, sometimes on life. Sheeza felt the taste of true love when she met Bogey. Prior to him she was happy-go-lucky but they meant business. She betrayed them all. Including herself.

(This short story was published in Haveeru Daily, Maldives leading daily newspaper, on 5 Dec 2002)

FEEDBACK

Email me your feedback on this story. I will forward it to Sharif Ali and also upload it here.

@ "I think your story was really good to read, yet so true! Anyways, just wanted to say that my name is Sheeza and I think that it is a very nice name. Do you know what the name means because I can't find the meaning of my name."--"SalmaanIslam", US, 25 June 2003

@ "Interesting story. I liked the moral aspect of it. Gives the correct impression that beauty is only skin deep and materialism is only material. It is interesting how Sharif has enhanced some parts of the story to make it seem unreal but at the same time maintaining the realism in the important points. Seems gender manipulative but is not. And seems like a story similar to the 'Hare and the Tortoise' but it's not.''--Ahmed Shaheem Raazee, Maldives, 27 May 2003

@ "Your story was really great. I think it must be read by all the girls who have attitude problems. It's good for the typical Maldivian "show-off" girls. I really enjoyed reading it. It has a very good moral value in it. I think you have a very good future as a writer. Anyways, I must tell you that it was just lovely and I really liked it and I am gonna request all my friends to read it. Waiting desperately for another story by you.”--A "girl", 27 Dec 2002

@ "Ahem, as a female I am a bit cautious in commenting about this story. I liked the humour, especially the wisecracks about names. (I wish he had comented more on it -- any chance that he might take the issue of names in detail in another story or article?) I liked how it all comes together in the end... poetic justice, huh?"--Mariyam Nadhrath, Australia, 10 Dec 2002

[There's a comment by Sharif on the MESSAGEBOARD about Nadhrath's feedback. Click here]

@ "Interesting read. I found it funny but am hard pressed to come up with someone who might even vaguely resemble Sheeza (sorry Shizu, sorry Za, anyway...) and her personality. Should have made her a blonde to complete the stereotype. Kind of sad, stereotypical (in a fun way) and ironic. Once you find love, love finds someone else...hmmm... so true sometimes. And of course love isn't always mutual. Is that the moral of the story? I found it funny that the author was very specific about some things that would have been hard to judge from a glance, like for example: "Once, a man strolling with his 7- and- 1/5-month old baby in a baby-carriage"... 7- and- 1/5-month old! Now that's pretty good observation on Sheeza's (sorry Shizy, whatever... ) part if indeed she had deduced that. Well, I hope to see more of Sharif's work on your site soon but maybe he should stick to less 'controversial' topics, heh heh! Someone might take offence!"--Mohamed Hursheed, Maldives, 10 Dec 2002

[There's a comment by Sharif on the MESSAGEBOARD about Hursheed's feedback. Click here]