Maryia gets up slowly from the bed with tears in her eyes, picks up her phone from the desk, and puts her finger on the front camera as usual. She opens Ahmed's profile. She stops in front of a post he shared:
"When you love someone and they leave you behind, you mustn't be sad and care about who really loves you the most."
Sarah commented: "God takes who makes you unhappy to the worst place away from you."
Ahmed replied: "No mum, please! I love that person; there will be time, and that person will come back to me."
Maryia smiles and looks at the laptop. She tabs the mouse with her finger and her other hand on the laptop's front camera. The screen turns on. The laptop screen displays her admission profile showing rejection attitude from all the universities except San Jose State University showing: "DELAYED".
Maryia is on the chair and looks to the ceiling. She speaks with an ill voice:
"When I got rejections from all universities I applied to, I was trying to hide my pain from all my classmates. I felt ashamed. When we finished exams and stopped seeing each other, I found myself crying and asking God: shall I call him?"
Dr.Josef is sitting on a chair and writing on a desk in a notebook. He asks:
"Call whom?"
Maryia explains:
"He was my schoolmate. He loves me, and I can't forget him."
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Dr.Josef:
"Did he tell you he loves you?"
Maryia:
"No, but I felt that because he was looking at me a lot. I just wish I didn't exist."
Dr.Josef:
"Hmm."
Maryia:
"He looked at me in pain sometimes. Sometimes, I saw love in his eyes. He must have been thinking of me because I felt that from his posts on social media."
Dr.Josef puts the pen beside the paper:
"Do any of your family members support you?"
Maryia:
"No. No one knows about my illness."
Dr.Josef replies:
"Okay, Maryia. I see you need to take an antidepressant and antipsychotic. That will make you feel better after some weeks. I will prescribe you good ones and get back to me after two weeks."
Dr.Josef holds the pen and writes on another paper. Maryia stands up from the chair. He passes it to Maryia and smiles:
"Get well soon!"
She takes it and turns to the door. Dr.Josef looks at the diagnosis form and raises his hand:
"Wait!"
Maryia turns to him.
Dr.Josef:
"Is Magdy Shamel your father? He has a trading company, right?"
Maryia replies slowly:
"Yes."
Dr.Josef stays silent for a while, looking at Maryia. Then he replies:
"Okay. Don't worry, you will be alright. Just keep following up with me."
Maryia leaves the clinic in pain.
Ahmed is in front of the mirror and sprays a perfume.
Katy, Tania, and Khadija are sitting on a table in a cafeteria.
Katy:
"Girls, I'm worried about Maryia."
Khadija:
"Did you see her? I texted her, and she didn't reply."
Katy:
"I texted her as well. I asked her why she doesn't talk to us and if something happened, but she said that she is ok. She didn't reply to my question."
Tania:
"I just don't have time to go to her house, and I don't have her phone number. Do any of you have it?"
Khadija and Katy shake their heads right and left. Tania takes a deep breath:
"I hope she is doing okay."
Tania moves up from the chair and holds her books. Let's go. I have a lot of assignments."
Katy and Khadija move from their chairs.
On the other side, Ahmed keeps his interests valid and drives to the university with his new car.