“What are you doing?”
“Just writing, or trying to write an article for my Norwegian class.”
“But you can't concentrate because William is all you can think about? What's going on?”
“What's going on is that I'm in love with him. Like, seriously, madly in love.”
“Mmm.”
“Don't you ever feel like getting completely wasted and hooking up with people?”
“Sure.”
“And what holds you back, then?”
“My faith is stronger than my lust. It just feels more important to me than drinking and hooking up.”
“That's exactly it. There is nothing that feels more important to me than being with William, even though I know there should be.”
“So why aren't you with him?”
“Because he is a bad person.”
“Why is he a bad person?”
“First of all, he's very controlling.”
“In what way?”
“He tells me what I should say, do and feel.”
“And you don't dare to speak up?”
"Yes, yes, of course I do...”
“Does he get angry when you disagree with him?
“No, not really. He just keeps arguing in such a way that I can’t come up with any counter arguments.”
“So what's the problem? That he's smarter than you?”
“No, that he tries to change my opinions.”
“But ... your opinions won’t change unless you think he's right.”
"Yeah, but I'm trying to be strong and independent! I can’t... Should I change my way of thinking for a guy, then?”
“You're strong and independent when you know you can change your mind, no matter if it’s a guy that makes you change it. There is nothing wrong with him challenging the way you think. If you're not afraid to say what you think, then you don't have to worry about him controlling you.”
“He's violent though, he smashed a bottle on that guy's head.”
“Yes, okay. But why did he do that?”
“Because he has these fucked up ideas, that the world is driven by wars and violence. We're completely different. I am against war.”
“That's not why he smashed that bottle. He did it because he was angry and scared. Why was that?”
“I don't know.”
“You didn’t ask him?”
“No...”
“Okay. I think it's interesting to hear you say that you're against war. Wars don’t start with violence, they start with prejudice and misunderstandings.”
“Yeah... So?”
“If you say you want a world full of peace, you should at least try to understand why others think and act a certain way. You should accept that not everyone sees the world the same way you do. You can’t just believe that you alone have all answers to what’s right or wrong. If you haven't even made an attempt to understand the one you love, then that makes me pessimistic on behalf of the whole world. I'm not saying you have to be with him, but you can't make a decision without even trying to understand him.”
“There is Vilde, though.”
“Oh, Vilde.”
“I'm really afraid that she’ll be devastated.”
“I think you underestimate her. Vilde is the toughest of us all. She’s actually the first person I’d take to war with me. Just tell her, she'll be fine. After all, she knows William isn’t hers. Deep down.”
“Deep down, indeed.”
“Deep, deep, really deep down, in the innermost cell of her body, there is an atom. In that atom, there’s a proton. In that proton, there’s a small sealed box. In that box, there’s another small box. And inside that box... that’s where she knows. Good luck with that. Seriously though, Noora. If nothing in the world matters more to you than being with William, at the very least you have to try to make it work. It doesn't necessarily means it will, maybe it all goes to shit, but that's life! You never know, unless you have a magic hijab like mine. In that case you know.”
“And what does your magic hijab say about William and me?”
“It says, “Insha'Allah.””
“What does it mean? Is that a good or a bad thing?
“Impossible to say. Could go either way.”
“Okay. Who would have thought? Sana has a soft side.”
“Don't you fucking dare tell people that!”
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