Chapter 45

Contains spoilers

Summary

  • Yara experiences heightened sensitivity and anxiety when Fadi returns home, anticipating his reaction to her therapy for complex trauma.
  • Yara showers with Fadi, trying to calm her nerves, notices Fadi’s unusual silence and distant demeanor.
  • Dinner conversation is difficult, as Yara can hardly eat and feels strained by Fadi’s and his parents’ conversation.
  • Yara’s mother-in-law, Nadia, offers to help in the kitchen but is sharply dismissed by Yara, who feels overwhelmed.
  • During dinner, Yara remains quiet and observes the strained dynamics around her, including her husband's and her in-laws’ interactions.
  • Yara realizes her newfound awareness of her bodily sensations enables her to understand her emotional responses more clearly.
  • After dinner and the departure of the in-laws, Yara and Fadi have a tense exchange where Fadi dismisses her household efforts while watching a game on TV.
  • Fadi reacts dismissively and skeptically when Yara opens up about her therapy and insights into her trauma.
  • An argument escalates as Fadi minimizes Yara's feelings and struggles, leading Yara to feel isolated and misunderstood.
  • Yara contemplates throwing a water glass in anger but restrains herself, then retreats to the closet in distress over Fadi's harsh words.
  • Fadi falls asleep, leaving Yara to consider her unhappy marriage in the dark, feeling that staying will continue the cycle of pain for her and her daughters.
  • In an epiphany, Yara realizes that leaving her marriage might be a better choice for her and her children's futures, rather than remaining trapped in an unhealthy relationship.
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