I ran as fast as I could, those people seemed won't let me out of their sights. But I ran for so long that I couldn't even breathe properly. The harbor was very crowded. I needed to slip somewhere between these people. So, I just put off my jacket and follow a random person, offering him to carry his luggage for free. I managed to enter one of those big ships.

But I still didn't feel at ease, I needed to make sure those guys weren't behind me. I thought I hid myself well, I couldn't find their face everywhere inside the entrance. I was so exhausted, I had run for almost one hour escaping from the men my uncle sent. They were crazy men, they took every single chance to shoot me. I was really grateful for my luck. I was panting, hard to breathe and suddenly my sight got blur, and everything started become dark. I didn't remember what happened next...

I opened my eyes and surprised.

"Where am I?"

I woke up in a small bedroom, cozy enough for me. None here, I didn't remember why I ended up in the room coz I didn't remember checking in. Suddenly the door opened, there was a man with dark hair coming close to me and smiled,

"You awake"

"Ah, yes... And you are...?" I didn't remember contacting someone since I hopped in. I didn't even know where my cellphone gone.

The man stood in front of the bed.

"Oh, my name is Reyhan. You can call me Rey. I found you near the entrance, you passed out. So I brought you here" he explained.

"Ah, thank you. But I need to get out of here" I was looking for my jacket, my wallet was in there too.

The man looked at me and said,

"where will you go? We are on the ocean since yesterday."

What?

I opened the curtain beside me, there's a window behind it and I couldn't find anything but blue ocean in front of me.

"Where does this thing head to?" I asked the young man.

"We are headed to the East, to my country. Have you ever heard a country named Dawla?" he asked me.

I shook my head,

"nah, I never read newspaper nor watching TV."

He smiled again,

"Well, you probably won't find it anyway in the newspaper or television. My country is a state that your country never want to exist."

I was curious about his last sentence. Why would my country reject his country's existence? Was it a country full of poisons or something? Well, I didn't really care since I didn't have any destination...anywhere but my country would be fine.

"May I know your name?" he asked me again.

"My name is David, you can call me Dave."

We shook hands.

This man looked nice. I didn't feel afraid or something.

"Okay then, Dave. You must be tired, you can take a shower then join me for breakfast at 7. I'll pick you up." Rey took his steps out of my room.

I was very curious about who he was. I never found anyone help me before. Not even my uncle. He thought that I was just an obstacle that he needed to banish. He killed my mom, my dad, and my brother in an arranged accident five months ago. I should be with them at that time but I told them I would go after prom night. Suddenly the plane crashed, none found alive. I lived in guilt for months. If only I went with them that time, I wouldn't feel guilty for staying alive. I couldn't do anything about my uncle. The day after the accident he held a meeting with the shareholders just to make himself the new CEO for my dad's company. Then he took all my dad's belongings. Homes, cars, and also mom's jewelries. He blocked my cards, leaving me penniless. So, I have to live in a remote area taking whatever jobs that came to me just to make sure that I could live the next day. I hid myself from my uncle but two days ago there were some men stalked me at the harbor. I was delivering large amount of groceries to a restaurant inside the harbor. That was the first I felt so afraid. They are heartless, they tried to shoot me whenever the saw me. It was just crazy, even when I hid myself they could still find me. And this is the first time I could breathe easy after it. I don't care where I would go. The farther the better. I don't care about those richness my uncle took, it wasn't mine from the start. I just want a peaceful living where I don't need to be afraid of being shot anytime.

I got up from my bed and took a nice shower. The warm water calmed down my nerves. Although I don't know where would I get the money to pay these expenses. There must be be something I can do to earn money in this huge ship. I opened the closet and found my jacket along with a brand new clothes and trousers.

Wow

I never be treated this good. I needed to pay Rey back as soon as I got money. I was just not used to this kindness.

Rey popped in front of the door at 7 knocking. I opened the door and I saw someone behind him. It was a girl wearing some kind of cloth on her head. I don't know what it was. I never saw something like that before.

"I hope the shirt fits you coz I don't really know your size" Rey looked at my clothes.

"Oh, it's perfectly fine. It suits me well, thank you...you don't need to do this. I'll pay you back later"

Rey pat my back,

"No need of paying back. You are my guest now."

We were headed to a restaurant inside the ship. It was really not an ordinary ship. They had almost everything in this ship. Store, bank, cafe, hotel, restaurant...anything you need was there. I noticed one more girl with the same dress as the first one came. Those two girls sat on the different section of the restaurant. This restaurant kinda weird too. It had different room for women and family.

"Who were those women?" I suddenly asked Rey about those girls.

"Oh, the ones that behind me? She's my sister Layla. The other one is my wife, Anne. My wife and me come to pick her up. She's just finished her study at your country last month. I happened to have time to pick her yesterday. There are things I need to manage before I go. So, what do you do, Dave?" He smild again.

"Well, I was a part timer. I did any job that come to me...just to earn money for living. You know... the tax, the daily livings are so high in my country."

"Ah, yes I know. Layla said the same when she first came to your country. She said that the fares are really crazy. So much different from our country. That's why she needed to earn some money too back then." Rey laughed.

"And what do you do, Rey? Are you a famous trader in your country?" I teased him.

"Well, I'm not that great, Dave. I just run a small groceries store at the town. And my wife is a teacher at kindergarten."

"And you can send your sister to study abroad? You must be kidding me, Rey"

Rey laughed,

"I'm not joking, Dave. Everyone in my country has right to study wherever he or she wants, the country will pay the tuition fees. As for living costs if you study abroad like my sister, the government will cover the basic needs. You just need to earn extra money if you want something else"

"Wow, your government must be crazy, Rey. How come they aren't broke after all of it?" I was amazed by Rey's story.

"I don't know how they do it. But they do that for years now. Although not every major are allowed to be taken outside the country. The major should benefit for many people and needed by my country. Like my sister, she studied about viruses. I don't really know the details since I'm not good at it. But you can always ask me about where the finest meat comes from, I'm good at it." Rey laughed again, I laughed too.

His sister might be a doctor. I was getting more curious about Layla. Why did she wear that kind of dress?

And I was kind of surprised that I almost never see woman inside the ship. They were like on the other part of the ship that I can't enter. What's with this ship? Where will it take me to?

We were on the ocean for about ten days. Rey and I had so many conversations, he was really kind to me. He paid all of my expenses and hesitated that I didn't need to pay him back. How could this kind of man exist?

"Rey, to meet you is just a blessing. I really don't know that I deserve this or not. You're just kind. I don't know how to pay you back."

Rey smiled,

"Well, I think you and me didn't meet for no purpose. It is my honor to serve my guest well. Where will you go after this, Dave? Do you have any relative in my country?"

I suddenly remembered that I didn't know anyone in that country. What was the name? Dawla? The truth was I didn't even know where the heck was that.

"Well, I actually enter this ship without knowing where it will go. So, no...I don't know where to stay. If you could recommend any job that I can take and room that I can stay, I will be so grateful."

Rey thought for a while then he patted my shoulder,

"If you don't mind you can work for me. I have small pavilion you can live for a while."

"Well, it's more than enough for me, I think."

"But I think I need to take you somewhere first. You have your ID card, right?" Rey suddenly got up from his chair.

"I think I have it in my wallet. It's in my jacket." fortunately I brought my jacket.

Rey took me to an office. I couldn't read the big writing but there was small writing that I could understand coz it's in English. It was written, Immigration Bureau of Dawla. Rey had some chat with the officers and asked my ID card. The officers looked nice, they were smiling to me. I didn't know what Rey told them.

Rey came to me and asked,

"Is it okay with you to obey the rules of my country? They need you to pay some tax. You can use this."

Rey gave me few silver coins. Actually I still had my last payment after I delivered the groceries several days ago. But I didn't know whether it was enough or not.

I sat on the chair in front of the officers. They wrote something.

"Mr. Leighton we want to make sure your identity is right, do you mind?" one of the officers asked me, the other one kept writing on the computer.

"No, it's fine."

I was actually surprised that they were fluent in English as well.

"Please mention your full name"

"David Phillips Leighton" I tried to answer it calmly.

"You are from A country. Where city are you from?" he asked me again.

"I originally came from N city but I live in X City these five months."

I had predicted that they would give me suspicious look.

"It's a family matter" I added.

"Alright. So, what is your purpose entering Dawla, Sir?" he asked.

"I don't have any destination actually. I happened to be here and Rey helped me."

Things got a bit tense after I said that. The officers talked to Reyhan for ten minutes. I thought that he was convincing something. After that he went back to me and asked me a final question.

" Mr. Leighton Dawla has strict rules for people who want to live under our protection. As long as you obey the rules, you will be fine. We will treat you just the same like our people. Your blood is forbidden to be spilled without reason and you have the same right as our people. Do you agree with this term?"

I had no choice. It seemed that strange power had lead me to this country after all. I just hoped there was no unfair law in this country. And I hoped my uncle couldn't find me too. I was too sick of my family matters, I just wanted to live in peace.

"I have no objection of that" I replied.

"We need to inform you that you are free to do like what your faith told you as long as you follow our rules in some public activities. Also you need to pay for security tax, this is the amount." the officer gave me a paper with numbers on it. I was surprised it was far below my counting. It was very cheap for a tax. Even if I had to pay it every month, I thought I could still afford it.

I gave them my own money. And he pointed a column.

"You need to sign here, Sir"

I signed the paper and few copies of it. And then he gave me a card and gave me back my ID.

"I hope you'll enjoy living in our country, Sir. Mr. Reyhan Abd El Maleek will be your guardian for the three months probation. After that you don't need any guardian anymore. This is your ID card and your visa. We have checked it and it is all good. Please report to immigration office after your probation ends. Mr. Reyhan will accompany you." He spoke few things more to Reyhan before we left.

We approached the harbor. I watched the city in front of me. Finally after a long run, I found myself another place called home. But my heart still ached. I left my cruel family behind. None of them care for me. Not even once they looked for me to make sure that I was alright after the accident. This country was my new hope. And I was impatient to start living in it. I did feel a bit cautious but I hoped they would treat me well.

The ship finally docked. Reyhan accompanied me along with Layla and Anne behind us. Four of us made a stop at the grocery store at the harbor that turned out to be Rey's branch store. He took few things and came to me.

"Do you like fresh fruits? You can pick anything you want. We don't have any stock at home so I need to buy some fresh ingredients for our dinner." he said.

"I'm good"

I didn't really think about my food. I was busy looking at the atmosphere in this country. This country seemed different from other countries. Women dressed like Layla and Anne, they always walk behind men. They also had their own street, they seemed enjoy it. What kind of country was it? I was getting more curious...

We took the train from the harbor to the city. It was very comfortable seat in the train. Women and men separated in different section of the train. So I couldn't see Layla and Anne anymore.

"I think your country is unique, Rey" I opened the talk.

Rey looked at me and smiled,

"What did you see to make you think like that, Dave?"

"Well, I think your men tend to hide your women. I always see different place for women either at the street, restaurant, or here in the train. Do your country thinks they're some kind of viruses or what?"

I was aware that my sentences were a bit offensive. But I couldn't hold myself to not asking. I was curious how this smiling guy would react. But surprisingly, he kept smiling. He patted my shoulder.

"It's a good question, Rey. You maybe think that we're pushing away our women like they're some kind of beasts. The fact is in the contrary. It's them that push us -men- away." Rey laughed.

"What do you mean?" I was kind of puzzled.

"My country looks men as beast that can harm women when they go crazy" Rey still laughed.

"Sorry, sorry. I was just joking. My country treasures women so much. Instead of being pushed away or hidden, the government pamper them with a lot of facilities that are not available for men." Rey said.

"Really?" I got more curious.

"Of course! Here, in Dawla men do most of the outing things. We work, we shop for groceries, buying anything the family need. While our women just need to babysit our children, taking care of the house doing things they want, or if they want to get a job, it's permitted. They can keep their salaries for their own. But most women in our country use their salary to backup the expenses. We treasure our women a lot. They're like diamonds that should be protected. But it doesn't mean they are not allowed to go outside and socialize. They have their rights just like men. That's why the caliph pampers them with many facilities so they will be safe whenever they need to go outside." Rey explained evwrything with serious tone.

"In other words, your country consider women as a weak creature that need to be protected everytime. So they are not allowed to meet men at all?" I was really curious.

"There is no weak woman in my country, Dave. Trust me, if you don't have any martial art skill, when you tease one of them... You'll end up beaten. Most women in my country are skilled with martial art. It's one of compulsory subjects in every school. We are free to choose either taekwondo, aikido, boxing, or other martial art option provided by school. So, basically our women are not barbie dolls who need protection from other. They are strong physically and mentally. But despite how strong they are, it's just natural that men are stronger. So, the caliph prevents any slot of danger by protecting them in public area."

I was amazed, then I remembered Layla. Well, maybe she was not as weak as I thought.

"So, tell me Rey...how did you meet Anne?" since there almost no chance of meeting the girls in public area, how they knew each other...this is a big question for me.

Rey laughed again.

"Well it's a long story, Dave. I'll tell you some other time coz we'll reach our destination in 5 minutes, we need to get ready."

He got up, taking the bags and got ready to leave the train. I helped him carrying some bags.

We left the train station with Rey's car. Fortunately he brought his cars to the station otherwise we needed to get a taxi. Layla was sitting behind me. I don't know why I kept being curious about her. Maybe because of her look or her brown eyes that always met mine whenever we met. Or I might be curious about her profession how did she managed to be viruses' analyst.

We arrived at Rey house at the afternoon . It was not far at all from the station. But ten days floating on the ocean really made us exhausted. Luckily Rey called his maid to clean the pavilion right after we left the ship so when I entered my room, I could throw myself on the bed.

It was a crazy journey I had. Who would guess that I would end up at the country that I never knew it existed! And it felt like it's just yesterday thatَ I needed to struggle to stay alive form gun shots. Who would know that someone would save me and gave a new life?

I tried to shut my eyes. Once again Layla's brown eyes appeared in my mind. The way her curious eyes saw me made me also curious about her. What kind of girl was she? I was drown in the image of one of Charlie's angels. Maybe Layla was some kind of them? The next minute I imagined Layla as Lara Croft or Xena. And I smiled unconsciously then fell asleep.

I opened my eyes. It was dark outside. I must be very tired. My stomach growled...I didn't know what to eat tonight. I looked my cell phone, of course it didn't work. I needed to buy local number to use it. The clock in my cellphone was also not updated. So I didn't know what time it was. I opened the refrigerator, nothing's there -obviously. I had no choice for now. I needed to ask Rey where I could get a meal tonight.

I opened the door, there's a note sticking on it.

Please go to our house when you wake up. We had prepared the food for you. You must be hungry.

L.

L?

Layla?

Did she bring me food this afternoon?

Suddenly my heart beat faster. Why? What's wrong with me? Maybe because I was starving.

I knocked the door, I hoped I didn't disturb anybody. Someone opened the door. I recognized the beautiful brown eyes. It's Layla!

My heart beat even faster. Was I really that starving? Layla had a fair skin, a bit different from Rey. Their nose and lips were similar. But Layla was true beauty even when she covered her hair with dark veil. And now she's even more beautiful when she smiled.

"Oh it's you, Mr. Leighton. Come on in. I'll heat the food for you. I'll wake my brother up." she opened the door wide enough for me.

"It's fine, don't bother. Rey must be exhausted."

"It's okay. Beside I must wake him." Layla went upstair.

I looked at the clock on the wall. It's 8 o'clock. These people must be exhausted to be already in bed at this time. I hope I didn't disturb Rey's peaceful sleep.

Layla's back with Rey. She's wearing long sleeve gown and directly went to the kitchen. Rey smiled at me.

"Hi, Dave. Did you have a good sleep?"

"Ah, yes I do thanks to you. I'm sorry that you need to wake up for me, I had said to your sister to leave you be..."

Rey cut my sentence,

"It's alright, Dave. It's not good also to be alone with a girl at night."

I got the point why he needed to accompany me.

"So, Dave...do you mind to start working tomorrow? Or you need one more day to rest?" ah, I totally forgot about the job.

"Ah, right. I'm okay to start working. I'll have enough rest tonight, I think. What time do I need to go and how?" I didn't know anything about my job.

Layla came with meat and tomato stew, some cut fruits, and some breads.

"Please enjoy, I hope it suits your taste." she said that in cold tone.

"Oh, thank you. It's more than enough."

"Please enjoy the dinner. Since we don't have the same taste, maybe it will be a little different with what you usually eat. I don't have any idea what Layla cook. Since she lived for a long time at your country, I asked her to cook whatever taste good for you." Rey laughed.

"Ah, I see. That' s why it tastes delicious, thank you. I'm sorry for bothering." It was really delicious. Maybe because she cooked herself back then.

Layla sat on the couch reading a book.

"Miss Layla is a doctor?" I asked question to break the awkwardness.

"Well, basically yes but she doesn't work at the hospital. She works at the research lab. Will you start working tomorrow, Layla?"

Layla looked at me then replied,

"No, but I need to report to the office about my arrival. Maybe I need a ride to the office."

"Okay, then we need to be prepared at 6 o'clock." Rey looked at me. I had just finished my bowl.

"If you're ready at six, what time will you wake up, Rey?" I asked silly question to Rey.

Rey laughed.

"I always wake up at 2 in the morning, Dave. I will wake you up at five tomorrow. Oh, I forgot...do you have any cellphone? It will be difficult for us to communicate if you don't."

"Ah...I remember that I need to buy a local number for my cell phone."

"I think you need a new phone also Rey. We use different system for cellphone here. It may not be the same as yours. Layla can you take my phone in the drawer at my office?"

Layla got up then walked to a room and back with a cellphone in her hand. She put it on the table in front of me.

"For tomorrow, you can use mine, Dave. I'll get you a new phone after work tomorrow. And you need to study Arabic too coz most of the people can't speak English. If you don't know Arabic it will be difficult for you to work. We'll get you registered tomorrow." Rey looked at the clock. It was 9 already.

I finished my meal quickly and took my leave.

"So, I need to wake up at five and get ready at six tomorrow? I get it. Thank you for the meal. And have a good rest tonight, Rey...Layla..."

I saw Layla nodded at me with poker face.

"Alright, Dave. You too have a good rest tonight. Just go directly to my house when you've dressed properly tomorrow. We'll eat some breakfast at my house before we leave."

"Okay."

Rey accompanied me to the door and we parted. I needed to sleeo as soon as possible. I never woke up so early. I needed to work hard to pay back what Rey had done for me though he didn't ask me to.