Chapter 45

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.