"Let there be peace between you and I, between Muslims and Christians, and between Somalia and Ethiopia," Laila Samatar said, grinning, as she took her lover Bethlehem Tilahun's hand in hers. The two young women stood at the overpass entrance leading to the Rideau Shopping Center in downtown Ottawa. Snow was falling rapidly on this cold February afternoon, but things were otherwise peaceful in the Capital. The perfect time for a reconciliation.
"Of course you want peace, Laila, I'm your favorite piece of ass," Bethlehem said, and with that, the curvy, brown-skinned cutie playfully smacked her lover's derriere. Laila gasped and blinked awkwardly, and then smiled. Even after all this time, Beth's wild ways still took Laila by surprise. Hand in hand, the two of them walked into the crowded mall. Covid was still in vogue, what with just about everyone wearing one of those damned masks. Welcome to the new normal...
Last week, Laila and Beth had a big argument about the former flirting with a certain waitress, but apologies were made, and things were on the mend between the two of them. Beth and Laila went to the video game store located across from the always crowded Tim Horton's, and checked out some of the latest games. Laila, an avid gamer, had heard wonderful things about Resident Evil : Village and wanted to check it out. Beth wasn't much of a gamer, but wherever Laila went, there she would be. The two of them had been virtually inseparable, except for a brief interlude, for over three years now.
To say that Beth and Laila came from different worlds would be something of an oxymoron. Laila was born in the environs of Ajax, Ontario, to a Somali immigrant father, Sheikh Samatar, and a white Canadian mother, Samantha Crowley. The six-foot-tall, curvy and brown-skinned, hijab-wearing young biracial woman is a proud Muslim, and an outstanding athlete. Laila has set records as a swimmer for the Carleton University women's swim team. There aren't a lot of young women of color on varsity swim teams on Canada's colleges and universities, so Laila has always stood out.
Bethlehem Tilahun was born in the City of Montreal, Quebec, to an Ethiopian immigrant family. Beth's parents, Gabriel and Mariam Tilahun came to Canada in the 1990s, having fled their hometown of Dire Dawa, Ethiopia, due to socio-political conflicts. Bethlehem grew up to be tall and curvy, and as proud of her Ethiopian background as she is of her Orthodox Christian faith. For a time, Beth felt conflicted about her lesbian identity, but eventually reconciled it with her faith and background. Fortunately for Beth, her parents are fully supportive, something of a rarity in Ethiopian society, which isn't known for its tolerance of LGBT individuals.
As for Laila, she has never hidden from her family and friends the fact that she is passionate about her Islamic faith...and has a great fondness for the ladies. When Laila's older brothers Kasim and Ali displayed posters of female celebrities like Tennis champion Serena Williams, actress Lucy Liu and supermodel Estella Warren on their walls, Laila would admire the posters as often as they did. Nothing wrong with that.
After graduating from Cadmus Academy, Laila Samatar applied to Carleton University, instead of Ryerson University, where her parents met, decades ago. Laila wanted to explore life outside of the Greater Toronto Area, and found the City of Ottawa quite charming during her few visits. A lot of people have described Ottawa as a boring government town full of dull bureaucrats and passive aggressive folks, but Laila found it a refreshing change of pace from the wild and outgoing GTA.
On the other side of the country, Bethlehem faced a similar struggle with her family when she opted to study at the University of Ottawa instead of McGill University, her mother Mariam's alma mater. Gabriel Tilahun, the family patriarch, was also disappointed that his only daughter did not even consider his former school, Concordia University. As far as the Tilahun clan was concerned, the best schools in Canada were in Quebec, in terms of tuition price and quality of education. Why go all the way to Ontario?
"Ontario schools are expensive and sub par," Gabriel Tilahun said, and his wife Mariam nodded. Quietly seated at the dinner table, Bethlehem looked at her parents and sighed, getting ready to stand her ground. College is a big decision, and not one which Bethlehem took lightly. One of the many reasons why Bethlehem wanted to study at the University of Ottawa was to get away from her parents. There's only so much helicopter parenting any young modern woman can stomach, thank you very much.
"Mom, Dad, I thought about this long and hard, the University of Ottawa has a great criminology program and a good law school," Beth said cheerfully. She looked right at her father as she spoke, and Gabriel Tilahun grinned. A long time ago, back in Ethiopia, he dreamed of being a lawyer. After moving to Quebec, Gabriel went back to school, and after failing to get into law school, he nevertheless earned an MBA from Concordia University and started his own firm. It warmed his heart that his daughter shared his dream.
"You want to be a lawyer, just like your father," Mariam said, smiling gently as she looked at her daughter, and Beth nodded, smiling warmly at her parents. Gabriel and Mariam exchanged a look and then nodded. When Beth makes up her mind, there's no changing it. Fate blessed them with a daughter who is as beautiful as she is stubborn. A few months after graduating from Saint Guillaume Academy in the north end of metropolitan Montreal, Beth enrolled at the University of Ottawa, and thus her journey officially began.
While studying criminology at the University of Ottawa, Beth Tilahun experienced a brand new world, and she also met her first lovers. In her anthropology elective, Beth met a young French woman named Marissa Desmarais. The tall, slender, freckle-faced and green-eyed redhead was smoking hot, and took an immediate liking to Beth, the sharp-tongued, opinionated Ethiopian gal from Montreal. They were together for three months, and then Marissa got back with her boyfriend, a tall, muscular Jamaican dude named Floyd. Beth was crushed, but eventually, she got over it and forgot about Marissa.
Beth's good friend Anthony, his girlfriend Shari and their pal Christine invited her to the Panda Games, pitting the Carleton University football team against their rivals, the University of Ottawa. While at the game, someone caught Beth's attention. A tall, astonishingly beautiful young woman who was part black, part white, and apparently made of whatever stuff angels are made of. One look at this beauty, who was none other than Laila Samatar, and Beth was most definitely madly in love.
The University of Ottawa football team got totally creamed by the guys from Carleton University football team, but Beth didn't care. Football wasn't really her thing anyways. After the game, Beth excused herself and ditched her friends. After searching through the crowds, Beth approached Laila, and the two of them talked, and exchanged numbers. One look into Laila's lovely golden brown eyes and Beth knew that they were birds of a feather. Women who love women, whether full lesbians or bisexual women or heteroflexible women, can definitely spot each other. A few awkward but fun dates later, Laila and Beth became a couple.
"Get Gotham Knights," Beth whispered into Laila's ear as she saw her lover trying to decide between games. Beth, indecisive as ever, smiled and shrugged. Laila wrapped her arms around Beth's torso from behind and playfully licked her ear. This apparently upset an old Arab dude walking by, but a trio of young black men checking out gaming consoles nearby smiled appreciatively. Laila has become a master of ignoring unwanted stares, so she held onto Beth, waiting for her decision.
"Hmm, I'll take Gotham Knights, Resident Evil : Village and Ghostwire Tokyo," Laila said, laughing. When in doubt, Laila buys, Beth thought with a sigh, and then they went to the checkout counter. Laila paid for her purchases, and Beth hung onto the receipts, knowing Laila would return or try to trade at least one of the games later that week. Laila is a strong and smart young woman, but she definitely has her flaws. Fortunately, Beth is always there to catch her when she falls.
