1. A Call He Wasn’t Expecting
It was afternoon. Farhad was sitting in his office, a few files on the desk, laptop open. Outside the window, the sky was gray and the wind was blowing leaves across the sidewalk. His phone rang. Sara’s name appeared on the screen. He looked at it for a few seconds. Then he answered.
“Hello.”
“Hello. Did Baran tell you?”
Farhad paused. “Tell me what?”
Sara was silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “The weekend plan.”
Farhad looked at the laptop. The screen was locked. “Yeah, she told me. I haven’t answered yet.”
Sara said: “I told her she could go.”
Farhad was silent for a few seconds. His hand was on the desk, his finger tracing the wooden edge. “You told her?”
Sara said: “Yes.”
Farhad leaned back in his chair. “Sara, weren’t we supposed to coordinate these things together?”
Sara said: “Things?”
Farhad said: “Decisions that have to do with Baran.”
Sara took a deep breath. Her voice was calm but firm. “I didn’t say she could do whatever she wanted. I looked at her plan, I talked to her, I didn’t see a problem.”
Farhad said: “But you always think that because you talked to her, the problem is solved.”
Sara paused. A few seconds. Then she said: “And you always think that because you talk about it more, you definitely understand it better.”
Farhad said nothing.
2. What Is the Real Issue?
Farhad closed the laptop. He pushed the files aside. He looked at the wall. Then he said: “I didn’t say she can’t go. I just want to know why you answered before me.”
Sara said: “Because Baran asked me.”
Farhad said: “Why didn’t she ask me?”
Sara was silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “Maybe because she knew you’d want to talk about it first.”
Farhad said: “Well, we should talk about it. Is that bad?”
Sara said: “No. But Farhad, you always talk first. Then you decide. Sometimes Baran doesn’t want to talk. She wants to go.”
Farhad said: “I don’t want to stop her. I just want to make sure.”
Sara said: “Make sure of what?”
Farhad said: “That nothing happens.”
Sara was silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “Farhad, you can never be sure. Never. Even if you explain a thousand times.”
Farhad said nothing. Sara continued: “I was worried too. But I looked at her plan. I know the supervisor. The hotel is specified. I told her she could go.”
Farhad said: “Well, I wanted to do the same thing. I just wanted to coordinate with you first.”
Sara said: “Farhad, you didn’t want to coordinate. You wanted me to say no too.”
Farhad fell silent. A few seconds. Then he said: “That’s not how it is.”
Sara said: “That’s how it is.”
3. The Old Pattern
Farhad got up. He went to the window. He looked outside. A few cars were passing on the street. The lights had come on. He put his hand on the glass. It was cold. Then he said: “Sara, I just want to say the timing isn’t right. Baran has her university entrance exam. This weekend she could study. If she goes, she’ll fall behind. Then she’ll get stressed. Then…”
Sara interrupted him: “Farhad.”
“What?”
“You’re starting again.”
“Starting what?”
“Explaining.”
Farhad turned back toward the desk. He picked up the phone. “Well, I have to explain. You can’t just say okay, go.”
Sara said: “Why can’t you?”
Farhad said: “Because I’m her father.”
Sara was silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “Exactly.”
Farhad said: “Exactly what?”
Sara said: “Exactly that.”
Silence. Farhad waited. Sara said nothing. After a few seconds, she said softly: “Your problem is that you think if you explain correctly, everything will be fixed.”
Farhad was silent for a few seconds. Then he said: “That’s not bad.”
Sara said: “No. It’s not bad. But it’s not enough.”
Farhad said nothing. Sara continued: “You always have an explanation. For everything. Why something is good. Why something is bad. Why we should wait. Why we shouldn’t go. But sometimes a person just has to let the other person decide for themselves. Even if it’s a mistake.”
Farhad said: “If it’s a mistake, I have to answer for it.”
Sara said: “Why you?”
Farhad paused. “Because I’m her father.”
Sara was silent for a few seconds. Then she said: “Farhad, being a father doesn’t mean always having the answer. Sometimes being a father means being there. Even when you don’t have the answer.”
Farhad looked at the ground. Sara added nothing. A few seconds of silence. Then she said: “I think Baran can decide for herself. I told her she could go. If you agree, let her go.”
Farhad thought for a few seconds. Then he said: “Okay. Let me think.”
Sara said: “Okay. Good night.”
Farhad said: “Good night.”
The call ended.
4. A Blow That Stays
Farhad put the phone on the desk. He looked at it for a few seconds. Then he leaned back in the chair. He put his hands on his face. He took a deep breath. He muttered: “She always thinks she understands everything…”
He stayed there for a few minutes. He looked at the files. Unread. He opened the laptop. Closed it. He got up. He went to the window. He looked outside. The city was dark. The lights were on. A few pedestrians were passing on the sidewalk. Farhad looked at them. Then he thought about himself.
“Your problem is that you think if you explain correctly, everything will be fixed.” It was true. He knew it was true. But something inside him resisted. Maybe because for years he had lived this way. Every problem, an explanation. Every crisis, an analysis. Every fear, a solution. And now, Sara was saying it wasn’t enough. Maybe it never had been.
His phone lit up. A message from Baran: “Dad, can I finally go?”
Farhad looked at the message. He put his finger on the screen. He started typing: “Look, the thing is…” He wrote a few words. He looked at them. Deleted them. He typed again: “The timing isn’t right, because you have your exam and…” He looked again. Deleted again. He typed again: “I just want to make sure that…” Deleted.
