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They wanted to name him Malik, originally. King, it meant, a born leader. But they wanted him to become his name, whatever that would be, and they figured that just because a king was a king, didn't mean he was a merciful one. And Allah was merciful and the Prophet Muhammad taught his followers to be merciful, too.
Rahim, they decided, when he was born. Merciful, compassionate and, most of all, kind.
So they decided to name his younger sister Malika, instead.
And, truth was, she was a queen.
1.
His mother died giving birth to Malika. Truthfully, he was happy he wasn't old enough to be in that room or really old enough to remember what her face looked like when they wheeled her out. because, soon, he became old enough to remember what his father's face became; sad, withered, like a crumpled piece of paper that used to be a love letter, but its words were faded and they didn't mean much anymore.
He became old enough to memorize the shape of Malika's little fingers as they curled around his; old enough to recite the Koran for the first time (that was when he saw his father smile for what seemed like the first time since his mother died, when he stumbled along the lines of Alhamdulillahirobbilalamin which kind of came out like dsfkjhrtkyjhsdf at the time) and old enough to know how cruel people could be –especially children- just because they didn't understand something.
("Where do you go on Sundays?" one boy had asked. "Don't you go to church?"
"Church is for Christians, dummy," he had replied.
"Yeah, so? Aren't you?"
"No, I'm Muslim."
"Oh."
Silence.
Silence that went through the boy and stayed there whenever it saw Boyd.)
2.
The worst assumption people make about Muslims is that they're not normal, like what they were born with ultimately dictates how different they are from the rest of society. That just because they can't drink or eat pork or they're pacifists at heart –look it up, the original meaning for Islam is peace- they're not like the rest of them.
But fuck that. because he's Muslim and he bleeds like the rest of them, he hurts like the rest of them, he cries and struggles to breathe when he thinks about how it's just them now, just his dad and him.
He's eleven by now, he's grown into his frame a little soon and, in a few months on his birthday, he'll be taller than his father.
He's eleven and he understands cruelty.
He's eleven and he understands pain and loss more than any of his friends could.
He's eleven and he prays for peace.
And he's eleven when he makes the decision to go by 'Boyd' when they move to small town California, just so he can protect himself and whatever's left of his family.
3.
Beacon Hills is nice. It's secluded and has that small town feel. Everybody knows everyone else and greets each other in the supermarket. All of them work in this kind of dysfunctional unit filled with hyperactive kids and their best friends, with those rich enough to buy anything for their adopted son except for his compassion and adults that mean well.
He and his father are pretty much the only Muslims in town so they just do their prayers at home with just each other as company. Unless it's a special occasion (Eid, the start of Ramdhan, Malika's birthday, etc) then they'll drive to the next town for congregation.
He misses Texas, misses at least not being alone in his faith, he misses not having to hide just in case he's met by hostile stares and unforgiving glances.
It's probably why he keeps to himself, because, every time someone smiles at him or makes a friendly gesture, he shies away, thinking, "Just in case."
Then people begin to find out he's Muslim, like it's a dirty little secret and no one knows how to act around him anymore. Once again, he's not normal by their standards, like he's not affected by funny jokes or adorable cats or hot girls. But he tries to contain his laughter when the Stilinski kid makes a horrible pun, scratches the ear of the tabby who lurks behind their house, and okay he's not even not going to deny his open mouth and his jeans that start to get a bit tight when the new and improved Erica Reyes walks into the cafeteria like she's in slow motion.
So he sits alone and everyone gets used to it, especially him.
4.
He has acquaintances. Not friends, per se, but people who smile at him and respect his isolation.
There's Danny, who always tries to make sure no one bothers or picks on him. it's not just because he's Danny Mahealani and could make wild lion curl up next to him or anything; it's because he's lived in New York for his adolescent years and knows how sucky some people can be.
There are Scott and Stiles, who help him out but he thinks they're idiots anyway. There's Allison, who just spills out sunshine and rainbows. And there's Erica.
Beautiful Erica who was beautiful even before her transformation because, on the rare occasions she smiled, it kind of lit something inside him.
It was after the video of her seizing leaked online that he found her crying in the empty hallways during free period. Despite his isolation and how he really didn’t know how to function around people, especially pretty girls, he sat next to her on the floor.
She leaned into him and continued crying. "I wish I could change what I was born with," she said.
"But what you were born with makes you who are. Everything you've been through makes you who you are. You shouldn't take those back," he found himself saying. "There's nothing wrong with being who you are. Sometimes people don't get that."
Erica stifled her tears and said, "Thanks."
She linked her arm around his and puts her head on his shoulder. It was nice like that, comforting and almost normal. he could hear her breathing come back to normal, could feel her hand nearing his and all he wanted to do was protect her. They stayed like that until the bell rung.
After Erica gets the new look, she comes to him again, tells him something, something that should be impossible but she shows him because she trusts him and he accepted her when she was already a 'freak' before (her word, not his; he'd never use the word freak for Erica because she isn't one).
He thinks about his sad, frail father at home and how he could never find the strength to protect him; thinks about Malika and how he could've been so much more for her. He thinks about Scott when she tells him, how he's surrounded by friends and people who care; thinks about his empty table; about Allah who gives every one of them a chance to be brilliant and how Boyd really doesn't want to disappoint anyone else.
So he takes her hand when she offers it to him.
5.
It's dangerous every day but he falls into a rhythm and starts finding new pieces of himself. He finds his strength and confidence lodged between his bones when he takes the lacrosse field and finds it when Derek throws him to the ground and Boyd succeeds in tackling his Alpha right after (Isaac and Erica whooped and he swore he could see Derek smile a bit) and finds it in the new way he cares for his father. He finds his anchor when he remembers Malika's smile.
There's a lot he finds, like they're little traces of his new life that start being part of his being so he starts understanding what pack means.
Acceptance; when Erica sees him praying one day at the Hale house and asks him about Islam. Leadership; when Derek chooses him above the other betas to go fight with him. compassion; when he brings food from home to the Hale house where Isaac and Derek live, then to the Lahey house when Isaac's cleared, because Isaac thanks him graciously and Derek nods in respect. Bravery, when he fights and learns about his new life; when Erica holds his hand; when he whispers a zikr when his eyes turn yellow.
They're like places of interest in a map of a new life and he's still trying to find his way but he likes it here.
He can hear Erica's heart racing. The Argents are right behind them and he's properly scared. They hold hands as they hide behind a tree for shelter. He prays softly, in his heart of hearts.
He prays for their safety, for Isaac's and Scott's, for Derek's and Stiles', prays for everyone's safety because everyone deserves it.
"Are you praying?" Erica asks. He nods quietly then she asks, "Will you pray for me?"
He doesn't tell her he does, every day, because she doesn't know just how much she means to him.
He kisses her knuckles and starts praying out loud. "Bismillah," he says when he hears the arrow flying through the air, coming their way.