Saints and Misfits by S.K. Ali

8 Hours and 5 Minutes \n \nThere are three kinds of people in my world: \n \n1. Saints, those special people moving the world forward. Sometimes you glaze over them. Or, at least, I do. They’re in your face so much, you can’t see them, like how you can’t see your nose. \n \n2. Misfits, people who don’t belong. Like me—the way I don’t fit into Dad’s brand-new family or in the leftover one composed of Mom and my older brother, Mama’s-Boy-Muhammad. \n \nAlso, there’s Jeremy and me. Misfits. Because although, alliteratively speaking, Janna and Jeremy sound good together, we don’t go together. Same planet, different worlds. \n \nBut sometimes worlds collide and beautiful things happen, right? \n \n3. Monsters. Well, monsters wearing saint masks, like in Flannery O’Connor’s stories. \n \nLike the monster at my mosque. \n \nPeople think he’s holy, untouchable, but nobody has seen under the mask. \n \nExcept me.