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A glimpse inside
Rain tapped at the windows of East Road Masjid as people shuffled their shoes back on after Maghrib. The carpet still held faint warmth from all the foreheads that had pressed into it.
At the front, under the yellow light, Imam Hamza cleared his throat. A folded council letter trembled in his hand. Teenagers leaned against the back wall, whispering. Bilal stood among them, his backpack strap twisted tight in his fist.
“They have raised the rent on our youth room upstairs,” Imam Hamza said. “We owe one thousand pounds. If we do not clear this by Friday evening, they will cancel the lease.”