Page 29 of Heavensent & Hellbent

The hesitation must have been plain on my face because Zain said, while smirking, “You look like I’m holding you hostage.”

I led the way to the trail marked “easy” before I said, “I’m just notthatinto exercise. I prefer leisurely walks.”

He nodded, the corners of his mouth still perked up. “Got it, the easy trail it is.”

We walked in silence. The sky was a perfect blue, with not a cloud in sight. I listened for the sound of crickets, and birds softly chirping. The ground was uneven, requiring me to dodge various dips in the rocks, and I cursed myself for wearing such chunky boots.

I side-eyed Zain as I walked; he was wearing Adidas shorts, a loose-fitting top that still seemed to strain against his largebiceps, and, smartly, sneakers. I was struck, once more, by how attractive he was, my heartbeat picking up at how strong his body appeared to be. I attempted to clear my throat. When that failed, I reached into my crossbody bag for a bottle of water.

“So, you grew up in Yorkshire?” Zain finally said, his face concentrating like he wanted to get it right. “And ended up in Denver because of your Dad’s work? But only until fall when college starts?” I nodded glumly. “But you aren’t happy about it. Couldn’t you have stayed in England over the summer?”

I let out a sound that was something between a scoff and a tut. “Yeah, maybesomedads would agree to that, but not mine. I could have stayed with my friend Nic, but he said he didn’t want me to stay with a ‘random family.’ He’s known her parents since I was in primary school. I think he’s just in denial that I’ll be living in student housing in September…” I paused. “That and I might have told him that there’re teachers monitoring us in the student halls.”

“So, he’s strict?”

“No more than any other Middle Eastern dad,” I said. “You must know that, right?”

Zain continued to look forward, face unreadable, as he said, “Not really—I’ve never met mine.”

Another silence fell between us.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

Zain began walking a little ahead of me, and it was clear he was still walking slower than he usually would, his legs much longer than mine. He paused occasionally to catch me if I got too cocky in my boots and almost tripped. It was very humblingwalking toward someone like him while trying not to look out of breath. I needed to work on getting fitter. I made mental note to start with a throwback Chloe Ting video the next day.

In answer to my question, Zain half shook his head, placing his hands on his hips and sighing. “Not really. I know I should, but not now.”

“Noted. So, you said before you live with your aunt?” I asked, curious.

“Yeah, Khale Nazanin. She’s been in Shiraz the past few months. My grandmother is sick, and she’s looking after her. So my mentor Castiel has been kind of my guardian for the time being. But she’s great and has always been like a mom to me. I think if she was my actual mom, though, she’d drive me crazy with the number of losers she dates, but…” He shrugged. “No one’s perfect.”

“I caught my dad flirting with our neighbor last week,” I said, nose wrinkling. Thankfully, I hadn’t seen Penny since. “It was gross to witness, so I can sympathize.”

Zain let out a short, loud laugh. “You’ve only been here, what, a week or so now?”

“I know. Tragic, right?” I said, rolling my neck. While I hadn’t had any dreams the past week, every time I fell asleep, I swore I heard hissing, which woke me up. My bad sleep was catching up with me, and my bones felt like shards of glass, scratching against each other as I moved.

Zain must have noticed this because he asked, “Are you okay?”

I waved my hand in the air. “I’ve been sleeping badly. I always do, though it’s gotten worse since coming here.”

“Why?”

The fact that he was partly involved in why I struggled to sleep meant it was difficult to answer this question. I flicked the hard bits of skin around my nails, considering my next words carefully.

“Have you heard of sleep paralysis?” I asked.

He shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

“It’s basically when you’re in a state between being asleep and awake, and think you’ve woken up but can’t move your body. It’s pretty common, but also terrifying, so, you know, great fun.” This was the line I gave to people to minimize it.

“I see,” he whispered, a sort of glazed look on his face.

“What?”

He snapped out of it then, his eyes soft. “Nothing. So, you can’t physically get up? How long does it last?”

“It’s not always the same, but it’s like my body is paralyzed. The figure tends to be in the corner of my room. I don’t really know what he looks like, but he’s always darkly dressed.” I watched for any flicker of recognition on his face. “There are snakes, too—they’re often the reason I can’t move. They pin me down.” Even though it had happened many times to me, and I’d drawn it often enough, I realized I hadn’t spoken about it in detail in a while. “I’m not sure how long it lasts—it could be five minutes to an hour.”