LOST II

Chapter 23: "Kiss N Cry"

It dawned on her that Zayn and Burak were both right. She did have a problem with him helping her. Her pride hurt. And she did not value him enough to let him have one up on her. He was not considered family. Therefore, she rather she either paid in full, or ask him to walk away.

As the class continued, the problem kept formulating and reformulating into a slightly less tangled knot. By the time the class was over, her mind was made up. Salma figured she had to bury the past and stop frustrating Zayn with her inability to respond the way he wanted, but the mere idea of finding him and talking to him had her feeling anxious.

Salma decided to talk to Sarah. Zayn obviously did not have the patience to walk her pace, and Salma did not have the strength to stride along his marathon 

Still deep in thought, she stepped onto the pavement that ran the length of the ground. A cheery laugh exploded from the canopy to her left. Salma glanced at the students gathered there and her soul bowed its way out of her body, making her halt.

She had not expected to find Zayn this quick.

As her soul settled back upon her heavily, like a fat ghost slumping onto a couch, her stomach sank with it. A voice in her head suggested to keep walking. Come around around later after she had had her speech and mind prepared, but the stress weighting down on her mind told her to deal with her problem now.

Taking in a deep breath, Salma changed her direction and stepped off the pavement towards the canopy.

Eyes found her. Silence prevailed. Three people alerted Zayn of her arrival. Two by proding his arm, and a third person by wiggling their eyebrows in her direction.

Zayn turned around just as she approached him. Salma’s eyes found the other faces more interesting.

“Hi.” she waved at Claire, Niall, Charlayne, the crow – Lena – and a few other students.

Smiles, nods, hasty ‘hellos,’ roll of the eye –from Lena – and confused looks. Salma took it all in, waiting for her cowardly sight to find the guts to meet Zayn’s confused and somber gaze.

“May I have a word with you?” she asked, and her eyes, overwhelmed by curiosity of his reaction, found the courage to turned to him.

A painful heartbeat of silence passed. Salma almost recoiled from his impeding rude decline but thankfully, it did not happen.

“Sure.” He shrugged.

Avoiding everyone’s questioning, teasing, and murderous – Lena’s – gazes, Salma swerved on her heels, almost too keenly. It must have looked comical but she did not even wait to see if Zayn had gotten up to follow her. With the absolute silence behind her, Salma wondered if that had indeed happened?

However, once she stopped around the corner of the block, away from the preying eyes of the students, she turned around to see the air in front of her had a Zayn in it. Her eyes weren’t curious anymore. They were cowardly. She found herself looking at the brick building of the administration block.

Salma bit her inner cheeks. Okay. Let’s start.

“About earlier today --"

“I’m sorry,” Zayn mumbled.

Salma’s eyes became bolder and snapped to him. His weren’t so courageous though. After sneaking a quick glance at her, he kept his gaze firmly fixed over her shoulder, at whatever was there to look at, behind her. A silence ensued. Her breath rattled as she drew it in.