Duplus

Chapter 38

——Amaani's POV——

Right when I was about to doze off, heavy footsteps alerted me. I pranced to my feet only to see Usama's wide smile and a wary Jaber striding behind. "You're back!"

Usama's smile widened and he handed Sufiyaan his backpack to hold. "The route's clear, Alhamdulillah. We can go in now." He broke the good news. I looked at Jaber with an expectant glance as if he would also smile at the fortunate information. His eyes met mine and though I didn't intend to look away, the softness of his gaze held forced me to.

I tried to distract myself and turned to Usama and Sufiyaan, feeling my heart fasten its pace. "Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go to the capital and find that sneaky Lexi!"

Sufiyaan fake-cleared his throat and nudged me in the ribs. "Amaani!" he hissed, making me realize what I had done. I clasped my hands over my mouth. "Sorry!" I looked at the man sitting behind us.

But by then, Jaber had gotten used to it. In exchange, he just smiled and shifted his gaze from me to the ground, in possible nervousness. No, I was hoping that it was nervousness.

"We're leaving for Ushain immediately. Start packing your things." He ordered in a calm voice and walked over to the Temple keeper. "By that, I mean you too." His tone became harsh. But the Keeper could care less. He was resting under a tree with his back leaning on the bark like he was enjoying a peaceful morning.

"You're a prisoner, not a guest. I'm not gonna ask so nicely again." Jaber shook him by the shoulder, reminding him of his status when he finally looked up through his torn hood.

His eyes directly landed on me from there as I was watching the scene. He grinned at me as if making fun of me, and started to get on his feet. "Chaos, destruction, catastrophe." he randomly chanted in a low voice like he had been doing for the past hour. Jaber looked like he wanted to punch the heck out of him but he controlled himself and I couldn't agree more.

"Get to work, all of you." He reminded us, returning to his bossy self again. I sighed, shaking my head in disbelief. He really couldn't be nice for more than a few minutes.

"Let's get moving guys before our boss brings out the Lx2 in him." I couldn't help but comment. Jaber whipped his head towards me, looking a bit taken aback. I smiled innocently and walked to where my belongings were kept.

Sufiyaan nudged me again though he couldn't restrain the smile that was forcing its way. Usama bluntly laughed, throwing a thumbs up at me. "Nice one, Ms. Sohail!"

Jaber's deadly stare was directed toward him and he folded his arms over his chest. "I don't know about Lx2, but Ms. Sohail's right about one thing; I am the boss. And I don't like wasting my time so you should get moving." His voice had a hint of playfulness so I gathered the courage to speak back. "Your wish is our command, sir." I made a face at him, which he completely ignored. But as he turned his back towards us, I could see a small smile playing on his lips.

I laughed inwardly. So there was a fun side to him too.

We collected our things and set off again, the man under Jaber's observation. All the way, crossing the road and walking towards the checkpoint, I joked with Sufiyaan about how Lx2 was such a jerk, while Usama laughed along. Jaber looked a bit ticked because he knew what I was hinting at. Everyone else was more than welcome to feel intimidated by Broad shoulders but I was Amaani Sohail. I didn't fear anyone except Allah.