The Two of Us

Chapter 14 - The Truth Hurts

"Khalid."

He spun around and faced his brother who looked at him like he'd never seen him before. Zayn didn't even spare a glance at his ruined belongings, he merely gazed at Khalid with wide, concerned eyes. Khalid hated that look. It haunted his dreams.

"Dont be against me. I'm on your side, little brother."

"No, you're not...you're..." And Khalid broke down and cried because Zayn was perfect and how could he hate someone, how could he hate his own brother, for being perfect.

* * *

"Khalid!"

Khalid's eyes snapped open. He was greeted with harsh, white lights and white walls and...everything was white. He groaned and focused on the voice that was calling out to him. It was a sweet, familiar voice, and it caused a fluttery feeling in his abdomen. 

Sabrina.

He looked up at her face and saw her wide chocolate brown eyes flood with relief. She smiled, and he stared at her face because he was just beginning to realize something. He was lying in a hospital bed. His back ached. 

Reed.

"Oh my Allah, you're finally up. I was so worried. Are you okay? How are you feeling? What happened?" Sabrina asked, rapidly.

Khalid's head spun. "I'm fine. Why am I here?" He asked, even though he already knew.

"You...I got a call that you were in the hospital. No one's giving many details...but you were...stabbed in the back. Don't you remember?" Sabrina whispered, her voice cracking. 

He stared at her. Of course he remembered. But should he tell her that? Should he tell her what had happened and why? A sharp pain in his back made him cry out. Sabrina jumped up and reached out as if to help him. He struggled to sit up.

"I dont think you should do that." She said softly. "You were...stabbed. You should lay back down."

Khalid ignored her and sat up. He looked at her then and noticed the crinkles near her eyes. She'd worried about him. Her eyebrow went up and he knew she was curious. He wanted to tell her, but she would hate him for it. Her face would close and she would tell him that what he did was wrong and that he'd said it himself once.

The past should stay in the past.

But how could he just forget?

"Khalid." Sabrina said his name and it hurt him to hear her say it with such trust. Tell me what happened, she was saying silently. "Who stabbed you?"

He wanted to tell her everything. But he couldn't. So he lied.

"I...ran into Reed and his gang." He began, hating himself for lying.

Sabrina's eyes widened.

Khalid looked away because he could never lie to Sabrina directly. He hadnt ran into Reed. He'd gone looking for Reed. After he'd found that gun, he'd spent the next day planning to go murder the guy because that was what he deserved. Khalid might not have been thinking straight, because now, looking at Sabrina's worried face, he could have acted so that she never would have been worried in the first place. He never meant to worry her.

Plus I wouldn't have had a knife stuck in my back if I hadn't been such a fool, he thought bitterly, running a hand across his side.

"They were still upset I left, I guess, and we got into a fight." He went on.

Another lie. He'd gone straight up to Reed, grabbed his shirt's collar, slammed him against the wall and threatened to shoot him. Reed, the smiling bastard, had dared him to so it, dared him to pull the trigger that was pointed at his head.