***648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZmc6GfeI2M
I don't know what I was expecting Zuhrah to be, but it sure as hell wasn't this. A dark skinned beauty, with thick kinky tresses, and small. Very small, probably not passing 110 pounds, and about 5'5" long, the tips of her tail flicking up and down as she speaks. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGorLb0mE0L
After Kwamé carried me down over his shoulder, I arrive to find a river mumma sitting there as if she belongs there. I guess she does. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡESrfvgXygV
"Nya," she says with a smile. "I wasn't expecting you to be so... charming." She exchanges a knowing look with Akatua, which I am briefly curious about, but shake it off for the sake of learning. I know that it's cold, and furthermore, my feet are in the water that is probably the temperature of a refrigerator but strangely... I don't feel the cold. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1aClg10gmm
How odd. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UHs7OEQYz
"There are two main ways in which she can attack you," Zuhrah says, bringing me back to the here and now. "She can charm you with her energy, or she could control you with your blood."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzhBAuAd4lf
My blood runs cold just then, and for a second, I feel every ounce of chilliness in my environment coming into me. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8FGfqkI0SD
"You mean like... blood bending in Avatar?" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDkIqtIpokH
"Exactly like that," she tells me. I bite my lip and close my eyes in a futile attempt to relax. I'm not even going to ask how she knows what Avatar the Last Airbender is. "We can manipulate water, and blood is mostly water, so... You're gonna have to resist her attempts to charm you, and hope that she doesn't try that creepy blood crap on you."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXfo0QAVle3
"What if she does?" I ask her. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡw0lFX6gXkQ
"That's why it's good to have Kwamé around," she tells me, yo which Kwamé grunts. "He's dead, so she can't hurt him like that." She shifts he'd gaze to Kwamé. "The only thing he needs to learn how to do is-" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGiNtadFv1A
"Don't even go there," Kwamé growls, his eyes glowing red for the third time today. I'm actually getting used to it, which isn't a good sign. I'm really beginning to wonder what's wrong with him. There has to be some external stresser, maybe more than one, that is/are bothering him. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6jQ8i2P9Gz
"Jesus, Kwamé what's with you?" Zuhrah asks. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQD5LwphvEo
"I'm perfectly fine, Zuhrah," he answering in a clipped tone. Everything is just perfect." He doesn't even attempt to mask the thick sarcasm in his voice. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlYDwq350kh
"Okayyyyy," Zuhrah replies, stretching out the end of the word. "Anyway, I'm going to try to teach you to resist both."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡraaWBWlOgO
"How am I supposed to resist a blood bender?" I ask frantically. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZhj9W12PI1
She shakes her head while smirking at my choice of words. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9wzpjdm3I
"Trust me, you can." Something about the way she says it let's me know that there is more to the story. I don't ask, however, because I know that their answers will only piss me off. So instead, I ignore it. Instead, I fucus on Zuhrah, the way her scales sparkle in the moonlight. I focus on her beautiful face, her smile, and her voice as she hums a tune that I don't recognise. There's something more than that, though. There's this every, this pull that's coming from her. It's not tangible, but-648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGsLhJg85BS
I fall face first into the water. Luckily, my face lands on her submerged tail instead of the jagged rocks under the water. I hear Kwamé snickering behind me, and I turn to glare at him as my face heats up. He tries unsuccessfully to stifle the laugh, but the sound of his chuckling still colours the night air. I have to admit, I am happy that he's feeling some positive emotion. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlW8bYsXxr6
"Yeahhh," Zuhrah remarks looking slightly amused as well. "Now you need to learn how to not do that. Sit back and close your eyes." I do as she says, even though I know that this will probably be a lot harder than the challenge that she just gave me. At least I have an idea of what to expect. As always, it sounds better in my head, because about two seconds after I close my eyes, the pull that she's emitting becomes so much worse. The worst part is that she's silent, and so are Kwamé and Akatua. Therefore there's nothing to distract me from her energy. It feels as if it's targeting my heart, pulling me forward. In an attempt to protect myself and save my pride, as I'm still embarrassed to have fallen face first onto the water, I attempt to move backwards, put physical distance between us. This, of course, would have made more sense if I were to open my eyes before trying to move. I don't though, so I go spiralling towards the ground. Or, at least, I would have if it weren't for Kwamé, who catches me. As I look up into his grey eyes turned silver by the moonlight, it's almost as if I forget Zuhrah. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsLflIQUFbu
"Young love, capable of so many miracles," Zuhrah says. I see an unnamed emotion in his eyes that disappears the second Zuhrah speaks. He sets me upright and let's me go. I feel remarkably cold, inside and out when he does. He turns to make his way back to the car up the slope. I turn to see him walking swiftly without a backward glance. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡh916RY4OMU
"Come on, Kwamé, I was just joking," Zuhrah insists. He ignores her, of course. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4U8jsRU0R
"You know you have to take Nya back up when we're done, right?" Akatua remarks. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF3nDl3I7RF
"She can climb," he retorts coldly. The ice in his voice is undeniable, and it makes me shiver, goosebumps breaking out uncomfortably all over my skin. That's the last thing I hear from him before he opens and closes the car door, entering it. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡi1EKOloiK9
That's all it takes for my entire mood to take a dramatic turn. Suddenly, I'm no longer in the mood to learn how to fight. I feel hurt. Funny how you can not give a crap about what people say for all your life, and then one person changes everything. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ2wVPyEivk
"That wasn't nice," Akatua says with pity, coming over to me to hold my hand. The air has shifted; the previously light and playful but serious atmosphere has become something dark and sinister. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1K8R371Qkk
"You can come back, you know," Zuhrah remarks. "I doubt she'll strike so soon and I know her better than most." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNfTTHwkZpP
I feel weak. Not physically, but emotionally; I feel like a weakling for allowing a few words it affect me the way they have. Tears sting my eyes as I bite my bottom lip before it can start to tremble. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0O5MRQuSmR
" Yes," Akatua says,"I think it's best we leave." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq3jBB9XQsl
Sighing, I nod my head in agreement, a deep longing for my bed beginning to form. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUp2ApOsMOe
"Bye, Zuhrah," Akatua mumbles. "Hope to see you again soon." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZzm12jo5qg
In all honesty, after the memories that tonight has made, I'm not sure if I share that sentiment. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9rwm1yxnKb
***648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5xxdSD3aF7
Kwamé came back to help me, but barely made eye contact as he did. I could tell that he wanted to apologise, but... he just didn't. Still, the visual of his silver eyes staring into mine under the moonlight is all that I've been able to think about of late. Even last night, when silver climbed into my lap as I sat up in bed, her grey eyes, silver in the dimmed light from the lamp reminded me of Kwamé's. Today, I'm working. I've gotten three orders wrong, something that I never do. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuW447iXumu
"Sir, I'm so so sorry-" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ05HazX8Ddn
"It's okay, dearie," the old man says with a gentle smile. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdqyvMtvsj
I'm becoming too distracted by Kwamé. He's taking up too much of my head space. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBJ4JqK3bc
Think about something else. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzkd8PXG6LW
Worth a try, right? Well, I do. I try to concentrate on the work that I'm supposed to be doing, but it's just so... boring. I have to admit, this job is rather mediocre for my taste. Not that it's a bad job... I'd much rather be in a lab experimenting on specimens, though. It's a pity that-648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFcPxHLE82A
"A coffee, please. No milk." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxGIi8N0jvN
I stop my mental ramblings as I hear the man's low voice, which is apparently coming from somewhere beside me. I look, and sure enough, Kwamé sits there, his eyes looking more silver than grey today. The left corner of his mouth turns up in a half smile as he takes a seat at the table for two to my right. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyQy9EI9hVe
"What are you doing here?" I ask him. It wasn't an attempt at being rude or disgusting it was just a honest question. With the way that he's been treating me as if I'm some sort of pariah, I would never have expected him to turn up here of all places on a clear Saturday morning like today. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYGRFHj7SS8
He sucks in his bottom lip, and then let's it put with a pop, which seems rather loud in the relatively quiet diner. Or maybe that's just me.648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGmbpaNjmZg
"I'm here to make amends," he tells me, taping his fingers on the red tablecloth, not breaking eye contact. "I want to take you out." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4MF2ZVgLuT
"Take me out?" I parrot, much like how Silver does it with everything I say. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAE5V5XBvtB
"Yes. Not a date," he clarifies. I hate to admit it, but I'm kind of disappointed to hear that. Still, any time with Kwamé is good for me. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguX70BXYfI
"I can't right now, though," I tell him, hearing the disappointment in my own voice. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Bd2xEwlfR
"Duh," he says with a grin, the word sounding so odd on his tongue. It makes me smile for a moment. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVU47FqHqrz
"Um, so when then?" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbLpUqIqYiM
"When is your shift over?" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoocXAoQgri
"Four." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFK6YoNIkCa
"Then. After that, I'll take you home." The warmth in his voice is something that I've been missing lately. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTxyNBBPfOH
"Okay. Oh gosh, I almost forgot that you ordered a coffee," I say, to which he rolls his eyes. "How many packets of sugar?" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2AnYQ9ZdX4
"Two, thanks." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSH514zISOn
After that, Kwamé stays with me for the rest of the shift. If my memory was bad before, it's ten times worse now with Kwamé's presence. Every time I screw up, I hear him chuckling in the background. He even sits with me at one of the outdoor tables on my lunch break. Unfortunately, I'm still kind of out of it, because I spill my coffee on my hand. At least it isn't scorching hot, but warm, just how I like it. It's still uncomfortable, though. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcjWsgGj2GI
"Rass, man," I grumble under my breath as the warm liquid soaks my pants. As I said, the words are spoken under my breath, but loud enough for Kwamé to hear, and because he hears it, he just has to say something. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUnVwtGjyGt
"Didn't know you were a potty mouth, Nya." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdwEnyDJiiV
I simply roll my eyes and try to wipe it up with napkins. Pointless, I know. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtJ6W8b3FUr
"So are you at times," I grumble, reminding him of his own language. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6uwFi1w8d6
"You know that that's pointless, right?" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ64sJcSF9l6
I exhale heavily, aggressively, almost as if I'm trying to shove the air out of my body. "What do you want me to do, Kwamé?" I ask him. He doesn't look taken aback by my aggressive behaviour at all. Instead, he purses his lips as if he's trying to hold in a laugh. When he finally calms down after a few seconds of this, he speaks.648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWqUJFA3kMJ
"I want you to wait here," he says. "I'm getting clothes for yo-" 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkWBewrq6lg
"Nya?" I cringe when I hear my name, because I know that voice. It's my boss, Mr. Andrews. "Nya, are you okay?" he asks, looking at the mess all over my clothes. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQEbffKepru
"Yes," I say as calmly as I can. In actuality, my heart is ready to jump out my chest. With the way that my luck has been going lately, he's probably going to fire me. I remember being told that my proximity to my mother, living close to her and being near her almost every day neutralises my luck to some extent, which is just peachy. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvriyvzgcn6
"You've looked out of it all day, hun," he states with concern. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlJ9U48QorI
"I know, I have been."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9J9S7ykKVA
He assess me for a minute almost as if he's trying to be extremely careful about how he chooses his next words. In the end, he settles simply with "Take the rest of the day off."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxZhf9Bvehk
I'm so shocked my mouth hangs open, and I can't seem to close it. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYSAKq2zOjP
"Seriously, you look like you could use it." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2pum5y252X
"Okay, thank you, sir," I say in a monotonous voice, not because I'm emotionless, but because I don't know how to express my emotions. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8eaPpS1Krk
"No problem, dear."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxcb7S4Uitn
Kwamé doesn't take me out. Instead, he takes he straight home, where he insists on playing a board game. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡM7uWRVJC0a
"You must have a chess set somewhere around here," he insists as he searches my bookshelf in the living room. He waited until I was finished changing my clothes to search through my belongings. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡb2qq4EYxSM
"Somewhere around here," Silver says as she stands by Kwamé's heel, in a voice sounding a lot like his. I've always found their ability to mimic an individual's voice slightly alarming. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeR7g4ASumn
"Silver is right by your heel. Please be careful." 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmrds5mn9aJ
"Don't worry about that, hun."648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡurlHRgvb42
When he calls me hun, it makes my skin flush. Odd, because I know that it's just a custom to say that for some Jamaicans (for example, Mr. Andrews), not necessarily having any feelings behind it, but for some reason, he elicits some deep seated response from me when he says it. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAm5mFpEdDl
"Ah, here we go," he announces, causing me to snap out of whatever personal moment that I was having. I realise that I was looking through him, i.e. looking in his direction without seeing anything, something that I tend to do when I get lost in my thoughts. He pulls out a large box with a chess set inside, Silver now perched on his right shoulder. He carries it to the coffee table, and sits in front of it, both him and Silver looking at me, both of their eyes looking Silver, as the living room is semi dark; no lights are switched on, and the curtains for the window by the book case are muting the sunlight. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEibB1DmIaH
We set up the board; he chooses black and I choose white. I take rather long, because I haven't played in a while. As I try to figure out how to position the King and Queen, I feel his eyes on me. I look up, and I can't place the emotion on his face. The only adjective that I can use to describe it is... intense. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZpu3e3zgPG
"You know you're a pretty girl, right?" he asks me before I can question him. The question catches me off guard. The last thing that I was expecting from him was a complement. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFCd4xih6I9
"Uh, I guess," I mumble, not knowing quite how to respond to that. He responds to me by smiling at me, his eyes shining with... something. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqgGl6Mb1hg
"Okay, let's play some chess," he announces, causing my head to spin with the speed at which he changed the conversation. I'm not sure if it's because he doesn't want to speak on the topic further, or if he is actually eager, or if it's a mixture of both, but I don't object his decision. Still, I would be lying to myself if I say that I'm not confused as I begin to move the pieces of plastic around the patterned cardboard. 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMKtLRsiUuM
***648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡngRf3wDmnW
So what do you guys think? 648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6CZJaJtlgW
648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGA97gfidt
Please vote and comment, and share this story, because, ya know, it's not every day that you see a Jamaican paranormal story (although I put my own twist to it🙃).648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UfPGBNceR
648Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDZDdmgBQxh
