The Memory Of Us

Chapter 29

"Are you sure about this?" Sahil asked for the fifth time, Mina had been keeping track and, according to her record, it was the third time he had said it in the span of the few minutes that they had spent standing idly across the street from the dermatologist center that Nina Jackson worked.

The four of them could see her clearly through the floor-to-ceiling windows at the front of the building, her fingers rhythmically tapping against the screen of her phone behind the high counter of the eerily gray front desk.

Mina rubbed her palms against the sides of her thick black winter stockings, swallowing the growing lump in the back of her throat, but her anxiousness refused to subside. However, regardless of that, and regardless of Sahil's incessant questioning, Mina was committed to follow through with the discussed plan.

"How many times are you going to ask her-" Khalil sighed, before quickly adding, "or do you just enjoy hearing yourself speak?"

Sahil crossed his arms over his chest, pivoting so that his body was turned in Khalil's direction instead of Mina's now, though the turn wasn't of any particular significance considering Khalil was standing right next to Mina, firmly pressed up against her side as if he were attached to her hip.

Sahil eyed their proximity warily though, to Mina's surprise, he didn't comment on it.

"Why are you even here?" Sahil scoffed at Khalil. His disgust was evident.

"Because Mina hasn't told me to get lost and, until she does, I won't be going anywhere." Now it was Mina's turn to eye the boy beside her whose attention seemed to be immovable from the boy in front of him and she quickly stepped forward at the same time as both boys did.

Placing a hand to Khalil's chest, Mina said, "Can you two please not do this right now, please?"

"I'm not doing anything." Khalil said without looking at her. His reply came simultaneously with Sahil's who said, "I'm just trying to understand-"

"There's nothing for you to understand!" Mina bellowed, her aggravation at the matter fueled by her incessant anxiety about confronting the woman across the street who was still idly scrolling on her phone, unaware that she was about to be interrogated. "Ok? Let it go." She yelled at both boy's, momentarily throwing a glance in Noah's direction, who stood a silent witness to the entire interaction. Mina thought she looked bored.

"Someone is quite literally trying to kill me right now, we have much larger things to focus on than who likes whom!"

Khalil couldn't help it, he chuckled to himself, though Mina imagined the sound wasn't quite as quiet as he hoped it to be.

"Oh, that warning wasn't just for him." She told him, dropping her hand from his chest. "It was for you too."

Though Khalil's laughter petered out, the smile tugging at the edges of his lips was still evident.

Noah, still looking as bored as ever, stepped off the curb and into the street, calling behind her, "Come on," but she halted as Mina shook her head, "No."

Six pairs of eyes were staring at her now as if she had grown a second head, none more intensely than Khalil who she was desperately trying not to make eye contact with. "You guys should stay here." She informed them.

No sooner had the words left her mouth than Khalil was opening his to rebuttal. "No." He said simply as if he were merely reprimanding a small child, as if what he had said was law. "No." He repeated. "I love you, but you're out of your mind if you think I'm letting you walk in there alone with a woman who wants you dead!" His voice was firm and full of conviction, leaving no room for questioning.