Journey to the Place She Belongs

Follow-up Questions

Lilyan nodded, acknowledging his vow to her. She didn't know how Zayd was going to keep her uncle from hurting her, but he sounded so sincere that she believed him. At the very least, she wanted to believe him. As she sat there, nestled between his legs, being held tightly in his arms, and staring up into his golden eyes, she realized that she felt safe. He made her feel safe.

After a moment, she began to feel something else. She blushed, becoming aware of how close he was. His face was still only a few inches from hers. Her gaze wavered, her eyes wandering to his lips. She wondered what he would do if she leaned just a little closer. Her stomach fluttered and a feeling of warmth spread through her. Lilyan tried to push the thoughts away, struggling to calm the pounding in her chest.

His lips pulled upwards into a crooked grin. She glanced up to his eyes and saw the amusement there. How long had she been staring at him? Embarrassed, she looked away, focusing on the bathroom door across from her bed where they sat.

“You're teasing me again,” she grumbled. He chuckled, the sound reverberating in his chest.

“Maybe,” he said. He placed his thumb beneath her lower lip and his forefinger under her chin then pulled her face back towards his. He looked deeply into her eyes, his smirk fading. His lips parted and he leaned down closer. “Or maybe I'm not,” he whispered. She swallowed hard. A small breath escaped her lips.

'He's joking,' she told herself, 'He has to be. Right?' Zayd moved forward slowly, then tilted his head upwards and kissed her forehead before releasing her face. He smirked at her, his amber eyes shimmering with delight. She glared at him, feeling self-conscious at how flustered she had allowed him to make her. Her heart was still thudding in her chest and she could feel the heat in her cheeks.

She slid out of his embrace to sit in front of him, pulling her legs to her chest and wrapping her arms around them defensively.

“Jerk,” she mumbled.

“Sorry,” he snickered, “I couldn't resist.” She let out a huff and let her body calm itself.

“It's fine,” she finally said. Not receiving the response he had expected, Zayd raised an eyebrow and waited for an explanation. Lilyan shrugged. He would be waiting a while because she was not going to explain what she had thought or how she had felt. She wasn't exactly sure what to make of his teasing but at least he was back to his normal, non-homicidal self. Zayd seemed to realize that she wasn't going to elaborate, so he smiled at her.

“I have follow-up questions,” he told her. She focused on his tone and features, not finding any ill intentions. Thus far, he had been telling the truth about not judging her. He still had not run upstairs to escape, so maybe he wasn't going to. Maybe he had also told the truth about staying friends no matter what.

“Okay,” she said, resting her chin on her knees, “Go ahead.”

“Does he buy anything for you? You said he didn't give you food anymore. What other necessities are you going without?”

“He doesn't buy things for me intentionally,” she offered.

“What does that mean?”

"Well, I was ten when he first threw me down here and got rid of all my things. He sort of pretended I didn't exist at first. I was still expected to cook and clean, but otherwise, he didn't speak to me or even look at me. I went without food and since it was over the summer break, I couldn't even eat at school. After nearly two weeks, I fainted while trying to do my chores. I guess he realized I had to be fed something. So, he gave me a few snacks from the pantry and told me to keep them in my room.

"He started giving me a monthly allowance to buy things I needed. It's separate from the grocery budget that he gives me to stock his kitchen with. Sometimes I use the allowance for food, sometimes I use it to go thrift shopping and buy clothes. I had to buy the pillow and blanket for my mattress and personal hygiene stuff.”

“How much is he giving you?" Zayd asked.

"Twenty dollars at the first of every month," she answered.

"And he expects you to survive on that?” he asked incredulously. Lilyan shrugged.

"I'm not sure what exactly he expects if I'm being honest,” she replied, “But regardless, I've found ways to make it work.”

“How?” he asked, his brows furrowed.

“He doesn't monitor the grocery budget as closely as he used to. I can sometimes skim a little from it by buying discounted food and I keep the extra few dollars here and there. He doesn't seem to miss it. There are also a lot of things that are given away for free at certain stores or churches. I try to find things that way before wasting the money I've hoarded. I'm trying to save up for when I can get out of here.”

“How much have you saved?” He sounded skeptical.

“On average, I can take about ten dollars a month from the grocery budget. So add that to my allowance and I have thirty a month. So, that would be three hundred and sixty dollars a year. I have been doing this for about four years, which would have added up to one thousand four hundred and forty dollars by now. However, I've had to buy things over the years. Clothes, shoes, school supplies, personal hygiene items. There are some things I can't buy used or get for free. My current savings is around six hundred dollars.”

Zayd furrowed his eyebrows, a slight frown on his face. She watched him carefully, waiting for his reaction. He seemed to handle things fairly well, taking his time to think things over before responding. He wasn't an impulsive person. It was a refreshing change from the interactions she was used to having with her uncle.

“How much do you need to get out of here?” he asked after a moment. She shrugged.

“I'm not sure,” she replied, “I assume a lot more than six hundred. I plan on saving as much as possible from now until I graduate. I stopped growing, so I don't have to buy clothes anymore. Plus, I stopped buying as much food. I try to make my school meals last throughout the day since they're free. I don't have as many expenses now, so I can save more. Since graduation will be a little over a year from now instead of two, I could probably manage to save at least another three hundred dollars.”

“So, you'd have approximately nine hundred total,” he stated. She nodded. “I doubt that's going to get you very far for long,” he said. She sighed.

“Yeah, I figured,” she smiled sadly, “And I'll still need to spend some of it, so it won't even be that much. But I plan on getting a job or going to college, so hopefully, it will last until I can get on my feet properly.” Zayd's frown was starting to bother her. She missed his lopsided grin. She wanted to change the subject but wasn't sure how.

She smiled softly. “Any other questions?” she asked. He shook his head.

“Not at the moment,” he replied, “But I'm taking you shopping.”

“What?” she laughed. He smiled a bit, but it didn't reach his eyes.

“You heard me. I'm going to take you shopping tomorrow. My treat.” She stared at him, confused.

“Why?” she finally asked. He scoffed, then shook his head and grinned at her.

“Friends help each other,” he told her. She frowned. “What's the matter?” he asked. She shook her head, not sure how to word what she was worried about. Maybe he hadn't realized it yet, so she didn't want to point out the fault in what he had just said. Zayd raised his eyebrows at her.

She sighed in defeat. “I have nothing to offer you in return,” she mumbled. She wasn't able to help him. Maybe that made her a bad friend. If he was going to run, he probably would have already done it, but she wasn't sure. He gave her a gentle smile.

“You are all I need in return, princess.” Lilyan was starting to wonder if he was entirely sane. She looked around at her poor excuse of a bedroom and then gestured to it, wondering how he was missing the obvious. “What?” he asked. He seemed genuinely confused.

She raised her brows, perplexed at how he could be so oblivious. “Surely you can't still call me "princess" after seeing all of this,” she declared. He reached out and tugged one of her hands away from her legs, pulling her closer to him. He grabbed her hips, turning her and sitting her down beside him so they both faced the same direction. He wound an arm around her waist.

“This,” he gestured to their surroundings, “does not define you. Besides, don't most princesses start in less than ideal circumstances?” She giggled, finding his logic completely outrageous but funny nonetheless.

“So what, does that make you the knight in shining armor?” she joked. A serious expression formed on his face. He slid off the edge of the bed onto the concrete floor, then kneeled on one knee, lowering his head.

“At your service, my lady,” he said with an exaggerated flourish.

“Oh, get off the floor,” she demanded, flustered at his display. He stood up, grinning.

“As you wish, princess,” he laughed. She rolled her eyes at him but couldn't help smiling in return.

“You might be insane, you know that?”

He shrugged. “I've been called worse.” Resisting the urge to ask him to elaborate, she reached behind her and picked up her phone. She flipped it open and read that it was already seven o'clock. She glanced up at the small sliver of a window at the top of the concrete brick wall and saw that it was dark outside. Had they really been talking for that long?

“It's getting late,” she informed him, flipping the phone shut. She had to crane her neck to see his face. He must have noticed because he lowered himself back onto the bed and sat next to her.

“It seems so,” he agreed. Lilyan wasn't sure how to politely tell him that he should leave. She wasn't sure how late was appropriate for a friend to visit. He raised his eyebrows, watching her think. “Do you want me to leave?”

“No.” Crap. She had answered without thinking.

“But?” he prompted.

“I don't want you to go but I think you're supposed to,” she said, carefully choosing her words. That was the honest answer in a nutshell. What she couldn't tell him was that she didn't want to be left alone. She enjoyed his company and didn't want him to leave, but she couldn't bring herself to admit that.

“Says who?” he challenged, smirking and raising an eyebrow. She considered that for a moment but could not come up with a real answer. So, she shrugged.

“I don't know, society?” Despite him being just a friend, he was still a male. She knew having a boy sleep over was frowned upon by most people. He laughed and nodded.

“I guess that's true,” he agreed, “But society isn't here right now.” His voice was low and mischievous. A small smirk played on his lips. Butterflies filled Lilyan's stomach and she gulped silently.

“You're doing it again,” she breathed. She had tried to sound admonishing, but her reprimand could not override the feelings he was stirring up in her. The idea of being alone with him all night was causing her imagination to run away with her.

“Doing what?” he smirked, feigning innocence. The warmth of his honey-colored eyes boring into hers heated her face, causing her to blush.  He was just teasing again. Lilyan bit her lower lip, trying to calm herself.

Zayd tilted his head to one side and she noticed him take a deliberate, deep breath. He lifted his hand and brushed a finger along her lip.  He slowly exhaled, his eyes lingering on her mouth. His Adam's apple bobbed in his throat as he swallowed. He gently pressed her lip downward, releasing it from her bite. She furrowed her brows, perplexed by his reaction.

“Maybe don't do that,” he suggested in a low tone. Not knowing how else to respond, she found herself giggling. He c****d an eyebrow at her, then slowly his lopsided smile spread across his face.

“Sorry,” she snickered, trying to reign in her laughter. He chuckled.

“Don't apologize,” he told her, “I like seeing you smile, hearing your laugh. Even if it is at my expense.” He poked her side playfully, causing her to jump away with a tiny yelp. She stared at him, wide-eyed. He looked surprised.

“Maybe don't do that!” she demanded. A devilish grin slowly inched its way across his face. She shook her head, backing away from him. He leisurely crawled towards her, his evil intentions glistening in his eyes.

“You're ticklish,” he said delightedly.

“I'm warning you, Zayd,” she cautioned, scooting back further.

“Oh, but how can I not?” he chuckled, inching closer. Lilyan's shoulders hit the cold wall. Zayd moved closer until he hovered over her. She set her mouth in a thin line while her eyes darted around to find an escape. He was too close. There was no way past him.

“You're going to get hurt,” she warned him, her voice wavering slightly. She did not want to hurt him but he was about to leave her with no choice. His grin couldn't possibly widen any further. He stood on his knees, leaning over her, and reached for her sides.