Chapter 10

"I... " Zara couldn't think of a plausible excuse and the pain in her ankle limited her thinking even more.Nathanael narrowed his eyes and sighed, considering the girl's surprise appearance a work of fate, a sign for him to get the poor girl out of the mess she was in. He also thought it would be a good opportunity to clear up his doubts about the strange newcomer who had captured his attention at just the right time.In the distance, Nath saw Emmy enter the school, the blonde's sharp, menacing eyes landed on the frightened girl on the floor and he saw her glare at Zara with latent hatred. In a hurry and anticipating a huge scandal, Nathanael did the only thing he could at the moment: he bent down and pulled Zahara by the arm, leaning her on his shoulder and walking with her down the corridor. His act was even more surprising than his previous questioning, it kept her silent as they both passed Emmy and her workers.The blonde and her two friends looked on in disbelief, after all, Nathanael was known for not getting involved in other people's problems. As they were left behind, Emillya felt even angrier, after all, once again she hadn't gotten what she wanted and, ever since this girl had crossed her path, this had become more and more frequent.Nathanael supported Zara's entire weight on his shoulders, the girl was in shock at what was happening and it made her forget to move her legs, so the boy dragged her for most of the way. When he reached his car, he opened the door with one hand and placed the girl on the seat awkwardly. At that moment, Zara came to her senses, but Nath was already inside the car, starting it up and making her panic."Where are you taking me?" she asked, trying to open the car door, but to no avail. "I didn't... I didn't mean to, I didn't mean to."She began to apologize, believing that this would improve the boy's mood, who remained focused on the road that led to the city park. She knew that Lohan was Nathanael's best friend and believed that he was probably angry about the rumors and what she had caused, perhaps even blaming her for the disagreement between his friend and his girlfriend.The girl's mind formulated various hypotheses and his silence didn't help at all. Zara, for her part, couldn't imagine what was going on in Nathanael's mind. So, desperate and panicked, she started saying all sorts of things about how she had nothing to do with the situation and that she wanted to apologize to Emillya and clear up the misunderstanding.Her heart was still racing and, once again, she was beginning to think that the idea of entering the human world was the worst she had ever had in her life. Her eyes were watering and, no matter how much she spoke or apologized, the boy next to her didn't show the slightest reaction.That attitude only made her even more nervous.Nath didn't answer, he let the girl talk and talk while he drove, trying to pay attention to the road while his mind worked tirelessly. He felt euphoric, slowly starting to connect the dots and come to a conclusion that explained everything, he just hadn't imagined that the situation would be so unusual. When he parked the car, he got out, went around to the other side and opened the door, offering his hand to her, who reluctantly accepted it.After getting no response, even explaining herself in every possible way, Zara gave up " after all, what could he do against the powerful daughter of Ifrit? She could list several things, but she preferred to hide behind the false sense of power, even though she knew that her magic was extremely unstable when she was nervous. She looked at the outstretched hand and at the boy, staring into his almost golden eyes, slowly raised her hand and took his, rising from the bench with some difficulty and leaning back on Nathanael's shoulder.They were in a beautiful place that Zara hadn't yet visited, a beautiful park full of trees and people enjoying the clear day. Walking hurriedly, he guided the girl through the park's paths, supporting her so that she wouldn't end up hurting herself even more, passing the large trees and following without even paying attention to the people around, who looked at the couple with curiosity, after all, the tension between them was palpable even to strangers.When they reached a more secluded part of the park, where there weren't so many children or animals, Nathanael stopped and turned to Zara, taking the girl's arm off his shoulder and leaving her leaning against a tree. He looked her up and down and crossed his arms over his chest, which made him look even more imposing to the little girl, staring at her for what seemed like an eternity to Zara, making her even more nervous. Then, after all this time, he began to speak:"How did you come to be in the corridor?" she asked, bluntly and with a serious tone."I don't know what... " she began, only to be interrupted a moment later."There are no ice cream parlors near the school... Why do you come in with a full, cold milkshake every day?""It's just... " she tried again, but he wouldn't let her speak."Since joining Yun and his little cheerleader friend, the volleyball team hasn't lost a single game. What's it to you?"The questions made Zara panic, and Nathanael knew it. He noticed her rapid breathing, her shaky voice, her eyes that wouldn't focus on his. He knew she was nervous, he just had to find out why."Where did you come from?" he pressed her, narrowing his eyes at the girl, who took a few awkward steps back. "How did you manage to enroll without a legal guardian present?""How do you know I enrolled without a legal guardian?" Zara asked, knitting her eyebrows together as she tried to organize her thoughts.She couldn't breathe, everything was spinning and she felt too pressured to create a coherent thought. She felt like a cornered animal, unable to find an escape route. Her magic crackled in her veins and she felt her body shudder, those were bad signs."Why are you so nervous? Are you hiding something?" Nathanael kept pressing, coming a little closer and staring at her intensely. "What's the matter?""Stop talking!" Zara shouted, but soon realized that this was the worst decision she could have made.She caught a glimpse, as her eyes closed, of the small, luminous, purplish spotlight coming out of her towards him. Nathanael suddenly fell silent and, when she opened her eyes, Zara realized that the boy's lips were stuck together and he couldn't open them. It took her a few seconds to think about the mistake she had made and when she did, she despaired even more. She put her hands on her head and sank her fingers into her hair, messing it up a little more and feeling her eyes fill with tears."What do I do now?!" she said, without even looking at Nathanael. "I'm such an idiot! What if I can't undo it? I'm so screwed! " she scolded herself, starting to cry almost automatically, turning to the boy, eyes closed and sobbing, speaking with a shaky voice. "Talk again, please, please, work properly for once" as she spoke, her eyes closed and her expression desperate, wondering what she would do if it didn't work, if her magic decided not to obey her as it usually did.For a brief moment, nothing happened and Zara believed that she wouldn't succeed and that he would be stuck with his mouth forever, which would be the worst scenario that could happen, so the possibility only aggravated her panic. Revealing herself in this way to a human was the worst thing that could happen, she was fully aware of that. Obviously, she would need to reveal her powers to a human in order to have a master, but she didn't intend it to happen so soon or in such a disastrous way.Then his laughter echoed in her ears.It started out low, as if he was trying to control his tone, but gradually it got louder and louder, like an uncontrollable fit of laughter, worthy of someone who has heard the best joke in the universe.At first, all Zara felt was relief, but then her panic returned with force and intensity.What was he laughing at?"Who knew, that was the most unexpected thing the universe could give me, I admit," he said, wiping his eyes, which were watery from laughter. "Your fame has spread to all the Jinns' villages in the world, Miss Grant, daughter of Ifrit."

***

"Girls! " Lohan called out, catching up with Yun and Eliz after a quick run. "Have you seen Zara?"After the question, the boy watched Yun's expression tighten, while Eliz hurried to answer for the other."We haven't seen her since third period, we've looked all over the school," she said, scratching the back of her head, looking a little embarrassed. "Anne said she saw Nathanael carrying her out, it looks like she twisted her ankle or something.""Nath? Are you sure?" the boy asked, knitting his eyebrows together in surprise."Yeah, I thought it was strange too," Eliz concluded, before starting to be dragged away by Yun, who didn't want to be in the boy's presence at all. "But if we find her, I'll have her send you a message," the redhead shouted, before turning and walking away.Lohan remained extremely confused, he was sure that Zara was in the stands, but within seconds she had disappeared and now he couldn't find her at all.He was ready to recant, ready to ask for forgiveness. He decided that he would no longer take part in Emmy's game and this earned him endless threats, but he didn't chicken out this time, he knew he had to face up to the problem. He knew that she would fulfill what she had promised him in some way, he remembered the words well, they were fresh in his memory:"I'm going to tell the whole world what you really are, they'll be disgusted with you!" the blonde screamed at the top of her voice. "Your father was right all along, you're nothing but..." Emillya didn't get to complete her sentence, giving him a cunning smile as she glared at him with hatred. "You'll never be anyone, you'll lose everything, Lohan!"He was scared, of course he was, memories of his childhood and pre"teen years flooded his mind as he walked, he remembered everything he had been through and felt the terror and fear of rejection take hold of him, but now there was no turning back, he had to face what was coming once and for all.Nathanael's words kept running through his head and, when morning came, he couldn't do any different. Emilly went ballistic when she heard him say that what was between them was over, she threatened him in every possible way, but he wasn't going to let anyone control his life, not anymore.He had to get rid of the ghosts of the past.He knew he needed to accept himself, even if others didn't. He knew that his friends, at least the real ones, wouldn't distance or exclude him, that's what he relied on. He also understood that his family, the really important part of it which was restricted to his mother, wouldn't even care about his decision, after all, it was such a trivial and normal detail that it shouldn't even be discussed or contested. It wasn't as if she didn't care, he understood that such things were too normal to need as much attention or fuss as the rest of the world made it seem, at least at home."Where is she?" he asked himself, picking up his cell phone and dialing Nathanael's number.Now all that was missing was the most important part: apologizing to the new girl, no longer so new, because of the rumors that had spread, after all, he had never wanted to hurt her.Lohan called once, twice, three times, but no one answered. He knew that Nathanael rarely left his phone, but he was afraid that his friend was angry with him, since their conversation on Saturday afternoon had been less than friendly. Giving up trying to find his friend, at least for the moment, he walked back to the classroom. He hoped that Nath would show up by the end of the day, he urgently needed to talk to his friend before the bomb exploded.

***

"What? " Zara asked, raising her eyes and looking at the brunette in front of her, who still had a mocking laugh on his lips. "Who are you?"The girl was stunned, her eyes seemed to want to pop out of their sockets and her lips were parted in surprise. Nathanael, on the other hand, felt satisfied, his curiosity had been solved and he finally knew what attracted him so much to Zahara, she was a Jinn, like him, surely her magic recognized the nature of the other, which was why he couldn't stop thinking about the brunette.At least that's what he thought."Nathanael Khan, at your service" he introduced himself, looking her in the eye and coming a little closer, showing the necklace on which he carried his lamp. "It's just a souvenir from the days of servitude, I'm free."The necklace was delicate, a small, thin gold chain held the pendant in the shape of a lamp which, at first glance, looked dull and old. Nathanael was proud of his achievement, he was free even though he was only 219 years old, for a Jinn who had achieved freedom, he was extremely young.His words made the girl admire him even more, he, like her, was young, finding a master who would free him at that age was very rare and enviable, since many Jinns spent millennia condemned to servitude. Nath believed that he had been very lucky and, thanks to his intelligence, he managed to fulfill most of his last master's wishes with just the first two, using the loopholes that magic allowed him. Thus, the last wish was used for his freedom."I heard you'd gone to the human world, I just didn't think you'd end up here," he continued, moving away when he realized he was too close.Zara still felt dizzy from her recent discovery. She hadn't imagined that she would meet another Jinn, not so suddenly. However, knowing that he knew of her bad reputation embarrassed her, causing her to take a few steps back, visibly cringing.Noticing her reaction, Nathanael put his hands in his pockets, sighing heavily. He knew that she was extremely clumsy and was fully aware of the fact that Zara couldn't use her magic properly; it was like one of the most talked"about bits of gossip among the geniuses of the Lamp, after all, she was the daughter of someone important. Nath also knew how terrible Jinns can be, after all, almost all of them have a cunning and deceitful personality. That's why she understood that Zara had probably had a hard time before turning away from her people."I... I didn't think I'd meet another Jinn," she muttered, putting her hands together and interlacing her fingers, a clear sign of nervousness.She was still leaning against the tree, her foot was still hurting and it prevented her from standing properly. Nathanael, a little more at ease, approached the girl, bent down beside her and gently touched her ankle. Zara felt a small, subtle charge of magic, then soon all the pain disappeared and her foot was brand new."I won't tell anyone where you are, don't worry," he tried to reassure her, reaching up and touching her shoulder gently. "I know how bad they can be, believe me. But why did you come to Corning?"The affection made the girl cringe slightly, a little embarrassed by such a simple and quiet approach, but the act of healing her ankle made her a little less nervous. The question also embarrassed her, making her tuck a lock of hair behind her ear and stare at the boy, a little awkwardly, before starting to speak."It's a drastic measure," she muttered, sitting down on the grass. "I need to learn how to use magic and I didn't want to embarrass my father any more…""Is that why you decided to go to high school?" he retorted, sitting down next to her."I don't know if it was the best decision... I just didn't know where else to go."Nathanael noticed the weariness in the girl's voice, as well as her sad expression. Strangely, the girl's latent sadness stirred his heart and made him feel regret, so he sighed, looking up at the clear blue sky, regretting before he even began to talk about what he was about to do and, as he offered himself, he begged the gods to have mercy on his poor existence for getting himself into this."I'll help you, maybe I can teach you," he said unpretentiously, but as soon as he turned his face, he saw her wet golden eyes sparkle and an expression of true gratitude take over her face. "Just... try not to dumb me down again."On an impulse driven by pure happiness, Zara threw herself on top of him and hugged him, thanking him in more than ten different languages before realizing what she had done, then quickly pulling away.Nath was also surprised by the hug, ignoring the strange good feeling that being wrapped in her small hands caused. He said nothing, smiled at the genius and relaxed, trying to convince himself that he wasn't getting into a bigger mess than he should have been.***After dropping Zara off at her building, Nath returned home and, as he lay in the comfort of his bed, he thought about how ironic life was, how fate always had surprises in store for him."Meeting Ifrit's daughter.... That's unimaginable," he said, looking up at the ceiling and putting his arms behind his head.Even though he had sworn to stay away from his own kind when he was freed, he couldn't refuse the help that Ifrit's daughter so desperately needed. No one deserved to be condemned to live in servitude for eternity and, if she wanted to have a chance of being free, she had to be able to fulfill her wishes so well that she could do it in just two opportunities, as he had done.However, he didn't know how he was going to teach her. From the little contact he still had with the Jinns, he knew that there was a genius who had been causing some havoc by being kind with words. Because she was his daughter, he knew that the pressure on Zara was enormous, especially as she was a half"breed, since her mother, the woman who freed Ifrit, was human."It's going to be quite complicated," he said, trying to work out a plan of action when he heard his phone ring. "Hello?" he said, answering the call."Can you open the door for me?" Lohan's voice made him knit his eyebrows together, but he said nothing.Nath got up and walked into the living room of the average, well"decorated apartment. The walls were dark and thick curtains covered the large windows. Anyone would love the privileged view that the boy's balcony offered, but Nathanael barely put his face outside or opened the windows. In the living room, where there was a large, comfortable shaggy rug, a sofa with cushions thrown in any which way that faced the large TV and a small table cluttered with bags of snacks, it didn't take him more than a few seconds to open the door and find his friend on the other side.Lohan had messy golden hair, puffy eyes and looked haggard. He was still wearing the same clothes as when he went to school, and his backpack was a little fuller than usual, indicating that he was probably going to sleep there.Nath guessed that something serious had happened and, without question, let him in. Although he didn't like physical closeness, the boy hugged the blond carefully, trying to console him even though he didn't know why he was so sad, after all, he was in a terrible state."What happened?" he finally asked, letting go of his friend and taking him to the sofa."Emmy and I broke up.... I broke up with her, actually," Lohan began, running his right hand through his hair awkwardly."Why are you so sad? Aren't you going to tell me you regret it?" The mere thought of regret made Nathanael indignant, but when he saw Lohan's expression, he quickly controlled his acid humor.""It's not that... It's just... " He seemed stuck, as if something was bothering him deeply. "She knows something about me..."What? I've already told you that if you haven't killed someone, there's nothing to tie you to her," he retorted, jabbing his friend in the head. "Nothing she says is going to change your life, Lohan, and if it does, I'm sure you won't miss out on anything really worthwhile.""You don't understand!" He put his head between his knees, sniffling softly. "I'm afraid of losing everything, my friends, my family... They won't accept it, Nath!"Nathanael placed his right hand on his friend's back, stroking it carefully as he realized the situation Lohan was in. He didn't understand how difficult it could be for Jinns to make these kinds of distinctions, but humans made simple things complicated and hated each other for silly things so easily.Lohan was terrified.He knew that his ex-girlfriend wouldn't let the break-up go to waste and that, at any moment, things would spread like wildfire. In his mind, his father's voice resounded and echoed everywhere, even after years and years, the man's words continued to haunt him like a demon. His chest burned with nervousness, his breathing was heavy and he felt like he was carrying the weight of the world on his back.What would he do now?What would change?Was his father right?

"No one will like you if you keep behaving like a faggot, this kind of thing is immoral, you only bring me shame!"

He remembered perfectly the day he heard that. His father had picked him up from school when he was still in kindergarten at the age of seven. The teacher asked the man to pick up his son because he had been beaten up by another group of children. The reason for the aggression was simply because he got along better with the girls, who always called him to play and have fun.Children mirror their parents' behavior and, at that moment, when he saw them playing with some dolls and laughing so peacefully with a group of five girls, two boys, who were about two years older than him, got angry and hit him without further explanation, simply invading his play and hurling insults that he didn't even understand.He remembers being kicked and punched, asking them to stop and asking why they were doing it. He remembered crying and curling up on the floor while the boys insulted him, without even explaining to him the reason for such violence, after all, he was just a little boy.When he got home, Lohan was beaten up again, this time by his father, who said that if he didn't behave like a girl, he would have beaten up the boys and not come home humiliated.That day, when his mother came home to find her son bruised and beaten, she realized that there was no hope for her marriage. She hadn't seen her father for years, the man disappeared into the world after the separation and never made contact with Lohan again, who also didn't care about his father's presence, his mother was his foundation.But even years after a painful separation, the ghosts of the past still haunted him constantly, preventing him from being who he really was, from living his life to the full, from being happy."If they need you to pretend to be something you're not, it's because they don't deserve you at all, Lohan...." Carrying this weight isn't healthy for you," Nathanael began, with a gentle, calm and affectionate tone that he rarely used. "I'll be with you... Am I your best friend or not?"Lohan didn't say anything, but he felt some of the weight come off his shoulders. With this relief came tears and he allowed himself to cry, to cry for everything he'd had to hide for years, for everything he could have lived and given up to please people. He cried for lost time, for forgotten loves and for having lowered his head so easily.He cried of pain, of despair, he cried for himself and for having killed himself so many times to bring to life someone who never really existed, for the child who had repressed everything all his life, for the teenager with no prospect of acceptance and, in the end, he cried with relief.Nath understood her friend's feelings and, welcoming his tears, tried to comfort him as best she could. When Lohan stopped crying after a long 30 minutes, the boy handed him a towel and clean clothes, ordered pizza and, while his friend showered, put on a silly movie and set up a table, removing all the empty snack packets and leaving the carpet tidy for them.The rest of the night was quiet, Nath tried to distract Lohan and succeeded, they watched several movies, laughed, had fun like they hadn't done for ages and, when his friend fell asleep, Nath threw a blanket over him, staying there in the living room too, lying on the soft, fluffy carpet, falling asleep while thinking about how his life had become so hectic.There was only one answer to this doubt, one name.Zahara Grant and the hurricane of problems that always accompanied her.But despite everything, he wasn't sorry for getting involved.