I am in the waiting room at the hospital while the doctors check on Ethan. My hands have not stopped shaking since I got here. I know this is not the first time Ethan has been in this situation, but I feel far more nervous than I was the first time. I can barely stop moving my hands and legs. Ya Allah, I hope it's not severe. The doctor comes out, and I quickly walk towards her.

"How is he doctor? I hope it's nothing serious. Can I see him?" I ask so many questions at once

"Cool down, Miss, Ethan is going to be fine. He only had a minor concussion."

"Alhamdulillah, can I see him?" I am very eager to see how he is doing.

"This way," she says and walks me to the room that Ethan is staying in.

I walk inside, and Ethan is asleep. He looks so peaceful while sleeping. I walk over and sit down in the chair beside the bed. I can feel myself calming down as soon as I see his handsome face.I am so happy it's not something serious that is wrong with him. I can't imagine losing Ethan, and I don't even know why I can't. I feel like the world without him won't be complete for me anymore. I feel so many new things towards Ethan, and I don't even know what they mean.

I hear movement in the bed. I turn to see if he is waking up, but he is not. His eyes are tightly closed, and the expression on his face looks like he is in great pain. He has a lot of sweat on his forehead. Maybe he is having a bad dream.

"Ethan!" I say trying to wake him up. He looks like he is in a lot of pain in this dream. He does not answer and starts turning all over the bed. This dream must be horrible; I need to wake him up.

"Adina?" Ethan says in a whisper.

"Yes, Ethan, it's me. Wake up."

"Save me, she is going to kill me," Ethan says and grabs my hand in a tight grip. I don't know if my ears are deceiving me, but I am sure I heard a hint of fear in his voice. Oh my God, what is happening? Whatever is happening in his dream must be making him very scared.

"Ethan can you hear me, wake up. "Wake up, it's all a dream," I say, raising my voice and shaking his body.

"Adina, Adina, Adina!" Ethan says, screaming in agony while increasing his grip on my hand. He is holding it so tight that I fear if I try to remove my hand, it might only make him more scared.

"Ethan, please wake up, you're scaring me," I say, becoming increasingly concerned by the minute.I gently use my free hand to tap his face, hoping to get a reaction out of him.

"Adina, please don't leave me. Adina, please save me, please," Ethan says in horrified fear while pleading.

"Ethan!!! Wake Up!!!!" I say screaming in his ears, hoping I can save him from his nightmare.

Ethan jolts awake with his eyes full of fear and confusion. Ethan looks around him before settling his eyes on me. He looks at me, and all the fear and uncertainty in his eyes go away. He pulls me tightly into his arms, filling my whole body with his warmth and intoxicating perfume that I am starting to like a lot these days. I can hear his heart beating fast against mine, but that is not what is leaving me in great wonder right now. Our hearts beat at the same pace.The room is so silent that the only thing that can be heard is the sound of our heartbeats. Oh my God, what is happening? I can't believe our hearts are beating in unison; does this mean anything?I doubt it; I am probably overthinking it. I gently try to move out of his embrace, but that only makes him tighten his arms around me. I know its wrong Islamically, but a part of me does not want him to let go.

"Thank God you are safe. "I thought I'd lost you to her," Ethan says as his breath fans my neck, sending a chill down my spine.

"I'm not sure what happened in your dream, but everything is fine now," I say to his chest, feeling it vibrate with each word I say.Ethan does not say anything for a good minute; it's like he is practically not here.

"Is everything all right, Ethan?"I say gently lifting my head from his chest. He is so engrossed in his thoughts that he can't notice me moving away from him. Ethan's hold around my waist loses, and that's how I genuinely realise he is far away from here in his thoughts. I wave my hand in his face, and it takes a couple of seconds before he comes back to earth. His deep grey eyes land on mine, staring intensely into my soul. His eyes are filled with so many emotions, like I have never seen before. I don't even know what his eyes are saying right now. I slowly remove my eyes away from his and stare at the ground. A part of me wants to understand the emotions in his eyes more than anything right now. And that part of me also believes those emotions in his eyes might have something to do with me.

After that day, I knew I had to keep my distance away from Ethan because I might have felt comfortable in his arms, but that does not change the fact that being in his arms is Haram. I tried hard to stay away from him, but I couldn't. The more I remained away from him, the more my heart yawned for him. I don't know why I am feeling all these emotions towards Ethan.

I am walking to the parking lot to drive home after a day full of exams. Winter break is around the corner, and I can't wait to stop going to school for a few weeks. I am about to enter my car when I see someone that makes my blood boil. I wish I could inflict on him the same agony he inflicted on my friend.Marcus hit Khloe again, and this time I was not ready to hear anything from her. I was so close to reporting him to the police, but I stopped when Khloe begged me not to. I also can't believe she went back to him after what he did last time. Love is really a dangerous thing. I walk over to where Marcus car is parked to give him a piece of my mind.

"I can't believe after you used your dirty hands on my friend. You have the right to have another girl in your arms right now. I always knew you were no good. "You're lucky Khloe stopped me; otherwise, you'd be rotting in jail," I snarled angrily.

"And who the hell are you to tell me what to do and what not to do? I can do anything I like, and there is nothing you can do about it," Marcus says with an evil smirk on his face, which I wish I could slap off, but I won't let my anger get to me.

"You are just an excuse for a man," I say hissing. I walk away because if I stay there any longer. I don't know what I will do with all the anger going through me right now. I can't allow the devil to use me and do something I will regret. A 'oothu billaahi min-ash-shaitaannir-rajim (I seek refuge in Allah from Satan the outcast). I say trying to cool down. I don't get to walk away like I plan to, because Marcus pulls me back.

"Get your dirty hands off me," I say removing my arms from his grip.

"What did you just say to me?" Marcus says with a lot of anger.

"I think your ears are working, and you heard me right," I say in a stern voice. I see Marcus' hands moving towards my face to slap me. I quickly lift mine to block him, but I don't. Something else happens, something I would have never imagined in my life. Ethan is holding Marcus hands from slapping me. When did he get here?

"Don't ever try to lay your filthy hands on her again. " Ethan says in a stern voice and a lot of anger in his eyes towards Marcus. He drops Marcus's hand like it's a piece of dirt.

"And who the hell are you?" Marcus says.

"Who I am is none of your business, but all I know is you are not allowed to lay your hands on her," Ethan says, referring to me. I know Ethan and I are friends, but I would have never pictured him defending me in the way he is right now.

"Wait, are you not the Ethan guy Adina is always complaining about?" Marcus says, recognising Ethan, which I must point out he was slow at doing.

"I am, and so what," Ethan says even though that no longer happens.

"Then why are you defending her? "You should join me in beating her up," Marcus says, completely changing his demeanor toward Ethan and acting as if he is his friend.

"I am not a foolish coward like you who takes pleasure in inflicting pain on women. And, most importantly, I would never hurt someone special to me like Adina," Ethan says with a mix of rage and adoration when he says I am special to him.I can't believe Ethan just said that. Am I really special to him, but in what way does he mean? There are so many things Ethan says and does that I am yet to understand.

"What did you call me?" Marcus says, coming closer to Ethan while changing his whole aura from a friendly one to anger.

"You heard right," Ethan says, also getting closer, and that's my cue to end this before I end up separating a fight.

"Ethan, I think we should leave. He got your point right," I say as I step in front of both of them, facing Ethan. I can't believe I am stopping Ethan from beating up someone because of me. How is this happening? Ethan hesitates a little, but listens to me and starts walking away. He stops when Marcus says something that pisses him off.

"Follow her, you damn pussy," Marcus says, and I wish he didn't, because he gets a big punch to his face.

"Call me a pussy again, and I won't be nice only to punch your face," Ethan says while he grabs my hand and walks away with me, but I don't think Marcus has any sense in his brain.

Marcus pulls Ethan from his shoulder and lands a punch of his own on Ethan's face. They began fighting before I could even say jackpot. Oh my God, Ya Allah, I have to do something to stop this fight. They are throwing punch after punch at each other. I am screaming at both of them to stop fighting, and it's like I am talking to myself. I don't want to go close to them to stop them because I don't want any of their punches to land on me, but I think that is the only way this fight will end. Marcus' friends are all standing around watching the fight as if it were the WWE. I can't believe them, but they say birds of the same feather flock together. They are all irritating, cowards.

"Ethan, please stop!" I say placing my hand on Ethan's arm. It's as if I just pressed a button, because Ethan let go of Marcus as soon as he felt my grip on his arms. He turns to face me, and once his eyes lock with mine, he sees the worry and fear in them. His eyes changes from anger into ones of remorse.

"Adina," Ethan says in a soft tone.

"Look at your face," I say feeling myself on the verge of tears. His face is bruised, and his lips are slightly cut. I am sure his ribs also got a few bad hits. Marcus is a lot worse; I can barely recognise his face. Ethan thrashed him mercilessly.

"Please don't cry, I am fine," Ethan says, wiping my tears away with his warm hands.

"I'm not crying, and let's go," I say, trying hard not to cry as I drag Ethan away from Marcus before another fight breaks out.

I don't even know why I am reacting this way, but seeing Ethan injured makes my heart ache. It makes me feel very sad, and the fact that he is injured because of me makes me feel very horrible right now. I walk over to Ethan's car to drive him home. After all, there is no way we can go to the hospital because both of them will end up in jail.

************

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