Unnatural Love

"We can't do this anymore. It's not good for us." I tell Malak. This thing we have. I'm not even sure what we are and how we even got to this point. I keep telling myself that he is family and that it will never work, but part of me wishes we kept going.

Behind closed doors, we are inseparable but to the world, he is just my soon to be step brother. It's so wrong but feels so right. All I can do is wish things were different, but they aren't.

"I love you." He reaches out towards me for a hug but I turn my body away from him.

I feel his eyes on me. But I can't face him. I wonder how we got so secretive and narrow towards our parents and friends. I can only think that we have to do what is right even though it may not be what we want. We have to end this before it gets to big and blows up in our faces. There's a couple of people suspicious, but I want to prove them wrong. That Malak and I have never been a thing. At least starting now. I just have to let him out of my grasp. We have to learn to look at each other as "family" and focus on people who aren't related to us, technically speaking.

"If you love me," I start to say, still not facing him, "then you have to let me go."