Salem Falls

Ever since he’d ended things with Maggie, it seemed like all Zayn could do was watch television. He had watched season after season of Lost and more Real World reruns than he could count. He wanted to leave the house – he really did – but he had nowhere to go. Things with the Sixth Circle were too confusing for him to deal with, and Harry was too busy doing other things. His mother was still hauled up in her room much like she was before, and it seemed as though Zayn was doomed to the same fate.

With his attention focused on whatever his channel surfing had landed on, Zayn glazed over, paying very little attention to what was going on in front of him. He just wanted not to hurt anymore.

A knock on the door forced Zayn to finally get up from the sofa. Though his steps were sluggish, he made it over to the door and opened it to find only empty space. He poked his head out the door and looked back and forth, but saw no one.

He almost just shut the door again, ready to drown himself in television once again, but the bottom of his eye caught sight of the envelope sitting on his porch.

Zayn knew it wasn’t from the mail carrier, as it wasn’t stuffed in the mailbox. Someone had set it there and just left, and he had no clue why.

His father taught him well enough that he knew he should be worried. The second his eyes laid sight on the envelope, his heart began racing. He slowly moved forward and picked the envelope up off the ground, his hands shaking as he made contact with it.

He knew he was moving far too slowly in what could have possibly been a dangerous situation, but he couldn’t help it. He was nervous.

When his hand ripped apart the envelope, he found several photographs inside, which appeared to be recently printed. He attempted to keep control of his breathing, but it seemed impossible when he finally realized what the pictures were of.

Every one of them was a candid shot of Maggie walking home from school, at the shop with her mom, or hanging out with her friends. She didn’t know she was being photographed or that anyone was watching her, but the photos were there. They were in Zayn’s hands, and that terrified him. Someone knew about Maggie, and they knew that Zayn was close to her.

It wasn’t until he got to the last picture that Zayn realized what was going on. It was a photo of Maggie, where her face had been scratched out with red ink. Red words were sprawled over the photo – a spell which Zayn had neither used nor heard of – and Zayn knew it had to be a mage who had done it.

He felt fire burning in his chest that gradually spread throughout his body. It was a rage he’d never felt before, and he wanted to shove his fist through a wall or someone’s face.

He had done everything right. He had ended things with Maggie to keep her safe. He stayed as far away from her as possible, but it didn’t matter. She was still in danger and it was all his fault.
Zayn had no clue what he was going to do or what his plan was, but he ran through his lawn as quickly as he could, pulling his car keys from his pocket. Usually, he walked to Maggie’s just because he liked to, but he was determined to get there as soon as possible.

He was certain that he’d broken several traffic laws and feared his lead foot was going to land him in prison, but he made it to Maggie’s house in one piece, though his chest was rising and falling at an unhealthy rate. His pulse wasn’t doing much better.

The second Zayn laid eyes on Maggie’s house, he froze. He hadn’t spoken to her since he’d cut things off with her a few days before and he honestly thought he’d never be at her house again. He had no clue if she was actually home or if she’d even be willing to speak to him, but he knew he had to try. Staying away from her wasn’t going to keep her safe and he realized that now, but he hoped it wasn’t too late.

Taking slow, steady steps, he made his way to her front door, his pulse racing with every inch he moved towards it. He wasn’t sure if he’d actually be able to go through with knocking, but his fist did it for him, tapping it at a firm rate.

It felt like he had been standing for far too long when the door finally opened. He didn’t know if he had expected Maggie to answer or not, but when she did it took his breath away. She looked the same as she always did, with her blonde hair tucked behind her ear and her blue eyes shining in the sun. She looked sweet, like an angel, and he couldn’t believe he’d ever let her go.

Her eyebrows furrowed at the sight of him, and she looked more confused than anything else. Blinking her eyes quickly, she kept a firm grip on the edge of the door.

It didn’t seem like she was going to do anything, so Zayn finally mustered up the courage to speak.
“Maggie.” He paused, running his hand through his hair. “Can we talk?”

She bit at her lip for a long moment, her eyes growing even tighter. It was obvious she didn’t understand what was going on, and it looked like she didn’t want to find out, either.

“What do you want?” she asked, one hand still on the door while the other fell to her hip. It was clear by the sound of her voice that she was hurt, and Zayn hated that he was the one who caused it. It was his fault she looked at him that way.

“I just want to talk,” he finally whispered, looking up at her with his eyes pleading.

She stared back at him for a moment longer before beginning to pull the door closed. “I don’t want to talk, Zayn.”

Just when she almost had the door shut, he stuck his foot in the way of it, causing her to glare at him. He didn’t want to make her even angrier, but he needed to talk to her. He needed to explain himself.

“Please, Maggie. Just for a moment.”

Maggie paused for what felt like forever to Zayn. He almost wasn’t sure if she was even going to respond, but finally she looked back at him and tapped her fingers on the edge of the door.

“I’m having dinner with my parents,” she said, locking her eyes on his as she pursed her lips. “But I’m free tomorrow. Meet me here right after school.”

His mouth formed a small smile without him willing it to and he nodded his head, which was followed by her shutting and locking the door in front of him.

It wasn’t what Zayn wanted, but it was all he was going to get. Tomorrow, he would do whatever it took to make Maggie forgive him, even if he had to tell her the biggest secret he held.