Aditya startled awake when he heard a shrill scream. Quickly he ran towards Zoya's bedroom to see her jumping on her bed near tears, as soon as he inched forward, she jumped into his arms, holding on tightly.

"Zoya, what's wrong" he asked, concerned

"I, I, there's a spider, please get rid of it" she trembled

Aditya glanced down at Zoya in his arms, making her look up at him, "Im scared and you're looking at me like you want to kiss me, we can do that later, can you please just get rid of the spider" she begged

"Excuse me" Aditya was astonished by her forwardness

"You're excused" she dropped herself back on the bed, waiting for him to get rid of the spider

He grabbed it with tissue, throwing it out the window, only to turn around and have Zoya wrap her arms around him "Thank you, thank you so much"

Aditya looked down, shifting on his feet, he raised one arm slowly, about to wrap it around her back when she pulled back, she glanced up at his arm, and with a smile held him tighter

His eyes shut as he held her small body to his, it had been an awfully long time since he had hugged anyone, having her so close made his heart beat so loudly he was sure she could hear it

She stood on her tiptoes, pressing her lips to the corner of his mouth "Thanks again" she whispered

He swallowed thickly, nodding at her, but still not wanting to let go of her, she kept him warm, and not just physically, it felt like his whole life he had been cold, and now he had finally felt heat again

"Can I ask you a question" Zoya spoke

He nodded in response

"Do I annoy you, because sometimes you act like I do and other times you smile at me, and I dont know, you just send so many mixed signals" she shrugged

"You dont annoy me Zoya, I just dont really know how to react in a situation like this I guess, im not used to it"

Zoya chuckled "What, and you think I am, this isnt a normal situation for me either" she pulled away slowly "Anyway, I need some sleep, im really tired, you should probably get some to"

XXX

"Its okay Zoya, just calmly ask him if you could sit by him as he sleeps because you had a nightmare, it will be fine, oh my god what if he says no, then what do I do, oh this is so embarassing, no girl this is your house, you sleep where you like" Zoya argued with herself before tapping Aditya on the shoulder

Aditya looked up, stretching, he raised a brow

"Hey, its me again, so as the owner of this house, I really need a new tenant to pay rent, you know how it is, so as I had a nightmare, I was hoping that maybe, your rent for the night could be swapped with maybe letting me lie to you"

"Zoya, its like half four in the morning, you are honestly crazy" he groaned

"So, is that a yes or a no, because that was quite unclear"

"It was a no Zoya" he closed his eyes

Zoya frowned, going to sit on the floor by the living room door, she tried to pacify herself with the fact it was just a nightmare, but it wasnt working.

Aditya opened his eyes, sighing when he saw her sitting on the floor. He stood up, picking her up in his arms, making her look up at him, shocked. "So what do you do when youve had a nightmare and I'm not here" he led down, pulling her next to him

"I stay awake" she whispered back, resting her head on his chest and closing her eyes, she could feel his fingers tracing the stretch marks on her skin, she felt safe here, but even she knew he wasnt going to be around forever, so maybe she shouldn't rely on him to save her like this

"Stop thinking and go to sleep Zoya" he muttered, eyes still shut

"Hey, how did you know I was thinking"

"Because Zoya, I can feel you staring, now go to sleep, I promise you wont have a nightmare, I'm right here"

And that was the last words she heard before she fell asleep

XXX

Zoya awoke, her neck hurt, her back ached but it was for sure the best sleep she had ever had. She sat up, clicking her neck then made her way to the bathroom, but where was Aditya?

She smiled at the note on the bathroom mirror, 'Had to go to work, thanks for last night, take care of yourself Zoya'

XXX

Aditya glanced over at the officers stood before him "This mission is serious, today at 5'0clock, there is meant to be a bomb going off at the local Mosque, that means that we have only a few hours to secure the place and track down who is doing this"

The officers nodded, Aditya looked down at his watch "You have ten minutes to call your families, as you know, we may not make it out alive tonight"

He waited till everyone was gone then picked up his phone, dialling a number

"Hello" Zoya spoke

"Hi Zoya, its me"

"Oh hey, how do you have my number"

"It was on the records here, I need you to do me a favour, can you go sit with my Ma for lunch today, i'm not going to make it"

"Sure, is everything okay" her brows furrowed

"Yeah, just a busy day today, oh and Zoya, dont forget there's a curfew, you must be home at half four"

Zoya frowned "Well okay, be safe, you still havent given me any of your recipes yet" she joked

Aditya closed his eyes "And you Zoya"

Zoya gripped the phone tightly "May Allah be with you" then she heard the beeping sound

Hey! All AdYa stories have been updated, and the new season of Love As Red As Blood is up:)