Page 35 of Diamond

Once again, I am left feeling foolish. "What did you name him, then?"

Her eyes sparkle with pride as she turns to look at him. "I call him Roshan. It means bright in my native language."

The sparkle leaves her eyes as quickly as it came and I feel sad for her. Perhaps being taken from our homes and everything we used to know is something we can bond over… but, no. She is female.

My stomach feels tight, but I push the thought aside.

"Rooshun," I stammer, wondering why it does not sound like what she said, considering that she is speaking my language.

She lets out a mocking trill. "Roshan, his name is Roshan."

The creature looks round at her, probably wondering why she is calling its name.

I watch her mouth move in hopes that it will help me say the name better. "Rashun."

Her eyes light up again. "Close but not quite. Ro-shan."

She drags out the syllables and I repeat it, getting it right this time.

"Greetings, Roshan. Will you stop trying to bite me now?"

It does not respond or seem threatened by me anymore, simply turning away.

With the animal completely distracted, I turn to face her, still keeping my distance so it doesn't get alarmed and charge at me. "My name is Kuret. What is yours?"

She looks warily at me, as if considering whether or not to trust me with her name. "Nasrin, my name is Nasrin."

Her name is intriguing, and I find myself rolling it around on my tongue—enjoying the way it tastes—before I try saying it outloud. My first attempt at saying her name is horrendous, but I ask her to repeat it.

She does and I try again a few more times, failing every time.

"What's so hard about saying Nasrin?" she mocks and I frown. She seems to delight in mocking me.

Her name is not native to my language and the syllables feel different, especially the last part of the name. It sounds elongated and almost musical when she speaks it, but it translates to something else on my tongue.

If I can't do something so simple, how can she trust me to keep her safe? I must do better.

I go over the name again silently until it sounds close and then try once more. Her name is a pleasant song coming from my mouth this time and I know I have said it the correct way this time. Pride blooms in my chest.

Her eyes widen slightly and the edge of her mouth starts to lift into a smile. I mirror her, but the smile quickly drops off her face, and she pushes her bright hair behind one of her ears, a tiny appendage I wonder how she can even hear with.

Did I do something wrong? Surely I didn't mispronounce her name to that degree. "Have I said it right, or do I need to keep trying?" I ask in an attempt to lighten the very somber mood we seem to be stuck in.

She shakes her head. "No, you finally said it right."

She turns back to me, her voice flat and face set in a displeased scowl. I find myself thinking about how many women's names I knew before I was abducted.

Even as a cloister guardian, I never asked the women their names. I didn't need to know them personally to protect them, and it's not like they would tell me if I did.

The sun has not risen a second time and I know the names of two women now: Ree and Nasrin. I enjoy how Nasrin's name tastes on my tongue, the foreignness of it, and the way the last part comes out as a gentle, melodic whistle. I want to continue to call it out as much as I can.

I like the way it feels in my mouth and I like the way she forces herself not to smile a little every time I say it. Too bad she will find it strange if I begin to repeat her name over and over until I slumber. It is beautiful, like she is.

But I need to stop being strange. I simply want her to like me, as much as I like her name. More, even.

The lustrous black cloth covers most of her, but I can see her smooth brown skin mixed with small silvery patches behind her hands. Her eyes are beautiful, yet strange, with small black circles in the middle of a brilliant white. Nearly as white as her teeth, which I only see when she snarls at me.

Her laugh is a soft tinkering that I have not heard nearly enough of and her voice, at least when she is speaking softly to the animal, is a gentle melody.

---