Page 82 of Best Hex Ever
“It is uncommon for a witch to curse herself. But when it happens it can be very potent,” Nour said, sitting on Dina’s bed with Heebie curled in her lap.
“So what now? Do we do some kind of spell to undo it?”
Nour arched an eyebrow. “I thought you said you’d already tried cleansing spells on yourself before?”
“I have.”
Nour shrugged. “That should have sorted it.”
Dina was surprised at how calm her mother was being about this. Nour reached up and pressed her hand to Dina’s cheek, holding it there.
“All these years, and you’ve been blocked from love. And Scott, I really thought…”
“Me too, Mama,” Dina said, her chest constricting.
“It’s in your power to fix it now.”
“How?”
“Think about it, Dina. Really think about the intricacies ofthe hex. Anyone who falls in love with you will be hurt, forcing you to push them away for their own safety. It’s just like the dream I had. You build this wall around you so that no one can get in, and anyone who tries is hurt. But what happens if someone gets through and loves you? They see inside. They see inside the fortress that you’ve built around yourself and theysee you.What are you afraid they’ll see?”
Dina wasn’t sure when she had begun crying.
“Are you afraid that they will learn you’re a witch and run away scared? Tell me, benti, did Scott run away?”
Dina shook her head. “He loves my magic.”
“Exactly. And were you yourself when you were around him?”
“Yes.”
“And he fell in love with you all the same. He fell in love withyou,Dina, because you are worthy of being loved, and you deserve to love.”
Dina lay her head on her mother’s chest, and Nour stroked her daughter’s curls. She felt so small, and so young.
There was one secret part of her left. A part that had always been there, that she’d wanted to share with her mother for so long.
She was so afraid.Please still love me after I tell you, Mama.
“There is something else, Mama. Something I’ve been keeping from you.”
“Oh?”
“I never told you because I was afraid of how you’d react. Afraid that you and Dad might love me less if you found out.” Dina inhaled a shaky breath. “I’m bi, Mama. I like both men and women. The first person I ever loved, Rory, she wasn’t a man. And I’ve dated women, and been with women, so please don’t say it’s just a phase—”
Her mother cut her off, cupping Dina’s face in her hands.
“My darling girl, my habiba. That’s what you’ve been keeping from me for all these years?” Nour began to cry. “I’m so sorry I ever made you feel like you couldn’t tell us, that I ever made you feel like I would love you any less. You’re my daughter: There is nothing about you that I do not love.”
The walls that Dina had built around her heart crumbled, and her mother held her, and told her she loved her until Dina was finally able to believe it. After a while, Dina stopped crying, and sat up to look at her mum.
“What do we do now?”
Nour thought for a moment. “There is something. It might help. A mother’s magic is not something to be trifled with.”
Dina thought of Scott, thought of the chance she now had to be with him, if only she could break this curse of her own making.
“Let’s try it,” she said. “What do I need to do?”
