Play dead

Jake stared at Tariq for a second, then fell backwards onto the bed. He hoped that if he didn't put up a fight, Tariq will just go away. Tarim probably liked his prey fresh, so hopefully a dead-looking body would scare him off.

For a few minutes, there was no sound in the room. Jake was about to open his eyes, sure that Tariq had left, when something poked him in the chest. He held his breath, and hoped that Tariq couldn't hear his heart beating as loudly as he could.

"I know that you are not dead or ****", Tariq said. There was another pause, then he continued. "If I wanted to kill you, you would already be dead."

Tariq had a point. Jake hadn't even heard Tariq approach until he was a few centimetres away. Cautiously, Jake opened his eyes. Tariq's face loomed over Jake, as strange as before. His smile, though, was less toothy, and that, at least, stopped Jake from panicking again. Seeing Jake's eyes open, Tariq stepped back. Jake sat up on the bed.

"I am Tariq", Tariq repeated, pointing at himself.

"I am Jake", Jake replied shakily. There was a brief awkward pause. "What do you want from me?" Jake asked.