Lacing the Lost Stars

Eighteen

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Aviana

Holy shit.

"Aviana?"

I refused to face him, my back was against the wall as I attempted to square breath. Four in, four out, it's simple. Fuck no it wasn't.

"Aviana, what's wrong," I felt him stand up behind me making me hold in my tears to prevent them from sliding down my cheek. He gently held my arm, turning me around.

"I-I can't breath," My voice was croaky and I could tell that my face was steaming red.

"Fuck, hey hey," his hand reached for my own as I hesitantly grasped it, my brain wasn't functioning to the capacity I wanted. It seemed like I was underwater.

"Here, sit down, that's good," he guided me down so I was sitting on the hard floor with my legs straight in front of me. He took a seat near me but not too close, still holding my hand.

I sat in place trying to catch my breath as Kiro mumbled swear words under his breath. He suddenly stopped and looked up at me, I'm pretty sure he was, my vision was slightly blurred.

"Aviana, what colour am I wearing?" His whisper was soft but audible, swallowing hard I looked down at his shirt.

"Black," I answered, clearly confused but I went along with what he was doing.

"What about my jeans, feel them, what material are they?"

Sniffling in pain, my hand gently grazed his navy pants.

"Denim."

He smiled faintly, squeezing my hand slightly making me feel more aware of my surroundings.

"What can you hear from outside?"

My ears perked up as I found myself able to hear things without the blur, the soft tune of the carousel was the first thing I sensed.

"Music, carousel," I breathed.

He inched closer, his thumb slowly rubbed circles on the top of my hand though I was too shy to pull away, I could tell they were clammy but his were soft and surprisingly a lot more gentle than I imagined them to be.

"What can you smell Aviana?"

My eyes flickered towards him as I immediately inhaled a delicate, minty sensation. Not the strong, overpowering mint but more of a sweeter, lighter version.

"Mint," I looked over to him, noticing him analysing my face. I did the same, his eyes were much softer than I had remembered and beside his lips was a very faint dimple mark that I had never noticed. Was he always this close?

My gaze went down to my body, I felt in control once again as I inhaled deeply and was able to do so without struggling.

"And," Kiro coughed quietly beside me. "One more thing."

I watched him shuffle even closer towards me as I stayed frozen in place, wondering what his next move was. His face was inches away from my own, his lashes fluttered down to the bottom of my face to the top. What was he looking at?