A mysterious past, an unrequited love, and a desperate need to find himself, fifteen-year-old Kalyn has enough to occupy him without being on the verge of a massive societal upheaval. Join Kalyn and his friends as they explore what it means to come...
The more I consider it, the more of her logic I can see. I do my best to put Mab from my mind, but, in doing so, she possesses me all the more. Ohna is right: all we do is disagree. We are too different. Ohna and I are different, too, but in less explosive ways.
Ohna is passive, wise. She teaches me not just about the world but about myself. Mab is a constant reminder of my shortcomings, of the world that spurned me.
Ohna continues to treat me to tours of the village, granting me glimpse after glimpse into her breathtaking world, even as she pulls away from me. It is clear now where we stand. I apologize repeatedly, but she brushes words off like sand. To her, it is all just as insignificant.
"It's no one's fault," she says, but I can't help feeling that it's mine. "I shouldn't have moved so fast. I wouldn't have pushed it, if I had known you were attached, but..." She seems flustered, and I allow the subject to drop.
I continue to wonder at her side, though there is considerably less small talk as the day grows near that I must leave. I can feel it coming, slow and indomitable, regardless of how I will it to vanish. I beg her to come with me when we go, hoping for more time to make it up to her, but she laughs her incredulous refusal.
"Why would I ever leave this place?"
She has a point. I hardly want to leave this place, yet somehow my decision has become more "Mab vs. Ohna" than "Sunia vs. Inte." Ohna is the first girl to pay attention to me, the first to make me feel worthy. She points out my flaws gently and helps me to improve them. She treats me well, even when I have nothing to offer.
My attraction to Mab is based on... what, even? Habit? I admired her from afar for half of my life. She is beautiful, but so is Ohna. Mab and I are a spark and a flame. My relationship with Ohna placid. Reflective. Like a deep pool with no end.
"You should go," Ohna tells me one night as we laze in the meadow.
"What? Why?" I search her face for anger, but there is none.
"I don't want to be in this competition with her." I flush, for she has all but read my mind. "I am not better, and I am not worse. We are not products to be tried and discarded. We are people, Kal. We are each of us flawed. The point is to find someone whose flaws are worth overcoming. I think maybe you don't have enough experience to know that yet." She stands. "So, go. Learn what you need to learn, and, maybe, if you decide to come back to me one day, we can try again then."
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Even though it is with her blessing, I feel guilty leaving Ohna behind as we pack the next morning. She sees me off, tucking some poultices and herbs into my full pack. Waving and smiling as we depart. Green grass turns to desert, and my heart seems to dry and shrivel with it. The sun overhead is too harsh with no branches to shelter us.
Teak is happy to see the party leave intact, and I am sure Mab considers it a victory as well. My mood is a dark cloud over the troupe. If only I could make it rain. At least then this loss would be of some benefit.
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
