Little Miss Perfect | Neteyam¹

Chapter 19: First Heartbreak

Italicize - someone's thoughts or a story from the past

Bold - sign language

When Norm left the Metkayina clan the day after Marali had woken up, the teen girl begged him to stay a little longer, even if it was only a day more. However, Norm told her he had to get back home, and he couldn't stay any longer.

This had upset Marali because this was the first time she had seen her father in person in a couple of months. She wished that he would have just done what she asked this one time.

After Norm left, Marali had been so upset that she refused to talk to anyone for a couple of days. The girl knew that it wasn't their fault, but she was so overwhelmed with her emotions that she was worried if she talked to them she might accidentally hurt them.

Growing up, Marali had to push a lot of her emotions down because she had to look strong, she had to be strong. So, whenever she was upset or angry, she tended to self-isolate as a way to deal with the pain. It wasn't that Norm discouraged her from showing her emotions, but he also didn't encourage her to do so either. He was often worried about what the other Na'vi would think if she threw a temper tantrum or cried her eyes out.

However, after those two days, Marali's attitude deeply improved, and she was feeling much better.

Because she and Kiri had a seizure, they still weren't approved to rejoin the others in training. This didn't stop the girls from finding something useful to do with their time, though. The girls would weave baskets, make jewelry, and help prepare food.

Eventually, the girls ran out of shells to work with, so they decided to go to the beach to see if they could find some.

Both Kiri and Marali were walking on the beach when they saw Tuk in the distance talking to someone. "Who is she talking to?" Kiri asked. Marali shrugged her shoulders and grabbed the girl's hand to take a closer look.

As the two girls got closer, they saw Tuk talking to a boy. Kiri and Marali looked at each other with knowing smiles.

"I made this for you," Tuk said as she held out the bracelet to the boy. The Metkayina boy looked at it and took it in his hand. "Why are you giving me this?" He asked curiously.

Tuk looked down at the ground shyly before looking back up at the boy. "My friend said that you are supposed to give these bracelets to the person you like," Tuk responded. The young boy looked at her before smiling. "I like you too." He said.

Tuk looked up at him with a bright smile. "Really?" She exclaimed.

The Metkayina boy nodded his head as a blush formed on his cheeks. Tuk lit up like the sun at his response.

"Aww." Kiri and Marali said at the same time. "They're so cute, my heart might explode," Marali said, motioning her hand over her heart. Kiri rolled her eyes at her friend's behavior but still had a smile on her face, nonetheless.

"We should continue looking for shells," Kiri said as she pulled Marali away from watching the two adorable children they were eavesdropping on moments before. Marali whined that she wanted to stay and watch, but Kiri still mercilessly pulled her away, not listening to her pleas to continue eavesdropping.

Kiri looked at her friend and snorted at her dramatic antics. The girl was pouting like a child with her arms crossed and her bottom lip stuck out. "Are you seriously going to pout like a toddler?" Kiri questioned. Marali rolled her eyes and brought a smile up to her face. "No, but I seriously wanted to continue listening. I have to get all the details before telling your dad." Marali smirked.