Flawless [Neteyam x Ao'nung ]

Chapter 21: Snapped

The night is peaceful.

It's calm.

Not a lot of movement is occurring, surprisingly since there's always something happening in Awa'altu - whether it's in the village or outside the village. However, tonight is just one of those nights where it's still, calm, peaceful. 

Well, for the most part.

Kiri hasn't been able to stop laughing as she walks alongside Rotxo, who's going off on a story of his training period. He doesn't show it but he was pretty wild, and the fact that now he embraces it shows how he's moving past it - maturing with the experience to be better. However, how he expresses it dramatically everything he experienced really was the cherry on top as to how Kiri is cracking up right now - unable to help herself to the imagery in her head.

Rotxo is quite entertaining to say the least.

"You're laughing now but girl I was terrified - Imagine having a child chase after you just because you accidentally took her spear - Listen, before you guys came, it was wild here."

"I can tell," Kiri chuckles, a hand to her mouth as she tried to hold back her giggles, "That would've been a sight for sore eyes."

"Just like you?"

On a regular basis, Kiri would gush to those flirty compliments and geek up - probably get physically affectionate or force him aside just because of the embarrassment. However this time, she frowns as she remembers what happened when her and Ao'nung went to go talk to his parents.

She hasn't told Rotxo about it yet, since she just wanted to linger a little moment longer with him being this happy with her - but she can't keep holding it to herself and fooling him at the same time.

Yet it seems like Rotxo isn't someone who's easily blinded by the inevitable, since he was also frowning and he stops walking beside her. Kiri painfully stops walking too, taking a few deep breaths before turning around to face him.

"Listen, Rotxo -"

"I know what you're going to tell me," Rotxo says quietly, masking the clear pain in his heart with a small smile, "I was there, I listened from outside."

Kiri for once finally let that weight of her feelings settle on her chest, not bothering to hide how it's torturing her from the inside. Not like Ao'nung is a piece of shit, but the two have no sense of affection or love for each other in the sense to be married and develop a family together. In this process, she also never expected to grow feelings for Rotxo in the way she did.

In the beginning, his presence was too overwhelming for her - since clearly no one in the family resonate that same energy. He was just a ball of emotions, and he had no shame in expressing it however he wanted.

That also involved how he demonstrated his feelings for Kiri, but not as bombarding - he simply has a charm that really pulls people to him, and with Kiri he simply couldn't find it in himself to hide anything. 

And Kiri liked that. 

Far more than that actually.

That's why it wasn't easy having him stand right in front of her, knowing that a future where they'd laugh together while walking alongside the beach while holding hands or share tender moments won't be present.

It can't be present.

The idea got Kiri emotional, and that's rare since she doesn't get emotional so often - the last time being when.... Neteyam lost his voice, and Spider being gone.

She doesn't know what to do, she really doesn't.

"Hey, take it easy," Rotxo cooes soothingly, gently holding Kiri by her arms with his thumbs running alongside her skin, "Look at me please."