𝐓𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐞 ⎮Neteyam x Aonung

fifteen

Neteyam's breathing stopped.

Neither was he able to make out for how long exactly, nor was he capable of getting his heart to beat regularly again. A single droplet of sweat made its way down to the surface of the marble counter. If he had looked closely, Neteyam would've been able to see his own reflection glistening in it. The boy was unsure of why it happened to be the nervousness that took hold of him in that moment, but he knew for a fact that this didn't mean any good.
A small gulp, visible due to his moving Adam's apple, along with repeated blinking, caused him to lose his mind one by one.

"Ao'nung!" the girl's startling voice suddenly echoed through the kitchen as she greeted her brother, peeling another tangerine. Although they didn't wake up too long ago, Tsireya was already full of energy. Her brother, who had just locked the back door behind him as he approached the large island, was cheered by her smile as well as everyone else in the room.
Even though the boy's voice was hardly audible, the small "hey" that it produced nonetheless caused shivers to appear all over Neteyam's body. The sound of Ao'nung's deep voice brought back terrifying memories from the previous night.
The particular ones that he would never share with anyone.

Yet, to his surprise, that was the first and last time Ao'nung looked at him, as they didn't exchange another glance after that. The taller na'vi seemed to be ignoring him. Ao'nung not only stood as far away from Neteyam as possible, but he also avoided his presence entirely. Neteyam received not one ounce of attention.
He, on the other hand, was unbothered. In truth, the youngster was grateful for Ao'nung's ignorance. But that didn't change the fact that he felt strange as well. Embarrassed, even perplexed.

Suddenly, Lo'ak called out his name, causing him to flinch slightly in shock. A few blinks brought his consciousness back to reality. He cleared his throat. "Sorry, I zoned out a bit," the older brother admitted while shaking his head, a pinch of shame decorating his low voice. He hadn't noticed the full conversation the others were having without him.
Lo'ak shifted away from his stool, gulping down the remainder of the water in his glass. "I thought so," he replied, sighing slightly. "We should go now; mom and dad will kill us" .

All of a sudden, an incredibly long groan left Neteyam's mouth. Given the recent events, the boy had completely filtered out his difficult parents and their strict parenting style. The siblings promised to return to their homes by 12 a.m. He has no desire to know how many missed calls and messages he has received by now.
Speaking of which, this train of thought brought Neteyam to the case of his lost belongings, a.k.a., his phone and his clothes. Those were still Ao'nung's things plastered around his skin, after all.
As he looked himself down, the boy was able to feel the mentioned boy's glance piercing through him. Yet the second he looked back up, Ao'nung's head shot in the opposite direction immediately. "Just give them to me on Monday," the teal na'vi muttered coldly, continuing to avoid Neteyam's eyes. Ao'nung didn't, however, miss the way the other's ears perked up and tail flicked at his voice.

Silently, Ao'nung scoffed. "I'll bring you your things," he claimed before walking upstairs without saying anything further.
Neteyam became perplexed as a result of this. The young man couldn't tell if the other liked him or not, or if he recalled anything from the previous night. He should be able to, though, considering Ao'nung had to be sober because he drove them here.
Still, why did he treat him in this manner?

Neteyam felt compelled to find out. After all, he couldn't just forget about the entire night and pretend it never happened.

The na'vi inhaled deeply. "I'll be right back," he announced abruptly, darting out of the kitchen and disappearing around the corner.

If not now, when will it be?