In "Sitting In a Tree" I also had a line where Guy said he had kissed somebody before, but it was a weird situation and he didn't think it counted. I hadn't really thought it through at the time, but it bugged me, because I'm anal that way, and I started thinking about what that might have been, and also about how awful it would be to go through all the craziness of puberty without anyone there to explain why your body was suddenly going nuts, and so this piece was born. It's not really a stand-alone, and it doesn't really fit with the original story, so I didn't know what to do with it until now. I like the idea, but the execution probably could have been a little more nuanced. Anyway, I had fun writing it, so here you go.
A Weird Situation
He made his own camp on the outskirts of the nomad tribe's, close enough for some measure of protection but not so much that he was presuming on their hospitality. All of the tribes had their own customs, and Guy had learned to be cautious. Nobody had minded him when he was small, but with his height increasing almost daily and the sudden broadening of his shoulders, he was greeted with more wariness whenever he met others. This tribe had traded with him, let him eat with them, and while they hadn't invited him in, they hadn't chased him off, either.
He'd found a fairly secure area, at least, where he could sleep between his fire and a rock outcropping. That was a positive; he hated sleeping with his back exposed. He stretched himself out on the ground, watching the play of light and shadow on the rock above him, until his eyes began to drift shut.
He was almost asleep when he sensed a shadow fall over him. His eyes popped open and he had the faintest impression of a flowery scent before a pair of full lips crashed against his mouth. Every single nerve of his body suddenly awake and vibrating, he was completely unprepared for the sudden press of a soft, curving body all along his. For a moment, he couldn't breathe. Long eyelashes fluttered against his cheek.
When his surprise visitor finally released him, he gasped for air. She giggled.
"Um, hi," he said cautiously.
"Hi," she smiled, and he hadn't known a girl's voice could sound like that, soft and throaty. She leaned forward and kissed him again, her body sliding against his. He arched against her without meaning to, making a muffled sound against her lips - a sound that turned into an embarrassing kind of whimper when her tongue slid into his mouth.
His brain said he was in trouble. His body said he was in paradise.
"Take me with you," the girl breathed against his mouth. "I want to go with you."
"Where?" he asked stupidly, trying to figure out what in the world was going on. He might be dreaming, but his dreams usually weren't so—detailed.
"Anywhere," she said, with a touch of impatience. "I don't care, as long as it's not here." She dropped her head and trailed her lips across his collarbone. "I'll make it worth the trouble, I promise."
His body was chanting more, more, more and his mind was trying to tell him rather vehemently that this was a very bad idea, though he couldn't quite remember why. "Look, um...what's your name?"
"Jenna," she said, drawing back a little. She sounded put out. "We met earlier."
"Sorry, it's dark," he said, trying to think. It was easier now that she wasn't moving. "Jenna. The one with the nice hair?"
She shifted, and her hair fell in a soft cascade against him. That was the source of the flower scent he'd noticed earlier. "Okay," he said, his voice cracking. "I remember now. Um...what about your parents?"
"I don't have any," she said, an edge in her voice. "Nobody cares about me here."
It was all starting to make a little more sense now. She was like him - tolerated, but not really liked, and now she wanted out. With him.
Badly, apparently. Her lips touched his neck and he hissed through his teeth.
"It's dangerous," he managed.
"You're strong," she purred, her nails running down the newly defined muscles of his chest and abdomen. "You'll protect me."
"Me?" he practically squeaked, wincing at the crack in his voice. No one had ever called him strong before. He had been putting on more muscle lately, or so it had seemed to him. Vaguely he wondered what he looked like now; he hadn't seen his reflection in months.
She lifted her head and the firelight fell over her face for the first time. "Please," she said. "I'm not afraid. I just—I can't be here anymore." He could see hollow cheeks and red eyes, and suddenly he understood how desperate she was. This is wrong, he thought, as she moved against him again.
"W-wait, woah," he stammered, pushing himself up on his elbows, forcing her to move. Jenna sat up, and her weight settling on his hips made him bite the inside of his cheek. "You don't have to do this," he managed, grateful that his voice, for once, remained steady and deep. "If you want to go, I'll take you."
Her eyes widened, and then narrowed slightly. "Why?"
"You heard me tell the headman what's coming, right? If you stay here you'll die anyway. At least with me you have a chance."
Jenna tilted her head. "Do you really believe that? That the world is going to end?"
"I've seen it," Guy said shortly. "I'm not making it up." He was getting tired of not being believed. He shook it off. "Anyway, why not?" Guy shrugged, and smiled slightly. "I could use the company. I'm tired of being alone."
The fire flared and in that moment, he saw something in her eyes, and when she spoke, it was in a small, honest voice. "Me too."
Guy swallowed hard as that voice tugged at his own lonely heart. "Okay," he said. "We'll go."
She smiled, and then, a little hesitantly, leaned forward, eyes on his mouth. Guy put a hand on her arm, still braced on his other elbow. "Only if you want to," he said quietly, his heart in his throat.
She nodded, and bent closer. Guy's body was screaming yes, yes, yes, while his mind whispered, just this once...
Later he would remember, as he felt her breath on his face and his eyes drifted shut, seeing out of the corner of his eye their shadows thrown large against the rock, clear silhouettes that flickered and danced in the fire.
Her lips settled gently against his, warm and soft, and the fingers of his left hand dug into the ground beside him, his right still gripping her arm.
Then abruptly both her warmth and her weight were gone, her arm ripped out of his fingers. He heard her cry out just as pain exploded across his face, the force of the blow throwing him sideways. Before he could recover, another kick landed in his ribs. He heard Jenna scream.
But this was not the first time Guy had taken a sucker punch, and he grit his teeth through the pain, rolling away and coming up to his feet with a handful of ash from the fire. He threw his handful of ash in the man's face and delivered a carefully aimed kick to the man's stomach at the same time. The man's air whooshed out of him and he fell to his knees, struggling to breathe.
"Looks like we're going now," Guy said grimly, wiping his hand off on his pants. He looked over at Jenna, who cowered against the rock, her eyes wide and a hand over her mouth. "Come on," Guy urged. "He won't be the only one for long." He'd been through this routine enough to know what to expect. Nobody ever cared who started the fight or why. He hoped the girl could run. He didn't fancy taking on the whole camp single-handedly.
Jenna staggered to her feet, and started to come towards him, but the man on the ground lurched up and grabbed her wrist. "Don't," he wheezed, looking up at her.
Guy thought he saw a glimmer of recognition in Jenna's face, and his jaw tightened. Maybe she wasn't as alone in the village as she'd led him to believe. "Jenna, I have to go now," Guy said, looking back towards the camp. "Do you want to leave with me or not?"
"I-" Jenna looked at him, and back at the man still holding her wrist. Guy watched him warily, as the man started to get to his feet, raising his eyes to glare at Guy.
"I fight to win," Guy warned him, drawing his knife. "Just let us go. I don't want to hurt anyone."
"You can go," the man grunted. "She stays." He tightened his hold on the girl's arm.
Guy looked at her. "Jenna? Go or stay?"
She was staring down at the man, and the man was staring back at her. "Jenna," the man said softly.
"I'm—" she swallowed, and looked up at Guy. "I'm staying," she said, so quietly he almost couldn't hear her.
He could still feel her lips on his. Guy turned away, grabbing a branch from the fire. "It's not safe here," he told them both one more time, not quite turning to look at them. "You need to get your tribe to high ground." He waited a beat, and when there was no answer, he turned away and started running.