By the end of the lesson, Kayra almost jumped out of her skin when Tsireya declared that it was time for dinner; she had completely forgotten that she hadn't been alone with Neteyam for the past few hours.
She tried to quell the almost put-out feeling that was coursing through her as they got up and started to make their way back to the village, having enjoyed herself so much in Neteyam's company. She had found herself liking his attention being on her alone and no one else.
Assuming that he'd want to talk to his siblings, Kayra slipped in front of the group, walking a couple of paces ahead. But to Kayra's surprise, she barely managed to walk alone for five seconds before Neteyam joined her.
"Already running away from me, are we? Was I really that bad of a student?" He joked, matching her strides and looking down at her with a teasing gaze.
Kayra suppressed the giddy feeling welling up in her. "I'm starving," she said, only realising after making her excuse that it was true. None of them had eaten in the past six hours. She glanced up at Neteyam, meeting his eyes. "You're not a bad student. Mediocre perhaps, but not bad." She sent him a wry grin, unable to help herself.
He snorted good-heartedly, obviously knowing that he'd been a picture-perfect student. "I'll have to prove you wrong, then." He returned her grin, playing along. "Good thing you've promised me private lessons, or I might never have had a chance to redeem myself."
Kayra rolled her eyes and sidestepped a small bush, accidentally bumping into Neteyam with her arm and sending shivers up her spine. She wondered briefly if he had the same reaction to their skin touching as she did. "Can't today technically be passed off as a private lesson?"
Neteyam narrowed his eyes playfully, eyeing her. "Are you trying to get out of the lesson you promised me yesterday?"
He seemed unfazed by their touch. Maybe it was just her then.
Kayra chuckled. "Fine, you caught me. I haven't actually prepared anything for today." This was only half true. After she'd caught Neteyam's arm yesterday and offered him to do the private lesson the next day, plenty of things that she could teach him had run through her mind. Kayaking, fishing, hunting, facts about the ecosystem—nothing seemed interesting enough for the son of Toruk Makto. Kayra found herself wanting to impress him. Talking about a skimwing's anatomy had suddenly seemed dull and unimportant.
Neteyam's eyes flashed before a small smirk tugged on the corner of his mouth. "I'm sure we could think of something." Before Kayra had time to consider if there had been a double meaning to that line, his expression changed into something more earnest. "Just don't cancel, okay?"
Kayra swallowed, meeting his gaze. "Alright."
Dinner took forever. It seemed to stretch out, lasting hours upon hours. All she wanted was for the fires to be doused with water so that she and Neteyam could excuse themselves and be alone.
She chanced a glance over at Neteyam, who was talking to her sister. Kayra considered for the hundredth time if she, herself, should splash some water on the bonfires and end the meal.
As the group had arrived by the bonfires, Kayra had been swept over to her friends by an overly eager Teol, who wanted to have her provide her opinions on an argument the friend group was having. She'd laughed when the others had laughed and pretended to listen when the others had talked, but her mind had been elsewhere.
She pried her eyes away from Neteyam and Tsireya and tried to focus on Mako, who was currently in the middle of wrapping up why she was right and the others were wrong.
"All I'm trying to say is that it's completely ridiculous to even consider bonding with an Akula just to make you 'look cool'." She shot an accusing stare at Teol, who seemed to bask in the pleasure of having riled her up.
On the other side of Kayra, Atan rolled his eyes.
"We know that, Mako; we're agreeing with you." As he spoke, he absentmindedly placed a hand on Kayra's knee, stopping her leg from bouncing up and down, which was the fourth time he'd have to do that this evening. As Kayra inhaled and forced her leg to stop, Atan squeezed her knee reassuringly before letting his hand fall to his side once again.
Mako huffed, "You may be, but this-" she gestured to Teol sharply, "incorrigible creature seems to have other intentions."
Ka'an, who was sitting by Teol's side, snorted. "That's only because he loves getting a rise out of you." He punched Teol's shoulder warningly: "Stop trying to give my sister an aneurysm, Skxawng; you know how she gets."
Teol grinned, not at all disturbed by the fact that he'd just been hit. "That's why it's so fun."
Mako turned to Kayra and Atan, sighing exasperatedly, "Remind me why we're friends with him again?"
"Hey, I heard that!" Teol exclaimed, earning a chuckle from Ka'an and Atan. Teol's eyes were fixed on Kayra. "Why have you chosen to opt out of this conversation? You haven't said a word in the last ten minutes." He stared at her accusingly.
Ka'an piped in, "Yeah, he's right. Kay, you're usually the first to call out Teol on his bullshit."
"Or the first to talk bullshit," Atan coughed teasingly, making the rest of the group laugh.
Kayra snorted and elbowed Aran in the side playfully. "Just tired, that's all." With that vague excuse of an answer, the conversation continued, albeit on a different topic, with Teol having decided to stop torturing Mako for the time being.
But just before Kayra could turn her head to glance at Neteyam again, Teol caught her eye, his playful demeanour gone as he mouthed, 'You alright?'
Kayra shot him a small smile, nodding reassuringly, and Teol turned back to the conversation.
Finally, finally, finally, the fire was doused, and her friend group had stood up to leave. It wasn't that she didn't love to spend time with her friends. Usually, she would have loved to be in the middle of the conversations and arguments about the most ridiculous things on the planet. But with the promise of being alone with Neteyam after dinner, well, she just couldn't focus.
As she declined an invitation to go skip rocks further down the shore—Ka'an had just this morning found the flattest rock he'd ever seen and was sure to beat Teol's record—she went to hug them goodbye.
As she watched her friends walk away from her, heading to the beach, laughing and teasing each other, a small part of her brain hissed at her to go after them, to join them, and forget about the boy who she barely knew. She squashed it down, promising herself that she'd spend time with her friends again tomorrow. It wasn't as if she was choosing Neteyam over her friends. She'd just promised him—and her parents, sort of—that she'd help him adapt. There was no harm in that.
She inhaled and turned around, finding Neteyam's eyes already on her, watching her with an unreadable expression. As their eyes connected, he shot her a small, expectant smile that made Kayra forget about her friends completely.
She made her way over to him and their siblings. Tsireya and Lo'ak were talking quietly together besides where Neteyam was standing, waiting for her, and Tsireya shot her a smile as she passed. Kayra vaguely noticed that Tuk and Kiri weren't by the fire anymore and glanced behind Neteyam to see their retreating figures winding their way back to their pod.
She smiled sheepishly up at Neteyam as she came to a stop in front of him. His eyes were sparkling in the setting sun as he looked down at her. "Good dinner? We missed you over here."
A spark of pleasure shot down Kayra's spine at his words. She managed to roll her eyes, trying not to show how much he affected her. "I was barely fifteen feet away from you guys."
"Still," he replied, smiling softly. "So, have you had time to think about the subject of today's lesson, or are you going to have to wing it?" He teased lightly, crossing his arms.
"As a matter of fact, I have had time to think about it." She responded, mirroring his position and crossing her arms as well, looking up at him defiantly, "And even if I were to wing it, you'd still have a wonderful and educational time."
Neteyam chuckled softly, tilting his head slightly. "I don't doubt it." The air hung heavy between them, Kayra feeling her cheeks warm under Neteyam's intent gaze. She held her breath, resisting the urge to bite her lip nervously as she fumbled for something to say.
Suddenly, Neteyam cleared his throat, breaking the tension. He rubbed the back of his neck, attempting to shift gears. "So, uhm, where-" He cleared his throat, trying to regain composure. "Where are we going?"
It was the first time Kayra had really seen Neteyam nervous and a bit out of sorts; he was normally so confident and sure of himself. It was nice to see that she affected him too. Kayra couldn't help but giggle at him a little, making Neteyam quirk an eyebrow at her as he shot her a bemused smile.
"I was thinking we'd go to-" Kayra didn't get further in her suggestion as a dainty hand was placed on Neteyam's upper arm, giving Kayra a horrible sense of Déjà vu.
"Hi, Neteyam," Tili's sickly sweet voice cut Kayra off. "You're not leaving yet, are you? I was trying to catch you earlier on today, but you were—" her eyes shot to Kayra, distaste shining through them as she looked at her, "otherwise occupied." She finished and turned back to Neteyam, her eyes returning to being overly friendly.
It was like she'd been doused with ice water. Kayra had to rip her eyes away from where Tili's hand was resting on Neteyam's bicep and look up at Neteyam. He was regarding Tili, his eyes slightly scrunched in confusion. Kayra tried not to feel too much pleasure as he readjusted, causing Tili's hand to fall down by her side. She felt as if she could breathe a little again.
"Oh, er," Neteyam rubbed the back of his neck again. "Hi, Tili. Why were you looking for me?" He asked politely, obviously not trying to come off as rude.
This earned a giggle from Tili. "Well, I promised you a tour of the village yesterday, didn't I, silly?" She turned to Kayra and said, "You remember that, don't you, Kay? You were there." Kayra fumed at the fact that Tili had called her 'Kay' as if they were old friends.
Tili was looking at her expectantly, and Kayra was left with no choice but to reply through gritted teeth, "Yes. You did." She inhaled deeply, focusing on smiling, although she was sure it looked tight and forced.
Tili turned back to Neteyam, "See? You're free now, right? The village is prettiest at sunset, so you're in luck!"
"Actually, Kayra and I-" Neteyam began, but Kayra cut him off.
"-Were just finished talking. He's free now." She smiled tightly at them both.
Tili beamed up at Neteyam. But he wasn't looking at her. He was looking at Kayra, hurt flashing in his eyes, and Kayra hated herself for being the one who had caused it. Neteyam quickly caught himself, setting his jaw, and an unreadable expression slithered across his face as he looked at Kayra.
"Alright." He said, searching Kayra's face. She didn't know what he was looking for as she returned his gaze. She thought she caught a glimpse of disappointment before he turned his head down towards Tili. "Lead the way." He smiled at her politely, and Kayra's heart tightened painfully.
As they walked away, Tili chatting heartedly, Kayra slumped down besides her sister with a sigh, dropping her head in her arms out of embarrassment. There goes that evening.
After a couple of seconds, Kayra couldn't help but notice how quiet it was, and she raised her head to glance at her sister and Lo'ak to find them looking at her with accusatory stares.
"What?" Kayra asked, confused.
Tsireya snorted, shaking her head in disbelief. "You're an idiot; did you know that?"
Lo'ak nodded in agreement on the other side of her sister. "That was a train wreck."
"A what?"
Tsireya didn't give Lo'ak time to explain, "Why did you let Tili whisk him away?" She prodded. "He clearly didn't want to be with her tonight."
Kayra sighed, "I already have a rocky enough relationship with Tili. I don't want to ruin it completely. We do exist in the same social circle, you know."
Kayra's attempt at lightening the conversation was shut down by Tsireya's pointed stare. Kayra felt irritation prick at her. "What? I'm telling the truth, okay?" She snapped, annoyed at both her sister and herself for getting angry so quickly. She had stepped down and let Tili hang out with Neteyam tonight because of their rocky relationship. But not because it mattered to Kayra if Tili liked her or not. No, Kayra was doing it for her sister because she knew that Tsireya hated that she and Tili weren't friends anymore. But if Tsireya couldn't see that, Kayra had no idea how to convey her intentions properly.
"Kay, don't be ridiculous. You've never been concerned about Tili's feelings before this. Why are you all of a sudden so-"
Kayra stood up immediately, cutting off her sister in the progress, anger at being accused of not caring slithering around her stomach like hot fire. She had to get away from Tsireya before Kayra said something she'd' regret. "Please skip the lecture, okay, Reya. I'm not in the mood for this right now," she clipped before storming off towards where her friends had disappeared off to earlier.
—
"I don't want to be a bad friend or anything, but I agree with Tsireya."
Kayra groaned, dropping her head in her hands. "You know what the worst thing is? I kind of do too..." she raised her head again quickly. "And I hate that I got mad at her. She didn't deserve it; she was only trying to help."
Mako chuckled. "Kay, if there is one thing your friends know about you, it's the fact that you are quick to anger. No one thinks any of it, especially not your sister." She leant back on her hands, stretching her long legs in front of her, and gazed towards where the boys were skipping rocks a bit further down the beach. The sun was halfway gone, the landscape painted in beautiful colors of yellow and orange, causing the ocean to look like writhing fire. The boys' yells and laughter floated up to the two girls as they sat.
"You know, I don't know if what Tsireya said about Neteyam wanting to spend time with you and not Tili is true or not. But I do know that you wanted to be with him tonight, not us." She gestured vaguely at herself and the boys. Kayra started to protest but Mako held up a hand, "It's okay, I don't blame you for it. He's cute." She winked at her.
"That's not-"
"Regardless, you need to be better at prioritising yourself. Allow yourself to be interested in him. Even if it's just a friendship." She shifted, crossing her ankles, and looked at Kayra, trying to catch her eye. Kayra suddenly found herself very interested in the way the sand looked as she dragged a finger through it. She squeezed her knees tighter to her body.
Silence filled the air between them for a minute before Kayra knew she couldn't drag it out any longer. She could still feel Mako's eyes practically burning a hole into the side of her head.
Sighing, she turned her head to look at her friend. "You're right," she whispered.
Mako's eyes scrunched. "What was that? I couldn't hear you."
Kayra laughed, shoving her friend gently, and Mako giggled in response.
"You're right, you skxawng. Happy?"
"Immensely." Mako grinned.
Kayra's eyes rolled in amusement, a soft smile tugging at her lips. Of course Mako was right. She deserved to allow herself to see why Neteyam intrigued her as he did. There was nothing wrong with being interested in him; she had no idea why she kept denying the fact that she was. No, that was a lie. She did know.
"I'm just scared." She heard herself whisper, her gaze fixed on the horizon.
Besides her, Mako scrunched her face in confusion, "Scared? Scared of what?"
Kayra hesitated. "I'm not entirely sure. Maybe it's just the fact that I find him interesting. It's not a feeling I've ever felt before." She admitted, feeling almost silly. But Mako didn't laugh at her, which wasn't something Kayra had expected her to either.
There was silence for a few beats as the words hung in the air between the two girls. Then Mako sighed. "You know what I used to envy about you?" When Kayra shook her head, Mako continued, "You were never scared. When we were younger, you always climbed the tallest trees, always swam further down than everyone else, always took everyone up on any challenge, any argument. It came so natural to you." She snorted, "It still does. I don't think I've ever seen you scared a day of your life."
Kayra heard herself laugh without humour, "But now I'm pathetic because I don't know how to feel about a boy?"
Mako shook her head gently, "No. You're still that brave girl that I envied once. That I admire now. It's okay to be scared, Kay. That means it's worth something, right?" She stood up, extending a hand down towards Kayra. "And if I know you at all, I know you're going to make this new feeling your bitch."
Kayra looked at her friend's hand for a second before a smile spread across her face. "Yeah, I am." She grabbed Mako's hand and allowed her to haul her up.