Safuraa was lost, and kind of afraid. He had gotten frustrated with Asha's stoic disposition and wanted her to pay attention to him, but she was so distracted. He needed her attention - he absolutely craved it and she was not providing him with what he needed. He was so lonely. It made his heart ache in his chest and he growled into the night sky, biting at the air in frustration. Little did he know, he was being watched silently by another. He huffed out his tantrum, stomping his feet and making a dust cloud all about him until he coughed. Sand invaded his eyes, forcing him to shut them.
He wanted to cry. Nothing was going the way he wanted it to and he was so angry! He whimpered out, eyes sealed shut. Now he was really lost and no one was going to help him and Asha didn't know where he was and, and--
And a soft paw gently touched him. He flinched back violently, frightened. "Don't fret," a raspy voice sounded near him. "I will help you." The soft paw touched him once again, tilting his dirty face up. Safuraa sniffled softly, tears pooling at the corners of his eyes. The low grumbling voice shushed him softly, cleaning the dust from his face.
He could feel a rough tongue lathe over his eyes, clearing the dust from them. The other feline was gentle and patient, giving off a humming purr. It was a distinct cheetah sound that he could recognize anywhere despite never hearing it before. He shivered, hiccoughing as he tried to hold back tears. It was overwhelming. Sure, Asha showed him a lot of kindness, but she was so cold. Once she was done, he would be cast away like an old bone.
And it hurt - he couldn't bare the pain of being ignored by someone he was fawning over. He tried to hold back the tears, but he could not. Still, the soothing shushes and gentle cleaning continued and his eyes remained closed.
They stays like that for quite some time, Safuraa calming down just a enough to sop his constant shaking. "There now, " the raspy voice sounded again, and he finally allowed his eyes to open. A female cheetah sat before him, sandy-colored in nature and closed his eyes again for a moment.
Breaking down was. Terrible, embarrassing. He hated that he had, especially that he had pushed that on a stranger of all things. He ducked his head, ears flipping back in submission and uncertainty. The other cheetah had a somewhat bemused expression on her face.
She lifted his head with a kind paw, raising his head with the sand-cracked paw pads. She gazed at him and he fidgeted in guilt and unease. "Umn?" He murmured, and she chuckled softly and cleared her throat, as if dust was stuck somewhere in her throat.
"What ails you?" She asked. Her voice still sound rough and scratchy, but by now Safuraa found it somewhat comforting. The white cheetah shifted and frowned, glancing away for a moment. "Oh, I just..." It sounded silly when he thought about it.
Someone that wasn't even his mate didn't give him attention. That was just... silly and presumptuous. Was it though? He felt heartbroken - that was reason enough to throw a fit... right? He mumbled that to the other cheetah, bashfully ducking his head away from her paw.
He huffed a sigh, curling in a bit on himself. "She's so nice to me," he murmured. "She understands most of my needs and gives them freely, you understand right? She knows more about me than I do..." He tried to explain it.
But she just gave him a somewhat sad smile and told him that she was sorry that she could never love him the way he wanted to. She told him she could care for his physical needs, and - to some extent - his emotional needs.
"There, there," she rasped back, in attempt to comfort him, and at least it afforded her a small watery giggle. She smiled at him. "Come with me, we will rest this night and your problems will seem smaller in the morning." The words were difficult, especially for so long of a sentence.
He contemplated her offer for a moment and gave a hesitant nod. It was probably best not to stray too far anyhow, lest Asha come for him and scold him for running off like an unruly cub. The sandy cheetah nudged him and walked past him into a small alcove not far from where they were.
It was shadowy, cool, and the grass was soft. Most importantly, however, was the the alcove was safe. It was hidden from most predators and looked just like a hill, but it dipped down again in the center like a basin. Had a lot of rain come, it would be a shallow pool of water, he figured. Grass grew lush and green in the center.
He wondered how she had found this, but the questioning noise was simply met with a soft laugh. She settled down on one side, exposing her pink belly - it was somewhat scarred (from a fight, he assumed?). She tilted her head, beckoning him to join her in the soft, lush spot.
He hesitated, brief moment before settling next to her. She smiled at him and began to talk softly about anything that came to get mind. It wasn't something she normally did, with her voice scratch in her throat like a sandstorm waiting to escape. Her breath caught a few times in her throat, but she carried on like normal, murmuring softly until the white cheetah fell asleep. She hoped to never see the pain of heartbreak on another's face ever again.
And if she did, she would do whatever it was in her power to fix the poor thing's heart, but she could only do so much. She figured it would be about as easy as making the scars on her stomach disappear.
As easy as catching a falling star.
