Welcome to Gaia! ::

Nesrinn waved and smiled at Kara as he lounged on the deck of her uncles’ desert home. It had been almost two years since they first met and, at first, Rinn hadn’t thought anything about it — figured he’d never see her again after that day on the beach. He’d been wrong, of course, and somehow they’d had another chance meeting in the pit. Things had seemed to snowball from there. He had enjoyed her company. So much so that he found himself missing her, like he’d never missed anyone before, something awful whenever she was gone back home. He still wasn’t sure where she lived, just that it was up in the Terra Expanse, and he had never pushed her to tell him. Some things were better left for later.

He moved down to the first step off of the deck and let his feet rest in the water as he watched Kara play with Lyari. As he watched her, he couldn’t help but remember the first time he had kissed her. It hadn’t been the last, either. Each time he saw her, since that night, he had stolen kisses from her. Some were brief, chaste kisses and others were more intimate and experimental. As the year went on, Rinn had found himself falling more and more for the hybrid girl who’d saved his life.

He sighed, his smile falling away temporarily as he thought of the secret he still kept from her. Rinn wanted to tell her, wanted to let her know about the other half of him and see how she react before he got anymore serious about her. And boy did he want to get serious. He rubbed at his chest, frowning as he stared at the water, attention no longer on Kara. It was so strange, the sensations he felt at just the sight of her — it felt as if his stomach had burst into a million butterflies and his heart was trying to escape from his chest.

How, though, did one tell someone they were a hybrid? Especially after having kept such a thing to themselves the whole time. There was also the problem of who her father was and one of the main reasons he hadn’t told her, yet. Detraeus was a well known name amongst the fighters of the pit, even though he hadn’t fought in so long. The brutality of which he’d killed his opponents still lived on — especially those with orderite blood. He had learned that there had been only one person, with orderite blood running through their veins, that had survived the man. And, apparently, that was Casseth. One of Kara’s uncles.

Rinn watched the small waves crash against the steps, and his feet, as he weighed as he went over the many different ways in which he could reveal his orderite side to her.

Nesrinn jerked out of his own thoughts at the voice and turned. His brows pinched together at the sight of Akara’s uncle and his question. Rinn wondered what kind of advice the older dovaa could or would give to him. He’d known of his hybrid status since they first met and, even after so many years, the man had kept his secret. He ran a hand through his loose hair and sighed as he pushed up from the steps. “I was just thinking...about things…” He paused and glanced back out to the ocean, just in time to see Kara dive below the surface. A small smile curled up his lips before he turned back to Lithian.

“I want to tell her.” His smile faded quickly. “But I’m not sure how. Or how she’ll take it. What if she hates me…?”

Nesrinn’s cheeks flushed and he looked away. “That I’m a hybrid. That I have orderite blood in me. And that I care for her, yes.”

“I have not. She knows I care. We’re friends. She just doesn’t know I…” His cheeks reddened and he shook his head. “You’re right. I should have said something sooner. That’s in the past though.” He stared out, smiling when Kara popped back up above the surface. At the mention of Kara’s father, Rinn’s gaze darted back to Lithian. “I know who her father is — what he done in the pit and who he did it to. Though I suspect keeping it from him will be hard to do if Kara decides to not hate me after I tell her.” He sighed, heart skipping a beat when he heard the splash of water and then footsteps on the deck. “We shall see, hmm?”

When Rinn turned away from Lithian, he came face to face to a soaking wet Kara. Her smile was infectious, causing Rinn to mimic the broad expression. “Hello uncle,” Kara said as she looked past Rinn. “I wish I could live down here. The water is so much different than that in our lake.” Her gaze flit back to Rinn, lips pouting. “You should have joined me. It was fun. Just ask Lyari.” The khehora trilled, shaking his body and sending water flying all over.

“Kara…we need to...” Rinn felt as if his tongue was too large for his mouth, causing his words to be cut off. He took a deep breath and reminded himself to remain calm. “We need to talk.” He glanced to Lithian, giving a slightly nod before taking hold of Kara’s hand. “In private. Please?” At Kara’s nod, he lead her off, not saying anything until they were a little ways away from the house, and Lithian’s hearing range.

“Rinn...what is it?” Kara stopped, unwilling to go any farther without hearing what he had to say.

Rinn frowned, stopping when Kara did and turning to face her. “There’s...a couple of things I need to tell you.” He stepped forward, wanting to get the lesser of the two evils out of the way (not that either was evil, in themselves...he just wasn’t sure how she’d react to the secret and him having kept it from her). “I care for you, Kara…”

“I know you do. I care for you too, Rinn. You’re my best friend, aside from my brother.”

Rinn shook his head, earning a confused frown from Kara. “Not like that, Akara. I care for you.” When her frown deepened he closed the rest of the space between them and sweeped in for a light, lingering kiss. When he pulled back, he rested his forehead against hers and sighed. “I love you,” he said as he clenched his eyes tight.

“You...love me?” He gave a small, almost not there, nod at the question and held his breath. “Rinn…” Her cheeks flushed and she felt as if she would cry. She wrapped her arms around him, catching him in a more urgent kiss, pressing against him and holding him tight. His arms wrapped around her, clinging as he kissed back. “I love you too, Nesrinn,” she said, breathless, as she pulled away from the kiss.

Nesrinn shuddered, relieved to have that out there and to have the feelings returned. His stomach dropped at the thought of what was to come next. “But…there’s something else, Kara. Something I haven’t told you.”

Kara frowned, letting her arms fall from around him and stepping back. “What?”

Nesrinn didn’t known any better way to tell her so he closed his eyes and let his wings unfurl from their tattoos. And waited.

Kara’s eyes widened at the feathered wings sprouting from Nesrinn’s back. “Hybrid…? You’re a hybrid?”

“Yes.”

“And you didn’t tell me…?”

“No.” He opened his eyes to look at Kara and winced at the hurt that was evident on her face.

“Why?” Kara’s eyes narrowed, the hurt turning into anger. “Why didn’t you tell me? Did you not trust me? Was it just a game?” Tears welled up inside of her as she remembered his words just moments ago. “Do you really love me, Rinn? Do you?”

“Of course I do, Kara!” He moved forward, arms stretched out to embrace her.

She shoved at his chest and then swatted his arms away from her. “No...don’t touch me.”

“Kara…”

“Leave me alone!” She turned, and ran back towards her uncles’ house. She didn’t stop until she had slammed the door to the guest room and collapsed, face down, onto the bed. She shuddered as she held back her tears. She would not allow herself to cry. It wasn’t the fact that Rinn was a hybrid — she could live with that — but he had lied to her. And not just for a little while. He had kept his secret for a good two years now.

Rinn sighed, wings sagging as he watched Kara run off and only followed after her when he heard the distant slam of a door. As he made his way up onto the deck, he paused at the door, debating on whether to follow her inside or not.

Nesrinn froze at Lithain’s voice. As he turned, he tucked his wings in close to him, protectively, and eyed the older man. “I…” He shut his mouth, frowning as he looked down at the ground. Lithian was right, of course. Kara was angry with him and trying to talk to her would only make things worse, most likely. “Thank you,” Rinn said as he looked up. “For talking with me, that is. I…” He hesitated, gaze fliting back to the door and the direction he was sure Kara had disappeared to. When he turned back towards Lith, he gave him a small smile and proceeded to tell the man where he lived, so that Kara could come seeking him should she wish to talk. With that done, he tucked his wings away and left, hoping that Kara would be less angry with him later.