Chapter 53 Eye of the hurricane

Isla
WHEN THE SUN SITS high up in the sky and the fullness in my stomach I got from eating the rabbit dissipates, I lose my patience and turn to Kyan who is lying face up on the ground. "I want to have a bath." I jump up from my favourite spot under the tree. I grab my bag and start tramping through trees, leaving footprints in the soft earth and scaring of birds from their perches as I go.
Kyan's heavy footsteps follows closely behind, he doesn't say anything but follows humbly which I'm utterly surprised at. When I stop confused on which path to take, he drapes his arm around my waist making me flinch and he steers me to the right path. We walk in silence letting only our breaths and the calls of the bustling forest be the sounds we hear. The familiar rush of the river grows louder and I quicken my steps not minding that I might come face-to-face with an aggressive mammal. My steps halt as my sandaled feet sinks into the sticky sand of the bank of the river. The current is strong enough to wash away a full grown person, I gulp my heart dances frantically in my chest.
"Let's go downstream," Kyan says and he grips my wrist making the bracelet lie flat on my wrist. I imagine the patterns the links have embedded in my skin.
Our feet sinks into the soft earth as we push forward. I stare into the water, the vibrant splashing water and its white sparkling foam mesmerises me. As we walk down the length of the river, its aggressive flowing reduces greatly until it's as calm and still as the river back at Kintil.
I watch Kyan strip to his dark blue briefs and ambles confidently into the water, he saunters in like the owns the river, the muscles of his back gliding smoothly under his tattoos as he goes. He swims a bit, playing like a child. I watch for a while like I'm in a trance.
"Aren't you coming in?" He grins brightly," the water is wonderful!"
Of course it is. I don't mind taking a bath myself but the only problem is how can I undress in front of him?
He notices my hesitation, then his features soften with understanding. "I can turn the other way if you want."
My scars would have been an issue too. I'm glad the henna does a great job of covering it up.
He turns around displaying his adorned back to me. Sucking in a breath, I pull the dress over my head and shiver as the breeze rolls over my skin. My pinkish-brown nipples tighten so they are like hard beads and my breathing becomes ragged. I waddle into the water, the chilling waves pulsates through my body making me shiver. Goosebumps erupt on my skin like a disease, I use one hand to cover my breasts in an ancient pose. The water rises to my knees and then to mywaist until I am submerged to my neck. I struggle to maintain my balance but the water sloshes around me and I mistakenly gulp some.
"Kyan... The water is too high." I cough a little.
"Can you swim?" He asks.
"Y-Yes," I stutter.
"Follow me." And he is slicing through the water like a dolphin doing long strokes with his strong arms.
I try my best to keep up with him, I bump into his back and he turns to look at me. The water is lower here, just below my breasts. His pupils dilate growing so big it almost consumes his whole eyes, he looks at me like he has never seen me before.
"You are... Beau—"
"You don't have to say anything," I snap. I don't want him to feel he has to compliment me, I don't need it. Confusion flickers in his features; his brows scrunching then it fades and only something like anger or shame is left. Maybe I have embarrassed him but I don't care.
I try to stay at arm length from him, we swim in silence and I catch him staring at me sometimes. When I do, he turns away with a sheepish smile on his lips and pretends to be engrossed by staring in the clear water.
Tired of swimming, and wanting to get my feet back on the ground, I begin to swim towards the bank.
"Isla!"Kyan's voice sounds very excited. I whip around to face him, my wet limp hair slapping across my face. He holds up a fish that is a long as my foot and as fat as my palm. "We have lunch!"
The fish wiggles and squirms excitedly and Kyan struggles to retain his grip.
I can't help grinning at his enthusiasm. I walk out and slip my feet into my sandals and then I wear the fuchsia dress again not waiting for my body to dry "Kyan?"
He gives me a small nod telling me he'll be right behind me.
I rub some shea butter into my hair and skin, when I offer Kyan some he refuses with a slight shake of his head. We eat the fish thankfully and take small sips of water Kyan had refilled the flask with.
We sit in solemn silence, only the buzzing of flying insects and sighs of breaths punctuate the extended silence. Kyan looks completely lost in thought as he stares at a spot over my head with his lips pursed, determined to break the uncomfortable silence, I suck in a breath and say the first thing that comes to mind
"This bracelet... It's like an heirloom, right?"
Kyan startles, his eyes darts to my face and he stares blankly like he is trying to understand me. Finally he nods, "my grandfather gave it to my grandmother who passed it down to my father so he could present it to his bride, my mother." His voice is thick with nostalgia.
I can't believe the gold bracelet and gem stones that circle my wrist is even older than my parents. I imagine Kyan's grandfather kneeling before an elated, faceless girl and asking her to spend her life with him... And I imagine Kyan's father — the bustling King, promising the Queen heaven and earth and clasps the bracelet around her wrist.
"What's so funny?" Kyan asks in a tiny voice.
"Nothing." I suppress my smiles and my fingers wander to the bracelet. "I don't deserve this," I murmur. I'm not going to be Kyan's bride, I feel like a traitor wearing what is a symbol of love and loyalty. The gold burns into my skin and I have an urge to yank it off.
"You do, Isla." He stands up and walks to me, he squats before me and repeats, "you do."
"It's for those who are in love," I mutter more to myself than to him. I avert my eyes to the ground not finding the courage to look him in the eye. "We aren't in... Love."
"We can change that," he whispers. His warm breath skims against my cheeks and I hear something in his voice, something that is usually not there or maybe something he succeeded in concealing.
I look up to him, searching his face for any hint of sarcasm or teasing but I find none. Just him. Plain and exposed. His palm slowly comes to cup my face and I press my face into it, I wrap my hand around his wrist making sure he won't move his hand. "We can't," I whisper, "we don't want this. I don't want this. I need to... I need to get back home."
"No," he chokes out. "You can...we can visit them after the wedding."
I squint. "You must be kidding. Put yourself in my shoes, Kyan. Besides, it's going to be torture if we get married. Imagine living the rest of your life with someone you don't want."
Kyan stays quiet. His hand leaves my face and sits upright not leaning towards me anymore. "If we get married, life will be... Pleasant for you, Isla. Just think about it. And when it's time, you are going to sit beside me as my Queen."
I shake my head, he doesn't understand. "I prefer living as a pauper with someone I love and someone who loves me than to have all the riches in the world without any love."
Kyan hisses out a laboured breath, he scrubs his palms down his face and blinks. "What if... What if I tell you—"
My heartbeat quickens excitingly but I don't want to hear him say anything that might change my mind from leaving. I feel myself getting attached to him and it's not going to benefit any of us.
"You don't have to say anything!"
He looks hurt, genuinely hurt like a toddler who has been derived of sweets. Something tugs at my heart. "It's just going to complicate things, Kyan."
"What if..." He wets his lips with his tongue and looks at me pleadingly, "what if you give us some time Isla? I-I think we are not a bad match at all."
"You don't have to do this for your father, Kyan." I push myself to my feet desperate to get away from him, away from his manipulative words.
"I'm not doing this for him." He calls out. I shake my head refusing to listen to his meaningless rambling. I can't believe he thinks I'm that gullible.
About ten thunderous footsteps afterwards, he appears at my side. "Isla." He grabs me by my wrists forcing me to face him. "Listen to me, please."
I shake my head vehemently, my curls tumble over my face shielding my eyes and I'm grateful they do. "Nothing is going to stop me from finding my sister and going back home, Kyan. Please look at this from my perspective. You are a great person, but the situation is not right. Nothing can happen between the both of us. I'm sorry."
His eyes become dark, he sighs then pushes back my hair from my face and tucks it behind my studded ear. "Give me till the wedding. I'll make sure they let you go if you don't change your mind by then."
"I can't waste anymore time, Kyan." I wish I could be on my way at this very moment.
"Ok. But I need you to promise me something." His hands travels to my waist so they are clutching me tightly.
I roll my eyes and he smiles. "Just... Don't leave until we get back to the Palace, okay?"
I can't wait until we get back to the Palace. I don't have time. I've waited for an opportunity like this and I can't afford to lose it.
Nevertheless, I nod and he beams crushing me to him. I let myself lean into him so my head rests on his chest and my arms circle around his torso. He kisses my temple and my stomach churns giddily, I sigh feeling the tingling aftermath of his lips on my skin. His hands caress my back slowly until I purr, the smooth hum emanating from my throat. He rakes a hand through my hair, the fingers of his other other hand holds up my face at a tilt. I whimper, it blurts out of me because I know what he wants to do. I know it and I want it too.
"Isla?" His voice quavers, I hear the uncertainty and question in it.
"Kyan." I move in, my eyes flutter close and my lips brush his. His sighs and leans into me. Our lips move in unison, cocooned in-between each other.
We pry apart from each other and our eyes meet. I am sucked into the hurricane of his enchanting pools, my breath hitches and my knees buckle and I grab onto his arms. His holds me still with strong arms on my waist.
"This is going to sound crazy, I barely know you and... Well, I... This is going to sound stupid..."
And I kiss him again. I'm in the eye. The eye of the hurricane.
We stand tangled in each other's arms, our hearts racing and our breaths coming out in pants, shoulders heaving, our foreheads are pressed together and we are gazing into each other's eyes. That's when he says the words that make me consider staying.
"I love you, Isla."
"You know," I say as I play with the bracelet pushing it up and down the length of my hand. "If we were to be at Kintil, I would have probably given you my family's heirloom."
He looks up from the crown of flowers he is weaving. "Really? What's it?"
"A necklace." The image of my mother's necklace flashes in my mind. "It is nothing precious like yours. It's been in my family for five generations. It's a pendant, a lapis Iazuli."
"Five generations?" He puts the crown on my head and it fits perfectly. "It sounds very precious to me." He leans in, my eyes flutter close and our lips dance to a beat of their own. His hands frame my face and my fingers tangle in his flaxen locks.
"So," he chuckles a little, "do I kiss better than Rakar?"
It takes me a while to recover from shock and muster up words. "Yes... Yes, of course."
"Are you sure? I hope you aren't saying this just to make me feel better?" He says teasingly.
"No. You are... It is magic being with you." I mean it, I wrap my arms around him and rest my chin on his shoulder. He hugs me tight," I feel the same."
We lay under the starry sky in each other's arms and for the first time in a long time I feel so happy... So content. But it won't last long, I'll have to ruin it and it hurts me to even think about it.
But I'm not doing this only for me but for Mavli too and for my parents. I can only imagine the grief they are going through. If they are alive. I shake away the ugly thought. My eyes dart to Lady Gin-Gin tied to a tree beside Fire, the pair seem so content and peaceful and I'm so sorry that I'll have to ruin it.
I lay my head on his chest enjoying the rise and fall as he breaths. My fingertips skim the outline of his strong jaws and his plump lips. I'm going to miss him, I know I'm going to miss him. But it's for the best. I have to sacrifice in order to get what I want.
I slip off the bracelet from my wrist, glancing at Kyan's face, I tuck it into his pocket. I don't deserve it and taking it with me will only haunt me.
I make sure Kyan is fast asleep before lifting his hand off my waist and dropping it on his belly. He tosses, making me freeze when he goes still again, I heave a whispered sigh of relief and get to my feet. I take off the crown of flowers and toss it to the ground.
I tiptoe to Lady Gin-Gin with my bag over my shoulder, glancing over my shoulder after every step and I untie her. She snickers slowly, I press my finger to my lip shushing her as if she understands. Fire eyes me whipping his tail, feeling guilty I scratch him behind his ears which he twists.
I saddle Lady Gin-Gin making sure not to buckle it too tight. I mount her, and throwing one last glance at Kyan, I urge her to amble.
When we are a safe distance away, I make her canter and soon, she breaks into a gallop and I suck in the whirling wind.
I'm free.
I'm finally free.