Chai Tea

The one where they kiss

It was the third evening of the week-long festival and much to his surprise, Ed was still there. He had planned to stay the night of his performance and then disappear home again to watch movies and eat pizza, like usual. But his plans had changed the instant Shai had crookedly grinned at him over her Chai cup.

They had stayed up all night together; after leaving the Chai tent they had splashed out on every lit up ride possible, then went weed spotting- they found every person not so subtly smoking joints, went up and gave them a hug because they knew rejection was impossible- and finally ended up hogging the bouncy castles for several hours. When they had parted they made plans to meet up for a late breakfast and went to sleep with matching grins.

That third evening was colder than average and Shai was shivering in her thin harem pants. Ed noticed the slight quake in her movements and the blue tinge to her lips and disappeared for a moment, giving strict instructions for Shai to stay in her exact spot.

She stood awkwardly as a group of men rumbled past clutching beer cans. One of them glanced back at her and tugged his neighbour's shirt. Soon they had all come to a standstill. The original guy grew a smirk as she averted eye contact, her blood rushing in her ears. Just as he opened his mouth to say something two warm hands appeared on either side of her hips and she glanced up to see Ed's stony face behind her. When Shai turned back to the men they were walking away, mumbling inaudibly.

He was silent as he handed her the recently bought cable knit jumper. Her frightened eyes turned warm in an instant as she tugged it over her head.

They both knew the quiet 'Thank you' held a double meaning.

Several hours later, having pigged out on chips, they sat bloated around a fire together, listening to the quiet strumming's of a man with a soft voice and a beard. He had smiled and nodded at Ed, who had mimicked his movements. Shai gathered that they were friends.

"I really want to kiss you right now" Ed proclaimed, his eyes noting the faint pink hue colouring Shai's cheeks. She was so beautiful at that moment, bathed in firelight and gazing at the singer with rapture. Her lopped hair was messy and tucked behind her ears and the cable knit jumper clung to her throat. The smattering of freckles on her left cheek bunched together as she grimaced slightly. "Uh, I... I can't." She spoke quietly whilst drilling a hole into the muddy ground.

"Why not?" He asked with confusion etched in his tone as he reached for her hand. She didn't pull away from his warm grasp.

"It's so embarrassing!" She said whilst smiling awkwardly.

"And why is it so embarrassing?"

She mumbled something inaudible.

"Sorry, for a moment there I thought I heard you say something." He mocked.

"I don't know how."

"To kiss?"

Shai nodded her head awkwardly and pulled her now sweaty hand from Ed's calloused grasp. She had never had a boyfriend before and therefor she had never been kissed. It was almost a phobia. She didn't want to royally fuck up, especially when she felt the way she did toward Ed. He was too good for someone as inexperienced as her.

He laughed sweetly and reached forward to cup her chin in his long fingers "It's really not that hard, just a bit of tongue wrestling and lip biting." Shai blushed even more ferociously. "Gorgeous, don't think about it. It's a natural given for anyone with lips as full as yours. Kiss me?"

Without waiting for an answer he leant forward, pulling her chin towards his. Their lips brushed against each other, as soft as feathers flying in the wind. Ed was about to pull back when he felt her cold hands creep up his neck. Her fingers raked through the soft sunburnt hair at his nape. After several seconds of hovering her lips over his she made them meet in deathly silence par the gentle breaths that they were both exhaling that floated away into the sky like vaporised angels tears. His teeth tugged at her bottom lip as they gently expressed their feelings toward each other without words. There was no wrestle for dominance when he finally made their tongues meet, only sweet flavours and turned up lips.