Fate's Game | Lo'ak Sully

Part 31 - Oops

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(POV: Lo'ak)

I couldn't hear the storm anymore; There was no longer a constant gust of wind and neither was it grey and miserable inside the shelter. The sun shon through the cracks in its walls, the sound of wildlife beating around it.

I could hear breathing, too. It was peaceful and tranquil, much different from
how I'd usually wake up back with the Metkayina clan; That being through my Dad's yelling. I peeked an eye open, spotting a head laying near the middle of my chest.

I couldn't remember at what point I fell asleep the night before, but I was awfully aware of the fact morning meant waking up. And waking up meant moving.

I closed my eyes, wanting to drift off again but failing to due to my heightened senses. Sometimes, she'd shift an arm or a hand, making me detain my breathing as I didn't want to be the cause of her untimely wake up. Of course, I already knew what she was like in the mornings due to our sleeping arrangements back at the reef however I didn't know whether or not she'd freak out if I was here, and that she was hugging me. Additionally, seen as one of her arms were clutching onto mine, it meant that if I moved even a little, she'd squirm again. She moved her legs a lot, too.

Can she not keep still?

It almost amused me how different she was. Fay'tari; The girl who called me names whenever she got the chance to, who'd gladly swap me for a yovo fruit, who's bruised me over nothing in the past, was clinging to me in a compact embrace. She was no longer violent nor plotting - Fay'tari was comforted as well as comfortable.

I took my hand that was previously placed behind her back up to her head, brushing her hair with it faintly. She rustled, as I'd expected her to do, carrying on all the same with a little grin.

Regardless of how still and restful the morning was, it had to end sometime.

In the far distance, a voice could be heard calling out for the two of us, the sound of water splashing approaching too. I panicked, lifting my head up and trying to wake up Fay'tari to warn her.

"Hey- hey!" I gently yet frantically tapped her shoulder, shaking it slightly when she didn't budge. "Fay'tari, hey! Wake up!" I whispered louder, putting a little more effort into my shakes. Because of that, a deep breath in was heard, indicating the girl was regaining consciousness.

"Huh?" She groaned, lifting her head and rubbing her eyes as she rose to a seated position. Then, she heard it too.

She snapped her neck towards me, returning the same alarmed expression that I had, madly scrambling to get off of the hammock before we were caught.

I hurriedly followed after her, heading outside and finding the source of the voice, which revealed itself to be exactly who I thought it would be, although there was an extra guest with him.

"Lo'ak, Fay'tari! Jesus-" Dad rushed forwards, taking me into a hug and patting my head as Fay'tari waited behind me.

"Dad, we're fine. Really." I struggled to speak due to his grip, finally freeing myself thereafter.

"There was a storm, no? You're both alright after that?" He questioned, that time looking towards Fay'tari specifically, who just nodded in response, her hands tied together in front of her.

Dad sighed, obviously pissed at the two culprits who'd put us here. I'd have loved to have been there to see him give them a solid telling off, however in truth, I didn't resent them whatsoever.

The stowaway who'd joined Dad was still waiting by the ilus, probably too scared to face us just yet. If he should watch out for anyone, it should probably be Fay'tari, may I add. Neteyam saw me looking, pretending to have not noticed at all, turning away.

"Come on then, on you both get." Dad signalled for the two of us to follow him towards the ocean, letting us choose ourselves who we'd ride with. That arrangement being obvious enough, once we'd sat upon the ilus we began to leave the tiny beach of an island, heading for the reef.

(POV: Fay'tari)

Neither Neteyam nor I spoke the entire way back. He didn't even attempt to greet me at first, which was probably a wise choice on his behalf.

I didn't expect him to be so guarded, as I was the one who'd just been trapped on a desert island for a night. However, I could understand if he thought I'd be angry.

I wasn't angry, I was more...

Bothered?

At first of course, I was fuming, not wanting to be trapped alone with Lo'ak the entire time against my will. But, considering how badly things could've gotten... It was better than I'd expected.

I refused to think back to the night before, only remembering the small conversations we had beforehand, as those weren't completely and terribly shameful for me to recall.

I do remember feeling really warm though, i'll confess.

Also, due to the nature of my drop-off and the fact that I'd been tricked into complying, I didn't necessarily want to feed into their target. It was obvious the only reason they'd done what they did was to get me and Lo'ak to get along better, which showed Lo'ak hadn't made much progress at all with Tsireya if she'd willingly placed him on an island with another girl.

If that was what they wanted, I sure as hell wasn't going to give them the satisfaction of thinking their scheme worked.

Once we arrived back to shore, the rest of the Sully's came out to welcome us back; Tsireya and her brother joining in too. I could see their eager faces from a ways away, knowing exactly what they were thinking. Out of all of them, it was only Aonung who looked at all confused.

Both Lo'ak and I stepped off of the ilus at the same time, not accepting any help. The general air felt awkward and stiff, mostly radiating off of Neteyam and Tsireya, as Kiri and Tuk were trying not to show their enthusiasm. It seemed Lo'ak had had the same idea as me; That being not to make any sort of contact in front of anyone as to make them believe all we did on that island was fight and curse; As if nothing had happened between us the night before.

I strode straight passed everyone, not making eye contact if I could help it, thankfully not being followed.

Or so I thought.

I'd reached the beginning of a rather long stretch of beach, cutting through forestry to get to it. My ankle wasn't hurting as much anymore, meaning I was perfectly able to walk on it without stumbling nor limping at all. The way I found out I had been followed the entire way was when I swung a large leaf out of my path, making it hit the silent sheep behind me.

"Ouch!" Aonung cried out, making me turn to behold his sorry state.

"What the- Why are you following me?!" I said rather loudly, not sticking around to help him with his pain.

He caught up soon after, yelling "I just want to ask you something!" on his way over.

"Oh yeah?" I question him, halting and crossing my arms whilst facing him. I was sure my face looked as unbothered as ever, as the boy looked rather tense. I was impatient, my mind only wanting to avoid anyone and everyone for the time being as I'd just endured a rather thought-consuming experience.

"Yeah- Uh... Why did they do that? I mean, why did they purposely trap you both in the middle of nowhere like that?"

"'Cause of that stupid arranged pairing, thats why! Stupid plan, if you ask me. I mean, of all the-"

Oops.

I realised too late that my mouth had spoken quicker than I'd anticipated, no filter in-tact, having just told him information I wished i'd kept private. I hadn't even taken a breath before answering him, the words flowing out as if I was uncontrollable, unable to stop at the appropriate time due to my own inner-thoughts. It was typical, really.

"You and Lo'ak are promised to each other?"

I just had to go and screw up, didn't I.

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