Two ghosts - Lo'ak

Chapter 9

Pandora Reef

Metkayina Clan

Days bled into weeks as the Sully and Evans children learnt the ways of the Metkayina. Li'teya had fully mastered riding her ilu, which greatly annoyed Neteyam, who hadn't been able to do it once. She and Lo'ak still could only be together if they were training which involved a lot of late-night sneaking. The problem was they could have been better at sneaking back in.

Li'teya and Lo'ak shushed each other as they stood outside her hut. "Shhh, my father will hear us", she giggled.

Lo'ak placed his hand over his mouth. "You are the one laughing, Teya", he murmured. Teya looked up at the boy, her blue eyes shining as the sun slowly appeared in the sky.

"Teya", he whispered, desperate to express his feelings, but before he could go any further, the flap of her hut swung open.

Freddie stormed out of the hut towering over the two teens.

"Shit", Teya said, but it was muffled by Lo'ak's hand.

"What the hell is going on here" her father demanded as he saw the teens standing too close for his liking with a boy's hand over his daughter's mouth.

Lo'ak dropped his hand as they looked at each in a panic. Shit

"We were just, um", Li'teya tried to think of an excuse, but her mind went blank. How could she explain this?

"Sir, we just bumped into each other by accident", Lo'ak reasoned.

His words cause Li'teya to throw her back in frustration; that's all he can come up with.

"Oh, so you bumped into each other, and his hand managed to end on your mouth with you two standing so close you might as well be on top of each other", Freddie questioned

The pair immediately began to protest at his words stepping away back. "This is a misunderstanding, sir", Teya cautioned.

"How is this a misunderstanding? You both disobeyed a direct order. Why is it so hard for you two to follow orders? Neteyam and Tsu'tey do with no issues. Why can't you?"

Li'teya and Lo'ak both scoffed at his sentence, hearing the same thing their whole life.

"Fuck you", Li'teya whispered under her breath.

"Excuse me, you know I hate muttering. Speak up"

"I said fuck you! You and Mr Sully act like we were mistakes and are some rebellious misfits. Have you ever thought we act like this because our childhood was stolen? We never get to be fucking kids because all you've ever done is train me to fight. I want to live, fall in love and have a fucking life, and you stopped that," she shouted, every emotion she's ever had to father finally coming to light.

Her father's face faltered slightly, but his fit of rage remained. "I know you wished me to die instead of the mother, but guess what? I'm still here, so maybe you should love the family in front of you and not take us for granted because trust me, as soon as my 18th cycle is here, I'm going and never looking back," she spat.

Lo'ak's eyes widen, looking towards Freddie, his face in a similar state. Li'teya had never raised her voice that much at anyone in her life. Freddie takes a second to process her words. He stole her childhood, she left, and he ruined her life. Freddie knew he had fucked up whatever was left of their already crumbling relationship.

"Li'teya", Her father tried, but she didn't stay to hear it. She was done.

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