Thanatophobia | Ao'nung

⋆˚✿˖°ℂ𝕙𝕒𝕡𝕥𝕖𝕣 𝟚𝟚⋆˚✿˖°

Ni'la rushed off with the fruit basket in her arms as she felt her cheeks burning with embarrassment. Why did her Dad have to be so protective of her? Why did he have to talk with Ao'nung? Especially when they had been making out a few minutes before he showed up.

At the thought of Ao'nung's body pressed against hers, her body grew hot and she could faintly remember the way his lips moved against hers, the way his tongue felt in her mouth. There was no way he was ever going to want to kiss her again after the talk her father would have with him.

Wait. Did she want to kiss Ao'nung again?

As first kisses went, hers was breathtaking, but did that mean that she wanted to do it again?

Of course, she did.

That kiss only added fuel to the fire of her burning attraction towards him. She could try to deny it, claim that she and Ao'nung had nothing between them, but it would ultimately be a lie.

Even if it was only physical attraction, there was still something there.

But then there was the fact that they'd only recently decided to try to be friends, and that's when Ni'la made up her mind. Yes, she wanted to kiss him again, but she wasn't going to allow her heart to overrule her mind. They had to do their best to learn how to be each other's friend before anything more grew between them.

Ni'la laughed to herself as she thought about what she first thought of Ao'nung when they arrived at the Metkayina clan. She thought he was an asshole, and her initial thoughts were correct, but that was only the surface of the Metkayina boy.

If you scratched the surface hard enough, you'd find a boy who was scared of disappointing his parents and his people. You'd find a boy who tries to protect himself by hurting others before they can hurt him. You'd find someone who wants someone to love him for him, not for his status as the future Chief.

Ao'nung was more complex than he led a lot of people to believe, but that's one thing he and Ni'la had in common. To most people, she appeared to be this Omatikaya girl with a smart mouth that sometimes got her in trouble. She was the girl who did anything to protect her family. She was the girl who didn't take anyone's shit, but is that who she was?

Or is that who she tried to be because she was afraid of what people would think of the real Ni'la?

The Ni'la that wanted to make people laugh. The one who cared what others think. The one who despised that extra finger on her hand, who hated those little strips of hair above her eyes because it only added to the anxiety that she would always be different. That she would never be a true Na'vi.

On the outside, she would roll her eyes or scoff at someone's insults about her appearance. But on the inside, it made her self-hatred grow.

She felt like she was nothing other than a freak.

"Ni'la!" A voice called out, and Ni'la shook her thoughts from her mind as she forced a smile to her lips. Tsireya had been quickly walking towards her, and when she finally reached her, she grabbed the basket out of Ni'la's arms and placed it on the ground. "Come dance with me."

"Oh, no, I-" However, before Ni'la could even really refuse, Tsireya grabbed her arm and dragged her to where all the other Na'vi were dancing. "Really, Tsireya, I don't even know how to dance," She grumbled, and Tsireya laughed at her friend.

"That's what Lo'ak said too, but look at him," The girl pointed behind Ni'la, and when she turned around to look, she snorted at how Lo'ak was dancing. "You call that dancing?" Ni'la laughed, causing Tsireya to roll her eyes while a smile made its way to her lips.