It was the first time they had been alone, just the two of them, in months. They had taken their long days spent staking out together for granted. They had taken the late night movie runs, the early sunrise watches, the ice cream laughs, all of it for granted. Now, Ria sat outside of a tent that she and Kai would have to share. The rest of the crew had been separated from them when the Krags gang had pursued them. Kai could have gone with them, could have been in less danger, but instead, he had chosen to risk his life again to save Ria's. The sun had set and they were preparing to put out the fire and attempt to get some rest. Kai had assured Ria that they didn't need to take shifts as lookout because they were so high in the mountainside that no one would bother them tonight. Not even bears. And so she crawled into the small tent he had packed in his bag, and settled under the blanket. She laid back, and stared out at the stars through the screen top of the tent. The fire disappeared, and soon Kai was entering the tent, zipping up the door, turning off his flashlight, and settling next to Ria, their sides barely touching. Ria looked over at Kai, who was also lying on his back staring up at the stars, and breathed a sigh of relief. They had made it, she hadn't lost her best friend. He looked over at her then, his eyes dark, the sharp, beautiful edges of his face barely visible in the darkness. "What are you thinking about, Ria?" He asked, a gentleness in his voice.
"I'm thinking that I'm not as thankful for you as I should be sometimes."
"Well, that is quite absurd, seeing as I'm a conniving, brash bastard." He looked back up, a smile on his face.
"No, really Kai, no one would have ever turned back for me the way you did today. If it weren't for you, I would be dead, or worse..." She trailed off, letting her mind go to the dark possibilities of what the gang might have done to a girl like her. Kai reached a hand over and found her own, squeezing it. She knew not to read into his affection. He was this way with everyone, and it didn't mean he felt any differently for her than he did for Marcus, or even Ellie.
"Listen," he said, breaking her thoughts, " I know you don't believe it, but you mean the world to me, Ri, and you have saved me in more ways than you know." They locked eyes then, his hand still holding onto hers. "What do you mean?" She asked. She had never physically saved his life, yet, and he had been saving her from the moment they met all those years ago. "You became a light in what I thought was impenetrable darkness, you gave me hope, and opened my eyes to all of the good that was still in the world, all of the beauty. You are one of those parts of the world. You made me hate myself at first. The darkness, bitterness, and anger inside. Somehow, you taught me along the way to just let it go, and choose to live happy. You changed me, Ria. You flipped my whole world upside down." He finished, and sighed heavily. Ria was speechless for a moment, and felt tears threatening to spill out of her eyes. "Kai, you-" but before she could finish, he had moved closer, his face a breath away from hers, staring into her eyes. His hand was on her cheek, his thumb tracing circles. "Tell me you don't feel what I feel, Ria, tell me I'm crazy, and that I am just imaging that we are two people who are mad about each other and too stubborn, or guarded, or just plain stupid to admit it. Tell me I'm wrong." He said, a bit of tension in his voice. Ria watched him, felt the weight of his body pressed against hers, felt her mind processing his words, her heart felt like it was louder than thunder. A shiver went through her body. The silence became deafening. The audaciousness of his actions left her speechless. Instead of saying those words, the ones she knew he wanted to hear, she pressed her lips to his. The lightest touch, and then relaxed against her pack. He looked at her, a million emotions in his expression, and he leaned down and kissed her, but more fiercely this time. A welcoming fire spread through her body as years of pent up emotions let loose. He ran his hands over her body, he tasted like honey, his mouth hot against hers. She felt her way under his shirt, running her fingers over his rigid muscles, his many scars. Their kisses became hungrier, and she ran her fingers through his thick hair. He moved down and began kissing her neck, making her body come alive. "I have wanted this," he whispered between kisses, "every moment, of every second, of every day, since the day I met you." She couldn't comprehend it. All she could do was revel in it. The feel of his skin, the way her stomach was in knots, the way it felt to be pressed so close to him, so alone with him. Kai Adler was kissing her, may even be in love with her. Eventually, they broke apart, breathing heavily, staring wildly into one another's eyes. A smile broke out on Kai's face, and he began to laugh in such a joyous way, that Ria couldn't contain her equally joyous laughter. " I always knew," he said, rolling back over to his side of the tent, "you were always the one for me. I could feel it in my gut." She rolled over so that her head was on his chest, "Me too, Kai, me too." and they fell asleep that way, wrapped in each other's arms, ecstatic thoughts and relaxed hearts. Little did they knew that a rude awakening was awaiting them in a mere few hours.
