Kairos

[ I ]

"Aren't you a bit... too excited?" 

"You wouldn't understand so shu... I'm sorry I'm just really nervous." She says, her eyes flitting back and forth between the door and me. 

Well, that was uncalled for... 

"I really am sorry, forgive me?" She looks to me with pleading eyes. I can never say no to them, but I truly do want to. I avert my gaze to the barista, mindlessly watching their actions. 

"Fine." I say curtly, my jaw barely moving as it rests on my hand. I tug on my sleeve slightly as Samara looks towards the door. Her foot is tapping very quickly, her breath is heavy -- she's nervous. I bring my gaze towards her wrist.

3

    2

         1

The door swings open as a tall, broad man enters. His eyes are a piercing blue, his curly brown hair is messy -- he was running. As he stands there, trying to catch his breath his eyes instantly land on me.  After catching his breath, he starts to say something but gets interrupted by a loud cough behind him. He had been blocking someone entering at the same time he was. He blushes slightly and waddles out of the way before staring at me again. 

"So you're my soulmate." He says boldly. After a deep breath, he takes a few big strides towards our table. His eyes truly match Samaras. Her hair sits in perfect waves down her back before she swiftly stands up and makes her way to the man. She smiles radiantly, her cheekbones really bringing out her beauty. His eyes flicker to her, his smile faltering slightly before he reaches out to embrace her in a polite hug.

"I guess I was right wasn't I darling?" He says, flashing her a devilish grin. The man brings his hand up and pushes a strand of her hair behind her ear. They can't take their eyes off each other. Expected of soulmates I guess. I stir my tea, breaking the silence. Samara coughs, as if she had forgotten that I was sitting at the table. 

"Oh, uh sorry this is my friend Hera." Samara speaks, her pointed nose facing me now. I feel her gaze -- she's looking down on me. 

I smile, tilting my head slightly to get a better look at him. His gaze is suffocating. Samara looks towards him, "And uhh, what might your name be?"

"David." 

"Right.. nice to meet you David would you like to sit with us?" Samara offers him a seat as if she isn't practically dragging him toward our table. She gives me a slight glare. She's warning me to behave and give a good first impression.

"Sure." He says, clearly taken back by surprise by Samara's demanding behaviour.

I watch his gaze, I can't seem to look away. Samara takes notice as she loops her arm through his. She's pressing herself against him, but he doesn't seem to mind. He's clearly much more built than she is, but they look like a celebrity couple. Once she sits as close to him as possible rests both her elbows on the table as she keeps her head in her hands. Without missing a beat she ends up throwing one leg over the other before staring at him, practically swooning right then and there.

"So where are you from David?" I question casually, taking a sip of my drink.

"Vancouver." 

"Oh! I've always wanted to visit there what's it like?" Samara interjects quickly, trying to keep the conversation on her side.

"It's cool." 

"Right..." Samara trails off as she starts running her finger along the rim of the cup. Her gaze is on me now. "Didn't you want to visit there Hera?" She's challenging me. She wants me to stay quiet but she also wants to seem like she's including me.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I was going to visit this summer." I say curtly.

"Really? I know a bunch of places you'd like! There's..." David lists off a bunch of places, suddenly engaged. I can feel Samara tense up beside me as she continues to smile. I know I'm going to hear about it later. 

"Um.. I'm sorry to cut it short but I actually have to go. It was nice meeting you David but I'll leave you guys to it." I can feel my smile falter as I grab my bag and nod my head. I tuck my chair in and promptly walk out, trying to push my hair behind my ear. I can feel my body quivering in fear. I don't like Samara, but she has my life wrapped around her pinky. In a few simple words, she can finish me. 

As I walk I grasp my wrist as casually as possible, avoiding any watchful eyes. 

"You don't get it Gia, she could ruin my life in a second. I had to play along but I don't know if I can do it any longer." I feel my brows furrow as I say this, the tension constricting my body. I don't know who my parents are. Gia told me I wasn't her daughter when I was younger, leaving me to question her about my parents. She told me to believe in kairos. That was her entire being in one word. She always believed that everything happened for a reason and at an opportune time. If she wasn't so conservative in her looks I swear this woman would have kairos tattooed all over her. 

"I don't need to get it love, I just need you to be okay." She says this as she finishes tying off the braid she did for me. I gently grab it and run my fingers down the braid, letting the bumpy texture run under my fingertips. For someone who shouldn't stand out, I can't help it. My parents had passed down their strong features to me. Pin straight light brown hair, high cheekbones, and my eyes, a piercing green. In the sunlight my features shine so bright it's like I'm begging to be caught. I'm glad my height wasn't an issue, I could slip through crowds easily.

"Stare any harder and the place will light on fire. If you could really burn a hole through things you stare at, you wouldn't even need lasers as a superpower." Gia chuckles as she stores the comb in the little chest on her desk.  

"You basically said the same thing twice." I say while giggling. I stand up and give Gia a kiss on the cheek resting my hands and head on her shoulder shortly after. 

"Oh sweetheart, I know. I just hope you know that you don't need to worry. Remember there's a k-" Gia starts to say this while resting her hand over mine.

"Kairos for everything. Yep, you say it everyday G." I snap a bit. We stand in silence, staring at our reflections, I open my mouth to apologize but she soon has her eyes closed as she shakes her head no.

"It's okay Hera, I know you're just stressed. Go get some rest." She says this as she presses her lips against the back of my hand. After stroking my thumb with hers for a second she walks off to her room, leaving me to stare at my reflection for a bit.