Osiris was against the wall, facing away from the door. He was shaking, and his cheeks were wet with tears. *** She squinted. "You're really challenging it? You saw how fast I got up there, right?"
The door creaked open and Dahlia entered, her face solemn and her eyes red-rimmed. She closed the door behind her, hesitating as she watched him. * * * He paused, his eyes scanning her for a moment before he raised an eyebrow. "You don't know how fast I am."
He looked back at her slowly, his brows furrowing. "Dahlia.." *** She grinned. "True. You're on, then."
She watched him for a moment before coming over to him, sitting down next to him and offering him the bowl wordlessly. Some sort of stew was in the bowl, pieces of carrot and peas and potato in the broth. * * * He watched her before stepping away, craning his head back to look at the tree they were standing next to. "This one should work. To the top, yeah?"
She said nothing, unfolding the blanket and placing it over his legs before leaning back against the wall, her head back as she looked up at the ceiling for a moment. * * * He paused once more, looking up at the sky before looking down at her with a smirk. "Go." With that, he began climbing.
He was watching her, his brows furrowed. He didn't say anything, unsure of how she would react. *** She aimed up and shot, going up once the hook caught.
She took a deep breath and looked over at him for a moment, tears filling her eyes. "Stop looking at me," she said with a small sob, looking away quickly. "Just eat the soup." * * * He had disappeared from view, but it was uncertain if he had made it ahead of her or was just on the other side of the tree.
His eyes widened slightly, and he quickly moved towards her, wrapping his arms around her gently. *** She squinted, continuing up from branch to branch.
She put her hands on his chest, almost as if she was moving to push him away, but she melted, slipping her arms around his waist and burying her head in his shoulder. "I'm... I'm so mad at you." * * * The top of the tree burst through the canopy, sunlight shining down on the scene.
He held her close, his brows furrowed as he rubbed her back. "I know, Dahls.." *** Her eyes widened slightly, and she grinned as she made her way to the top.
She took a deep breath, trying to stabilize herself, still staying close to him. "...eat the soup, okay?" * * * At the same time, she would see the boy break through the leaves, his expression of playfulness as his gaze landed on her.
He took the soup, not leaving her side as he ate. *** She looked over at him, grinning. As she approached, she spoke up. "I'd say it was a tie."
She had her hands folded tightly in her lap as he ate, still sniffling slightly, looking a little embarrassed. * * * He was breathing hard, his chest rising and falling, and he gave her that cheeky grin again. "I suppose so. Yours seems to take less effort, though."
He looked up at her. "You're.. still my best friend, right?" *** She patted his shoulder, her expression bright and friendly, the sunshine made her brown eyes stunning. "You still kept up."
She laughed tearfully, rubbing her eyes. "Your tribe is starving, you're in big trouble, and that's what you're worried about?" * * * He raised an eyebrow, tilting his head. He moved away from her touch, but this seemed more instinctive than anything else. "One of these days, Nascha," he said lowly, his eyes intense, "we'll take away the hook away and see how fast you are then."
He looked up at her. "Well, yeah.." *** She tilted her head at him. "That's kind of ominous," she said with a small grin. "I can still climb, just not as fast as you."
She shook her head thoughtfully. “Let’s just... let’s just figure out what’s going on first.” *** “Hm. Fine.”
She looked over at him with a frown. "How bad is it? At your tribe?" * * * He considered her for a moment, his brow raised thoughtfully. "Victor," he said after a moment.
