Snaeha was going insane.
Or, at least she felt that she was.
The first time she heard the echoey sounds drifting up from the bottom of Kalinor, Snaeha assumed it was a close neighbour shrieking for some reason. Crime in the city was incredibly low, so she wasn't particularly worried. Until, five chimes later, the screams hadn't subsided and Veldron Datura had visited all their closest neighbours to make sure they weren't being hacked to pieces by a psychopath.
"Nothing at the Orchid web, either."
"How strange. It'll subside. It's dinner time."The Datura Web ate in silence, interrupted only by the harrowing shrieks. Even spirited Druston seemed subdued, and did not respond to his mother's desperate attempts to lighten the mood. Eventually, each family member drifted to bed. All except Snaeha, who paced up and down the central staircase before finally leaving. She would not sleep tonight, so why other risking the rest of her family?
Snaeha was guilt stricken; which in itself was out of character. Something strange was happening in her home city - the disappearances, the fearful cries - and she knew she ought to be full of anxiety and conspiracy. But in truth, she too distracted to think about such matters.
She had kissed him!
She had kissed him!What was she thinking?!
Each time Ayatah reminisced about the desperate kiss she had planted upon the Zith's lips, her stomach twisted and she felt her cheeks and ears flush. This had not gone unnoticed by her brothers, who delighted in demanding why their sister seemed distant and embarrassed.
In truth, a part of Snaeha was relieved. She had wanted to kiss him for a while, so to have finally done so (even if in a slightly drunken stupor) had some twist of release to it. The itch had been scratched, the need had been fulfilled.
Though of course, now she wanted more.
I'm a glutton for punishment. She thought miserably. When a mysterious voice screamed in answer, Snaeha sent a withering look into the endless darkness beneath her:
oh please, my position is so much worse.The worse part of her conundrum was that she and Aranta had seen little of each other over the past few days. Their close friendship, which had formed so quickly, was something she was greatly missing. But she felt awkward, almost humiliated. The thought of him rejecting her advance threw Snaeha into a state of anxiety and fear; she'd never been rejected before, and didn't want to start now. So it seemed the lesser of two evils to simply... avoid going out of her way to find him, as she had done before.
I need to decide; do I want it all
with Aranta? "Oh!" She flinched and managed to swallow the scream that had almost escaped from her throat. When she opened her eyes, and she realised who had touched her, Snaeha instantly smiled, and her eyes warmed and her heart fluttered.
"Aranta." His name was said tenderly, almost secretively. Her hand went to his arm, touching him softly and appreciating the warmth emanating from his skin.
"Yes. I do. Do you?"Whether or not she was answering the Zith's question or her own was unclear even to Snaeha.
.