Chapter 11: Confessions

The party was well under way, brimming with energy and bursting with laughter.

Many young elites, around Alythia's age, were invited.

Kloeye was seen running around, trying every possible platter within view.

Alythia, on the other hand, was currently encircled by a group of young elite teens - mostly boys.

The general conversation between them attempted to uncover the secret behind our lady's unique hair color, and in the process, compete to perhaps gain her hand for a dance.

Karlyle could be seen standing a short way off, leaning against a refreshment table, with a menacing look.

Anyone with common sense would steer clear of him.

However,  one black haired and golden-eyed boy could be seen leisurely making his way towards him. Whether spurred on by bravery, foolishness, or a mixture of both - the reason will forever remain unclear.

"Kyle" the boy began, placing his hand on the dragon's shoulder.

His eyes narrowed, wrinkling his brows. "You look like a serial killer, ease up will ya"

The ebony eyed boy just scoffed, turning his head to the side.

His friend eyed him suspiciously, and following his gaze, landed on a pink-haired girl surrounded by many attentive looks. She wore a very troubled expression, as one trying to escape from within a lion's den.

He frowned, pinching his nose with his fingertips. "Just go talk to her Kyle", he ventured to say, but the dragon gave no response.

He sighed.

"Wouldn't it be better to simply clarify things with her?"

Karlyle's eyes flashed, causing his friend to flinch.

"Clarify what?" his words seeped through gritted teeth. "She already knows"

And with his eyes still intently fixed on the girl he added with a grumble "I'm obvious enough about it".

With a frown, the boy next to him shut his eyes and groaned.

"She's hesitant" he finally admitted, "Best to find out why before it drives you insane"

"I'm still sane" Karlyle retorted, his voice drenched in agitation.

"Um-hum" his friend responded, wearing a stoic expression - utterly unconvinced.

His golden eyes then fell on the glass Karlyle had been holding. A loud breath could be heard, like a sigh, as his friend decided to forfeit this deadlock.

"Kyle" he added in a last attempt "Careful... you're cracking it".

And with that he turned and made his way back into the crowd.

Karlyle's eyes darted down to the glass, and he noticed tiny streaks running all along his fingertips. "When did...?" he sighed, placing the glass back on the table behind him and moving out the nearest door, unto the balcony.

Alythia noticed him as he walked out.

Stepping into the fresh night air somewhat revitalized and calmed him.

He carefully walked towards the balcony's edge, resting both elbows on the surrounding parapet.

He took a deep breath, roughly ruffling his hair with his fingers.

"Get a grip" he breathed, as his eyes danced across the darkened horizon.

"Kai?" a voice softly peeped from behind.

He turned, and was met with pastel pink eyes, intently fixated on him.

He managed a weak smile, while holding out his hand.

The girl walked towards him, placing her hand in his, and was pulled into an embrace.

As he nuzzled his face deep into her neck, he heard her heartbeat quicken.

'How odd' he thought, 'why does she hesitate, but not resist?'

He broke away, enough to see her, while still firmly keeping her waist locked between his torso and arms.

"Tia" the boy called out, with new resolve. "Tell me, what would you say I feel for you?"

The girl tensed, clearly startled by the question, and her eyes drooped to the ground.

She felt him tighten his grip and lean in. Sweeping her fringe to the side, a quick kiss was felt on her forehead.

Her eyes shot wide and she glanced up but, as their eyes met, she wavered.

"Kai... seems to..." she paused.

"Go on" the boy urged.

"like me" she ended off, her face burning up under the cold night air.

But sensing that he was still unsatisfied she added "... romantically".

The boy smiled.

"I do, and how does Tia feel about me?"

Here, again, the girl's gaze broke away from his and shifted to the side.

The dragon loosened his grip around her waist, and tilted her head back by slightly lifting her chin, so he could once more meet her gaze. "I don't mean to press you Tia..." he hesitated, and it seemed that even he felt unsure of how to phrase the rest. "I don't like sharing, not at all. But... if the lady doesn't feel the same, I fear that my actions will start to..." he paused.

"... burden you" he finally finished.

She blinked several times and, recognizing his expression, felt her heart soften.

'He's feeling anxious' she thought, and instinctively wrapped her arms around him, pressing herself against him in a tight hug.

His eyes widened and she felt his body grow rigid.

As she nuzzled her face into his chest, she mumbled underneath her breath.

"I feel the same, so... don't change"

Although her words were faint, Karlyle heard it.

A rush of relief instantly hit from behind, and all the tenseness momentarily left him.

But the girl in between his arms still felt stiff.

"Why does Kai like me?"

It slipped, and with wide stretched eyes she gasped - realizing she had unintentionally asked that out loud.

Karlyle's focus honed in on her question, and he felt a sudden solace inside him as the realization hit.

'So that's behind the hesitation'.

He pondered for a time, and the girl felt her heart falter. She pressed her face further into his chest, overcome with terror as she considered how he might respond.

"How difficult" he muttered, knitting his brows in deep thought. "How do you convince a diamond of her worth when she believes herself to be a piece of coal?"

Alythia's breath escaped. Clearly, she had been holding it without notice.

She ventured to lift her head and look up at him.

They stared at each other for a time, as silence filled the air.

Eventually Karlyle spoke again.

"Tia, there are many reasons for liking you, small unique things - from your expressions, to your antics - but I fear none of them will do any good at convincing you".

As his gaze grew more serious, his expression also seemed to soften.

"Compassion, if I had to pick one. That's definitely what caught my eye. The absolute lack of hesitation to put yourself in harm's way in order to shield another..." he stopped as he pondered this, and then added "Though, at times, it drives me mad with worry... it's..."

His fingers moved from her chin to her cheek, lightly grazing it. "Admirable" he finished.

Alythia felt her eyes burn, and she blinked several times in an attempt to chase away the tears threatening to form.

"T-thanks" she managed to say, trying with all her efforts to keep her voice steady.

As Karlyle kept her gaze, a thought pressed upon her mind.

"I'd also like to tell Kai why I like him" she blurted out, again preceded by very little premeditation.

The dragon raised his brow, curiosity clearly piqued.

But yet another silence fell.

With each passing second, his heart quickened.

"I like..." she continued, and all the muscles he had just some time ago relaxed tensed up once more.

He kept staring at her mouth but it wasn't moving. Or perhaps it was, but very slowly. Minutes seemed to pass in between each syllable.

"I like... Kai's eyes..."

"My what?" the dragon said, with an utterly blank expression.

Then, rather suddenly, uncontrolled glee and laughter filled his chest and spilt over.

"Hahahahaha..... my eyes? Is that it"

Alythia was startled, realizing that he clearly misunderstood what she had meant. "No WAIT Kai" she tried to reason "I'm not done, there's more".

But her flustered voice was overrun by the boy's mirth, and it was difficult to determine how much of her defense he was actually able to hear.

"I'm sorry Tia, that was just", his merriment continuously interrupted any attempted talk, "Hahahaha that was so... so... anticlimactic... wow... you're too entertaining"

As his snickering finally died down, and he was wiping the tears formed in the corner of his eyes, he noticed the displeased look plastered all over the girl's face.

"Hey now, its alright to like the way I look", he paused, before another chuckle broke out, "I was just expecting something a little different. No need to feel embarrassed"

"Kai" the girl scowled, firmly grasping hold of the dragon's face with both hands. "Let me finish".

His smile faded and he held his tongue. Clearly the girl in front of him was not in the mood for jokes.

When she saw he grew serious she let go of his face and cleared her throat.

"As I was saying, I like Kai's eyes... because... they're the same as his. Kai's eyes hold the same depth and tenderness as Izana's".

With the mention of that name, Karlyle's eyes widened.

"It's not just your eyes either, many things about you remind me of him. You're similar in wisdom, since you choose to look deeper than the surface of things; similar in loyalty, since you protect your own; similar in kindness, since you'll house the undeserving, similar in..." but as Alythia glanced up and saw his stupefied look, she felt her embarrassment skyrocket and speaking became increasingly difficult.

Therefore, utterly flustered, she decided to make her escape.

"So... anyway... that's the reason" she yelped, as she freed herself from his grip and dashed towards the door.

When she stepped through it, she glanced back over her shoulder just before it closed.

"Don't stay out too long Kai, even you can catch a cold".

And it slammed shut.

The dragon faltered back, and felt the railing support him as he slid down. Hunched over, back pressed against cold steel, he raked his fingers through his hair and covered his eyes with his hand. "Similar to... Izana" he repeated the words, and tried to stop the grin currently stretching from ear to ear.

He threw his head back and stared up at the stars, entranced for a time

"How can so few words, carry so much weight"

He whispered into the breeze.

Its difficult to say exactly how long our boy sat there in utter silence before the flush in his face began to subside.

But nevertheless, after a good long while, he plucked up the will and made his way back into the hustle and bustle of the party.