Chapter 33: Being Petty
Naomi froze. She hadn’t expected him to say that. The way he’d spoken earlier had made her think otherwise. He had seemed so distant, so aloof, and yet his words now shattered all her assumptions. She didn’t want to—No, she realized now she might have acted a bit petty. How had she let something so small feel so significant, to the point where she’d started ignoring him?
Her heart hammered in her chest, and she felt the weight of her behavior pressing down on her. She was trying avoiding him, unable to understand why she felt so distant. Was it because of the tension between them? Or perhaps her own insecurities? Naomi shook her head internally. She had let her emotions get the better of her, but how had something so small, so seemingly insignificant, gotten in the way of everything else?
"That’s... that’s not why I... I wasn’t ignoring you," she managed to say, her voice shaky. The closeness between them was overwhelming, and her thoughts scattered as her heart raced in her chest. He stood so near to her that every breath she took felt intertwined with his. She suddenly felt so aware of every little detail—his presence, his scent, his touch on her chin as he gently lifted her gaze to meet his.
Suddenly, in one fluid motion, Zylan closed the distance between them, pressing his lips to hers. Naomi’s mind went blank. What kind of kiss was this? She had never been kissed like this before. Wait—was this an upside-down kiss? Her thoughts spun in confusion, and she felt her head swimming. Everything she had been feeling, all the doubts and insecurities, faded away in an instant, replaced by the strange, intoxicating feeling of his kiss.
Her mind raced, trying to understand the situation, but her body reacted on its own. She found herself holding his face, her fingers gently tracing his jawline as she pressed deeper into the kiss. It wasn’t deliberate, but the moment felt too powerful to resist. She had never felt anything like it before, and before she knew it, the kiss deepened even more, as though it had a life of its own.
Zylan pulled away slightly, his lips curving into a smirk. "My little eaglet is getting bolder by the second," he said, his voice low and teasing. Naomi’s cheeks flushed a deep crimson. She hadn’t expected him to say that, but then again, she hadn’t expected any of this.
Naomi’s mind reeled, and for a moment, she forgot what they were even talking about. Her heartbeat pounded in her ears, and she tried to compose herself, unsure of what had just transpired between them. She had kissed him, and he had kissed her back. But what did it all mean? Was it just a fleeting moment of passion, or was there something more to it?
Her thoughts were interrupted when she heard Zylan speak again, and his voice pulled her back to the present.
"Do you want to come outside?" he asked, a playful glint in his eyes. Naomi blinked, her mind trying to catch up to the conversation.