The afternoon air was cool, brushing against Velithra's cheeks as she and Kai walked side by side down the quiet street. School noise had faded behind them, replaced by the soft rustling of leaves and the distant hum of cars.
Neither of them spoke at first.
It wasn't uncomfortable.It wasn't awkward.It was a silence that felt… full.
Velithra kept glancing at Kai from the corner of her eye. His dark hair moved slightly with the breeze, and his expression stayed focused forward, though she could tell — by the way his jaw eased and tightened — that he was thinking.
A lot.
Her fingers brushed the edge of her backpack strap, trying to keep herself grounded. Her pulse wouldn't calm down.
Kai, on the other hand, walked with his hands in his pockets — but the left one wasn't fully inside. His thumb hooked on the outside seam, like he was deliberately keeping one hand free.
For what, she wasn't sure.
Or maybe she was.
And that scared her a little.
They reached a quieter part of the walk, where the sidewalk narrowed. Velithra stepped aside to let Kai walk first, but he immediately shifted with her, not letting her move out of sync.
"You don't have to walk behind me," he murmured.
Velithra blinked. "I wasn't— I just thought—"
Kai slowed until they were shoulder to shoulder again.
"…I like walking next to you."
She froze for half a second.
He said it so simply. Like it was obvious. Normal.
But to her, it wasn't.
It felt like her heart flipped over.
Kai must've sensed the shift in her breathing, because he glanced down at her briefly — just enough for their eyes to catch — before looking away again, a faint exhale leaving him.
"Sorry," he muttered under his breath.
She frowned. "For what?"
"For sounding—" he hesitated, searching for the right word, "…too honest."
Velithra let out a soft laugh she didn't mean to. "I… don't mind."
Kai's head turned slightly toward her.
"That's new," he said quietly.
Velithra looked down, embarrassed. "I know."
They kept walking.
Then something small happened — something that shouldn't have meant so much but did.
Their hands brushed.
Barely.Just the backs of their fingers.
Skin against skin for half a second.
Velithra's breath hitched. Her stomach flipped. She didn't pull away, but she didn't lean in either. She just… froze.
Kai did too.
He didn't look at her.He didn't move his hand.
But the next step he took, his fingers curled slightly, like he was fighting an instinct. Fighting the urge to reach for her hand and hold it.
The tension between them thickened, warm and electric.
Velithra swallowed. "…Kai?"
His voice came out lower than usual. "Yeah?"
"Did you… do that on purpose?"
He let out a slow breath — not frustrated, not annoyed.
Just honest.
"…No," he said.Then quietly added,"But I didn't hate it."
Velithra felt her cheeks burn.
Kai's fingers brushed hers again — this time almost like he was testing something. Testing her reaction. Testing himself.
But before the moment could shift into something more, they reached a corner where their paths split.
Velithra stopped, turning toward him. Kai stopped too, looking down at her with an expression that wasn't guarded for once. Something rawer. Softer.
"Text me?" he asked.
Velithra blinked. "Text you… when?"
His lips twitched into the faintest smile.
"When you get home.So I know you're safe."
Her heart did that flipping thing again.
"…Okay," she whispered.
Kai stepped back, hands returning to his pockets, but his eyes stayed on her a moment longer than necessary — as if he didn't want to leave yet.
"See you tomorrow," he said.
Velithra nodded. "See you."
They walked in opposite directions.
But every few steps, they both glanced back…
…and caught each other doing the same.