Work Text:
Nilou didn't usually get company during her personal practice.
Especially this early in the morning, with the sun barely making it to the blushing sky and sumeru roses sleepily stirring to life under the gentle wake up kisses of dew.
She liked it this way. Unusually quiet compared to her everyday surroundings, but melodic in the silence that surrounded the beating heart of nature under her feet as she made the first steps of a new dance. It made room for effortless peace to settle in her mind, clearing all the clouds heaving the underbelly of the sky above.
Between empty streets and quiet forests, Nilou almost never encountered a soul wandering at the same ungodly time as her.
That was before Kaveh.
A lone, tall, and strangely colorful figure that seemed so out of place among the greens of the rainforest, barely awoken by the gentle tint of gold. The first human being Nilou saw that morning.
“Didn't expect to run into you at this time.”
They were soon sitting on the ground, hidden away from bolder sunlight and any possible encounters with early birds. Kaveh offered for them to take a break — from all the walking he guessed she needed to do to reach this place. He was right. And very nice to her, she noted. Not something she learnt to expect from Akademiya graduates.
It felt nice. For someone to notice these things.
He smiled, closing his eyes for a moment after catching a glimpse of sunshine between the leaves. “I guess I have a flexible schedule.” He paused. “I assume you do too.”
“You can say that.” Nilou's hands tightened around her knees, allowing her head to rest on top. It's a good feeling. A break was always important between practice, and Kaveh seemed like an easy and pleasant company. “I don't usually go out this early.”
“Today is special then?”
Nilou felt the corner of her lips move up. “Maybe. I really wanted to start my day with this new dance.” She looked up, feeling familiar little shocks tingle on her fingertips. “Would you want to see it?”
Kaveh didn't give her even a second of pause before his mouth moved. “Of course.”
She didn't give herself a moment as well. Her heart jumped alongside her feet when she stood up, dusting off her skirt and raising her hands into the starting position.
Everything after drowned in the waves of a silent melody playing in her head.
She started out carefully, remembering the right steps and making sure they blended one into another nicely. With each movement, just like always, she felt her body slowly relax as it flowed right where she felt it belonged in each note.
A familiar tingle soon touched her fingertips. Feeling her smile grow wider, Nilou picked up the pace and spun around, leaving a trail of raindrops following her path and basking in the sunlight.
Kaveh's presence, surprisingly, didn't cross her mind. Not like he wasn't even there — she felt him very strongly, watching the glow of sparkling waters splashing under her feet. But his eyes were not oppressive. In fact, they were freeing. A certain lightness on her feet she could only get by fully diving into the flow of dance — not ever worrying about how she looked or what impression she left on the spectators.
Trusting her view into his hands was surprisingly easy. She knew he'd understand, for some reason.
The melody slowed down just when she caught the glimpse of Kaveh's face. Watching her with wide, bright eyes.
Nilou almost tripped.
Then caught herself immediately — if she was on stage, nobody in the audience would even notice. But she had a feeling Kaveh did, somehow.
With burning flames of strange and unfamiliar embarrassment licking her cheeks, she followed the last fading steps of the dance.
“So,” She landed the final turn on her heels before facing him, as he still watched her from the very same position as when she started dancing. “How'd I do?”
“You did great.” Kaveh said, after a moment or two of complete silence swirling around them. “Actually, too great for someone waking up this early.”
“Thanks.” Nilou laughed, just a little, to the limit of the space her lungs allowed her to after the physical activity of dance. She knew she needed to focus on one of the breathing exercises, but nothing came through. Not when her entire being was trying not to think of one smile that burned the fatigue off her bones. And loosened her tongue, it turned out. “Don’t give me that look.”
She shut her mouth right after, dreadfully watching Kaveh's in fear of his smile fading. But it was still there, sun winking at her from the corner of his eyes and setting the scene ablaze. Nilou might as well dance with the flames. “What look?”
“The one you're giving me now.” She mumbled under her breath, though she knew he heard everything. “It’s distracting.”
Kaveh's mouth opened with a taste of amused surprise. “Distracting? From what?”
“From…” Nilou frowned, trying to come up with a response to shut his fun down. She couldn't bring herself to do it, of course. “You shouldn't question me when I'm nervous.”
“Nervous?”
“You make me nervous.” She bit her lip immediately after the words left her mouth. No, that's not what she wanted to say at all. The letters just spilled out of her lips in the force of a flood, raining down on Kaveh's changing face. “In a— In a good way. Best way, actually.” She shifted her weight before daring to look up again. “It doesn't make it sound better, does it?”
But Kaveh didn't meet her eyes this time. In fact, she didn't get a response at all. Only a long, stunned silence that hung heavy and uncomfortably in the crispness of the dew kissed air. “I'm sorry. It happens sometimes, I ramble a lot and end up not making any sense… Especially in the morning, I—”
“Nilou.”
She stopped. Hands raised in front of her face defensively and cheeks burning bright red. Kaveh slowly raised from his place beneath the tree, reaching out to pull her wrists away and look right at her with no barrier in between.
“I’m glad I make you nervous. In a good way.” He said, voice strangely low but so loud in its quietness. A shock right to her brain. “That makes me a little nervous too.”
Nilou blinked, stunned.
Kaveh sighed.
“Fine.” He continued. “Maybe more than a little.”
And with that, the invisible knot in Nilou's chest untangled with a sharp pull of laughter coming out of her throat. Light, freeing laughter. One that Kaveh soon joined in, not letting go of her wrist. Until she gained the courage to slip out of his fingers, just to intertwine them with hers. “Maybe a dance will make you relax.”
The sun found the way to its favorite place on Kaveh's face again. This time Nilou welcomed the burn. “I like the idea.”