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Kai wasn't expecting much to happen tonight. Tano had gone out to some big party at Rusty's tavern and was planning on sleeping over at Logan's afterwards, so Kai's going to be spending the evening by himself. So Kai cooked himself a nice dinner of Girtle Ribs, cleaned up, and sat by the fire sharpening his hunting knife. It was a still night, he listened to the crackling of the fire and enjoyed the simple but repetitive motions of sharpening his blade. But he also felt an emptiness in his chest, and kept looking over to Tano's bed and feeling a twinge of sadness when he saw it empty.
When he finishes sharpening his knife he sheathes it, and then just sits and stares at the fire. He has a few chores he could be doing, but can't make himself move so he can start them. It's an unusual feeling for him, but he's always had Tano with him for the evenings. He just wishes he had someone with him, if even for a little while.
As if summoned, he hears the sounds of footsteps outside. His ears perk up and he rushes to the door, lifting the hide that covers the entryway. Outside he sees Autumn stumbling her way towards the hut. For a moment the way she's stumbling makes him think that she's injured, but then he realizes that she's not injured, she's drunk. He rushes out to meet her, worried that she'll fall over.
The moment she sees him, her face lights up "Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii Kai!" She giggles.
He wraps an arm around her shoulder to stabilize her. He notices that she is dressed up, wearing a sparkly necklace he hasn't seen her wear before, and her lips seem to be redder and her eyes darker.
"Hi. Are you coming back from the party?" He asks.
She giggles again, giving him a wide smile "Yes I ammmmm. It was so much fun! There was food and drinks and… things! Lots of things!" She rambles as he slowly leads her towards the hut. He's not sure what to do with her, but he figures it's probably not a great idea to stay outside where she could go wandering into the dark.
As they get closer, Autumn speaks out "Why'd you-why'd you show up outside my house?"
"We're not at your house." He answers plainly.
"I-uh-it-ohhhh." They pause at the door, she stares at it for several seconds, her body swaying slightly as she thinks.
"Huh I meant to go-to go home." She continues staring, then she gestures vaguely "This is okay too!"
He lifts the hide covering the entrance up and the two slowly make their way inside. He starts maneuvering her towards the logs that serve as stools around the cooking fire, but she doesn't seem want to move. She wraps her arm around him and uses this to lift herself up. She uses this to lift herself up, her eyes meeting his as they almost reach the same eye level.
"You look so much better in the light." She says in awe, then with her other paw she reaches out and strokes the side of his face. Then she grabs ahold of his face with both of her paws, stands on her tiptoes and kisses his forehead for several seconds, and when she pulls away he hears a loud *smack* sound.
The sensations hit him all at once and he's overwhelmed. Heat rushes to his face, his heart pounds, his stomach flutters. He feels her kiss him a second time, a lighter, quicker kiss. He immediately takes several steps back, then retreats into the corner. Autumn points at him and starts cackling evilly. Kai leans his head and arm against the wall, staring at the ground as the room starts to blur.
His thoughts race as the sensation of her lips pressing against his cheek play in his mind over and over. She kissed him! He can't believe it! She actually likes him…I mean they've been officially dating for a little while…but maybe she didn't mean it…or maybe she did? He didn't know what it was like to have someone actually attracted to him, much less kiss him. Was it normal to feel like your insides were all twisted around?
He takes several deep breaths, in and out, trying to calm his emotional storm. It's okay, this is normal, you two are dating after all. That's what people who are dating do. Have they been together long enough to be kissing? It's only been a couple of weeks. Not important, figure that out later. She kissed you…kissed you twice. Yes. Okay you can handle this.
He turns around to face her and sees that she's suddenly lying down by the fire, the flames casting a warm glow on the crown of her head, her eyes staring at the ceiling in a happy daze, arms reaching straight up. Suddenly he sees that her ears are way too close to the fire. He curses loudly, runs toward her, and pulls her upright.
"Whattttt?" She giggles.
"Your ears were about to burn off." He kneels down to look her in the eye.
"No i-" She turns her head around, stares for several seconds blankly, then shakes her head and seems to wake up a little "Oh, I- sorry. Well thank you so much."
She slings her arm around him and leans close into him, making excessive eye contact and leaning in slowly. Kai's nerves kick in and he leans back a little "You don't have to-if you don't want to-kiss me I mean."
Her eyes staring up at him "Cour'se I want to. Can you-just let me love you? Please?"
The blush returns to his face and he sharply inhales, quickly nodding before nerves make him change his mind. She scoots closer to him, takes his chin in her paw, admiring his fur and then his eyes. His heart is pounding so hard that can feel it in his ears, he wraps an arm around her and very slowly leans closer to her. Her lips press against his cheek and he lets out the breath he was holding.
She kisses him all over the face and up and down his neck for a long time. He feels his heart rate slow down, and his body relaxes for the first time in a long time. He closes his eyes and just…savors this. He never realized how good this…all this could feel. He was so lonely earlier but now her presence and affection is filling him up, and the idea of her being away from her feels as agonizing as carving out his own flesh.
They stay there for quite a while, wrapped in each other's arms. She whispers some sweet words to him and lean her head against his shoulder. The heat of the fire, the fullness of their bellies, the comfort of each other make them more and more drowsy. Soon Kai's lying on the ground, and the two of them drift into sleep together.
Kai's woken up by the sound of birds chirping and sunlight streaming through the bottom of the door. Kai groans, and tries to sit up before feeling a weight on his chest. He looks down and sees Autumn lying on him. She's about half on him, her head and right arm and leg wrapped around him. Her breathing is slow and she seems very relaxed.
The events of last night come flooding back to him, and he can barely believe that everything that happened then was real. He slowly pets her head, enjoying the feeling of her fur against his paws. She nuzzles into him, still asleep, and he continues to stroke her head, slowly blinking at her.
Is this their future? Late nights together, wrapped in each others arms giving kisses, waking up in the morning to cuddles and head pets? If that's their future together, then he cannot wait. He lets out a happy sigh and closes his eyes. Maybe he can start his day a little late today.
Then he hears the sound of the hide entrance being pushed aside and a sudden blinding light hitting his eye. He looks to see Tano standing in the entrance, his eyebrows raises and eyes wide, clearly not expecting to see the two of them together. Kai quickly pushes Autumn off of him and scrambles backwards. As she groans and asks what's going on, he stares at his brother, his entire face going red. Tano's eyes dart between the two of them, putting together the situation.
Then Tano laughs "You got some lipstick on your fur."
Kai bares his teeth "Shut up."