Flora
Flora glances sideways at Sohalia, her expression softening slightly as the words land and settle, though not quite comfortably. Maybe if Soh had said more—if there’d been something clearer to hold onto—the silence between her explanations wouldn’t feel quite so loud. As it is, the pieces Soh offers feel light in her hands, like shells that look pretty enough until you turn them over and realise they’re thinner than you expected. For all of her and Kai's desperate planning to rid themselves of telepaths, this was a time when having one would have been super useful.
Flora doesn't say any of that of course, but instead, she watches her friend for a moment, the faint crease between her brows smoothing out as she exhales softly through her nose. There’s something earnest in the way Soh speaks, something unguarded that Flora recognises all too well, and it tugs at her in that familiar way that makes criticism feel like stepping on something delicate. Still, the hesitation lingers. The idea that this is a feeling Soh has never had before doesn’t land as solidly as it might have, not when her dating history has been so brief, so… unfinished, like stories that never quite made it to their endings. And the fact that she hasn’t even asked Zavien about the shift, about that strange lightness that seemed to appear out of nowhere, leaves Flora’s mouth pressing uncertainly to one side.
She bends to pick up another shell, this one small and iridescent, turning it between her fingers as if the answer might be hidden somewhere in its sheen before dropping it into her basket with a quiet click. Maybe Soh’s just been caught off guard by someone who stays. Maybe it’s the kind of glow that comes from being wanted after being left too many times. Or maybe it’s just… good sex doing what it does best, wrapping everything else in a shine that makes it harder to see the edges.
Flora straightens and nudges Sohalia gently with her shoulder. "I just want you to be happy," she says, her voice warm and steady, the smile that follows bright enough to mean it. "And if you’re happy with Zavien, then that’s amazing." The words come easily, honestly, even if the thoughts behind them aren’t entirely settled. She lets them stand anyway, because Soh’s happiness matters more than picking apart the seams of it, at least for now.
Her smile shifts, turning a little sheepish as she lets out a small, apologetic laugh. "I’d say we should all go on a double date," she adds, drawing the words out slightly as her shoulders lift in a half-shrug, "buttttttttt..." Her nose wrinkles faintly as she glances back toward Soh. "Zavien kind of fully ignored Kai when he tried to talk to him at the rodeo, so..." She trails off, the sentence dissolving into the soft hiss of rain against sand, leaving the implication to settle where it will; that it seemed easier for Zavien to move on from Lena's death than to get over a stupid argument that he'd started with a friend.
Flora doesn't say any of that of course, but instead, she watches her friend for a moment, the faint crease between her brows smoothing out as she exhales softly through her nose. There’s something earnest in the way Soh speaks, something unguarded that Flora recognises all too well, and it tugs at her in that familiar way that makes criticism feel like stepping on something delicate. Still, the hesitation lingers. The idea that this is a feeling Soh has never had before doesn’t land as solidly as it might have, not when her dating history has been so brief, so… unfinished, like stories that never quite made it to their endings. And the fact that she hasn’t even asked Zavien about the shift, about that strange lightness that seemed to appear out of nowhere, leaves Flora’s mouth pressing uncertainly to one side.
She bends to pick up another shell, this one small and iridescent, turning it between her fingers as if the answer might be hidden somewhere in its sheen before dropping it into her basket with a quiet click. Maybe Soh’s just been caught off guard by someone who stays. Maybe it’s the kind of glow that comes from being wanted after being left too many times. Or maybe it’s just… good sex doing what it does best, wrapping everything else in a shine that makes it harder to see the edges.
Flora straightens and nudges Sohalia gently with her shoulder. "I just want you to be happy," she says, her voice warm and steady, the smile that follows bright enough to mean it. "And if you’re happy with Zavien, then that’s amazing." The words come easily, honestly, even if the thoughts behind them aren’t entirely settled. She lets them stand anyway, because Soh’s happiness matters more than picking apart the seams of it, at least for now.
Her smile shifts, turning a little sheepish as she lets out a small, apologetic laugh. "I’d say we should all go on a double date," she adds, drawing the words out slightly as her shoulders lift in a half-shrug, "buttttttttt..." Her nose wrinkles faintly as she glances back toward Soh. "Zavien kind of fully ignored Kai when he tried to talk to him at the rodeo, so..." She trails off, the sentence dissolving into the soft hiss of rain against sand, leaving the implication to settle where it will; that it seemed easier for Zavien to move on from Lena's death than to get over a stupid argument that he'd started with a friend.
There's somethin' warm about the winter when you come around
there's nothin' boujee 'bout you cozy as a hand me down
there's nothin' boujee 'bout you cozy as a hand me down
Code stolen from Queen Sky
