Chapter 10: The First Kiss

Kairus looks at Avyanna with a tense gaze, his eyes filled with a mix of emotions that are hard to read. Avyanna doesn't know how to respond to what he just said—her mind spins with uncertainty, and confusion clouds her thoughts. The moment feels heavy, suspended in silence, as if time itself is holding its breath. Then suddenly, she becomes aware of something else—Kairus’s warm breath brushing softly against her skin. It sends a shiver down her spine, grounding her in the moment. Her eyes widen slightly as she realizes just how close their faces have become, the distance between them barely more than a whisper. The air grows thick with anticipation, unspoken feelings lingering between them like a fragile thread on the verge of snapping.

Involuntarily, Avyanna's eyes flutter shut, her breath hitching slightly as a soft and unfamiliar warmth brushes against her lips. For a heartbeat, time stops. She feels something smooth, tender, and warm—it takes her only a second to realize it's Kairus. Her heart thuds loudly in her chest, echoing in her ears like a drum. Slowly, almost hesitantly, she opens her eyes. In front of her, Kairus’s eyes are still closed, as if he's trying to hold onto the moment for just a little longer.

The world around them fades—the quiet creak of the swing, the distant hum of the night, the whisper of the wind through the leaves. None of it matters. All she can focus on is the feeling still lingering on her lips and the look on his face, so close, so vulnerable.

After a few seconds, which feel both eternal and too short, she senses Kairus begin to pull away. His presence retreats, and with it, the warmth between them. Avyanna opens her eyes fully, feeling dazed, like she’s waking from a dream she wasn’t ready to leave. Slowly, she stands up from the swing, her legs slightly unsteady. She takes a deep breath, filling her lungs with the cool night air, trying to calm the swirl of emotions inside her—confusion, surprise, warmth, and something she can't quite name yet.

“I’m sorry,” Kairus says, his voice low, almost breathless. “It’s just… I couldn’t stop myself at all. I’m sorry. I’ll send you home. Let’s go.” He reaches for her bag that’s been resting on the bench and picks it up without meeting her eyes.

Avyanna doesn’t reply. She just follows him in silence, her thoughts a tangled mess. She steals a glance at him, but he’s looking ahead, his expression unreadable. The quiet between them feels heavy now, but not cold. It’s a silence filled with everything unspoken.

They walk side by side until they reach the front of her apartment building. There, they come to a stop. The glow from a nearby streetlamp casts a soft light over them, and the night feels still—like even the stars are holding their breath.

Kairus turns to her, his voice gentler now. “Take care, and sleep early.”

Avyanna gives a small nod. Her lips part slightly as if she’s about to say something, but the words don’t come. Instead, they just stand there, eyes locked, neither of them moving, as if silently asking the other what happens now. Who should leave first? Who should speak next?

The silence stretches, filled with meaning neither of them dares to name. Finally, Kairus lets out a quiet sigh, the kind that speaks of things left unsaid.

“I’ll leave now,” he murmurs, taking a step back. “Remember to take care.”

He offers her one last glance, and then slowly turns away.

She watches as Kairus walks away, his figure gradually fading into the shadows of the quiet street. With each step he takes, Avyanna feels a strange hollowness settle in her chest, like something had briefly sparked to life only to be snuffed out too soon. The moment is over, but it clings to her—his voice, his touch, the look in his eyes.

She stands frozen in place, the key to her apartment still in her hand, forgotten. Her mind spins. The kiss—they kissed. It wasn’t planned. It wasn’t expected. And yet… It happened. She can still feel it, the soft imprint of it lingering on her lips like a secret no one else knows.

A part of her wants to smile, to tuck the memory into a safe place and hold it close. But another part recoils, overwhelmed with uncertainty. What did it mean? Was it a mistake? Was it just a fleeting emotion for him—something he couldn’t “stop,” as he said? Or was it more?

She presses a hand lightly against her chest, trying to steady the erratic rhythm of her heartbeat. Her thoughts are loud, chaotic, tangled in all the questions she can’t begin to answer. Was she supposed to say something? Should she have stopped him? Should she have said more?

The silence around her now feels too loud, the night colder than before. She glances up at the dark sky, hoping it might somehow offer clarity, but all she finds is a vast emptiness mirroring her own confusion.

Finally, with a slow breath, Avyanna turns and unlocks the door to her apartment. As she steps inside, the warmth of the interior contrasts the whirlwind in her chest. She closes the door softly behind her and leans against it, shutting out the world.

And there, in the quiet of her home, she lets herself feel it all—uncertainty, longing, fear, and the dangerous flicker of something that might just be hope.

She closes the door behind her and lets out a breath she hadn't realized she’d been holding. The apartment is dim, quiet, still. A faint hum from the refrigerator is the only sound in the silence, but it doesn’t soothe her. It only makes her feel more alone with the chaos in her head.

She sinks slowly onto the edge of the couch, her fingers curling around the fabric of her coat. The kiss replays in her mind—soft, unexpected, and frighteningly real. It wasn’t just the kiss itself that shook her, but the way it made her feel. Vulnerable. Exposed. Like someone had seen past the walls she spent so long building and slipped through before she could stop them.

And that terrified her.

Because Kairus wasn’t just anyone. He had been slowly, carefully making his way into her life, step by step. And she had let him. Not fully—but enough. Enough that moments like this could happen.

Her chest tightened.

She had learned, a long time ago, not to trust easily. Not to believe in moments like this. Love, affection, even kindness—they always seemed to come with conditions. Her past had taught her that much. People left. People changed. People loved you one day and disappeared the next.

So why did part of her want to believe that this was different?

She leaned forward, resting her elbows on her knees and burying her face in her hands. Don’t get carried away, she told herself. Don’t let this mean more than it should.

But the truth was, it already did.

Maybe it was the way he looked at her, as if he saw things she didn’t show anyone. Or maybe it was the fact that he apologized—not because he regretted it, but because he didn’t want to hurt her. There was care in that. Thoughtfulness. Things she wasn’t used to.

And that scared her even more than the kiss itself.

Because if she let herself hope—if she let herself believe—what would happen when it fell apart?

She sat there for a long while, unmoving, the weight of her past and the uncertainty of her future pressing down on her shoulders. The walls she’d built around her heart weren’t just for protection—they were survival. And yet, tonight, they had cracked, if only for a moment.

And Kairus had been the one to slip through.

“Avyanna.”

A hoarse voice cuts through the silence, pulling her out of her spiraling thoughts. She startles slightly, her head snapping toward the sound. Standing a few feet away, leaning casually against the hallway wall, is Monica. Her posture is relaxed, but her eyes are sharp—watchful.

“Where did you come from?” Monica asks, her voice rough with sleep or maybe concern—it’s hard to tell.

Avyanna blinks, caught off guard. “Just… outside,” she says quietly, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “I was with Kairus.”

Her voice is hesitant, almost fragile, as if saying his name out loud might give too much away. Or make the moment more real than she’s ready for.

Monica raises an eyebrow, her expression unreadable. She clears her throat before speaking again. “Just take care,” she says, her tone calm but serious. “Knowing the world we’re in… if you get too close, he might get involved. You know how messy the Lord Mendez business can get.”

The words land heavy, like a quiet warning cloaked in concern.

Avyanna looks down for a moment, her fingers fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve. She knows Monica isn’t wrong. The life they live isn’t ordinary. It’s shadowed with danger, with secrets, with power plays that can destroy everything they touch. Lord Mendez wasn’t just a name—it was a warning in itself.

And Kairus… he didn’t belong to that world. Not yet.

“I know,” Avyanna murmurs, her voice barely above a whisper. “That’s what scares me.”

Monica watches her for a moment longer, then nods slowly, as if she understands more than she lets on. Without another word, she pushes off the wall and disappears into the hallway, leaving Avyanna alone once again—but now with a heavier heart.

She sinks deeper into the couch, her thoughts now torn between the warmth of the kiss and the cold reality of the world that waits outside her door. The line between what she wants and what’s safe has never felt so blurred.