Iridescence

Chapter 6

Hereiths Pov

I open my eyes to see a blur of familiar black hair. A breeze of wind blows the hair, revealing his dark blue eyes, glistening as they look down at me. His eyes. The same eyes I've yearned to stare at for hours.

The slight sway of my body makes me look around, only to realize I was being held. By him. River.

Then the pain to my head hits, pounding at the back of my eyes. My eyes begin to feel heavy when I faintly hear River whisper. "Don't worry, we are almost inside. I'll bring you to your room to rest."

My eyes flash open, flashing back to the fight with Obsidian. All of a sudden the idea of going to my room, seeing Obsidian felt suffocating. "No, please," I manage to say weakly. "I need some air."

In a moment of desperation, I grab on to what I think is his shirt. I hear a welp, as I feel myself hit the ground and roll onto my back, looking up to see River rubbing a spot on his head.

"I'm so sorry," he kneels next to me. "You grabbed my hair... I didn't mean-" he cuts himself short. "I'm sorry."

There's a moment of silence where I keep my eyes focused on the stars above me. I've never seen them like this before. In this perspective. How they all illuminate the darkness and make the night sky so mesmerizing and comforting, instead of dark and scary. I never appreciate the world surrounding me as much as I should.

It hits me. What Obsidian said. Every day is the same. I'm so focused on myself and what's in front of me that I don't notice the people around me. Like Obsidian. She's right.

"Herieth?" I hear River's voice lead me back to reality. I glance over, a single tear falling slowly down my face. My cold face is suddenly met by his warm hand, wiping away the tear.

"Herieth, what's wrong? Why did you and Obsidian blow up at each other like that?"

Why did we blow up at each other? I guess I never noticed how selfish I was. "I don't know... life has just been a lot.'' I give a half shrug, fighting back the lump in my throat. River doesn't respond, just nods slightly.

After another second, River breaks the silence. "It's getting late... and you need rest-"

"Not yet. Just a few more minutes," I interrupt. Just a few more minutes of comfort before the storm sets back in. All of a sudden, River lays down next to me, looking up at the stars. "Ok, a few more minutes," He breathes.

We just lie there in comforting silence, enjoying each other's company with the stars above us. I let out a sigh, louder than I intended. 

"You know she loves you..." I look over, Rivers eyes filled with meaning. "Obsidian I mean. She spent days stressing about your gift... She went to at least 10 stores," he chuckles softly, seeing the water form around my eyes.

"We all love you... no matter what."

I look back to the sky above me, blurring as tears flow down my cheeks. I didn't want him to see me so vulnerable... but I couldn't help it.

As I bring my hand up to wipe away the waterfalls rushing down my face, Rivers hand meets my chin to gently turn my face back to his.

"I care about you Herieth. And from everything I've seen, you and Obsidian have something special. A human connection. No necklace can create that."

As my tears continue to pour, He rests his hand under my eye to wipe them away. My heart flutters as a wave of an intense feeling I've never felt before builds up inside of me.

I've always had butterflies around River, but this was different. I felt safe and connected with him. More than I ever have before. How could someone say exactly what I need without me even talking?

"I care about you too River," I spit out before sitting up and bursting out in tears. I've never been this emotional in front of anyone before, but with River, it's like I can let my heart out without the force of hiding it.

As my tears soften, I feel Rivers warm arms wrap around me. I lift my head and stare into his eyes for a couple of moments before smiling.

"Thank you," I whisper. He tucks a strand behind my ear and smiles back.

"I think it's been a couple minutes," He laughs. "You need rest." I laugh back, realizing how late it was. "You know... I never knew you were good at giving advice. It's usually the other way around," I mention as he helps me to my feet. "At least I don't have a full meltdown when I need help," He teases.

We laugh for a few seconds before I look into his eyes and lean into him, giving him a big hug. "Everything you said was perfect... you're perfect."

I realize what I said, but I don't care. I meant everything I said. Besides, I just full-on broke down in front of him. "I'm sorry I'm such a mess," I mumble, his arms still hugging me tightly.

He steps back, cupping my face in his hands.

"You're a perfect mess."

We stare into each other's eyes for a moment. The butterflies begin to fly from my stomach to my heart as the water current throughout my body quickens, Rivers eyes roaming down to my lips.

He slowly leans in toward me, and as soon as the moon hit our faces,

his lips met mine.

Time stops, the butterflies intensify, and the water current bursts into a waterfall. I can't even describe the feelings rushing through me at this moment.

His hands move up my face and into my hair as our kiss only deepens. Yet, it's so gentle? It's perfect.

I could feel the passion in his warm breath. The way his fingers curled in my hair. Just the way his lips felt against mine was like they were always meant to be there.

I've had a lot of beautiful moments with River before, but we never let our hearts give in to each other.

I lean back slowly, touching his face the same way he is of my face, the moon reflecting off his eyes that are so deep into mine.

We both take a couple of deep breaths in shock, his lips curving into a smile. 

"Maybe I should give you advice more often..."

How can y'all not fall in love with river after this? How do y'all feel about this chapter???? Are y'all excited for the next chapter? That May or may not have to do with the cliff hanger we left off at last time.