Shapes in My Palm

Chapter 12

In the back of Kai's mind, she had to remind herself not to get too attached to Lillian. Don't forget you have to kill her, Kai had reminded herself on multiple occasions. The letter told her not to get attached, and if she did her family could be in trouble.

But the best part of their morning traveling was that their hands brushed a few times, and each time Kai's heart skipped a beat and she forgot what she was talking about. It made carrying a conversation very difficult and Kai could have sworn that she saw a small smile and blush emerge on Lillian's face every time Kai stuttered her words.

After an hour or two of walking slower than planned Kai had an idea.

"Wear my pants!" Kai exclaimed, she stopped walking and turned towards Lillian with a stunned expression.

"What?" Lillian responded, she too had stopped and was staring at Kai with a confused face.

"The dress weighs you down and I can tell you're annoyed with it," Lillian blushed, "so wear a pair of my extra pants," Kai said.

Lillian looked at Kai for a second with a look of confusion than thoughtfulness, and finally, another smile appeared. "Okay," she smiled.

"Great." Kai beamed. She pulled off her bag and reached for an extra pair of her brown pants, careful not to let anything spill into the mud again. She handed them to Lillian and she headed over to a tree to change.

She focused on the bark on the trees and the songs of the birds. Kai was full of pride in her idea, and she was surprised she hadn't thought of it sooner. She was also excited to see what Lillian looked like in pants. A dress was good and all but pants allowed for less imagination.

Kai waited on the path for a few minutes waiting for Lillian to be done when she heard Lillian call out, "Can you help me with my zipper!?"

Kai's breath hitched, she hadn't been that close to Lillian since the ball and she didn't know how she would react. "Sure," Kai responded, her voice quivered.

She walked over to the tree where Lillian was changing and found she was still in her dress struggling with the zipper on the back. "Here, I got it," Kai reassured, she walked over to Lillian and stood behind her. She took a breath and then started to unzip the dress.

She pulled the zipper all the way down and then helped Lillian with her corset. As she unlaced the back, her hands froze and her heart started racing. Her fingers brushed Lillian's back and she could feel the smooth skin underneath her knuckles. Lillian shivered and she lingered for a moment longer before quickly continuing to help unlace the corset.

Once that was done, Lillian swiftly turned around and made eye contact with Kai. Something passed between them, Kai could have sworn and neither of them moved for moments. They were so close Kai could feel Lillian's warm breath hit her own face. She smelled of roses and citrus and her face seemed so smooth. Everything was calm and the feeling in Kai's stomach erupted again.

"Well," Kai began as she walked back towards the path and away from Lillian. "I will be here when you finish," she paused and rose her arm moving it around in a circular motion, "that." She turned around and stumbled back to the path.

Kai reprimanded herself, what was she doing? First, she was catching feelings, and now she was stumbling away like an idiot.

Lillian shook her head as if she was shaking away thought and responded, "yeah totally yeah."

Kai turned away again and finally took a breath, what just happened!?

* * *

The duo had reached their camp spot just as the sun was setting and it was a race against time to set up the campsite. Lillian was setting up the fire while Kai was in charge of the tent. Lillian was doing a lot better in the pants, she was able to move around faster and Kia had to admit she seemed a lot happier. Lillian was running and hopping around during their hike, causing both of them to laugh.

During their hike, Kai had laughed and said, "Don't fall," she was still a little nervous for Lillian.

"I won't," Lillian reassured.

"I can't fix wounds as well as you can just so you are aware," Kai admitted with a smile.

"I am surprised you didn't learn that in your warrior training," Lillian added.

"Yeah, uh training was something," Kai said, her voice dropped a little and she felt like shriveling. But she didn't, so that was a start.

She also had to admit that Lillian in pants wasn't a bad sight and she looked quite exquisite in them. She had to remind herself not to stare for too long and focus on the mission. Don't get attached.

Dinner had been made, fire-cooked pizza with ingredients from the town, and energy was wearing out. The hike had been long and torturous, and they both were still a little woozy from the ball.

Kai could tell Lillian was starting to get tired. After a few yawns, she had decided to head into the tent to sleep.

"Good night," She smiled, a small yawn slowly creeping up on her. She waved her hand before heading into their tent.

"Good night," Kai responded.

Kai herself was slowly dozing off but was trying to prevent following Lillian to bed. After the whole zipper situation, Kai was determined to get her feelings under control, and sleeping in the same tent as Lillian wouldn't help that problem. Don't get attached, she reminded herself once more before standing up and heading towards the tent.

Kai entered and instantly noticed that Lillian was still awake. She was laying on her back and staring at the sky. They made eye contact and Lillian shot her a smile. Kai returned it and headed to the side of the tent Kai snuggled under the covers and her hand slid down to her side. She took a few slow breaths and closed her eyes.

Instantly she felt a small brush against her hand and looked towards Lillian. She was still staring at the sky but another smile formed on her face. God, Kai fell apart every time she saw that smile. Kai followed suit and looked towards the sky. What was she doing? This was the exact opposite of not getting attached, and yet her hand slowly inched closer to Lillian's. Her breath hitched as it touched the other girl's soft hand and she slowly felt Lillian wrap around her own and before she knew it they were fast asleep in each other's company.

Screw getting attached, this was amazing.