the delicate balance (of me and you) | tsireya x y/n

Her (chapter two)

notes: sorry guys, this chapter was glitched out and wasnt showing the whole thing, but its fixed now :) ty for reading!

You wake up and yawn, stretching luxuriously as light shines on your face. You groan, rubbing your eyes, and blink slowly. As your eyes adjust to the light, you look around to see an empty room. Your father must be up already. You look up at the sky and see the sun already high in the sky. 'Shit, shit, shit,' you whisper, jumping up quickly and shoving on some clothes. You flatten your hair down with your hands and run out into the village, only pausing to grab something for breakfast on your way.

You sprint to the edge of the village and dive into the cool water, enjoying the refreshing shock for a moment before calling your ilu. A few minutes later, you arrive at the seawall terraces, where you're meant to be helping train the children of Toruk Makto, who arrived yesterday. You walk up awkwardly and stand next to Tsireya, who's already telling off her brother Aonung, as per usual. She smiles at you, and says 'this is Lo'ak, Neteyam, Kiri, and Tuk. Everyone, this is y/n.' You nod politely, and they do the same back. You notice Lo'ak's eyes sweeping over Tsireya, and for some reason this makes you uncomfortable. You unconsciously move closer to her, and she leans into you as well. 

'Okay,' she says, seemingly having taken control of the training. 'Let's go for a swim and see how you guys do.' Aonung jumps in first, clearly wanting to be as far away from the newcomers as possible, and then Tsireya grabs your arm, pulling you in with her. You land in the water with a splash, and look up to see everyone else jumping in. You smile at the sight of Tuk clinging on to Kiri, and follow Tsireya as she leads the way. You swim next to her, watching the outsiders reactions to the sea life all around. 

Tuk swims through bubble rings, giggling and blowing her own. She's so cute, you think, as you look over to see what the others are doing. Kiri watches a jellyfish-like creature with a wistful smile on her face, and Neyetam and Lo'ak swipe at the bioluminescent seaweed. You go to swim on with Tsireya, but notice that Neyetam, Lo'ak and Tuk are swimming up for air. Aonung signs 'what's wrong with them,' with a grin, and you can't help but agree. It's barely been a minute under the water. Tsireya looks at him disappointedly, and you're glad that you kept it to yourself that you agreed. She swims up, and you follow her, Aonung following behind. 

When you reach the surface, Aonung signs 'they're terrible divers,' and laughs. Tsireya hits him lightly and signs 'they're learning.' Tuk says dispiritedly 'you're going too fast! You have to wait for us.' Tsireya smiles at her kindly. Neteyam says something about 'finger-talk' but you're distracted. Lo'ak keeps looking at Tsireya; you understand why, she's gorgeous, but it's pissing you off. You glare at him, and he notices, dropping his gaze to the water embarrassedly. Ugh, thank Eywa, you think. 

Tsireya dives back under the water, and you watch as her body gracefully curves through the dive, her curls bouncing. You dive after her, noticing how the sunlight shimmers through the water on her body. She turns and signs to you, 'where's Kiri?' Her eyes are such a pretty colour, you think. She gives you a weird look. 'Oh, right. I don't know,' you sign in reply. She rolls her eyes, and swims off, you following her. You remember you didn't see Kiri come up to breathe, either, so you sign to Tsireya, 'let's go back the way we came.' She nods, and turns to go that way, her long legs cutting effortlessly through the water. You glance away, blushing, and swim after her.

After a few minutes of searching, Tsireya turns to you, panicked, and signs 'where is she?' You gently place a hand on her arm and sign 'it'll be okay, we'll find her.' She looks down at your hand, and you snatch it back, embarrassed. She raises her eyebrows at you, and giggles. You smile awkwardly, and keep swimming. Finally, you find Kiri, playing with a large school of fish. 

Tsireya signs to her, 'are you okay?' Kiri tilts her head, confused. You sign to Tsireya, 'she doesn't understand.' You gesture to Kiri, pointing at her and doing a thumbs up sign with a questioning expression. She nods, understanding. Out of curiosity, you gesture to the surface and her, asking if she's been up to get air yet. She shakes her head, and you look at Tsireya in wonder, who signs 'she's a natural.' You swim off, leaving her alone, as she seems to want to explore on her own, and there's no danger in the bay. Tsireya signs, 'let's call our ilus and try and get the newcomers on some as well.' You nod, and sign 'and let's make sure they're okay too, they've been alone with Aonung for a while.' She giggles, and you both call your ilus. 

As your ilus swim through the water together, you watch Tsireya. Her hair flows with the water, and her body curves perfectly through it. You notice how the glowing freckles on her face highlight her cheekbones, and how her eyelashes frame the delicate range of colours that glimmer in her eyes. You shake your head, confused, and you see Tsireya look over at you out of the corner of your eye. You avoid her gaze and ride a little faster so you're ahead of her.

When you return to the group, you surreptitiously watch Tsireya while she talks to Tuk about how to hold her breath. She really is perfect, you think. But I can't have feelings for her. You sigh, flopping back in the water. What if it ruined our friendship? I couldn't let that happen. And besides, there's no way she likes me back. You float on your back, pondering your new dilemma. Suddenly, Tsireya leans over you, concerned.

'Y/n, are you alright? You've been so quiet today, I'm worried,' she says, frowning. You sigh, avoiding her gaze. 'Yeah, I'm fine,' you mumble, wishing that you could tell her how you really feel.