"You look...different today," she said slowly, surprised by his change in style. Prior, he had consistently shown up in just his casual sleepwear or some other ratty apparel, but now, he donned a simple white button up shirt tucked into black shorts. His brown hair was combed somewhat neatly for once and the top buttons of his shirt were undone to reveal a silver chain glinting on his collarbone.
"Well, is it a nice kind of different?" he chuckled, shutting the door behind him with his foot and walking over to her.
Her lips curved up slightly. "I would say so."
He grinned. "Why, thank you, darling. I brought you some special things today."
Her eyes fell on his tray of food, much larger than anything she had previously been given. On it lay a plate of little sandwiches, a small jar of pickles, a bowl of vibrant purple grapes, and a pitcher of tea paired with two cups. Her stomach growled in anticipation as she drank in the wonderful sight. "What's the occasion?"
He shrugged casually. "Just...thought I'd do something nice for you. Since you gave me that gift and you've been through a lot of shit lately. Here, hold the tray for a moment."
She took it from his hands and watched as he spread a mat over the floor for them to sit on. "Oh, that little thing? I'm glad you liked it, but this is far too much for something such as that."
"Which is why I'm eating with you," he replied, motioning for her to sit down with him. She complied, placing the tray between them.
"H-how did you get all this?" she stammered, still in a slight daze.
"I ate my food shares sparingly over the past few days, so this is all my stuff. Folks would kill me if I was giving the good—and "good" is subjective—kind of food to Blanks like you...even more so now since our shipments are low and we've been relying mainly on scavenged stuff and the few things in our little garden."
She stared at him slightly confused. "Shipments? Scavenged?"
He took a sandwich for himself and handed another to her. "Normally, we have a supplier for our food. They're an insider in the government and steal from their reserves for us. But those shipments have been cut off due to...uh, complications, so we've been relying on scavenging and our own food more heavily now."
"I presume that all the carrots and beetroot were from the garden, and the preserved items were from scavenging?"
"Yup. Carrots and beetroot are what we have most of, but we're all basically tired of it by now. But what can we do, right?"
She nodded, placing the sandwich back down and pushing the plate over to him. "I-I'm sorry. Thank you sincerely for this, but I can't accept it. Not when you need it the most."
"Hey, you need food too."
"B-but not this...I can't...the things you've been giving me before are sufficient..."
He sighed. "Darling, it's okay. We're not gonna starve." He noticed her still hesitating, so he handed her the sandwich again. "I promise, it's okay."
After another long pause, she finally accepted, taking the sandwich from his hand and starting to eat. She didn't say anything for some time aside from expressing her gratitude, but he couldn't help but notice how her actions seemed to get more and more frantic as she began to shovel food into her mouth at a faster and faster pace. She didn't even seem to stop to take a breath between bites nor did she notice that he had stopped his own eating to stare at her. The food wasn't even anything that spectacular, but the way she ate made it seem as if it was meticulously prepared by a culinary expert. When she reached for one of the cups of tea, her hand bumped into his, dragging her back to reality. Her head shot up to look at him, and a blush came to her cheeks.
"I'm sorry," she apologized, wiping her mouth with the back of her hand. "That was improper of me."
He shook his head, pouring her a cup and handing it to her. "No worries at all. Please, have some more."
"Thank you, Kairo. This was very kind of you."
"It's the least I could do."
"No, this is far more than the least. This is a luxury that I don't deserve."
"Why wouldn't you deserve it?"
She tilted her head. "Is that a serious question?" He paused, trying and failing to grasp her confusion. She bit her lip, unsure of whether or not to be amused or concerned. "Prisoner, remember?"
He internally slapped himself. "No, you're so much more than that."
"Maybe to you. I highly doubt that having a picnic on the floor of a jail cell would have crossed anyone else's mind."
"Well, lucky you're with me, then," he teased, nudging her with his elbow.
A small smile came to her face. "I am. And despite everything that has happened...I am glad to have met you, Kairo."
His heart skipped a beat, leaving him almost at a loss for words. "I'm glad to have met you, too. If only we'd met under different circumstances, maybe..."
"Maybe what?"
Maybe we would have been friends, good friends, and maybe even more. Maybe we would have grown up together, here in this compound, scavenging together as a team or going on adventures outside unimpeded. We'd watch the sunset from the rooftop and then stay up for hours to gaze at the stars. You'd know nothing of the pain or fear or hunger you felt back at the Home and the school, and you'd be able to live freely here, or at least, as free as it gets. Or....what if things were different for both of us? What if we lived in a time where there was no war and no fighting, and our biggest worries were hoping that the person we liked liked us back? Maybe I would take you out on a date like they would decades ago, and we'd go dine at the finest establishments and stroll through the most beautiful parks, just admiring the sunny skies and singing birds. Maybe, just maybe....
But he didn't say any of that out loud. The thoughts rushed through his head so quickly that he didn't have time to even try to suppress them, but once he did, he couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. He was doing exactly what he told Slade he'd never do—trying to escape to an entirely different reality and imagine how things could have been different—when he knew damn well that none of it was real. There was no way things could be or ever go back to the way they were so many years ago, and to him, it was futile to even think or ruminate about it. Because that gave him hope, and he knew that hope couldn't last. This was their reality, and there was no escaping it. And why did these thoughts involve her of all people, why her? Looking over at her, their eyes met, and he felt his heart jump in his chest a little, making him curse at himself internally.
"What? What is it?" she asked, noticing his gaze lingering on her for a little longer.
He immediately directed his eyes away, feeling a slight blush creep onto his cheeks. "Nothing. Don't worry about it."
"Are you sure? It seemed that something was on your mind."
"It's nothing important." Yes, it was, but he certainly wasn't willing to admit it.
She nodded slowly, not taking her eyes off of him but opting not to press him any further. "Alright then."
They continued to eat, silence hanging between the two of them. She carried on eating and enjoying the food without a care in the world, while he sat there drowning in his own thoughts and feelings. How could everything be so simple, yet so complicated with her? It didn't take much to make her happy, which in turn helped him appreciate the little things in life more. But he knew that they came from very different places; there were things that she experienced that he could never even begin to understand and vice versa. They couldn't be more different, and yet, he still felt drawn to her unlike anyone else before. He meant what he said when he promised to do whatever he could to keep her safe and happy, and he fully intended to stay true to his word. In a world where she had no one, he wanted to be someone for her to rely on so that for once in her life, she didn't have to fight alone. But at the same time, her fate remained uncertain and out of his control. He had assumed and grown comfortable with the idea that Clovis intended to keep her alive for whatever purpose, but what if things changed? Thoughts of what could happen made him sick to his stomach. He was far too attached to her now to just let her go, so if it came down to it, he knew he had to be ready to fight for her life.
"Why aren't you eating the pickles?"
Her soft voice pulled him out of his thoughts and back into reality. Shaking his head, he let out a slight chuckle. "'Cause I don't like 'em. I brought them just to see your reaction, though it seems like you might actually like those nasty things."
"Nasty? In contrast, I actually find them quite tasty."
"Pffttt, you're lying."
"No, no, I actually like them," she insisted, giggling slightly.
He smirked. "Okay, you little pickle. You can take the whole thing."
"Pickle? Me?" she questioned, mid-bite.
"What? You don't like that nickname?"
"Well, isn't it odd to be named after a type of food?"
"Hardly. People do it all the time. Kale, Olive, Clementine..."
She scrunched her nose. "I suppose names in general are somewhat foreign to me."
He frowned, an idea popping into his mind. He knew it was risky territory, breaking all of his unwritten rules, but it felt as if it was finally the right time. Taking a deep breath, he decided to just go for it and deal with the consequences later. That was how he handled most situations anyway.
"So, uh, I was thinking that maybe it was time that you get a name. Like an actual name, not some kind of number or funny nickname," he suggested.
Her eyes widened. "Oh, my. A name for me?"
"Yes. If you'd like one, of course."
She felt breathless at just the thought. "I...I'd love one. I've always wanted one."
"I figured. Do you have any ideas?"
"Well...why not the thing you've been calling me all this time?"
He raised an eyebrow. "Huh? What have I been saying?"
"Darling."
He burst out laughing, unable to help himself as she stared at him confused. "Ahh, no, that can't be your name. It's just a little filler term I use to call certain people."
She tilted her head. "I see. Then, I'm not really sure. I'm not too keen on 'Feina' either, and that's the only other thing I've been called."
Kairo chuckled, stretching out his legs and leaning back on his elbows. "Yves'll be sad about that, but I agree. It doesn't really fit you."
She shifted her sitting position, wrapping her arms around her knees and pulling them to her chest. "How did you get your name?"
"Me? Oh, I think my mother named me when I was a baby. Most people don't get a name this late in life."
"Does it have a special meaning?"
"Supposedly, 'victorious.'"
"That's nice. I like it."
He nodded, shrugging his shoulders. "I still have yet to live up to that name, though."
"I am sure you have had plenty of victories already."
"I guess so. But I'm still waiting for a day where I actually do something great."
"Then, I am sure that day will come. You will do great things one day, Kairo, I know it."
He smiled. "You're sweet. Thank you."
She smiled back. "Could I possibly have a similar name, then?"
"Sure. Actually, there's this really pretty name I read in a book recently that you might like. It starts with a 'K' too."
"What is it?" Her eyes seemed to sparkle at just the thought of it.
"Kerta. It means 'warrior.'"
She was taken aback at first. "Warrior? Me?"
"Yes, you. There's more than one way to be strong, you know."
She felt a warm feeling form in her chest. "Kerta," she repeated, trying out the sound of it and letting the syllables roll off her tongue. It sounded bold and fierce, something that she didn't really feel like she was, but maybe one day, she figured she might. Just the thought of even having a name made her feel on top of the world. Finally, for once, she had something to call her own that could not be taken away from her.
"I like it," she finally decided.
"You sure? Because once you accept it, it's yours forever."
She smiled. "Yes. My name is Kerta."