{Unedited}
Requested by: Lizardgurl
Keys;
Y/N = Your Name
~.~.~.~.~.
Heaving a sigh, I tossed and turned within my bed sheets. Unlike many other members of the team at this unusual hour - I was wide awake. Rustles of the fabric running along my own pajamas seemed to make it worse as the sound rang out in my ears. Removing the sheets with a hefty kick and internal sigh, I sat up. Yesterday's memories - or at least a couple of hours ago now - flashed through my head; Killer Frost had managed to slip through our fingers today and froze us waist-below to the ground, leaving us for the Justice League to pick us up. Unable to rid of them I got up and made my way to the kitchen within Mount Justice.
Pouring the water into the cup, I took in the silence of the cave. And although no one was there, I could still see everyone doing their daily things; Wally and Artemis bickering, Robin watching from the sidelines whilst taking note of 'every shot fired' between the two; M'gann grinning victoriously over her newly baked cookies with Conner in tow; and Kaldur watching over us, mostly staying quiet unless need be.
Nothing particular crossed my mind as I silently walked back to my room, until I noticed a small light coming from the crack between Kaldur's bedroom door and the floor. Don't get me wrong - I don't make it a tendency to pry on what my other team mates are up to at two in the morning, and I'm certain that none of them do that to me - or at least I hope so.
Knowing that Kaldur was usually the one to go to bed early, however, I knew something wasn't quite right. I tapped the side of my cup nervously, wondering if I should knock as my hand raised, ready to do so. Letting my fist drop back to my side, I went against it, and headed back to my own room, still wondering about Kaldur was up to.
Looking up at the blank ceiling the next night sent a chill of déjà vu down my spine. My mind wondered over and over, wondering if Kaldur was awake. Exhaling a large breath, I closed my eyes once more, trying desperately to sleep. But when I tossed to the other side of my bed for the sixth time that night, I knew my curiosity had gotten the worst of me.
I threw on a sweater and tucked my hands under my arms as I wandered down the empty hallways of Mount Justice, the small chill tickling my skin. Chewing on the inside of my cheek, I shifted my weight from side to side as I stood outside of Kaldur's bedroom door. The small light was there again, escaping through the small gap.
Taking in a deep breath I placed my hand on the door, pushing it open. I wasn't surprised by the way Kaldur had decorated his room; nothing but a shelf, drawers and a desk were present. But I couldn't help but let out a small gasp as I saw what Kaldur was doing.
His hands were painted with various shades of colors, trailing up to the center of his forearm. There were even a few speckles and a faded wipe of green on his forehead. I stared as his fingers pressed to the canvas then back to his other hand, mixing colors together that stood out against his rich, sepia brown skin.
I was still staring even when Kaldur had caught me.
"(Y/N)?" He stumbled to collect himself, pushing his paints and canvas to the side. "What are you doing here?"
"Can I see it?" I asked, ignoring his question. I silently stepped closer, trying to get a closer look at his painting which Kaldur was attempting to hide behind his back.
Kaldur wasn't generally one to turn into an introvert at times, normally facing his issues head on. But this time it seemed different, like he had never wanted someone to see what he was doing.
Kaldur glanced over his shoulder at his painting before shuffling to the side in order for me to see. I sat down on the further end of the bed, taking the painting and holding it high in my hands. Light, cerulean blues mixed together with sulfuric shades of oranges and reds, clashing into each other smoothly.
I looked up at Kaldur, who picked at the paint on his finger tips.
"It's beautiful," I said, my eyes shifting back to the painting. I felt Kaldur shift uncomfortably next to me.
"Why didn't you tell me you did this?"
"I-I didn't think that it would concern you," Kaldur replied in a mumble, still picking at the paint.
"How long have you been doing this?"
"Ever since I came to the surface. I was always intrigued by your artists like Michelangelo, and Monet."
"Monet."
"What?"
"His name is pronounced 'Monet', not 'Mon-it'." The color in Kaldur's cheeks deepened at the realization that he had been saying the artists name wrong for so long.
I had been sneaking into Kaldur's room each night after that. We sat in silence, the occasional hum or grunt when unable to form the correct colors emitting from Kaldur's throat, filling the room every so often.
"Why do you do it?" I finally asked one night. I must have caught Kaldur off guard, too, as his fingers seem to hesitate before touching the canvas.
"Many reasons," he said, eyes concentrated on the painting. "A mission gone wrong, home," he sighed. "Lio-ohpae-e. . ."
"What?"
"I-it's a word that can't be translated into your language." I stared at him as he continued to work.
A couple of nights later and I saw that Kaldur was running low on canvas'. But when I asked him about it, he shrugged and claimed that he'd buy more.
"Do you ever think about. . . painting on people?" For one of the rarest moments, Kaldur looked up at me from his last canvas, a questioning look on his face.
"Painting. . . on people?" I shrugged my shoulders, feeling my face warm up.
"Well, yeah. I mean, you won't have to buy new canvas' every other week, it can easily wash off, it doesn't cost anything, you-"
"Okay," Kaldur said with a chuckle, pushing his paints aside.
"W-what?"
Kaldur crossed his legs over and turned to face me. I quickly copied. He calmly took my hand and brought it towards him. I bit my tongue when the first touch of paint came, watching his fingers work over my skin. It was silently awkward at first, but eventually we reverted back to our old ways; he would paint and I would watch.
Overtime the confidence grew, and quickly found ourselves constantly in that situation. I glanced up over my shoulder from my book.
"I don't get it." Kaldur spared a glance at me before going back to painting, his soothing fingers making small and quick movements. He hummed in reply, waiting for me to continue.
"Wally and Artemis. I mean, I get it they are cute together. But Artemis is, well, very up-front about everything. Like, aggressive up-front. But she's still nice when she wants to be, and only when she wants to be. Meanwhile, Wally, he's just- well, he's so- so. . ." I sighed, my book flopping onto the bed.
"So?" Kaldur asked, still focusing on his work. I chuckled and nodded my head.
"Yeah, 'so'."
A few days later and we were up against Killer Frost once again, and things weren't going according to plan.
"Looks like she brought a couple of friends this time," Wally remarked, barely making it past one of Firestorms' fusion blasts.
"Fire and ice. Huh - who would've guessed?" I commented, looking over at Kaldur who spared a smile before turning back to Killer Frost who was busy icing up with pavement.
I went to step out from behind the safety of a car only to have my shoulder jerking me back. I would've complained if it weren't for the fact that they had pulled me out of the way of some of Killer Frost's ice-daggers. I looked up and grinned at Kaldur.
"Thanks. I really owe you one."
After finally apprehending Killer Frost and Firestorm, we all headed back to Mount Justice. It was well past midnight when we arrived, and everyone automatically went to their rooms. After a small tap on Kaldur's door and a hum, I entered Kaldur's room with a grin.
"I'd say today was a success," I sighed as I sat down with my back facing Kaldur. He nodded in response. I cracked my neck slightly and rubbed it, before starting to roll up my shirt in order for Kaldur to start painting. I sneaked a glance at the paints and saw that there were fewer colors this time. I looked forwards when Kaldur picked up one of the paints, squirting it onto his hand.
"I, uh- I learned something. In Atlantean," I mumbled as I played around with a rubik's cube. I could feel Kaldur's eyes looking over me in wonder.
"You, what?" I began to gnaw anxiously on my lower lip.
"Y-yeah. I've been studying it for a while now and I've actually managed to catch onto a few words." I ran a hand through my hair nervously.
". . . can you say something?" Kaldur asked quietly, his fingers leaving my back. I nodded slowly and turned around, facing Kaldur, who was smiling gently at me.
"Tia-ahnoka e-eo-oho-oh pao-ohli sa-a-ahpae-enoka noe-e tio-ohtia-ahe-e."* I grinned at the end of the sentence, surprised that I was able to make it through without stumbling that time. Kaldur seemed to be surprised as well.
"Y-your welcome."
Kaldur's hands quickly went back to work, and I was marginally saddened when he finished earlier than usual. His hands seemed more unsteady after my attempt at speaking Atlantean. I waved a quick good-bye as I left his room and silently made my way down the hall to the showers.
Usually I wouldn't bother to check and see what Kaldur had painted as they were usually the same. But this time his pattern had seemed different - edgier almost, like he was rushing to finish the job. So when I snatched my shirt over my head, I walked over to the mirror and turned so I could look at my back. The words "I lio-ohpae-e you" were painted scrawly over my back. I quickly tried to translate the word.
"L. . . o, v. . . y? No. . . I think it's- oh, God." I quickly pulled my shirt down and sprinted back to Kaldur's room, unaware of how loud my footsteps actually sounded.
Without knocking I entered Kaldur's room. I didn't bother to wait for him to put down his paints and walked over hastily, capturing his lips in my own. Kaldur dropped his paints in surprise before calming into the kiss and placing his hands on the side of my face.
We pulled away slowly, our breaths hitting each other's faces.
"I-I lio-ohpae-e you, too," I mumbled as my face grew red. Kaldur's lips pulled back into a smile as he lifted me up and twirled me around, before kissing me once again.
"We should tell the others," Kaldur said once we pulled away.
"It's 3 AM - should we really be telling them now?" I replied, crossing my arms over my chest. Kaldur looked down at me with a knowing look.
". . . okay, let's go tell them."
~.~.~.~.~.
* Translation: Thank you for saving me today
I just want to point out that the translations are actually from the Burning Man Opera website, which is the closest I could actually get to Atlantean translations, but if you know where I can get translations for the language in the DC universe, please let me know! (Also I'm like 90% sure that it's the same translations they use in Stargate Atlantis)
Now, it's time for some shameless self-promotion time;
I have decided to help out other people who want to write, but aren't quite sure where to begin. What plot should I use? How should I start it? If you are someone who asks these questions - then this is the book for you. In this book, I will be posting a bunch of sentence starters and AU's/Writing prompts for other writers such as myself. So if you want to start writing something, but aren't exactly sure how - then go check it out! (Please and thank you)
If you want to submit anything you can do so by commenting or messaging me directly.
Chika chika
Izzie