The plane engines roared loudly outside Kairas' window. The wing, bright white, held the sun's everlasting reflection so intensely it was as if the star was right outside the plane's walls. Kairas rested his head against his knuckles, breaking his gaze only when Jewel handed him a glass of Ginger Ale.
He drank swiftly, placing the empty glass in the cup holder on the arm of his seat. Jewel sat across from him, placing her own glass down and crossing her legs. She was dressed in a bikini top and denim shorts. Flips flops were on her feet, and sunglasses on top of her head with her long hair pulled into a messy ponytail. "The Amazon. First time I've been."
"Not me," He replied. He was wearing basketball shorts and a black Tank top. "I've seen the city while I was wandering around a few years ago. It was just a small town then, nice and quiet."
"Really now? What made you leave?"
"It was nice and quiet," He said, chuckling to himself softly. "I wasn't the type to settle down in places like that. I'm still not, to be honest. Couldn't risk myself losing sight of my goals."
Jewel nodded. "I get it. Looking towards the future is important, but… Do you have to be so anger driven?" He looked at her again, but kept his mouth shut. "I'm just saying, Kai, that anger isn't good for you. Maybe you should try something to relax. Clear your mind and keep your head leveled. At least that way, when you fight him, you can plan your moves better and not be blinded by rage."
"Jewel, I appreciate the input, but I can't just let go of eight years of anger at the drop of a hat. Not now."
She touched her chin, then stood up and kicked off her flip flops. "We got some time. Come here." She instructed him.
Hesitantly, he got up and followed her to the center of the room. She raised her arms, stretching up wide, before bending downward and touching the carpeted floor with her fingers. "Let's try some yoga exercises."
"Yoga?"
"Yeah. You HAVE heard of it, right?"
He, for the first time, embarrassingly shook his head no.
"Jesus. I figured an eighteen year old boy would be head over heels for girls who do yoga."
Kairas shook his head, mimicking her stretching before bending over next to her. "I'm not driven by the need to mate like others."
Jewel looked at him. "We're gonna work on the way you talk too. You're too formal most of the time. Loosen up some."
He scoffed, closing his eyes. Jewel laughed lightly, then said, "Anyway, relax your body and breathe in deep, then let it out slowly."
He did just that. He felt odd, but trusted Jewel.
His muscles quickly relaxed, body loosening just enough that he felt little pressure on any of his bones. Jewel then raised both her legs, standing on her hands and taking another breath. Kairas copied her, feeling the blood rushing to his head.
He remained calm, breathed deeply, and the sense of gravity seemed to fade away. The plane's roaring engines dulled, until all he could hear was Jewel's breathing, her words, and his heartbeat.
Next, she eased herself on her stomach, rolling over and sitting up. She crossed her right leg over her left, then twisted her back extremely slow.
Once again, Kairas copied her movements.
His body welcomed it. His mind, for the first time, rejoiced in letting go of the world. Coming back around together, the two stood up. Jewel moved in front of Kairas, taking his arms and wrapping them around her lower back. "Hold, and don't let go." Slowly, she reached back, stretching wide. Kairas watched her closely. His heart began to beat quickly, eyes scanning over Jewel's developed abs.
Sweat lightly coated her skin, some from the heat of the plane and climate that eased its way inside, the other from her wide stretching and gentle movements.
She came back up, raising her leg and placing it on his shoulder. They were just the right size difference for it to not place too much strain on her inner thighs. She pressed, keeping her eyes locked on his.
His face heated up, blood rushing. "Jewel, is this okay?"
"Mhm," She replied.
A couple counts later, she placed her leg down and watched him. "Let me see.. I don't think there's too many other poses you can do." She snapped her fingers and turned. "Let's do simple meditation next."
Nodding, he sat down and crossed his legs. She sat to his right, crossing hers as well, shutting her eyes and placing her fingertips together. Kairas watched her for a moment, eyeing the sweat from her forehead.
It oozed down her face, dripping from her chin and into her cleavage. Quickly, he averted his eyes, and placed his fingers together, breathing in deeply and exhaling silently. His calm mind brought back in images of that night. His mother being dragged away, his father striking him, Takabi erupting in anger and erasing the neighborhood. His father's words played in his head, and while they themselves weren't too hateful, the tone and intent behind them was twisted. He had no want, no care, for his kin. His spawn, that he raised for seven years, meant nothing to him right now.
That simple fact stirred something in Kairas. The calmness faded away, a green aura slowly emitting from him. His anger was coming back, swelling like a balloon, and it wanted to burst so badly.
"Calm, Kai." Jewel spoke softly. "You control the anger. It doesn't control you."
He breathed deep. "Right." The aura faded.
Jewel smiled proudly at him. "Good."
"Thank you," He said. "It felt… Nice."
"Nice? Just nice? I was hoping you'd say wonderful. Amazing even," She groaned, but jokingly nudged his side. "Just trying to help."
Kairas nodded at her. "I appreciate it. It's been a while since I allowed myself to relax around someone other than Takabi."
"Seriously? I know he's your brother, but I figured you were always uptight and tense with him too."
"Far from it." He said. "Hell, me and him go nuts on Taco Tuesday. One of the only times we feel normal." He crossed his arms. "With him, everything just stops being a problem."
"Aw. Brotherly love is so cute." She then asked, "What about when you're with me?"
"With you, I…" He trailed off for a moment. "I guess, it's sort of the same. I can just trust you enough to do ridiculous poses like this."
Jewel stood up and stretched again. "Good, just don't pop any hard ons and we can do this every day, if you want."
He didn't comment on that. She watched him, wondering what he was thinking. His expression was unreadable, as usual, and it sent a chill through her. "That was a joke, ya know. I don't really care if you pop one with me." She covered her mouth and slapped herself mentally. "Fuck! Forget I said that!"
"It's… It's fine." He replied, looking away. "We have a few hours left. I'm going to take a nap."
Jewel crossed her arms. Great. I made it awkward now.
He crawled into the bed, pulling the sheets over himself. Jewel watched him for a moment, pondering his reaction. Surely, that couldn't mean….
"Kai, gimme the blanket."
"No," He said quickly.
She grabbed the sheet and tugged. He held on tight and pulled back. Jewel's eyes widened. "Did you!?"
"No! I'm just tired!"
"Then let me see!"
He swung his arm, a wall of black ice erupting between them. Jewel let go of the blanket before the wall formed, and just watched the black wall with a stunned face. Satisfied, and smiling, she walked behind the bar and sat in the seat, resting her chin on her palm and counting how long it would take him to remove the wall.