13. Ohara

Nothing made my heart soar more than the childish beaming grin on her face when I produced the plate of human food… And nothing made my heart more sore than knowing soon, I wouldn't see it ever again.

I walked her through the long Ikmal prison hallways to the Prize Pool.

I told her about the prison and everything I had learned about how it was run and organized. Such a small amount of information considering the ten years I'd spent there.

"I guess this is goodby—" I said, but before I could finish, Lily cut me off.

"Don't say it. I don't like goodbyes."

Her expression broke and she looked sad. I wondered what had happened to make her feel that way. Instead of asking her and reminding her, I made another suggestion:

"Then how do you say hello on your home planet?"

"It's nice to meet you, Ohara. My name is Lily."

And then she did a very strange thing. She offered her hand to me.

I just stared at it and frowned.

She smiled and leaned down and took my hand in hers and shook it.

"This is how we say hello on Earth."

"Oh," I said with a grin and shook her hand in return.

Lily broke the movement and massaged her hand.

"Did I do it wrong?" I asked, concerned I'd hurt her.

"No. You did it great. You're just… much stronger than the average human."

"Then let me show you how we say hello on my home planet. We have many ways. It's very complicated, depending on who the person you're greeting is, their position in society, their age… many factors. But this is the one we should use."

I moved close to her, placed one hand on her heart, bent down, and placed my lips within an inch of hers, so we could feel each other's breath.

Lily's lips puckered up like she was expecting something else but it wasn't part of the ritual. She completed the move by placing her hand on my chest too.

"Like this?" she said.

The scent of her was so strong I could barely keep my lips from moving forward and taking hers. Finally, I broke our embrace.

"It's very intimate," Lily said. "Much more than shaking hands."

"By sharing our breath, it's like we share our lives," I said. "It… probably sounds stupid."

"No," Lily said. "It's fascinating. I always liked learning about other cultures."

A silence passed between us. So much to say, but I didn't have the words.

"I guess I'll see you around," Lily said.

"I guess you will," I said, and watched her as she approached the Pool, looked back over her shoulder one more time at me, and disappeared inside.

Another Prize returned to the Pool with the Champion who had Claimed her. There was no handshaking or greeting of goodbye. They merely parted ways and that was it.

And immediately, it became clear that whatever Lily and I had happening between us, whatever this feeling was… it was something special.

And had I just let it go?