Chapter Text
Neteyam laughed, a melodic sound to Ao'nung's ears. Neteyam's lips curled upwards, exposing his bunny teeth and baby fangs. Ao'nung tenderly slid a thornless red rose speckled with white spots between his braids. It was a traditional fling Ao'nung did perpetually, asserting that it reminded him of Neteyam's vitiligo patches. Neteyam's traitorous face, much like Ao'nung's, blushed furiously.
"Oh? What's this for?" Neteyam teased lightly, his golden brown eyes leering at his boyfriend's light blue ones. The rose barely weighed, and Neteyam quickly forgot about its presence.
Both boys could smell the honey-like fragrance of the flower. The sweet aroma clouds their brains like a blissful drug. They seemed far from sober, high on anticipation and thrilling passion. Reality would say the scent wasn't strong and only amplified by young love.
"Just a simple gift," Ao'nung hummed. His large hand softly cupped Neteyam's cheek. Neteyam's erratic heart pounded in his chest. What has he done to get favored by Eywa?
"Simple gift from a simple guy?" Neteyam inquired, eyes half-lidded with excitement bubbling in his chest. Ao'nung leaned closer, holding Neteyam's waist and pulling him in with his other hand.
Neteyam dreamily reminisced about their first kiss; it had taken place in the afternoon on a beach near a calm forest. The sky had been partly cloudy, the waves lazily reached for their feet, and the wind softly brushed their features. He distinctly remembered the taste of pine and sea salt in the air and how the mix pricked against his skin in the best way possible. Sure, their lips had been chapped, and their noses bumped awkwardly, but it had been perfect.
"Oh, I'm very complex, Forest Boy," Ao'nung whispered, his breath hot against Neteyam's face. He effortlessly captivated Neteyam and allured him back to reality. Neteyam's hand rested comfortably on the taller's shoulder. Gone were the times the height difference vexed Neteyam.
Electricity sparked in the air.
"You're going to have to prove it to me, then," Neteyam challenged. He twisted one of Ao'nung's curls in his fingers. He still had yet to find out which conditioner his boyfriend used.
The moonlight danced gracefully across their bodies, twinkling in their sappy eyes.
As they were about to kiss, Neteyam's phone blared a jolting ringtone. It began to buzz and jitter demonically in Neteyam's coat pocket.
Both the boys jerked back in surprise. Neteyam's breath caught, causing him to start choking. Sudden saliva clung to the back of his throat as unshed tears made his eyes shine.
Ao'nung whumped him on his back a good few times before Neteyam felt better. The latter meekly gave a thumbs up as his thanks before picking up the phone.
"Hello?" Neteyam rasped, causing both boys and Jake, who was on the line, to cringe. Slobber dribbled on the edges of his lips. Neteyam swiftly used the sleeve of his ebony black coat to wipe it away. So much for keeping it clean.
"Where the hell are you, boy!?" Neteyam's father, Jake Sully, demanded. Neteyam frowned momentarily before checking the time on the top of the screen, causing him to double-take.
"Shoot! Sorry, Sir," Neteyam apologized hastily, tightening his grip on his hard phone case. Tuk, his youngest sister, had unintentionally taken the role of his official phone breaker, having to have dropped it numerous times. Hence, forcing Neteyam to buy the ridiculously expensive and hard-as-stone phone case.
"Get your ass home. Now."
That was all the ex-military soldier had to say before ending the call. Jake knew his eldest son would return faster than an excited dog.
Neteyam cursed under his breath, a small pout forming on his lips. He felt crushed, having their sweet night together abruptly ending, as all stories did.
Neteyam fumbled with his phone briefly, double-checking that the call had been cut before slipping it back into its reserved spot in his coat pocket. He let out a breath he didn't know he was holding. The mixed boy spared a glance at his disappointed and flustered boyfriend.
It was in Neteyam's knowledge that his father meant well and that he cared. The war against the RDA had scarred everyone in some way or another. He didn't want to end up being another burden or worry for Jake to carry, so Neteyam prided himself in doing whatever he could to ensure satisfaction. Lo'ak, his younger brother, would spit the words "golden boy" in his face whenever they got into a heated argument. Still, during times like these, Neteyam couldn't always manage to stop the feeling of annoyance from seeping into the walls he spent his life building.
They were quiet for a few moments. Only the ripples of the pond, faraway car noises, occasional creaks of the sturdy bridge they were on, and the chirps of lively crickets filled the awkward silence. His younger, adopted, and autistic sister, Kiri, would probably be able to tell him exactly what kind of cricket was singing, along with a complete analysis of their behaviors. She would always be ecstatic when she found an iridescent beetle or vibrant caterpillar. He knew she would love to be in this secluded spot. Neteyam had plans to show her the place in the future.
Ao'nung had decided to take Neteyam out to the bridge in the evening to feed the ducks, watch the sunset, and stargaze. (Neteyam ended up doing most of the stargazing; Ao'nung was too busy fixating on him. In Ao'nung's defense, Neteyam's light freckles prettily looked like stars. Sometimes, Ao'nung liked to brush his fingers over them and pretend to connect the dots. He could feel the subtle ridge on Neteyam's nose).
Where Ao'nung had plucked the rose, Neteyam had no idea. Oblivion was bliss.
Ao'nung cleared his throat. "I guess I should drop you home, then."
"Yeah," Neteyam agreed, swallowing thickly as his head dipped slightly. He did feel a bit annoyed that their moment was ruined, but also guilty since he had disobeyed direct orders from his father. He had promised to be home by eleven-thirty, and it was already one-twenty-eight in the morning of the next day. These sorts of things were to be expected by Lo'ak. Not him.
"Duty calls for the Forest Boy," Ao'nung chaffed, mimicking a sergeant.
Neteyam smiled helplessly at his boyfriend. Ao'nung offered a small, affectionate smile back and began venturing to the car. Ao'nung had complained in the past about how incessant Jake was and how Neteyam seemed to be his "little soldier," which then led to some heated arguments. Some vocal cords were tested, and tears broke free. Ultimately, they made up with Neteyam promising he'd try to do better and stand up against his father. So far, though, he still needs to fulfill that promise, and Ao'nung was well aware. It wasn't something Neteyam was particularly proud about.
The Polynesian boy exhaled deeply, already knowing what to and not to expect. He pushed down any negative thoughts and flickered his gaze onto Neteyam, who held up a calm demeanor that Ao'nung could see right through. The latter was sure Neteyam felt guilty about something he couldn't control. He tried to think of something to distract him. Ao'nung smirked when he saw Neteyam's empty hands carelessly by his sides. He didn't miss a chance to hold Neteyam's hand.
"You're such a dork. You know that?" Neteyam bantered, feeling the warmth of Ao'nung's hand as his own was held. It always surprised him how Ao'nung managed to stay warm, even on the coldest of nights. Here, Neteyam was in his long coat, baggy jeans, and shirt with long sleeves (which was agony whenever it rolled up as he wore the coat), while his boyfriend was out here rocking a plain pale green T-shirt with barely any sleeves. At least he wore long sweatpants. The taller's tan skin showed no signs of goosebumps.
Ao'nung offered a lopsided and mischievous grin that Neteyam had grown to fawn over. The butterflies failed to have left the pit of Neteyam's stomach yet, fluttering around and entranced by all the flowers in his heart.
"You know you love it,"
Now it was Neteyam's turn to act like the dork. That smooth idiot. Neteyam cast his attention towards the pond, drinking the scenery one last time before he had to depart.
The crescent moon hung lazily on the top of the slightly clouded dark sky. It's a disoriented reflection in the body of water, partly caused by the pair throwing pebbles into it and disturbing the peacefulness it once was. Neteyam had thrown out a few facetious and uncalled-for lines about jumping, which Ao'nung did not let slide. Neteyam's retribution was a smack on his arm, followed by a forced apology to no one in particular.
Neteyam remembered the time they both were at the adolescent age of twelve. Neteyam had only recently moved to the island, completely traumatized by the war that surrounded him. His wounds, both internal and external, were still fresh and raw. The stinging salt of the sea air didn't help ease his palpable tension.
Ao'nung had been his first friend (after a few fights, that is. Ao'nung was a somewhat abrasive and loud-mouthed child) here after the loss of many others back home. Neteyam's nightmares gradually decreased, and his panic attacks became more tolerable.
The native helped Neteyam heal in a way many others couldn't. Neteyam ended up slowly accepting the islands as his new home and that not everyone was out to hunt him or his family down.
The younger boys had found delight in this spot. They carved their names on hard tree trunks, skipped flat rocks against the water, fished, and talked to each other regarding random things that happened in life as they gnawed on Neteyam's fruit snacks for hours on end. If Neteyam strained his ears, he could faintly hear the childish laughter echo through his mind and the phantom splashes of stones.
Neteyam smiled nostalgically, knowing the bridge deeply cherished the innocent moments and acted as a safe vessel to store them.
This spot became 'their place' as the stars shifted above. It was serene. Neteyam especially loved to write his poems by the tree roots, letting his imagination fly free as he typed his thoughts on a helpful little writing app. Ao'nung loved reading them beside the shore, even before they became an item.
Ao'nung snapped Neteyam out of his spaced-out zone by yanking him forward quickly. Neteyam released a startled gasp, looking up at his boyfriend with a mixture of confusion and amusement. Ao'nung chuckled and pressed a sly kiss on Neteyam's head, near where his white patch contrasted with his deep brown skin. His soft lips against his cold skin sent chills up his spine.
Neteyam's face flushed red for a moment. The butterflies fluttered furiously as his heart bloomed more sweet flowers. He leaned forward and pecked the rounded tip of Ao'nung's soft and broad nose. Eywa, they both were down bad. They continued walking forward in comforting silence.
Their shadows frolicked behind them, making them appear as one in the faint moon rays.
Within a short few minutes (dappled with complaints from Neteyam about his shoes getting soggy, which were then followed by snickers from Ao'nung), the couple managed to locate Ao'nung's (borrowed, mind you) silver Ford Ranger.
The poor car suffered quite a bit of damage when Ao'nung and his older sister, Tsireya, first used it to learn how to drive. The right car door had been scratched when Ao'nung bumped into someone else's car on the way to the grocery store. Tsireya had managed to shatter the tail light after driving straight into the garage door before realizing it hadn't opened. Tonowari, Ao'nung's and Tsireya's towering father, had reluctantly paid for the broken light.
Of course, the car occasionally acquired mystery bumps, indents, and ridges, but Ao'nung retorted that it gave it character. Tsireya had just heavily sighed, tossed back her long, curly hair over her shoulder, and rolled her eyes, even if the sides of her mouth would quirk upwards, making her already prominent dimples more pronounced. The car was authentic; there was nothing fake about it.
Neteyam opened the car door and sat next to the driver's seat in the front. Immediately, he reached out to connect his phone to the car speaker before Ao'nung could. By slapping Ao'nung's hand away, Neteyam was victorious. Ao'nung groaned in defeat and closed his door as he sat comfortably in the driver's seat. Neteyam silently hoped his boyfriend didn't feel frustrated that their time on the bridge had been cut short. Neteyam swallowed this thought, unintentionally conjuring up more apologies he could give tomorrow. For now, he focused on moving forward with the night and somehow surviving his father's scoldings.
"Your music taste is so weird, Teyam," Ao'nung complained as he revved the engine. Neteyam stuck his tongue out playfully in response. The automobile roared to life.
As Neteyam scrolled through his playlist, he said, "I hope no cop thinks you're underaged and driving again."
Ao'nung chuckles and prays that their drive will be uninterrupted tonight.
They both wished they wouldn't get pulled over like they had gotten in the past. Ao'nung was freshly seventeen with a driver's license but had been mistaken for a fifteen or fourteen-year-old due to how childish his resting face appeared.
Neteyam would sometimes snort, thinking about how he'd be dating a minor as an adult in a month due to him almost reaching eighteen, the age of adulthood and freedom. (Ao'nung had told Neteyam that he should never repeat that line and said it sounded wrong. Neteyam had blinked in oblivion for a moment before realizing how concerning he resonated).
"This one is good," Neteyam stated as he selected a song with his thumb. Ao'nung rolled his eyes. "It better be."
Neteyam lightly swatted his boyfriend's shoulder before slumping comfortably against the seat and staring out the window.
A few stubborn, unskippable ads decided to play before allowing the song to be heard. Neteyam and Ao'nung giggled boyishly when the ad questioned their car insurance.
There wasn't much to see out, judging by the fact that it was definitely past one thirty in the morning. The sky was a deep blue, the pollution and light clouds hiding most of the stars. Even at this time of day, countless people drove by. The red and white lights of cars looked like fallen stars drifting on the roads. The ad finally came to an end with an artificial and enthusiastic "Shop online today!"
"The evil, it spread like a fever ahead"
Ao'nung audibly groaned at the quiet melody. "Not your emo song!"
Neteyam grinned smugly and shushed Ao'nung. Ao'nung pretended to feel hurt, holding one hand to his chest with the other still safely holding the wheel. That earned him a quick scolding from his worried boyfriend.
The comically large and hanging fluffy twin dice swayed as Ao'nung took a sharp turn left.
"It was night, when you died, my firefly"
"Careful, Ao'n," Neteyam mumbled, feeling drowsy. Fatigue was slowly settling in his aching bones. He enjoyed their time on the bridge. The buckle cut mercilessly against his neck.
"That's it," Ao'nung grabbed Neteyam's phone as they reached a red light.
"My Eywa, we could die in a car crash because of your unhappiness with my song choices," Neteyam complained. He reluctantly let Ao'nung scroll through his playlists, to which he received many huffs of annoyance.
"What could I have said to raise you from the dead?"
"If we were to die in a car crash, it would be because of some lunatic on the road, not my amazing driving skills failing me or my displeasure with your songs," Ao'nung countered, fully confident in himself. Neteyam rolled his eyes, a habit he picked up from Kiri over the years. She was the queen and icon of rolling her eyes. Neteyam was honestly astounded that they hadn't popped out of her sockets yet.
The lightbox flashed to a vibrant shade of green. Ao'nung plopped Neteyam's phone into the latter's lap, unable to choose a different song in time, before directing his attention back to the road ahead. The slow and poetic lyrics mixed with the soft piano lulled Neteyam, relaxing his racing heart. The butterflies, though still entranced, decided to take a rest.
"Oh, could I be the sky on the Fourth of July?"
Ao'nung grumbled something about Neteyam not even liking the fireworks on the holiday, which was true. Neteyam would shut the windows down tight and bury himself under the covers of his bed. The loud firecrackers would still manage to haunt Neteyam for the rest of the night, evidently keeping him awake. Each burst sounded like an explosion or a bullet shot by a rifle.
The seats leather did little to mimic the comfort of Neteyam's bed, but he didn't mind. The earlier tension dissipated and was reduced to tranquility. Neteyam pushed away thoughts about how his father might react and sank deeper into the chair. Ao'nung spared glances at him while checking the road.
"Well, you do enough talk, my little hawk. Why do you cry?"
Just as Neteyam was about to surrender and fall into a blissful abyss, his eyes were assaulted by a blinding car light. Ao'nung's eyebrows shot up as he desperately tried to swerve the car—loud honks emitted from both vehicles. The sudden change was jarring, confusing Neteyam's demeanor completely.
"Tell me what did you learn from the Tillamook burn?"
There was a pungent and acrid smell of burning rubber, oil, and alcohol, all intertwined as one. It brutally attacked Neteyam's nose. The roses in his heart wilted inside as the butterflies grew weak.
Everything was changing too fast.
Ao'nung screamed something, but it was unintelligible to Neteyam's ears, who had decided to act as an opera singer then. All he heard was a high-pitched wail, the muffled sounds of metal colliding with metal, and the echo of screeching tires. His butterflies shriveled up and dropped dead as his heart leaped to his throat.
"Or the Fourth of July?"
Time seemed to stretch out for eternity, like an elastic band about to break.
The impact reverberated through the car.
Glass rained upon them like bullets as the windows shattered.
Neteyam and Ao'nung both jolted forward, their buckles suddenly tightening and holding the pair in place.
Neteyam let out a stifled shriek. His thoughts were panicked and messed up; none of them had enough time to form all the way through.
His head brutally slammed against the deck as his neck snapped back. An excruciatingly acute pain blossomed in his side. His fingers curled up in distress.
The car acquired more than a few harmless dents as it careened out of control and slammed against the concrete multiple times while somersaulting. Each impact callously jostled the boys like rag dolls. The ordeal felt like a rollercoaster that flew off its tracks, and Neteyam wanted to get off this ride.
"We're all gonna die"
The lyrics of the song glitched for a moment, disorienting the music. The speaker sounded like a mourning songbird with a snapped neck.
The air bags came out too late, providing little to no solace, much like the angels of Eywa above. Sometime in between, Neteyam fell into unconsciousness, followed by Ao'nung. This time, the fall was unintentional and quick. Pain and shock held the reins.
❣✧☾✧❣
Ao'nung opened his bleary eyes. His head spun and hurt. He found himself hanging upside down, and the only thing keeping him up against gravity was the straining seatbelt. His skin was uncomfortably sticky, especially in the folds of his eyelids, as the blood dried. His curly black hair was matted to the sides of his bewildered and cut face.
Ao'nung's head throbbed as his heart pounded loudly in his chest, echoing in his ears. He was sure he had procured a concussion.
Besides his head pulsing like crazy, his legs seemed to have something going on as well; It felt like a million hot needles were persistently being stabbed into them. If he tried to shift, his thighs would twitch and spasm.
The foul stench and a new metallic odor were still present, quickly attacking his senses. The muffled sounds of his ragged breathing, distressed car noises, and discord song lyrics filled the suffocating atmosphere. Light paintbrushes slowly colored the shapes before him, taking time to pronounce the details. It took the boy a few moments to recollect the events that unfolded.
"Now where am I? My fading supply"
The memories suddenly hit him harder than the car had. Everything had been going smoothly. Sure, Ao'nung had been worried about how Neteyam's father, Jake, would react to them coming back so late. Though, it wasn't unusual.
It was when another car abundantly drove in front of them that everything turned haywire. Ao'nung had tried to get the car out of the way, but it was too late.
He had heard a scream.
No, scratch that; many screams.
Ao'nung choked on a sob, his head pounding from both the memories and the excessive amount of blood.
His dazed and pain-filled thoughts trailed over to Neteyam.
The conscious boy's stiff neck creaked as it snapped to the side, causing burning pain to course through his body. Small black spots began to dot his vision. The paintbrushes must've spilled some ink.
"Where everything was fiction, future, and prediction"
His harsh breaths and cries hitched. His lungs failed to obtain enough oxygen.
Neteyam and all of his fallen glory hung next to him, drenched in crimson blood. He stared ahead, only allowing Ao'nung to see half of his face. His usually bright hazel eyes were dim and glazed over. His mouth, the same one Ao'nung had unabashedly pressed his lips onto so many times before, was parted open and gaping widely, revealing to be blood-filled with stained teeth.
"Sitting at the bed with a halo at your head"
His heartstrings were tugged on by the puppeteer named Denial.
Ao'nung's half-lidded gaze trailed over to the rest of his body. He instantly regretted it.
Neteyam's left arm dangled limply, looking deformed. There was a noticeable gap and contour at the joint, along with an alarming amount of bruises, glass shards, and swelling. Ao'nung assumed that it had been dislocated. It looked like a doll's arm that had been severed and hanging by its last thread.
Ripped tendons and sinew messily adhered to the mangled corpse and sprayed around like long confetti streamers. Celebrating their freedom, he presumed?
The nauseating feeling of vomiting overwhelmed him as bile coerced at the back of his parched throat. It took everything in his weak power not to spill out his guts. His chest stung painfully.
Neteyam's abdomen had been brutally sliced open; Squished intestines, along with other ruined organs, threatened to slip out insecurely. Carnage barely managed to stay clung to his still body. The tender and lacerated flesh was shredded entirely and torn on the edges, like paper that had messily been torn in two and drowned in red ink.
"And I'm sorry I left, but it was for the best"
Ao'nung screamed. A raw, guttural, and strained scream that was full of anguish. Neteyam stared blankly back at him with dilated pupils, vacant and unmoving. Ao'nung kept shrieking like a baby ilu until his throat felt like he had swallowed gallons of seawater. His own screams started to scare him at one point, having a stark contrast and cutting roughly against the otherwise silence.
"My little hawk, why do you cry?"
He was unable to look away in morbid fascination; Never in his ephemeral lifetime had he witnessed something so gruesome.
Ao'nung first thought he understood gruesomeness when he was six. He had been mingling around too close to the sharp rocks as he surfed and ended up with a deep gash that ran down his left thigh. The salt of the sea caused the burning sensation to intensify. He had cried loudly as his father carried him back home.
His second time was when he was nine; Ronal, his confident mother, had come home one night, clutching her stomach with a distant gaze and horror written all over her face. She had just come back from the ER, her body lighter as it lost something that was meant to thrive. She was rushed to the hospital earlier due to blood that unexpectedly began to trail down her legs. It had taken him a while to piece together what had happened, but seeing his mother look so distraught was heart-wrenching for him.
The third time, when he was eleven, he had foolishly succumbed to peer pressure and decided to leave Lo'ak a few miles away from the shore, shrouding his real intentions with the lie that fibbed of fishing. All because of an argument that escalated too quickly. It wasn't that that had stung Ao'nung; it was Neteyam's reaction, full of betrayal and dismay, causing whatever satisfaction Ao'nung had gained from the ordeal to turn sour. It had taken him a while to regain the boy's trust and, eventually, love.
But this? The sheer amount of hot blood that spilled from both bodies was like wax from a burning candle. The missing chunks of flesh. The exposed muscles and their grainy-like texture. Neteyam's slightly exposed shattered spine and fragmented bone pieces, hidden mainly by slimy guts. The life that had once promised to stay with him wherever they went.
"Did you find it all right, my dragonfly?"
The rose in Neteyam's tangled hair was crushed and discarded somewhere in the wreckage. Only one of the downy twin dice somehow managed to stay hanging. Just like the blossom, the first one was lost.
His voice was long gone, and his vocal cords seemed to have splintered, leaving it hoarse and raspy. Maybe, just maybe, Neteyam would call back to him. He wanted to hear the silly nicknames Neteyam had gifted him.
The present never came.
"Was it all a disguise, like junior high?"
Ao'nung's fuddled brain could still comprehend that the lyrics weren't in order. The piano, even though subtle and soft, constantly changed tunes.
That stupid, stupid song Neteyam would repeatedly blare. Ao'nung would endlessly hark to the tune if it meant he would reconcile with Neteyam.
The strings controlling his heart snapped as Denial gave up and left.
"Such a funny thought to wrap you up in cloth"
Everything was ethereal. Ao'nung's heart twisted painfully in his glass-riddled chest. Electric pulses of agony rolled up and down his spine. The grotesque image of his fallen beloved had been etched into his mind. Ao'nung couldn't gloss over the fact that he was suffering through fatal injuries as well.
"Before I say goodbye, my star in the sky"
Huh. Star. Neteyam loved stars. He had written a poem about them before. Was it...? Something along the lines of "sonder stars" and "quixotic serendipity of sacrifices." Ao'nung had searched for the definitions later that night.
Ao'nung seemed to go numb. The panicking world around him slowly drifted away, like lost bark in the vast ocean. The distant artificial wails that were getting closer and closer were reduced to the soft caws of seagulls. He was back on the beach for a blissful moment, holding Neteyam's warm hands in his own. The trees rustle, and the torrents' ripple radiates an authentic aura, mirroring the tangible heaven within reach.
The remaining fluffy die's string grew weary and snapped off. It landed down with a soft thump.
"We're all gonna die"
The haunting harmony seemed to reach out and carry Ao'nung. Finding solace for the first time, Ao'nung closed his dulling blue eyes. He allowed himself to be whisked away by the same angels that retrieved Neteyam. The mourning songbirds proudly flew beside him with purpose, holding red with white patched roses in their broken beaks. The necks of the birds remained snapped, inadequate to grant their woodnote hymns.
"We're all gonna die"
"We're all gonna die"
"We're all gonna die"
"We're all gonna die"