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“So, where are you going for All-Worlds?” Nahla Ake swirled around the last remaining sips of tea in her cup as she laid stretched out and comfortable on the couch in Chancellor Kelrec’s office.
She had made it a point to be more friendly with him after everything that happened in the aftermath of the Braka incident. A few times a week, Nahla would pop by his office later in the afternoon, carrying a bottle of liquor or, if she didn’t feel like drinking, empty-handed because she knew Kelrec could have a cup of tea prepared for her in a minute flat. She was actually starting to like some of the leaf waters he presented her with. In all her years of life, Nahla had never been much for enjoying a cup of tea – most were too bland for her liking – but the ones Kelrec drank had a tendency to mingle on her taste buds in a way that wasn’t altogether unpleasant.
During their visits, she did most of the talking – usually random anecdotes from the days since she had last caught up with him. Sometimes they would both discuss work if something important was coming up. Nahla’s favorite catch-ups with him occurred only occasionally and only when Kelrec had drank at least one glass of liquor. They would gossip about their teachers and students – fill each other in on relationships and interpersonal conflicts. It had been nice, getting to know him better, but he was still standoffish. Even though she could tell he wanted to be closer and let down some of his walls, for some reason within him, he just couldn’t. That was okay with Nahla; she had all the time in the world to wait.
“I am staying here,” he replied.
“Uh no?” Nahla sat up on the couch and looked at him like he had grown two heads. “You're not.”
“I've decided to stay and watch over the ship.”
“I already have that covered. Didn't you get the staff message?”
“Yes, but it doesn't make sense for Commander Reno to stay aboard when Commander Thok will be planetside. They should celebrate together. So I'll stay.”
“Kelrec, you need a vacation.”
“I'm fine.”
Nahla gave him a pointed look.
“I'd rather stay up here, okay?” He took a sip of his tea.
“Don't you have anyone you want to visit? Or you could watch the All-Worlds Day parade downtown,” she suggested.
“I do not wish to see my family.”
“Sounds like the parade is still on the table.”
He rolled his eyes. “I can watch the holostream from here.”
“I'm not sure the head honchos would be too pleased to hear that you don't intend to take a break,” she paused, “after everything.”
“I answer to no one.”
“Okay, Commander,” she emphasized his lower rank with a smirk.
Kelrec sighed.
“You need to get off this ship. Spend some time in the real world. Touch the earth. Reconnect with nature.”
“Was I every connected to it?” He murmured.
“Come on, grumpy. There must be somewhere on this little planet of ours that you've always wanted to go to but never had the chance.”
He blinked at her.
“I'm not taking no for an answer,” she said in a sing-song voice.
He sighed again, “I suppose China has been an interest of mine.”
“China! Oh, great choice, Zeeren. It's lovely there. You'll have a wonderful time learning even more about tea, I assume.”
“You're really not going to let me stay here, are you?
She shook her head. “Not a chance.”
“You're aware I don't answer to you either.”
“Indeed. But I'm also aware of the fact that you're smart enough to know deep down that it's in your best interest to get off this ship for a few days.” She watched as he fidgeted, drumming his fingers against his knee. Nahla placed her hand over them.
“Go,” she urged softly. “It'll be fun.”
He scoffed lightly and shook his head.
“What?”
Kelrec shrugged and paused for a few moments, then opened his mouth to speak but shut it again.
“Tell me,” she whispered.
“Sometimes there’s not much fun in doing everything alone.” After a beat of silence, he cleared his throat and stood up from the sofa. “Commander Reno will remain on ship watch, then.”
“Would you like some company?” She looked up at him.
He frowned. “Are you...?”
“Asking to come with you? Yes. Too presumptuous?” Nahla finished the remainder of her tea and set the cup on the table. It was clear Kelrec was ready for her to leave and she tried not to overstay her welcome too much with him. She knew she could poke and prod at him every now and then but if she did it too frequently she would scare him off.
“No. I- You don't have to feel pity for me. I'm used to doing everything by myself. It's fine.”
“It's not pity. If anyone knows what loneliness is it's a Lanthanite.” She pointed to herself. “The truth is I haven't been to China in ages and figured if you wanted company, it'd be fun to tag along.”
“Surely you must have other plans.”
She shrugged. “Nothing pressing.”
He looked at her for a few moments, as if trying to calculate the pros and cons of having her as a travel companion at quantum speeds.
Nahla stood up and playfully hit his arm on the way out of his office. “Let me know tomorrow.”
***
Jett had noticed on the transport manifest that both Ake and Kelrec were going to the same location in China but seeing them standing together across the room, suitcases in hand, was a bit jarring to say the least. Lura had already told her that Ake had been spending more time with Kelrec since everything that had gone down with Nus Braka, but seeing them standing shoulder-to-shoulder dressed in casual clothing felt borderline hallucinatory. She didn't think Kelrec even owned casual clothes. They weren't... together, were they? No, she decided that was impossible.
Jett tried to read their facial expressions and body language as they stood in line waiting for their turn in the transporter. There was nothing overly romantic or sexual, yet she couldn't help but notice that the lines in Kelrec's face softened slightly when he looked at her, but only when Ake was looking away from him. Huh. Maybe there was something there, lurking under the surface. At least it was an interesting tidbit she would be able to report back to Lura.
Jett smirked as they finally approached her. “Alright, two-for-one special.“
She couldn't help but give them a curious look. Kelrec's eyes shifted to some random point past her head as her stare bore into him.
“Thank you again, Reno, for volunteering to be on ship watch,” Ake said with a polite smile.
“Don't tell Lura I volunteered. She thinks you ordered me to stay up here.”
Ake’s eyes widened. “What? Why?”
“When I started dating her, I didn't think she'd be the holiday extravaganza type, but it's a problem,” she explained. “I just couldn't handle four days of nonstop celebrations.”
“So my second-in-command thinks I orchestrated her and her partner to be separated during one of the biggest holidays of the quadrant just so you wouldn't have to deal with it?”
“That's correct.”
“Great!” The sarcasm was practically dripping from Ake's mouth.
“Hey, in my defense, this wasn't even a holiday for me until like two years ago.”
They all stared at each other for a few seconds.
“Enjoy your break from the festivities, Commander.” Kelrec broke the short silence.
“Thank you, Chancellor. Well,” she looked at her padd, “two transports to Quanzhou, China. You kids have fun.”
Jett smirked as they walked through the transporter.
***
Nahla watched as Kelrec took a pinch of the tea leaves sitting in the large drum before them in between his fingers. He brought the dried vegetation up to his nose and inhaled the scent, making a noise of satisfaction deep in his throat.
She smiled. He was truly in his element here, more than she had ever seen him at the College – either with his students or on a bridge. That was work. Duty. For him, this was life. He was more open here too, not so guarded. It made her feel like she might get the chance to actually know him a little more deeply.
Kelrec placed the tea leaves under her nose, wordlessly sharing the experience with her.
Their scent was enticing – sweet but there also something mineral that lingered in her nostrils. He kept his eyes on her as she smelled, undoubtedly looking for her reaction.
“What do you think?” He asked with a small smile.
Nahla had never seen him as happy as he was now in the tea market, sniffing and sampling all kinds of teas as far as the eye could see. She had always known him to carry around such a heavy energy, no matter the circumstances. But here, the air around him felt so light, so free. He almost seemed like a different person.
“Beautiful,” she replied, looking into his deep brown eyes.
He raised his eyebrows. “Perhaps, I'll make a regular tea drinker of you, after all.”
Nahla wouldn't tell him that she wasn't just describing the scent.
“Maybe so.”
If it meant that they might share a cup of tea together more frequently in his office, then she figured she wasn't opposed to the idea.
“Why are they dumping it out?” Nahla whispered to Kelrec.
Their arms were touching as they sat squeezed around a tiny table with a person on the other side of it preparing a tea for them to sample. Kelrec had excitedly chosen a pressed disc of fermented tea leaves to try. She watched in confusion as the vendor poured hot water into a porcelain cup, breaking up the disc of tea, and then discarded the freshly-brewed water.
“This is pu'erh tea. It's rinsed several times before the actual infusion.”
“Isn't that just wasting perfectly good tea?”
“If it was ‘perfectly good’ upon first brew, then it would not be prepared this way,” he stated.
It made sense, she supposed. Though Kelrec seemed to think that even a child should know that. Maybe he did start drinking all these fancy teas when he was still in diapers, for all she knew.
Kelrec continued, “Rinsing the tea first allows the leaves to unfurl. Once they open up completely, one can experience the entire breadth of the flavor profile.”
In other words, to get the best and intended results one had to be patient and treat every factor with intentional care. A pretty common trend in most situations throughout the universe. Why should tea be any different?
After another rinse, their cups were ready. She waited for Kelrec to take a sip of his before she tried it. If he didn’t like it, she definitely wouldn’t subject herself to it. He brought it up to his mouth tenderly – she could see a small smile of anticipation on his lips – and, as soon as he swallowed, he looked over to her.
“You’ll like this one,” he said, almost with a hint of pride in his tone.
“How do you know?” She smirked slightly as she brought the teacup up to her nose.
“Through the months of offering you various types of teas, I’ve noticed you prefer those with earthy flavor profiles.”
“It smells like moss.” She sniffed the tea some more – there was more to it than that. “Dirt, but not dusty dirt. Soil. The kind that’s been sitting under a pile of leaves for a few months.”
“Try it,” he urged with what she could’ve sworn was a twinkle in his eye.
It tasted like the floor of a forest where it had just rained, and it was divine.
“I think this just might be the best tea I’ve ever tasted.”
Kelrec smiled at her. “I thought it might be.”
“Did you pick this one to try for me?”
“Everyone deserves to discover their favorite tea,” he shrugged. “I thought I’d help you along.”
“Well, thank you.” She grinned back at him then took another sip of earth.
***
Zeeren listened to the sounds of the raindrops falling onto the tin roof above him. They were sitting outside of a tiny cafe, sampling a few of the local teas that were brewed there – mainly different varieties of yancha, a cliff tea that’s grown on mountains in rocky soil. Nahla said it tasted as if she were sucking on a pebble. She loved it. He figured she would.
“I forgot what humidity feels like,” he said.
“It's great, isn't it?” Nahla smiled at him. The warm water in the air certainly took a liking to her. It made the waves in her hair fuller and livelier. It stuck to her skin and made it supple, gave it a sheen that almost sparkled off her face.
The humidity just made him wet. He smiled back at her anyway as he took another sip of his yancha.
“I feel… tingly.”
He raised an eyebrow and she laughed.
“No, I mean the tips of my fingers and my palms. My whole body feels electric, but in a good way.”
“Relaxed?”
Nahla nodded. “Calm, like all of the stress just disappeared.”
“Cha zui,” he said with a knowing smile.
“Cha zui?”
“Tea drunk. It’s caused by a combination of the caffeine, L-theanine, and alkaloids in tea.”
“Okay, now I understand why you’re obsessed with this stuff.”
He smiled. “I don’t often experience cha zui anymore as a result of my caffeine tolerance.”
“No.” She gave him a genuine look of sadness that made him chuckle.
“I still experience the cha qi of tea – the energy a specific tea possesses and its impacts on the body and mind of the drinker – but, yes, I suppose my cha zui days are behind me.”
“I wish you could feel this with me. You probably need it more than I do,” she added with a smirk.
“I’m very well-relaxed, much more than I normally get from a cup of tea,” he replied. “The environment in which one consumes the tea plays an important role in how the cha qi manifests in the body and mind.”
Nahla frowned, her confusion evident. Perhaps he hadn’t explained cha qi well enough.
“Take, for example, the circumstances we find ourselves in right now. We’re in an exciting place on holiday vacation, away from the stress of home. There’s a quiet din from the other patrons along with the soft fall of the raindrops. The beauty of the Wuyi Mountains stretches as far as the eye can see. All of these factors help your mind and body open to the qi, the energy, of the tea. Meaning you’re more susceptible to its relaxing properties.”
“Huh.” She thought about it for a moment, then looked into his eyes. “Good company must play a big part too.”
“Yes,” he said softly, feeling a warm blush creep to his cheeks.
“I’m glad I’m here.” Even her smile was relaxed. “Thanks for letting me invite myself on your trip.”
He chuckled, “Thank you for inviting yourself.”
Zeeren tried to hide the tiny smirk that was breaking out on his lips. He covered his mouth with his hand but that only made him smile more. Nahla had her body contorted over a tattered paper map spread out on the table. The waves in her hair were falling across her face and she tried to blow a piece away from her eyes, to no avail. It had been nearly fifteen minutes of her trying to figure out the route they needed to take to get to their next destination. It was late in the day, so he wasn’t in a rush. The sun would be setting soon. There was already an orange haze along the misty mountains and a stillness in the air. He decided he’d gladly sit back and watch her until sunrise if she didn’t give up by then.
Nahla looked up at him through her hair, and frowned. “Are you laughing at me?”
“No.” A full open-mouthed grin was now peaking out behind his hand.
“Really? Because it sure seems like it. In fact, I’ve never seen you so smiley.”
“I don’t understand why you insist on using this artifact,” he gestured nonchalantly to the map, “instead of the very simple geolocation technology at the tips of our fingers.”
“It’s not an artifact!” She sounded offended. “I used this map the last time I was in this province. It’s only a couple centuries old… By that logic, I must be a crumbling, ancient relic to you.”
He shrugged lackadaisically because he knew it would make her laugh.
Nahla’s eyes widened and her mouth fell open, but she couldn’t stop the smile from forming on her lips. He chuckled as she smacked his arm.
“You don’t need to take it as an insult, Nahla. Archaeologists spend their lives searching for priceless artifacts from bygone eras. Their entire careers are led by the hope of finding a shard of pottery, and when they finally do it’s the most alluring thing they’ve ever seen.”
A silence between them lingered on as she looked into his eyes, searching for something.
“Is that what I am?” She finally asked, softly.
He looked away. Perhaps, he had carelessly revealed too much about what he felt. Or maybe she had an ability to read into things other people wouldn’t think twice about. Either way, he felt as if he shouldn’t have said it.
“I hope I’d at least be a whole vase.” She lightened her tone, along with the energy between them. “Something more than a shard, you know?”
He nodded with a small smile, extremely grateful for her well-practiced conversational skills. “You can be a vase.”
***
“Tell me something about yourself that no one else knows.”
“Most people don’t know most things about me.”
“I know.” She looked over to him but he was staring straight ahead at the small winding path ahead of them as they walked through a rock garden near their hotel. “It doesn't have to be that way, though.”
“Nothing in my life is particularly interesting.”
“I find that hard to believe.”
“Is that so?”
“Every person who has ever lived has some kind of story to tell. Sure, some stories are more interesting than others, but they're all worthy of being told... I feel like I don't know anything about you.”
“Surely, you've read my personnel file.” He looked over to her.
Nahla shook her head. “I prefer to get to know someone the old-fashioned way.”
He raised his eyebrows. “You really don't know anything about my career in Starfleet?”
“Nope... You've read my file, I'm sure.”
“Of course.”
“Then it seems like you know a whole lot more about me than I know about you.”
He shrugged with a small smile on his face. “That's fine with me.”
She smirked. “Doesn't seem quite fair, does it?”
“You know what I would tell my students right now?”
“I can guess.”
“Nothing is fair.”
“Mhm.” Nahla nodded.
She could tell he wasn't being purposefully obstructive. The energy around him was open. She could feel that he was comfortable with her after their few days together. He was just working up to actually opening himself up, and she could wait.
They walked silently through the garden – the only sounds in the air were the crunch of the pebbles underneath their feet and a steady trickle of water from the small stream running through the center of the garden. She hadn't felt so at peace in months.
A part of her wanted to reach over and grab his hand but she knew it would be too much. In the days they had spent together, her feelings for him had grown so much, and she could feel it from him too. Their interactions were charged with a kind of energy that was more than friendship. The relationship between them was laced with longing and desire and potential. Nahla had felt it many times in her centuries of life. She could recognize a mutual attraction anywhere.
So, she brushed her knuckles against his as her arms swayed. She did that a few times and he never moved his hand. Tentatively, Nahla took a step closer into him, leaning her body just slightly against his arm, pressing into his side with each stride. When he didn't step away, she placed her palm in his. Zeeren immediately clasped her hand and intertwined their fingers together. Her whole body felt as if it had been lit up. Being given this connection to him felt so nice. It felt right. On they walked, hand-in-hand, silently through the garden.
“When I retire, I want to get a cat,” he eventually said. An answer to her nearly-forgotten question.
Nahla smiled but didn't look up at him. “Now that you mention it, you do seem like a cat person.”
“I do?” There was a hint of excitement in his tone.
“Yeah,” she nodded. “You kind of act like a cat actually.”
“In what way?”
“Well, you're standoffish, guarded, very particular about pretty much everything. You think you're the ruler of the roost... It can take a while before you're really comfortable with someone.”
“Sorry I'm so difficult,” he said sheepishly as he squeezed her hand.
“You're not difficult.” She looked up at him. “And anyway, those are all reasons I like cats.”
Kelrec smiled at her. “When I was a boy, I asked my father for a cat. I didn't have any siblings, so I thought it would be nice to have some kind of companion, but he said no. I've wanted one ever since.”
“Oh!” Nahla’s eyes widened as she grinned at him, almost maniacally. “I just got the perfect idea.”
“I haven't met many cats,” Zeeren admitted as they walked into the cat cafe that had been surprisingly close to their hotel.
“Well, don't be nervous. Just treat them the way you like people to treat you.”
‘So, leave them alone?’ He thought.
They walked through the cafe. It was packed with people waving cat toys in the air and children trying to pick up every kitten they saw. Finally, all the way in the back, he looked into a tiny side room that was empty save for one orange-speckled black cat lounging on a chair, basking in the sunlight streaming in through a large window. Zeeren looked over to Nahla.
“Go on,” she urged with a smile.
He walked into the room and approached the cat. It was asleep, with one arm covering its eyes. He had to admit it was adorable.
“I don't want to disturb it.”
“Just give it a soft pet.” She moved to Zeerens's side, pressing her body against his as she leaned over and gently moved her hand along the cat’s spine. Suddenly, he wasn't so focused on the cat. All that occupied his mind was the warmth radiating from Nahla's body into his. She looked over and smiled at him as she continued petting. “See?”
He reached out his index finger and brushed a knuckle against the cat's tiny head. The fur was so soft. He wondered what it would feel like to hold something that fuzzy. Zeeren opened his palm and pet down the cat's neck. Its green eyes opened slightly, then looked over to him.
“Hello,” he greeted it softly.
The cat just closed its eyes again and started purring.
“It's happy.” Nahla smiled, brushing her fingers against his hand every now and then as they continued petting the cat.
'So am I.' His unspoken response lingered in the back of his head.
***
They had adjoining rooms in their hotel, only a door separating them. The first morning, Kelrec had opted to knock at Nahla’s front door and they kept at that for the past couple days, but Nahla thought it was a bit silly and didn’t feel like going out into the hallway.
She knocked lightly on her side of their shared door.
“It’s me,” she called out, knowing the obvious remark would probably annoy him a little.
Zeeren opened the door, and Nahla was slightly taken aback at his state of dress. He was wearing a tight black tank top and black Starfleet physical training shorts. Nothing else – barefoot, even. All she could focus on was chest hair and muscles.
“Hey!” She said with a smile after she remembered to speak.
“Hello,” he replied.
“Mind if I come in?” Nahla sneaked past his body and went into his room, immediately sitting on the bed. “How do you feel about meditation?”
“Um.” He was clearly still trying to wrap his head around the past 20 seconds. “I don’t do it as often as I should but I enjoy it.”
“Great! There’s a meditation center across town that’s in an old Buddhist temple and I want to check it out tomorrow. I know it’s our last day and you might have everything planned for yourself already but I figured I’d see if you wanted to come.”
“Sounds like it could be fun.” He stood a few feet away from her awkwardly.
“I don’t think anyone has ever described meditation as fun,” she chuckled.
“Yes, a lot of people find it boring.”
“Do you?”
“No.”
“Good! So I’m thinking maybe like 0900 hours? After breakfast?”
“Sure,” he replied. “I didn’t plan much for tomorrow. I tried to do everything I was most excited for first so that there wouldn’t be any anxiety over fitting everything in at the end.”
“Smart.”
“Of course, I could be here for months and still have things to do.”
Nahla could tell he was uncomfortable, unsure of what to do or where to sit with her in his room. She looked over to the holo set he had on and patted the empty side of the bed. “Whatchya watchin’?”
He sat down beside her. “A nature documentary on the flora of Betazed.”
“Fascinating.”
He looked over to her with a small smile. “I’ve heard they have some teas with very distinct flavor profiles compared to other M-class planets.”
“Well, I’m not sure if you heard but their wall is down, Chancellor. I’m sure you could order to have some shipped in.”
“When first drinking a new culture’s tea, I prefer to experience it in the traditional way, prepared by people who know the proper steps.”
“So Betazed is your next vacation spot?”
“Perhaps.” He didn’t sound all that excited at the prospect.
“What? Are you vacationed out? Will it be another decade before you take a trip somewhere?”
“No. It’s only that I’m not sure any trip I take will ever be able to compare to this one.” He looked at her softly.
She smiled. “Well, I guess I’ll just have to come along on that one too.”
Zeeren raised an eyebrow. “Inviting yourself on my vacations again?”
“What can I say? I see what I want and take it.” Her eyes moved to his lips.
“Nahla…” His tone shifted. It wasn’t light anymore. The heavy energy she had gotten so used to feeling around him was back in an instant.
“Don’t.” She shook her head, knowing where this was headed.
“We should talk about-”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Nahla grabbed his hand.
“Why not?”
“Because I don’t want to hear whatever you’re going to say.”
“You don’t know what I’m going to say.”
“Well, I know you’re afraid. You’re scared of doing something wrong. Afraid of things that aren’t familiar. But this,” she squeezed his hand, “is something you have to do scared. I don’t want you to run away from it.”
It was a while before he responded, “It’s not… smart.”
“Most things we do in life aren’t smart. That’s when we really live… Let yourself live, Zeeren.”
“What happens if…”
“It won’t,” she said. It wasn’t a lie, or even a hope. He had the right to question the longevity of their potential relationship. Most did, in fact, end in break-ups but something about this, the bond she felt with him, was different. “And if it does, we’ll figure it out together.”
“This is, uh,” he pulled his hand away from hers, “all happening very quickly.”
She couldn’t blame him for thinking that. It was true. She’d had a soft spot for him for months, and was always certain he had felt the same way, but things had come to a head pretty fast during the past few days.
“You’re completely right…” She sighed, “I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault. It’s,” he gestured to everything around them, “the circumstances.”
Nahla nodded. A nice vacation between two people who had repressed feelings for each other was bound to result in the emotional dam bursting.
“Look, we had a really good day today so let’s just, uh, forget the complicated stuff and have another good day tomorrow for our last day, huh?”
Zeeren forced a smile and a small nod.
Nahla hated the idea of pretending like nothing was going on between them but she could tell if she pushed it any further, it would also push him away completely. She stood up from the bed.
“See you at breakfast?” She asked as she headed to the door.
Zeeren nodded. “Goodnight.”
Nahla flashed him a quick smile before going back to her room, trying not to ruminate over thoughts about him as she fell asleep.
***
“Welcome to Misty Mountain meditation center. We have a session starting in fifteen minutes if you would like to join us in the meditation room to your right.” The greeter grinned a very well-practiced smile at them, and Zeeren thought he had never seen teeth so white.
He and Nahla walked around the temple area which had been turned into a museum of sorts, focusing on the history of meditation and how it was incorporated into ancient and current Buddhist practices.
“You know, I dabbled in Buddhism for over half a century once.”
“What made you stop?”
She shrugged. “After about 70 years, a lot of things just start to get boring.”
It made him wonder about how a species that was essentially immortal would view spirituality and the existence of potential divinity.
“Do Lanthanites have religion? Or gods?”
“Not really. There’s ancient Lanthanite mythology but it’s all pretty obscure philosophy about the nature of the universe. No concept of an afterlife like a lot of religions.”
“That makes sense.”
“Some core tenets of Buddhism are fairly similar to the ancient Lanthanite philosophy called Kefriti. We sometimes joke that maybe one of our people visited the Buddha and got a bit too chatty.”
Zeeren smiled. “Wouldn’t be the first time something like that has happened in human history.”
“What about you?” She asked gently.
“Was I visited by a Lanthanite at an important time in my life?”
Nahla chuckled, “No. I already know the answer to that.” She sent him a quick smirk and he couldn’t ignore the way his heart skipped a beat. “I mean, have you ever been particularly spiritual?”
“No. My father was strictly antireligious.”
“Spirituality is not the same as religion.”
He shrugged. “I suppose I haven’t thought about it much.”
“That’s a shame.”
The meditation center employee broke their conversation as she spoke out to the people in the temple room. “Everybody, our couples meditation will be starting in two minutes! Please, come take your places and join us for twenty minutes of peace.”
Zeeren frowned. ‘Did she say-?’
“Uh,” Nahla walked over to the woman, “couples meditation?”
“Yes, perfect for you two. Come,” she smiled as she gestured for them to enter the meditation room.
“Oh, we’re not- Um, a couple,” Nahla explained.
“Oh!” She looked surprised. “Well, that’s not a worry at all. Our couple meditations aren’t centered around romance. Though most of our attendees are life partners, we also encourage friends and family to join our couple meditations.”
Zeeren wondered what being a ‘life’ partner would mean to a Lanthanite...
The woman continued, “We’ve even seen our fair share of business partners or coworkers in these meditations and they all truly relish the time spent together here.”
“Wow, um, well…” Nahla rubbed at the back of her neck.
Zeeren could tell she didn’t know what to do. Undoubtedly due to his request last night to take things slow. He didn’t want her to feel uncomfortable just because of him. The emotion didn’t seem right on her.
“It sounds like a very valuable experience. Thank you,” he said to the worker as he put his hand between Nahla’s shoulders and guided her into the room.
“We don’t have to do this. I swear I didn’t know,” she leaned into him and whispered. “Though, it does seem like something I would orchestrate,” Nahla added with a small chuckle.
“It does.” He smiled.
“But, really, I didn’t. I respect your boundaries, and I’m not so crass as to completely blow through them less than 24 hours later.”
She was over-explaining herself – another thing that didn’t suit such a larger-than-life person as herself. He hated that he was the reason for it.
“Nahla,” he grabbed her shoulders and looked into her eyes, “I know.”
“You sure you wanna do this?”
“I’m positive.” He sat down in an empty spot on the corner of the large mat in the center of the room. Zeeren knew how excited Nahla was to visit the temple and he liked meditating every now and then anyway. Plus, it was the least he could do after forcing her to drink tea for days.
“Welcome, everyone!” The woman smiled, standing at the front of the room. “This is a twenty-minute guided meditation meant to deepen your bond with the person sitting next to you. Please, sit face-to-face with your partner and cross your legs if you’re able to, gently touching your knees together to establish a physical link.”
Nahla scooted in front of him, bumping their knees together with a tiny smirk. He liked her this way – the way she always was, even when she pushed him a bit too hard. Maybe he had made a mistake last night, saying that they should slow down. He didn’t mean to imply she was the problem, but it seemed that she took it that way. Zeeren smiled back at her.
“Now, look into your partner’s eyes. Don’t think about anything for now. Just be in this moment together.”
Since the first moment he had met Nahla, he was taken aback at how beautiful her eyes were. They were so deep and expressive. The longer he looked, the more he was convinced he could see the centuries she had lived inside them. All the joy and pain. The bouts of excitement and long stretches of boredom. He swore he could see all eternity in the twinkle of her eye reflecting the light above them. The chaos of the universe, in all its tragedy and all its abundance, was contained in those dark brown eyes. The vastness was overwhelming. He suddenly noticed the rattling rise and fall of his chest and wondered how long his heart had been beating so quickly. Zeeren peeled his eyes away from hers, looking down at his hands.
“I want you to think about the things you appreciate most about your partner as you hold the gaze,” the worker continued.
He noticed Nahla’s hand come into his field of vision as she placed a finger under his chin, lifting his head up with a soft smile.
Zeeren looked into her eyes again and signed the word ‘sorry’ against his chest with his fist. He knew she would understand because they had both learned basic sign language in preparation for Betazed President Sadal’s arrival on the Athena earlier in the year.
She signed back a quick ‘OK’.
That was one thing he appreciated about Nahla – her empathy. She made it look so easy. He knew it was a good trait to have, a necessary one, but sometimes it was difficult for him to easily understand other people’s points-of-view. Nahla didn’t even have to think about other perspectives. It seemed as if they simply came to her as quickly as her own.
“Now I want you all to grab your partner’s hands and close your eyes. Don’t think. Just breathe and focus on what it feels like to be together in this particular moment.”
He reached out for her, lightly grasping her hands and resting them on their knees. As he closed his eyes, he thought about how small her hands felt in his. He knew his palms were sweaty but after holding hands on their walk the day before, he figured she didn’t mind. His past self, even from a week ago, would never have believed that he would be on vacation with Nahla Ake, participating in a ‘non-romantic’ (yet, pretty romantic) couples meditation.
It shouldn’t have felt so right. He still wasn’t sure if this was the correct path for them to take. Yes, he had developed feelings for her over the months they had worked together. And yes, he had never felt so alive compared to how he felt in that moment with her. But he wondered if it was all just a fluke. If it was the air and the atmosphere in Quanzhou that somehow made everything feel so easy. Or maybe that was just how things were with Nahla. He found that hard to believe, though, because he had never met a person as difficult as her. Whatever they were building together, however… It was easy.
“Consider what you feel in your body as you connect with your partner. Let yourself focus on the physical manifestations of your emotions.”
Nahla’s thumb rubbed against his softly and he smiled. A heavy, comforting warmth grew in his chest. His hands felt tingly. His stomach did too, in a strange way. There was a nervous, jittery excitement deep inside that wasn’t exactly pleasant. It almost felt like the anticipation seconds before a bomb exploded, but he really wanted the bomb to explode.
“Now I want you and your partner to rest your foreheads together and think about sharing each other’s minds. Try to become one with your partner.”
“Oh, boy,” Nahla whispered.
Zeeren held back a chuckle and opened his eyes. She was looking at him and smirking.
“No talking,” he whispered back as they pressed their foreheads together.
He closed his eyes again and tried to get back to the meditation but all he could focus on was the feeling of her soft breath on his lips. They were so close. If either of them moved their lower heads even two inches, their lips would meet. He couldn’t handle it. The growing need to be closer to her was all he could think about.
Zeeren opened his eyes. Hers were open too. He wondered how long she had been looking at him. Though, they were so close they couldn’t quite look into each other’s eyes. They were looking at each other’s mouths.
He didn’t know who moved first. Perhaps both of their bodies decided at the same time that they couldn’t handle it anymore. Their lips met softly, and Kelrec sighed at the utter feeling of relief and release of the tension that had been building between them for so long.
He had thought about kissing Nahla too many times to count – in his office after school hours, at the cafe as the dark orange sun set on the mountains, in his bed the night before. Now here he was, kissing her so slowly, savoring the feeling for as long as he could. Their hunger and desperation was apparent yet subdued as they opened their mouths, allowing each other in, languidly letting their tongues brush softly against the other, making sure every tiny physical sensation was properly felt.
“We’re focusing only on our shared feelings and emotions right now. No bodies necessary. You are wholly one in mind only.”
Both him and Nahla pulled away from each other as the worker’s voice spoke out in what now sounded to be one foot away from where they were sitting. Zeeren kept his eyes closed tight, too embarrassed to glance at the woman who had undoubtedly seen them breaking the meditation rules.
The session lasted another five minutes or so, but all that occupied his mind was the memory of Nahla’s lips on his. He needed it again. He needed to hold her, feel her weight in his arms, and never let go.
As soon as the meditation ended, Nahla grabbed his hand and quickly led him out of the temple.
“I thought you wanted to look around more.” He smirked.
“Screw that. I have much more interesting things to do.” There was a devilish glint in her eye, and he figured there might be one in his too.
When they were far enough away from the ancient, holy temple for it to hopefully not be disrespectful, she backed him against a tree and nearly devoured him – grabbing onto his face, running her fingers through his hair, moaning into his mouth. He trailed his hands up her back. The aching need to move his palms lower and feel her all over grew almost uncontrollable.
“Hotel,” he spoke desperately into her mouth.
Nahla nodded. She broke herself away from him and they hurriedly went to find a taxi.
As soon as they reached the door to Nahla's hotel room, she pressed him against the wall and palmed at the hardness in his pants. It had already been straining against the fabric for minutes as a result of her wandering hands on his thighs during the ride over. He had tried to calm himself, to execute control over his body, but he failed.
She wasted no time, fervently grabbing at his buckle and pulling down his pants as she sank to her knees. He was having a difficult time wrapping his head around everything. It hadn't even been an hour since they had kissed and they already couldn't keep their hands off each other. He felt like a kid again – when sex was always exciting because it was all new. He forgot how exhilarating it could truly be. Over the years, as his hormones settled, he had become less concerned about sexual satisfaction and even less interested in relationships. He was too busy for either, and it was a lot easier for him to take care of his own needs when they arose. But in recent months, he had found that his needs had increased. Zeeren had tried not to think about Nahla whenever he grasped himself in his hand and stroked to completion, but sometimes he couldn't help it. He had known, in the back of his mind, that her presence was the cause of his sexual appetite changes. Every time she popped into his head as he fantasized, he came within seconds.
Nahla looked up at him with a smirk before licking a stripe from the tip of his cock to the base. His whole body twitched at the long-forgotten sensation. She wrapped her lips around the head, mouthing at it slowly and swirling her tongue around it.
Zeeren clenched his fists, not quite knowing what to do with his hands. If his trousers had still been on, he would've been clawing at the fabric in an attempt to gain some stability and ground himself as his mind spun uncontrollably. The visual stimulus, seeing his cock in Nahla's mouth was nearly enough to make him burst, let alone experiencing the actual physical stimuli from it as well. He closed his eyes. Everything was almost too much to bear.
He let out a whine as Nahla took the entirety of his length into her mouth and down her throat. If it were anyone else hearing the noises he was making, he would've been embarrassed at how pathetic he sounded. He was already trying to stave off his orgasm. The past three days of their vacation, he had masturbated during each of his nightly showers – much more frequently than he normally did – but even that wasn't enough to prolong him now, not when Nahla was tonguing at the underside of his cock with her lips all the way down, wrapped around the base as she swallowed him completely.
She must have noticed the fists clenched at his sides because she grabbed onto his hands and put them on her head as she bobbed up and down on him. He had to be careful not to dig his fingernails into her scalp or rip out any of the hair he was grasping onto like a lifeline. Zeeren was going to come at any moment if she didn't stop pushing him into her throat.
“Nahla. Nahla.” His voice was weak as he pulled her head off of him. He let out a shaky breath.
She looked up at him with a smirk. “Too much?”
“You're very good at this.”
“Many years of practice.” She winked.
“I'm too close.” He explained, “I don't want to orgasm yet.”
She let out a playful huff and rolled her eyes, “Men and their refractory periods.”
Nahla stood up from the floor and started walking toward the bedroom, then turned around with a smile. “Well, you can make me come as many times as you want.”
Zeeren felt his cock twitch and wondered if she had noticed. She kept walking, taking off her clothes and looking back at him with each piece she threw to the ground. Hurriedly, he toed off his shoes and reached down to free his trousers from his ankles, then followed after her like a puppy to its mother.
She laid her naked body down on the bed, immediately spreading her legs apart and reaching her hand down between them to touch herself. For a moment, he wondered if all of this was real, or if he was in some kind of tea-induced coma from all the caffeine he had drank over the last few days.
Zeeren walked slowly towards the bed, staring at her, relishing the beauty he had been given the privilege of beholding. He wanted to commit the image to his memory. He'd never forgive himself if he ever forgot how she looked in that moment while she waited for him.
“You want to make me come?” She asked, two fingers already moving deep inside her.
He nodded, kneeling between her legs.
“Use your words.”
“Yes,” he replied, feeling a bead of pre-come drip down his cock.
Nahla smiled. “That's what I like to hear.”
Zeeren watched as she pulled the fingers from herself and reached out to him.
“Want a taste?”
“Yes.”
He opened his mouth as she rested her wet fingers on his tongue. Immediately, a moan fell from his lips at the sublimely succulent flavor. Zeeren grabbed Nahla's wrist, desperate for more than a fleeting taste. He sucked her fingers into his mouth, swirling his tongue around them until they were completely clean.
Nahla smirked at the whine that sounded from the back of his throat when she pulled her fingers from his mouth. He was so hungry for more. His cock was leaking. If she just touched it he would probably come. And he wanted nothing more than to take her into his mouth and make her feel as delirious as he did. Zeeren laid down on his stomach, situating his head between her legs.
He looked up at her. “Tell me what you like?”
She smiled down at him, grabbing onto the back of his head and guiding his mouth to her clit. “Start nice and slow.”
He kissed her clit, then poked his tongue out to get it wet and brushed his lips against it, feeling the nub getting harder. He needed to make her feel as good as she made him feel. He needed to give her everything.
Zeeren moaned as he mouthed at it slowly. He felt Nahla scratch her fingernails gently against his scalp. It was nice, but he was waiting for the moment when she would dig them into his skin, when she couldn’t handle the sensations anymore. He was waiting to feel that pain from her pleasure, but he knew they would get there eventually. For now, he was taking it slow, working his way up to that desperation, just as she had told him.
“More,” she ordered breathily.
He sped up his tongue slightly, laying it flat and moving it side-to-side on her clit. She tasted so delectable he never wanted to stop. He decided he could die right there between her legs and be happy listening to her moans as the oxygen slowly seeped from his brain.
Nahla pushed his head down even more against her, letting expletives fall from her mouth as she bucked her hips up to him. He so badly wanted to make her come. He wanted to taste it. He wanted to watch her body twitch as the pleasure rolled through her. Zeeren moved his hand to her entrance, circling the wetness with two of his fingers, looking up at her as he continued sucking on her clit.
“Yes,” she moaned out a response to his unspoken question.
He pushed his fingers inside and curled them, moving them quickly against her g-spot. His tongue sped up against her too. He could feel his cock, pressed between his body and the bed, leaking on the silk sheets. If he squirmed around too much, he knew he would come. Zeeren groaned, lapping at her, reveling in the sweet sounds of her pleasure.
“Don’t stop.” Her fingernails dug into his scalp, finally giving him that satisfying sting he had so craved.
Her muscles were clenching hard around his fingers. He could tell she was close to coming, so Zeeren kept his pace, doing everything just how she liked it. A bead of sweat rolled into his eyes as he stared up at her. She was radiant – her head lolled back in ecstasy and her muscles taut from the tension that was building inside her.
In an instant, he felt all that tension release as her body jerked against him and she cried out for him to keep going. The air was filled with the sounds of her wetness and his mouth working her and the combined moans and groans from deep in their throats. Everything felt as if it had lasted a lifetime, as if there were no end in sight to the rapture that had exploded into being.
Zeeren wondered if Lanthanite orgasms lasted a considerably longer time compared to other humanoid species. He decided he would look it up later.
Nahla groaned as the orgasm subsided and she could catch her breath again.
“Good job,” she shakily exhaled with a smile. “Wanna make that happen again?”
He nodded enthusiastically. “Yeah, yes.”
“Great,” she grinned. “Then keep going, quickly.”
He still had his fingers inside her so he started moving them again, desperate to experience another moment like that with Nahla. He was eager to suck her up in his mouth and tongue at her clit again, going back to the same fast pace he was using when she had come. The muscles in his forearm and tongue were burning but he didn’t care. He wanted to prove just how incredible he could make her feel. He wanted her to compliment him again and tell him how good of a job he was doing. He wanted to see another orgasm flourish as the sweet, dripping fruit of his labor.
And he did. Nahla came quickly and even harder than the first time. He could feel her pulsing around his fingers and he wanted so badly to feel that around his cock.
“Keep going.” She moaned, “Keep going.”
He groaned against her flesh, continuing to lick and finger her as the last remnants of her orgasm waned and a new peak was already forming. Zeeren quickened the speed, despite the fiery protestations from his muscles. Nahla cried out as she came a third time and reached down to grab his wrist, stopping his fingers. He pulled his face out from between her legs and watched as the orgasm shook her to her core. She was beautiful, glistening with a sheen of sweat and a lazy grin on her lips. He wondered if the ability to easily have multiple orgasms was another quirk of her species. He was beginning to realize he would have to do a lot more research on Lanthanite sexual functioning when they got back home.
Zeeren moved up on the bed to lay beside her. She held him in her arms, absentmindedly running her fingers through his hair as they both took a minute or so to calm their breathing and relax their bodies.
Nahla looked at him with a soft smile, then immediately got on top of his body. She sat up on him and rubbed her wet slit against his cock.
Zeeren moaned.
“Your turn.” She smirked as she reached down and guided him inside.
Nahla sank down slowly, moving her hips in a circle. He could feel her warm, wet walls welcome him.
The throbbing in his cock only got stronger with each movement she made – a back-and-forth dance of carnal bliss. She was such a sight to behold. Her breasts bouncing as she rode him. A playful smirk on her lips, almost daring him to come already, as if she were playing a game to make him orgasm as fast as she could. It was taking everything in his power not to. He wouldn’t allow this to be over so soon, but she was making it extremely difficult as she quickened the pace up and down his cock. Their bodies met with a loud smack every time she fell back down on him.
He reached out and wrapped a hand around the back of her neck, bringing her closer to him. Zeeren kissed her, opening her mouth and brushing his tongue against hers in the way he had discovered she liked so much. That got her to slow down. Only the tip was inside her as he brought her body up further to suckle at the skin on her neck.
Nahla moaned and he felt her muscles twitch around his cock. She laid there for a while on top of him, letting him kiss her everywhere he wanted – her neck, her throat. her ears, her jaw, her lips, her nose, her cheeks, her temples, her forehead. He planted his lips everywhere and wondered if she could feel just how much he adored her.
Zeeren moved his hips up, slowly inching his cock further inside her again. She felt so good; he was already dreading what it would feel like to not be inside her anymore, already grieving the loss of this sensation he had only just discovered.
Nahla moved her mouth back to his and kissed him leisurely as she moved her body up and down on his cock again. It was slower this time, but still enough to make the tension he felt in his body get even tighter. Zeeren moaned into her mouth, closing his eyes, as he felt the control slip from his grasp. The build-up to his orgasm happened so gradually, he felt the complete bliss wash over him before his body even knew he was coming. Then, like a bomb, he erupted, feeling his cock jerk wildly as he shot his come inside her. His hands and feet were tingling as each wave jolted through his body.
He heard Nahla whine and opened his eyes to see her with her fingers working at her clit as her muscles pulsated around his cock. Her body fell on top of his as she shuddered through the last seconds of her orgasm. Zeeren wrapped his arms around her. Any more movement felt almost painful as his orgasm subsided. They laid there, sweat-soaked, holding onto each other for minutes as they caught their breaths. Zeeren felt his cock softening and slowly fall out from inside her. He rubbed his hand across her back as they laid in the silence, meditating on the profound experience of their shared bliss.
***
Jett and Lura welcomed (and gawked at) the students and faculty that beamed back onto the Athena throughout the day – all looking tanned and well-rested after their much-needed vacations. Jett had to to be honest, she was looking forward to seeing what Ake and Kelrec would be like when they arrived. Maybe they wouldn’t even come back together. Kelrec could be in his office already, having come back alone in the early morning, for all she knew. Or maybe they would both look defeated after spending four days together, eager to get some space from each other. Maybe Kelrec would have a broken nose or a black eye. She was secretly hoping for that.
But when the two arrived together from the transporter, they looked happy. Happier than Jett had ever seen either of them. Frankly, they looked lovey-dovey. Standing way too close. Ake touching his arm. Kelrec smirking down at her. It was almost indecent.
Lura nudged Jett and pointed in their direction. “They didn’t rip each other’s throats out.”
“I’m shocked.” She really couldn’t believe her eyes.
“They look… pleased to be in each other’s company.”
“Are they glowing?”
There was no way… Ake wouldn’t… With Kelrec?
“Oh, they most definitely-” Lura began with a smirk.
Jett cut her off before she could say something truly terrible. “They did not.”
“Look at them. I can see it in their eyes.”
Jett frowned. “What could you possibly see in their eyes?”
“Their burning desire bubbling away just under the surface.”
“Gross,” she scoffed.
They were walking toward her and Lura now, with springs in their steps.
“Commander,” Ake smiled at Jett, “I trust the past few days went off without a hitch?”
“Eh, more or less.” She decided she would tell Ake about the Mir and Lythe bridge debacle in an hour or two, give her some time to settle before the work started again.
“Chancellor Kelrec, dare I say you’re looking pleased,” Lura said.
Jett shot her a glare. ‘What is she thinking?’
“Oh, well, uh, it was a lovely vacation,” he replied awkwardly.
“It certainly seems so,” Lura replied. “I would have liked to have my love by my side during the holiday celebrations, but I understand duty calls.”
Jett looked pleadingly and subtly gestured on herself for Ake to zip her lips.
“Right, well, next year I’ll make sure you two can celebrate together,” the Chancellor said with a sadistic smile.
Jett mouthed at her, ‘No. No.’
Ake ignored her and continued smirking. “See you two tomorrow, Commanders.”
Jett didn’t bother to give back a polite smile. She just watched as they both walked through the atrium, clearly towards Ake’s quarters.
“He’s going in the opposite direction of the War College,” Lura stated, with a quick raise of her eyebrows.
“They boned,” Jett finally admitted.
***
It was nearly supper time, so Nahla made her way over to the War College and towards Zeeren's quarters. It had been almost a full week since their trip and she had already become well-acquainted with the space. His quarters were nice – simple and orderly, which she had figured from the moment they’d met. But she had learned Zeeren had a tendency to run hot so he always had his thermostat set to freezing which she did not appreciate. As his door slid open to welcome her, though, she noticed it wasn't quite so chilled as it normally was. In fact, it could have even been considered warm. He must have gotten tired of her complaints and turned it up for her arrival.
Nahla smiled. “It feels like a sauna in here!”
Zeeren was in the dining area, setting out his fancy tea cups on the table. He rolled his eyes with a small smirk. “I can endure it for a few hours.”
“For me?” She walked over to him and looked up with a grin.
“For you.” He leaned down and gave her a peck on the lips.
It was nice – the easiness that they had fallen into so quickly, as if they had been together for years. The excitement of the newness was still there, of course, but there was a serenity to their relationship that she hadn't felt in a long time. Nahla had had many relationships in the past years but they were all shallow. Admittedly, it was always her doing. She didn't want to get too close to people or really let them in. Her and Zeeren were similar in that way. Nahla’s past partners had wanted to be closer to her but she had always done a good job of fooling people into thinking they knew her when they really didn't. Eventually, all of them caught on at some point.
She didn't want to do that this time, and she had no urge to either. Something about Zeeren made Nahla feel safe and comfortable in a way she hadn't felt in over a century.
“Going all out tonight, huh?” She looked at his tea set-up. On the table, he had everything necessary to prepare tea in the gongfu method. It was how most tea was made for them on their vacation. She had learned that, in Mandarin, the word 'gongfu' translated to 'skill' and watching people prepare tea in that way, she could tell that it certainly required effort and practice. Gongfu cha was an art – the dedication to making tea in a slow, deliberate way to coax out the best flavors the leaves were capable of giving.
“It's a special occasion.”
A week since they had both thrown caution to the wind and relented to the feelings that neither of them could deny any longer.
Zeeren moved to sit and he gestured to the chair across from him at the table, so Nahla sat down and watched him pour boiling water from the kettle onto the cups he would be using to prepare the tea to warm them up.
“How was your day?” She asked.
“Good,” he replied. “I've noticed the students seem to be doing better.”
“Mine, too.”
“Perhaps enough time has passed for them to start healing,” he said as he added small, shriveled leaves into the gaiwan, the small porcelain cup that brewed the tea.
“And you?” She asked quietly, looking into his eyes.
He frowned, with a hint of confusion.
“How have you been doing with B'avi's death?”
He sighed softly, looking away from her to get back to the preparation of the tea. He poured hot water into the gaiwan and let it rest for a few seconds, just long enough to open up the leaves, then poured it out.
Eventually, Zeeren replied, “I’m not sure I'll ever find a way to stop blaming myself.”
Nahla nodded. She knew how that felt, more than most people. Reaching over to him, she grabbed his hand, turning it and bringing it up to her mouth, placing her lips on his palm.
“There was nothing you could have done,” she whispered against his skin.
They stayed like that for a few moments, until he moved his hand to cup her face. They looked into each other's eyes, in a mutual understanding of loss and pain and blame.
Zeeren rubbed his thumb against her cheek. “Maybe someday I'll believe that.”
She nodded. There was nothing she could say. Nahla had lived 125 years with the same feelings of guilt that he felt and she had never learned how to shake them. But she never gave up hope that, one day, she would be free from them.
“What are we drinking today?” She asked.
He drew his hand away from her and smiled softly, undoubtedly relieved to go back to an easy topic of conversation. “Oolong rock tea. Just for you.”
“You spoil me.” She smiled.
He shrugged as he poured more water into the gaiwan. “I'm happy to.”
They sat in silence for a few seconds as the tea brewed. When it was ready, as Zeeren poured the tea into their cups, Nahla looked at the gaiwan. It was full of soaked oolong leaves that he had just rinsed and brewed. They had been unfurled, opening up to let their best flavor out. She thought it was beautiful. To see tea leaves that were so dried and tiny, weathered by a harsh environment, bloom again with just a little water and a touch of care. Maybe she finally realized why Zeeren loved tea so much.
Nahla picked up the small cup of fresh yancha and brought it to her mouth. It was delicious. Sweet and layered and so satisfying.
“How is it?” Zeeren asked.
She looked at him and imagined the years they would share together. He would tell her all his secrets and she would tell him hers. They would live their lives together, as one. She pictured them in their own little house in the Wuyi mountains with a cat or two. Zeeren would wake up early and drink the local teas all day. She would join him for a few rounds. They would be so happy together. Deep down, she knew it. She could feel it – the certainty of their future.
Nahla took another sip of the tea he had so carefully prepared and made a small noise of complete and utter satisfaction.
“Beautiful,” she replied with a smile.