A marginal distance bridged

Jin

For the last four days, I have been trying to sort out all of my thoughts and feelings about Erinara.

She never left my mind for even a single moment. To say that she had taken root in my mind turned out to be an immense understatement, it was more like she had already claimed dominion over it completely. I couldn’t help but want to be closer to her and to learn more of her. Despite our time together, I realized that there was still much to be learned, and I would jump at any opportunity to do just that.

That’s why, today, before anything else, I decided to take an initiative. I wasn’t sure if the time that had passed was enough to reassess our emotions fully, but the silence surrounding this topic between us was nothing short of a slow, rigorous torture.

Just as dawn broke, I walked one room over from mine and knocked on her door.
“Good morning Erinara. Do you have time to talk right now per chance?”, I asked, my voice carrying a mixture of determination and lingering uncertainty.
The door opened.
“Certainly, come in”, she said, letting me step into her room.
She closed the door behind me. Instead of having a seat, we stood a couple of steps across from each other. Her stance betrayed a slight tentativeness.

Erinara was waiting for me to speak. I tried to steel my resolve.
“I wanted to talk to you about the connection we felt between us after the first sparring match.”
I could feel a heat grow throughout my cheeks as my heart pounded louder. At the same time, I saw how Erinara’s face was already turning pink. It appears that we were on the same track, at least.
“Do you also want us to be closer?”, Erinara had taken the initiative I was aiming for in one fell swoop. Even so, I sensed some doubt behind her question.
“Yes. That is precisely what I want”, I took a second to fortify my will again, in order to repeat what I had planned to say to her from the start:
“In the past, I genuinely thought I was happy in the kingdom. I realize now that that was far from the truth, at the very most I had been comfortable. I certainly had moments of happiness, sure, but nothing compares to how I feel during the time I spend with you. You have changed…”, I paused for a moment, feeling myself falter. I closed my eyes for a moment. I would let my heart guide me.
“…everything. I don’t even want to think about how my life would be if I hadn’t met you. I would do anything, as long as it is by your side, Erinara.”

Erinara’s face had turned a deeper shade of pink with every successive word. She raised a hand slightly.
“Just one moment please.”
It appeared that she was trying to regain her composure.
“Are you alright with me? I mean, you said you are, what I’m trying to ask is”, she got quiet, searching for words. Then a fierce, resigned resolve shone in her eyes, marking two points of stark contrast in comparison to the fluster radiating from her.
“Are my physical features that are of omen nature not off-putting to you?”
Her voice betrayed a deeply ingrained nervousness. I hadn’t even noticed it however, as I already replied with:
“But you are breathtaking.”
I had vocalized these words faster than my mind even processed what came out of my mouth. I froze in shock at my own boldness, my eyes growing wide. I was afraid that I had accidentally overstepped.
A myriad of emotions rushed through Erinara’s face.
“Do you mean that?”, she finally asked, still working through her shellshock.
“What part of your looks could possibly warrant having a singular worry about. Yes, Erinara, you are stunningly beautiful”, I answered, fighting the embarrassment slowly taking over my mind. If nothing else, I would at least confirm how I thought of her. Even if her omen traits were unusual, they certainly did not take away any of her beauty.
She blinked at me dumbfounded, before her face turned a blazing red. Her brilliant purple eyes had widened as far as they physically could, a spark of hope dancing within. She softly pressed a hand into one of her horns. Her other hand brushed over one of her shortened elven ears covered in bony ridges.
“I was really, really worried about that, you know? And you just up and say that? My heart wasn’t prepared for that, Jin, no fair”, she said, surprised. Her voice was charged with embarrassment, but also relief and happiness.
I suddenly found myself feeling flustered to an incredible degree because of her last sentence.
Turns out that my heart, in turn, was not prepared for her response.
“To me, your horns, markings and ears are just another part of what makes you, well you. Just like I had said on the journey, you are simply Erinara to me. Not Erinara, disciple of change, not Erinara, the omen, or anything else. They are facets of you, but not different entities. The person I have become smitten with is you, Erinara.”

The first time I said her name she slightly winced, every time after that a surge of emotion showed itself on her face. Erinara was tracing her horn, almost absentmindedly.
It appeared to me as if a dim, warm glow surrounded her. Her pale arms, neck and face, as well as the dark blue markings covering them, seemed to shine ever so slightly.

A silence fell over us briefly.
Erinara’s eyes darted around the room before focusing entirely on mine.
“Well, this is definitely troublesome”, she said softly with a smile, before taking a deep breath. For the briefest of moments, a primal fear flowed through me, an ice cold sensation finding itself in my stomach, chest and throat.

“It appears that you have completely enchanted my heart, Jin.”

The earlier sensation washed away in an instant.

Erinara took an uncertain step toward me. Then another with slightly more confidence, and another still.
She now stood directly before me with almost no space between her slender body and mine.

She looked at me, a mixture of uncertainty and nervousness within her purple eyes quickly being replaced by something new. Her gaze was wreathed in determination, confidence and longing. Her face lingered barely a few centimeters away from mine. She was so close to me that I could feel her breath, which came in uneven bouts, on my lips.
Neither of us said a single word.

A new feeling swelled in my chest. One mixed of desire, nervousness, anticipation and love.
Erinara lowered her sight on my face slightly, looking at my lips for but a heartbeat, before meeting my gaze.

I leaned forward faintly.
Erinara did the same.

The marginal distance remaining between us was bridged.

Our lips pressed together.

Erinara’s eyes briefly flared open. She then closed them, the residual worry etched into her face relinquishing to change into a happy, comfortable expression.

A subtle electricity seemed to run through my entire being. It felt as if everything I had worried about released itself from my mind.
This simply felt right.

Erinara wrapped one arm behind my back, pulling me closer to her still.
Even though I wasn’t wearing my armor, it took until she put her other hand on the back of my head for me to realize that her usually frigid touch was soothingly warm.
I opened my eyes just a tiny bit.

Erinara’s jet black hair was moving as if affected by an unseen gust, slowly lifting around her and swaying slightly.
A soft light started glimmering from within her.