Unresolved: A Reflection of Love and Vulnerability

Zyah paced the deck, awaiting Althea. The night was dark and the air damp. In a week’s time, they would arrive at their destination, a port city in the center of the continent where Zyah’s uncle lived. For weeks, his crew had been anxious to get back to civilization.

"Captain!" A cry rang out from above. "We’re approaching land!"

Zyah smiled, relieved to feel hard ground beneath his feet again. His gaze followed the path of the stars, remembering how he and Althea had wandered them together. He thought fondly of the evening they had spent on shore, when he first saw her eyes light up at the sight of a shooting star. She told him she wished they could be that bright when they made love. He fought against laughter as he recalled her shyness around him and her insistence that she didn’t have much experience with men. She was right; she didn't have any.

He walked over to where she sat on the bow, staring at the horizon. Her long red hair blew freely in the wind, reflecting in the moonlight like molten flames. Her face was turned away from him and he realized that he liked seeing her from behind; it left her eyes hidden from him so that he could imagine what she was thinking about.

She looked up at him when she felt his hands slide over her shoulders and his lips brush against her neck. Her body tensed immediately, forcing him to pull away quickly before she jumped up and ran away again.

"Althea," he said softly, trying not to startle her into flight again, "I've missed you."

She nodded silently and turned back toward the water. She closed her eyes for a moment as if trying to steady herself before speaking to him over her shoulder: "And I you."

A smile crept across his face as he remembered how shy she had been at first when they were alone together on deck after their first kiss. At last, he'd found someone who liked kissing more than talking! He'd professed that lovemaking should be just like kissing: passionate and intimate but with little talking involved. She'd blushed then but now she looked straight ahead as if thinking about what it might be like between them instead of giving him another chance to see her face blush again.