Re: Kissed with Midnight [Aviana]
Posted: 28 Jul 2015, 14:06
“I have worked there but few weeks,” Kaj said in a lighter tone when she had asked about his job at the hospital. He didn’t know if he was going into too much detail, but he was quick to add, “since I have moved to this country from Sweden.”
Talking with Aviana came quite easily after his little faux pas; Kaj found that it was effortless to relax around this woman, who despite all friendly banter and support, was basically a stranger to him. Of course Kaj was always nervous about talking to new people – particularly new people who spoke English alone – but he at least prided himself on his judgements. Kaj felt that he was able to anticipate people, to understand them as readily as one could read a book. Nevertheless, he wasn’t so obtuse as to forget about the deeper meanings, the underlying roots which helped these flowers grow. Kaj could read people and understand them in a quick surface glance, which assisted in determining whether he would like to form relationships with them. It was then that he was able to read between the lines, as it were, and dig a little deeper into these people.
With Aviana, he found her quite charming and delightful. She was gentle and forgiving, making him feel quite safe around her. She embodied the character of an older sister – one Kaj imagined to exist rather than understood from his own personal experiences. His relationship with his sister, Bella, who was 14 years his senior, was never close, warm or loving. Perhaps it was because of the age difference, or simply because Kaj was the Black Sheep in the Gyllenstierna household. It wasn’t difficult to work out why just from the family portrait. His mother, father and sister formed a tight trio, their appearances consistent with their disciplined natures and stern outlooks. On the left, then, there was Kaj; the boy whose hair was longer than his female relatives’, whose attire was unrestrained and casual. Their hands were clasped behind them, shoulders back and chest puffed out with confidence; Kaj held his hands in front of him, shoulders slack with his tall, skinny body diminishing.
Try as he might, Kaj was not like them. They were a determined people and down-to-Earth, grounded by reality and cold about the certainties of life and death. Kaj, meanwhile, was prone to flights of fancy, to daydreaming, to aspiring for the impossible and doing what he wanted to do simply because he wanted to do it. It was why he had moved here from his homeland, in search of a better life and a culture that would be more accepting. Frankly, it had not helped that Kaj was not the type who would ever bring home grandchildren – even if he liked children. In almost every way imaginable, Kaj’s desires conflicted with that of his family’s.
All too suddenly, Kaj was ripped from his warm and comfortable place at Aviana’s side. Following her abrupt and bizarre exclamation, Aviana was plucked from the world he knew and tossed some feet away. Once again, Kaj had not seen what had happened, and as quickly as the Fadebeast had appeared, it had vanished. To the Swedish man it was as though some tormented spirit had decided to assault them both this night. Assuming he was the common denominator, Kaj froze in place and watched with wide eyes as Aviana’s body slumped against the floor; her umbrella was scattered some feet away. Kaj did not see her reach for her gun in her purse, blue eyes turned to the umbrella that was rolling away with the wind. He staggered over to it, collecting it quickly on his way over to Aviana. Crouching wasn’t the best idea, but the Swedish man dropped to his knees alongside her, fussing over her like a mother hen.
“Are you alright?” he asked. “What happened? You seemed to just… fly into the air all of a sudden.”
In the stress of it all, Kaj’s accent grew thick around his words like mould; it would be surprising if she understood much of what he said, even if she wasn’t suffering a concussion.
Talking with Aviana came quite easily after his little faux pas; Kaj found that it was effortless to relax around this woman, who despite all friendly banter and support, was basically a stranger to him. Of course Kaj was always nervous about talking to new people – particularly new people who spoke English alone – but he at least prided himself on his judgements. Kaj felt that he was able to anticipate people, to understand them as readily as one could read a book. Nevertheless, he wasn’t so obtuse as to forget about the deeper meanings, the underlying roots which helped these flowers grow. Kaj could read people and understand them in a quick surface glance, which assisted in determining whether he would like to form relationships with them. It was then that he was able to read between the lines, as it were, and dig a little deeper into these people.
With Aviana, he found her quite charming and delightful. She was gentle and forgiving, making him feel quite safe around her. She embodied the character of an older sister – one Kaj imagined to exist rather than understood from his own personal experiences. His relationship with his sister, Bella, who was 14 years his senior, was never close, warm or loving. Perhaps it was because of the age difference, or simply because Kaj was the Black Sheep in the Gyllenstierna household. It wasn’t difficult to work out why just from the family portrait. His mother, father and sister formed a tight trio, their appearances consistent with their disciplined natures and stern outlooks. On the left, then, there was Kaj; the boy whose hair was longer than his female relatives’, whose attire was unrestrained and casual. Their hands were clasped behind them, shoulders back and chest puffed out with confidence; Kaj held his hands in front of him, shoulders slack with his tall, skinny body diminishing.
Try as he might, Kaj was not like them. They were a determined people and down-to-Earth, grounded by reality and cold about the certainties of life and death. Kaj, meanwhile, was prone to flights of fancy, to daydreaming, to aspiring for the impossible and doing what he wanted to do simply because he wanted to do it. It was why he had moved here from his homeland, in search of a better life and a culture that would be more accepting. Frankly, it had not helped that Kaj was not the type who would ever bring home grandchildren – even if he liked children. In almost every way imaginable, Kaj’s desires conflicted with that of his family’s.
All too suddenly, Kaj was ripped from his warm and comfortable place at Aviana’s side. Following her abrupt and bizarre exclamation, Aviana was plucked from the world he knew and tossed some feet away. Once again, Kaj had not seen what had happened, and as quickly as the Fadebeast had appeared, it had vanished. To the Swedish man it was as though some tormented spirit had decided to assault them both this night. Assuming he was the common denominator, Kaj froze in place and watched with wide eyes as Aviana’s body slumped against the floor; her umbrella was scattered some feet away. Kaj did not see her reach for her gun in her purse, blue eyes turned to the umbrella that was rolling away with the wind. He staggered over to it, collecting it quickly on his way over to Aviana. Crouching wasn’t the best idea, but the Swedish man dropped to his knees alongside her, fussing over her like a mother hen.
“Are you alright?” he asked. “What happened? You seemed to just… fly into the air all of a sudden.”
In the stress of it all, Kaj’s accent grew thick around his words like mould; it would be surprising if she understood much of what he said, even if she wasn’t suffering a concussion.