The rain had decided to not pause. It kept pouring in its rhythm, like a melody being sung in the background. Maya's hand went still while waking Leo up.
She was 25, an adult responsible for herself. At this age, most of her friends had already started thinking about marriage and life after. Of course, she had relationships in the past, but did she consider them important in her life? Maybe. She never gave it much thought.
However, she still could not explain this curiosity within her. This 'need' to get to know this boy arose every time her eyes caught sight of his face. A face that was too calm for a young man. Being the older one, she felt odd thinking so, but 'He looks charming...' her mind could not resist the thought.
And it was enough to make her pull her hand back, the sudden thought rushing the remaining heat to her face. A discomfort ran through her body, shivering her entire heart. 'What am I thinking? He is a boy, for God's sake.' She felt ashamed.
Her legs started to retreat. She decided to wait under one of the faraway trees. There was no other choice.
But fate, as it seems, wasn't willing to let that happen.
Leo groaned, stretching his arms. He yawned, eyes now open. The rain felt nice on his skin. It always did. Every year, every time.
He looked at the bags to one side. The first time he spent a month here, it was difficult to always go to the town for something, now and then. And from the second time, he had started to bring enough supplies for himself.
But suddenly, his ears picked up a rustle. Having spent a month on the hill during this season for the past 5 years, nothing was unknown to him about the hill. Animals didn't wander on the hill during the rain.
He looked to his other side, eyes focused on finding whatever it was, possibly on the ground. But what met his eyes was a pair of legs. Black sandals and small nail-polished feet. His heart gave a thump. Uncertainty slithered in his heart, yet he could feel the person's identity. His hands started to warm up, the usual sign when he sensed her.
His eyes moved up, catching a glimpse of her jeans clinging to her thighs. Her T-shirt had been drenched, behaving just like the jeans. Her bosom heaved with every breath, the rain dancing in joy as it fell on her. Leo gulped, his saliva slithering down his throat; a fiery mess.
And the image he illusioned in class overlapped with her face. His eyes that traced her lips couldn't move further. His heart was thumping so loudly in his chest that it felt agonizing. Her eyes seemed surprised, a reasonable reaction. Her hair had flattened from the rain's weight, sticking to her lips and cheeks. He could see her throat motion as she gulped.
Leo struggled to move; the heat had started to spread.
"Why are you here?" This was the first time he had spoken to her. Directly at least. His voice trembled, trying to suppress the oddity of it. He felt weird, as if his own voice was foreign.
...
Maya looked at him, still sitting on the rock. His shirt had drenched, the see-through cloth doing its work. His body wasn't toned, but it was slim. As if it were exclusively sculpted for his looks.
She could feel his eyes traveling from bottom to top. And what should have been offending and discomforting was turning into heated uncertainty. Her mind was tumbling over itself, because the heat from her face was now reaching all her body. Especially the places his eyes travelled,...slowly.
His question came later. She first witnessed his lips moving. With each word, they stuck together, and then the rain seemed melodic. 'This is so wrong...' she felt like crying out loud to the non-existent clouds. As if her mind was in full control, but her heart was taking over. And that was the worst.
"I got lost," she was able to reply, but his voice felt uncomfortable, too. She could sense the tremble in it, the uneven breathing as he spoke. The rain started pouring harder.
Leo looked up, his eyes staring directly at the sky. The raindrops fell on his face, a garment laid by the clouds. His eyes closed, as if the rain was conveying something.
Maya's body moved ahead a bit, an instinctive approach to calm the situation. She knew she had stumbled upon him when he was supposed to be on a 'medical' leave. That was also the reason why he didn't attend her farewell, which is what the class teacher told her. So seeing her, getting exposed was the least he would like. And she didn't want to cause him any trouble either.
From the first time she had seen him, he seemed anything but what the people gossiped about. Some called him a rebel, but he never even talked. Some labelled him a delinquent, but he never troubled anyone. Many called him ominous, always with that empty look as if haunted. But whenever she looked at him, he always just looked lost. And when he looked at her, he seemed unusual, as if rebounding with something.
"It's fine, Leo, I won't mention this to anyone," she assured, her voice only a mutter in the heavy rain. Her steps closed the gap between them. She was just a few inches away from the rock. "You don't have to worry. I will wait here till the rain stops and then leave." She said, trying to find any acknowledgement on his face.
Today was her second last day in the town. 'I don't want these two days to be awful,' her mind wished.
"What's the meaning of this?" Leo spoke, his voice a heavy whisper. As if someone was strangling his throat, he gulped heavily.
Leo looked at her, his eyes different. The previous dim eyes now held the blue sky in them, the only lacking element in the environment. His jaw tightened. Leo shifted, his legs now touching the ground as he moved.
Leo sat on the rock looking around. He looked at the sky, the rain, the trees. His eyes wandered like they had seen something new. Every move of his eyes was a calm frantic, trying to piece together whatever his mind had conjured.
Slowly, his eyes moved towards Maya, a breath hitching in her chest.
Leo's gaze lingered longer than her body could handle. Sweat mixed with the rain on her skin, her raincoat's hood swayed with the fresh wave of wind. The scent of wet mud met her nose, a freshness in this heated contest of lingering gazes. She felt her body going still, not listening to her mind at all. Her heart thumped louder now, wanting to find answers. But to what? She didn't know.
Leo's hand rose, his palm spread towards her. The odd gesture confused her, but reacting was impossible. Her body won't listen. Leo's hand remained, waiting for what she knew not. But his eyes held hers, and she could not look away.
Those eyes seemed intimate, as if going even slightly closer to him would cause havoc. A havoc for her heart, one she felt creeping in her body already. His lips, yet again, her gaze lingered, had started to brush against each other.
Maybe she had kept him waiting too long. Maybe he really was a delinquent. Because when she didn't move, Leo did. He got up and moved towards her. And this would have been of no much worry to her if he had not had those predatory eyes, while her mind didn't start bringing his rumoured infamy to notice.
She started moving backward, subconsciously. If in this moment she understood one thing, it was, 'This boy is bad news'
But maybe her body couldn't process these thoughts, because it did not move to her will. Leo was inches away, his hand still extended towards her. However, his eyes seemed lost. As if he wasn't looking at her, but through her. If that made sense.
The cold rain felt like piercing needles to her warm skin when Leo grabbed her hand. He wasn't forceful. His hand wrapped around hers, fingers entangled as if not wanting to leave ever. His eyes now dared to dig a hole through her lips.
Now standing close to him, she spotted the difference in their height. He was a few inches taller, and his stature was slightly larger than hers. And that soon became clearer when he pulled her closer, his other hand coiling around her waist.
"Le...Leo!" Her voice escaped the entrapping of her throat, a struggle not from anger but uncertainty. She looked into his eyes and she witnessed a bombardment of emotions in those ever-so-empty eyes.
His hand lifted from her hips, the cold of his finger tracing her lips. A shiver ran through her body, which even the rain had failed to accomplish. He mumbled something, but she could only grasp the end when his face got closer, "...manifestation. You are a trap for my soul." and before his fingers could depart from her lips, they met another pair.
A warmth of his lips collided on hers, an odd sensation in the freezing rain. She didn't know what he ate, but he tasted like honey. Her mind was freezing from the heat he brought with him. Her mind was conflicted, refusing to let him go any further. But her heart was in possession of her body. A voluntary disagreement to soak in the moment.
And even in her drenched state, she felt the wriggle of his tongue on her lips. His hand that had traced her lips now did the same on her neck. His every move felt subtle and heavy, a coordination she didn't expect from him.
And when the uninvited invader found a split second of pass, it invaded her mouth. And now, the honey taste was taking over her mind.
And amidst this battle of desire, the rain poured as a witness to the lost souls finding an anchor in the heat. The wind halted as if interruption would be heresy. The shower dimmed, letting the moment drench them.
Maya's body was losing its will against him, and yet her hands stretched behind him. Her fingers ran through his hair, a motion meant to rid the slightest space between them.
The rain smelled of honey and, of course, uncertainty.