Have you read Neon Fae Part One - Bright?
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She grabbed his hand, dragging him away. Even though the crowd was crushing in around them, she somehow managed to lead them through gaps he couldn’t see. In no time they’d reached the edge of the crowd. Dropping his hand, she walked ahead of him. He paused for a moment, staring after her. She glanced over her shoulder, raising an eyebrow at him. He hurried after her, smiling sheepishly to himself for being caught staring at her ass.
“So, you’re sure I don’t know you from somewhere?” he asked, watching the soft yellow light of the fireflies slide across her face her out of the corner of his eye. Damn, she was even more beautiful in the firefly light.
“Nope,” she answered curtly, not looking at him.
He squashed the urge to continue asking. “Are your friends coming with us?” he asked, glancing over his shoulder.
“Nope,” she said again.
He frowned. “Why not?”
“Cuz they don’t like the band.”
He sighed and stopped. “So you’re just using me as an escort to the stage and then you’ll ditch me in the crowd?” He knew he shouldn’t have ditched his friends. Idiot.
She stopped too, turning to face him. Her serious expression softened. “I’m not going to do that,” she said, taking a step towards him. “Sorry, it’s been- I’ve had a long day.” She rummaged in her pants pocket, pulling out a joint and lighter. She lit it, took a deep inhale, and blew the smoke out with a sigh. “I’m… Luna,” she said as she passed the joint to him.
“I’m Ki,” he said, taking it from her. She smiled at him, turning to continue walking along the river. He fell into step next to her, taking a drag of the joint. The familiar taste of the smoke swirled in his mouth. He passed it back to her and watched as she took another drag. “So why am I coming to see this band with you then?”
“You strike me as the kind of guy who’d like them,” she said, smoke curling out of her mouth as she spoke.
“I thought you said we didn’t know each other?” he protested.
She chuckled, passing him the joint. “It’s Fluorescent Mushrooms.”
“No way! I didn’t think they were coming.”
“Last minute change.”
“How do I strike you as the kind of guy who’d like them?” he asked, smoke curling out of his mouth as he smiled lazily at her. His arm felt heavy as he passed the joint back.
She shrugged, her lips pulling into a smirk. “Dunno, maybe it’s the tattoo.”
He peered down at his sleeve. Abstract fluorescent patterns swirled around his upper arm, each part of the pattern representing someone or something important in his life. Her finger traced the abstract rendition of the band’s logo. The trail of her finger left tingles along his arm.
“How did you notice that in the mosh pit?”
“Good eyesight,” she shrugged, taking a final puff of the joint, flicking the roach, and grinding it into the ground with her shoe. Bass started pulsing thorough the air ahead of them. “They’re starting! Hurry up,” she said, grabbing his hand dragging him into a run.
Again, she found gaps in the crushing crowd. Before he knew it, they were at the front, pressed into the barrier surrounding the stage. The lights went off and the crowd shouting as a throbbing bass came out of the darkness. A skiter of anticipation ran through him.
Lights flared and the music flooded through him. He completely lost himself, body moving unconsciously to the beat he knew so well. He shouted the lyrics, not caring that he couldn’t carry a tune to save himself. Glancing over at Luna he saw she was also singing, body moving fluidly to the beat. She gave him a stunning smile, an electric bolt shooting through him. He definitely had to take her back to the house tonight.
Their eyes stayed locked as the music built again. Instinctively he reached out for her, running his fingers along the exposed skin at along the bottom edge of her top. Her smile grew as she moved closer to him. He wrapped his hands around her waist, feeling her body move with the beat. He matched his movements to hers. She leant back against him and he lowered his face to her neck, breathing in her heady lavender scent. Her scent and the feel of her against his body merged with the music and he lost all sense of time.
He was pulled out of the trance when she turned to face him as the band finished their set. She wrapped her fingers around the back of his neck and pulled him closer, a shiver running down his spine at her touch. He glanced at her lips, but she brought them to his ear. “Let’s get out of here.”
Nodding she grabbed his hand again, dragging him out of the mosh pit. He followed her down to the beach where fluorescent blue waves were running up the beach. The gentle patter of water on sand was surprisingly relaxing after the energy and excitement of the stage. The moon hadn’t risen yet. Stars were twinkling brightly in a strip across the sky.
Movement out the corner of his eye caught his attention. Luna was silhouetted against the soft light of the stars. His eyes widened. Was she getting undressed?
“Com’on! I’ve never swum in water with bioluminescent plankton before,” she said, stepping out of her pants and heading to the water’s edge.
She stepped into the water which lit up around her feet. Letting out a laugh of delight, she waded into the water. He hurried over to her pile of clothes, pulling his shirt over his head as he went. He stripped off his clothes and threw them on her pile. By the time he was undressed she was already fully submerged, the water glowing around her.
“Hurry up! There’s a… school? Is it a school? Whatever, there’s a bunch of glowing jellyfish out here you have to see!” she called, swimming further out.
He chuckled. “It’s a bloom of jellyfish,” he called back as he waded in after her.
“A bloom, I like that,” she said, a hint of a smile edging her words.
The water was warm, the fine sand shifting under foot. As the water reached his waist, he dived in. Blue bloomed around him. He surfaced, running his fingers through his hair to push it out of his eyes. He tasted salt as he drew in a breath. Slowly he swam toward her glowing figure, revelling in his weightlessness after the intensity of dancing.
As he approached, he saw them. Hundreds of fluorescent blue mushroom-shaped jellyfish were floating out to sea. He swam over to where Luna was treading water. They watched the jellyfish in silence as they floated out of sight.
“That was amazing, I’ve never seen anything like it,” she said, turning to smile at him in the dim glow of the water.
He smiled back.
She tilted to float on her back. “Of course, you’re probably used to them, being from the Cerulean Kingdom.”
He averted his eyes from the curves of her silhouette, moving to float on his back next to her. He stared up at the stars. “How’d you know I’m from the Cerulean Kingdom?”
She paused. “Lucky guess.”
She was really observant. “Which kingdom are you from?”
“Does it matter?” she asked.
He shrugged. “No, but I’m curious.”
“Isn’t mystery part of the fun?” she purred.
Her voice sent a tingle through him. “I suppose.”
They lapsed into silence, staring up at the band of stars stretching across the dark sky. Automatically Ki’s eyes found the chalice constellation. The chalice always gave him a sense of comfort, a sense of home. He always searched for it when he came back from his trips to the other kingdoms. He suddenly felt the overwhelming need to share this piece of him with her.
“Do you know the chalice constellation?” he asked, pointing up at a group of eight stars.
She hesitated. “No.”
Ah, so she was either from the Amber or Violet Kingdom, whose northern hemisphere stars differed from the ones he was familiar with.
“Some Cerulean Fae believe our ancestors drank from the chalice handed down from the gods, giving us our bioluminescent powers,” he said softly into the darkness.
“Do you believe that’s how it happened?” she asked after a while.
He considered. “No. Although I did for a long time. My mother, she-“ He paused. He was trying so hard not to think about her while he was away, but she kept butting in as always. “She believes in that kind of stuff, that each of the kingdom’s powers came from a different place. She spent a long time teaching me about it when I was young,” he said eventually.
She was quite for so long he started to worry he’d said something wrong. It was stupid bringing this up, it was way too heavy a conversation for a stranger. Although he couldn’t help feeling a small amount of relief for finally sharing a slither of truth about himself with someone.
“What do you believe?” she asked quietly.
He paused, trying to think of the best way to frame it. “I believe we all came from the same place, although I’m not sure where that place is. I think we’re all the same but different. Like siblings.” As he fell silent again, he listened hard for a tut or a huff to see if he could discern how she felt about their conversation. All he could hear was the slight ripple of water.
“I like the way you put it. Like siblings,” she said. “Although it sucks when siblings fight. I hate that our kingdoms are divided. I-” She hesitated, but he kept his silence, waiting for her to continue. “I hate the prejudice. So many tried to stop the war. So many were coerced into it. So many still feel the pain and shame of their decisions all these decades later, but no one bothers to get to know each other before condemning them.”
His chest tightened at the agony in her words. He reached out and grabbed her hand, trying to silently tell her he understood. It pained him how much he understood. “Imagine if the world was like these festivals. If it was how it was before the war. All the kingdoms united,” he whispered.
With a small splash she let go of his hand and came upright. He followed. “That would be a dream come true,” she smiled.
“I-“ He stopped himself. She already knew so much about him. Maybe he should take her cue and keep some things a mystery. “I hope someone can do something about it.”
“Me too,” she said, moving slowly toward him, the water illuminating around her.
As she moved closer, he could make out her startling purple eyes in the glow of the water. Without thinking he brought his hand up to cup her face, gently stroking his thumb over her cheekbone. She closed her eyes, tilting her head into his touch. A thrill shot through his chest. He gently dragger his fingers under her jaw, tilting her chin up. Her eyes opened, flicking between his, searching for something. He paused until her eyes softened. Slowly he moved closer.
“Rae! Are you out there?”
She jerked away from him, turning toward the beach where a light-up whip was being waved in the air. “Shit,” she muttered.
“Rae?” Kae asked, unable to keep the hurt out of his voice.
She winced. “I- my friends, they call me Rae.”
His heart sunk. “And strangers call you Luna?”
“Rae! We can’t find Bola, we need you to-“
“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Luna cut them off, waving her arm. She turned back to Ki. “I didn’t mean to hurt you, I had to protect myself. I hope you understand.” She placed her hand on his bare chest, looking up into his eyes. “Will you meet me at the Lake Stage tomorrow?”
His chest felt heavy, but again, he understood more that she knew. “I suppose I could,” he said guardedly.
“Starstreak is playing at midnight,” she tempted.
He smiled slightly. “How do you know me so well?”
She gave him a sly smile in return. “Pretty high chance you’d like them if you like Fluorescent Mushrooms.”
“Fair enough,” he laughed. “How will I find you?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll find you,” she said over her shoulder as she waded away in a bloom of blue.
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Read Neon Fae Part Three - Glow out now!