The Shell and the Star - Part 17

Last time we left Jinn and Trey as they were just about to leave as spectators at another Boggey Ball game and head off together for a private swim. Jinn is still unsure if she and Trey have a future together, but she's grown from complete resistance to at least considering the possibilities since arriving on Veros. Her trust in -- and attraction to -- Trey is definitely growing.

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The Shell and the Star

 

Jinn angled the thrusters on her bubble and made a seventy-degree rotation to head in the general direction of the sheltered cove they’d visited yesterday. Trey took her cue and swam slightly ahead, guiding her on the correct heading.

They didn’t speak, and that gave Jinn plenty of time for her mental second-guessing to kick in.

Wanting time alone with him was a good thing, wasn’t it? There was a lot she still needed to sort out, talk through, think about. Spending some private time with a suitor was only to be expected, she would think.

But after their saucy back-and-forth, what were his expectations? Would he behave differently outside the bounds of his father’s manor? Had her prodding about being bolder sent a message she would be receptive to a more physical encounter? Were the Perling more casual about intimacy outside the pairing bond, just like they were more relaxed about nudity than in her more prim culture?

And if they were, would she shy away from an advance by Trey…or be glad of it?

Jinn’s gaze cut to Trey and she caught her lower lip in her teeth as she watched him swim effortlessly beside her sphere. There was no denying their bond was growing, as was her trust in him. She thought she probably already knew the answer to her silent question. 

They arrived at the entrance to the cove, and Trey sliced upright in the water, waiting for her sphere to proceed first through the opening to the cove. Jinn adjusted the controls before engaging the thrusters to push through the narrow gap.

She surfaced, cutting the power, raising her flight couch to open the upper hatch.. Trey came up beside her sphere in a hail of bubbles.

Well, this certainly had a feeling of déjà vu. Not so different to the prelude of their first kiss in her quarters last night. Except now there were no living souls in proximity. They were completely alone.

And she wasn’t sure how Trey was going to react to what she intended to propose to him.

Jinn wriggled out of the top hatch and shouted, “Catch me!”

With a careless abandon she rarely revealed, Jinn tumbled down the curving slope of the envirosphere to a surprised Trey, who thrust out his arms to break her fall. Together they went under, but the drag of the ocean immediately slowed their descent and natural buoyancy began to carry them back to the surface.

The mighty froth of bubbles danced over her skin and gurgled up her nose. It tickles! Jenn giggled. Then choked in horror when she drew in water, not air. She clutched at Trey, panicking. He caught her by the arms and thrust her up above the water.

Jinn emerged gasping and coughing. Trey immediately pulled her into his arms, held her head above water and swam for the rock ledge. Once there he lifted her bodily to seat her on the shelf and planted himself at her side, thumping her between the shoulder blades as she spit up salt water.

“Cough it out, Jinn,” he said, close to her ear. “Good. Good. Now breathe.”

Jinn’s coughing spasms finally abated and she opened her eyes to give him a grateful look. “I guess laughing underwater wasn’t such a great idea.”

Trey smiled a very relieved smile. “It’s a lesson we all have to learn, some earlier than others.”

She leaned into him, tucking her head into the hollow between his chin and shoulder. “Thank you for saving me from myself. I guess I still have a lot to learn.”

“We both do.” He slipped a supporting arm behind her back, and where his hand curled around her side, she covered it with one of her own.

They sat together for a long time, listening to the distant shouts and splashes from the game.

“You still up for a swim?” Trey finally asked.

She smoothed her fingers over his bare shoulder and parked her chin on them. “Only if you promise not to let me drown.”

“You have my solemn word.” He tweaked her chin playfully. “Just promise me you’ll hold your breath until you surface this time.”

She held up her tattooed hand, palm toward him. “Star’s honor.”

Trey eased into the surf and held his hands out to her. Jinn located her bubble, bobbing along the rocky waterline at the far end of the cove, before sliding into the sea…and into his arms. Her white dress billowed around her legs as Trey released her waist and took her hand.

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Hope you enjoyed today's post. As someone who has lived her entire life on a space station, inhaling sea water was a horrifying and alien experience for Jinn. But Trey's quick and competent reaction has only drawn her closer to him. How close are they about to get? Check back next week for the next episode.

Have a great week.