Perhaps her father's words cut deeper than she had expected. Maybe he was right, maybe Tiah was lacking a personal life, one outside of family and duty. Still, she felt herself lost within his words. It was hard being so easy to read, she felt so transparent and tiny beneath it all. What if she was as pathetic as she felt? Could she actually admit that to herself here and now? Was her life meaningless?
The lioness rose with the morning to a bleak existential crisis looming over her mind, clouding her thoughts and judgement. She felt... incomplete somehow. <********..." She muttered under her hallowed breathe. What was happening?
Today was already a bad day, she called it ahead of time. It couldn't get much worst.
Could it?
No. With every thought that swelled deep within her troubled mind the lioness grew more unconscionable. Her chest felt tight and eyes strained to see just a few feet in front of her. What was happening? She could hardly stand now as the panic set in, her heart racing like never before. Was she dying? She felt herself gasp for air one last time before everything went black and faded into nothing.
And like that she was out cold.
It felt like time had stopped, everything was at a standstill. She could feel her heart slow as her eyes slowly settled to open, weary from the black out she blinked a few times, moving her head up just enough to notice she wasn't at her post anymore. Tiah groaned and rolled herself up to her paws with a tired sigh.
"What the hell happened?" The question was something she was actually asking herself. She didn't expect anyone else to answer... but someone did.
"I found you passed out. To be honest I kinda figured you were dead." A voice spoke back to her with a chuckle. Before Tiah had a chance to react a white male with a dark mane stepped out into her line of view and smiled with a cocky grin.
"But here you are alive and well. You're welcome." His words were laced with a certain smugness Tiah loathed. Quickly she jumped to her feet as she hiss and clawed her way from the ground. Who the hell was this guy?
"Get away." She snarled as she moved herself far enough away from him to be safe.
Dia laughed a little and shook his head from side to side. He wasn't sure why she was reacting so poorly to being saved but this just wouldn't do. He moved himself closer to her, unafraid of her tough act.
"You know you could say "thank you", it's really not that hard." Dia nodded to himself.
"I didn't do anything to you. You were knocked out and I brought you back here to rest. If I had left you out in the open who knows what could have happened to you, idiot." Calling her an idiot wasn't really something he enjoyed but to be fair she was being sorted for no reason. At least to him it felt that way. Why was she being so crazy? She was safe!
"You are really awful at saying thank you, by the way." Dia rolled his eyes and sat back as he watched her frantically find her feet again. It was kind of adorable, she looked almost like a cub figuring out walking for the first time. Maybe he was being too hard on her. He offered her a soft smile and smirk before speaking again.
"Look, I am not trying to do anything to you, alright? I just did what I thought was right and moved you some place safe." If he wanted to harm her he could have, why couldn't she understand that?
Tiah's eyes flashed at him as soon as he called her an idiot. She was so sick of having males call her that. First her father and now this guy? Her teeth clinched as she lowered her head in shame. She was unable to take care of herself in the moment she blacked out. She was so helpless that even this big fool was able to easily remove her from her post and the safety of her home. She had never felt so weak before. This was truly as tragic moment for the lioness.
"I...."
She couldn't even find the right words. Apart of her wanted to scream and lash out but, somewhere inside her mixed up mind some part of her knew it wasn't the right this to do right now. She lifted her gaze to the white lion and spoke out softly, though her voice cracked mid sentence.
"Thank you. I'm not sure what happened to me before, but thank you for making sure I was safe." She didn't know him. She didn't understand his motives. She hardly wanted to look at him let alone talk to him, but she did owe him this. A simple 'thank you'.
She felt herself cool back down from panic mode, her blood pressure soothing back to normal for the moment. She was so quick to attack she sometimes forgot that not everyone was out to get her. She had a complex, that was obvious.
"What's your name?" She questioned with a head tilt.
"So-so I know who I am talking to.... thanking, rather?" She didn't want to seem needy but apart of her felt very flustered. What?
"Dia. Call me Dia." Now that he had the chance to really look at her he noticed her eyes. never before had he seen such intense burning before. She was pretty, at least to him she was. She seemed a bit on the taller side but it didn't bother him much, he sat looking her over for a few moments before speaking again, this time his tone was welcoming and friendly. He wasn't afraid of her. He could tell she was far more stressed out over him just being close to her than anything.
"Dia." Tiah repeated with a nod. It was strange being here with him like this. It was her first time in the company of a male so... forward and open. Tiah wasn't really use to being around males as it was, she had little to no experience in the art of flirting, let alone basic conversation. She felt a little silly feeling so... unnatural.
"My name is Tiah. My pride is back where you found me. Again, I thank you for your help. I am sorry for any stress I might have caused you." Her guilt got the better of her however and soon she found herself feeling like a bother again, hoping he would at least forgive her intrusion.
"Look, I can leave now. I am feeling much better after everything." She motioned to the side, glancing back toward where he had taken her from. She needed to get back home soon anyway, her father would worry. Or... would he?
"You don't have to go if you don't want to. You could, you know, relax here with me for a while. If you wanted, that is." Dia was blunt but he didn't mean to come off as ominous or overly... forward. He was just offering her a place to relax. She seemed so tightly wound. Maybe that was why he stumbled upon her blacked out cold and alone. Was she triggered by stress?
"I mean, it's not me trying to sleep with you or anything, if that's what you're thinking. It's just a friendly thing, you know?"
Tiah felt her face run hot with flush as she sat wide eyed. Sleep with? The thought hadn't even crossed her mind. She'd never been held by a male, let alone... that. She coughed up a lung trying to respond as quickly as possible.
"No no no, I wasn't thinking that at all." Her words poured out of her mouth like a flood.
"I'll stick around and chat for a while. What harm could it do?" Even though this whole situation was extremely awkward now she wanted to take the time away from her father as a learning exercise in how to... adult. How to... be her, on her won, with her own identity. Who knows, maybe something good would come from this meeting? It couldn't hurt, right?
~end at 1,387 words