“No.”
Atsu grinned; it was so like her to refuse help unless it came from her stupid little boyfriend.
“This is stupid, Ai.” She snarled at him and pulled herself up. “I can walk just fine, Atsu,” she spat back, leaning heavily against a tree for support. She was sweating, and her foot jutted out at an odd angle. The pain was easy to see on her face, and yet here she stood, trying to convince Atsu to leave her be.
Atsu rolled his eyes and shut off his mind from his Dataspace. Instantly the thoughts of the others were gone, leaving him alone and vulnerable for an attack. Ai stared at him, confused as to why she couldn’t hear his mind any more. Atsu snorted at her dazed expression and took this chance to sweep her into his arms so he could carry her back trough the forests to the Estate. Instantly, Ai was flailing in his arms, trying to break away from the older, stronger Xeno. Her meaningless threats rang out through the trees, scaring away birds and rodents.

“Ai, listen to reason. Your ankle is seriously fucked up. You don’t know where we are. You’ve been blocking everyone out for days so they wouldn’t hear you- yes, I got past your attempt at a datawall. Just let me carry you back to Zee, and then everyone can forget this happened. Hell, Kit probably won’t even know about it.”
The female immediately stopped talking and a pained expression crossed her face. Atsu knew he had hit a sore spot. “Sorry,” he mumbled, “his name is Zack. I didn’t mean it, it was just… an accident. I didn’t mean anything by it Ai, I swear.” Ai’s eyes turned glassy, but no tears spilled out. Inside her mind, Atsu could see how hard she was trying to keep control over herself, and not let her emotions take over.

“You did. You meant it. Every time you think about him, every time you talk to him, you call him that. He is not Kit anymore Atsu, do you understand?” She lifted a finger to stop him from protesting. “Every time you start thinking about how I like him more, you call him that. What do you think you are? Do you think you’re his superior? My superior?”

“Ai, please…” he began, but she cut him off once again. “You’re just a scared little kitty. You’re scared because you know that if he’s able to change and become someone important; if he’s able to become someone amazing named Zack, I could do the same. I wouldn’t have to be a weapon anymore, wouldn’t have to be a tool. We could all…” Hot tears spilled out of her bright maroon eyes, the salt water staining Atsu’s shirt. “We could all be human,” she managed to whisper.
Atsu looked down at her then; her tiny shoulders shaking as she tried to breathe between sobs; her curly maroon hair a mess of twigs and dirt; her perfect ballerina’s legs marred by tiny scratches, some still bleeding.

He kissed her.
Not because she absolutely didn’t want him to.
Not because he absolutely hated Kit.
But because he was absolutely sick of holding in his feelings, hiding them behind quick glances her way and idle conversation.

And she let him.