Neteyam started towards the library, leaving Ao'nung behind. He had stopped to talk to his friends, a group of 2 or 3 athletic looking boys, all who had given Neteyam very nasty looks. Thinking nothing of it, he settled down on a bean bag in the reading corner, pulling out his laptop. Before he could even unlock it, he was aware of a pair of long legs in front of him. He looked up into Ao'nung's face, who grinned before dropping to a squat. "Come on," he urged, slamming Neteyam's computer shut, right on top of his fingers. "Fuck! Damn, what the hell?" Neteyam exclaimed, pulling his hands back. "Oh, I'm sorry. Shit. Sorry. Still, come on," Ao'nung got to his feet, stepping away. His eyes were wide and apologetic. "Why?" Neteyam demanded, wiggling his fingers gingerly. "Tsireya forgot lunch. That means Rotxo most definitely did too. You're coming with me to pick up something for them." Neteyam blinked. "Are we allowed to leave?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. "I don't know, probably not. If we get caught, we can just say we were taking our studying elsewhere." He flashed a smile. Neteyam pursed his lips, considering his options. If he got caught, his mother would ground him. Then again, she needed him to bring his siblings to school, and he really wouldn't mind getting lunch. "I left mine at home too," he mumbled, putting his laptop away. "Again?" Ao'nung asked, grinning. "Yeah. Let's go, I don't wanna be late for 3rd."
They took Ao'nung's car. Neteyam offered to drive, but Ao'nung wouldn't hear it. "Your car probably smells like ketchup and is covered in crumbs," he said, laughing. "I don't let Tuk eat any liquids in my car, and I vacuum her area regularly," Neteyam protested. "I was actually talking about Lo'ak. I just know his ass is messy." Neteyam snorted, nodding. Ao'nung's car was not what Neteyam had expected. It was an old baby blue pickup truck, with a surfboard tied down in the back. "Hmm," Neteyam acknowledged, looking at the board closely. "What?" Ao'nung asked, throwing his bag in the backseat. "Nothing. I guess I expected your car to be something fancier," he said, climbing into the passenger seat. "I bought it myself. The old couple that owns the gas station beside my house was selling it a few years ago," he explained. "Oh," Neteyam nodded. "Here," Ao'nung said, tossing Neteyam a cord. "Get on aux." Neteyam hesitated, not sure if he wanted Ao'nung to listen to his music. "What?" He asked, noticing Neteyam's reluctance. "Do you think an athlete like myself wouldn't like your indie crap?" he finished, laughing. Neteyam exhaled sharply through his nose. In truth, that's exactly what he was thinking. "I happen to enjoy a wide variety of music, not just the stereotype you are pushing." Neteyam scoffed. "Stereotype? You're the one who assumed I listen to indie music," he protested, grinning. "Well, do you?" "Shut up." Ao'nung let out a shout of laughter.
Neteyam scrolled through his spotify, trying to decide on a song. "Jesus christ, Neteyam," Ao'nung exclaimed, grabbing the cord. "Hey!" Neteyam shouted, reaching for it. "No. You are taking too long. I get to pick." He quickly flicked through his playlists, selecting one without taking his eyes off the road. Gentle guitar music began to play as Ao'nung dropped his phone into one of the cup holders. Neteyam blinked in surprise as a soft male voice began singing in an unknown language - spanish? No, something similar. Maybe Portuguese. Neteyam discreetly pulled out shazam, trying to figure out what the song was. He quickly shut his phone off in embarrassment as it began announcing the title and artist - Quadro Verde by Rubel. "Did you just shazam in my vehicle?" Ao'nung demanded, grinning. "Oh, hu-" "This mf just shazamed at the function," he continued, laughing loudly. "Well, I wanted to know what it is!" Neteyam protested. "You could have just asked," "I don't know, my bad." Ao'nung shot him a glance. "You didn't want me to know you liked it, did you?" "What? No, I don't care," Ao'nung grinned. "Sure," he said, blinking pointedly.
"Where are we going?" Neteyam asked, looking around him. He knew so little of the small city they had moved to. "Tsireya likes Panera," Ao'nung offered. "I think Rotxo would eat worms and mud if it meant he didn't go hungry. Which leaves the question - what do you want to eat?" Neteyam thought for a second. "Panera is okay," he said, nodding. "Panera it is!" Ao'nung declared, turning off the main road. Neteyam had queued up a song that Kiri had recommended. "What song is this?" Ao'nung asked, steering into a parking spot. "Soft Sounds from Another Planet by Japanese Breakfast," Neteyam answered, smiling. "See? Not that hard," Ao'nung teased. "Stop that," Neteyam snipped, rolling his eyes. "I like this song. It's calming," Ao'nung commented. Neteyam nodded, glancing over at him. Ao'nung was bobbing his head to the beat, hair moving slightly around his shoulders as he did. "What's that necklace?" Neteyam asked suddenly, pointing to his neck. "Hm? Oh." Ao'nung reached up and pulled it out from his collar. "It's called a koru," he explained. "My dad's Maori, right?" Neteyam nodded. "I guess?" "Well, in his culture, it symbolizes the human naval, believe it or not." Neteyam tilted his head. It looked like a spiral of white stone to him. "The center of our birth. It represents life unfolding. Rebirth," he finished, looking at Neteyam out of the corner of his eye. "That's cool," Neteyam said, pulling his eyes away. "It's pretty," he offered lamely. Ao'nung scoffed. "Yeah, it is," he said, grinning at Neteyam.
"What about your parents? Tsireya said you're from Egypt." Neteyam nodded. "Yeah. My mom is Egyptian, but my dad's American," he replied. "My mom's super connected to her culture. We fast for Ramadan and try not to work on Fridays." "So, you're Muslim?" Neteyam hesitated. "Kinda. My mom is, but she doesn't really involve us. It's kind of her own personal thing, and we respect that. Kiri prays with her more than the rest of us, but we all do it as a family together before bed." There was a pause. "That's - I was gonna say cute, but that's the wrong word," Ao'nung mumbled. Neteyam smiled at him. "Thanks," he said, nodding. "So, is Kiri-" "She's fully adopted, yeah. Her mom was my dad's mentor and friend, kinda like a big sister. Or a fun aunt," he answered, grinning. Neteyam unbuckled himself and stood, Ao'nung following his lead, locking the truck behind him.
Neteyam ordered a Mediterranean veggie sandwich and a side of mac n cheese. He looked over at Ao'nung's screen. "Grilled cheese and tomato soup. Is that for you?" Ao'nung nodded. "What?" he asked as Neteyam laughed. "Ordering grilled cheese and tomato soup at your big age," Neteyam joked, grinning. "Oh, hush," Ao'nung laughed, nudging Neteyam lightly. He got his sister a chicken melt with avocado, and Rotxo a cheese flatbread. "Rotxo seems like the type to get a flatbread from a sandwich place," Neteyam commented. "He really is. I'm going to get him one of their, like, borderline illegally caffeinated lemonades, too. Just as an experiment." Neteyam laughed at him as they waited for their food.
Their phones buzzed.
Tsireya Kogoya, Ao'nung Kogoya, Rotxo Waititi, and 2 others:
(Tsireya) just went into the library to find my brother, but no Ao'nung? and no Neteyam? (Tsireya) Where r u guys!
(Lo'ak) Wait there I'll come say hi
(Rotxo) Lo'ak smooth wit it
(Ao'nung) We are on a side quest
Neteyam looked up at him. He was giggling at his phone, clearly amused with his own joke. Neteyam smiled at him.
(Neteyam) Who up exploring rn (Neteyam) Us 🧍🏾♂️🧍🏾♂️
(Kiri) take me with you next time i hate statistics
(Rotxo) If you take Kiri take me too!!!!
(Lo'ak) Rotxo less smooth wit it (Kiri) Not too much on Rotxo now
(Rotxo) GASP (Rotxo) KIRI (Rotxo) What does this mean Kiri!!!!!
(Kiri) bro pls
Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
Ao'nung's koru!!!
——————
Writing religions is difficult to do correctly but I reallyyyy hope I'm doing it right because I want to use it to kinda show how spiritual Neytiri is with her being the next Tsahik of her people, and use it to represent Kiri's connection to Eywa. If I make an error I promise it's not intentional! Please tell me so I can fix it!!!!!!!
