It is one of those times that Neytiri and Jake have to go to the city to tend to their business personally. The Sully couple, together with Neytiri's sister, Sylwanin, and her husband, Tsu'tey, and Jake's twin brother, Tommy, had formed a business when they were all in college. Now, Rongloa Sully Industries is Pandora's leading scientific research and design factory.
Jake and Neytiri choose to work from home to be with their kids most of the time, but sometimes they are needed at the headquarters to attend meetings and whatnot. And since they've moved to the west side of Pandora, they will be leaving the kids for a week to finish all their work.
As always, the parents put Neteyam in charge of his siblings and their house. Leaving complacent and lighthearted They trusted Neteyam that much.
It's been three days since their parents left, and so far everything's under control. Tuk hasn't thrown a wild tantrum yet (which they all feared and prayed not to happen), and Kiri is, well, she's tolerable. She is a little bit moody, but she helps Neteyam the most around the house, and surprisingly, Lo'ak is well behaved and is following all of Neteyam's orders.
It's not like he's ordering his brother around—it's just that Lo'ak is usually broody and quick to anger, but these past few days he's always smiling, more energetic than usual, and he doesn't push Neteyam's hands when he ruffles his braids. He still teases Tuk and annoys Kiri until she throws whatever her hands can grab, but above all that, he has changed. He's not picking fights or going into fights anymore. Ever since they moved here, Lo'ak has changed, and his parents saw that as well.
Maybe moving to Awa'atlu isn't as bad as Neteyam had thought it'd be. Whatever made his brother change elated that feeling Neteyam had buried when they left home.
Today, after eating their lunch, Tuk requested to take a little trip to the park at the center of their village. Everyone agreed to take their little sister since all of them except Neteyam had gone there. As much as he wants to see what's special about this village park, as Tuk and Lo'ak are always excited to go there, he can't since he's busy with a lot of things. Besides university and club activities, his parents are also slowly training him on how to manage their business now. He didn't have time to laze around.
They've been in this village for half a year, and yet he hasn't had a chance to visit the park. But since it's Sembreak and Neteyam has nothing to do, he agreed. I thought it would be the perfect chance to go see the neighborhood.
They settled under a big tree to shade them from the sun. Tuk had already run to the playground where other kids her age play. The three of them set up a picnic blanket not far from the playground to keep an eye on their baby sister.
Neteyam brought them a basket of snacks and drinks, and of course, his book. Lo'ak teases him about how he acted like their mama, but Kiri was there to rescue Neteyam and whacked him at the back of his head, pushing the jenga case into his chest while she holds the monopoly box.
As Tuk plays her heart out in the playground, the three of them play monopoly, and Lo'ak is losing money fast.
"This is stupid!" Lo'ak swore when his penguin token landed on one of Kiri's properties. "Why do I keep landing on your stupid properties?"
Kiri and Neteyam laughed at his distress: "Pay up, loser."
Lo'ak angrily grumbled under his breath and slammed his last money on the side of the board. Kiri clicks her tongue happily but frowns when she counts the play money, "Oi, it's not enough."
Lo'ak glared at her: "I'm out of money, genius."
Kiri snickered while Neteyam just laughed at him. Lo'ak just rolled his eyes at them. Ten years. He's been playing that stupid game with his family for ten years, and he's only won five times. Five fucking times. His father even won more than him. The fuck. It only shows that Lo'ak isn't for board games. He's more of a physical player.
He looked around, thinking about what game he would suggest. A small smile formed on his lips when an idea popped into his head.
"Let's play another game." Different game." He proposed. His siblings looked at him.
"Okay, what is it?" Neteyam asks. Kiri had his brow arched, looking at him suspiciously.
Lo'ak grins wider, "Dare or Pay."
Neteyam was quick to shake his head, "Nope." I'm out."
It's a stupid game Lo'ak comes up with when neither of them wants to wash the dishes. Tuk, of course, is exempt from this play since she is just seven years old.
They would take turns daring someone, and if they didn't do the dare, they would pay. It's up to the one who asked the question to demand what kind of payment he wants. It could be anything. Neteyam really thought it was stupid and didn't make any sense, but so far he's benefiting from the game, so he's tolerating it.
not today though. For some reason, villagers thought that Wednesday afternoon would be a good time to go and relax at the park, and now the whole park is almost packed with kids, teenagers, and adults. Neteyam has to give credit to whoever made the park, though, because the place is gorgeous and spacious. spacious enough to accommodate the whole village without feeling suffocated by too many people.
That game screams embarrassment, and Neteyam had spent his life building his reputation. He couldn't afford for it to be tainted just because Lo'ak's ego couldn't accept the fact that he sucked at Monopoly. Nope.
"No." Neteyam shook his head firmly and said, "We agreed we would only play this stupid game inside the house."
Lo'ak's eyes widened. "Stupid?!"
Kiri laughed at him and looked to Neteyam, "Oh, come on, Tey. "This game is getting lame; let‘s do something exciting."
"You both can do something." "I can just stay here and read while I watch Tuk," he said, waving his book. "You don't need to stay with me." "Go with your friends."
Neteyam knew these two had already made friends with some neighborhood kids. He's happy to know that his siblings are slowly adjusting to the place and making friends.
"But we want to hang out with you!" Lo'ak said, frustrated.
"We hang out every day?"
Kiri and Lo'ak rolled their eyes simultaneously. This is the side of their brother they hate the most. He's so used to being the second parent to them that he doesn't know what having fun truly means. Sure, they hang out every day at home, but they want Neteyam to throw away all his responsibilities just for a day and be carefree like the three of them had been doing.
When Lo'ak and Kiri realized how big their brother's responsibility was, they felt guilty for all the trouble they caused that Neteyam was reprimanded for. Neteyam had been covering their asses ever since, and now they wanted to make up for him.
"It's sembreak, bro!" Lo'ak stretched his arm exaggeratedly. "Do something fun!"
"Reading is fun." Neteyam perseveres.
Lo'ak groans and falls dramatically onto the grass. Kiri, sharing the same frustration as his brother, deadpanned to Neteyam.
"'Teyam, please? just for today. "It'll be fun, I swear." Kiri persuaded.
Neteyam looked at his siblings, Lo'ak kneeling with his hands clasped together, muttering desperately, "Please, please, please," and Kiri just gave him a gentle, playful smile. Neteyam closed his eyes and sighed in defeat, which earned a loud "yes" from his brother.
"But no embarrassing dancing and ridiculous dares, or I'm leaving all of you here, understood?"
The two rascals groan in protest, but Neteyam stands his ground.
"That or no game."
Lo'ak scoffed, "Fine, old man." Neteyam smacked his head.
This is a disaster; I can feel it. Neteyam thought as Lo'ak looked for a coin to toss. He's afraid of what these two are cooking up. Lo'ak and Kiri can be daring with their dares, and Neteyam can only think about what kind of dares these two are going to ask. Neteyam unconsciously roams his eyes around to see if there are nearby bystanders or people paying attention.
His golden eyes suddenly caught a pair of pale blue eyes looking at them, and his breath caught in his throat. Not far from them, three people were sitting on the ground just like them. The other boy and the only girl were talking to each other while the owner of those blue eyes was staring back at Neteyam.
Neteyam looked away, heat crawling from his neck to his face. Why the hell is he looking at me like that? He fumed in his head. He lowered his head to hide his face and peeked through his braids. He wasn't looking anymore, and Neteyam didn't know if she should feel relieved because now he feels super conscious knowing someone is watching them!
Kiri won the toss and was the first to ask a dare. So far, the dares have been tolerable and easy to do. She dared Lo'ak to drink the hot sauce they brought. The ever-confident knucklehead proudly drank up the said hot sauce, saying, "What a piece of cake," but after three gulps, he was spitting fire.
"IT'S DOUBLE EXTRA HOT!" Why the fuck did you bring that shit? IT'S DAD'S." He shouted as he jumped around them with Tuk's strawberry milk in his hand, "It's fucking hot!"
Neteyam and Kiri burst out laughing. Lo'ak couldn't stay still. He had to move around or else all he will the hotness of his mouth.
"I feel like my ass is on fire," he cried, eyes watering as he sipped his drink. His face was bright red. Neteyam wanted to pity his brother, but he couldn't stop laughing at him. Lo'ak is now doing some pushups just to distract himself. The fear of being watched has long been forgotten as he has let himself have fun.
"My turn," he said at his fifth push-up. His eyes landing on Neteyam and the tree behind him, he smirked, "Hang yourself in that tree for ten minutes."
Neteyam turned his head toward the tree and grinned back at Lo'ak. "Now, this is the real piece of cake," he said. He stood up confidently and walked to the tree. Kiri fished out her phone from her hoodie's pocket and set the timer for ten minutes.
Neteyam jumped and hooked his hands on the branch. "Start it!" he yelled.
Three minutes had passed, and he still felt relaxed. Their dad, who happened to be an ex-marine, has slowly conditioned them to be physically and mentally fit. At the ages of 16 and 18, Lo'ak and Neteyam could workout along side their father.
But then again, Lo'ak and Kiri are dirty players. When the timer read 5 minutes remaining, they started throwing little things at him.
"Stop!" he shouted when the juice box Kiri threw at him hit his face. He heard Lo'ak's loud laughter, and he couldn't help but laugh too. He could feel his hands slipping from the branch as he tried to avoid his siblings' assaults.
"Last 60 seconds!" Kiri said. Lo'ak unties his shoes, and Kiri is already laughing at Lo'ak's last attempt to make Neteyam fall.
"I swear to Eywa, if you—ack! Gross! "Get your stinky sock away from my face!" He shouted, moving his head side to side to get away from Lo'ak. He's now smothering his stinky sock on his face.
"20, 19, 18,..." he heard Kiri count down.
A bright idea popped into Neteyam's head. With his last arm strength, he pulled himself up and kicked Lo'ak—not so hard but hard enough to make him fall to his ass—on his stomach. Lo'ak yelped in surprise.
"... three, two, one. TIME'S UP!" Kiri snickers at Lo'ak as the other caresses his stomach.
Neteyam let go of the branch and immediately felt his muscles burning. It could have been an easy dare if these two hadn't decided to be little shitheads.
"You okay?" Neteyam chuckled and helped Lo'ak sit up. His sister handed him a scented wet wipe, and he gratefully took it.
"That hurt, idiot," he groused.
Neteyam just grinned at him and ruffled his hair. "You asked for it." he clapped his hands and slides them together, smiling devilishly to Kiri.
"I finished that three-large hotdog sandwich in three minutes," he smirked, and Kiri's eyes widened. As someone who takes their time to eat, this is by far Kiri's most hated dare.
Kiri did her dare, almost choking on her food, but she finished it with 7 seconds to spare. Neteyam and Lo'ak clapped their hands on Kiri annoyingly.
They played a few more rounds. Shouting a minute for Tuk's name will make her drink water and pat her sweaty back dry before resuming the game.
They were having fun. Neteyam is having fun, and Lo'ak and Kiri were so happy to see their big brother laughing and letting his playful side come forward.
It was Lo'ak's turn to ask Neteyam a dare. He roamed his eyes around the park. thinking something outside Neteyam's capabilities. His eyes landed on a familiar group of friends not far from them, obviously watching them play. The only girl of the group smiled at Lo'ak and shyly raised her hand for a wave. Lo'ak nodded his head in acknowledgement and waved back at her.
At her side sat a slightly bigger man. Lo'ak knew the guy. He had a fight with him once because he tried to flirt—well, not tried; he flirted with his sister, who is the girl next to him. But that was ages ago since he already allowed them to date.
An idea popped into Lo'ak's head.
"You see that tattooed guy sitting next to a pretty girl?" He pointed at them shamelessly, and Neteyam had to slap his finger away. "I dare you to come up and ask him to hook you up to someone in this park."
Neteyam's golden eyes widened. "What, are you crazy?!" "I can't do that!" He shifted his eyes to the group of people at which Lo'ak had rudely pointed. It's the same group he saw earlier, and Lo'ak is pointing at the guy who was staring at him earlier.
Kiri and Lo'ak oohed. Taunting him.
"Someone is scared." Kiri sings annoyingly.
"It's okay if you can't do it." You can just pay us. One week's supply of Starbucks, maybe? "What do you say, sister?" Lo'ak smirked at him.
"Yeah, Starbucks will do." Ooh! I want to try their new cheesecake! "I heard they are yummy!"
"No way! You order way too much at Starbucks! "It'll cost my monthly allowance!" Neteyam protested.
"Do the dare then." Kiri mocked.
He glared at his siblings, who were smiling evilly at him. Neteyam has loved his siblings from the moment he laid eyes on them. No one could comprehend the things he can do to protect them and make them happy. Neteyam would catch a bullet using his body just to make sure they were safe.
But there are times—rare times—that Neteyam almost wishes these little demons weren't his siblings and that he was just an only child.
and today is one of those times.
"It's simple, bro." All you have to do is walk up there and ask him. "He looks nice." Lo'ak said.
"He looks like he's about to rip our heads off if you don't stop pointing at them." Neteyam gritted her teeth. The guy looks rugged from a distance. His body is beautifully built, his tattoos look more traditional than just aesthetic, and he's handsome. Hot even.
Neteyam turned his head again to see the group. They're not paying attention to them anymore like they were moments ago, which is good. He's conflicted about whether to do this dare or just pay these two asses, but then again, these two look like they're one of the top rich families in Pandora.
for fuck's sake.
He stood up, ignoring the whistles and cheers from the two. He made a mental note to make them clean the whole house until their parents returned from the trip.
As Neteyam walked closer, his hands started to shake in anxiety, and he was panicking inside, but his face looked calm and collected. He almost ran back to their spot when they all noticed him and all looked at him.
"Hi," he said with his charming voice. Thank Eywa's parents for training him to approach someone confidently.
The girl happily returned his greeting, smiling with her cute dimples on her cheeks. The boy with unruly curly hair also greeted him back. The tattooed guy didn't. He just stared at him. Neteyam gulped. He saw the guy watch as his Adam's apple bobbed. He looked away because he couldn't handle his heated stares.
Fuck, this is so embarrassing.
"Hello, can we help you?" The girl smiled.
Neteyam is so thankful that this girl is so welcoming. "I'm... I'm Neteyam." He quickly introduced himself and then looked back at the guy in front of him, saying, "This is so embarrassing, but I need your help."
They all raised a brow. The tattooed guy pointed at himself and said, "Me?"
Neteyam nodded, blushing. "Y-yeah. You see, we—my siblings and I—were playing some game, and, um, they—can you hook me up with someone in here? Anyone is fine. He hurriedly added the last part.
"Anyone?" The guy muses. A small smile formed on his lips. "A'right," he stood up. Neteyam had expected him to be taller than him, but he's way taller and bigger.
Lo'ak really set him up. Fuck.
"Let's have a date then." The guy said as if it were just that simple.
"What?" Neteyam felt like his face was on fire. "You want to take me on a date?"
The guy smirked and shamelessly checked him out: "You're gorgeous, and you said anyone is fine." Then go out with me. "I'd be crazy to let you date someone when I had the opportunity."
Neteyam didn't know what to say. He was too shocked to respond. He just stared at the guy. His smirk was replaced by a smile, a genuine one that made Neteyam's heart beat like crazy.
The guy lifted a hand and removed, as he put it, "an eyelash" from his cheek, introducing himself with that sauve voice of him, "I'm Ao'nung, by the way."
*****
"Lo'ak, you genius fuck!" Kiri squealed as they watched Ao'nung drop Neteyam off at their house later that day with his Jeep.
They saw Ao'nung leaning forward and kissing Neteyam's cheek sweetly before hopping back into his Jeep and driving away. Leaving a very dazed and red Neetam at their driveway. Kiri squealed happily, hitting Lo'ak's arms.
"I'm so happy for him!" she beams, bouncing at the couch.
Two days ago, Lo'ak asked Ao'nung and Tonowari for permission to take Tsireya out. Tonowari has no reason to decline, as he personally knows Jake and knows that Lo'ak has good intentions for his daughter. However, Ao'nung had different thoughts.
He would let Lo'ak take his sister out if he could set up a date with his brother, Neteyam. Lo'ak obviously objected, but then he knew that Ao'nung had been crushing on Neteyam since he saw him practicing archery in the open field.
Lo'ak sighed and massaged his temple, "I'm going to break his bones if he ever hurts Neteyam."