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Since it was Kinich’s birthday next week, Mualani put it on herself to get her boyfriend a one of a kind gift! There was only one problem though…
She had no idea what to get him.
Unlike her, Kinich doesn’t share anything about his interests or hobbies, and when he does, it’s VERY vague. Mualani has to guess half the things Kinich means when he says that he ‘likes extreme sports’.
But does this stop her?
No, of course not! It’ll take way more than a little brain fog to stop Mualani from getting her wonderful partner the best gift he’s ever received! But first she needs to find a way to get ideas…
Mualani has a clear solution to this brain fog of hers: Relaxation is key to opening your mind to new ideas, and what better way to relax than to take a quick dip in the Hot Springs?
Mualani looks at the time, and decides to close up her shop for the day. Sorry potential customers! The hot springs are calling louder than her business choices.
Mualani practically sprints to change into her swimsuit, then while running to the Springs, Mualani slips on one of the floaters. This causes her to fall face first into the water.
Not a very graceful way to enter a Hot Springs, but oh well! When Mualani reached the surface and lifted her head out of the water, she noticed a man around her age eyeing her strangely.
Makes sense. Mualani brushes it off as a weird look. She did just face plant into the pool, after all.
But after ten minutes of relaxing in her beloved hot springs and swaying her feet to the background tunes under the water, Mualani realizes that the man she noticed a bit ago hadn’t stopped staring at her.
Now it’s starting to get weird.
Mualani is used to flirts and tourists trying to make moves on her, so she always tries to reject them politely and it has worked up until now, but secretly she fears the day it might not be enough, even if she’s more than capable of protecting herself.
Mualani decides to speak up because she wasn’t raised to stay quiet whenever she felt uncomfortable, especially if it’s in an environment where she’s supposed to feel safe and relaxed.
“Hey, is there something you need?” The man looks surprised, probably not expecting her to even notice him staring, let alone talk to him. For some reason, he takes this as an invitation to flirt.
“For starters, your name?” He asks, raising an eyebrow. Mualani realizes he’s also puffed out his chest, whether it be on purpose or subconsciously.
She fights the urge to roll her eyes.
“May I ask why you need it?” Mualani replies, making sure her voice was tinged with enough annoyance for him to get the hint.
“If you don’t answer me then I guess I’ll have to call you pretty girl, instead.” The man suggests. Jeez, sometimes Mualani wonders where some of these men get their confidence from.
She sighs, raising an eyebrow at that miserably failed pickup line. “Look, if you’re trying to start something with me, then look somewhere else. I’m taken.”
“Your partner’s not here though, are they
now?”
…
The audacity of this man.
Before Mualani had the chance to reply to that outrageous statement, the man gets yanked out of the pool rather harshly, and when she looked over to see the hero that did her a HUGE favor, she realized it was none other than the legendary Malipo Kinich.
The air was filled with a thick tension. Tension that made Mualani forget to breathe for a second, and she wasn’t even the one in danger.
Mualani could tell how tight of a hold Kinich had on the poor guy’s wrist. She could see his hand turn into a light shade of purple.
Mualani almost felt bad for the man.
After endless silence and deadly stares from Kinich, one thing was said, and one thing only:
“Scram.”
That was enough for the guy to clumsily gather his things and slip multiple times while trying to stand up. He sheepishly walked away with his tail between his legs. What an amusing sight to see, indeed!
Mualani pulls herself out of the water and immediately goes to give Kinich a hug, partly because it’s her usual greeting to seeing him and partly as a ‘thank you for driving that creep away’.
“Mualani, you’re soaking wet.” Kinich sighs, but he still hugs her back nonetheless. Even he can’t resist her radiant self.
“A little water doesn’t hurt anybody! Especially in this heat.” Mualani complains. She pulls away eventually, putting a hand on her hip. Now she wants to have a bit of fun.
“Ya know, I can take care of these kinda situations on my own.”
“I know, but I couldn’t stop myself.” Kinich admits, knowing Mualani can take care of herself perfectly fine. But he just can’t stand seeing douchebags like him talk to her like that, all while thinking they actually have a chance. Especially after Mualani said she’s taken. It makes his blood boil in a way nothing else does.
Besides, no one else except him is allowed to call her pretty girl. He wanted to make that clear.
Mualani understands, if she were to find somebody flirting with him the way that deranged fool flirted with her, she’d also be furious. But this doesn’t mean that she wants to stop her teasing.
“Who knew you could be so territorial, Kinich?”
“I’m not ‘territorial’, I was just worried.” Kinich lies through his teeth, even though he knows everything she’s saying is undeniably true.
“Is that why you purposely leave hickeys on the areas my outfit can’t hide?” Mualani asks, voice laced with mischief.
Damn it.
Kinich hopes to god nobody heard that, because she just exposed one of his guiltiest pleasures. He tries to find a reasonable explanation, but ultimately fails.
“That’s not my fault. Perhaps you should invest in buying a longer skirt.” is what he lands on. Obviously a pathetic attempt at avoiding her question, but he’d rather jump off a cliff before admitting to that.
“Oh really?”
“Really.”
Tension grows. They both feel it.
“I won’t deny, seeing you riled up like that did something to me.” Mualani suddenly admits, twirling a strand of her hair around her finger, looking at him flirtatiously in a joking way. (Though she did mean everything she said.)
Kinich’s ears turned into the same shade as that of a ripe tomato. He keeps a mental note of what she says.
Mualani chuckles at the reaction. Kinich is even more adorable when he’s all flustered!
“On another note, why’d you decide to visit the Springs?”
Kinich clears his throat. “I picked up a commission that was in this area, and then I spotted you from afar, so I decided to come see you.”
“Awh, did you miss me, perhaps?” Mualani asks, internally hoping for a yes, a nod, anything heartwarming from this overly nonchalant man.
“…Mhm.” Kinich mumbles, crossing his arms and looking away. He muttered it so quietly that if Mualani hadn’t perked her ears extremely well she most likely would not have heard it.
‘Eeeek!!! He’s so adorable!’ Mualani practically melts as she sees this, her heart fluttering. THE Malipo Kinich getting flustered at her words? Mualani doesn’t see how she could reach a higher level of honour than this.
“You’re adorable, Kinich.” Mualani avows, reaching her hands out to his face, trying to pinch his cheeks.
“‘Lani…”
“Pretty please?”
Kinich sighs. Defeated, he lets her pinch his cheeks. He stands there, probably looking like a blushing mess as she plays around with his face.
When she’s finally done, Kinich sets his revenge plan in action. Now it’s his turn to have fun.
He suddenly leans in, biting her cheek. And just to be a hundred percent sure, Kinich’s hands find Mualani’s waist, tickling her sides.
“Ah! Kinich! Staha- hp! Stah- pa! Heheheh! I cahan’t breathe!” Mualani barely manages to yell out. Kinich lets his assault on Mualani’s sides go on for a few seconds longer before he finally stops tickling her.
“You’re gonna pay for that.” Mualani threatens, but Kinich can’t take her seriously, not when she’s pouting that adorably.
Kinich only smirks at that. “Oh really?”
Mualani can’t help but crack a smile back. “Yes, really!”
Cute.