Free Azure (Drowning In You) by Chrystalla Thoma

called lust at first sight — and ever after?
    Time sort of lurched and what felt like seconds later, he took an exit from the main road and the truck rolled through orchards and over a bridge. A stream ran below, sparkling in the sunlight.
    He stopped at a small store. “I’ll get some water.”
    “I’m coming with you.”
    They stepped into the tiny shop and selected water and juices from the fridge. He grabbed a couple bags of pistachios and she got cookies. The cashier eyed their selections, then scowled at Kai before cashing.
    As they turned to go, the cashier made the sign of the cross at Kai’s back and pretended to spit.
    Okay, this was getting old. “So what did you do?” she asked as they climbed back into the truck.
    “Do?” He turned on the car but his jaw was clenched tight.
    “Everyone glares at you and makes these averting signs. What happened?”
    He said nothing, closing his door and getting back onto the road. He drove down the hill, past a few lone houses, and stopped right on the edge of a cliff overlooking the sea. He switched off the engine.
    “Look, I’m sorry.” She really was, because he’d been happy and carefree a moment ago and now he had a furrow between his brows. “None of my business. I was just wondering what sort of crime you committed to be at the receiving end of such hatred.”
    “I committed no crime,” he muttered, staring at his hands, still gripping the wheel. “Is that what you think of me? Do I look to you like an axe murderer or something?”
    “No,” she said, “you don’t. Otherwise I wouldn’t be sitting here with you, would I?” She reached out for him but didn’t dare touch him, her hand hovering near his arm. “But why are they treating you like that?”
    “They’re angry with everything they don’t understand.” Said so low she barely heard it.
    “Like what?”
    “They think I’m something I’m not. I’m...” He clenched his hands until his knuckles shone white. “I’m human.”
    Okay, rewind. “They think you’re not human?” He looked perfectly human, right then. Perfectly, utterly vulnerable and sad. “Kai.”
    “I don’t know what they want from me.” It came out thin. “I’m here to find peace and I can’t...” He threw the door open and stumbled outside. He went to stand at the cliff, staring out at the sea, the wind whipping his short hair.
    She wished she knew what to do, what to say. But every possible word stoppered her throat when he took a step closer to the edge and fear blared inside her head.
    Not like Andria . She wasn’t letting it happen again.
    She fell out of the truck and ran to him. Grabbing his arm, she dug her fingers in and held on tight. “You don’t have to tell me,” she whispered, her voice so hoarse it hurt. “Everything will be okay.”

    ***

    They walked down to the beach, Olivia pulling Kai along. He was right, it was a beautiful spot. A tiny stretch of white sand surrounded by rocks and trees growing from the cliffs, creating pools of shade. The stream trickled through a crack, whispering its way down to the sea, a glistening path on the sand.
    “I’m sorry,” he said as she tugged him to the water’s edge.
    “What for?”
    He was silent for a while, as she slipped off her sandals and let her toes sink into the cool sand. He was looking down, where her hand still gripped his arm. Frowning, but not angry. It was as if he was trying to figure out a puzzle. “I wanted you to be happy today.”
    “I am.” She closed her eyes and inhaled the sea and his scent, the musk of clean sweat and a hint of pinewood, probably his shampoo. “Really.”
    Her heart still raced. In her mind, she could still see him poised over the cliff, but she didn’t dare ask what he’d been thinking.
    He’s not Andria . He wouldn’t do it.
    But how could she be sure when she’d been so horribly wrong once already?
    “I’m going to bring down the things we bought,” he said and pulled away. She watched