kennedy ☆

Author's Note: #needthat !! just a little something about jake being head over heels for his mate. it was fun to write about tsaheylu and imagine what it might feel like ! i hope you enjoy hehehe !!

Jake was a simple man. He didn’t need much. Just a meal to fill his stomach, the rush of a successful hunt or a ride on his ikran, and, most of all, you.

Jake loved the feeling of you. There wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t indulge in you, his mate. Your skin was so soft against his when he held you, and he delighted in the small sounds he could coax out of you, each a reward for his efforts. 

Why you chose a skxawng (idiot) like him, he would never know, but he was grateful that you did. Grateful for the new life you gave him, one where he finally felt whole. 

You were always on his mind. Even as he went from tree to tree during the evening patrol. He couldn’t wait to get back to the village where you were waiting up for him, and he all but ran home.

He padded quietly into your shared kelku (home), abandoning his gear by the door and securing the flap for the night. The room fell into an almost complete darkness, but he could still see the glow of your skin where you laid on the hammock. 

Your ears twitched toward the familiar sounds of your mate as he shuffled around the room, quickly washing the day away and taking off his accessories. You rolled onto your side when Jake finally climbed into the hammock, his weight making the woven mat dip. He slotted himself behind you, your bodies fitting together like Eywa crafted you from the same stone. 

Sighing contentedly, Jake hooked his chin over your shoulder and slid his hand up the softness of your stomach to rest over your heart.  

“Hi, baby,” he mumbled, breath fanning over the skin of your neck. “You tired?”

“A little,” you answered, laying a hand on top of his. “Welcome back.” 

He hummed, pressing light kisses wherever he could. You turned your head to give him better access and he trailed his lips up the side of your throat. 

“Baby,” he murmured as he nuzzled against your jaw.

“Hmm?”

“Can we…?”

You opened your eyes to find him looking up at you, with your own tanhi reflected in his gaze. You brought a hand up to trace over the cluster of bioluminescent freckles (tanhi) on his cheek. His brow was lifted high in expectancy, looking far too innocent for what you knew he wanted to do.

But you nodded and Jake grinned, taking his warm hand from your chest to prop himself up. You watched as he gently took your twsin (queue/braid) in his hand and brought it towards his own. Glowing, the tendrils wove together as if by Eywa’s own hand. 

You gasped at the sudden shift, feeling him everywhere, like he flowed through your veins. Jake’s eyes closed and he exhaled heavily, holding the connection in his hand. 

His locs brushed your cheeks as he leaned down to kiss you. Sweetly at first as if in greeting, but then he took your bottom lip between your teeth and tugged gently. You gripped his biceps, digging your nails into the flexed muscle. He smoothed over your lip with his tongue before reattaching his mouth to yours. 

You let him in when he sought to go deeper, kissing you just the way you liked it until you did not know where Jake began and where you ended. Pleasure coursed through you and his heart beat rapidly in your chest but it could have just as easily been your own. 

Jake pulled back and your brow furrowed at the loss of his touch. He smoothed the creased skin with the pad of his thumb, feeling your disappointment as if it was his. But it was short lived, dispelled by his fond expression and the feeling of all his affection welling up in you. You smiled at each other for a moment, basking in the overwhelming warmth of your love. 

Jake suddenly dropped on top of you, letting his full weight press against your body. Smothered, you huffed and almost laughed as he hastily wrapped his arms around you. He squeezed until you were breathless. 

“Jake.” You managed, with more fondness than rebuke. 

He turned, resting his forehead against your temple. “God, I love you,” He breathed.  

Tsaheylu (the bond) told you all that you needed, but it was always nice to hear the words aloud. You pulled your arms out of his tight grasp and draped them over his wide shoulders. 

“I love you more.” 

Jake shook his head. “No shot.” 

How could you when coming back to you each day, and waking up to you each morning was more than he could have ever dreamed of? To be wrapped in your soft embrace, when all he had known was the folding cot, the hard ground of the bush, and a small, lonely apartment? 

That was a lifetime ago, far away and bleak. And yet the memory of it only made him more grateful. Grateful that he had said “yes” to those men in suits. Grateful that you found him that fateful night in the forest. Grateful he came back, that you still loved him and fought beside him after all he had done. 

He felt your contentment as you drifted off into sleep and he smiled against your skin. 

There was no doubt in Jake's mind that he was finally where he belonged.

masterlist thank you for reading !