Avery tries her best to save her hand from the cold liquid of the soft ice cream as it trails down the cone, desperately running her spoon along the rim of the once pretty looking whirl of white covered with colorful rainbow sprinkles.
"Eat faster," She orders, giving up her attempts with the spoon entirely and runs her tongue up the cone. "It's melting all over me."
"Because you're holding it in the dumbest way," The corners of Ethan's mouth quirk up as he watches Avery struggle, reaching his hand out for the cone. "Here."
Begrudgingly, she hands it over and runs her fingers through her wind tossed hair in an attempt to comb it out but the stickiness the melted ice cream has added to her skin does more harm than good, only tangling the blonde waves further. The rays of the sun peer through the clouds, casting a lingering warmth beneath the blue fabric of her lightly knitted cardigan, as they walk down the street lined by the three story apartment buildings. Unzipping the pocket of her petite crossbody bag, she fishes out the sole napkin she brought along from the ice cream parlor but no matter how much she wipes it seems her skin only grows stickier and she sighs, tossing the tissue into a trash can as they turn the corner onto the next street.
As Ethan swears under his breath, readjusting his hold on the cone of ice cream they're sharing, her lips pull back in a smile. He shoots her a sideways glance, the flicker of amusement crossing his eyes mirroring the gleam in her own.
"Are you going to help out or?"
Rolling her eyes, she jabs her spoon into the ice cream and he's quick to steady the cone as her force almost knocks it out of his hand. She swallow back a small laugh. "Sorry."
As she eats from the ice cream he does too, handing the cone back to her.
"I can't believe I let you talk me into having sprinkles on top."
"I can't believe you're boring enough to not want them in the first place," She counters, smile only widening from the tired look he feigns as he glances over at her. "You can't have soft ice cream without sprinkles."
The breeze of the ocean wind becomes less and less noticeable the further into the city circle their feet take them, the salty air seeming to grow more humid trapped between the soft colored buildings lining the streets.
"I'm not boring. You're predictable."
Avery's brows shoot up at that, not even bothering to swallow the bite of ice cream on her tongue before she speaks. "Predictable?"
"Sprinkles, Avery."
"It's a classic, Ethan."
Scooping some of the ice cream off of the top with his spoon, he nods to himself as if considering her words. "Didn't take you for an out-of-towner."
Her mouth falls open, a huff of disbelief escaping her lips as she stops dead in her tracks. "Take that back."
He whirls around swiftly on his feet, noticing her struggle to remain her offended pout, the corners of her lips threateningly twitching as if ready to break a smile any second. The sun reflects a glimmer in his dark eyes, matching his smile as it grows even wider. "So dramatic."
"Do you take it back?"
He slants his head to the side, regarding her for a beat, snatching the cone from her hand with a shrug before continuing down the street. "No."
Her eyes narrow, quickening her pace as she takes a few steps in a jog. "Don't hog it," She says, lacing her fingers around his elbow to slow him down as comes to his side. She reaches over to scoop some more ice cream onto her spoon, resting the piece of plastic against her lips as the cold melts on her tongue. Glancing up at him as his brows dip together once, smile cracking into a grin. "What?" Did I get some on my face or something?"
"No."
"Good. But you're about to."
"Whaâ" His lips fall into a line, lips pursing as he blows air out his nose â a sound defeat crossed with a silent laugh . "Of course."
Avery is not as modest in letting her cackle out, the now battered cone cliched in her hand as she watches the ice cream trickle down his face from here she pressed it to the tip of his nose upon stealing it away from him.
His lips quirk up in a faint smile, amusement lingering in his features as he sighs. "Happy now?"
Reaching up on her toes, she brushes her lips to the tip of his nose in a peck before wiping the ice cream away with her thumb, lips twisting into a small smile. "Very."
"Whoa. In broad daylight?" He teases as her fingers linger with a light touch on his jaw. "Who are you and what did you do to Waters?"
With a slow shake of her head she beams with another smile, dropping her hand to her side. "I shouldn't have wasted the ice cream on your face. I'm sorry," She takes a step back to put some space between them, the warmth radiating off of her body. "Call it even?"
"I'm sorry I called you an out-of-towner."
"Good, you should be."
He throws his head back in a laugh and knowing she brought it out of him has her own lips crack a grin as she takes another step back, lifting what's barely more than cone between them.
"I believe this one is yours."
He takes it off of her hand as they fall into step alongside each other again. "I believe you're right."
As they pass by the public library, she motions for them to cross the street, leading them into the town's largest park. Not bothering to whirl their way further into the square of greenery, they walk along the graveled trail running along the West side of the park. The shade of the trees lining the pathway cast a nice breeze in the warm summer day and as they eventually exit the park to return to the sidewalk Avery squints as she's once again hit by the blinding sun.
"Can't believe I forgot my sunglasses."
"Yeah, that was really dumb of you," Ethan agrees solemnly and her lips pull back in a smile as she rolls her eyes. He slides his sunglasses â black Ray-Ban Wayfarers â out of the pockets of his shorts. "Here."
"That's an awfully friendly gesture."
Heaving an over exaggerated sigh he shoves them into her palm. "Trust me, I haven't forgotten we aren't friends. Just take them."
"Are you sure?" She asks, slanting her head to the side as she regards him and as he shoots her a pointed look she shrugs. Folding the glasses out, she puts them on and a small laugh escapes her lips as they slide down half the brim of her nose, a bit too big to fit.
"See? They look much better on you anyways."
Her cheeks tighten, flushing with warmth as she flashes him a smile. Nudging him in the side, she motions for him to cross yet another street. They pass by a few outdoor seatings, the pizzeria with it's checkered table clothed tables being the last in the row before criss crossing between another set of streets, their feet taking them another block.
He stretches his fingers out in front of him, regarding them. "Gee, that was one sticky ice cream."
"And here I thought you were the cone holding expert."
"Yeah, well if you hadn't been holding it wrong in the first place I wouldn't have had to deal with the damaged goods."
"Yeah yeah, whatever. You're always right," She purses her lips before letting them twist into a faint smirk. "Was that enough to soothe your fragile ego?"
"Oh shut up."
"Make me."
She doesn't miss the pause in his step and she slows down too, turning halfway to look at him and as his gaze lingers on hers through the dark shades of the sunglasses she feels her skin grow even warmer beneath her cardigan but the burning heat radiating from the sun is no longer to blame. Her heart flutters lightly, her eyes set on his gaze as it drops to her lips but she's not backing down from the challenge now. Jotting her chin out, she raises her brows and she doesn't miss the way his eyes flicker over their surroundings before feigning a nonchalant shrug.
"Yeah, okay."
A squealing laugh slips her lips as his hand intertwines with hers, tugging her to him in a quick motion as he backs up against the wall, the two of them somewhat shielded by the staircase leading into the building next to them. She opens her mouth to speak but cuts herself off before any words have left her lips as his finger hooks beneath her chin, the warmth of his breath mere inches away from hers. Having trouble swallowing, her eyes flickers over his face for one split second before he uses the finger hooked under her chin to gently lift her lips to his. A smile slips onto them as a muffled laugh escapes his mouth against hers as she twirls her arms around his neck, urging him closer in the slow kiss.
Their breaths melt together in the space between them, lips hovering inches apart as they break away and Avery's quick to cast her eyes away, scanning their surroundings before letting her lips fully form a soft smile. She lets her arms fall off of his shoulders to her sides as she takes a step back, dipping her head down as she glances at her pink ballet flats, resuming her walk down the street.
He soon falls into step alongside her and even though she knows he can't see her eyes through the dark shades she dips her gaze away as it locks with his, rolling her lips together to suppress the smile pulling on her lips at the sight of the wide smile on his, a rosy glow to his cheeks that she knows has less to do with the sun and more to do with their recent non-friend lip locking. Keeping her eyes set in front of her, focusing on the stone tiles of the sidewalk, the cars in different colors and sizes parked along it and the street curving onto another, an involuntary laugh escapes her lips.
"What are you laughing about?"
"Nothing," She tugs at the arms of her cardigan, causing the lightly knitted fabric to cover her palms. Reaching up, she adjusts his sunglasses by using the pad of her index finger to push them further up the slope of her nose. She swallows, lips twitching as she attempts to keep her tone casual, drowning out another laugh lingering on the tip of her tongue. "I'm keeping these by the way."
"As hell you aren't."
She drags her lip between her teeth, holding back the grin that's threatening to overtake them as she whirls around to walk backwards in front of him. "I thought you said they look better on me anyways," She raises her brows, slanting her head. "Was that a lie?"
"Definitely wasn't," He reaches out, taking them away from her and she blinks as she's hit by the sunlight. "But you obviously cannot be trusted."
"Hey!" She pouts, squinting and lifting her hand to shade her eyes. "Give them back."
Pursing his lips together as if he's contemplating it he regards her for a beat before his lips slip into a faint smirk. "Yeah, I don't think so."
Stopping in her tracks, she swiftly laces her fingers around Ethan's elbow as he almost stumbles into her. Tilting her head back to look up at him, gaze flickering over his face as her lips slip into a smirk mirroring the one on his as she notices the throb of his pulse in his throat. Lifting her hand to his hair she twirls one of the dark curls around her fingers as she reaches up on her toes, a flush of heat running through her as his gaze drops to her mouth.
Barely having brushed her lips against his, a jubilant "Aha!" escapes her as her free hand snatches the sunglasses out of his. She clutches them tightly in her fingers as she looks up at him, cheeks beginning to hurt from all the times she's smiled in the past hours.
A soft laugh escapes his lips. "Clever."
"Yeah, I know," Putting the sunglasses back on, she whirls on her heel. "I'm very smart."
She's only begun walking as his fingers lace around her hand, pulling her back to him and her breath hitches in her throat as her chest bumps into his just as his free hand cups her cheek. His thumb lingers beneath her chin as he pushes the sunglasses up in her hair, the lift of the corners of his mouth barely noticeable as his eyes flicker over her face. Pressing her teeth into her lip she lifts her hand to his hair, in no rush this time â more deliberate as she twirls one of his short dark curls around her pinky before sprawling her fingers through them, pushing his hair back.
His lips split into a grin then and she rolls her eyes softly with a smile as he lowers his lips, simultaneously lifting her chin with a small nudge of his thumb lingering beneath it and her other hand comes up to cup his cheek as their lips meet.
She matches his pace as soon as they melt together in the kiss, her thumb brushing over his cheek before she lets her arms fall to wrap around his neck, one of her hands still knotted into his hair, fingers mindlessly sprawling through the curls as she smiles against his lips.
A laugh escapes her, drowned out by his mouth as she loses balance, stumbling over her own two feet but his hand is quick to find her hip, steadying her. Pulse speeding up, she parts her lips as his tongue teasingly slides over them, urging him closer with her hand cupping his neck before letting her fingers run back through his hair, continuing on to trace the line of his jaw, a light touch to her finger tips as they walk over his cheek â exploring the bumps and bones beneath them, exploring him before losing her focus, fully emerging herself in the kiss.
Breaking apart, panting slightly for air, she's about to launch back into it when her phone goes off with a notification â followed by another six notifications. And another. She's about to ignore it as the device chimes again. And again.
She groans and he laughs as she inches back from him to get her phone out of her cross body bag, seeing that the group chat she has with her four friends is in full motion. Sighing, she turns the sound off but takes another step back â the sudden reminds of her friends making her very aware of the fact that she just made out with Ethan Taylor only a couple blocks off Main Street in broad daylight. Which, admittedly, might not have been the brightest thing she's gotten up to today.
Turning the sound off isn't helpful in the slightest, the device still clutched in her hand instead buzzing violently as about ten notification arrive on the screen in less than a second. "Oh for the loâ"
She unlocks her phone, quickly scrolling through the group chat as she skims through the messages. She raises her brows, angling her head to the side as she realizes Ethan peers over her shoulder but he simply grins as he's caught having looked. Shaking her head, she quickly replies to the latest topic of conversation â which seems to have changed direction at least six times within the eighty or so messages that have been exchanged in the group since the first notification arrived to her phone mere minutes ago.
"Maybe we should send them a pic," Her lips form a tight line, pursing slightly as she suppresses the smile threatening to crack on her lips as she looks over at Ethan. An amused glimmer comes to her eyes, an expression of being both tired and humored by his words crossing her face and his grin only widens. Wrapping his arm around her shoulder in a half hug, he raises a brow. "No?"
â¡â¡â¡
The heat of the night is close to suffocating and even though she's wearing nothing other than a simple pair of pajama shorts and a tank top where she's sat at the rickety table in their backyard, having dinner with her mother, Avery feels as if she's wearing one too many layers. Inevitably a problem when there are no more layers to shed.
Poking her fork around the light salad they threw together for dinner â neither having had much of an appetite for a warm meal after having spent the day in the sun, she downs her third glass of water this far since sitting down.
Sporting what's more or less a sun hangover, Avery's exhausted. Her skin tingles with warmth from having had the sun's rays linger on her throughout the afternoon she spent walking around town with Ethan. The light pounding of a headache had begun just seconds upon stepping through the front door as she arrived home and she'd made her way into the kitchen, chugging an entire bottle of water while internally scolding herself for being lazy with her water consumption during the day. One would think almost seventeen years in a seaside town would have ingrained the habit of hydrating into her but there she had stood, in front of the open refrigerator enjoying the slight chill emerging from it with the door in one hand and a bottle of water in the other. And the headache doesn't seem to plan to leave anytime soon, no matter how much cold water she pours down her throat or how much salt she's sprinkled over her food.
Leaning back on her chair, her cheeks run warm as she brings her knees to her chest, resting the arches of her bare feet on the edge of the stool. She twists her hair up in a bun, pulling every last strand away from her face before leaning her chin in her hand, mindlessly spearing a cucumber onto her fork as she listens to her mother tell her about her day. She's beginning to feel the tiredness creep over her now that she's gotten off of her feet and sat down and she wraps her arm closer around her legs, leaning her chin on her knees instead as she lets the long day catch up to her.
Eventually, Sarah gets to her feet and collects their plates. "What do you say? Should we move this party inside?"
Avery nods, stretching her arms over her head before letting the soles of her feet touch against grass, following her mother back into the house.
Both running too warm to even consider settling into the couch to watch a movie â the heat of the day just as thick inside as it had been out in the garden, they decide on playing a game of cards in the kitchen. Avery pulls her heels towards her where she's perched on top one of the stools at the kitchen table, struggling to find a comfortable position as her mind keeps traveling back to her sticky skin and her fingers clamming to the playing cards in her hands.
They stick it out for a few rounds before throwing in the towel, agreeing the night is simply too warm to enjoy any activity and as they both yawn from the tiredness lingering in the back of their heads they decide to call it a day, crowding the bathroom as they get ready for bed before heading opposite ways in the hallway to their bedrooms, exchanging their goodnights.
Before letting herself crawl into bed, hoping she's not running too warm to be able to fall asleep, Avery plants her feet on the edge of desk one at a time, rubbing some of her coconut lotion onto her legs before continuing on by smearing it over her arms and shoulders. She rolls her eyes at herself as she runs her hand over the rosy patch of skin on her shoulders. Yet another thing one would think seventeen years in this town would've taught her â how to avoid letting the sun burn your skin.
It's not a sunburn per say, the slightly pink skin matching the color of her nose and cheeks, which she has already lathered with after sun lotion before brushing her teeth, but it's enough for her skin to twinge ever so slightly upon running her finger along it.
Putting the bottle of lotion away on her bookshelf she crawls into bed, propping herself up on her elbow as she brushes her palm over the white sheet. Wherever she goes there seems to be sand lingering there â in her shoes, in her hair, and now in her bed too. She flips her pillows, a sigh of content escaping her lips as she lets her head fall onto them, the pillowcase cool against her face a nice change from having spent the night wanting to crawl out of her own skin.
She glances towards the book on top of the stack of paperbacks on her nightstand, rolling her lips together as she ponders whether she should read a chapter. Or maybe two. Feeling her eyelids grow heavy, fighting to keep her eyes open she decides against reading, knowing the wave of exhaustion that's about to come over her will knock her out in mere seconds if she doesn't fight it. And if she does fight it to stay up a while longer there's a risk she's not going to be able to sleep until the early morning hours.
Tomorrow might be a Sunday but she's not about to spend the entire night awake to waste away the weekend day sleeping. And so she reaches her hand out, flicking off the light pooling from the lamp on her bedside table, letting her eyes fall close as she thinks back to her day, lips in a faint smile as she dozes off to sleep.
â¡â¡â¡
Sarah packs her things together, letting her beach bag dangle from her hand as she peers down at her daughter, lifting her free hand to shade her eyes. "Are you staying or coming with me?"
Avery props herself up in a seat where she's sprawled out on their beach throw, stretching her arms over her head. She glances out over the ocean, the families and groups of friends scattered across the beach â there are a lot more of them now than when they arrived. Her gaze flickers over the lifeguards hanging out by one of their stations before continuing over to the boardwalk where people â some in swimsuits, some fully clothed, some in athletic wear â are running or walking in both directions.
She pulls a hand through her hair. The blonde waves are still damp though it's been at least an hour and a half since she last went into the water, it's texture which from the saltness of the water and the salty breeze to the humid air. Feeling quite done with the beach after having spent all morning here she's about to tell her mother she'll be coming home with her but she's barely opened her mouth to speak as she cuts herself off. Something â or rather someone catches her eye. And changes her mind.
In the distance, coming walking along the boardwalk in the opposite direction of the neighborhood his house is in, wearing a white t-shirt and a pair of colorful swim trunks is Ethan. He runs a hand through his already disheveled set of short dark curls and Avery flickers her eyes back to her mother where she peers down at her, raising her brows pointedly as to remind her she's still waiting for Avery to make a decision.
"I'll stay a while longer."
"Okay," Sarah nods, straightening up and hooking her bag up over her shoulder instead. "I'll see you at home. Don't forget to drink water."
"I won't."
Avery watches her mother leave, waiting for Ethan to come closer before she digs her hand through her woven beach basket to fish her phone out.
Typing out a message, she waits as he passes by the busiest part of this area of the beach until he's close enough to where she is before pressing send.
'that god-awful son of my boss'
look up
She watches him slide his phone out of the pocket of his shorts, eyes gazing over the screen before he comes to a stop in his walk. Brows knitting together, he glances up and around the surroundings. As he turns his head towards the water, gazing over the beach she raises her hand in a small wave and his confused expression washes away as his lips slip into a small smile. She drops her phone back into her bag as he leaves the boardwalk, crossing the sand as he walks over to her.
He takes his sunglasses off, peering down at her. "Hey."
"Hi," She scoots back into a cross legged seat on her beach throw, squinting at the bright sun high on the blue sky as she looks up at him, leaning back on her arms. "What are you up to?"
He shrugs. "Not much."
"You want to hang out for a bit?" Her lips quirk up as he hesitates and she swallows back the disappointment in the back of her throat, a faint glimmer coming to her eyes. "Or not. I won't hold it against you â it's not like we're friends."
The corners of his mouth lifts even further, a soft breath leaving his lips. "Of course we aren't."
"So?" She pats the beach throw, cocking her head to the side. "Are you staying?"
He flickers his eyes to the phone in his hand before letting his gaze travel back to her. "Yeah. I'm staying."
She stretches her arms out in front of her as she straightens up in her seat, a flush of warmth running up her spine. She's been too caught up in reading her book this morning to notice just how heated she's grown from being out in the sun for so long, the day having grown warmer since she arrived to the beach hours ago. Now, nearing noon, the ocean breeze does little to provide enough of a shade. It's time for another dip. She pushes up to her feet, trying not to think much of the thought that she's stood in nothing but her bikini â just two days ago they were here swimming in their underwear but she suddenly feels more exposed, crossing her arms over her chest.
"I'm going for a swim. You want to come?"
"Well someone's gotta make sure you don't swallow the ocean."
She suppresses a sigh, blowing air out of her nose. Pressing her lips together as they pull into a smile, she already feels herself easing up. "Come on then."
â¡â¡â¡
Avery reaches for her water bottle where it sticks out of her basket and Ethan leans over from where he's sat with his knees in the sand, gently lifting a strand of her hair that's stuck to her lips away and tucking it behind her ear. She smiles, gaze dipping away as she drops the bottle back into the bag.
Next to her his phone goes of with a row of notifications and she raises her brows, eyes flickering to him as she scoots back into a seat on the yellow beach throw.
"Someone's popular,"
He reaches his hand out, grabbing the phone and gazes over the screen before flickering his eyes up to hers. She presses her lips together as he's regarding her. She attempts to keep her tone casual as she pulls one of her heels towards her, sitting in a half cross legged seat, asking, "Your time hanging out running out?"
He considers her for another beat, the silence passing between them before he shakes his head, thumbs already typing a short message onto his screen and she sees him press send as he says, "Not unless you want to get rid of me."
â¡â¡â¡
Ethan walks his fingers up and down her arm, finger tips softly pressing into her tanned skin and lightly drawing patterns over it. She's on her stomach where the two of them lie on her beach throw, one of her elbows propped up, chin in her hand while her other hand holds her paperback â the pages rather battered from water dripping onto them from her hair.
One glance into her bookshelf tells of which books she's read during this time of the year â the summer reads looking as if they've been to hell and back in comparison to the rest considering she more or less brings them with her into the ocean. Not to speak of the way habit she has of folding them together to more easily flip the pages with a one hand hold.
Turning her head over her shoulder, her lips curl into a small smile as Ethan glances up too before she returns her gaze to the pages of her books. She hopes the warmth flushing her cheeks isn't as evident in color as the burning sensation is beneath her skin.
"What are you smiling about?"
She lifts her head, tearing her eyes away from the page once again to meet his gaze. "What are you smiling about?"
He shrugs, continuing to walk his fingers over her arm, finger tips lightly grazing over small birthmarks spots and freckles on her skin. Inching closer to her, his breath's in her ear as he peers over her shoulder and she presses her lips together as she's engulfed in the mixed scent of his sunblock and apple shampoo.
"What are you reading?" He asks and she flips the book over, letting it fall close to show off the colorful cover. "What's it about?"
"Oh you know, the usual," She smiles. "Cliché, romantic happy ever after stuff."
"What do you think of it so far?"
"It's good. Funny."
"I could tell," She turns her head to the side, quirking a brow and her pulse picks up speed, heart hammering in her chest as she realizes just how close they are to one another, mere inches apart. His smile widens. "You were laughing before."
Her cheeks tighten as the corners of her mouth twitches and she bites down at her lip. "I was?"
"Yeah," The word leaves his lips softly, tone of his voice barely louder than a whisper and her gaze drops to his fingers as they dance over her shoulder. As she flickers her eyes back to his lips pull into a smile reaching his eyes. "Hi."
She lets go of her book, propping herself up better with both her elbows as she brushes her lips against his with a smile. "Hi,"
A surprised, soft laugh escapes his lips, a rosy glow to his cheeks as his eyes swiftly scan over their surroundings and she lets a small laugh out too.
"Don't worry, I checked," She says, the corners of her lips twitching. "I'm not about to have us both burned at the stake."
"Who knows?" He mirrors her body language, leaning his chin in his hand. "Maybe that's exactly what your plan is â to sacrifice yourself in an attempt to eliminate the competition."
Her lips spread into a faint smirk, batting her eyelashes. "What competition?"
He shoots her a feigned tired look, rolling over on his back, propping his hands behind his head. Smiling, she reaches her hand out, pushing some of his hair back before reaching for his sunglasses where they're perched on top of his head, taking them for herself. Her eyes flicker over his face through the dark lenses of the shades before dropping her gaze to her hand, scratching at the already flaked polish on her nails.
Out of the corner of her eye she sees how he reaches his hand out, scooping some sand up into his palm before letting it run back down through his fingers. She pushes herself up in a seat, catching his attention and her smile widens as she asks, "Having fun?"
"Very."
Scooping some warm sand into her own hand, she spreads her fingers to let it fall back onto the ground. "Yeah, I can see the appeal."
His lips twitch in a silent laugh, reaching his fingers out and lacing them around her wrist. A soft chortle escapes her as he tugs her forward, propping himself up on his elbow as she presses her palm into the beach throw as to not collapse into him where she hovers by his side. She peers down at him, swallowing as his gaze drops to her lips and the corners of her mouth lifts as he reaches up to run his thumb along the curve of her smile, the nerves of her lips spiking with a tingle beneath his touch.
Her eyes flicker over his face but are soon back to lingering on his lips as every other sound â the seagulls loudly making their presence known as they wait for an unknowing out-of-towner to bring food out of their bag, the loud exclaims of victory from the beach volleyball court a long distance away, the loud squeals and laughters of children playing in the water â melts away. Her heart drums rapidly, skin growing warm as goosebumps simultaneously trail up her arms.
He only grins in response as she raises a brow in question, lips hovering above his but she doesn't even have time to lower them to his before he pushes himself up further on his elbows, mouth dropping to her neck instead. He presses a kiss to the spot right beneath her jaw and her eyes flutter shut, her teeth biting into her lip as he continues to trail kisses down her neck, lips soft against her skin warmed by the sun-rays, down to her shoulder blade. Her skin burns as his touch leaves it and she opens her eyes to see his lips pulled back in a smile, a rosy glow to his cheeks as he inches back to flicker his eyes over her face. She reaches out, cupping his cheek and bringing his lips to hers. Smiling into the kiss as her finger tips sprawl through his hair before returning to his cheek, thumb running over his jaw, bringing him even closer.
His lips are slightly parted as she pulls back and she purses her own in an attempt to dampen the smile physically hurting her cheeks. She scoots back into a seat, pulling at a loose thread in the towel. Her eyes snap back up as they both clear their throats at the same time, eyes flickering over each other as a joint soft laugh escapes into the space between them.
â¡â¡â¡
"Careful," Avery says, her lips pulling back in a smile as Ethan helps her pat the sand into place with his palms as she forms a tower out of it on the far right side of the castle-in-progress. "I'm trying to rebuild what you ruined."
"It's not my fault the intruder could jump the moat."
"If you hadn't dug that stupid moat in the first place I could have moved on to the ballroom already but you just had to compromise the tower's stability."
"Waters," He shoots her a look, gathering up some more of the wet sand in the shoreline to add to the very unflattering sand castle they've attempted to build. "Every castle needs a moat."
"My castle doesn't."
"Our castle."
"My castle,"
He rolls his eyes, rounding the castle on his knees before scooting back into a seat next to her. She turns her head over her shoulder to look at him. "What do you think you're doing? We're not done yet."
"I'm not going to help you build it if I'm not even welcome once it's done."
Avery's smile widens as she flickers her eyes back to the disastrous sand castle â which on a second look is more resemblant to a pile of damp sand and shakes her head with a small laugh. "You really want to live in there?"
She too scoots back, leaving the castle to be as she digs her heels into the sand. Out of the corner of her eye she sees his lips slip into a small smile.
"Come on Waters," He says, nudging his knee against hers. "Can't I come live in the castle too?"
She feigns annoyance, exhaling a deep sigh. "I guess we could find you a spot. The dungeons maybe?"
"We?"
"Oh," She leans back on her arms. "I built this for me and my friends. Obviously."
"On second thoughtâ"
"The left wing over there is where all our bedrooms are," She lifts her foot, pointing with her toe. "The ballroom probably won't hold many balls but it will be great for our movie nights. The tower has the most magnificent view of Acebridge's coastline, duh, and the staircase leading down from it is perfect for mattress surfing. We'll all live happily ever after there. And well, then there's you in the dungeons," She falls back onto the sand, glancing up at him with a tightlipped smirk. "I'm sure we'll have lots of fun."
"I think I'll pass," He lets his eyes gaze out over the beach, lips parting as if he's about to say something else but his smile soon evaporates, replaced with a frown. "Shit."
In one quick motion he reaches back, grabbing his white t-shirt where it lies discarded on the beach throw and throws it over her face. A cross between a laugh of disbelief and annoyance escapes her lips as the fabric hits her skin, enveloping her in the scent of his sunscreen mixed with something else, a faint fruity, yet woodsy, scent and she recognizes it as his cologne â the scent of him. Before she can tear the item of clothing away he hushes her and her brows knit together but the urgency in the sound has her pressing her lips together, trying to not focus too much on the familiar whiff of apple she's picked up from the mix of scents in the white fabric.
"Okay, coast's clear."
She sits up, the t-shirt falling into her lap as she tries to keep her lips in a tight line but the corners of her mouth twitch ferociously â the amusement lingering in her features slipping through as she scowls. "Are you serious? What was that about?"
"Pearson." He mutters, cocking his head to the side and she lets her eyes glance in the same direction, spotting the back of the boy in question where he walks along the sand in one of the trademark lifeguard tank-tops.
"That's the last person I would want saving my life."
At Ethan's muffled laugh, as if he's trying to hold it back her eyes fly back to his. Her lips lift into a grin as she snorts, followed by a loud â probably unflattering â cackle escaping her. "I can't believe you tried to hide me beneath a t-shirt."
"It worked didn't it?"
"Well did he even look over here? Did he see you?"
Ethan flickers his eyes to the sand. "...No."
Another laugh escapes her lips and she tries to gather herself long enough to draw in a breath. Struggling, she accidentally flings her foot out and as watches half of their castle completely crumble into a pile of sand she falls over, laughing even harder. She wipes mirth out of her eyes as she makes another attempt to straighten up and gather herself, glancing over at Ethan who watches her with an expression crossing between annoyance and amusement.
"I tried to think fast, okay?"
"That was literallyâ" Avery pauses, forcing a breath of fresh air down her lungs. "The worst plan ever."
"Yeah okay, fine," He stretches his hands out in front of him, nudging their knees together again. "You can stop laughing now."
"I'm not sure I can," She coughs out, clearing her throat as she gazes over the shoreline, and the beach, which has filled up even more in the afternoon hours. Interlacing her hands, stretching them over her head as her laughter slowly dies down until it's a simple silent chuckle she spots a trio of girls walking over the sand dunes in denim shorts and bikini tops, all three clutching cups from Get Fruity further down the boardwalk in their hands. "I want a juice."
"Let's get you a juice."
Together they pack up her things. He helps fold together the beach throw after she's shaken the sand â or well, most of the sand â off of it. She slips her midi dress â the white one with colorful flowers embroidered at the end of the skirt â on over her bikini, smoothing out the wide shoulder straps as he grabs his t-shirt from where it lies in the sand, pulling it over his head.
She doesn't even bother to try and brush the sand off of her feet before she steps into her ballet flats, knowing well that she'll bring sand with her home no matter how hard she tries to rid herself off of it. She brushes her palms against one another before picking her woven beach basket up, slinging it over her shoulder as she fishes her sunglasses out and puts them on.
Throwing one last glance over her shoulder to make sure they haven't forgotten anything behind, feet sinking into the sand as they make their way across the dunes to the boardwalk. He reaches out, his hand capturing hers and she lets him interlace their fingers as they steer their steps towards the juice bar.
. . .
hi, hope you're all doing well with everything going onâ¡
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much love, L.