Chapter 22

"Alex!" A husky voice whispered into my ear. Groaning, I turned over and pulled the blanket over my head. My body began moving as they shook me. I began groaning again, but as soon as the last one escaped my lips, they lifted me up.

"Stay asleep until I wake you up again." He said lowly. I opened my eyes slightly to see a grey beanie covering tangled black hair. Elias. Smiling, I hung my arms loosely around his neck as I tried drifting back to sleep. Shivers ran down my spine as the cold air stung my cheeks. I breathed in the salty air as I opened my eyes to sea a glistening sea, waves crashing gracefully on the damp sand.

"Morning sleeping beauty." Elias smiled as he set me down on the sand. I pulled the blanket tighter around me trying to keep warm.

"Good morning." I yawned. He wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me onto his lap I lied my head against his chest, listening to seagulls sing and waves crash. The sun was still kissing the horizon, moving up slowly. The sky began turning a pinkish red, painting the sky vibrantly.

"What are we doing here?" I asked look up at him. His eyes searched the ocean as he smiled.

"Just wanted some fresh air." He chuckled. He began massaging my hand with his thumb, relaxing me. I leaned into him more, feeling his body shiver.

"God it's cold." He chattered through his teeth. A mischievous smile spread across my face as I slipped my icy hands out of the blanket and quickly placed them on his warm cheeks. He jumped slightly, swatting my hands away.

"You're fucking cold!" He yelped, nuzzling his face into the crook of my neck. Laughing, I pet his hair and wrapped the blanket around us.

"You whimp." I laughed kissing his cheek. He wrapped his arms around my waist again, holding me tightly.

"Elias-I-can't-breath." I choked out. A low laugh escaped his lips as he pressed them against my cold ear.

"Good, now you can never escape! Mua-ha-ha-ha!" He teased holding me tighter. I tried to pull his arms apart, but they wouldn't budge.

"Elias, let me go." I whined still trying to get him off me.

"On one condition." He smiled against my cheek. Curiously, I turned my head toward him to see him smiling smugly.

"Wha-" Before I could finish, he pressed his lips forcefully onto mine. I smiled into the kiss, pulling him closer to me by his collar. Playfully, he pulled me on top of him, holding me gently by the hips. Our lips moved in sync, a small groan escaping his lips. I pulled away, a tingling sensation still dancing on my brims. I planted one last kiss on the side of his lips before whispering into his ear.

"Now we're even." I smiled before quickly jumping off and running toward the Pierre. I heard his laugh trailing behind me as I made my way toward the end of the Pierre. I hit the railing, and looked out into the sea before turning toward his direction. I had no where else to run.

"Now you're trapped," He grinned evilly. I pouted as his arms entangled me. He pushed me up against the railing, wrapping the blanket around us again. We held tightly to each other for a long moment before he pulled away. He smiled warmly at me as he tucked a few strands of hair behind my ear. He could never express his feelings out loud, but I could read the words clearly as they drowned in his dark orbs. I want this moment to last forever. I sighed to myself, nodding. I pulled him back into a hug, breathing into the crook of his neck. I had so much to say, but all the wards hung loosely on my tongue trying to escape my chapped lips. I breathed in deeply. smelling the familiarity of mint and tobacco lingering on his skin.

"I wish this moment could last forever." I whispered as lowly as possible. A soft chuckle played in my ears as he kissed my forehead.

"Okay." He smiled, slipping his hand into my cold one. We walked along the Pierre watching fishermen tiredly wait for a meal to catch onto their hook. A few of them had fallen asleep holding the fishing pole. Shacks were beginning to open up, employees dragging themselves around as they opened doors and put things in place. I could smell coffee being brewed in the coffee shop and children screaming happily as they ran down the Pierre toward the beach.

Elias hummed softly as we walked into the cabin to find everyone already eating breakfast.

"Morning love birds," Tyler whispered from the dining table. Everyone was settled around the table chatting, silver ware clinking and dishes being passed around.

"Morning," We said in unison. We slipped off our shoes and took our seats at the end of the table.

"Morning sleepy head." Austin smirked as he passed me a plate. I smiled shyly as I grabbed a few pancakes and eggs. As I chewed quietly, I felt eyes boring into the side of my head. I looked up to find everyone smirking at Elias and I. We both shared the same dumb-found expression as we slowly chewed.

"What?" We asked. Everyone laughed shaking their heads.

"Nothing love birds. What are we going to do today?" Victoria asked placing her plate into the sink.

"Oh-oh-oh! I know, I know! Pick me, pick me!" Tyler yelled wide eyed. Laughing I pointed toward him.

"Yes Ty?"

"The beach." He stated in monotone. Shaking his head, Austin punched his brother in the shoulder. A small 'owe' escaped his lips as he stared icily at his brother.

"No shit Sherlock, but what to do at the beach?" Austin rolled his eyes. I put on my thinking cap and tried to figure out what we should do. I've already walked the Pierre with Elias already a few times, so maybe something else.

"Let's go build sand castles! Maybe a contest?" I smiled, trying to encourage my idea. Everyone looked at each other confused, trying to make something of my idea. "Losers have to cook dinner?" I suggested and with that, everyone agreed. We split into a team of four: girls verses boys. We changed into our bathing suits and met each other at the beach.

"Okay so we get a half hour to build?" Tyler asked. I nodded and met the girls at out spot. We sat in a circle and brain stormed.

"Okay, ready?" I yelled toward the boys. They all gave me a thumbs up before I shouted, "Go!".

Lexi and I took buckets and grabbed some water while Sam and Victoria began the base. We ran over and poured the water around the base.

"Start building the tower, you guys." Sam said quickly. Lexi and I bunched up some wet sand and did our best to make it resemble a tour. Please note, Lexi and I were handicap when it came to any type of art, unless it was music or writing. Our art was stick figures and floating faces with no noses.

"Seriously you guys?" Sam asked looking at our deformed hill. Lexi and I smiled innocently, trying to get away with our sad skills.

"Here, let me do it." Victoria said building a better version. I humped sitting back down.

"Just sit there and look cute, okay?" Sam teased helping Victoria.

"Fine." I mumbled watching the boys. Elias looked up and noticed I wasn't helping. He walked over and stood above me.

"What happened? To challenging?" He smirked. Angrily, I punched him in the shin causing him to fall over.

"Jerkface." I stuck my tongue out smiling. He rubbed his shin glaring at me.

"I didn't punch you, brat." He pushed. I continued to stick my tongue out laughing. Victoria turned around looking exasperated.

"Hey J, get out of here!" She said pushing him away. Laughing, he jogged back toward the boys and helped them finish. I sat and watched the girls build a pretty good castle and placed a stick with a candy wrapper attached to it, sticking it into the top.

"Done!" Sam and Victoria yelled as they jumped up. Austin and Tyler stepped away from their castle looking impressed. Each of us looked at each castle, trying to decide who won.

"Girls won!" Sam shouted feeling satisfied. The boys' castle looked like a lump of sand smushed together with a stick in the middle. Ours at least took a more structured shape.

"No Way! Lexi and Alex didn't even help." Austin argued. Sam crossed her arms feeling defeated.

"So, by defulat, we win!" Tyler winked. The boys howled and high-fived each other, rubbing it in our faces.

"That wasn't part of the rules," I mumbled, as I fell to the floor.

"Awe babe, don't be a sore loser." Elias teased patting my back. Sticking my tongue at him, I rose to my feet and pushed him into the water. His head popped back up, his bangs hanging over his eyes. His orbs narrowed on me, a creepy smile spreading across his face. Laughing, he chased me around the castles. Once he caught me, I stumbled over the boys' castle causing us to both fall. Chuckling, he slipped his arm under my neck, pulling me inches away from his lips. Just as they brushed against mine, he was pulled off of me by Tyler and Austin, throwing him back into the water.

"You guys ruined a perfectly good moment." I pouted standing up. Elias lifted his head back out of the water glaring coldly at the boys.

"There's kids around Alex, no PDA for you Missy." Austin winked, helping Elias out.

"Whatever," I laughed. "I'm starving! Let's get back and get started on dinner." I smiled holding onto my growling stomach. We washed ourselves off and headed back to the cabin. After all of us took showers, we met out on the deck as Austin started up the barbecue.

"Here, I started it up for you." Austin smiled as he handed me the spatula. Grumbling, I walked over and let Sam place the burgers on top. Her face looked dull and emotionless. She continued to sigh until I finally paid attention.

"What's wrong?" I asked feeling worried. Her head hung lowly as she sighed once more.

"Chris and I got into a fight." She sighed playing with strands of her hair. I flipped a burger as I looked over at Chris who shared the same expression. Elias was next to him laughing and talking, but his expression remained the same as he sipped his bear.

"What happened?" I asked curiously. It was a rare sight to see them fight. Sam lifted her head, glaring in his direction before stomping away. I handed the spatula over to Victoria before following Sam into the Elias and Chris's room. I shut the door behind me and watched as she paced back and forth.

"Can you tell me what happened?" I asked feeling anxious. She stopped dead in her tracks, tears beginning to slip.

"Chris broke up with me..." She trailed off falling onto his bed. She curled up into a ball, her tears turning from drizzle to a hurricane. I sat next to her, pulling her into my chest. Tears stained my shirt as she began crying a bit louder.

"I'm sorry babe," I sighed. I wasn't sure what to say. They'd never broken up and they always promised they wouldn't, but I guess love doesn't last forever. She gripped harder onto my shirt, her hands shaking rapidly.

"He said he didn't want to do the long distance thing so he said it would be easier to do it now than later. Why couldn't he just try, Alex?" She whimpered seeming confused. I petted her hair trying to soothe her.

"You know Chris. He's weird like that, but maybe he thought it'd be best for you guys." I tried. She shook her head, denying the truth of why Chris really did it. As I pulled her closer, the door opened to reveal a tired looking Chris.

"Get out." He demanded. Sam looked up at him, her eyes blood shot and swollen. Angrily, she walked toward him and began punching his chest.

"You're an asshole! I hope you go to hell you inconsiderate jerk!" She screamed in his face. As I tried to grab her, Chris grabbed my arm and pushed her away.

"Do you want to see me being an asshole?" He slurred. Before I could step back, he smashed his lips against mine, holding my face tightly. I tried to wiggle out, but he only held my face harder. Finally he let go, allowing us to breathe. Sam's face was a crimson red as her eyes turned icy cold.

"I hate you." She gritted through her teeth before storming out. I whipped my mouth feeling queezy. As I was about to walk out, I saw Elias frozen by the door. His expression was emotionless as he stared straight through me. My heart raced as I felt his eyes bore deep into my soul. Chris pushed passed me and fell onto his bed like nothing happened. My tongue turned into sand paper the closer I got to Elias.

"Elias, I can explain." I said all too quickly. This wasn't my fault, but he didn't know that. He avoided my eye contact as I tried pulling his arm.

"Get out." He said in monotone. I could feel a sharp knife twisting in the middle of my heart. I could feel tears play on the brim of my eye lids as I tried to grab his hand, but he pushed it away.

"I said, get out." He gritted through his teeth before slamming the door into my face. I could feel my lips quiver as I pounded on the door.

"Elias let me explain, please!" I shouted trying to get him to open the door, but he didn't budge. I could feel my head pounding as I began taking short breathes. My heart felt like it was going to break out from my chest. I slid down the door and pulled my knees up to my chin. Everything has gone completely wrong.