You've Only Just Arrived (a Tom Hiddleston fan fiction)

Part 36

The first chance you get you leave a weekend free to fly out to visit Tom. It has taken a few weeks to work out, but that has given the pair of you time to work through the odd starts and stops that sometimes still appeared in the relationship. Both of you were doing your best to ensure you were back on level ground with one another.

It's been maybe half an hour since either of you have said anything, content to laying in the sun and listen to the waves crash on the shoreline. Your environment is starting to lull you to sleep. Something urges you to open your eyes. You hadn't heard him move, but Tom is now half sitting up and watching you with a lazy smile that even after so many months of knowing him still makes your heart do flips within your chest. "What?"

He startles, unaware that you'd returned his gaze through your dark sunglasses. "Hmm. Nothing."

You bite back a smile, "Liar. What?"

"I'm glad you're here – that we're here."

You study him a moment. That's part of it but there's still something he's holding back. "I'm happy we're here too – but that's not the reason for that smile, I think." You turn onto your stomach so that you can prop yourself up on your elbows and talk to him without craning your neck. You'd flown in late yesterday and would be leaving again sometime in the afternoon tomorrow so no major adventures had been planned. Sightseeing waterfalls or hiking would just have to wait. You start to trail your index finger through the sand to draw out little patterns next to your beach blanket. "That's alright though. You'll tell me when you want to... You keep your secrets, Mister Hiddleston, and I'll keep mine."  

"Secrets? What secrets, darling? For you, I am an open book." He's settled back onto his elbows.

You reach over to press and release your fingers into his shoulder. "Hmmm, Tom - you're starting to turn a little pink." He's had far more time to soak up sun than you and yet he's the one who appears slightly pink.

Tom lifts his own glasses to look down where you'd indicated to see the imprint of your fingers fading back to the pink/tan mixture of his complexion. Funny how some sunglasses can hide that sort of thing from you. He's still smiling that same lazy smile, "So I am." He seems content to remain exactly as he is.

 You push yourself up onto your knees and hold out your hand. "Lotion? If you won't reapply I'll do it for you." Well – you say reapply. You want to get up and move around a bit and know just the way to motivate him. You make a show of brushing any sand off your hands while he finds and holds out the lotion bottle to you. You make him pop the lid and squeeze some out into the cupped palm of your hand. You spread the lotion around on your hand and then – SPLAT. You leave a nice white handprint across his pectoral.

You wait for a split second to see Tom's start to laugh and reach to retaliate before you pop up onto the balls of your feet. You'd been quick, jumping beyond the beach towels, but hadn't been able to clear Tom's expansive reach. "You'll pay for that, darling."

You still have more lotion on your hands so you use it to try to make his hands slick so he'll lose his grip. "What? It'll leave a nice tan line so you'll think of me when you look in the mirror."

There's that same contented smile that you'd seen when you'd felt him staring earlier. "I don't need your handprint there to think of you..." he wipes his hand over the opposite shoulder to collect some of the sunscreen you'd applied, "But if I've got one then it's only fair you've one to match."

You snag his hand before he can apply the sunscreen to whatever area of your skin he had in mind and use your free hand to blend the palm print into his chest. "That would hardly be fair, Tom. Your wardrobe covers considerably more skin than mine. Let's not add more work for the makeup department."

Tom adjusts his stance in the sand so that the pair of you are closer to eye level. He has one arm successfully circled around your waist now and you know that you probably have nice wide smears of lotion across your sides and back. "Speaking of the movie..."

"I haven't learned anything more since last night!"

He'd started grilling you for details the moment you'd landed, continued all through dinner, and hadn't relented until he'd become distracted later in the night. He arches an eyebrow, "You didn't mention anything about your wardrobe."

"I did." You correct him. The pair of you would be quite a sight for anyone stumbling upon the secluded beach – wide swatches of sunscreen smeared across your bodies and playfully struggling with each other. "Described in perfect – ack – detail..." Tom successfully manages to wrangle both of your hands into his grasp and grins triumphantly.

"Hmm, I'll need reminding then." He kisses your neck, pauses, then starts to laugh. "Bleh – sunscreen. A problem easily solved." Without warning he rights himself and slings you up and over his shoulder, heading towards the little outdoor shower beside the bungalow where the pair of you are spending the weekend. 

He's trying to pick his way carefully over the uneven sand so he isn't jostling you around on his shoulder but it still isn't the smoothest of transports. "Oh no but you're going the wrong way – crystal clear water is the other way!"

He laughs and gives your leg a squeeze, still determinedly striding away from the beach. "No darling, I'm absolutely heading in the right direction."