Red Mango

nine

That is where Cody Matthews finds herself on a Tuesday evening after a long day of exhaustive, heroic actions. In the back of a shabby pick up truck, beside Kit Watson, stealing fries from each other as the sun sets on the golden sands of Westbury beach. How they ended up there, is simply a matter of time.

4:36 PM

Following a brief trek to the pier, Cody and Kit linger around Westbury's infamous burger shack, to collect a handful of fries and two mouth-watering cheeseburgers. Cody hadn't thought that lounging in a chair, in the gurgling sun would provoke such vast hunger in a person. She was wrong. Kit, seated opposite her on a picnic bench, looks identically pleased with the food before him. Cody had never intended on spending such a great deal of time beside Kit, yet trusting her instincts, a new friend can never lead to anything bad.

"It's funny how I know little to nothing about you," Cody concludes positively; her eyes study the slow reaction that unfolds on Kit's countenance. He looks oddly humoured.

"I'd say our definition of funny differs," Kit says. At this, Cody narrows her eyes, uncertain how to counter an almost rhetorical sounding sentence. Movement on the table sidetracks her intention to confront this statement as Kit shifts several fries, his eyes firmly centred on the petty blonde before him. Cody stirs in her seat, contemplating Kit's tendency to exchange his tone from bitter to pleasant. It's to a certain extent, infuriating.

"I'd say our situation differs," she proceeds, prying the good out of Kit's tedious expression.

"From what?" Kit inclines his shoulders backwards in a slanting position, studying Cody's probing physique. She's unlike any of Sam's other friends, embodying a genuine interest to share an intellectual conversation. Whereas all Sienna desires out of her association to Kit is superficial romance. Something peeled out of the screen play of a Nicholas Sparks movie, involving breathtaking sacrifices and a car crash or two. But nothing that can compete with a simple, intellectual discussion.

"From normal friendships," Cody says as a matter of fact. She had pondered over the label of her connection to Kit, whether it is a shallow association or a gradually developing friendship. Either would be an upgrade from the no-mans-land of relationships.

"So this is a friendship?" the corner of Kit's lips twitch into a minor smile, one that is almost unidentifiable among his regular smirks.

"Do you want it to be?" Cody smiles, tilting her head to curiously gaze at Kit's profile. His hair is pushed back, swept in a dishevelled wave of curls caused by the casual shore breezes. Cody, on the other hand, has pulled her tangled blonde hair into a sectioned off bun, her sunglasses lazing on the brim of her nose. Her cheeks are tainted with early symptoms of an inconsequential sun burn.

"I have friends," Kit states, almost in a comically defensive manner.

"So do I, but I bet you don't have a friend like me," Cody challenges. She has angled herself over the table, with a winsome grin and animation in her eyes. It's refreshing for her to exchange a conversation that doesn't centralise on childish crushes or bloody injuries. It doesn't hurt that her new companion imitates the appearance of an unblemished male model.

"Surprise me".

5:32 PM

"Look on the bright side- this isn't the worst place to be stranded". Succeeding a short-lived journey in Wade's borrowed pick-up truck, beaten by the duration of time, it takes a halt on the very centre of a dirt road in Westbury's dunes. The sun has set on the pallid mounds, creating a washed out pink atmosphere upon the sky. An incomparable colour in comparison to its ordinary blue. With this setting, it's hard to dislike the inconvenience.