Take a Chance on Me

Three

Back to the Past

"That's him, right over there," I tell Gabby as I grab her hand and pull her across the sand, over to Alex.

"Chill, Leah. There's no need to rush, he's not going anywhere," Gabby says as she pulls me backwards and pauses to allow me to regain my composure.

"Sorry. I guess I'm just a bit nervous. I really like him, a lot, and I want you to like him too."

It's true. I liked him, more than a lot. But I would never admit that to him unless he said it first. He is so cool and I can't let him feel like I like him more than he likes me. That would throw off the balance of our relationship, which, in turn, would lead to its demise.

As we were approaching him, he noticed our presence and ran to meet us halfway.

"Hey babe," he says, leaning down to wrap an arm around my waist and pull me in for a kiss on the cheek.

"Alex, this is Gabby. Gabby, this is Alex."

I watch as they both look each other up and down. Alex has no idea how intense Gabby can be about her friends.

"Nice to finally meet you, Alex. Hurt her and die, got it?" Gabby spews, completely serious.

Alex takes a deep breath in. "Well nice to meet you too. You have nothing to worry about though, I would never hurt her," he says, trying to get on her good side.

Gabby's serious expression turns from intimidating to genuinely happy. "Great. Now let's get in the water."

As Gabby goes to lay out her towel, Alex gives me a look letting me know that he's scared of her.

"Don't worry about her. Despite your first impression, she's actually a really nice person. She just cares about me a lot, just like you do. See? You guys already have something in common!"

-

After going in the water to body surf and cool off, Gabby and I lay out to get some color.

"So what do you think?" I ask as I rub some tanning lotion on my front.

"He's hot, like really hot. But hot guys scare me. They are always up to no good," Gabby responds as she grabs the tanning lotion.

"I know that you haven't had the best luck, but I don't want you to put Alex in the same category as the guys you have dated. He's actually a good guy. Please give him a chance, for me," I pout, pushing out my bottom lip.

Gabby nudges me to show her annoyance of me acting like a child. "Leah of course I'm going to give him a chance. I actually really like him so far, which is rare. And he is putting in a good effort to get to know me and impress me, which I love. You two are cute."

I look up and see Alex waving as he walks out of the water, his pearly white smile plastered across his face.