By The Beach ✔

Part 7. Burgers and Beer

The ride to the Hard Rock was filled with the three in the back arguing about football, it caused me to see Dinah getting annoyed by it; I looked out the window at the sky and buildings passing by.

The Hard Rock was almost full. We found a park midway through the parking lot and hurried inside before they got really packed.

Walking through the doors and up to the woman standing behind a small desk-like-thing, she smiled when we approached. Dinah held up five fingers, "Table for five, please?" she said, the woman nodded before leading us into the Hard Rock. We followed her to a corner booth, and we all slid in, I was in the back corner beside Dini and Doug.

"What will you be having to drink?" the woman asked, pulling out a pen and notepad.

"Southern Rock" Zeke told her, looking at the menu.

Dini grinned, " Bahama Mama," she said, looking at the menu like she would a guy.

Doug looked over the list of beverages "Rock House Rum Punch for me, thank you," he said with a wink towards the young woman. She rolled her eyes as she wrote it down, and I almost laughed.

I looked over the list and shrugged "Since I will be the one driving back to the hotel, give me a Wildberry Smoothie" I told her with a smile as I looked back down at the menu.

"Budweiser," Sawyer said as the woman gave a nod before walking off to get the drinks. Dini looked over at me with a frown.

"Sorry, I know this is your favorite place to eat and drink."

I shrugged, "Doesn't bother me any. I love the food more" I told her, looking up from the menu with a grin.

Sawyer laughed "Zeke is the same way," he said, looking at his friend who sent him the middle finger "Aw, did I hurt your feelings?"

"Shut it, Montgomery."

I looked over the menu, "So, how do you know my cousin?" I asked the two guys who shared a look before looking over at Doug who rolled his eyes.

"College."

Zeke smirked, "Yeah, but your cousin right here was the bartender. He helped me get the girl I was after by overhearing her favorite drink," he said, fist-bumping my cousin in the process as they laughed.

Dini shook her head, "Men."

Sawyer ran a hand through his hair, "We played on the football team together. We got along well," he said, looking at my cousin with a glare "Until I caught my girlfriend trying to take advantage of a drunk him."

Doug raised his hands in defense, "That wasn't me. She moved onto me and I pushed her away," he said as the woman came over carrying drinks, she laid mine in front of me, Sawyer's in front of him, and Dini's in front of her.

"I will be right back with yours," she told Zeke and Doug who gave a nod. Sawyer grabbed his beer and turned it up as I reached for my smoothie.

"You aren't on the team no more?" I asked Sawyer, curious.

He shrugged as he looked at the label on his bottle "I found a love for being in a band," he said as he took another drink, I looked at my smoothie hearing Doug sigh.

"No. You don't have to hide that you got hurt, Sawyer. If anyone at this table can understand that, it's Lily."

I bowed my head as Sawyer looked at me; I made a face because of my cousin and sighed. "I played basketball in high school, I hurt my knee on the last season and decided not to play anymore," I told him, giving a glare to my cousin.

Sawyer nodded in understanding "I hurt my shoulder," he said, shrugging as if It didn't bother him, "If it hadn't been for that, I probably wouldn't have found out I could sing." That made me chuckle as I took a drink of my smoothie.

The woman returned with the other two drinks and Zeke found a sticky note taped to his glass with the woman's number on it, Doug looked pissed while Dini and I laughed before we ordered food the next time she came around.

I ate half of my burger before getting a to-go box to put the other half in for later.

After we ate and drank, we got up to look around at the memorabilia; I admired the pictures and felt someone beside me. I looked to see Sawyer looking at what I was looking at.

There was something about this guy I liked, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was exactly. Maybe it was the fact he wasn't like the other guys I know, or that he was having a normal conversation with me.

All I know is that it was way better than talking to Will, and I was enjoying it, not dreading it.

"I love looking at this kind of stuff. It's interesting," he said over my thoughts as his eyes looked over the picture, I looked up at him and gave a smile.

"Me too. This was the music I was raised on and have always loved," I told him, turning around to get an excellent look at everything and everyone "I listen to all kinds of music but nothing beats good old rock-and-roll."

Maybe it was the lighting or a trick of my eyes, but I could have sworn Sawyer was looking down at me with awe and enjoyment in his eyes. But when I looked up at him, he was just smiling, looking at the crowd of people.

It was a comfortable silence that fell between us as we stared at people wandering around, and at the music memorabilia on the walls of the Hard Rock Cafe.

I'd never felt more ... like myself.