Treading The Waters [on hold]

Prologue

7 Years Ago

This is the hardest thing I've had to do in my entire life.

Hurting someone – although not intentionally – is a huge weight to bear. Especially when it's someone you love who's already gone through enough hurt.

He's at the restaurant. He's always there. But today is Saturday, and he always goes in early on Saturday's. He says it's something about the peace and quiet, with nothing but the wind and the water to listen to.

Dirt and gravel shift under my feet as I walk to see him. The restaurant is less than a mile from our house on the lake, the path curving and winding alongside the water. Currents of the lake are soft, nearly nonexistent. The wind is cool and calm, weather serene - but the storm inside of me is anything but.

With the restaurant in sight, I see him.

Jensen. The love of my life.

He's gorgeous. With dark-brown tussled hair and forest green eyes, he's the epitome of the perfect man, but still has those qualities that make for the perfect boy-next-door. His muscles flex under the slim, navy-blue t-shirt that's clinging to him like a second skin, moving tables and chairs around the outside area of the restaurant.

The wood of the deck creaks as I step onto it, letting him know that someone is here. He turns and wipes the sweat from his forehead before smiling at me, ambling over to wrap his arms around me, embracing me in one of my favorite scents.

"Hey B," he says, placing a kiss on my temple. "What's up?"

"Um, can we- can we talk?"

He releases his hold on me, bringing his shirt up to wipe at the sweat beading against his forehead. The summer heat of June just set in, which I'm thankful for because it would have been horrible to have a ninety-degree day for graduation just a few weeks ago.

"Sure."

He turns, taking my hand in his and leading us down the length of the dock, stopping at the edge to sit down.

"This seems serious. You only pick at your nails like this when you're stressed," he says, head dipping down to gesture at my hands. I hadn't even noticed I was picking at them.

"Kind of serious... yeah. So, uh, I got a job offer. As a songwriter for a label."

"That's great, B. I'm proud of you!" He exclaims, pulling me into his arms as we sit on the edge of the dock. He peppers my face with kisses, making me smile even though I know what's gonna happen next. When he finishes, I pull back and take a deep breath, looking straight into his eyes.

"It's in Los Angeles." The moment the words leave my mouth, the color drains from Jensen's face, body going limp. The silence is suffocating as he contemplates what to say, but then his cheeks flush red and his muscles tense as anger takes over.