A Little Bit Of Joy | ✔

Chapter Seven : The Boy Who Built Sandcastles

"Nah, I'm alright." I waved my hand dismissively and slowly crawled towards the bucket. I looked around carefully, my eyes searching for a shovel or spoons that the kids forget on the beach. I didn't find any and my shoulders slumped. "There are no tools laying around here for making a sandcastle, usually there are."

"You don't need them," Logan said nonchalantly and I quirked my eyebrow in question. His eyes widened a little as if he didn't intend to say what he did and I grinned widely to which he glared at me challengingly. "What?"

"What? You said that we don't need tools to build a sandcastle. Show me," I said with a shrewd grin and crawled further towards him on my hands and knees until I was close enough that he had to lean back. I said in a low voice, "Show me what you know, Logan."

He quickly got up to move away from me and then crouched in front of the bucket with a defeated scowl. Without uttering a single word, he rolled up his sleeves and started piling the sand. I suppressed my smile and helped him until we had gathered enough sand. He then poured the water and created a mixture.

By now, his eyebrows were drawn together in concentration as he started to build the foundation. I dabbed the mixture a little here and there, but let him do the most part noticing that he was actually engrossed in building sandcastles. Once the foundation was done, we proceeded to construct a cube-like structure and after some time, we had almost moulded the entire sandcastle, only the topmost part was left, but we had run out of the mixture. There was a requirement for more sand and water.

I looked up at Logan who was right in front of me, bending forward and pressing the sand. "Logan?"

He looked up and our eyes locked into each other. He cocked his head slightly and stared at me like he was looking right through my eyes and into me. I shifted uncomfortably and tore my gaze away from him, to look at the ocean. I could still see him watching me and from the corner of my eye, I saw him frowning like he was confused and on the verge of getting annoyed. My gaze flickered from the ocean and to his eyes, both of them breathtakingly similar. My heart started thumping loudly and hurriedly, I averted my eyes at the sandcastle, avoiding his stare.

"Erm w-we need more mixture," I stuttered like a fool and mentally smacked my head. Why was I getting nervous? There was no reason for how I was acting, my behaviour was irrational. I cleared my throat and met his eyes with confidence. "Can you bring water, we need it for the mixture?"

Logan nodded, got up quietly and strode with the bucket towards the ocean. He filled the bucket with water to its brim and carried it almost effortlessly towards me and then set it down. He lifted his hand to wipe the sweat formed over his forehead with the back of his sleeve and the sun's rays were falling over him which made his skin glisten. I squinted my eyes and noticed long lines like traces near his wrists.

He sat down and reached for the bucket beside me. Impulsively, I caught his arm and yanked it towards me, the long cuts on his forearm evident now. Some cuts seemed fresh while some looked old. Self-harm.

His eyes were wide, eyebrows raised high up and lips parted, he looked shocked and when realization sank in him, he looked ashamed. Immediately, he jerked his arm away from my grasp and quickly rolled his sleeve down, his head hung low in embarrassment.

"Y-You need-s-should consult--- "

"Fucking don't," he bellowed in rage and got up swiftly while I scrambled after him. He marched towards the ocean while tugging at his sleeves in agitation and I stood rooted in my spot. He stooped down and washed his hands in the softly crashing waves. He was there for a while,  staring at the horizon and then returned back with heavy footsteps in anger and seethed, "Let's go."

"O-Okay, cool," I said timidly and his hands balled into fists. He lifted his leg and kicked the sandcastle in one, quick motion, not in fury, but in plain frustration. He made no noise or such while doing so, only his jaw was clenched tightly like he was trying hard to control himself. He shook his head at the crumpled sandcastle which resembled more like a heap of sand now and without sparing a glance at me, he started lumbering towards the road.

I jogged towards the ocean, washed my hands and then scurried after Logan, my breathing becoming ragged. He had issues, lots of them and he needed help. There was no reason for him to be embarrassed or ashamed, people went through all kinds of crap in their life and it was okay for him to let his emotions out. However, I didn't know how to approach him and make him understand that I understood what he was going through. Such topics were sensitive and making a bold move would only make it worse.

We arrived at the wedding reception within minutes because of Logan's fast pace to avoid my questions and I knew why he was being so evasive. The people had already started eating so I grabbed a plate and passed it to Logan before grabbing my own. Logan gripped the plate tightly, his knuckles turning white and quietly placed the pieces of bread, smoked meat and pizza slices on his plate. I had lost my appetite after the entire incident so I took little food and stood by the corner.

Logan was seated on the chair with his body humped forward as he stuffed the food in his mouth. He still seemed disgruntled as his nostrils flared and faint dimples appeared on either side of his cheeks. Suddenly, he turned and caught me staring. He straightened his posture and looked at me defensively, narrowing his eyes coldly.

I quickly looked away, my cheeks flaming and meekly nibbled at the bread which now tasted like sand.