Bite My Tongue

Chapter 4 - The Brother's Girlfriend

"Coming right up," Jared said, and he took our menus as he wandered back into the kitchen. He appeared ten minutes later with our food and we ate in silence.

"Allison asked if we could pop round for an hour, later," Melissa began. "I can say no if you would prefer to stay with Dakota, what with her just arriving." She shot me a smile before returning her focus to Jackson.

"Would you mind if we went?" he asked.

"Not at all," I lied. "I might go exploring."

"Yeah, okay then," he replied. "Oh, shoot. I almost forgot to give you the spare key."

He rifled in his pockets whilst I finished off my drink. Once the glass was empty and I had the spare key tucked carefully in my shorts I headed out. I could feel Melissa watching me as I left them in the booth. I reached the door and the bell above it rang as I left.

I dragged my feet down the street, scuffing the rubber grip beneath them. Filey was a small town, too small. There was nothing to do and I was already bored. I reached the beach as the sun was beginning to set and the sky was already dark - there were no romantic sea-sunsets on this side of the country. I took my Converses off and tied the laces together before hanging them around my neck.

I was glad I chose to wear shorts because I didn't need to roll anything up in order to set foot in the water. I stood my ground in sopping sand and allowed the water to wash around my feet. The water charged like rhinos towards me only to cowardly recede.

There was a slight breeze tonight, and I let it play through my hair. I closed my eyes and let the rhythm of the gentle waves crashing up the shore sooth me into a trance.

"Stay there too long you'll drown."

I groggily opened my eyes and turned around to see Jared the waiter stood ten feet away. He had a cheeky grin spread across his mouth, revealing his pearly whites.

"I can swim," I offered.

"Oh, I was going to offer to save you, but never mind."

I laughed at his remark and started towards him. Even from a few steps away I noticed how good looking he was. His hair was cut short, dark and neat. His eyes were hazel, and glistened in the slowly fading light, outlined with long eyelashes. His jaw was brushed with thin stubble that made him look older than he probably was and his lips were a soft pink, plump and perfect. In that moment, for just an instant, I wondered what they’d feel like – taste like.

"I never got your name."

"Dakota."

"What are you doing in the crazy town of Filey, Dakota?"

"Being punished," I said.

"Ouch." He acted as though he had just been punched. "Where are you from?"

"London," I answered. "I'm guessing you're from here?"

"Of course I'm from this amazing, wild, exciting place."

"If it's so amazing, where are all the bars? The clubs? The cool hang-out spots?"

He took a moment to reply, "We have an arcade," he said, his voice serious. "No, Filey isn't like that. It's a laid back place. You have to learn to love the laid back atmosphere. How long are you here for?"

"Six weeks. The whole summer."

"Good. It'll take me six weeks to help you learn to love it here."

"What makes you think I'm going to spend the whole six weeks with you?"

"Well, who else are you going to spend it with?"

He must have seen me with Jackson and Melissa because, judging by the tone of his voice I knew he knew I didn't like them together.

But Jared was right; who was I going to spend it with?

Jackson and I weren't kids anymore. We had grown apart. We had different interests, the main difference being Melissa.

I didn't need to reply to Jared for him to know my answer. Instead he nodded his head towards the end of the beach where a piece of rock stuck out into the sea. We walked slowly along the shore, the sea occasionally brushing against our feet. The sky continued to get darker and the stars began to show. We didn't reach the end of the beach because the tide had risen. Instead, we sat on a wall that separated the sand and the street.

When my feet had dried I brushed the sand from my soles and slipped my shoes back on. We hung our legs over the risen tide and glanced up at the sky.

I didn't know Jared, nor did I know whether I liked him, but one thing for sure was I had more fun walking in silence with him than I did at dinner with Melissa.

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