Butterflies (Niam + Larry)

Chapter 20

                                                               -Zayn-

"Guys, come on!" Louis yells, standing in front of the door. I grab a towel out of the bathroom and check my pockets again. Phone, wallet, Ray-Bans, check! Towel to sit on, check. I walk out into the living room where Harry is standing practically on top of Louis, fully making out with him. I avert my eyes and groan.

"Jeez! Guys! It's beach day not swap spit day! Arianna is gonna come back any minute, will you move away from the door?" They pull apart reluctantly and hold hands instead, moving a few steps back. Just in time too, because Arianna bursts through the door in a cute little pink sundress. She has her hair up in a messy bun and white Ray-Bans are perched on top of her head. She smiles at me and huffs.

"Sorry it took a little while to find my swimsuit in my suitcases." She giggles and I glare at Louis and Harry. 

"It's fine, they were occupied by sucking face in the doorway!" I shake my head at them teasingly and Louis scoffs.

"Hey you were the one who spent all that time finding your sunglasses!" He stomps indignantly over to the door and waves us along. When we finally reach the lobby, we realize Paul is out managing--whatever he manages while we're in LA. Which means he has the car. Arianna laughs when I say this out loud.

"Well, we'll just have to take my car!" Louis claps with delight, happy that his plans haven't been ruined. She leads us over to a powder blue convertible VW Bug. 

"Ta-Da!", she grins, splaying her hands out, "I hope you two don't mind squishing into the back?" She asks, raising an eyebrow at Louis and Harry. They shake their heads, already excited for an excuse to lay on top of eachother. 

We all climb and get situated. Then I map the beach on my phone and we turn onto the highway, wind whistling through the car and caressing our hair. Of course, Harry and Louis are giggling and kissing in the back. It's too loud to have a conversation with Arianna so I just appreciate the view. On one side, big houses, palm trees and sprawling green lawns fly by. On the other side, a boardwalk hides the stretch of pure blue ocean. We're going to a less populated beach so that we can have more space and  avoid the risk of being recognized. Plus, Harry and Louis probably want to make out in the sand and we can't have any fans seeing that just yet. 

                                                                 ***

"Zaaayyyn! Pssst! Wake up!"  I squint my eyes open and realize that something is covering the sun. I open them all the way to see Arianna's beautiful face leaning over me. 

"Will you help me build a sandcastle?" She asks hopefully, pushing some hair behind her ear. I grin and sit up. I'm not wearing a shirt and my pants are rolled up to my knees. Arianna is in a blue bikini patterned with little white anchors. She has the greatest body I think I've ever seen. Harry and Louis are "looking for tidepools" down the beach. I crawl over to the damp sand to where Arianna has already begun patting the sand together to make a tower. I start to dig a moat and a "river" for the water to flow in. She's humming a song and I'm out by where the waves are breaking, trying to get the water to go up into the moat, when I get and idea. I scarmble back over to where shes working and pull a stick out of the sand. Then I go over to a clear area of wet sand near my river and begin to scrawl out words.

"Arianna, will you come look at this and see if it will work out?" I ask. Butterflies flap their wings inside my gut as she brushes off the sand and comes to stand beside me. She looks at the river, then notices the words I wrote in the sand. Will you be my girlfriend? She shrieks and throws her arms around my neck.