Childhood Lovers

Childhood Lovers. 26

“No . . . I wouldn’t!” I insisted, tears streaming down my face.

He wiped the tears away, then pulled me into a hug. “Let’s not talk about this anymore, okay? Let’s not talk about this until it’s time.” He pulled apart so he could look into my eyes. “We shouldn’t dwell on the future, we should enjoy the present, enjoy the time we have left to be together.”

Biting down on my bottom lip, I nodded slowly. Chase kissed me, then pulled me back down onto his chest.

“You see that?” Chase said, pointing at a constellation in the sky. “That’s Andromeda. In the Greek myth, her mother, Cassiopeia, dared to say that she was more beautiful than the gods. To punish her for her blasphemy, Poseidon punished her by chaining her daughter to a rock as a sacrifice to a horrific sea monster. Perseus, the dragon slayer who also killed Medusa,” Chase pointed to another set of stars, “saw Andromeda and fell in love with her. Perseus destroyed the monster by revealing the head of the Medusa, which would turn any living creature into stone. However, Andromeda’s parents did not look away in time, and were also killed in the process. Poseidon took pity upon their souls, and casted them into the sky,” Chase said, pointing to two constellations surrounded Andromeda’s. “Thus, when both Andromeda and Perseus died, they too would also be placed in the heavens.”

I wrapped my arms tighter around Chase’s chest. His understanding of astronomy and mythology baffled me into affection.

“That’s amazing,” I whispered. 

“Which part?”

“The story, and you’re knowledge,” I nuzzled my face into his chest. “Would you save me from an evil sea monster?”

“I would save you from anything,” he said. “You should know that by now.”

“When is it going to be my turn to save you? I’ve only taken care of you once . . .”

Chase pulled on my waist, so that I was laying on top of him. “Hayden, you already have saved me.” I crinkled my eyebrows in utter confusion. “Look, I don’t really like to talk about this, but you deserve to know. Before you came, I was going through a bit of a gloomy time. I wouldn’t say I was depressed or anything, I was just in this weird, dark mood all of the time. I was always really quiet, I had a tough time dragging myself out of bed for school, I didn’t hang out with many people, I closed myself off from everyone – I just always felt alone and empty inside. Jessica would have absolute fits, claiming I was too much to deal with and impossible to get through to.”

I blinked my eyes in shock. “Why haven’t I heard about this?” 

“Like I said, I don’t really bring it up too often. But when I heard you were coming, everything started getting better. Like the sunlight was starting to break through tiny slivers of the dark, grey clouds that surrounded my life. And then you arrived, and the sun broke through entirely, pushing away all the sad clouds. In a way, you did kind of save me. You brought me back to this fresh, cheerful state of mind. So, I owe you a thank you for that.” 

Again, I was shocked. But with the addition of speechlessness. This was something new, something unexpected, something I could have never predicted. I had contributed to his life in a way I never thought I could.

Instead of speaking, I kissed him. He rolled over, so that he was now on top. On the empty sandy beach, under warm and concealing blankets, we made love for the second time. Although it was less painful this time, it was just as powerful and magical.

We ended up sleeping there, outside on the beach, under the shimmering light of the stars. While it seemed like a good idea at the time, we both regretted it the next morning - with kinks and knots in our backs from uncomfortable sleeping and messy, greasy, tousled hair. My skin felt coated in a dry layer of sand.

“Babe, get up,” I whispered, shaking a half-awake Chase.

With a moan, Chase forced himself to sit up. We were smart to put our clothes back on last night, because the populated beach was in seeing range. Both groggily, we took all of our supplies inside and took long, leisurely showers.

After the hot water washed away all of the sand, I twisted the knob to off. Tying my wet hair into messy bun, I got dressed into white jean shorts and a purple tank top.

Today was the day. Today, we would see John. Today, Chase would face his problems. Today, things would change.

In acclamation of the musical Rent, no day but today.

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only a few more chapters left!! eeep! anyway, so please note the bit of foreshadowing, especially in the last few lines of this chapter. thanks for all of the support! i love you all so very much! please remember to vote, vote, vote. i know a bunch of people are reading, but not voting, and voting is really important! anyway! also comment on what you think of all of this! enjoy the reading! and check out my other story "leather kisses"