Selfless

69

The boat ride was pretty fun as Cora and I just talked and basked in the sunshine. We were definitely going to get a sunburn but I didn't care. It was worth it to see Cora's smile.

When we got to the reef Cora looked at me with so much joy in her eyes that it caused my heart to skip a beat. She really did own my heart. "You ready for this baby girl?" I asked as she nodded quickly, "more than ready!" She yelled and bounced up and down happily.

We put our snorkels on and jumped into the water. It was warm but also really refreshing, "oh!! Look there's a turtle!" Cora yelled and pointed over to the turtle that was swimming through the water. She giggled then put her head into the water as she reached for my hand. I grabbed it and swam with her, putting my face into the water also.

Below us were these beautiful reefs and fish swimming in schools around us. Cora would occasionally squeeze my hand when she saw something she thought was cool which made me smile uncontrollably. Her happiness was extremely contagious, especially since I have seen her at her lowest emotionally. I loved seeing her so happy.

We swam over to take a little break at the boat and drink some water, "baby! Did you see the little baby turtle it was so cute!" She yelled then tackled me with a hug, "yeah, I did. It was pretty damn cute I will say." I said and held my hands on her waist as she giggled.

"This is so fun!" She yelled and threw her arms up as I took a sip of water. "I'm ready to get back into it." She said then put the cap on her water bottle and set it on the boat. "Let's go then." I said and took her hand, then jumped into the water again.

The hour and a half of snorkeling went by so fast that we didn't even realize it was already time to go until the instructor blew a whistle signaling for us to come back.

We swam back to the boat and got on it, then handed back the masks. "Did you guys have fun?" The instructor said as she clapped her hands, "yeah!" We all said as Cora wrapped her arm around mine and rested her head on my shoulder. I could tell she was getting tired now as she snuggled into my side.

We relaxed on the way back as the sun started to set. "Did you want to get dinner somewhere?" I asked as they docked the boat. "Yeah, I would love that." She said quietly as I grabbed her hand, helping her off of the boat. We found a cute local spot that had a patio over the ocean.

I took a picture of her as the sun set behind her, she looked absolutely gorgeous in it. I wasn't surprised though, she was gorgeous literally of the time.

We ordered our food and enjoyed a romantic meal together as the twinkling lights above us turned on when the sun set. "Hey guys can I get you anything else?" The waiter asked as we finished up, "no thank you." I said and smiled at him. "Alright, you guys have a great night, stay safe. There's a big storm coming tonight." He said and Cora flinched a little, "we will. Thank you." I said and grabbed her hand, squeezing it slightly.

We went back to the villa and Cora jumped onto the bed as she groaned with exhaustion, "tired baby girl?" I asked and laid down next to her, "yeah, I'm also burnt to shit." She said and pulled her shirt down so I could see her dark red back. "Ooooo that's gotta hurt." I said then got up so I could get her some aloe.

"Yeah you're pretty crispy too buddy." She said and poked my arm as I sat down next to her again. "Yeah yeah, you're gonna aloe me next." I said as she pulled her shirt off. Once I was done rubbing it onto her back she sat up and grabbed the bottle to rub it on me.

As she rubbed the aloe on me it started raining really hard outside. "Should we watch a movie or something?" Cora asked as I stood up. "Yeah, we can make some popcorn and just relax while the storm passes." I said and pulled her up off the bed. "Okay!" She said then skipped over to the closet to get changed.

I grabbed a pair of sweatpants and a tshirt and changed then went to the kitchen to make the popcorn. It started storming really bad outside when Cora came out with her hood up.

She bit her lip and bundled her hands in her sleeves as she looked at me. "What's up?" I asked and poured the popcorn in the bag. "It's storming really bad out." She said and sat down on the couch as I walked over, "Don't worry, I'll protect you from the big bad storm." I said and sat next to her, pulling her into my arms.

She chuckled and rested her head on my chest then took a few pieces of popcorn and put them in her mouth.

We watched the movie for about 30 minutes before the storm got so bad that the power went out. "Colbyyyy." Cora wimpered and cowered into me. "It's okay baby girl. It will pass soon." I said and rubbed her arm soothingly.

"Should we like go into the bathtub or something?" She asked and looked up at me with scared eyes as loud thunder cracked outside and bright flashes of lightening filled the dark room.

"We can if it will make you feel safer." I said with a small smile, "yeah.." she said quietly and went to stand up. I grabbed a couple pillows and a blanket as we went to the bathroom. I put the pillows down then got in and opened my legs so there would be room for her to sit in front of me.

She climbed in and rested her back against my front as I wrapped my arms around her tightly. "See? You're safe." I said and kissed her head as she threw the blanket over our legs. I hummed a song to her as I rubbed her arms slowly.

The thunder and lightening eventually died down as we laid in the bathtub. "I think it's safe to get up baby." I said and nudged her slightly. She didn't respond which meant she was probably asleep. I chuckled and carefully got out of the tub, resting her head on the pillow I laid down as I shook my legs out.

I smiled down at Cora as she slept before I picked her up and brought her to the bed. "I love you, Cole Brock." She whispered as I laid her down.

"I love you too, Cora Elizabeth Brock."