Temporary Beach

Chapter Two

I always slept in, but usually until anywhere from 10:00 am to noon. I was surprised when the time on my phone read 4:13 pm. Maybe it was because of the jet lag, not that I really even understood what that meant. I had four texts and one missed call from my mom, and one text from Harry. Admittedly, it took me a second to register who Harry was, until I woke up enough to remember last night. 

I finally rolled out of bed after almost forgetting where I was. I still did my usual morning routine, even though it was obviously quite far from morning. I made sure to text Harry to apologize for taking so long to respond, and I truthfully mentioned how I was unproductively sleeping. I said I wouldn't mind rescheduling a day to meet up, since I really did want to see him again. 

Since I wasn't over the clear view I had of the beach, I put my phone away and sat on my balcony. Around five minutes passed until I heard my phone get a notification. It was a text from Harry, which read, "I'm on the beach right in front of the apartment building right now. I can actually barely see you on your balcony from here. You're welcome to join me now if you'd like."

With that, I looked down on the beach to locate him. I scanned the sand for a moment, before I saw him jumping and waving, resembling the actions of a child. I laughed and waved back before I went inside. I quickly changed into a pair of shorts and a tank-top, as well as some flip flops. Side note, apparently they call flip flops "thongs" here, but I can't say that without thinking of underwear. 

I made sure to lock my apartment and twist the doorknob three times to make sure that it was, in fact, securely locked. I made my way to the elevator and waited for it to reach ground level. Once the doors opened, I swiftly ran down to the beach towards the direction of where Harry was standing. 

I couldn't help but notice that all of his tattoos were on display, considering he was shirtless, and he'd clearly been swimming in the ocean. He greeted me with a smile and a hello, which I returned. We began walking down the beach towards the pier. "You still want the answer to your question from last night?" I had to think for a minute to remember what I'd even asked. 

When the little lightbulb finally went off in my head, I promptly nodded my head as a yes. "Well," he began. 

"I moved out here for the same reason you did; I wanted a fresh start. I worked in a bakery for a while, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do forever. I'm still not sure, truth be told. I think I wanna do something with music. Maybe a music teacher in school, or maybe I'll give private lessons. The thought of owning a music shop doesn't sound too bad to me, but I need the funds to go through with it."

I nodded my head to show that I'd been listening. "So, do you miss your family at all? Or are you guys not close," he asked, meaning that he was finished explaining the reason he moved. I didn't even have to think of the answer for that one. "Yes," I responded. "My family's very close. I'm especially close with my mom. I've talked to them a couple times since yesterday, but I already miss them. I even miss my little brother, even though he gets on my nerves,"

"And I still miss my cousin who lives back in my hometown in Mississippi. We were very close before I moved to Michigan when I was fifteen. We're still close, don't get me wrong, we just don't hangout as much anymore, due to obvious reasons. What about you?"

"I miss my mum and my sister a lot. I miss my dad, too, but my parents divorced when I was seven, so I've grown closer to my mum. I've talked to them everyday since I moved out here, but as you implied, it's not really the same."

I nodded my head again to show I wasn't ignoring his story. I noticed that Harry doesn't break his stare with you while you're speaking. It's a small gesture, but meaningful, since you know he's providing his undivided attention. "Can I ask you something?" I craned my neck to look up at him. "You've been asking me things," I responded with a smile, to show that I was only joking around.