The next morning I wake up before Sam does so I get dressed and lie on the ground beside the bed. I’ve always found the ground more comfortable. I guess it’s because from the time I was ten to last year I didn’t have a bed. We lived in a one-bedroom apartment and my mom and my sister would always take the bed and there definitely isn’t enough space to fit three people in a twin bed. Anyways, I get up about five minutes later and walk around the hallway. I here a jingling noise and it’s coming closer to me. Grandpa appears from around the corner. “Good morning,” he says politely.
“Good morning,” I say in response. I see him fiddling with his belt. He can’t seem to get into his belt loops so he takes the belt off so it’s swinging in his hand. I start shaking. “Chloe, are you okay?” He starts walking towards me with his belt his in his hand. I let out a small noise. He drops the belt on the ground and wraps his arms around me. “Are you okay?” and I respond by saying yes. “What happened?” He asks.
“I just have a weird fear of belts, that’s all.”
“I used to as well, but got over it.”
“How?” I ask wanting desperately to get rid of one of my two fears.
“I just told myself that they couldn’t hurt me anymore and I went to a therapist.” Is he talking about a person? Was he whipped too? “Did someone hurt you?” He asks me.
“Yes,” I admit, “my father.”
“Mine did too,” he says placing his big hand on my shoulder. “You don’t have to be afraid here. We won’t hurt you,” Grandpa says with a kind smile.
“Thank you so much, for everything,” I say giving him a big hug.
“Anything for my granddaughter,” he says letting me go and turning away walking back down the hall he came from. I guess we have something in common… abusive fathers.
I walk back to the bedroom and Sam is sitting up on the bed and rubbing his eyes. “I was wondering where you were,” he says smiling. “Good morning,” I say. “Let’s eat,” he says hopping out of the bed and getting changed as I put my hair up in a messy bun. “So whaddaya want to do today?” I ask him.
“I can’t believe I never told you this before but,” he pauses, “we have a pool,” he says with a big smile of his face.
“It’s winter,” I point out.
“I know it is but we have an indoor pool as well as an outdoor pool.”
“Wow, you are freaking rich!”
“I’m not rich, my grandparents are.”
“That’s what rich people say.” He laughs.
“So, do you want to go swimming?” He asks obviously trying to change the subject.
“Sure,” I say with a big smile. I can’t even remember the last time I went swimming!
Sam leaves and comes back a couple minutes later with bathing trunks and a bikini. Oh god, I really don’t want to wear a bikini. “I am so sorry, but there is only one pair of swim trunks,” he says. “That’s alright. I can wear the bikini,” I say faking a smile.
“I would wear the bikini but I don’t think my grandparents would be to thrilled about having a cross dressing grandson.” I laugh as I grab the bikini out of his hands. I go into the bathroom and change coming out with a towel wrapped around my mostly bare body. He goes in and I sit on the bed and wait for him to be finished. Before he comes out, I open up the towel and the first thing I see are my boobs. I really don’t like this bikini, it’s way too revealing. I don’t want to go swimming in this. He comes out and I quickly cover myself up with the towel again. “Ready?” He asks as I scan his body. Wow. His abs. What else is there to say? They’re perfect. I- “Chloe?”
“Yeah,” I say snapping out of my daze.
“Are you ready?” He repeats.
“Yeah,” I blush because I’m embarrassed that he caught me looking at him.
He takes me down a set of stairs and around corner after corner. He opens the door for me and I immediately smell the chlorine radiating off the pool. Since Sam didn’t bring a towel, he sprints right to the edge of the pool and flips in. When he surfaces, he flips his hair so it’s out of his face. Ugh he’s so hot! “You coming?” He asks.
“Meh, I don’t know anymore.”
“Why not?” He asks kindly. The truth is I don’t want to take my towel off because I don’t want him to see my boobs. It’s much different at night than it is in the daytime because he can’t really see me when it’s nighttime. “I don’t know,” I say and I feel my cheeks get red.
“I know you know,” he says as he gets out of the pool and walks over to where I’m sitting. He sits beside me on the lounge and puts his arm around me. “I feel self conscious about…” I don’t really want to finish that sentence so I just let go of the towel and close my eyes as I feel my chest being exposed. “You look amazing.”
“I look like a whore.”
“A whore wouldn’t be wearing a bikini. They wouldn’t be wearing anything.”
“Well since the towel’s already off, I suppose I should get in now.” I pull my hair elastic out and shake my hair free. I walk towards the pool. Sam runs up behind me and picks me up then jumps in the pool with me in his arms. When we surface, I am still in his arms and I look into his eyes for a while before he kisses my forehead.
Sam’s Point of View
I watch Chlo swim around the pool like a fish. Her long blonde hair and long, slim body and the fact that she’s an amazing swimmer remind me of a mermaid. She’s so sexy. Wow, I never thought I’d use that word, but it’s true; she truly is sexy. “Penny for your thoughts,” she says from behind me. I turn around to see her standing right a foot away from me. “I wasn’t thinking about anything,” I respond.
“Mmhmm sure you weren’t,” she says jokingly with a bit of sass. She sits down beside me.
“Okay, okay. I was thinking about you,” I say as I tuck her hair behind her ear.
“Awe.” She blushes and looks at the ground with a small smile. She’s gorgeous; I’m a lucky guy. As she looks up again, she bites her lip. That just does it for me. I put my hand in her wet hair and pull her close to me. When my lips meet hers, at first I taste chlorine from the pool then soon after I taste her. Her lips are sweet. Almost like strawberry ice cream.
Chloe’s Point of View
Sam randomly asks to arm wrestle with me. “I don’t want to.”
“Why not?”
“I don’t want you to be embarrassed that you’re weaker than you girlfriend,” I smirk.
“Oh, it’s on.” We both lie on our stomachs with our elbows on the pool deck. “One… Two...” He leans close to me, as if he’s going to kiss me. I start to lean forward to meet his lips. At that moment, he pushes my arm and it hits the deck. “I won!”
“You’re an asshole.”
“I won. I won. I won.” I laugh and lean forward to kiss him and he does the same. Just as our lips are about to touch, I push him into the pool. “I can’t believe you fell for that! Oh my god! I just got a taste of your own medicine!” I laugh. I stop when I realized he hasn’t surfaced. My heartbeat quickens as I start to panic. I take a deep breath and jump into the pool after him. I see him lying face down at the bottom. I swim to him and bring him up with me and carry him to the edge, like I was taught during my Bronze Medallion. I lift him onto the deck and kneel overtop of him. He’s not breathing. I’m so scared that I start to cry. I slap his cheek lightly to see if he regains consciousness. He doesn’t. I lean down to him and do the only thing I could do: mouth-to-mouth. After I press my lips on his, I feel something in my hair and see that it’s his hand. I sit up and his eyes open. He’s laughing. I hit him hard in the chest because I’m so mad at him. “Oh my god,” I say as I roll onto my back with my hands covering my face. “I thought you were dead! You scared the living hell out of me.” He pulls my hands away from my face and I look at him. “Are you crying?” He asks. “Oh, Chlo, I’m so sorry. It was just a joke.” He leans down and hugs me. I wrap my arms around his back and he carries me over to a lounge chair and sits me on top of him sideways. “Sam, don’t you ever do that again.” He stays silent. “I mean it. It scared me too much. I don’t want to lose you.” I pause. “I can’t lose you.” He hugs me tight.
“Don’t worry, Chlo. I’ll never leave you.”
“Never is an awfully long time.”
“I know.” He smiles.