I scream with joy as I plummet straight into the semi-warm ocean water. For a moment, my eyes are shut tightly as I rise to the surface, laughing. Grey rises up a minute later, his pale hair looking almost brown from the water. Grey laughs as well, wiping his eyes. "Have to admit, that was awesome!"
"I told you!" I giggled, pulling myself towards the surface. I settle on the sand and Grey settles next to me, a wide smile plastered to his mouth.
"That was also terrifying," He said, laying back in the sand.
"You get used to it after the first few times," I shrugged, running my fingers through the sand. The seashells were all an egg shell pink. I never really noticed that until now. I also noticed that Grey's eyes weren't, well, grey. They were a really light blue... the color was so pretty and—
"Echo," Grey whispered softly. He gently put a strand of my brown hair behind my ear, and leaned in. My heart pounded and I realized the desire I had for him to kiss me, but Grey took his sweet little time, just staring at me.
Then finally, his warm lips connected with mine, and I regretfully let out a soft whimper. Heat rushed to my cheeks, but if he heard it he didn't say anything. Grey slid his hand up the small of my back and pressed into me.
The warmth of him blends through my shirt, making me want—no—need more. But he broke away, his thick eyelashes now tangled. I brushed his beachy pale bangs out of his eyes, and he grinned like I'd just done him a huge favor.
Again, he just stared at me. It made my squirm, and I was sure he could see the blush on my face now, but I still tried to hide it. "You move fast," I tried joking, but it failed, because the heat from our contact felt like an open flame on my face.
"Not usually," Grey replied, that dopey smile still plastered to his lips. "Now how about we jump again?"
I laughed, "Not so scared anymore, huh?"
"Nope," Grey replied, and he got up and walked away.
...
The orangish pink sunset lit up the beach, making different colors dance among the sand. The waves tickled my feet as Grey and I walked side-by-side down the length of the beach, hand-in-hand. "I have to say," Grey said slowly, watching as another wave washed over our feet, making me shiver. "This day has been pretty great."
"I'd have to agree," I said, laughing lightly. "I've done a lot of crazy things, but stealing ice cream from an ice-cream truck? Never!"
Grey laughed and brushed his hair from his eyes. He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and pulled me close to him. "We should get going. It's starting to get chilly," He said, leaning down close to my ear.
"Yeah..." I said reluctantly. The last thing I wanted was for this magical day to end. Grey and I traveled back up the rock we jumped from and gathered our semi-dry clothes. As I threw my soaked shorts into the bag, I could hear my phone blare. "One minute," I said to Grey, turning from him and adventuring towards a cliff on the other side of this mountain.
I picked up and Eric's voice filled my ears. "Where are you?" He asked. He sounded pissed—but then again, Eric was always pissed.
"It's only..." I checked the time, and sure enough, it was only thirty minutes until nine o'clock. "Eight-thirty."
"Have you even read my texts?" Eric scoffed, and I could hear muffled voices in the background.
"No—" I said, beginning to ask a follow-up question when Eric interrupted me.
"We need you here. Now."
"Why?" I demanded, watching as the sun disappeared from sight. The dark blanket of black and stars began to become clearer.
"Just trust me. Get here in thirty minutes, or the turnout won't be pretty," Eric growled, then hung up. I lingered there for a minute, the phone still pressed to my ear, as if Eric was still on the other line.
"Echo?" A soft voice asked, and I turned to see Grey, now fully clothed.
"I'm right here, sorry," I said, blinking the tears from my eyes.
"Is everything okay?" Grey asked, putting a warm hand on my waist, finding a lit skin under my shirt. It made me feel just a little better.
"Yeah... It was just Emily. She locked herself out of the apartment and I have to go help her," I lied, forcing a smile.
"Alright," Grey said, and since it was dark, I really couldn't see his expression, but I could hear the disappointment in his voice.
...
Eric grabbed me by my arm and roughly pulled me into the secret compound. "Finally," he growled, finally letting go of my hand as I shot him a death glare. No, seriously, I hadn't wished more that a person would just drop dead.
I'm sure Eric got the hint, so he smiled and picked up a knife, angling it at me. It was like he was trying to remind me of my place, even though I hadn't said anything. I immediately straightened, and avoided his gaze. "What do you need me for?" I spoke as calmly as my voice would allow.
"To do your job," Eric repeated what he had said early. "Kill." He grinned mercilessly at me. Then he set the knife down and ranked a hand through his dark brown hair. He picked up a cigarette and lit it, the smell burned my nostrils.
"Who?" I croaked.
Eric grinned. "The Squealer."
"I need their name," I grumbled impatiently, tapping my foot. Eric took another puff of his cigarette and blew the smoke into my face, making me choke. "Just cut the shit, Eric. Give me the fucking name."
"We don't know the name, Eliza," Eric said slowly, holding the cigarette between his teeth. "That's part of your job, actually. Find out who the informant is and kill them."
Jesus Christ.
The thought of hurting someone else again—let's just say it makes me sick.
My voice shakes as I speak, "What if I don't want to kill, Eric?"
"Well, that'd be a problem," Eric said, thoughtfully pulling a long drag on his cigarette. He blew the smoke from in between his teeth and then dropped the half smoked bud, crushing it beneath his loafers heel. "Because then you wouldn't be of use, now would you?"
I didn't answer.
"And you're aware of what we do when people aren't of much use anymore, don't you?" I closed my eyes for a second. I knew all too well what happened to people who weren't of use anymore. "Exactly, Dear. So, be a good little girl and do as you're told. Got that, Sweetheart?"
I long to slap this patronizing asshole's face.
"Yes, Eric," I said through gritted teeth. Eric smirked and collapsed into his seat, where he grabbed a half-empty bottle of whiskey and poured it into his cup. He lifted the shot glass towards me, as if this drink was dedicated to me, and finished the liquid in one gulp.
OH MY GOD!!!!! ECHO AND GREY KISSEDDDDDDDD!
AND HOW COME ERIC IS KINDA HOT? SEND HELP RN-
THOUGHTS SO FAR? COMMENT BELOWWWW!