HENRY
Thank fuck I woke up first...because I had my arms around her again. God, I hadn't woken up like this with a woman ever. It was terrifying how easily my body responded to her affection. Did asleep me know something awake me didn't?
I gently removed my arms and headed for the bathroom. I splashed cold water on my face and checked the wall clock.
Six a.m.
God, my body never adjusted to time zones. I dried my face with the heated towel and headed towards the door. I paused just before the exit when I noticed my skin in the bathroom mirror. I walked towards it, only to realise I wasn't wearing a shirt...or pants.
It was just me, my boxers, and my erect dick...yeah thanks for the betrayal there.
"What the fuck," I muttered to myself. I walked back into the bedroom, hoping to find one of my T-shirts within easy reach.
"Ah," Sydney screamed as she covered her eyes.
I held my hand over my boxers as I screamed in the same tone.
"Why do you have no clothes on?" she asked.
I laughed. "I could ask you the same thing." She looked down at her bra, which was barely covering her breasts. I turned to look out the window, respectfully, as she adjusted it.
"What happened last night?" she asked. "We didn't...did we?"
I shook my head. "No. We didn't." Although I wasn't sure if we had. I specifically remember going to sleep with my shirt and shorts on.
"What happened then?" she asked, slightly worried.
I looked around the room as I tried to rewind my memory. Then I noticed all the windows open so far they were on the verge of snapping off.
I clicked my fingers. "The heat." Halfway through the night, we both tried to cool down because the temperature was unbearably hot inside. We tried everything. Opening the windows. Putting a damp towel on our feet. But in the end, we were too tired so we just stripped down and went back to sleep. I had no idea why my body gravitated to cuddle her in the night, considering that wasn't going to help the heat situation.
Sydney widened her eyes. "Oh yeah." She let out a sigh of relief, which I was slightly offended by. "Okay. We need to talk to the others about getting a fan or something for tonight."
I nodded. "Yeah." I looked around the room again. "It's uh, six in the morning. I don't think the others will be up for a while."
Sydney folded her arms. "Yeah, Francesca said she wanted to have a sleep-in till one."
I laughed. "Well, there's a ferry down the road that departs at seven. It goes to a small island that has an awesome walk."
"How do you know all this?" Sydney laughed.
"I was stuck reading the tourist pamphlets yesterday while the others cooked dinner."
She laughed again. "Okay, well give me twenty and I'll be ready."
I smiled, feeling slightly relieved that she'd agreed to do something with me. I didn't know why it would bother me if she said no, but I was ready to explore this country with her. "I bet twenty will turn into thirty," I teased.
She poked out her tongue as she clenched the duvet that was covering her chest. "Now you've made me want to get ready in fifteen."
I ungracefully stepped to the side to let her walk into the bathroom. Her oversized shirt, which she'd attempted to put on, was inside out and tucked up, revealing her bare legs and polka-dot underwear.
I shook my head and turned to walk to the window. Sipping my water, I admired the view. It was a windy day, but the sun was shining and the water was glistening. It was the perfect weather for a trip to an island.
***
The queue extended for at least five hundred metres. It seemed as though everyone had the same ideas as us today. There was a mix of families, couples, and groups of teenage friends.
We were standing next to three other couples, who had their arms around each other, lips touching, or hands intertwined.
Sydney was dressed in a pair of denim shorts, a white singlet, and an extremely large straw hat.
"Where did you get this from?" I asked as I flicked the edge of it. I hated how much the hat hid her face.
She looked up at me and smiled. "I've had it for years. I've never burnt my face and I have this to thank." She gave the hat a little wiggle and I grinned.
"It's cute," I said. You're cute, I wanted to say.
The people in front of us began to shift forward and we followed suit.
"Do you think Francesca will be mad that we ditched them?" Sydney asked cautiously.
I shook my head. "Considering I could hear Matthias snoring when we left, I don't think anyone will care that we decided to make the most of the day.
She shrugged. "I guess so." She looked around the water, her expression changing as we inched closer to the boat.
"That's uh. That's quite rocky," she said nervously.
I placed my arm around her back. She didn't flinch like she had done every other time I'd done that. The boat was bobbing up and down vigorously. The small bridge that connected the boat to the dock was struggling to stay attached as people held the rails and battled to board.
"Luckily it's only a forty-minute ride," I said. Sydney turned to me and nodded. She took off her hat and clutched it against her chest. Her silence hadn't gone unnoticed, however.
"Welcome aboard," the crewman said as he held out his hand to help Sydney on.
She nodded as she took his hand and timidly walked along the bridge. I followed her closely, holding the edge as I felt my stomach rise and drop with the current.
We walked up the staircase to the second level and found two spare seats right by the front. Sydney rushed to the window seat and threw her hat on the floor.
"Hey, I'm sure your secretly lucky hat does not appreciate being discarded to the floor like that," I teased.
Sydney looked at me and smiled, but her face was pale. She rested her head against the back of the seat and let out a deep breath.
"I forgot to mention that I get really seasick," she whispered. The colour of her skin was evidence of her already upset stomach.
"I'm really sorry," I said. "I didn't even think about that so I didn't grab any meds."
She shook her head. "No, it's my fault. I should've checked the forecast." She looked out the window. The sun had disappeared while low clouds covered all the hills on the horizon. She turned back to me and scrunched her nose.
"If I hear someone else be sick around me, I'm going to be sick too," she sighed. Her gaze shifted around the room again, and it was obvious that she was thinking of the worst-case scenario. That wouldn't have helped her nausea or her nerves.
I reached into my pocket and pulled out my AirPods. "Come here," I said as I put my arm around her. She nestled into my side. "Put these in, turn on the noise cancelling feature and lie on my lap so you can stare straight into the horizon."
She hesitated at first. "What about you?"
I shook my head. "I don't get seasick. I'll be okay." The latter was a lie. I had a fear of vomit, especially having to see someone be sick. But Sydney didn't need to know that. All that mattered was that she was okay.
She nodded as she placed each device into her ears and lay down on my lap. She quickly scrolled on her phone and settled on a Black Sabbath album. I had to chuckle to myself. I thought she'd want some soothing music, but I guess heavy metal was also a good distraction. She surprised me every day.
I felt the shift of the boat underneath me before we slowly bobbed out of the harbour. I didn't think it could be bumpier, but as we approached the exposed sea, it was awful. The sensation in my stomach intensified as I felt myself rising and dropping in slow motion. I gently stroked Sydney's hair, hoping it was enough to make her feel relaxed. My other hand was clutched in hers, and she squeezed it every time the boat sank further into the water. I felt her chest rise and fall in time in the boat.
"That's it," I whispered, though she couldn't hear me. There was something comforting about feeling her rigid body melt into relaxation as the minutes ticked by.
I was so caught up in comforting her that I'd completely forgotten why were together right now. It felt so natural to be cuddled like this in public. This didn't feel like our arrangement. It extended further than that. It was romantic. Intimate. It felt like real intimacy.
I heard the engines of the boat slow down as we neared land once again. I was too busy admiring Sydney and the way she quietly stared out into the distance, that I hadn't realised forty minutes had nearly flown by.
Sydney nestled her face against my hand before she gently sat up. Her skin was tinted a light shade of green and her under eyes were dark. She looked so sick, and it made me mad that I couldn't have helped her more. I hoped I at least helped lessen the pain.
"I can't wait to get a big breath of fresh air," she sighed.
I gently brushed her hair down with my hand. "We're nearly there, ma chérie."
***
The rest of our trip to the island went well. We completed the scenic walk within two hours and stopped at the local café by the dock for our second coffee of the day.
We took our coffees to a small table on the balcony, staring out at the stunning view of the sea. The sun had finally come out, and the wind had died down.
"How are you feeling?" I asked as Sydney took a sip from her iced americano. She had regained the light in her face, along with the red tint in her cheeks that seemed to settle there every day.
"So much better," she said. "I'm so sorry you had to deal with me."
"You don't have to apologise," I said. I hated how she thought she had to say sorry for something like that. Even though we weren't dating, I cared about her. So of course I would be by her side and aid her in times of need.
She gave me a small smile. "At least the waves have died down. I shouldn't be as bad on the way back."
"But if you are, you know where to find me," I chuckled. "The headphones still have power, I have gum and my lap is comfier than the seats."
She rolled her eyes. "Okay, now. Your legs were a bit bony."
I widened my jaw. "How dare you. You can sit by yourself then."
She chuckled. "You wouldn't leave me."
I nodded and winked. "You know me."
Our conversation was interrupted by the buzz of a phone. I checked mine but was met with zero notifications. I watched as Sydney checked hers, her eyes lighting up the second she read the message.
"Oh my god," she said. "What the fuck."
"What is it?" I said cautiously. I couldn't tell if that was a happy "what the fuck" or a disgusted one.
"It's Jeremy," she said as she held her phone to me. I grabbed it to analyse the message he'd sent in more detail.
Jeremy: Hey gorgeous. You looked so beautiful in that photo you posted last night. I miss you x
Something about his message rubbed me the wrong way. After hearing about how bland of a human he was, I wasn't sure if I thought he was the best partner for her. Not that I had a say, but I was sure other men out there would kill to treat her the right way.
"I have to give you credit for this," Sydney said, which snapped me out of repeatedly reading his message. "I didn't think the plan would work."
It didn't take two seconds to pass before another message lit up her screen.
Jeremy: If you want to call, you have my number. I want to hear your voice.
I handed the phone back to the excited woman opposite me. "Looks like he isn't with that woman he posted at the beach."
She studied his second message, but her excitement had faded. I hoped that was because she was coming to her senses.
When I suggested the plan, I didn't think it would work either. But now that it was, and now that I had seen her reaction and excitement to it, I was feeling a weird sensation in my stomach. It wasn't nerves; I didn't get nervous about things like this. But it was a similar feeling. My pride didn't want to admit that it was jealousy.
For fuck's sake, I was jealous.