"You missed it!" I said, bumping him in the shoulder lightly. "It was amazing!"
He frowned. "I didn't know you were religious."
"I'm not talking about the church, Dani." I huffed. "I'm talking about the view from the bell tower. It was-"
"Amazing." Kevin rolled his eyes. "We get it, Val. Stop."
"You know what else was amazing?" said Claire, narrowing her eyes. "My sleep! Before you jerks ruined it." She threw a pillow at Eli and me, and another at Dani.
"You've been sleeping all day." Said Eli.
"What else are you supposed to do when your parents ship you off to a small little town, huh?" she snapped. The five of us- me, Dani, Kevin, Eli and Claire- were currently in her room. It was just an hour before sunset, and though we all were worn out, none of us was tired enough to go to sleep.
"Enjoy the trip since your friends decided to tag along with you." Exclaimed Eli. He got up from where he was sitting and grabbed Claire's arm, jerking her up from the bed. "I'm taking you to the cliffs."
"What if I don't want to go?" she challenged.
"Then I'll personally drag you there and throw you down if you utter another word." He smiled sweetly. "Get dressed. We're leaving in five."
Claire huffed, then went to the cupboard to get a fresh pair of clothes.
"I'm going to hang out with Rosie." Kevin put his hand on my head and heaved himself up, transferring most of weight on me as he did so. I slapped his hand away and he grinned.
I turned to Dani once he was gone. "Wanna take me to the beach?"
"Sure." He got up -thankfully not using me to put all his weight on- and offered me his hand.
I grabbed it and got up, tugging my dress down so it reached just a little above my knees.
I was absolutely in love with this dress. It was white and kind of lacey, and it flowed around when I twirled. Since it wasn't very cold, I could wear it today.
We exited the hotel and crossed the street towards the beach. I took off my slippers, my hair held away from my face with a flower headband as I picked them up.
I felt the soft, cool sand between my toes as we trudged along the beach in a slow pace. The waves were lapping on the shore and were softly bubbling in frivolous white surf as they hit the jagged rocks further West.
"It's beautiful."' I sighed.
"It is, isn't it?" He locked my fingers in his own and suddenly lifted my arm and spun it around, so I twirled along with it.
I laughed, grabbing onto his arm. Dani reached for my hand and clasped it in a firm grasp.
We continued walking along the beach. I spotted tips of shells and pieces of driftwood lying on the sand as we made our way closer to the water.
The water sang its graceful song, muted by the sounds of swooping seagulls searching for dinner before the sun set. Occasional winds danced in the sky, never really gentle but calming altogether.
I felt something wet and alarmingly cold hit my cheek and the side of my neck. I turned to where the attack had come from and found Dani chuckling as he kneeled beside the water and continued splashing me with it.
"Dani!" I couldn't help laugh as I copied his actions. When he stood up again, he grabbed both my hands and brought me closer. Little drops of water gleamed on his eyelashes as locks of his hair clung to his forehead.
Both of arms clung to the small of my back as he pulled my body towards his warm chest and I could feel his forehead resting against mine.
"You know I like you, don't you?"
His eyes stared into mine, gray like metal. Gray like polished armor. Gray like the moon holding all of its cosmological beauty.
And then his lips brushed against mine, and nothing else mattered. Fire spread through my body as he pressed me tighter against him, silently letting me know all of his emotions.
My heart was beating frantically against my chest and all reasonable thought and judgement had vanished into thin air.
It didn't matter, I told myself. This is what I had wanted.
More than ever.
He pulled apart, his warm breath lingering on my lips.
"I do now." I said.
Then he smiled, not only with his mouth but with his eyes too and never before had I thought about how much I loved his smile.
We sat together in the sand by the water and I pressed my temple against his chest, resting my head there and listening to the rhythmic beating of my heart.
Neither of us said anything.
We didn't need words. Never did.
I saw something glinting in the sand and picked it up. It was a seashell, lighter than I expected, white with flecks of pink and purple.
I grasped it tightly, deciding to take it home with me as a keepsake. I never wanted to forget this moment.
I looked up at the sun that was now beginning to set. A hundred colors illuminated the sky, the same sky that was above the sand, above the water, the same as it was a million miles away with similar people looking above at it with awe-filled eyes and a content heart.