You were cheerfully unpacking your duffle bag. Liz was yanking a comb through her ebony hair and glancing at you through the mirror. Piles of clothes that you had brought were stacking up on the bed.
"___, are you serious? We're here for, like, three days," she said, eyeing the stack of cute tops.
"I-I know but, like, you never know," you said, shrugging to brush off the grin you were showing. "I can never decide what to wear."
She gave you a knowing smile.
You laughed nervously. "What?"
"You know what," she said, sitting down on the other full sized bed. "You're trying to look cute for him."
You blushed red. "W-Well what's wrong with that? Can't a girl look nice for the guy she's been secretly dating for a week?"
Liz gasped dramatically. "O. M. G. You're dating him?"
Practically squealing with excitement, you held a finger over your lips and nodded. Liz clapped her hands together and grinned from ear to ear. She was stifling giggles with her hand as you sat down in front of her.
"You can't tell anyone," you whispered. "Flash and I want to keep it a secret."
"Of course I won't tell anyone! But why are you hiding it? You and Flash have liked each other for, like, months!"
"We just... don't know how people will respond. Not everyone will be as excited as you are, Liz," you said.
She nodded in agreement. "You're right, ___. Don't worry - my lips are sealed." She leaned forward and grabbed your hands. "Oh, sweetie, I'm so happy for you!"
You smiled. "Thanks, Liz."
A knock on the hotel room door made both of your laughter end. You stood up and walked to the door, sliding the chain and unlocking the door knob. You yanked open the door and felt your heart skip a beat when you saw Flash.
"Hey," you breathed, voice airy and sweet.
He smiled, eyes glistening with adoration as he looked at you. "Hey babe," he said softly. He stepped halfway in and then saw Liz. "Oh. H-Hey, Liz. Hey."
She laughed. "Hey, Flash."
You bit down on your lip and looked back at him. "Did you need something?"
"I... wanted to ask if you wanted to go swimming with me," he said. He glanced back at you when Liz winked at him. "Does she know about us?"
You took a deep breath. "Yes. Don't be mad. Also, I'd love to go swimming with you. Let me change and I'll meet you at the pool."
"Okay," he said. "Alright."
You smiled and bashfully shut the door. Liz was giggling uncontrollably by the bathroom sink. You pointed a finger at her and laughed loudly.
"Liz, you're the only person I know that can make Flash lose his cool," you said.
She tilted her head. "Hm... Peter can, too."
You snickered. "Yeah. Guess it's not as hard as it seems."
...
You left the hotel room with your one piece swimsuit on and your hair tied up in a high ponytail. You were giddy with excitement as you stepped out into the warm night and padded towards the elevator, flip flops smacking against your heels with every step.
Just like you asked, Flash was waiting by the pool. He kicked off his shoes when he saw you and smiled. No one else was around.
"I hope you haven't been waiting too long," you said lightly.
"Not too long," he said. He handed you a dry towel and you tossed it on an empty chair. He took your hand and guided you to the steps. He put his feet in first.
"Cold?" you asked.
"Not too bad," he said, shrugging. He raised his arm as you stepped in on the first step. "Careful. Don't slip."
You both stood in the water. It splashed across your stomach and made you shiver. You winced and looked up at Flash.
"It's cold," you complained.
"You'll get used to it, babe," he said, and he smacked his hand against the surface of the water. It splashed you, making you gasp.
"Flash!" you exclaimed.
He burst into a fit of laughter. You grimaced and splashed him back. He gasped and staggered back, almost slipping on the bottom of the pool.
"That's not fair, you caught me off guard!"
"Fine, fine," you laughed. "We'll call a truce then."
He smiled. "Okay."
You stepped back and held up a hand in warning. "I'm serious, Flash. Don't try anything!"
He laughed and snaked an arm around your waist. You held onto him tightly as he dragged you out into the deep end of the pool.
"Flash!" you exclaimed. "Don't dunk me! I'm serious!" Your voice was raising with fear.
Suddenly he stopped swimming deeper. He held still and looked at you with worried eyes. "Hey, calm down. I'm not going to drown you."
You slowly peeled your arms away from him. "Sorry."
"Did you really think I would push you under?" he asked.
You shrugged. "I... I don't know. No. I'm sorry, Flash."
He sighed. "I really like you, ___. Guys don't mess with the girls they like like that."
You laughed. "I know."
"So don't be afraid of me," he said, swimming closer to you. He raised his eyebrows and you smiled.
You wrapped your arms around his neck and his arms found your waist. You assumed he could touch the bottom even though you couldn't.
His eyes shifted to your lips. You swallowed nervously as he lifted one hand out of the water and stroked your cheek, leaving droplets of pool water along your face. He pushed a strand of hair that had fallen out of your ponytail behind your ear.
"Can I kiss you?" he asked.
You nodded, not trusting your voice.
His eyes looked at every part of your face like he was debating on how to hold you. He settled for placing on hand on the cheek he already touched and keeping the other hand on your waist. He lowered his face down to you, making you gulp.
His lips brushed yours and you felt a shock of electricity awaken your nerves. His fingers pressed hard into the flesh of your waist, even through the bathing suit. You shut your eyes and felt his thumb move across your cheekbone, wiping away drips of water.
It was the most liked you'd ever felt. As his lips moved with yours, you wondered if it was even love. Or... maybe you were getting ahead of yourself.
Flash broke away. You opened your eyes, cheeks red and eyes wide. He smiled and moved his hand from your cheek. He opened his lips to speak before his eyes shifted to the left and flickered with annoyance.
"Parker!" he shouted.
You flinched and turned around. Your breath hitched in your throat as you saw Peter hunched behind the gate, hood up. Flash was swimming to the edge.
"So help me, Parker, if you tell anyone-!"
He shot up on his feet. "I can't tell people?" he asked in disbelief. "Y-You were just making out with ___ ____ in the pool!" He looked at in disgust. "Ugh, ___, what-"
"Pete! We weren't making out!" you hissed, face turning impossibly more red.
"You can't tell anyone!" Flash snapped.
Peter shook his head and started to back away. "I am telling someone... I'm telling everyone!"
Flash was angry. "Um no!"
It was too late; Peter had taken off. You bit your lip and your boyfriend sighed heavily. You reached up and touched his shoulder, pulling him back into the water.
He nudged you away. "I'm going to go punch him until he can't tell."
"No, Flash," you said.
"I'll be right back, babe-"
You groaned. "I don't get it. What's so bad about every one knowing we're together? I mean, really... we like each other. Unless... unless you're embarrassed of me."
Flash turned to you. "What! No! I'm not embarrassed by you! Dude, right now there's a rumor being spread that I made out with ___ ____ in the hotel pool. That's a dream come true for me and any guy at Midtown!"
You grimaced. "We didn't make out."
"No, but it's cool that people think we did," he said, grinning. He put his arms around your waist. "Look, I just want to protect you. If you don't care that people know, I don't either. I love being your boyfriend. I love that you're my girlfriend."
You smiled. "Yeah?"
He lifted his hand and stroked your cheek again. "Yeah."
"I really like you, Flash. I want us to be good together." You nodded. "So I don't care if people know."
"Good," he said, and he kissed you for the second time.
It made your head spin more than the first kiss.