"It's raining."
"No it isn't. Is it?"
Reaching her arm out, Avery comes to a stop where they're walking along the breach trail. She turns her palm up towards the sky, watching a few droplets of water fall onto it, prickling her skin. Her lips twist into a smile. "Yeah it is."
She sidesteps a root as she continues to walk down this specifically narrow part of the trail, tilting her head back to glance up at the gray sky as her lips pull up further, droplets of water falling to her face.
A soft laugh escapes Ethan as she flings her arms out to her sides. "What are you doing?"
"Enjoying the rain." She says, glancing over her shoulder to look at him before she whirls on her heel, holding onto his arms as she smiles. His brows dip together, a glimmer crossing his eyes as there's a faint tug to his lips.
"Are we walking that way now?"
She rolls her eyes, pointedly tilting her head back to look up at the sky again, smiling – teeth and all – as the rain, which has increased in intensity hits her face. "Appreciate the rain with me."
"I'm appreciating it."
"For real."
She flickers her eyes back to him, narrowing them and a silent snort escapes him as he mimics her previous motion, tilting his head back to glance up at the sky. "Now what?"
"Now you smile."
The corners of his lips twitch. "Smile?"
She lifts her own eyes to the gray above, reaching her arms out as the cold rainwater prickles droplets over her skin in the otherwise warm summer's day. "Yeah, now you smile."
A second later the sky cracks open with a thundering roar, rain pouring down, smattering against the leaves of the trees surrounding the trail and violently hitting the graveled path and the tree roots lying across it.
"Still smiling?"
Avery relishes in the feel of the water as it runs down her face. "Still smiling."
As if in response to her words, another – louder, heavier – string of thunder makes it way across the sky, the tree crowns rustling above as the wind takes hold of them. She does love a good rain storm, but as the fabric of her blue linen sundress sticks to her body, as soaked through as her white tennis sneakers, she blinks away the water stuck to her eyelashes and looks over at him.
His lips quirk up. "Ready to run through this storm before it escalates or do you need more time to appr–" He cuts himself off as the gray sky flickers white, lightning striking down in the horizon. Another wave of crawling thunder follows and she laughs, already getting a move on.
"Let's find shelter. Whoa."
He's quick to wrap his hand around hers as she slips on a wet tree root, steadying her just as she's about to drop to the ground. "You okay?"
Another – silent – laugh escapes her lips. "Yeah, I'm fine. Let's go."
♡♡♡
They're full on running, sprinting down the street as they reach Ethan's neighborhood. The rain hasn't calmed down in the slightest, rather having grown even more fierce in the span of the past fourteen minutes. She follows him up his empty driveway as they reach his house at the end of the street, flying up the porch step and jumping in her place as he unlocks the door – more than eager to escape this downpour.
The warmth of the house embraces them as soon as they step over the threshold. Ethan closes the door behind them and turns the lights on, lamps flickering awake along the semi-hallway stretching in front of her, increasing the sense of warmth further.
Stood in her place just inside the door she lets her gaze wander over the space – the wide doorway opening up into a large living room to her left, the wooden bureau running along the wall of the semi-hallway and the staircase leading to the second floor across from it. Framed pictures hang all over the cream colored wall, another few frames stood atop the bureau alongside small decorative bowls and figures, a vase of fresh flowers in it's center.
Ethan drops his key into one of the drawers of the bureau, frowning as he turns around to look at her. "Are you cold?"
She shrugs as she flickers her eyes down to her arms where they're wrapped around her body, skin prickling with goosebumps along her arms and chest, the damp fabric of her dress having begun to dry up ever so slightly. The outdoor temperature itself isn't too cold, but having the rain completely pour over her – soaking every last inch of her clothes and her hair is enough to leave her shivering as the warmth of the house envelops her.
He rests his hand upon the wooden railing of the staircase, already climbing the first step. "Come on."
She frees herself of her soaked through tennis sneakers, leaving them by the door before following him up the stairs. She glances over to the opposite wall of photos but doesn't pause for a closer look, quick to not linger behind.
The second floor, which has another staircase leading up to the top, seems smaller than the downstairs. Just above the landing an open space spreads before them and Avery feels her lips slip into a smile at the sight – on a fuzzy rug, a colorful set of lounge furniture take up the center of the room, three walls surrounding it lined with bookshelves stretching to ceilings, all painted in the same color as the walls. It's a reading nook – but a room. Ethan throws a glance over his shoulder as they walk across it, catching her mesmerized gaze as his lips quirk up.
"Yeah, I thought you'd might like this."
He continues down the hallway, where various toys and dress up clothes are scattered about, past a wide ajar door opening up to what has to be Ella's bedroom – a bookshelf of children's books lining the wall and the nightstand the shape of a soccer ball.
Pushing the door open to the bedroom furthest down the hall, he steps aside to let her in first and she wanders into it with soft footsteps. Though she finds herself wanting to take her time examining every detail – from the battered newspaper cutting fastened to the wall atop his desk to the pile of five paperbacks on the floor next to his bed – she only lets her gaze flicker across it all as she walks over to the window.
Pulling the floor length weaved curtain to the side, the glass of the window fogged up by the humid whirl outside, the water running down it in uneven streams, she glances out at the ocean. The dark body of water reflects the gray of the sky on it's surface, laying surprisingly still, barely making waves despite being caught in a thunder storm.
"Quite a view."
Her words are drowned out by another roar of thunder but he hears her, the left corner of his lips lifting as she turns around and he feigns a nonchalant shrug. "It's okay."
Another cold shiver runs down her back, sending a visible shake to her body as she wraps her arms around herself. He shoots her a look before crossing the room to a bureau, pulling out the mid-drawer.
"What are you doing?"
"What does it look like? Lending you a sweater."
"Thank you."
He eyes her damp dress where it clings to her body, taking his eyes off of the selection of sweaters in the drawer. "Do you want to borrow anything else?"
Her lips pull back in a small smile. "No, I'm fine."
"Are you sure?"
"I'm sure."
He doesn't look entirely convinced, not taking his eyes off of her as he grabs a piece of clothing from the drawer, throwing it across the room. She's barely wrapped her hand around it before throwing it back just as quick. He raises his brows before glancing down at the green sweatshirt, a small laugh escaping his lips.
"Sorry about that," He drops it back into the drawer, pulling out another – one that doesn't have 'Ace East' sprawled all over it – and hands it to her as she walks over to him. "There."
She slips the dark gray, loosely knitted sweater over her head, smiling down at the sleeves as they fall over her hands. "Thanks."
As she asks for the bathroom, he points her to a door just outside his out in the hall and she swiftly makes her way into it, eyeing her reflection in the mirror.
Her mascara and the rosy glow of her eyeshadow have more or less washed off without a trace, only a few tiny black specks smudged on the skin beneath her eyelashes. She runs the cold tips of her fingers over it, wiping the mascara away entirely before she rolls her eyes at the sight of her wide smile in the reflection.
Running her fingers through her tousled up, damp hair doesn't do much to improve it's winded state and she gathers it into her hands, twisting it up into a bun before realizing she doesn't have a hair tie, simply letting the blonde waves fall down over her shoulders again.
♡♡♡
Ethan's on the phone as she returns to the bathroom and she silently lingers by the door, weighing back on her feet as she gazes over his room.
"Yeah, no it's pouring here too–" As if to testify to his words, thunder makes it way across the sky with a crackling sound as if threatening to lift the house off the ground. "I'm home. I couldn't even if I wanted to – you have both the cars. Yeah, you too. Bye."
As he hangs up, he places his phone on the tabletop of his desk, looking up to realize she's watching him. He pushes his hand through his hair, picking another phone off of his bed, extending it with a small smile. "I believe this is yours."
"Oh," She walks over to him – momentarily having forgotten about asking him to take it off her hands while out on their walk. Quickly glancing down at the screen to make sure no one's tried to reach her, she places it next to his on the desk. "Who were you talking to?"
"Mom."
She leans back against the desk, tugging at the sleeves of his sweater as she wraps her arms around herself. "What do we do now?"
He lifts his arm – and she realizes he's changed into a set of dry clothes himself, his shorts and t-shirt exchanged for a pair of black joggers and a worn out Ace East t-shirt – rubbing the nape of his neck. "I would offer to take you home but I don't have any of the cars here."
"I don't want to– I mean, I'm in no rush."
He weighs back on his feet. "We could watch Brooklyn Nine-Nine," She doesn't mean to let her lips pull into a grimace in her hesitance but he narrows his eyes at the sight. "You promised. Do you need me to pull up the receipts?"
She rolls her eyes, fingers lacing around his hand as he reaches for his phone as her lips slip into a smile. "Okay. We'll watch your stupid show."
"Not stupid."
"We'll see."
He shakes his head with a soft laugh, interlacing his fingers with hers as she trails behind him back to the downstairs.
♡♡♡
It turns out the downstairs living room crosses over into a kitchen, hidden just around the corner from it – the entire shared wall of the two rooms lined by windows and two sets of wide sliding doors, leading out onto the porch and facing the oceanfront.
Avery lingers by the kitchen island, elbows propped up on it's black marble counter as she watches Ethan move around the room while also momentarily flickering her eyes around this part of the house.
She's tempted to venture off on her own. Tempted to examine the framed photographs out by the stairs. Tempted to take her time to wander around the living room, taking notice of the art on the walls and the small things that make this house a home. Tempted to run her fingers along the spines of the books in the cases upstairs but she stays put, leant forward on her elbows as she awaits the kettle on the stove.
Her smile widens as they settle into the living room, taking the teddy lined blanket Ethan's extending her and wrapping it close around her shoulders before dropping down into a corner of the L-shaped couch. She pulls her heels towards her in a cross legged seat, leaning forward to grab her cup of tea from where she's put it down on the table as he fiddles with the remote to get the TV – and Netflix – going.
He throws the lone package of chocolate chip cookies they found in the pantry onto the cushion next to her before dropping into a seat in the opposite corner, extending his legs out long as he pushes a hand through his curls.
"Ready?"
She smiles over the rim of her cup, nodding once. "Ready."
He pointedly nods towards the screen as the first episode begins, launching them straight into the crime scene of a robbery, and she tears her eyes away from him to watch the show.
"Those two end up together don't they?" She asks, referring to the two detectives caught up in banter on the screen.
"Just watch it."
She sinks back against the cushions and tugs at the blanket to wrap it closer around herself. "How many times have you seen this show?"
"A few."
"Who's that guy?"
A cross between a groan and a laugh escapes his lips as he looks over at her. "Are you going to ask questions this whole time?"
♡♡♡
"What'd you do that for?" Avery asks as Ethan pauses five seconds into the third episode, turning to look at him only to realize he's positively grinning at her disappointment.
"Got you hooked," He says and her eyes narrow but she simply shrugs, watching him get to his feet, pointing to their empty cups. "Snack refill. Do you want more tea or should we move onto the lemonade?"
"Lemonade, duh."
He leaves for the kitchen and she straightens up in her seat, glancing around the room to take it in – such as the painting of an oceanfront hung on the wall to the side of the wide doorway. Untangling her legs, she stretches them out long before pulling them to her chest, looping her arms around them and resting her chin upon them, gaze wandering over the room.
He returns a second later and she holds her hand out for the large glass of lemonade, lips twisting into a smile. "Thank you."
He drops back into his seat, throwing a bag of M&Ms towards her and they bounce off her legs, falling to the cushion. "I stole those from Ella."
"Mean."
"I'll get her new ones."
"You better," Avery picks the bag up, already tearing it apart as her lips twitch into a smile. "Or I'd feel way too bad. Where is she anyways?"
"Jacksonville. Soccer tournament."
"Ah."
She sinks back into the cushions, wrapping the blanket closer around her knees as she pours some M&Ms into her palm. She hands the bag over to Ethan as she continues to ask questions about the show – he shoots most of them down, saying she'll have to watch the rest of the episodes to get her answers. They somehow slip into the topic of shows versus movies – she obviously prefers the latter, while he argues a show lasts longer. And then, as she flickers her eyes back to the frozen screen – and the characters upon it she moves her focus back to the show.
"I don't know why but I feel like Gina and Jake have a special bond."
He nods, not seeming to think he's giving too much away by saying, "They grew up together. On and off screen actually."
"Oh so he's her Luke."
He shoots her a look, leaning over to pour some M&M's into her palm before popping one into his own mouth. "Truth hour?"
"Go ahead."
"There's never been anything between you and Luke?"
A dry laugh escapes her lips. "I thought we'd been over this. No."
"Never?"
"Please. He's like the brother I've nev–" She cuts herself off, a twinge of guilt to her chest as she realizes she does have – not one but two – brothers. She swallows back the lump in her throat, eyeing the differently colored M&Ms in her hand to decide which order to eat them. "We're family. That's it."
She pops the green one into her mouth. "Luke's only got eyes for one girl and it's not me," Extending her leg, she nudges him with her foot. "Press play."
His brows dip together for a millisecond, that small crease appearing between his eyes as he flickers his eyes over her face before he grabs the remote, pressing play. She lifts the glass of lemonade to her lips as the intro plays, glancing over at him before shifting in her seat. Leaving her corner, she takes the blanket with her and scoots down the couch, positioning herself next to him as she leans into his side.
He glances down just as she tilts her head back to look up at him. "Is it okay if I sit like this?"
A faint smile slips onto his lips as he nods.
Her eyes gaze over his face. The crease between his eyes she always finds herself wanting to press her thumb to. The lines of his cheekbones and jaw, the slope of his nose. Those dark pools of his eyes. She taps her fingers against the condensed glass in her hand, wanting to reach up and trace them along his jaw. Wanting to push them through those short dark brown curls.
He pokes his finger into her back, lifting his arm to wrap loosely around her shoulders. "Don't watch me, watch the show."
She bites down at her lip with a smile, turning her attention to the TV as he pours another few M&M's into her palm.
♡♡♡
The next morning the storm's blown over without a trace – as if it was never there at all. The sun's high and bright on the blue sky and the entire town's enclosed by exactly the kind of suffocating heat one would expect on the last day of the month of July.
Avery swallows back a yawn, blinking where she's stood by the pick-up counter at Beans & Bagels. Tired is an understatement of what she is – having stayed up far too late once she got home last night, accidentally having binged half a season of Brooklyn Nine-Nine.
She has to admit it's quite a good show, which is exactly what she had texted Ethan upon getting her phone out mid-watching yesterday night. She had barely taking her eyes off the screen before he sent her a reply reading 'can't believe you're watching it without me traitor' to which she had simply pointed out she had only promised to watch it, not specifically with him.
She'd added a screenshot of their initial conversation on the agreement, which had taken her far too many messages to scroll up through before eventually finding it, for the sake of making a point. He quickly admitted defeat, instead spending the rest of the late night hours entertaining her with his commentary on her commentary of the show.
Her phone chimes again now and she glances down at the screen as she takes a step back from the counter with her iced chai in hand, shooting a 'thank you' the barista's way. Lips twitching into a small smile at the sight of the notif, she sips the iced chai as she leans against the column and replies to his text asking what she's up to by telling him she's in town. His reply comes a second later.
'that god-awful son of my boss'
come over?
She glances up at her mother who's stirring a wood stir stick around her coffee. They're supposed to find her grandfather – who's birthday is two mere days after her own – a birthday gift for their joint celebration.
have a few things to do
but in a while?
i'll be here
"This won't take too long, right?"
Sarah glances over at Avery as they criss cross through the coffee shop to the door, pushing it open and stepping out into to the warm day. "Why, do you have plans?"
"No, not really," Avery runs a hand down the fabric of her dress, sipping her iced chai mindlessly. "I just thought maybe I would head over to the beach for a while – it being Sunday and all."
"The beach, right," Sarah's lips pull back in a small smile as she hooks their arms together, steering their steps towards Main Street. "Well, we better get started then."
♡♡♡
"Again."
A laugh escapes Avery's lips. "Don't you think it's time you give up?"
"Again."
With a small shake of her head, rolling her lips together to try and dampen her smile but only having the corners of them pull even wider, she reaches her hand into the bowl of blueberries. "Okay. Be ready," She says, straightening up in her seat across from Ethan on the lounge chair. "Catch!"
The fistful of the berries bounce off his face, not even one landing in his open mouth, and she folds over laughing.
"You can't throw them all at once!"
"Well, I was growing bored."
He leans over, grabbing a berry to chuck at her. Her arms fly into the air, the shock written all over her face as she manages to catch it in her mouth.
A cross between a groan and a chuckle escapes his lips. "Show off."
"You're such a sore loser."
"Am not."
"Trust me," She extends one of her legs out long, nudging him with her foot. "I've seen you lose several times."
He raises his brows. "Oh, it's going to be like that now, is it?"
She stretches her fingers out, pretending to regard her nails. "I'm simply stating that– AAAAH," She slides down the lounge chair as he grabs her by the ankle, coughing her words through laughter as he launches a tickle attack to her ribs. "No... Stop... I take it back! I take it back!"
He pauses, lifting his hands as he peers down at her. "What'd you say?"
She pushes herself up in a cross legged seat next to him, raising her own hands in surrender.
"I take it back. You're not a sore loser," She forces a breath down her lungs, gathering herself. "To be honest, I admire how good you are at taking your losses in stride. NO," She untangles one of her legs, lifting her foot as if to threatening a kick in self defense. "Truce?"
He eyes her, smile crossing into a grin as he leans forward, hand wrapping around her foot to prevent her from actually kicking him as he presses a kiss to the corner of her mouth. "Yeah, okay. Truce."
He pulls back and she keeps a wary gaze on him as she slowly lowers her hands, grabbing a blueberry from the bowl and popping it into her mouth. Her eyes narrow as the corners of his lips twitch, a gleam to his dark eyes. "What?"
"Just..." He scoots closer, thumb brushing over her lip. "You always manage to get food on your face."
She rolls her eyes, gaze dropping to his thumb where it lingers along the curve of her mouth. She lifts her hand, about to sprawl her fingers through his hair as the door to the porch slides wide open. He scrambles up from the chair, backing – rather ungracefully – into the wooden railing.
"Hi loves."
"I didn't realize you'd be home already." He says in greeting, the words falling out of his mouth in one rapid breath as Anna peers her head around the frame of the door. Avery flickers her eyes between the bowl of blueberries, Ethan and Anna. Returning her gaze to the blueberries before starting all over again – cheeks growing redder by the second.
"Pedal through the metal," Anna shrugs, eyes flickering between Ethan and Avery. "You know how I hate those post-game ice cream rallies. Have you two had anything to eat? I'm thinking I'll make a salad."
They both mumble some incoherent string of words, Avery accidentally squeezing the blueberry perched between her fingers so that it bounces off of her, leaving a splatter of purple across her bikini top.
Anna seems to take that as a yes because she turns on her heel a moment later, the floor length curtain inside the window fluttering in the doorway as a slight ocean breeze makes it way through the air.
Ethan clears his throat, voice a bit strangled as he calls, "You want any help?"
"No, no," Her airy, chipper voice calls back. "I've got it. You two enjoy the sun while it lasts."
He turns to meet Avery's gaze then. "She did realize it's you, right?"
"I'm pretty sure she did, yes."
His brows dip together, walking over to take her hand into his own as a smile slips onto his lips. "What happened to you?"
She flickers her eyes to her palms, more or less painted purple by having distracted herself with eating blueberries instead of entertaining the thoughts fleeting around her mind. Like the fact that she's at her boss's house. Or that she had been seconds away from making out with said boss's son – again. All while dressed in a, now blueberry stained, bikini. Oh, and now she's apparently having lunch here too.
Anna doesn't seem particularly phased but Avery can't deny the woman's arrival set a jumble of thoughts on the loose. Thoughts she'd very much like to pack into boxes and push to the back of her mind until the day she's forced to deal with them, if even at all.
She sets the bowl of berries aside, shooting it a look as she too gets to her feet, shrugging in response.
"Want to go for a swim?"
She nods, releasing the small breath she's been holding as he wraps his arms around her. His chest warm against hers as she breathes in the scent of his sunblock – of him, of summer. Tilting her head back, her lips twist into a smile. "Got to enjoy the sun while it lasts, right?"
Her eyes flutter shut as he brushes his lips against her hair in a brief kiss. "Right."
. . .
hi again! I know these small notes are a bit repetitive, but you all hype me up and are so supportive and sweet so I want to take the opportunities I do have to let you know it's so very appreciated. thank you so so much, it means the world to me.
don't forget to follow me here and/or on socials (link in bio) to keep up with my ramblings and updates.
much love, L