Love Like A Tidal Wave

~Vic’s Point of View

The bass from the club’s sound system shook the entire building and with enough alcohol in my system I couldn’t decipher my heart beat from the bass pulsing through my body. Pink, blue, and yellow lights flashed over hundreds of bodies moving as one on the dance floor.

“Hey, let’s get out of here.” Lyla had turned to face me and had to yell into my ear from me to hear her. We had been dancing for what seemed like hours and I couldn’t feel my legs anymore. She was looking at me through her lashes and the longer we made eye contact the more devilish her grin became.

Before I could reply she had me by the hand and was weaving her tiny body through the crowd of people still dancing. After a few minutes we made our way outside and I could feel my body as its’ own. We didn’t talk, but Lyla led me down the street and we walked hand in hand through the yellow patches of light strewn across the cracked sidewalks by the street lamps. The buildings disappeared after a mile and suddenly we were walking parallel to the quiet beach. Lyla took her shoes off and ran to the water giggling and let the waves lap at her tiny, painted toes.

“Do you want to stay here or do you want to go home?” I came behind her, wrapping my arms around her waist, and whispered in her neck. It was quiet except for the low roar of the waves crashing into the shore for a moment. She turned and barely pressed her lips to mine and I knew that meant ‘home’.

We walked along the beach and upstairs stairs to our back porch. There weren’t any lights on and the house was still; everyone must still be at the club. My hand reached to turn on the kitchen light but Lyla was suddenly in front of me and her lips were moving against mine. This was a side of Lyla I had never seen before, but one I wouldn’t mind seeing again. We walked backward until we hit the counter and I lifted her up so she could sit. Her thin legs wrapped around me, drawing me closer. My fingers lightly danced against the small of her back underneath her thin, sparkly shirt. She stopped kissing me to slip it off her shirt and then did the same with mine. Her skin was hot against mine and instantly filled me with a warmth I didn’t know I was in need of.

“Bedroom.” The word came as a gasp from her mouth while I kissed her neck and I tried to hide my smile while I carried her to our bedroom. The door clicked shut and I couldn’t tell you what happened from there.

I could feel the warmth being emitted from the love bites left on my neck and the scratches that were forming on my back when I awoke. Lyla was curled into a ball next to me completely covered by the blankets. I laughed at her strange sleeping position and then got up to get dressed. I looked at the clock and was astonished to find it read 5:00! When had we finally fallen asleep? I kissed Lyla on her forehead and the corners of her mouth twitched into a smile while she dreamed.

The rest of the house was quiet and sleeping. I didn’t feel bad about sleeping into the afternoon anymore. I rounded the corner and found Tony sitting on one of barstools in the kitchen, tapping his foot with anxiety filled eyes.

“I’ve been awake since eight this morning. Everyone needs to wake up and get out of here. Everything has to be perfect for tonight.” Tony’s words were rushed and he jumped out of the chair like it had suddenly burst into flames when he saw me.

“Ton, what are you talking about?” I rubbed the sleep from my eyes.

“You –know-what-I’m-talking-about.” Tony hissed through his teeth and widened his eyes. A bell went off in my head.

“Ohhhh, right. I’ll go wake Lyla.”

“Jaime is getting ready and Mike went home with someone last night so don’t need to worry about waking him up. Just tell him not to come home.”

I nodded and proceeded to make breakfast. Bacon was sizzling and Tony was glaring at me when Lyla emerged from the bedroom. She had on a pair of my boxers and a big tshirt and I had never seen anyone look more beautiful.

“Oh yeah. I found these this morning.” Tony threw a wad of fabric at Lyla from the kitchen table. They hit her in the face and then she burst out laughing: it was our shirts from last night. “You guys are gross.” Tony said, but he was laughing.

“Don’t tell us we’re gross! I can hear you and Olivia almost every night. I don’t even want to know how you get her to make those noises.” Lyla laughed and sat across the table from Tony. His face turned red under his thick rimmed glasses.

~Tony’s Point Of View

An hour and a half later I closed the front door after Jaime, Vic, and Lyla. I sighed and leaned against the front door. Tonight had to be perfect.

“Tell me again why we didn’t go see a movie with everyone else?” Olivia came out of our bedroom towel drying her hair. She had on simple black skinny jeans and one of her many Love Before Glory tanks.

“Because I want to be alone with you, princess.” I grabbed her waist. “Is that so bad?”

“Not at all.” She kissed me quickly then sat on the couch. “Ohhh, my favorite!” She had spotted the bowls of snacks I had set out on the coffee table. Red and green Sour Patch Kids, Doritos, and giant glasses of Yoo-Hoo chocolate milk were spread of the glass surface. “You’re the best.” She said while I put the DVD into the machine.

“Only for the best.” I smiled and sat next to her. She brought her legs up beside her and rested her head on my shoulder.

“Tonyyyy!” She squealed when the opening credits for Tangled came onto the screen and squeezed my hand. “This is my favorite!”

I kissed her forehead and tried to concentrate on the movie for the next hour and half but my mind kept going somewhere else. Alternating between the gorgeous girl beside me and the special edit I had made to the end of the DVD.

“That movie never gets old.” Olivia stretched and made to get up but I put a hand on her leg.

“Wait, I think there’s something extra at the end of this one.” She looked confused at what I had just said but focused again on the screen. The darkness faded away and I appeared on the screen.

“Hi baby. The year I’ve spent with you has been the best year of my life. There are an infinite amounts of years in our future filled with all your dreams come to life and everything I can possibly offer you. I love you with all my heart and that will never, ever change.” On screen Tony said. I was standing on the beach.

“Tony, what’s going on?” Olivia’s mouth hung open in shock.

The video panned out and written before me in the sand were the words ‘Will you marry me?’. I got down on one knee in between the coffee table and the couch and repeated what was on the screen.
“So, Olivia. Will you marry me?” The ring box popped open and that’s when she started crying. She flung her arms around me and we toppled over backward onto the floor.

“There aren’t words I can use to tell you how much I love you. Of course, I will marry you.” Olivia kissed me after those words and we stayed in that position in the middle of the floor for a long time before I slipped her ring on her finger with shaking hands.