I Can See Your Skin

"Come on, Jason! Don't be a pussy."

"Yeah, dude. Just jump in."

From her spot behind the bush, she could vaguely see his form on the bridge. The sun was shining off his golden hair, his broad shoulders pulled back resolutely as he stared at the water. Jason's friends were already in the river, beckoning him to join them.

"I don't know guys. We're not supposed to be out here," he said, his voice wavering only a little.

"Stop being a fucking wimp and just jump in!"

"But there's a 'don't swim' sign and everything."

"Do it!" one guy practically screamed.

The girls littered across the bridge around him cheered, and they all started to chant jump, jump, jump. One guy came forward, shoving Jason over the side of the bridge. He hit the water with a loud splash and everyone erupted into laughter.

The small shriek that left Minah's mouth was so loud, a couple heads swiveled in her direction. She shrunk back farther into the bush, clutching her camera to her chest.They all turned back, the rest of the girls ditching their clothes and jumping in the water.

Jason let out a laugh, the tone of it so rich and husky it caused a shiver to go down Minah's back, despite the summer heat. She watched as he reached behind himself and tugged his shirt off and over his head. The gasp stuck in her throat and she fumbled for her camera, turning it on. She looked through the lens, and let out a frustrated groan.

He was too far away.

Him and his friends started doing backstrokes through the water, the girls splashing at each other and giggling loudly.

Minah sucked in a breath, trying to decide what to do. When his laugh reached her again and her heart thudded violently in her chest, she was setting her camera down and pulling her shirt off without another thought, revealing her swimsuit. She shucked her denim shorts, kicking them off along with her flip-flops. Slowly, she slid off the bank of the river and into the water, reaching back to the grass to grab her camera.

She sunk down in the water, until the only things visible were her shoulders, head and camera. Her breath started coming faster as she moved forward. When she was a few yards away she rasied the camera and looked through the lens. Her breath caught in her throat once more.

Jason was just so heart-wrenchingly beautiful.

The sun was glinting off his bronzed shoulders, his smile wicked and devilish in the daylight. It was an arresting contrast to the warm, rich honey of his tawny eyes. He swam over to the river's bank and hauled himself up onto the grass. The leftover water ran down his chest in rivulets, catching in the plans of his abs before disappearing into his swim trunks.

Minah started clicking frantically, trying to capture his beauty. She had never seen someone so perfect. Just all of that skin out for her to see. She had to bit back a moan of pleasure at the sight of him.

"Hey, Jason! Your stalker is back."

She brought the camera down, and realized too late that she had drifted closer than she had meant to. He jumped up from the riverbank, his eyes scanning the water. When they landed on her, he jogged over to the bridge where he pulled his shirt back on, shielding all that glorious, tanned skin from Minah's view.

"Minah," one guy called, his voice cruel and laughing. "Did you get enough pictures? If not, I'll always come pose for you. Or better yet, you can come pose for me."

All the guys broke out into snickers, hooting and catcalls.

She squeaked and swam back to where her clothes were, climbing up onto the grass. She gathered her clothes into her arms, shoved her feet into her sandals and ran away, her cheeks flaming with embarassment. She ran through the trees, leaves catching in her drenched, dark hair. The sounds of the campground finally hit her, and she broke out from the trees, landing right next to the line of school buses. She darted inbetween them, making her back to her cabin.

Her classmates were all around her, enjoying the school-funded trip. She passed the small park on the grounds as well as the pool and started down the dirt path between the cabins. When number 15 came into view, she ran up the steps and closed the doors behind her. The other girls bunking with her were gone, enjoying the sunny day outside.

She flopped onto the bed she had claimed as hers, the breath leaving her lungs in heavy puffs. Minah pulled the blanket over her wet body, burrowing into the mound of pillows she had brought from home. Taking one last look around the room to make sure she was alone, she brought the camera close to her face, turned it back on, and started flicking through the pictures she had taken.

Jason smiling. Jason laughing. Jason lounging on the riverbank. Jason soaking in the sun. Jason turning his head to look at her. His eyes widening comically.

She smiled, wondering what it would be like if his eyes grew heavy and warm as he looked at her. Imagined his tanned skin rubbing against her own olive-toned body, raising goosebumps across her flesh. She shivered, and started going through the other pictures she had of him, her imagination growing with each one.

"Mmm, Jason," she hummed.

"Minah?"

She jerked up in bed, not having heard the door open. One of her roommates was standing at the end of her bed, a girl with a bland name that she couldn't remember.

"Yeah?" she asked, pulling the camera under her blanket.

"Where were you today? We were all gonna go swimming together," the blonde girl pouted, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Sorry. I'm not feeling all that great," she fake coughed, hoping the girl would buy it.

"Aw. Well, go back to sleep. I'll wake you up when the dinner bell gets called."

"Thanks," Minah nodded feebly, turning over onto her side.

The corners of her mouth tilted up with a soft smile, the camera cocooned against her heart.