That Magical Summer

  For the next 20 seconds, you debated over what to do. Your first, and most obvious option was to run. Or you could just say hi. Hi always works. But you didn’t have to make up your mind right then because you saw him turn swiftly around to face you. He was making his way up the beach front with a smile plastered gladly on his face. “Hi,” he said, his accent thick. You stayed silent. What was he doing? You looked at his dirty blonde hair, matching almost identically with yours. It definitely did remind you of the beach. It was a deep chocolate brown at the roots, but magnificently blonde at the tips. Magical really.

“Hi,” you replied quietly as he looked down at you.

“You must be Y/N,” he stated sticking his hand out.

Your eyebrows dipped, “Um yeah. How’d you know that?” You thought you were alone on this beach, Ellie assured you. That’s what this whole trip is about, isn’t it? To be alone?

“My uncle told me,” he smirked quickly.

“Um what uncle?” you asked starting to back away nervously.

“Uncle Pat? The one that owns this place?” he motioned to the three beach houses behind you. You gave him an odd look. “He’s my uncle,” he stated.

“Oh,” you said watching his eyes flicker from yours to your body. You looked down, at your too small bikini and sighed, fidgeting.

“I’m staying in that one over there,” he said pointing to the smallest of the three. It was a musty yellow, with a chimney sticking out slightly on the top.

“But. I thought no one else was staying here,” you interjected stepping back.

“I just moved in yesterday. My uncle wants me to take care of the place, you know look out for it. He also wants me to do a few touchups here and there,” he responded turning back to look at the roaring ocean. His board shorts were electric blue, complementing your bikini perfectly. You tried to avoid his abs, but it was difficult. “Is there a problem?”

“Oh um no. I guess not. I just was really hoping to be alone this summer,” you said dully.

“Really?” he asked sarcastically looking down to your swimsuit again. You awkwardly tried to cover up, grabbing your towel from the sand. “Well anyways. I’m Niall. Nice to meet you.”

“Er I’m Y/N. Nice to meet you too…Niall,” you said back as he shook your hand firmly. You faked a small smile.

“Isn’t the ocean just amazing today?” he asked walking up to stand next to you. He turned to stare at the never-ending ripples of color.

“Yeah,” you said, drifting to the side away from him. You had never noticed that where the ocean met the sky, there was a faint line of mystery. It faded from one shade of blue to the next, tying in the complexity. It was truly beautiful.

“Hey since we’re gonna be spending the next few weeks together, why don’t we get to know each other?” he suggested looking to you. Honestly, that was the last thing you wanted to do. Not this time. Not this summer. You weren’t getting involved with another one of them. Not again.

“Um. I’m actually here for a school project. I have to see what it’s like living in a place like this. I have to uh study the ocean and stuff,” you lied.

“Oh,” he smiled. You could tell he was little disappointed, “Well I’ll see you around then.”

“Yeah I hope so,” you lied again.

            You watched him plow through the sand, back up to the houses. He disappeared around the yellow house, as you sighed. Maybe I was a little harsh, you said to yourself. But you shook it off moments later, remembering what you came here for. You dropped your towel to the sand once more, before diving off into the ocean. You jumped right in, feeling the coolness wrinkle around you, tickling your skin to the point of happiness. After swimming around, enjoying every bit of it, you decided to get out. You ran back to your towel, adjusting your swimsuit top.

            You got back to your house, with clumps of sand in places you didn’t want to mention. You jumped in the shower first thing, making sure to wash and rinse off really well. When you came out, you changed into a lazy pair of sweatpants, and a simple white tank top to go with it. You wrapped your hair in your towel and went into the living room. You sunk into your big couch, inhaling the scent of freedom. Finally. Finally you were away from everything. Away from everyone. Away from him. You smiled to yourself, knowing this summer was gonna be a good one. One to remember, never to forget.

You got up, noticing an antique bookshelf in the back of the tv. You walked over to it, skimming your finger along the dusty dozens of books. Pulling away, a fresh coat of gray molecules were evident on your finger, as you blew it off gently. One book caught your eye: Three Magic Words. So you took it from its former position and sat back down to read it. You cracked open the first page, to be engulfed in a cough of more dust. You brushed it off and began reading the first line, “This is the age of uncertainty…” Ding dong! Your eyes shot up as you heard the piercing sound of your doorbell. You slammed your book down on the table, annoyed and a bit angry that you didn’t get to read any further. You hesitated to the door, as you knew exactly who it was. But you went anyways. You had to be at least a decent neighbour right? You un-locked the front door, opening it wide to a grinning young boy.

“Hey Y/N!” he exclaimed.

“Um hey Niall,” you replied surprised and actually a little proud that you remembered his name.

“So I know that you have a school project and everything, but I was just heading out to the supermarket to get some supplies for some fix ups. Did you need anything?” he asked looking past you, into your house.

“Oh right. I actually do need a few things…” you trailed off as you noticed him step into your house right past you. He looked around, feeling the walls, the paint, the floors. He examined for a while before coming back to you.

“Looks like your end might need some fixing up too,” he said laughing a bit.

“I thought it was alright…” you said feeling the ripped paint, and the cracked wood beneath your feet. It was a lie of course, but you knew he was just doing it so he could “get to know you better”, but you didn’t exactly want to do that.

“So the market?” he asked ignoring you. You didn’t really wanna go with him, but you did need to get some food and supplies sooner or later.

“Alright,” you caved in before remembering the towel turban on the top of your head. You blushed, a bright pink before mumbling, “Give me a minute.” You heard him chuckling from behind you. You ran back into your room, letting your hair out, and combing it so it was somewhat resembled straight hair. You grabbed your big sweatshirt off your bed and a handful of cash. You checked the mirror to check if you were at least a little presentable. You walked back out to see him leaning against your kitchen table.

“Ready?” he asked twirling keys in his fingers, “I’ll drive.