Uncharted Territory

Room service brought up enough food to our room for Josh and I to eat for a century, and I had barely finished a plate before I was filled to the brim with delicious food. Josh scarfed down two more plates before he decided he’d had enough, and the two of us plopped down on the sofa while I flicked the television on.

Some bad chick flick was playing. I didn’t care enough to change the channel, and judging by Josh’s tightly shut eyes, he didn’t care either. We were about twenty minutes into the horrid film when Josh let out a long breath beside me and popped his eyes open, turning to me with his lips pressed together.

“Do you wanna go out to the beach?” He asked, leaning forward so his elbows were resting on his knees. “I imagine it looks beautiful at night.

I nodded my head quickly in agreement. “Yeah, that sounds nice.”

Josh raised his eyebrows up while he stood from the sofa, and I soon followed. The two of us walked side by side down the hallway and through the lobby until our feet finally hit the sand.

The moon was casting across the ocean like a perfect painting, and its elegant light flicked up to cast shadows over our faces. The sound of the waves lapping against the sand was the only thing that could be heard aside from Josh and I’s footsteps.

It was beautiful and perfect, and I couldn’t help up feel sorry for Josh because he was supposed to be spending that moment with the love of his life. That clearly didn’t work out, though.

Josh laughed beside me in the silence, and I knew he’d been lost up in his head again. “I can’t believe I told you that.”

“What?” I asked, looking at him with my eyebrows raised. “Told me what?”

Josh chuckled, shaking his head. “Just about the crush thing. I always swore I’d take that to my grave.”

I laughed at him, my lips curling up in a smile. “Would it really have been that bad for me to know?”

“Well,” Josh said, shrugging his shoulders. “Considering it could have lost me my best friend, I’d say so.”

“You wouldn’t have lost me, Josh,” I said, chuckling as I shook my head. Josh tilted his head to the side, a playful smile on his face as he looked at me.

“Try telling that to a hormonal teenage boy.”

I laughed again, and neither of us said anything else for a few long moments. We just kept walking along the beach, our feet kicking in the sand, while our words hung in the air. After a few more steps, I finally spoke again, keeping my voice as light and playful as I could.

“I had a crush on you too, you know,” I said matter-of-factly, crossing my arms across my chest as Josh looked over at me with wide eyes. His mouth was hung agape and he just stared at me for a moment before he let out a nervous laugh.

“Really?” He asked, and I nodded. “I had no clue.”

I nodded again, and there was only silence for a few moments as we walked. Josh stopped suddenly, rubbing his hand over the back of his neck as I looked at him. His eyes were anywhere but at mine – on my feet, at the ocean, in the sand – and it took several long moments before he finally looked towards my face again.

“Erin, can I –” He paused, letting out a short breath. “Can I kiss you? Just so I can know what it would have been like.”

I felt a lump forming in my throat, and all I could do was nod my head slowly as sweat began to pool in the palms of my hands. My body was suddenly a nervous wreck, and it only grew worse when Josh took a step closer to me, so there was only a few inches between us.

He looked down at me with his soft eyes while he reached up with his right hand and run his thumb once gently over the apple of my cheek. His touch was like a wildfire against my skin, and the move sent my eyes fluttering closed in a flash.

Before I had a chance to register everything, I felt Josh’s warm breath against my lips, which was quickly followed with his lips against mine. My whole body felt like it was going to buckle underneath me, and it took every muscle I had to steady myself and lock my knees together.

His lips were so soft and so warm, and they tasted like peppermint and his mother’s cookies. It was like everything I had imagined it would be all those nights when I was a little girl dreaming of him, and even those daydreams didn’t compare to the real thing.

When he pulled away, his eyes were wide and his cheeks were covered in the finest shade of red I’d ever seen, but I was certain it was nothing compared to mine. He let out a nervous laugh, which I quickly reciprocated, and we smiled at each other before taking a step back.

He ran his hand over the back of his neck, chuckling softly while his eyes moved from my feet back up to my face again. “Well, there’s that,” he said nervously, pressing his lips together when he was finished.

I nodded my head, my body slowly starting to gain the feeling I had lost. “Well, there’s that.”

Josh gave another nervous laugh before he cleared his throat and motioned back to our hotel. “We should probably head back, yeah? Get a good night’s rest.”

I nodded my head softly, head still reeling over what happened, and I hoped that with all of the thoughts in my head I’d at least be able to get a wink of sleep.