Summer Has Come and Passed

I held onto the rusting chains which held up Billie and me as we shared a swing. My legs wrapped around Billie as he had a secure hand placed on my lower back as he swung us both back and forth. The motion continuing on as the small bustle of the traffic from the street filled the background.

I gripped the chains tighter as I leaned my head back along with my body. Letting my hair fall freely from me, I continued leaning my head back further as our speed increased.

While still swinging I carelessly let my hands fall free from the chains, sticking my hands palm upward into the air.I began to lean back even further becoming almost a dead weight, I felt myself falling.

However, instead of feeling grass beneath me, I felt a warm chest pushed up against my own. I fluttered my eyes open to see a disproving Billie sitting underneath me.

"Were you just gonna let yourself fall?" He asked. "Or were you not paying attention?"

“I was not falling,” I retorted. "I was flying." I said stretching my arms in the air once again.

"Flying?" He asked while bringing my arms back down by my wrists.

I nodded. "Yes." I stated matter-of-factly.

"Why not soaring? He teased.

"Must you always do that?" I asked and I could see a devilish smile pulling at the edges of his mouth.

"Do what?" He asked, innocently tilting his head to the side.

"That," I said with a flick of my wrist. "Y’know, that thing you do."

"Still not comprehending." He said with the same teasing tone.

"You're an ass." I said folding my arms across my chest along with a pout.

He lightly laughed. "I’m sorry." He apologized while kicking his legs forward pushing the swing again. My retort was sticking my tongue out. Billie let out a laugh, as did I, and we continued swinging back n forth in a soothing motion. As Billie pushed, I drank in the view. The starry night and the lights from the city made such a gorgeous combination. There truly was something special about a park at nighttime.

"So beautiful...” I murmured aloud.

"Why thank you, your compliments are always welcomed.” Billie piped in smugly, obviously hearing my statement which was supposed to have stayed in my head.

I rolled my eyes and gave a snort to Billie’s cocky remark.

"You know I'm just pulling ya leg,” He cooed. “You’re thee most beautiful sight. A grand sight.”

"Am I?" I asked with a quirk of my brow.

“Oh most definitely,” He responded. “I could shout it from the rooftops all night long.”

My mouth quirked up into a smirk. “Then put your money where your mouth is, Armstrong.”

“What?” He stammered but then soon understands what my challenge means and lets out a chuckle. “You seriously want me to shout from a rooftop how beautiful you are?”

I gave a slight shrug. “It doesn't have to be a rooftop,” I responded, which earned me an eye roll from him. “It could be that there bench.”

“You’re serious.”

“So serious.” I replied back with a grin as I unhooked my arms from around his neck and carefully removed myself from his lap and the swing. I could hear a faint rip as a result of the thin material of my sundress snagged on a ragged piece of the swing-set’s chain. I paid it no mind though as I parked my rear on the ground a few feet away from the bench.

“You can totally protest your love for me now.” I giggled, pulling my knees close to my chest watching as Billie got up from the swing.

“You’re a mental case y’know that,” he said with a grin as he walked by me. “Insane.”

“I know,” I admitted proudly. “Now quit stallin’ and get to tellin’ the world how great I am.”

“It’s not the whole world y’know,” He retorted hopping onto the bench. “It’s only Oakland.”

I didn't even need to verbally respond because my mere facial expression spoke to Billie for me and it loudly said: ‘Shut-up smartass’.

Billie gave a wink to me, and dramatically cleared his throat. “Ahem,” he cupped his hands around his mouth. “Hello Oakland!”

My mouth instantly blew up into a smile.

“I wanna tell you all how amazingly fantastic Vienna is,” he exclaimed. “Oakland California, I fucking love this girl. I fuckin’ love her, way more than she fuckin’ loves me.”

I couldn’t contain the squeals of laughter from bubbling up inside. It was absolutely comical and so Billie-like. I cupped my hands around my own mouth.

“No!” I exclaimed in protest. “I fucking love you more!”

Billie’s lips turned themselves into a gorgeous toothy grin. “Horseshit,” He retorted. “I love you way more!”

“Oh yeah?” I challenged him. Intrigued now, Billie raised an eyebrow. “Prove it.”

I beckoned him with a motion of my wrist and--literally--with a hop, skip, and a jump, Billie was sat beside me. Soon enough his body hovered over mine, his hands and arms on either side of my face. He dipped his head low to mine.

“Now what were you saying?” He queried, his eyes fixated only on my face. But then his gaze flickered down to my lips. He darted his tongue out to swiftly lick over his own. “Prove it?”

He ghosted his lips close to mine, and now it was my turn to stare at his pair of plump pink lips. My gaze would switch between his mouth and his eyes. My eyes locked with Billie’s, I nearly shivered at his touch when he tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear. His hand lingered there as we both laid in silence. Even in the darkness I could see clear as day when Billie’s mouth turned into a taunting smirk.

My hands pushed against his chest, nearly shoving him off.

“You’re a tease.” he whined, lying flat on his back.

“I know.” I grinned.

He groaned. “I couldn’t at least get a kiss?”

“Nope.” I responded popping the ‘p’. I rolled my body to the side and hooked my leg over his waist, nestling close to his body as the temperature began dropping.

“That’s just cruel.” He said, closing the remaining space between our bodies. I said something along the lines of: ‘Shut-up and be a man’, and pecked him on the lips. He and I for the next few moments went back and forth--sleepily--talking. Talking about pure nonsense and the first things that popped into our heads until soon enough one of us stopped talking and both of us succumbed to sleeping bliss and snoring.