Falling in Love Will Kill You

“It’s TOO hot! I’m ANGRY.” A voice yelled from across the beach, startling Jack as he lay in the sand. The fifteen year old was annoyed to have been woken up from his nap, but he was also grateful towards the loud stranger. He’d been out in the sun for too long, and it was time to head inside. So, Jack picked up his towel, brushing his dark hair out of his eyes, and began to walk across the beach. Before crossing the road that lay between the beach and the place that he was staying at, though, he decided to turn around to see where the voice that had woken him up had come from, just out of curiosity. What he didn’t expect, though, was to see another boy around his age, possibly a small bit shorter than him, with golden blond hair and a small brown dog in his arms. The boy seemed to be with his parents, and Jack realized he had probably been staring too long when the other boy’s eyes locked with his. Jack tried to contain his excitement, offering the other boy a smile, and then turning around to make his way back to his hotel. You see, Jack had been going to that same hotel and beach every summer with his family ever since he was little, all the way up until this summer, the summer of 2003, and he would probably go for the rest of his summers, too. There had never been any other kids that seemed to be around his age though, and while that kind of sucked, he had used the time to spend it with his family, and also by himself. That didn’t mean that he wouldn’t mind having a friend in that town though, no, not at all.

The next day, after dinner, Jack was heading down to the hotel pool. As the elevator doors opened and he entered the small space, he was met by the other boy that he had seen at the beach the day before. Unsure of what to do, he shuffled into the corner of the elevator, looking down at his feet. He considered what would happen if he decided to say something to the other boy, and went through all of the possible outcomes in his head, but before he could make up his mind, the doors were opening and the nameless boy was walking out. Sighing to himself, Jack followed him out of the elevator, collapsing onto a chair near the edge of the pool. He watched as the boy lifted his shirt off of his torso and leaped into the water, deciding that he should probably stop staring, and closing his eyes for yet another nap.

Jack was getting breakfast when he next saw the ‘beach boy’, as he had begun to refer to him. He was helping himself to the food at the buffet in the lobby of the hotel, when the other boy had walked up next to him. Saving Jack the trouble of worrying about how to start a conversation again, the other boy spoke up.

“Hey, I’m Alex,” he said, grinning at Jack, eyes sparkling.

“Jack,” the taller boy replied, also grinning, as a result of the other boy’s smile.

“Well Jack, since you’re the only other person around here who isn’t six or sixty, would you like to eat with me?” Alex asked, tipping his head to the side, and flashing Jack another smile.

“Yeah, sure,” Jack mumbled, following the other boy to a table across the room. He was unsure of what was more distracting, the thoughts of all of the fun things he’d be able to do with a friend this summer, or the butterflies that had somehow made their way into his stomach.

The two boys sat down, talking as they ate. They had learned a lot about each other. For instance, Alex had told Jack that he was also fifteen, and that he was born in England. They also came to discover that they both liked the same kind music, had a few favourite TV shows in common, and both enjoyed playing the same video games. After talking to Alex for a mere twenty minutes, Jack knew that’d get along perfectly.

A couple days later, Jack and Alex were back out on the beach where Jack had first seen Alex. Jack was standing in the water, about waste deep, Alex a little further out, with only his shoulders above water.

“Come on, Jack it’ll be fun!” Alex pleaded, splashing around in the water for emphasis.

“Nuh uh,” Jack replied, crossing his arms and shaking his head at the other boy.

“Why not? The platform thing isn’t even that far out. Are you scared?” Alex asked, raising an eyebrow at his friend.

“No,” Jack answered stubbornly, “I just don’t want to get wet.”

“Fine,” Alex reasoned, rolling his eyes, “I’ll give you a piggy back ride. How ‘bout that?”

“Okay!” Jack cheered, wading over to where Alex was standing.

The two boys made their way over to the platform, Jack riding on Alex’s back. When they finally reached it, Alex stopped underneath the ladder, letting Jack climb up, and following behind him. For the second time since they had first noticed each other, Alex startled Jack again, by running off the platform and leaping into the lake, creating a giant splash. The golden haired boy resurfaced, motioning for Jack to follow, yelling “Come on! It’s fun!”

“No!” The other boy replied, still standing on the edge of the platform, looking down at his friend.

Alex smiled at Jack, and disappeared into the water once more. For all Jack knew, Alex’s smile would be the death of him. Jack’s train of thought was broken when he found himself slipping off the platform, and falling into the water below. Once he finally had his head above water, he looked up, his eyes meeting with Alex’s.

“Oh, you’re gonna get it,” the younger boy spoke, swimming over to the ladder, and climbing up it.

“From who, you?” Alex laughed, jumping off of the platform once more, just as Jack had made his way up onto it. Jack ran after the older boy, jumping into the water as well. Once inside, he clung onto his friend, the older boy letting out a giggle.

“Oh my god, did you just giggle?” Jack laughed.

Alex hid his face in Jack’s shoulder, producing a muffled “No,” as a response. Jack laughed again, moving one of his arms around Alex’s waist, pulling him in closer. Alex lifted his head, a blush obvious on his cheeks.

“Aw,” Jack cooed, causing Alex to shove his face into the younger boys shoulder yet again.

“Stop,” He whined, grinning into Jack’s shoulder.

“Hey,” Jack whispered, nudging Alex’s head with his.

“Hmm?” Alex replied, looking up and being met with a very, very close Jack.

Before he could register what was going on, Jack was pressing his lips to his. After realizing that, yeah, Jack was kissing him, Alex wrapped his arms around Jack’s neck, finally able to kiss back. Alex pulled away first, only a few seconds later.

“I, uh-“ Jack started, but was interrupted by Alex saying, “Shh, don’t worry about it, it’s just that my parents are over there, and they probably saw, and we both have to head back for dinner now anyway, so why don’t you come up to my room later and we can talk, yeah?”

“Alright,” Jack breathed, and the two boys made their way out of the water and up the beach wordlessly, Alex offering a small wave as they went their separate ways.

Later that night, Jack found himself stood in front of Alex’s door, ready to knock. As he lifted his hand, though, the door already began to swing open, revealing a shy looking Alex.

“Come in,” the older boy said, stepping to the side.

Jack followed Alex to a couch just inside of the room, and they both sat down, facing each other.

“So,” Jack sighed, leaning his head back against the couch.

“So,” Alex repeated, looking down to where his hands were folded in his lap.

“Look, I’m really sorry for just doing what I did, and I’m also sorry if you don’t like me that way, but-“

“I like you too,” Alex cut Jack off, unable to stop a smile from appearing onto his face.

“Oh,” Jack replied, raising his eyebrows at the older boy.

“Mhm,” Alex hummed, crawling into Jack’s lap, and placing both of his hands on the younger boy’s cheeks. He leaned in close, touching the tip of his nose to the other boy’s, a smile on both of their faces. It was Alex who initiated the kiss this time, slotting his lips between the taller boy’s. The two spent the rest of their night cuddled up together on Alex’s couch, watching movies.

The next morning, after eating breakfast alone in the lobby, Jack made his way over to Alex’s room. He found himself knocking on Alex’s door once again, but this time, he wasn’t bet with Alex’s familiar face, but rather with the face of a man that he’d never seen before.

“Um, hi, is Alex here?” Jack asked, trying to keep positive.

“There’s no one named Alex staying here currently,” The man replied, “My wife and I just checked in this morning.”

“Oh, okay, sorry to bother you then…” Jack replied distantly already making his way back down the hall as the man shut the door. Where was Alex?

Jack went back to where his family was staying, finding his mom waiting for him, with a knowing look on her face. His mom pulled him into a hug, saying, “Here, sweetie,” before pulling away again, to hand him a small piece of paper. Jack lit up when he realized what it was, only to begin sulking again, when he realized that the slip of paper had somehow been damaged, and the number on it was completely illegible.

For the next few nights, Jack found himself sitting on his bed with his mother’s phone, trying every possible number that could have been written on the piece of paper that Alex had left for him. With no luck, he was left trapped with his thoughts, only to wonder about the older boy’s whereabouts. Why had he not told him when he’d be leaving? Why hadn’t he ever learned his last name? Would he ever be able to contact him? People can’t just disappear off of the face of the earth, can they?