The End

Sitting on the beach with her knees pulled to her chest, Kaya watched as her boyfriend, Kevin played football with his friends and sighed. Standing up, she slipped on her sandals and headed up to the shop to get a drink.

“You don’t look like you’re enjoying yourself all that much,” Kevin’s friend, Lee said as he joined her, earning a shrug from Kaya and leaning against the counter next to her, “Where would you rather be right now?”

“Anywhere,” Kaya replied, paying for her drink and waiting for him to pay as well.

“Come on, there’s got to be somewhere that you wish you could be.”

“There is somewhere, but you’ll just laugh at me…” Kaya mumbled.

“I promise I won’t laugh,” Lee added as they made their way back across the sand.

“The aquarium.”

“Why would I laugh at you for that?” Lee asked with a frown.

“Kevin did,” Kaya whispered, falling silent as Kevin and the others joined them.

Spending the rest of the afternoon in the arcades, Kaya did her best to enjoy herself and was relieved when Kevin finally dropped her off home. Eating dinner with her dad, she made her way up to her room and settled on her bed to watch a film. She was halfway through a perfect date with Chris Evans, when her phone chimed and she retrieved it from the side table to see a new message from Lee.

‘I solemnly swear that I am up to no good,’ Kaya read with a chuckle, ‘What are you doing tomorrow?’

‘Kevin wants to go to the beach again, but I think I might give it a miss… how come?’

‘I was thinking that we could both skip that and go to the aquarium,'

'You'd really give up football with the guys to go to the aquarium with me?'

'Any day... I'll pick you up at nine.'

'Sounds good.'

Smiling, Kaya put her phone back on the side and returned her attention to the movie she had been watching. Waking up early the next morning, she got ready and made her way downstairs. Grabbing herself some toast off the table, she borrowed some money off of her dad and headed out the front door as Lee honked his horn outside.

"Good morning beautiful," Lee greeted, throwing Kaya a grin and pulling away, "You ready to have some fun."

"I am."

Pulling into the parking lot, Kaya followed Lee towards the entrance and was surprised when he insisted on paying for her ticket. Showing him around, she pointed out a few of the cooler animals and then treated him to lunch.

"So, what's your favorite animal here?" Lee asked, once they had finished eating and were wandering around.

"Come with me," Kaya said with a grin, taking Lee's hand and dragging him through a few tunnels to a tank near the back of the aquarium, "Just wait a minute."

Lightly tapping on the glass window, Kaya waited in silence for a few seconds and smiled as an otter appeared in front of her.

"Wow," Lee whispered.

"Her names Hazel, she was found under the pier after that severe storm we had a few weeks back with a broken leg and the rescue team brought her back here for treatment," Kaya explained, "That's another reason why I love this place so much... they're not all about keeping the animals in captivity and soon Hazel will be able to return to her family."

Heading home, Kaya thanked Lee for a great day and kissed him on the cheek as she went inside. Things were awkward with Kevin over the next few days, but the distance didn't bother Kaya as much as she knew it should have and she took the time to really think about what she wanted.

"Dad, can I talk to you about something?" Kaya inquired, sitting on the sofa and turning to face him.

"Of course, what's going on?"

"What would you do if you were dating someone and you thought that you were okay with how things were, but then someone made you realize that you're really not?" Kaya rambled.

"What's Kevin done?"

"Nothing, he just... the only person he thinks about is himself and he pushes everything I say aside as if it doesn't matter."

"What about the other person?"

"He's different," Kaya mumbled, "He makes me feel... something, warm and special. He listens when I talk and tries to make me smile, but I don't know how he feels about me."

"No matter what the other guy feels or doesn't feel, you deserve better from a person that is supposed to care about you. You know I've never been a big fan of Kevin's, but I have always stood by your decision to date him and I will do the same as long as you're doing what makes you happy."

"Thanks, dad," Kaya replied, hugging him and grabbing her jacket, "I'll be back before curfew, there's something I need to do and if I don't do it now then I won't do it at all."

Knowing that her dad was right, Kaya went down to the beach and took off her trainers as she headed over to where the group was hanging out. Taking a deep breath as she approached, she smiled as a few of the guys waved at her and came to a stop next to where Kevin was sitting.

"Hey, I thought you said that you weren't coming down today," Kevin said as he looked up at her.

"I wasn't, but I need to talk to you... in private."

"Sure," Kevin replied with a shrug, leading her a little distance away from the group and giving them the finger when they started shouting, "What did you want to talk about?"

"I don't want to do this anymore," Kaya blurted out, "I was blind and breaking up with you should hurt, but it doesn't."

"You're breaking up with me?" Kevin asked in disbelief.

"I already did, you just didn't hear it," Kaya stated, walking away without another word and glancing over at Lee to find him watching her.

Kaya avoided everyone over the next couple of months and it had been going well, until she found Lee waiting for her in the parking lot one day after school.

"You're avoiding me," he pointed out as she reached him.

"I'm avoiding everyone," Kaya corrected, walking past and coming to a stop when she felt him gently grab her arm, "What do you want, Lee?"

"If you'd read my texts, then you'd know the answer to that," Lee told her, "I waited a whole month to see whether you would change your mind about the breakup, but you didn't and I'm tired of waiting for you to go back to him."

"Why would I go back to him?"

"I don't know, Kevin has a certain charm about him and I've seen other girls get pulled back in by it."

"He fooled me once, I wouldn't have let him do it again..." Kaya mumbled, "I didn't really mean to avoid you, you were just always with Kevin and I needed to distance myself from him."

"I get it," Lee said, looking down at the ground for a few seconds before continuing, "Do you want to go grab a milkshake with me?"

"Sure," Kaya agreed with a smile, climbing into the passenger seat and fastening her seatbelt.

That milkshake would be the starting point for Kaya, a point from which she could grow and experience falling in love with somebody that truly loved her in return.