#FlashFictionMagic: The Sea Breeze

On the beach, near the water, Ian was kissing Sophia again, and Reese was ready to be sick. Wasn’t there a limit to how much friction one pair of lips could handle? How could Ian stand to go such long periods without oxygen? Reese was beginning to forget what his face even looked like, fused as it always was to Sophia’s.

The Senior Trip was meant to be their time together, Reese and Ian, crossing things off their high school bucket list before college took them to separate cities. Ian had never even mentioned liking Sophia until their first night here, when suddenly everyone was talking about them holding hands on the bus. Reese told herself the strangled feeling that came over her was surprise, not jealousy, but she had never been especially good at fooling herself.

It was strange, though. As freaked out as she was over having to witness this never-ending public display of affection, she was also proud of Ian. He treated high school like one very long standardized test, making sure to leave only the appropriate marks. Reese had tried for years to get him to loosen up just a little, to settle for the occasional B in order to socialize more, have more fun. She had never considered the possibility that when he finally let go of things, she would be one of them.

Reese was stretching, preparing for a run down the beach when a sudden breeze sent up a chorus of squeals from some of her classmates. She watched, amused, as their beach towels and paperbacks were briefly airborne. Then Sophia’s hat flew off, and she shrieked, too, watching as it twirled and bounced down the beach. Without thinking, while Sophia and Ian stood dazed in the aftermath of their latest kiss, Reese took off running after it, knowing that her record-breaking legs would help her catch it before anyone else. When she had the runaway hat in hand, she walked it purposefully back to the happy couple.

“Oh, hey.” Ian smiled uncertainly. “Where have you been? I feel like I haven’t seen you.”

In your peripheral vision, Reese thought. On the sidelines. Out of sight, out of mind. Here the whole time. “You’ve been busy,” she said. “I was just bringing this hat back to your girlfriend.”

There was a glimmer of hope for a split second, as Ian clearly struggled to figure out who Reese was talking about. But then Sophia’s pink fingernails grasped the hat. Her cheek rested against Ian’s bare arm, and she turned and kissed his bicep. Reese saw her best friend’s freckled face shift from sun-kissed to cherry-red in three seconds flat. He grinned goofily and Reese half-expected to see a drop of drool. If he hadn’t realized he had a girlfriend before, Reese was sure he knew it now. Good for him, she thought. And in the same split-second she thought, how dare he.

“That was really sweet of you,” said Sophia. “You’re a great friend.”

“Yeah,” Ian said, grinning. “Thanks. Do you want to hang out for a bit? ”

She did want to hang out with Ian. Now, and tonight, and tomorrow, and every day. But she shook her head. “Nah, I’m going to run for a bit before dinner. You guys have fun.”

Jogging down the beach, Reese used all of her willpower not to look back at what was going on behind her. Instead, she fixed her eyes on a distant rock and set a pace she hoped would outrun her desire to be kissed breathless by the boy she loved most in the world.