Relationship Imagines

Like a Wave (M)

I know he loves the beach. He loves the sound of the waves, eating ice cream, playing volleyball, everything about the beach. 

To him, there was nothing not  to love. 

To me, there was everything to hate. It's hot, sticky, stinky, sweaty, and I always burn up or get tan lines from my clothes because I refuse to show my bathing suit. 

He invited me to come to the beach with him and his friends. 

I was a bigger girl, and all of his friends were small, skinny, blonde girls. I was a big, tall, brunette. Even his guy friends were fit and everything, I probably weighed more than all the girls here combined.

Though all of the girls were very kind to me, I knew I couldn't compare with them.

Yeah, he chose me over any of them, but still. 

My mind went blank as I sat on the sand, hugging my knees to my chest, watching him play volleyball. 

It looked like a scene out of Top Gun, him and his friends. 

After every point he won he would always look straight to me and grin. I'd smile back and clap. Cheer a few times. 

"Aren't you hot? It's like, 90 degrees." One of the girls said to me. 

I was wearing a tank top and some baggy jeans. 

"No, I-I'm okay," I said. 

"Why don't you get into your bathing suit? Let's go swimming, none of the girls like swimming because of the salt they get in their hair. Your boyfriend  told me you're a swimmer." She said and bumped my shoulder with hers. 

"Not anymore," I said softly. If I'm being honest, I haven't swum since I was twelve. That was when I got self-conscious. I was the fastest on the team with the best stroke, no one ever commented on my weight. I don't know where it came from, I just woke up one morning and hated what I saw in the mirror. 

"Yeah, baby, take it off." My boyfriend said. Everyone started cheering. 

I haven't told him about my anxiety around my weight, and I really would have rathered be home in my room. 

I rolled my eyes and put my hands up. "Alright, alright," I said. 

Everyone cheered louder as I took off my top and jeans, revealing my olive green one-piece swimsuit. 

I looked over at him and he smiled, I could tell when people lied or displayed a fake emotion. It's all in the eyes. But the look he gave me was the realest look anyone had ever given me. 

"That's really cute! I think I saw that at Hollister but I didn't get it because I knew I couldn't pull it off, but you actually have the curves to!" One of the other girls said. I smiled.

She could pull off a trash bag. All the girls here could. 

The original girl who asked me to swim before repeated her question. 

"Okay," I said and nodded. I stood up and dusted myself off and before I could walk off my boyfriend grabbed my wrist and twirled me around and into him. 

"You look good," He said.

"No, you look good," I said and grinned. 

He pulled me in for a kiss and his friends booed us. 

"Get a room!" They shouted. I smiled and joined the girl at the shoreline. 

She asked me to play mermaids. I laughed. 

"I haven't played that since the sixth grade," I said. 

"Well, that's all gonna change today." She said and dove into the water. I dove in after her and we splashed each other.

A little later we were about waist-deep in the water when everyone came and joined us. 

My boyfriend and I started to horseplay and he kissed me. I melted into it and he dipped us into the water. 

Later before sunset, we got some dinner and some ice cream. We sat on the boardwalk and watched the sunset altogether. 

I liked his friends, I didn't feel like I had to compete with any of them. They made me feel welcome. Like I was one of them. 

Maybe the beach isn't so bad after all.