The One in the Middle

Chapter 8- I've Never Felt Like This Before

You never think that you can get stuck in a love triangle, you never do. It's one of those things where you only think that this kind of thing happens in movies or books. 

Lucky for me, my relatives are letting me stay with Mo and Robin if I want to. After all, I am 18 years old. 

The sky was starting to get dark and it was sunset. I was bored and was aimlessly walking around until I felt someone hug me from behind and kissed my cheek.  

I won't lie when I say that I was startled. But then I immediately knew who it was when I felt his hair brushing against my face. 

"Hi, Hazel..." Robin whispered in my ear. That sent a shiver down my spine. I still felt the lingering feeling of his lips on my cheek, even though he had already finished his kiss. 

"Robin..." That was all I could say because I was out of breath. "Hey."

"I scared you, didn't I?" he whispers with a knowing tone. 

I shake my head as he lets go of me. "You did not!" I roll my eyes in response as well to which he grins and pulls me on the couch beside him. 

"I want to take you to the beach to watch the sunset, is that okay? I know this private beach..." he suggests with a wink. 

My breath caught in my throat. Alone. On a beach. At sunset. Talk about a dream come true! My heart was pounding like crazy only imagining the scenario. I lean my head on his shoulder and in response he pulls me close to him. 

"I- I think I would like that." 

I look outside and it looks to be almost sunset and my chest gets a fluttery feeling just thinking about it. 

Robin goes and gets ready, and comes out with a sweatshirt in his hand. I raise a curious eyebrow and say, "What's that for?" 

He smiles wryly and thrusts the sweatshirt out to me. "It's for you! It'll be cold, so I thought I would give you one of my sweatshirts to wear!" 

My heart practically stops for a moment because that is one of the sweetest things I have ever witnessed. Without any hesitation whatsoever, I slipped into the sweatshirt that was much too big for me. So big that there must've been more sweatshirt than me. 

Robin smiles brightly at me, only a brightness that could rival the sun. "It looks good on you. I like it better on you." He places a hand on my back, and it felt soothing to me. 

As I wore it, I couldn't help but notice that it smelled like him. And that sounds a little weird to some. But, it was like he was right there next to me. Whenever I wear this, it's like he's right there next to me. Even better, I have the real deal standing next to me at this very moment. 

"I think you should keep it," he comments giving me a knowing look. 

"Really?" I said excitedly with a big grin plastered on my face. 

He envelops me in a warm hug, and he intentionally places my head on his chest. "Yes. I know how you would always talk about your future boyfriend and how you would always want to wear his sweatshirts and clothes because they make you feel small." 

Hearing him recall things that I've told him as kids makes me smile because I know he listened and, better yet, remembered. My heart soars. My best friend... Well, at this point, he's more than a best friend but not quite a lover either... It's this awkward place in the middle of best friends and lovers. Or possibly something else altogether. 

"Are you ready to go?" he asks me, pulling me out of my thought-like trance. 

Whipping my head around to face him, without words I nod and smile. 

And just like that, we were headed to the beach. As we arrived, the sun was just about setting and there was no one on the beach. Lucky me!

He gives me a look that just screamed mischief, a look that I often saw when we were kids. 

The sun shone off his hair brilliantly and his eyes glimmered with the same look I saw a few seconds ago. He's so handsome and that's all I can think about. I'll admit that as we walked I kept glancing at him. 

He held my hand, and I have to say that feeling him holding my hand made my heart flutter. He swings his arm back and forth which made us both burst into fits of giggles and laughter. 

"You're such a child sometimes, Robin!" I exclaim, my laughter echoing into the salty, sea air. 

"You love that about me, admit it!" he retaliates with a smirk. 

My mouth hangs open as I am about to say something, but he's rendered me speechless. I don't have anything to say against that because he was right. I do love that about him. How he has that special child-like quality that's rare to find in a lot of guys.

I feel a slight blush creeping up on my cheeks as my mouth is still hung open. 

The sun and the ocean are practically touching now, the golden rays pouring onto the water's surface delicately. It's beautiful, to say the least. 

Suddenly, I feel Robin pulling me down onto the sand and he smiles, his hair falling over his eyes. I can't help but push his hair out of his eyes so I can see them better. They're my favorite thing about him besides his smile. 

My hand lingers on his cheek and I soon find that his hand is on mine, and he pulls me into him for a kiss. His lips are soft and he is very gentle with me. He's just breathtaking. However, in the back of my mind, I still was thinking about Mo. Right as I least expected it, there he was. My only solution to this was to momentarily forget about it and continue this kiss. 

Robin pulls me closer until there is hardly any space left between us, and his arms are wrapped around me to ensure that. 

As we pull away from each other, I place my forehead on his and close my eyes, soaking in the moment. 

"You're so amazing, Robin..." I whisper breathlessly. 

I can tell that he wants more which, I have to say, scares me a little. In response, I place a finger on his lips and say, "Not yet, save something to the imagination. Or at least for a future date." 

This makes him giggle madly. Silently, he has an arm around my shoulder and we watch the sunset together. 

A little while later, we find ourselves still at the beach except it's dark outside, and I've fallen asleep on his shoulder. 

Robin's car has no middle console, so with that, he carries me to the car with my arms around his neck and my eyes closed. He slides in, still carrying me, and rests my head on his shoulder. I guess while I was sleeping I unconsciously wrapped my arms around him as he drove. 

*** 

The next morning comes quickly. My eyes open and the light floods into my line of vision which momentarily blinds me. 

But as my vision returns, I see Mo sitting beside me with a sleepy grin on his face. "Good morning, I saw you and Robin come back last night." 

I nod sleepily and scoot closer to him. "What's up?" I ask as he puts an arm around me. 

"I wanted to invite you to breakfast this morning. If it's not too much trouble that is. I know how you are in the mornings..." Mo suggests, scratching the back of his neck in the meantime with a slight blush. 

"I would love that! I just need to get ready..." 

a/n- I hope you all like this chapter!! And shoutout to my friends who say that my writing is god tier. You know who you are :D