Sailing With Destiny

The Marino's

Mitchell let go of my hand, finger by finger, and took a step back. I blew him a kiss, he smiled at me, turned on his heel, and left. I took in a deep breath as I watched him walk further away and get lost in the crowd. I knew he would only have been gone for a few hours but my chest still felt a little constricted - I was going to miss him.

If this dampened my mood, how the hell am I going to feel when we go our separate ways after this trip?

I shook away unwanted thoughts, the last thing I needed was to make myself miserable and think about the future when I could've instead, savor the present. I plastered on a smile and turned to my best friend whose head was turned in the opposite direction and glanced at the seemingly interesting ground.

"Making friends with the ants?" I stepped closer to him.

Leo looked up and faced me, "Desperate times call for desperate measures," I frowned at his vague statement but was distracted when he pointed to the ground, "I named that one Anthony, and next to him is his lovely missus, Antoinette."

I looked at him incredulously, "I worry about you sometimes."

Leo rolled his eyes, "I know the saying goes, you turn into the person you love but please don't tell me you're losing your sense of humor."

"You're befriending ants, that is not funny, it's a matter of concern," I choked out.

A ghostly smile played on Leo's lips, "Well, the human alternative is a rare face these days."

I felt guilty, I knew I'd been a little distant since Mitchell and I got together – heck since Bora Bora. But I never meant to be, I was on such a high with Mitchell over the last couple of weeks that I couldn't think of anyone or anything else.

"Well, I'm here now," I flashed him a wide grin.

"You thought I was talking about you?" He asked. "Awkward," he drawled under his breath.

"It's cute that you think you have any other human friends," I teased.

"Clearly, you don't know me as well as you thought," Leo retorted and his tone was a little serious as he stared at me.

"Anyway," Leo stepped closer and took in our surroundings, a frown grew over his forehead, "Wait, your boyfriend was serious? This wasn't some practical joke and he really left you behind?"

I rolled my eyes at his dramatics, "You're hilarious."

"No, but seriously, he lasted longer than I thought."

I narrowed my eyes at him, "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Well," Leo began, "pretty face aside, you're a pain in the ass and it takes a lot of tolerance to deal with you. Poor guy broods enough on his own, add you to the equation, he's probably ready to jump off a bridge."

I glared and was ready to smack him but he ducked and laughed. "And you're violent! How is he still alive with you?"

"Not that I agree with what you said," I replied. A small grin grew over my lips and I added, "But, Mitch knows how to handle... and silence me when needed."

Leo stopped laughing and appeared serious for a second but before I could properly notice he wore a small grin. "So, since I'm babysitting you for the afternoon, there are a few things we need to cover."

"You're not babysi–" I started but he cut me off.

"The adult is talking, be quiet," he raised a finger and stared sternly at me. He cleared his throat, "Right, first of all, I am in charge so you do as I say, you nap when I tell you to and you better eat all your veggies or no candy. Actually, no candy at all, Mila on a sugar rush is never a good idea."