The Beach House

Chapter 15: Nap Time

The rest of the day goes by quickly. Ali and I have a successful shopping trip filled with sundresses, shorts, and tank top galore before returning to the house for a quick rest. Ali scrolls on her phone while I take a nap on the living room couch. The rest of the group joins us back at the house with deepened sunburns and a few scratches. Tess's limited knowledge of medical emergency practices was not needed, but some showers are definitely in order. I hand her a cape cod sweatshirt I found for her and she squeals with delight. When she asks to pay me pack, I tell her to pay me twenty dollars when it actually cost forty. I know she could use the extra cash and my bank account is just linked to my mom's, so I don't really lose anything. My mom is likely to yell at me when I get home anyways for one reason or another. We're by no means rich, especially not compared to Ali, but Tess has it worse than my mom and me. Sparing $20 seems like a small price to pay to save my friend some stress.

Everyone is pretty wiped after their hike so I nuzzle back into my spot on the sofa and try to return to my nap. Emphasis on try. Because the second I feel comfortable again, someone settles next me on the couch. Someone with cologne that smells like vanilla and pears.

I hear Soren sigh and peak with one eye to see his tan frame resting against the back of the sofa with his eyes closed. I take a mental picture of him while his eyes are shut and study the details of him. His hair is its usual sunny tint but it now has some extra sun induced highlights and sand grains stuck in it. His black eyelashes almost touch his cheeks. A small patch of freckles has formed on the bridge of his nose from the sun exposure and the tops of his cheekbones are a shade pinker than the rest of his face. Today, he's wearing a faded v-neck in a forest green shade. His black shorts emphasize his natural tan. His lips are pink and slightly parted-

"Do I have something on my face?"

The sound of his voice knocks me out of my careful study of his mouth and I bring my eyes slowly to his. Soren is peaking back at me with one eye from beneath his thick lashes.

"Yeah," I say quickly, "a piece of sand. On your nose." I shift my body so I'm laying on my back and facing the ceiling. God, I hope I wasn't staring for too long. I wonder how long he let me look before saying something. Hopefully he didn't notice too much.

"Did I get it?" he asks. I turn my head to look back at Soren and pretend to search for a grain of sand.

"Yup. It's gone," I reply and turn my face back to the plain white ceiling. There was never actually a piece of sand on his nose. I'm just a stupid liar. I focus on a small dot of black above me. I wonder how it got up there.

"How was shopping?"

"It was good. I found some cute stuff." I make sure to keep my eyes on the little speck. "How was hiking?"

"Fun. I fell, though. Scraped up my knee. It'd not bad or anything. Nothing a bandaid can't fix." I glance down at his knee and acknowledge the hefty cut. It looks mostly dry now but I imagine that it probably still stings.

"You should clean that. There's probably sand and stuff in it. Tess has some bandaids if you can't find any." I think this speck on the ceiling looks a lot like a shoe scuff. Weird.

"You're right, I should," Soren says. But he doesn't move to go to the sink or find Tessi.

"Tired?" I ask.

"To the bone," Soren replies.

"Me too."

I pull the light blanket that is lying at my feet up to my shoulders and start to close my eyes again. The air conditioner is how i like it, freezing cold, and the weight of the blanket feels nice.

"Is that blanket big enough for two?" I hear and snap my eyes back open.

"Yeah. Here," I say and unfold the blanket to its full size. It easily covers both Soren and me without us even touching, but having him so close feels intimate.

"Thanks."

"No problem."

              I try not to look at Soren for what feels like forever. Long enough for multiple people to have finished showering. I listen as his breathing slows and becomes more even before risking a glance. His face is peaceful in his sleep. His lashes flutter and his lips twitch every once in a while which makes me wonder what he's dreaming of. Laying on my side next to Soren, I can feel my eyelids getting heavier and heavier, but i'm not ready to look away.

            I nestle further into the blanket we're sharing and sigh as sleep becomes too hard to fight. I fall asleep facing him, refusing to let him leave my line of sight until the very last second before I'm out.