NYCTOPHILIA

chapter seven • meet me at our spot

Rolling in and collapsing calmly down onto the absorbent sand beneath them, the waves continuously curled then disappeared into the ocean in the distance. The chorus to the swell of the water disbursing into the atmosphere as not another singular sound was to be heard, just two individuals sitting amongst the shade of the cave in nothing but their undergarments- watching the hypnotic movements that the tide inevitably made.

The salty air licked their previously damp skin to rid any moisture from the surface whilst the breeze brushed through the night like silk. It was a bitter yet tranquil wind, one that accompanied the fragments of electricity in the sky that dangled above them gracefully.

Scarlet always loved the stars, she'd often find herself laying below the twilight and admiring the beauty of it with an affectionate smile- wishing upon every one of them for a serene and gratified life for herself and the loved ones around her. Hoping one day in the foreseeable future those desires would be granted by her mother who rested up there with the glitter and provide that lifestyle in replacement of her beloved presence.

Tracing her finger over every spec of light that danced in the black blanket and singling out the brightest one to be her mother, it must be her, Scarlet concluded. Because whatever room she walked into, her smile would enlighten it with adorn compassion and tenderness.

And how the world had been so bleak without that gentle smile.

Rafe on the other hand glared up to the stars with detest; finding them almost useless and corny. They simply had no relevance in his eyes, just floating pieces of sun that tormented him with their elegance, winking at him in a way that made his blood boil. He loathed them, completely and utterly despised the inoperative particles of shit.

His eyes followed the path towards the saintly brunette beside him, perplexed by the beam that was obliviously written over her features as she craned her neck to watch the illuminated dusk. "Why are you smiling like that?"

Scarlet pulled her lips down into a puzzled frown, turning to meet his gape with unawareness of the authentic glimmer to her hazel hues. "What? Smiling? No, I wasn't smiling"

"Sure you weren't" he nodded in a sardonic agreement, narrowing his eyes down sceptically on her clueless exterior. "There's nothing fucking special about the stars anyway"

A sharp, offended gasp torn from the females throat, completely taken aback by the brash statement that had fell so bluntly from his lips. "Are you too coked out to see that the stars are actually incredibly beautiful? Or are you genuinely just this bitter of a person?"

Pulling his lips to the one side and looking up to the night sky in mimic of a deep thought, Rafe hummed to himself before a greedy smirk spread evenly over his features. "A bit of both actually"

"Sometimes I wish I could be inside your fucking head to know what genuinely goes on in there. But now I realise that you're just one negative nelly"

He had to chuckle to the irony of that simple wish that the brunette had just exposed out into the open, because surely enough if she did have a sneak peek of what consisted within his mind, she'd be running. Rafe would openly admit he was a complete and utter mess of a man and it wasn't much better, if not worse, inside his brain. Broken, shattered and disintegrated into a chaotic mass of cocaine and voices that lured him down a dark hole night after night. He was a prisoner to his own menacing thoughts that lead him a stray, steeping far beyond repair. And if Scarlet believed any different, she was just as fucking insane as he was.

"Am I that transparent?" The dirty blonde responded cooly, using his humour to distract the tick of recycled yet agonising torture that was due to occur within his thoughts.