Deja Vu (SatoGou)

Chapter 9

School finished in mid-June. Dawn had been making a list of all the things she wanted us to do. I was more excited than I'd ever been in my life, and I really believed we had all the time in the world to do everything she wanted to, even though it was only two months, in reality. My sixteenth birthday was approaching, and I wanted to spend it with just them, and maybe Gary and Drew.

My mom and dad wanted me to learn to drive, and I wanted to, too. We agreed that I'd start over summer, and my dad surprised me with my own car, the first day of the holidays. I was overwhelmed, and agreed to take on a summer job to pay for lessons, and give some money back to them. Being sixteen, having a car felt so freeing, even if I couldn't drive it on my own yet.

I worked in an ice cream shop, but only three days a week, and only for seven or so hours at a time. It was busy most of the time, but sometimes when it wasn't Ash would stop by, and sit on one of the barstools by where I served, just happy to keep me company. He'd poke fun at the ridiculous outfit they made me wear, and I'd laugh, telling him to go away. I'd sneak him bits of ice cream when no one was looking, because I knew how much he loved it. On my break he'd meet me out the back and we'd sit on the back step of the store together in the sun, fingertips casually touching on the stone beneath us. I remember him stealing my work hat and running off, and me chasing him down the back lane, desperately trying to snatch it back from him.

On my days off, we'd hang out. We spent a lot less time indoors, and tried to enjoy the sun as much as we could. Ash was already pretty tan, and after just a couple weeks he was very tanned, and he always looked perfect- his raven hair a perfect mess, his goofy smile and perfect jaw and cheekbones. I was in awe of him, even more than I had been before.

One day, Chloe and Dawn wanted to go for a picnic on the beach, so we all gathered food and met at the beach. It was ridiculously hot that day, and we were all suffering in the heat the moment we stepped onto the sand. The secret bay was quiet, and we didn't have to deal with the sounds of screeching children, or barking dogs. We put out Chloe's picnic blanket and sat in the heat.

After ten minutes or so, Dawn started to strip off. I shrieked and covered my eyes, and Chloe started howling with laughter at me, until I moved my fingers and realised she was wearing a swimsuit underneath. Of course she was. Chloe did the same, also wearing a swimsuit underneath, and they ran down the beach to the water, which admittedly looked very cool and inviting.

Ash and I were already wearing shorts. He watched them for a moment, and I could tell he was considering joining them. Then he stood, and started pulling his shirt over his head. My face immediately started to burn, and I looked away quickly, knowing it would show on my face.

"You coming?" He'd said, smiling down at me. It was incredibly hard not to stare at his chest. It looked like he spent a lot of time working out, even though I knew he didn't, because he spent all of his time with me.

"Okay," I said, even though I was reluctant to follow him. I wasn't self-conscious, but the thought of taking my shirt off was making me weirdly anxious, especially since Ash was watching me, waiting. I forced myself to do it before I could ever really think about it, and I waited nervously for Ash's reaction, but he didn't seem to react at all.

Dawn and Chloe were wading into the water, wincing at how cold it was in comparison to the heat of the sun. Ash took another long look at them then reached out and grabbed my hand, and started pulling me down the beach towards them. I stumbled forward, seizing up at the feeling of his hand on mine. We ran down to the water together and surged right in, the shock of the cold water hitting me hard.

A lot of my good memories of those months are from our time at the beach. We went there several times, just to spend time together. Ash and I would go alone, at night, sometimes several times a week. It was warm, even in the late hours, and we'd climb up a small rocky cliff, where we knew there was an overhang. We'd sit there, legs dangling off the edge, watching as the stars came out, talking. Sometimes, the ocean would jump up and spray us, and we'd let it. Sometimes, we'd lay back against the rock and just watch the stars in silence. Most nights, we'd stay out there until it got colder, or so late we'd be in trouble, and then Ash would walk me home.