Star-Crossed ✔️

10

- 10 -

I was right. We saw so many dolphins.

With the tour guides chirpy voice overhead pointing out different landmarks and terrains, we had at least twenty sightings. Happy, dancing dolphins leaping over the horizon, the morning sun reflecting on the water. As much as I genuinely enjoyed seeing the creatures swim up to the boat curiously, I had the pleasure of getting to see Noah through it all.

He ditched the sunglasses and peered over the edge, letting his arms dangle loosely. His eyes looked less brown and more blue with the aqua reflection from below, scanning the depths to try to catch sight of a fin above water.

The best part was when I saw the biggest, widest grin on his face when one of the dolphins jumped three feet above the water's surface. I pulled out my phone and started taking pictures.

"They're incredible," he said softly, catching my eye as if asking for agreement. When he saw I had my phone raised, he stuck his tongue out and posed goofily.

I sat down while Noah kept staring out at sea, just enjoying the sun on my bare arms. It had been a while since I just did something, something that wasn't getting fucked up with strangers in loud places. This felt so . . . peaceful. Even after a baby started crying and some rowdy teenagers were pretending like they were going to jump off the boat. I felt calm.

It ended all too soon.

We returned to the docks and waited patiently while almost everybody got off. Noah held onto my backpack handle so as not to get lost in the crowd. I was all too aware of how his fingers grazed the back of my neck, sending a shiver down my spine every few seconds.

There was a busy burger shack in walking distance to the tour hut. The tables outside were full of people and I could only assume the indoor seating had a similar fate.

We ducked into the restaurant, our eyes adjusting from the bright sun to the dim, fluorescent lighting inside. A few people sat in the foyer, presumably waiting for a table to open up, fanning themselves with menus. Noah stayed behind me as we walked up to the hostess' podium.

"Hi," I smiled behind my sunglasses. "How long a wait for two?"

The girl looked between Noah and I and replied without skipping a beat. "We're looking at about thirty to forty-five."

I glanced around. No one seemed to be paying us any mind. I lowered my sunglasses to the bridge of my nose and caught her eye, fighting a smile when I saw her entire expression change. Her thick eyebrows raised and mouth slightly parted.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Oh, I–" the girl glanced around desperately, then down at her expo board below. "Um, let me talk to my manager and see what we can do for you, Mr. Thorne. I'm sorry. I can't believe . . ." Her voice trailed off as she walked away.

I chuckled to myself while replacing my sunglasses. Noah shifted beside me. "You don't have to pull the celebrity card everywhere you go, you know," he said with an eye roll, leaning against a wall full of picture frames. "I don't mind waiting half an hour for a table."

"But it's so fun," I said honestly, not hiding the giggle that vibrated from my throat.

"Yeah, maybe when we were twelve," he said, laughing himself now. "Do you remember . . . when we went to that festival? The, uh, what was it?"