off limits ( m.s. )

SIX

VI.
SOTC: hot - the last artful, dodgr

- irl, social media -

irl

   

    the wind makes her long skirt billow out behind her, hair whipping around her face as she stares at the waves through her sunglasses. it's quiet for the weekend; there's hardly anyone on the water besides them.

ruby turns the wheel to the left a bit, steering the boat so that they're headed into the little cove that they claimed as their own last year.

she hasnt been out on the lake in ages. the sun beats down on all of the exposed parts of her body, and she swears that she can already feel herself getting red.

once they're far enough away from the main channel, ruby cuts the engine and lets them float for a minute.

"way to go, captain bee." matt salutes her as he moves to the front of the boat, removing one of the cushions to pull out the anchor.

she watches him tie the rope to one of the cleats skillfully before tossing it overboard. the splash makes a funny sound, and ruby smiles.

josephine was right. she had been turning herself into a recluse trying to build a solid foundation for the film, plus she still had to take care of editing for multiple people. hours turned into days, and even though she'd work constantly, it still didn't feel like enough.

it's nice to be out in the open, to feel at peace for just a second.

and then chris comes sprinting down the middle of the boat, screeching as he leaps off of the bow into a not-so-elegant dive.

he's only under the water for a second before he pops back up, gasping for air.

"how did that look?" he asks, flailing around in the water.

"like shit." josie replies.

she stands up to tug her own tank top over her head, wiggling out of her shorts right after. "watch and learn."

    she climbs up onto the side of the boat and jumps, tugging her knees to her chest in a perfect front flip. ruby offers her a round of applause.

    "show off." chris says sourly.

    nick is in the water seconds later, choosing to fling himself off of the front in a weird twist. they can all hear his body slaps against the water as he lands on his side.

    "what the hell was that?" matt shouts, smiling in disbelief.

    "the nick sturniolo special."

    "fuckin idiot." chris splashes at him, and all of the sudden a full brawl has broken out.

    ruby giggles, sliding her skirt down her legs and kicking it aside. she tucks her sunglasses into the cup holder in front of her, fully prepared to show off her olympic-level dive.

    then a thought crosses her mind.

    "i don't have sunblock on yet." she thinks out loud.