Ship to Shore

The Lions Den and the Stranger

There was something so comforting about the smell of the ocean. It was distinct. It brought back memories of days spent on the beach, covered in sunscreen yet still managing to get burned. When it was just you and the ocean, the world felt like it was standing still. The water was endless and the crashing waves against the rocks rang like a melody. The ocean was his home.

Altea was a small costal town that would never be recognized on a map. There hadn't been waves of tourists since the 70's but the town scraped by. It had the classing small town attractions: restaurants, small shops, cafes, a boardwalk, but in the past fifty years it has slowed down substantially. Lance McClain had been bored and raised in Altea. He had been on his father's fishing boat long before he was able to walk, and he had never left. Sure, he had the same thoughts as everyone when high school graduation came around. Leave and go to either LA or Newyork (those seemed to be the only two options) or stay. He had ended up staying, he took classes at the local community college and his friend Pidge sometimes agreed to let him tag along on their marine biology work.

He was happy there. He had his friends and family, his job at the Lions Grill, and he had the ocean. It was something you would never get in an overpopulated city, prime real estate. The lion's den sat right on the boardwalk; it was this cute restaurant specializing in beach food. It was staffed by Lance, the best host/waiter in the whole district if he had to say so himself, Hunk and Romelle. The boss rarely came in, so the work environment was relaxing. Well...it would have been relaxing either way considering there were never more than a few tables seated at a time. The restaurant itself was old, hung on the wall were old photographs of customers and surfers, back when Altea used to be something. Everyone in town knew what happened. Glara crop, the biggest developers of the area. Lance thought they were like parasites, they found a new host and sucked the very life out of it, turning the area into a carbon copy of the others. New hotel here, five-star restaurant there! The next thing you know, everyone who grew up there can't even recognize their town and they are made to move because it becomes too expensive.

Nope! Lance prefers a quiet town then one corrupted by those money sucking vampires!

"Lance- Hey stop spacing out and clean the tables. The waves aren't going anywhere." A blond girl said tossing a damp rag at his head. The brunette caught it before it could hit him. He huffed looking away from the open patio. Right, the waves would still be there when his break started, then he could go catch a few waves.

"First of all, my face is a work of art. That filthy rag could have ruined all of this" he motioned to his face, making sure to prove a point. "And second of all-" he started before the door from the kitchen swung open and Hunk walked in holding a new sign. The sign read off the lunch special, the 'life don't get feta then this pasta' was written out in bold letters. Romelle and Lance looked at each other.

"What? Come on i spent so long coming up with this. It's a feta and cherry tomato pasta with-"

"I'm sure it's great hunk but... the word play is just terrible" Romelle said pinching the bridge of her nose. "Just put it out. Lunch rush starts in thirty and you know how Mr. Coran gets when he doesn't have his BLT. is Pidge and Mat coming in today?" she asks.

" mmhm" the brunette hummed as he yawned "they were out on the water all morning tracking a pod of dolphins so they should be coming to dock soon" he said as he abandoned the rag on one of the tables, attempting to slip away.

"Nu uh. Clean "she says, and he rolled his eyes.

"Whatever you say miss manager ~" Lance sang out. He was a flirt by nature, God made him bisexual for a reason, so he could flirt with anyone that walked on two legs. But he knew Romelle didn't take it personally. For starters she was dating one of the founders. Allura had not been alive of course but her family had been some of the first to settle into town. She was big in the community and two years older than lance. She ran fundraisers and gave everything to Altea. Not to mention she was Lances first crush back when he was in school. But he was over it now.