ᵖʳᵒᵛⁱᵈᵉʳ, ᵗʰᵉᵒ ʲᵃᵐᵉˢ

07

THE DOCK
capri, italy
september 7, 2024
saturday
12pm

i was wearing an all white fit. white cropped top, white jeans, and white sandals.

i arrived at the boat dock and immediately spotted theo and the kids, standing by a gleaming white motorboat.

kirsten and caine saw me first, their little faces lighting up. "you came!" caine exclaimed.

theo turned around, his gaze catching mine. he looked me up and down, his eyes raking over my outfit.

"of course i did." i replied to the kids. i started walking closer, my steps slow and steady.

my eyes met theo's, the intensity of his gaze making me pause for a second. he looked...apprehensive, though for what reason i didn't know.

as i came closer, i noticed the kids were already getting on board the boat.

caine was struggling to climb up the few steps, so i reached out to help him. he took my hand, his little fingers wrapping around mine.

we both managed to get onto the boat without incident, and i set caine down once we were in place.

"thanks for helping him." a voice said behind me.

i turned and saw theo standing a few feet away, his eyes trained on me.

"no problem, it wasn't a big deal." i shrugged nonchalantly.

he hummed under his breath, his gaze dropping to where caine had still not let go of my hand.

caine was clinging tightly to my hand, his big eyes looking up at me with unabashed admiration.

theo seemed lost in thought for a second, staring at our joined hands before looking back up at me.

"he seems to like you a lot." he commented, his voice holding an edge of something i couldn't quite identify.

"i'm likable, what can i say." i joked, a small smirk on my face.

"yeah, guess you're right." he responded. the corner of his lips twitched into a half smile.

i felt as caine pulled his hand away and moved to his sister as the two were now jumping around the boat, excited to be getting underway.

i watched the two kids for a brief moment, before i spoke to theo once again. "are you okay with me being here? because i can go, the boat hasn't moved yet." i said.

he took a couple steps closer to me, narrowing the distance between us. he ran a hand through his hair, his eyes scanning my face. his voice turned low as he spoke. "why wouldn't i be okay with you being here?"

"i don't know, you just seem..." i hesitated, searching for the right words to describe his behavior.

he was standing much closer to me now, so close that i could feel his warm breath, see the faint stubble on his jaw.

he crossed his arms and leaned one shoulder against a wall of the boat. "i seem what?" he asked, the hint of a challenge in his tone.

i looked at him, meeting his eyes. "you seem distracted. or annoyed. or something like that. like you're not happy i'm here." i said bluntly, not wanting to dance around the topic.

he blew out a breath, his shoulders slumping slightly. "i'm not annoyed by you. i'm just...a little frustrated at something work-related. i just don't want to ruin their good mood, you know?" he explained, gesturing at the kids as they played near the front of the boat.