sunburn - rafe cameron (outerbanks)

10 - only a kiss

chapter 10
only a kiss

the next afternoon, angie sat cross-legged on sarah's bed, carefully applying a layer of polish to her nails. the scent of acetone and fresh polish hung in the air, mingling with the faint aroma of sarah's vanilla-scented candles. across the room, sarah stood in front of her mirror, running a brush through her hair, letting each section fall in smooth, glossy waves. the two fell into an easy silence, only broken by the occasional clink of nail polish bottles.

angie glanced at sarah's reflection in the mirror, a small smirk tugging at her lips. she took a breath, then decided to break the silence. "so, who's this mysterious person you've been sneaking around with?" she asked, trying to sound casual.

sarah froze for a moment, her hand stilling mid-stroke with the straightener. she met angie's gaze in the mirror, her face shifting from surprise to a hesitant smile. "well. it's john b," she admitted, a slight blush coloring her cheeks.

angie barely raised an eyebrow. she just shrugged, a knowing glint in her eyes. "i saw that one coming."

sarah rolled her eyes, but she was grinning as she set the straightener down and turned to face angie directly. "okay, miss sherlock holmes, how did you know?"

"please," angie replied with a laugh. "you were practically buzzing every time his name came up. plus, you've got that look—the same one you had that summer when you were secretly dating blake."

sarah chuckled, perching on the bed beside angie. "fine, fair enough. but john b is different. he's not like anyone else."

angie raised an eyebrow, intrigued. "how so?"

sarah launched into the story of how she and john b had spent the day in chapel hill, describing their impromptu shopping spree, where they'd bought ridiculous outfits and pretended to be undercover spies. angie's face lit up with laughter as sarah recounted convincing john b to try on a suit, his obvious discomfort softened by her playful prodding.

"no way!" angie laughed, picturing john b's typical style clashing with something so formal. "you got him into a suit?"

"he looked so out of place. it was hilarious."

they shared a laugh, and angie reached for the nail polish again, dabbing a second coat on her thumbnail. as sarah's story wound down, angie leaned back, her laughter fading into a thoughtful silence. "so that's it? you went to chapel hill, played dress-up, and nothing else happened?" she asked, feigning innocence.

sarah's expression shifted, a sheepish grin replacing her confidence. angie's eyes widened, reading between the lines. "oh my god. sarah!"

"it was just a kiss!" sarah exclaimed, throwing her hands up, unable to hide her smile.

angie let out a dramatic sigh, feigning exasperation. "sure, just a kiss."

sarah shrugged, but this time, her smile was too genuine to hide. "it kind of just happened. we got off the ferry, and it was raining—"

angie held up her hand to stop her. "don't even say it. he kissed you in the rain? that's like straight out of a cheesy romance novel."

sarah's laughter was infectious, her eyes bright with the memory. "it wasn't that dramatic!" she protested, even as her cheeks flushed with a fresh blush. "it wasn't this huge romantic moment or anything. it was more spontaneous."

"oh, sure it was." angie nudged her playfully. "just you, john b, soaked from the rain, casually sharing a kiss like it's no big deal."

sarah rolled her eyes, but the smile stayed on her face. she glanced over at her dresser, where a small frame held a picture of her and topper. the sight sobered her a little, a flicker of conflict in her eyes as she exhaled.