Cuori in evoluzione

The perfect wave

Chapter 3: Between the Waves

The days passed slowly, and the summer seemed to stretch on forever, a haze of sun, sand, and salty water. Charlie found himself thinking about Mateo more than he wanted to admit. Every time they crossed paths, there was an unspoken tension between them, an attraction neither of them could fully ignore, even though they both tried. There were moments of fleeting connection—those brief exchanges on the beach, their shared silences at the pier—but nothing was ever said in full, nothing that could break the invisible wall they both maintained.

Charlie couldn't quite understand Mateo. On the surface, Mateo was the quiet tourist, the guy who was only in town for the summer, who kept to himself and seemed content to watch life pass by. But there was something more to him. He had that quality, that mysterious energy that made him stand out in the crowd, even if he didn't want to be noticed. It was as if Mateo wasn't entirely present, as if part of him was always somewhere else, lost in a place Charlie couldn't reach.

One evening, after his shift, Charlie wandered down the familiar stretch of beach, the air warmer than usual. He hadn't seen Mateo in days. There had been a few fleeting moments—a glance across the sand, an ocean wave passing by—but nothing that seemed to mean anything. That day, however, Charlie couldn't stop thinking about their last conversation. There was something in the way Mateo had looked at him, like he was trying to say something without speaking, something urgent but trapped behind his guarded expression. Charlie had the overwhelming sense that they were on the brink of something, but neither of them knew how to cross the line.

Just as he was about to leave the beach for the night, Charlie heard a voice behind him.

"Charlie."

He turned around, surprised to see Mateo standing a few feet away, hands tucked into the pockets of his hoodie. The sunset was beginning to dip below the horizon, casting a faint glow on the water. For a moment, it felt as though the world around them had stopped, the noise of the crowd, the crashing waves—all fading into the background. All that mattered was the person standing in front of him.

"Hey, Mateo," Charlie said, trying to sound casual, though his heart had started to beat a little faster. "I haven't seen you around in a while."

"Yeah, I've been... keeping to myself, I guess," Mateo replied, briefly looking away as if the words didn't come easily. "But I've been thinking... we should do something. You know, hang out. I haven't done anything around here for a while."

Charlie blinked, surprised by the suggestion. It wasn't like Mateo to suggest something social. He always seemed happy to stay away from the rest of the world. But there he was, standing in front of Charlie, offering the chance to spend time together. There was something different in the air that night, a feeling that maybe things were starting to change, slowly but surely.

"Yeah, I'd like that," Charlie said, his voice betraying a hint of excitement. He quickly added, "There's a little bar on the beach. I go there sometimes after work. It's quiet. We could meet there tomorrow afternoon?"

Mateo looked at him, the faintest trace of a smile curving his lips. "Sounds good. See you there, then. Three?"

Charlie nodded, his heart beating a little faster now. He didn't want to think too much about it, didn't want to make it seem like it was anything more than two people grabbing coffee. But it felt different. It felt like something was starting to form between them, something more than the awkward silences and fleeting glances they had exchanged so far.

"Alright. I'll be there," Charlie said, trying to keep his voice steady.

"Good. Later," Mateo said before turning to leave, disappearing into the twilight. Charlie watched him walk away, still unsure if what had just happened was real. But there was no mistaking the promise of something unspoken, the anticipation hanging in the air.