Akumal

Beach Buddies

I couldn’t wait another moment, I just so into this story! Enjoy! If you would like me to check out your stories and vote!!!

-Akumal

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Past

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My leg finally felt fine, and I was going out for the first time since my visit to the hospital.  I grabbed my jean jacket and simply left my shoes off. Making sure I had my phone in my back pocket, I opened the front door and stepped outside.  A brisk wind hit my face, but it felt good after being stuck inside all day.  My bare feet hit the grainy sand outside and I sighed with longing.  This was truly where I belonged.

Placing one foot in front of the other, I walked down the shoreline, allowing the cool waves to splash over my feet.  The rhythmic sound of the ocean calmed me down immediately.  After a while of walking this way.  I sat down on the dry sand, allowing my feet to sink into it.  I dug down deeper with them, feeling an underlayer of gooey, wetter sand.  I loved living on the beach.

I was so focused on the feelings around me that I completely missed the moment when a hooded stranger sat down next to me.  

“Beautiful night, huh?”

I whirled around to face the person, falling backwards on the sand in the process.  I tried to regain my seat, but I suddenly became very clumsy.  When I finally got myself sitting up again, the stranger was laughing like crazy.  His laugh was probably the sexiest laugh I’d ever heard, and it made me blush like crazy.  I pulled myself back into my original seat and put my feet back in the sand.  I wasn’t really sure what to say now.  I just sat there, twiddling with a loose string on my jacket.  

The stranger stretched out his hand to me.  “Haku.”

I shook his hand, maybe a little too fast. “Kona Kai.  But I prefer Kai.  Just Kai.”

He laughed his sexy laugh again.  God, that was cute.  “Ok then, Just Kai,” he said.  I think he may have moved just a centimeter closer.  We sat there, watching the tide roll in.  “Do you wanna see something cool?” He said, turning to me.  

“Depends,” I said, smiling.  

He smiled.  “I think you’ll like it.”  He stood, extending his hand out to me.  I barely thought about what I was doing before I grabbed his hand and he hoisted me up.  I followed him as he trekked down the beach.  As we walked, I tried to make out some of his features, but it was much too dark.  I could tell that he was only a few inches taller than me.  Other than that, I couldn’t guess much about him.  He seemed really nice and funny, since he laughed a lot.  His voice was sweet; I enjoyed listening to him talk.  

All of a sudden, he stopped, and motioned for me to come around and see something.  At first, I wasn’t sure I knew what he was looking at.  Then I noticed something sticking out of the sand. Leaning in closer, I saw an pearly white shell peeping out, and several small hints of others.  Haku knelt down before the buried eggs and carefully brushed the sand off of them, yet never picking them up.  Now I could see dozens.

“Turtle eggs,” he said, and I knelt down beside him to really get a good look.  “Should hatch in a couple of weeks.  They’re magnificent, aren’t they?”

All I could do was breathe in agreement with him.  They were.  I had never seen a hatching before, and had always wanted to.  Now I had the opportunity to.  I looked around and mentally marked my location so I could come back.  He began covering the eggs back up.

I grabbed his hand, effectively stopping him.  “Woah, what are you doing.  His face turned towards me.  In the moonlight, I was able to see it.  I struggled to keep in a gasp.  

“I’m covering them back up so no predators get at them.  Is that alright with you?” He smiled and turned back to the eggs.  

I was still in shock from seeing his face.  He turned back to me, smiling, then frowned when he saw my expression. “What?”

I pushed my comment down.  “Nothing.”  I turned around and sat on the sand, staring out at the water.  He sat back down next to me.  For a while we sat there, not saying anything, hardly moving.  I couldn’t even breathe.  

Haku picked up a flat stone and flung it as far as he could into the water while still sitting down.  Then he put his arms back around his knees.  “You know, I have my own special name for this beach.”

I didn’t say anything, but I was curious.  “And what would that be?” I finally asked.

“Akumal.”

I scrunched my eyebrows in confusion. “What does that mean?” The word didn’t sound Hawaiian, or at least it wasn’t one that I could remember.

“It’s this word from the Ancient Mayan culture that means ‘Place of Turtles’.  I think it’s a beautiful word.  And I’ve seen so many turtle hatchings here that the name really suits it.”  He didn’t look at me, just stared out at the ocean.  My heart started beating faster.  Not only was he sexy, he was smart and down to earth.  I wanted to move closer to him, but before I could, he pulled out his phone to check the time.  The LED screen lit up his face and I caught a glimpse of his face.  I still couldn’t figure out why...

“Well, I have to go,” he said, standing up.  “See you later, Turtle Girl.”  He turned and sprinted down the beach, back to where he must have come.

I stood, but I couldn’t move.  He lied to me. Why would he lie about that?

There was one thing I was certain of: his name was definitely not Haku.