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New challenge (Part 11)

Grace had invited Hannah and Alex to go to the beach with her and Goose. The dog loved the ocean and she thought it might be a nice activity to get to know Alex better.
She let herself in when she arrived at Hannah's, leaving Goose in the car.
"Hannah?" she shouted, "I'm here!"
Hannah stuck her head in the hallway, "One second dude."
"Yeah sure," Grace said, going to the kitchen where Hannah was, "What are you doing?"
"I'm packing." Hannah shrugged, shoving all sorts of things into a giant backpack, "Kids need a lot of stuff."
Grace laughed looking at the mess around her, "Hannah, we're going to the beach for a few hours, you don't need to pack two extra pairs of pants."
"No?" Hannah scrunched her face up, "But what if she gets wet? Or muddy? And you know sand crawls everywhere."
"Just take sunscreen, a hat, a towel, some cookies and some toys," Grace said, starting to unload Hannah's bag, "Why would you need this?" Grace smirked, fishing a DVD of Frozen out of the backpack.
"In case Alex gets bored?"
"And how are you gonna play it?" Grace asked, snickering.
Hannah's face fell, "Okay, so maybe I went a little overboard..."
"And you also forgot something very essential." Grace remarked.
"What?" Hannah asked panicky.
"Your kid!" Grace joked, "Where is she?"
Hannah rolled her eyes, "She's in the living room."
Grace efficiently repacked Hannah's stuff, "Done. Can I put my phone in your bag too?"
"Sure! Thanks dude," Hannah said, "Alex! Go put on your shoes baby."
***
Goose was put in the trunk much to her dismay, and Alex was safely strapped into her car seat.
"Are you sure I shouldn't be sitting in the back with her?" Hannah asked for the umpteenth time.
"If you ask that one more time, you're going in the trunk with Goose." Grace deadpanned.
"Fine," Hannah sulked, slouching in her seat.
Grace grinned at Hannah's protectiveness. Hannah kept turning around to check on Alex, and Grace thought it was adorable.
She turned the radio on as a distraction from the boring road. Soon both Hannah and her were screaming along to some Taylor Swift song, headbanging and gesturing dramatically, while Alex quietly smiled in the back.
The song ended, and Grace turned the volume back down.
"Again!" Alex said, still smiling.
Hannah laughed, and turned the volume up.
***
Alex looked with wide eyes.
"Have you never been to the beach before?" Grace asked, seeing the awe on the little girl's face.
Alex shook her head.
"Let's go find a nice spot to sit, and I'll tell you all about the ocean," Hannah smiled, holding her hand out for Alex.
They quickly agreed on a quiet spot, and started unloading their towels, and some water for Goose
Grace took her shirt off, passing the sunscreen to Hannah, silently asking to rub it on her back.
Hannah gulped seeing Grace's halfnaked form. Her best friend was so beautiful.
She quickly rubbed the lotion on Grace's back, trying not to think about it.
"Alex, your turn," Hannah said, "Hold out your arms."
Hannah made sure that every inch of the little girl was completely covered in sunscreen.
"Hannah, that's enough!" Grace giggled, "I can barely see the kid underneath all that sunscreen."
Hannah grinned guiltily. She quickly put some sunscreen on herself, before sitting down next to Alex.
"That water," Hannah pointed to the ocean, "Is called the Pacific Ocean. It's super big! And on the other side of that water is a different continent!"
Grace watched amused as Hannah gestured wildly talking about all the animals that lived in the ocean, and how the tides work. Alex just sat there nodding, but Grace could see it went right over the little girl's head. It was absolutely endearing.
Goose started whining next to her and pulling on her leash.
"Guys, I'm gonna take Goose to the water, you want to come?" Grace asked.
Hannah nodded, following Grace to the shoreline, keeping a firm grip on Alex's hand.
Alex froze when they got closer to the ocean.
"It's alright baby," Hannah smiled, "It's all safe."
Alex nodded, but her hand clenched around Hannah's, holding her tighter.
They took a few steps closer, and Alex froze again.
"Do you want me to pick you up?" The girl quickly nodded, and Hannah hoisted her up on her hip.
"I'm gonna let Goose of the leash now," Grace said, and as soon as the dog was loose she sprinted into the water.
"See, Goose loves the ocean!" Hannah said, "You don't need to be afraid."
Hannah stepped into the water, letting the waves roll over her feet.
"Do you want to try?" She asked. Alex nodded nervously.
Hannah put her down in front of her, and grabbed both of the girl's hands, gently coaxing her into the water.
Grace stood aside, filming them, she knew Hannah would consider this a special moment. And she had to admit that it was a very special moment.
Alex shrieked as the water touched her feet, trying to run away from it.
"It's fine," Hannah soothed, "Look, there comes another wave."
The girl shrieked again, but this time it was followed by soft giggling.
Alex started to enjoy the water, squealing every time the waves hit her feet.
Hannah gently let go of the girl, watching her as she tried to outrun the waves laughing.
"You did it!" Grace smiled at Hannah.
Hannah kept her eyes on Alex, "I feel like I'm gonna cry. Look at her, she's so happy."
Grace wrapped her arm around Hannah's shoulder, "You are amazing with her Hannah, I'm so proud of you."
***
They went to a diner for ice cream when Alex got tired of the ocean.
They looked like quite the trio. Grace wore a beautiful sundress, Hannah wore shorts, a tank and a snapback, and Alex wore a dress but she'd put her pink princess cap on backwards, like Hannah. Both adults thought it was absolutely adorable.
Goose lay at Alex's feet. The dog had become fond of the tiny little human.
An older woman passed their table, pausing before turning around.
"You two have a beautiful family," the woman told them. Before Hannah could contradict the woman, Grace addressed her.
"Thank you," Grace smiled, leaving Hannah to stare at her with an open mouth.
"Enjoy the rest of your day, ladies." The woman left.
"Why did you do that?" Hannah asked.
Grace shrugged, "I didn't want to embarrass her, who cares if she thinks we're together, right?"
"Yeah," Hannah mumbled, not really knowing what to think.
"Hey, Alex is spilling her ice cream on my dog."
***
When they got home Hannah ushered Alex in the shower. Once she was sure all the sand was gone, she sent the girl to her room to get dressed and quickly showered herself.
Hannah pulled her carrot onesie on, before going to check on Alex.
The girl was still in her room, struggling to get in her own carrot onesie.
"Looks like we match!" Hannah smiled, zipping Alex up.
The girl laughed, lifting her arms up. Hannah easily picked the girl up.
"You're still too light," She commented, making Alex scrunch up her face.
"Come on baby carrot! Let's go watch Adventure Time!" Hannah ran to the living room, holding Alex above her head making airplane noises.
When Grace let herself in hours later to retrieve her forgotten phone, she found Hannah asleep on the couch, with Alex sleeping on top of her.
She grabbed her phone, and quickly snapped a picture of the two carrots.