You stood on the California beach early in the morning, breathing in the salty air. You glanced out over the sea and watched the sun rise. You and your family were on vacation in Los Angeles. You came to LA on vacation almost every summer; you lived in Australia. Today was the first official day of your vacation. Your parents were still sound asleep in the hotel, but you had decided to get up early and have some time to yourself on the beach. You took out your phone to take a picture of the sunrise to send your friends back home. As soon as you had taken the picture, you felt strong arms wrap around you from behind. You shrieked, dropping your phone in the sand. “Boo.” A familiar voice whispered in your ear. You whirled around, coming face to face with the other reason for your visit to LA. “Ross!” you cried, leaping into his arms. He tightened his arms around you and buried his face in your hair. “I missed you so much.” He murmured. It had been almost four months since you had seen each other, since he lived in California and you lived in Australia. He flew out to see you on weekends when he could, but with R5 andAustin and Ally it wasn’t very often. You had met him 3 years ago on one of your family vacations. He had been playing football on the beach with his brothers, Rydel, & Ellington; you had been sunbathing nearby. Ross had been running for a pass that Riker threw and hadn’t been watching where he was going; he literally RAN over you. After making sure he hadn’t broken anything, the two of you began talking. You spent most of your vacation hanging out with him at the beach and all over town. The two of you had been together ever since. Ross brushed your hair out of your face, looking into your eyes. “What do you want to do today?” he asked. You shrugged. “I don’t care. I always pick. You decide this time.” You smiled up at him. He was silent for a few moments, thinking. He looked back down at you and beamed. “How about I teach you how to surf?” You froze. “Umm…I don’t know.” You said uncertainly. Ross looked down at you in disbelief. “Grace come ON. You play on almost every team at your school. I don’t think there’s a single sport you haven’t tried at least once. Why not surfing?” he pouted. “Because.” You sighed, disentangling yourself from Ross and walking a few steps away. “It’s…the ocean. It’s big and deep…and big.” You crossed your arms. Ross smirked. “Is the big bad Grace afraid?” he taunted. Your jaw dropped slightly. “Is that a challenge?” you asked incredulously. Ross nodded, mimicking you by crossing his arms. “Oh it most certainly is.” He replied. You dropped your arms back down to your sides and walked back over to Ross, bringing your face inches away from his. “Let’s go.” You said simply, looking into his eyes.
Four hours later, the two of you were sitting on your boards out in the water. You had picked up on surfing right away, as Ross had expected. You’d only wiped out a few times. You were doing better than Ross was. “Last wave?” he asked. You nodded. You watched as the wave formed in the distance. It was much bigger than any of the others you’d surfed today. Ross noticed your expression change. “Relax babe, you’ve got this!” he encouraged, as he began paddling towards the wave. You took a deep breath and followed behind him. The wave continued to build. You stood up on your board, catching the wave. You wobbled slightly, but regained your balance quickly. “Ross!” you cried excitedly, looking back. You saw him pop up from under the water. You began laughing as you turned around and finished riding the wave back to shore. You stood for a few moments, waiting for Ross to make his way back. “Not a word.” He growled as he made his way up onto the sand, throwing his surfboard down. You laughed, wrapping your arms around his neck. “Awwwh, poor baby.” You giggled, kissing his lips. He broke into a smile as his arms snaked around your waist. “I love you, you know that?” he asked. You smiled back. “I know.” You said. “I love you too.” He kissed you again, longer this time. “Come on.” He said as he looked into your eyes. “I’m starving.” You rolled your eyes as you followed Ross back up the beach towards your hotel.
