Painting The BadBoy ✔

49 | The Very Wet Date

I looked at the water. Then up at him. I blinked.

"Are you crazy?!"

"Maybe." He shrugged. "Just take your shoes off. I won't let you drown, I promise."

The only thing that the apparent swim would lead to, was a bunch of rocky hills and crevices that I could see from here. Fortunately, the water wasn't so deep in the direction we were headed.

Slowly, I took off my sandals and gathered my hair into a loose knot.

"Ready?" He took my right hand. In his left were his shoes and his jacket. I picked up my sandals and my phone.

Gently, he lead me into the water. Nothing could have prepared me for how cold it was though. Instantly, I began to shiver.

I took a few more steps, glad to find that the water in this area came up only to my waist.

"You're doing great." He told me. I lifted my other hand higher, so that my sandals and my phone wouldn't get wet. Half my clothes already were.

The ocean floor was a hard layer of jagged rocks, and I think I injured my foot once or twice somewhere along the way.

I looked back at the water crashing onto those rocks mercilessly. Had I just waded through that?

Bad thought. I instantly lost my footing, falling face-first into water that was as cold as ice.

I barely heard him yell my name. A strong arm wrapped around me and lifted me up. "You okay?"

I glared at him. "Worst date ever!"

"It'll get better." He chuckled.

Somehow, I made it onto dry land. Dani was supporting most of my weight and let me go as soon as we hit the rocks on the other side.

I slipped on my sandals, not wanting any more cuts on my feet. He put on his boots too, and gave me his jacket.

I wrapped it around myself, still shivering.

"What are we doing here?" All I saw were gray hilly rocks, huge and jagged like opaque glass.

"Surprise." He whispered, turning around the bend. I frowned and followed him to see what the big deal was.

On the other side, water had come through and eroded the rocks to form a small opening. However, since the tide was low today, there was no water in the cave.

Dani led me through the opening, and it got narrower before it got wider again. The space was big enough just for one fairly thin person to go through, and since Dani was tall, he had a bend a little.

Another opening revealed what Dani had been planning all along.

I think my mouth hung open.

Fairy lights adorned every rough grated wall, a giant fire blazing in the corner. A small round table and two chairs sat in the middle, food and cutlery already set.

"Eat it while it's hot." He grinned, offering me the seat closer to the fire.

I clung to his jacket, savoring his scent. Water gurgled in the distance, and the fire crackled. I'm pretty sure I heard a few crickets too.

Dani opened a bottle of sparkling water and poured me a glass. "I would have preferred wine." He winked. "But sadly, you don't drink."

"This is just as good." I picked up my glass and clanked it softly with his. "What's for dinner?"

He lifted the silver lid to reveal crab stuffed lobster tail, spaghetti with shrimps and sizzling fried fish. "Hope you like seafood. It's the best I could get."

I helped myself to a bit of everything. Just as I was beginning to take my first bite, my phone buzzed.

"Everything alright?" asked Dani after I read the text.

"Yup. Apparently, Rosie just got back together with Kevin."

"That's great." He said. "At least I won't have to watch Kevin mope around now."

I laughed. "That goes for both parties."

I finished the rest of my food and my glass of sparkling water too. "The food is really good." I commented.

"I know, right?" he said, swallowing his last bite. "The guy I got it from told me about this place."

"You got the food first?" I asked.

"Yeah, I was planning a picnic at the beach." He answered. "Decided this would be more special. "

I returned his smile wholeheartedly. He got up and extended his hand. I took it and he guided me towards the sturdy log sitting close to the fire.

From here, I had a view of the beach. It was really beautiful. And now that the sun was gone and the stars were up, the ocean held a different kind of beauty.

"Everything's so... cosmologically wonderful." I sighed.

"That I agree with." He said. "Evolution hasn't changed much of nature." He sat close to me and I laced our fingers together.

The same view could have been viewed by people a hundred years ago. Cruises that sailed on these waters were the same as the wooden boats a thousand years ago.

I loved the whole idea.

"So is this a good moment?" He asked.

I grinned. "For what?"

"For me to ask you to be my girlfriend?" He said nervously.

"Yes it is." I answered, leaning into his shoulder. "And yes, I would very much like that."

He smiled in relief. "One more thing..."

"Hm?" I said absentmindedly.

"I know you like it here because of your friends and all, but would it be very selfish of me to take you somewhere before Christmas?" I looked up at him.

"Where to?"

His eyes glittered. "That's a surprise."

His eyes pierced into mine. With shadows of the fire dancing on his face and his eyes lighting up like the moon, how could I not have agreed?