Sunflowers

-•- Two -•-

Corbin walks beside her as they join the party. It's already in full swing as people dance on the grass or jump from a rope swing into the swollen river. Corbin grabs a couple of drinks and hands her a cup. She takes a sip and the sweetness of fruit punch overtakes her tastebuds. She sighs at the refreshing flavor as Corbin smiles at her. "Want to go for a swim?" He asks.

She nods. "Sure." She takes off her t-shirt and shorts and ignores the whistles from around her. Corbin glares at the boys who whistled at her and she laughs. "Come on, ignore them. Let's go swim."

He nods and his gaze softens when it lands on her. He pulls his shirt over his head, and despite being his best friend, she can't help but ogle slightly at his abs. They're strong and hard, impressive really.

He has to look away from her. She's so beautiful, he knows that, and he understands why those other guys whistled at her. She doesn't even realize it, with her long, dark brown hair and chocolate-colored eyes, framed by thick black lashes. Her cheeks are naturally rosy and her lips are pink and full, perfectly suited to her face. She isn't tall, but that's fine with him. She fits perfectly under his chin when he holds her.

He has to look away because he has to deny himself the urge to kiss her. He can't do that. She has a boyfriend, which he has to remind himself every time he sees her.

She breaks him from his thoughts by taking his hand. He smiles down at her and as they near the river, picks her up. She squeals and grabs his arms, telling him, "Corbin, don't you dare drop me!"

He laughs. "Oh sweetheart, I won't drop you. I'm throwing you." Shock registers on her face, but he tosses her into the river before she can do anything to stop him.

The cold water envelops her as the warmth of his arms is ripped from her. The water is shockingly cold against her skin and she shivers. Corbin jumps in after and sees her shiver. Concern etches onto his face momentarily, but it's gone as soon as an evil smile slips onto her face. She splashes him with water and it soaks his hair, plastering the strands to his forehead and making his thick eyelashes clump together. She laughs at the shocked look on his face, but she thought she won too soon. He smirks and splashes her back, and before she know it, his arms are around her waist.

She gasps and he let her suck in a quick breath before shoving her under the surface. He holds her there for a few seconds before letting her back up. She takes deep breaths, her chest heaving as she struggles to catch her breath.

He chuckles and pats her back. She growls playfully and jumps at him, trying to knock him into the river, but she's too small. He doesn't even budge, just catches her. She's relaxed by the warmth from his chest, but then she remembers what she was doing. She shoves her body off his in another attempt to knock him over, but it doesn't seem to have any effect again. "You're supposed to fall over," she whines. "At least pretend I can shove you over."

He laughs. "Okay, fine. Push me one more time." She digs her toes into the sandy bottom of the river and shoves as hard as she can. He steps backwards dramatically before falling into the water, earning a loud laugh from her at his theatrics. He grabs her hand and pulls her with him so she falls directly on his chest.

She smirks at him. He stands back up before pushing her back in. She has a shocked look on her face and a soft, pained cry comes from her lips as she topples backwards, wrapping her arms around her head. He looks behind her and sees that she must've tripped over a tree root, and then sees the thick, rough-barked tree right behind her. He grabs her quickly and pulls her back to her feet. "Sorry," he says gently. "Are you okay?"

She nods. "I'm okay. That scared me, though."

He lifts her from the water and sets her on the riverbank before hopping out himself. He lays back and puts his arms under his head as a pillow. She curls up into his side and uses his chest as a pillow as they stare at the stars.

He sighs and wishes this moment could last forever. It's perfect.

Suddenly, a deep voice interrupts them. "Faith?"