Ocean Blue & You

cinderella at midnight

I continued to clasp Jack's hand as we raced out of the school grounds together, adrenaline pumping through my blood, excitement flowing through me as I followed him, not knowing where he was going but trusting him entirely. We only let our hands go when we found some government bikes you could borrow on the side of the road and cycled quickly away from the loud, muffled sounds of the Prom in school, until we couldn't hear them anymore. We cycled down road after road until after a few minutes, we arrived at Littleton beach, in the very spot where I had arrived for my first walk with Jack. We carelessly threw our bikes down on the sand and then I started running. He ran with me. I beamed as bright as the moon as we laughed excitedly, not having a clue what we were doing or why we were doing it, but having so much fun.

We were hysteric, like little children until we gradually slowed down to a steady walk as we climbed up the steps to the pier. All the stalls and little shops on it were closed, but we went into deep conversation as we proceeded, the only source of light around was the huge, full moon beaming brightly in the sky, shining it's lightest. It was the most beautiful, and calmest scene. With only the bright moonlight giving light, and glimmering sparkles on the deep, dark sea. It was an utterly blissful and wonderful night. A gentle, comforting breeze was blowing through the warm, midsummer night air. It felt like an invisible someone was blowing softly on your face, creating a pleasant sense of utter tranquillity. The beach and pier were so quiet and empty, with no one to disturb us. The whole of Littleton beach was ours tonight. It was very romantic.

I remembered the brief talk I had had with Emma a few weeks ago, and it suddenly came to my attention that this was something I really had to talk about with Jack. I needed to know about this. I needed clarity about the situation, and Emma's quick message had left me feeling confused and upset. I stopped staring out at the sea and turned my head to look back at Jack. He had just begun to light a cigarette.

"Do you smoke?" he asked.

"No, I don't," I answered.

He offered me one, and I accepted, but it tasted horrible, as the smoke filled my mouth, and I immediately grabbed my water bottle and took a huge gulp, throwing the cigarette he had offered me over the side of the pier and coughing. Jack merely laughed.

"How can you?!" I spluttered.

"You get used to it," he laughed.

Once I had gotten over the horrible taste and had stopped coughing, I remembered what I had wanted to say, and so, quietly, I said,

"Jack?"

"Yeah?" he answered, as a cloud of smoke drifted out of his mouth and disappeared into the breezy night air.

"Emma told me something about our parents the other day," I began. At the mention of 'our parents', Jack stopped smoking and looked at me seriously as we continued to walk, not breaking eye contact.

"What did she say?" Jack asked, and I could hear a hint of panic in his voice now.

"Well- don't worry!" I hastily added, as Jack's expression looked panicked to match his tone. "She just very briefly told me that- well, that our parents don't get along."

"That's an understatement," Jack muttered.

"I know about our parents now. But that's all she really said. And then she threatened me."

"She, WHAT?" Jack exclaimed, now his expression had turned to anger. Though I didn't want him to worry, I couldn't help but feel a little rush that he felt so protective over me.

"She threatened me and said if I don't come to her house tomorrow, she'll tell your parents about us," I finished that last bit a bit awkwardly, wondering what she meant by 'us'.