Hanahaki

f i v e

Pulling her hand from under his hastily, Tobi scrubs her eyes and mutters a quick apology. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that it's just that I --"

"Why are you apologizing?"Ashton asks her, a wry smile on his face.

Tobi stops moving altogether, her eyes wide. "I-I just..." She turns to look up at the moon and sighs before closing her eyes. "I dunno, Ashton." Both of them are silent for a few minutes before Tobi stands and stretches her limbs as if they've been there for ages. Desperately wanting a change of pace, Tobi announces, "Okay. We came here because I love it, right? But now we should do something I've never done before." Looking down at Ashton as he stares up at her she states, "I have something I've always been too freaked out to try, but I dunno if you'll like it, dude."

Ashton shrugs and responds, "Meh, you're dying, so it can't be worse than that." She laughs, but it's awkward and Ashton feels his stomach drop. "Shit, sorry, that was so insensitive, I just meant --"

"No, it's okay," Tobi reassures him as he stands and begins throwing his hands around in the air. Waving a hand dismissively, she says, "Back to what I was saying. How do you feel about skinny dipping?"

Ashton stops altogether and leans back a bit, his hands on his hips. He nods, his eyes slightly widened and his brow scrunched before saying with a shrug, "Okay."

With a slight laugh, Tobi assures him, "Relax, we don't have to do that if you're uncomfortable. I may be dying, but I'm not gonna make someone do something they're uncomfortable with." She looks at the water skeptically and adds, "Plus, I'm not even sure if it's warm enough to swim in. I mean, it's only April, so..."

"Right," Ashton says as he sits back down and stares out over the water. Finally, after a long moment of silence, he takes a breath and states, "I mean, if you want to, we can, but..."

With a slight smirk, Tobi questions teasingly, "Are you sure? Ashton, are you sure you're ready to see me in the nu--"

"Yup, totally, let's fucking go," Ashton says loudly before pushing himself, fully clothed, into the pond.

"Oh my God." Tobi gasps as she hurries to the edge of the dock and kneels at the edge. "Holy shit, I think I killed Ashton." She mumbles as the ripples from Ashton's plunge make it the shore of the pond. After what seemed like an eternity of her kneeling and staring into the inky depths of the pond, Ashton breaks the surface of the water, gasping and now shirtless. "Oh fuck!" Tobi yelps as she pushes herself away from the edge of the dock. "Okay, thanks for scaring the shit outta me, dude."

As he throws the sopping wet clothes onto the dock next to her -- shirt and everything else -- he teases, "Wanna come in, Tobi? Water's fine." He drawls out the word 'fine' and sinks a little lower into the water, submerging the lower half of his face.

Breathing a sigh of relief, she responds, "Yeah, now that I know you're not dead." As she stands and begins tugging off her pants, Ashton looks from her to the posts holding up the dock, eyes flitting between the water and wood. "Aw, Ashton you don't wanna watch me get naked?" Tobi giggles as she pulls her shirt over her head.

Just as she removes her bra, Ashton looks up and retorts, "I don't think anyone wants to see tha..." He trails off midsentence as he sees her drop the garment in her own pile of clothes.

With a laugh, Tobi bends down and begins shimmying out of her underwear, doing her best to feign nonchalance as he continues to stare slackjawed at her. "What, never seen a girl naked before?" She teases as she walks forward on the dock, her eyes fixed on the wood under her feet.

"Um, no, actually. You'd be the first."

Tobi is stunned into silence. "Wow, I'm surprised." She admits as she crosses her arms over her exposed breasts.