Unattainable

Chapter 19 Freckles and Tides

We ran back down the boulevard and crossed the road in a blur as I held on tightly to his hand and pushed the thoughts of negativity away from my heart.

We slowed on the sidewalk to catch our breath.

"Where to next?" Shawn asked, his hands on his knees as he bent with his head down.

"Do you.." how do I ask this? "Want to I don't know.."

He shook his head instantly. "We can talk later. Let's just do something."

I nodds slowly. "Okay, well how about the beach?"

He doesn't trust you.

"It's kind of rainy," he stood as took my hand again. "But maybe it will stop."

I smiled as we turned to walk back towards the bridge that would ten take us down to the docks.

"Sounds good."

We walked hand in hand and as the bridge grew closer I felt the grip on his hands grow increasingly tighter.

"Shawn?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you..."

"Afraid of heights?" He exhaled and inhaled deeply. "A little."

"But you've been over this bridge a thousand times?"

"In a car yes," he shook his head again as we stepped onto the small sidewalk that separated us from the rushing vehicles. "Never walking."

I watched as he shut his eyes and swayed only slightly but just enough to make me nervous.

So I kissed him. I took his fave in my hands and out my lips in his and kissed him. I felt his hands around my waist as I pulled my body along to guide him. He followed and kept on kissing me.

My one hand found its way to his hair while the other skimmed the railing keeping us from falling over into the underpass. All this time, our lips kept contact until I heard the whooshing of cars decrease in volume and I knew we had crossed.

I let my lips fall from his and his eyes were still shut as our lips backed away from the others.

"What," his eyes fluttered open slowly "why did you do that." His breath was heavy upon my face.

"I um, I didn't want you to look down."

I felt myself blush as I covered my face and let myself smile.

"And I thought it was because you liked me." He winked at me as his hands left my waist and trailed down to link with my hand.

"Well, maybe a bit of both."

We continued walking towards the sound of waves kissing the shore and always retiring back into the open waters. They were inseparable, the waves and the shore. They were in love with one another but knew that even though they were apart for a moment, the moment to come would be worth the wait.

"You know what I like about you most?" Shawn asked as we neared the docks and our feet were welcomed by the hallow sound of walking on the wooden boardwalk.

"What's that?"

He stopped me as we reached the end and the sand now surrounded us. The wind was whipping about and the smell of beach and the open space swallows us together.

"Your freckles."

I couldn't help but laugh. "Are you serious? I hate them!" I let my hands slip up to cover my face as I was now incredibly self conscious.

"No no," Shawn's hands reached up to mine and moved mine away as he ran his thumb over the specks on my cheeks. "I like to see them, don't cover them up."

I looked down at my sand dusted boots and smiled. "They're just freckles, Shawn."

He shook his head as we continued to walk down the walk towards the pier where a lonely lighthouse stood.

"They show your emotions."

"I thought eyes did that, I mean, yours do that." I wanted to change the topic from me to him.

"Good try but no. Your freckles, see, they have a way of alining themselves when you feel something. For example when you concentrate, Astrid, you furrow your brow and these two," he motioned to something that I couldn't quite see. "They meet."

I was absolutely flabbergasted as to how well he had studied my face.

"Are you insane?!"

He laughed and it warmed my heart.

"No." He looked into my eyes and they looked into me again. "I'm just infatuated."

I felt a sting on my cheek from the wind forcing pink hues to flood my face again. It wasn't just the wind that made me blush.

"You sure know how to make a girl feel special."

He pulled me into his arms and kissed my head.

"Well it's my pleasure to make you happy."

You do more than that.

We walked like that, me in his arms, until we reached the pier. We walked along the wooden planks to a bench that sat at the end and faces the empty void of the lake.

"Would you like to sit for awhile?"

I nodded as I slipped down into the seat. He say beside me and I pulled my knees to my chest and he out his arms around my back and let me lean on his chest.

"You're like the moon, Astrid." He whispered into my ear as the wind picked up, bowling stray hairs into my face.

"How's that?" I asked back.

"I have the need to gravitate towards you and in sync with you. We're like the shore you know?"

I just smiled as he mumbled again into my hair.

"They were inseparable, the waves and the shore."