Imagination || L.H.

Chapter 4

Wet sand squishes beneath my feet, sliding in between my toes. I let out a surprised half-scream, half-laugh as a wave roars up and slams into my side. The force behind the water formation threatens to pull me under, but Luke's grip prevents me from toppling over into the surf. 

His hand holds mine high above the waves as we slowly make our way through the rough stretch of violently tossing water to the deeper parts. The sun beats down on our exposed skin, glinting off the surface of the water with all the brilliance of diamonds.

"What are you doing?" a voice shouts from the beach.

I turn to see Calum standing at the edge of the water, hands cupped around his mouth, a curious expression on his face. 

"Swimming," I yell back, beckoning for him to join us. "C'mon!" 

I tighten my grip on Luke's hand as a particularly fierce wave crashes into us, surf spraying everywhere. 

"I hope you're okay with them coming too," I say to him.

"Of course. Going swimming with the boys is just about as normal as it gets." He grins as we push off from the ocean floor, floating over a wave as it continues on its way to the dry sand. 

Dropping my hand to wave over the others, he holds his breath and disappears under the water.

By the time he emerges, Michael has crashed his way through the waves to reach us, Calum and Ashton not far behind. 

My attention on the boys splashing towards us, I don't notice the huge wave sneaking up behind me. 

I shriek as it falls down on top of our heads, ripping me off my feet. Ash grabs my hand and hauls me back up to the surface. I gasp for air, clinging tightly to Ashton as another wave gets ready to break over us. 

Michael grins, striking the Superman pose, gliding over the top of the huge wave easily. Ashton and I are just far enough away from him that it's too dangerous to follow his lead and go over it. The only option is under and I hate going through waves. That's usually where everything goes wrong and my face hits the sand beneath us.

Fortunately for me, Ashton's hand pulls me safely to the other side. Michael is attempting to start a water fight, splashing Luke and Calum with crazed movements. Calum's mouth is twisted into something that's in between a smile and a scowl, his arms crossed over his chest. Luke stands perfectly still, pretending not to notice the water droplets hitting his skin.

Ash lets go of my hand, jumping onto Michael's back, leaning back to use his weight to drag the other boy down into the water with him. 

I slide out of the way as they wrestle in the waves, giggling as Luke, Calum and I hop over an incoming wave without them.

Calum smirks, holding up three fingers. "Three... two... one."

A split second after the last word leaves his mouth, screams of surprise sound, turning distorted as the two boys are sucked under the water. I stretch up on my toes to spot them as they rise from the ocean. 

Ashton is shaking water out of his ears, frowning. Michael spits out a mouthful of seawater, oblivious to the crab clinging to his shock of white hair. They look miserable and waterlogged.

"Mike, you got something..." Ash trails off as he gestures wildly to his own head.

Michael reaches a bored hand up to his head, wiping at something he can't see. He lets out a surprised yelp, cradling his hand as he jumps around. "Something bit me! Get it off! Get it off!"

Calum swats at Mikey's head, trying to rein in his laughter. "Stand still, you big baby!"

Mike goes perfectly still, squeezing his eyes shut. Calum knocks the crab out of his hair, sending it plummeting back down to the ocean floor with a splash. 

"Is it gone?" Michael asks timidly, cracking one eye open.

"It's gone," Cal assures him.

Michael stands up, a shudder racking his body. "God, I hate crabs. And insects. Crabs and insects and snakes." 

His pale green eyes sweep our surroundings, as if searching for the sources of his fear. Anxiously, he runs a hand through his hair.

Luke laughs at him, treading water as he swims further out. His blond hair, always styled so carefully, is plastered to his head with the seawater. 

The lip ring his mom flipped out about him getting draws attention his mouth, almost daring you to say something about it. I've always wondered why he got that piercing. To seem cool? As an act of defiance? For the hell of it?

I move to put my feet back down on the ocean floor, but find that I can no longer reach the sandy bottom. All of the boys stand without any difficulty, the water still relatively low to them. It almost comes up to Ashton's chin, while Luke's broad shoulders aren't even under the water. 

I kick with my feet in an effort to stay afloat, struggling to get over the waves without something to push off from.

Calum notices my strained efforts and chuckles. "What's the matter, Kat? Can't touch the bottom?"

I toss a scowl in his direction. "No," I lie. "I can reach, thank you very much." 

With my head tilted all the way back to remain above the water, the sun shines in my eyes and blinds me. The next thing I know the sun has disappeared and I'm tumbling through the water once more, bits of broken shells and seaweed brushing my skin. 

When I come back up, coughing water up and struggling to put my feet on the ground to catch my breath, hands reach out and steady me. I blink the remaining seawater out of my eyes, opening them to come face to face with Luke. He holds me to his side to keep my head out of the water.

Arching an eyebrow at me, he teases, "You can reach, can't you?"

I scowl at him. "Okay, maybe I lied."

He gives me an infuriating grin. "Well, you can try to swim on your own and drown, or you can hold onto me and stay alive. Really, it's your choice."

I don't say anything, hooking my legs around his waist to allow him to free his arms. He does and I wrap my own around his shoulders, clinging to his back. Although I'm no closer to him than I would be if I hugged him, it feels a lot closer. 

I peer around his shoulder as he looks to the horizon for incoming waves, locking eyes with Calum. He lifts an eyebrow questioningly. I feel my cheeks heat up and drop his gaze. 

I'm just friends with Luke. I don't like him like that. I don't like anyone like that since I caught my boyfriend of two years cheating on me two summers ago, the summer of our junior year of high school. 

Calum knows that I have sworn off love. He knows that I haven't gone a date since, haven't kissed anyone since, haven't ever let myself fall for someone. 

Why would he ever think that I like Luke?