Only Ever Best Friends

✰ 13 ✰

Slight problem. There was only one bed, and upon seeing it Grayson and I had the same
"oh fuck" look on our faces.

"I'll sleep on the floor," I said.

"El that's gross, we'll figure it out later. I'm not letting you sleep on the floor."

"Sure."

I set my duffel bag on the bed and he set his backpack on the floor.

"Let's go for a walk on the beach, it's almost 4:00, so we should collect the samples." He says, checking his phone.

"Right."
I grabbed my keys and my camera and we left the motel. The actual beach was only about a five minute walk and when we got there it was empty. We ditched our shoes under a tree and began walking.

I snapped a few good landscape (and seascape) shots while he started the sampling.

I tried to keep my mind on the assignment, on the palm trees, on the crashing waves just beside me, on the soft, supple sand under my feet. On literally anything else at all. I managed to stop myself from bringing it up on the drive over, but now it was eating me alive. I had to know.

"Soo..." I began awkwardly,
"...last night...you left...without me."

He inhaled and sighed.

"And I'm sorry about that," he said calmly.

"Sorry" wasn't a good enough answer.

"It's not a big deal, I just—"

"You just WHAT?" He snapped bitterly.

His sudden harsh and unnecessary tone stung in the back of my throat.

"God, Grayson I just need to know why."
I snapped back angrily.

"No, you don't Ellie."

Fuck him. I deserve to know.

"It was me, wasn't it? I made you leave."

"Look, I'm sorry okay? Believe me, I really am, but I guarantee that it was for your own good. Now can you please just leave this alone? Please?"

"Grayson, you practically shoved me off of you, then ran outside and sped off without a single word. Do you have any idea how humiliating that was for me?! And you didn't even bother trying to contact me! I had to CALL MY MOTHER to come pick me up because you just disappeared! How do you think I felt, huh?!"

"El-Ellie I... I didn't know what was happening to me. I had to get out before something regrettable happened."

"Regrettable? I know that we agreed to never do anything together, but was it really that bad?"

Grayson dropped the sample bags and turned to me. His eyes wouldn't meet mine at first.
After a couple seconds passed, he looked up and sighed.

"No.....that's the problem."

"Wh-"

"It wasn't bad, Ellie...it was the opposite."

"You liked it?"

"And I left before you could see how much I liked it."

Oh.

We stared down at the sand in silence for a few seconds - then I broke it.

"I did too."

I should NOT have said that.

"Really?"

He asks this in a tone that I'm unfamiliar with.

"Yes but I—"

My speech is put abruptly to a halt by Grayson, who has grabbed my face and is now forcefully pressing his soft lips against mine.

HOLY SHIT, HE'S KISSING ME.

A shock ran through my veins all the way from my lips to the tips of my toes, and before anything else could register, he quickly pulled away in surprise.

"SHIT," he gasped and his eyes searched mine frantically, shocked at what he'd just done.