Sunshine & Saltwater [BxB] COMPLETED

l' unité

They went swimming in the ocean again that day. And the next day. And the next and the next and the next. For Theo, it was freedom. It was the feeling of dribbling the soccer ball across the field, just without the people watching. Without the expectations and the rules and the pressures. Just flying down the field with the wind pressing flat against his sides, the whole world a blur of color.

Here, it was just Ronan, him, and the water.

They swam and swam, letting the sun tan their skin and the water cool it off.

Soccer season was coming up soon, so when Ronan said they should think of this as extra training, Theo thought it was a reasonable explanation for why they kept going back every day. But it meant more than that to Theo.

Ronan meant more to him than just a training partner, or even just a friend. He meant freedom, too.

With Ronan, Theo could be himself. Ronan never judged him, never pressured him, never expected anything more than who Theo was. He just grinned and joked and swam and laughed. It was perfect.

Well—almost.

Because every time Ronan asked him yet again to go to the ocean. Every time he grinned. Every time he joked and laughed and swam like he was some record-breaking Olympic athlete.

Theo felt his chest squeeze and his teeth catch his lower lip, as the air left his lungs hollow, and as his heart broke in his ribs.

~

They were becoming closer. I guess this was inevitable, as Ronan had been spending almost all of his free time with Theo, even choosing him over his best friends.

They would talk more. About anything and everything. About the sun and trees and stars. About school and friends and soccer. About each other; their hopes, dreams, and aspirations.

Ronan learned that Theo was generally not talkative, but on subjects he was passionate about, could talk for hours. He learned that Theo's mother was French, and his father American. He learned that Theo has freckles splashed on his nose, that biting his lip is a habit from nerves, and that he had never fallen in love before, but wanted to.

And then the results of tryouts came out, and thankfully both of them got on the team. But their first practice was in a week.

It was a bittersweet moment when they left the locker room where the results were posted. Ronan and Theo shared a covert glance, unnoticed by their friends, and they could read what was written on each other's faces, plain as day.

In a week, their freedom would be gone. They wouldn't be able to go to the beach everyday. They wouldn't have time alone, because any free time would be spent with the team. So they only had one week. One week until it was all over.

Ronan knew what he felt for Theo was deeper and stronger than a small crush. And that scared him. But at the same time, what scared him more was the thought of never swimming in the ocean with Theo again.

So when he asked Theo to go to the beach that day. It held a different meaning. A different promise.

Ronan wasn't going to let Theo slip past him. He had to do something about it. Today.

~

These past weeks have been bliss. Pure, untouchable, unimaginable bliss. For Theo, time spent out in the water with Ronan was sacred and personal.

And the conversations they shared sprawled on the hot sand, eating melted ice cream and letting the sun and wind dry their hair. Those were everything.

It took a few days, but slowly Ronan started to open up. At first, it was small, Ronan talking about his friends, college, maybe a bit about his likes and dislikes (he's obsessed with other languages, and curses in Spanish whenever he can). Then he started talking. And talking. Once Ronan was rolling, he kept going, like a tsunami of thoughts that he couldn't help but drown people in.