THE BUCKET LIST ─ L. HEMMINGS ✓

(05) the bucket list

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Today I didn't wake up alone. I woke up with Lucas laying beside me in his spot. The sun hadn't risen, yet.

I elbowed Lucas in the side, "wake up." I whispered.

"Huh?"

"Wake up. I wanna leave."

"What time is it?" I looked over at the clock beside me.

"Four thirty-eight."

"What the hell, Alex?"

"C'mon, Lucas. If we wanna get through half of this list before I have to leave, we need to start early."

He groaned and sat up, "where are we going?"

"I'm driving. You'll figure it out when we get there." I told him as I got out of bed and slipped on a pair of sneakers. We went downstairs and I grabbed the keys to Lucas' car and we left.

The air was muggy and warm. I got into the driver's seat of his car, he looked at me confused before walking around to the passenger seat. He's so used to driving me around all the time since we work only three miles away from each other and we've gone to the same school since before he could drive.

"Where are your shoes?" I asked him looking down at his feet.

"I don't know." He told me and rest his head on my arm.

I started the car, it was weird driving since I rarely do. I drove onto the street with no problems.

Lucas put the radio up, louder than he normally would. He didn't sing today, he just napped on my arm until we got to the beach.

I shook him awake and he looked around for a moment and sat up. "I'm surprised you didn't kill us." He joked.

"Shut up. I'm a great driver." I told him and popped his trunk. I got out the car and around to the back. I took out one of the sheets he always kept in there.

"Great drivers don't leave the keys in the car after turning it off." He told me, getting out the car. He looked around the beach, "you woke me up this early for the beach."

"I woke you this early to watch the sunrise and sunset on the beach with me." I walked up to him.

"So romantic." He chuckled.

"I'm not being romantic, I'm checking off the bucket list."

"I have work today, you know that, right?"

I nod my head, "I know and so don't I. So, I was thinking we'd come back after work with our bathing suits and watch the sunset and relax."

"I swear, you're being romantic. Trying to butter me up." He tapped my nose.

"Shut up." I pushed past him as I laughed. I took my sneakers off before walking into the sand.

I spread out the small blanket over the sand and laid down.

"Have you figured out what you're studying, Lucas?" I asked him even though I knew he hated talking about school.

"I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to think about school because once school comes around, you'll be gone."

"And you don't want me to leave. I know, but school is more important than all of this."

"I guess."

I sat up, getting off my elbows. "Be a bit more positive, Lucas."

He wrapped his arm around my shoulders, "you're right."

"I'm always right." I looked out at the sky, the sun just barely peeked out from the horizon. The sky began to glow with orange color with darkness of the clouds.

I stood up and began undressing, Luke looked at me with a smirk. "What are you doing?"

"I'm going in the water." I told him as I threw my tank top down to the floor. "Are you coming?" I pushed my sweatpants off my hips.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah." He began stripping down as I walked out to the water. Slowly, I moved deeper into the water and Lucas slammed into me. He wrapped his arms around me.

"Beautiful." He said softly and I looked at him. "Isn't it?" I nod my head and smiled. He came around in front of me and pulled me deeper into the water by my arms.

"Aren't you gonna miss this?" He asked me.

"Of course, I will.

"Do they have beaches where you're going?"

"Yeah." He pulled me deep enough into the water that couldn't stand without being two inches underwater.

He placed his hands on my cheeks and squeezed them together and spoke to me like I was a baby. "I'm gonna miss this face."

"Can we not talk about me leaving. We still have all of July together."

"I know, but we have so many work days more than we have together."

"I know, but we'll make the best out of it and we'll spend the nights at each other's house after work, so at least we'll be together most days." I assured him as I kicked my legs in the water.

"If I get to drive you to school, that'll just make things better for me."

"Then, you can drive me for two days. Just you and me, no one else. But, then you've got to drive two days back home alone without me."

"That's gonna fucking suck."

I looked up, the sky was filled with pink, purple and orange. It was absolutely amazing. I lifted Lucas' chin for him to look up the sky.

"I've seen better."

"This is amazing. I don't get how you could've seen better."

He shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know, I just see better everyday." He looked at me with a smile.

I didn't respond and I continued to look up at the sky. Like I said, I don't want our friendship to become something more and then it's ruined. Plus, he's probably just messing around.

"How have I lived in California my whole life, but never, ever done this before?"

"Maybe because you've been so sheltered your entire life and you were always too afraid to try new things until now."

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I'm curious to know, who do you guys see as Alex? I'm picturing Bianca Santos (The Fosters, Happy Land, Ouija).

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