Bloom

54. cold drops of deep secrets

Haven

After shopping for a while, I was happy when we could plop down our bums into the car- we finally had some time to relax. Luke and Abel napped, Norah chatted with Louis, while Tara was squeezed onto their laps- the guest family had agreed for her to join us today with swimming. We had planned to go to a bar later in the evening, from there she would go back to her own guest house.

The drive was rather long, but eventually arrived, we were pleased.

The area was peaceful, not many people where here as the grass scattered all around the lake- therefore plenty of space for people to occupy. It was good, even relaxing for myself as the last few days had been really busy. It felt good to dive into the cold water and refresh, being a bit on your own, for as long as that was possible, seeing the study group was still here.

"Do we have to change here?" Zephaniah asked, his eyebrows furrowed as he observed his surroundings, they eventually, but briefly, landing on me.

I chuckled a little, pointing at a tiny, black shack that had been made into a changing place and a toilet. "Thankfully, no. I think there's room for two to change."

Zephaniah nodded, his green eyes staring at the water in front of us. "Okay." He smiled a little.

"Shall we go, now?" I asked, noticing Norah and Tara had just left the shack. He simply nodded at that. Once we were inside, I locked myself in the toilet, while Zephaniah locked himself in the plain, but small changing corner. I wore my white and yellow striped swimsuit, Zephaniah had black, short shorts. They were shorter than the ones Luke, Louis and Abel were wearing, but they fitted him really well.

Zephaniah eyes had raked over my body for a brief moment, but he had looked away, and stared back at the tiny waves that were tossed into the lake. I hadn't looked away, my eyes falling on his bare upper body. He was slim, but lean at the same time. His shoulders were slightly broad, the muscularity seen in his chest. His waist and hips were narrow, his legs long. His body seemed to be in the right proportion, whereas Luke's upper body was extremely muscular- it almost seemed spurious- Abel had thick legs of muscles, being the cyclist he was and whereas Louis had a slight tummy.

Zephaniah wasn't the tallest- Luke was. Abel and Zephaniah's length were similar- Louis was smaller than the three of them.

Once seated on the grass, we laid out our stuff and decided to just take a swim. Luke ran into the water, dragging Tara with him who had screamed loudly. The other boys and Norah tiptoed into the water, Zephaniah and I still hesitating at the edge.

"It feels cold." Zephaniah mumbled, glancing at me.

"It really does." I chuckled, trying to step in further. "Maybe we should just dive at three. We've got to get used to it, sometime."

Zephaniah glanced at me, parted his lips while his eyes observed the water for a moment more. "Three!" He said suddenly, the loudness of his voice making me laugh- his voice was soft- spoken, he was barely loud. I watched him as he dove in, coming up seconds later. He breathed out loudly, rubbing his face with his hand. His expression changed when he looked at me. "You didn't go."

It sounded soft, almost so sad that it woke me out of my staring. I gulped, pinched my nose and jumped in as well, gasping lightly when I came up. "It's so cold!" I screeched, the goosebumps appearing on my skin, while I swam closer to him, noticing he came my way as well.

Once we were near each other, I looked into his eyes, noticing they were even brighter now that the water was reflecting them. His black, wet hair fell over his forehead, the small fringe visible again. Zephaniah's eyes were everywhere but on me, which slightly disappointed me. Did he ever see me in the way I saw him? Would he ever?