the longest summer in america - jevin

chapter 6

they walk down the beach for so long that they reach the very edge of the resort, far enough that there is hardly anybody else around. there is a small stand that sells the juiciest looking hamburgers ian has ever seen, and his stomach grumbles so loudly that even jaden hears it.

"let's get some food into you before you attack me," jaden jokes.

ian rolls his eyes but follows him anyway. they both get plain cheeseburgers with a helping of fries as big as their heads and a sweating bottle of beer, then bring the tray over to a table and eat there, feet in the sand and sunshine on their backs.

they eat in silence, barely even looking at each other. ian will admit that he feels awkward, having lunch on the beach with somebody he barely knows, but he also decides that he's not going to be like that, not today.

"is this too rushed?" ian wonders out loud. "like, leaving nick and all."

jaden looks up from his burger, surprised. he finishes chewing, then tilts his head to the side and looks around as if he's thinking about what to say.

"i don't think so," he says. "remember how i immediately noticed that you weren't having a great time?"

ian chuckles. "i should probably work on that. my face speaks for me."

"that's not necessarily a bad thing," jaden shrugs.

"it is when you don't want everybody to know that you'd rather be anywhere than there."

"touché," jaden raises his hands, then looks intently at ian. "do you think it was too rushed?"

ian thinks about it. does he regret stepping away from that awful situation? no, he really doesn't. does he still wish things could have gone differently? definitely.

he still shakes his head. "i think it had been a long time coming. it's just... people usually give each other a reason for breaking up, don't they? what am i supposed to tell everybody?"

jaden looks like he's debating saying what he's thinking. he picks a fry and bites half of it off, chewing it with his mouth closed as he looks ian over. then he clears his throat and sits up straight.

"are they going to be surprised that you broke up?"

ian takes a second to register the pang of pain that hearing it said out loud makes him feel. he figures that it's going to take a while to get used to it. it just still doesn't feel right, like there's a part he's missing to fully understand it.

he takes so long to answer that jaden lightly kicks him under the table to get his attention back.

"i think most of them are going to be happy," ian shrugs. "especially my roommate, matt."

jaden picks up his bottle and tips it towards ian. "to being happy, then."

ian smiles at him and bumps their bottles together, then takes a long swig of beer and finally allows himself to fully relax. feet in the sand and the sound of the waves in his ears, he's going to make the most of this day and he's not going to let anybody stop him.

they keep chatting as they finish their meal, bonding over their hatred for jellyfish and their appreciation for the music they play around the resort, but ian soon finds that he's getting restless. he stands up and clears the table, then puts his hands on his hips and looks up at jaden.

"what now?" he asks.

jaden shields his eyes from the sun and looks around, smiling and making a happy noise when he seemingly finds what he's looking for. he points to a spot in the distance over ian's shoulder.