ᴄʀᴀꜱʜ ʟᴀɴᴅ - (Damien Haas x Reader)

~ 15 ~

Damien's POV:

We were interrupted by a small cough from behind us.
"Is it safe to come out now?" Shayne asked with a laugh.
Y/N hummed in response, then a chuckle shook her body. I gave him a subtle nod to replace my hellos.
"I know you said just me, but..." he shrugged before gesturing towards us, my arms still wrapped around Y/N's waist, "I figured this would be more helpful. I didn't know if you'd get mad."
"I don't have the energy to be mad at you. But you're right, it's more than helpful... Thanks."
"Don't mention it. I'll give you two some peace and quiet," he laughed as he shoved his phone in his pocket. "Text me if you want to talk though, okay Y/N?"
She nodded, only speaking again when he was about to close the front door behind him. "Shayne?"
"Yeah?"
She turned her head to look at him, the side of her face resting against my chest. She spoke again, with a beautiful and genuine smile. "Thank you."
He nodded once and returned the smile before the door clicked shut, reverting the room to a comfortable silence.

I lost track of how much time had passed before either of us moved or spoke again. As much as I wished to stay in that embrace forever, I also wanted to help. I seldom knew how to, or even if anything I did could help at all, but I wanted to try. My eyes flickered to the world outside before I lifted my head from hers.
"Hey," I started softly as not to startle her. "Go get dressed."
"Why?" Confusion was prominent in her voice, though she didn't seem ready to argue. Her brow furrowed the slightest bit, making her nose crinkle. She never failed to look adorable.
"You could do with some fresh air, couldn't you? No princess benefitted from being locked inside in the films, it's the same in real life."
A rosy tinge painted her face, causing a huge grin to be painted across mine. "Now go on, while there's still sunlight left."
I gazed after her as she disappeared down the hall, only moving to sit down once I heard the shower turn on.

Your POV:

The water droplets hit my skin and left a foreign sensation behind, meandering their way down until they splashed into the puddle below me. It had been about a week since I'd showered. Between having no reason to leave the house and nobody to see except my brother, I had given up on personal hygiene to a degree. It was easy to forget about looking after yourself when you had someone watching your every move, and it was uncomfortable when I did. Logan was so paranoid, he had taken to even standing outside the bathroom door while I was using the toilet. It was horribly suffocating, not to mention awkward. To shower without hearing him on the other side of the door felt odd, but very comfortable. I took a few moments to relax, to feel the soothing heat soak into my body and to listen to the drum of rain on the tiles behind me.
Don't keep him waiting too long, he's going to get bored.
For a moment, I had forgotten the whole world around me. Hastily, I cut the water and toweled my hair dry.

After some deliberation on what to wear, I emerged from my room in a cute but casual outfit; a pair of denim shorts, a sweatshirt and my favourite sneakers. My hair always took too long to dry, so it had been pulled into a ponytail to avoid the imminent frizz.
"You look beautiful," Damien spoke from the sofa, his chin resting on the back cushion. I shrugged and looked at my feet, reluctant to agree.
He quickly got up to stand in front of me, tilting my head up gently to look at him. "I mean it, Y/N. Whether you believe it or not."
I stayed quiet. He held out his hand, an unwavering smile spread on his face. "Now come on, I want to show you something."

We only drove for around 5 minutes, but it felt like an age. Maybe it was just because I'd forgotten what the outside looked like, but it felt like I was relearning everything. Every building seemed new to me, I noticed new signs and shops and streets that I had never given a second thought to. Those signs and streets slowly dissipated, replaced by trees and then sandy beach. I likely looked like a puppy on their first outdoor adventure, but I didn't care. It was only when the car pulled to a halt that I turned to look at Damien.

"What are we doing at the beach?"
"Just trust me."
I nodded and followed him across the sand until we came to a rocky area. He clambered over stone and rockpools, then motioned for me to follow before jumping off a ledge. A small squeak of understandable concern left my throat before I hurried over, scrambling across to where he had disappeared. I jumped from the same place without hesitation, bracing myself for an icy shock of water. I was pleasantly surprised to find myself caught by his arms instead. He was laughing at my bewildered look.
"You nearly gave me a heart attack!"
"Why?" He stifled a chuckle just long enough to answer.
"Why? Why?! It looked like you just threw yourself in the ocean!" I huffed, shaking my head.
"And you threw yourself straight in after me."
"Of course I did, you doofus."
He placed me down on my feet. "Well relax, I'm fine."

He sat against the rock face, the waves rolling just before his feet, and patted the space next to him for me to do the same. I followed suit, shuffling back against the cool cliff. As though commanded, his arm snaked its way around my shoulders and pulled me against him. It felt natural to sit like this by now.
"I thought," he began softly, "you'd appreciate it out here. It's outside, at the very least. And quiet."
I glanced to either side of us before settling my head on his shoulder. He was right: it was quiet. The cliff jutted out on one side, like a divider between us and the rest of the beach, and the other side was craggy and full of seashells. The beach part had about enough room for both of us but not much else. It was like a little private cove.
"How did you know this was here?" I asked, toeing the sand into a divot with my shoe.
"Ah," he hummed. "I found it a while ago, back when Pokémon GO came out. A bunch of us came to the beach. Ever since then I've come out here to be alone sometimes. When I need it."
"I get it. It's nice to have a place to yourself. But... if it's your place to be alone, why did you bring me here?"
"I don't think there's been a single moment since I met you that I'd prefer to be alone. I would much rather spend all of that time by your side."
"Damien..." I was in shock. Nobody had said anything like that to me before.
Not surprising.
He chuckled slightly. "I mean it. I've always been independent and never confident dating but with you, I... I feel different. Call me soppy or a hopeless romantic, but I mean it. That's why I brought you here."

I choked. I could almost hear his face turn to one of concern.
"Y/N, are you... crying?"
I nodded, wiping my eyes on my sleeve.
"Did I say something wrong? God, I'm sorr-"
I cut him off with a kiss, before pulling away and let out a shaky laugh. "They're happy tears, Dames. Stop worrying."
"Oh. Well that's... that's good. But why?"
"I..." Sniffling, I sighed before continuing to speak, "Nobody's ever said that to me before. In fact, nobody's said anything close to that to me before. It's nice."
"They haven't?"
"You sound surprised."
"I am surprised. The fact that nobody has noticed how great you are baffles me. You deserve the world you know, Y/N. You really, truly do."
"I have it now. I know that," I replied softly as I grasped his hand in both of my own.
He seemed to breathe a sigh of relief. "I'm the luckiest person on earth."
"No, that's me."
"Shush, and let me praise you."
"Make me!" I challenged with a grin.
He just raised an eyebrow at me before laughing. "I'm definitely the lucky one."

~~~

Hi hi hi

Apologies for my absence (again! even though I apologise in every chapter), things have been rough. Have an update to make up for it.

How are you guys? Anything in this story you wanna see? Let me know!

Word count: 1495

~ Akira ~