salt and sand || narry ||

Chapter 2: I'll give you a tour...

*Harry's POV*

My eyes flew open as the sound of clanging metal trashcans echoed outside my open bedroom window. I rolled over and blinked at my phone screen, my eyes still bleary with sleep, to see the numbers 7:00 am mocking me. I groaned as I sat up in bed, clad only in my boxers as I shuffled to the window to see my kooky old neighbor Mr. Kronick taking out what had to be all the trash in his house. "Good morning, Mr. K!" I yell out my window, my voice laced with irritation as he grumbles in my direction; I move away from the window, flipping him off when I was no longer in his line of sight and heading into my bathroom to get ready for the day.

It was going to be a scorcher for England today, which meant that today would be a day of outdoor activities. After I climbed out of the shower, I grabbed my phone and texted Niall to see what his family had roped him into today.

Niall: *My parents want to do a walking tour of the damn island...please tell me you have something to bail me out of this shite..*

I smirked at the message, the pain practically reading through the screen.

Harry: *How about a "bike tour" of the island with yours truly? The mates all got roped into work today by their folks, but my mom said she has plenty of help on hand today. You and I can bike across the island and I'll give you my version of a tour ;)*

I had barely tucked my phone into the pocket of my shorts when I felt a buzz with his reply.

Niall: *They agreed to let me go as long as I could prove I learned something on my tour...and they mean actual facts, not a new trick or anything ;)*

I bit my bottom lip, stifling a snort at his response, but I couldn't help but let my mind flit to a few different things I'd like to teach him. I texted him back my address and headed out to the garage to pull out my bike. I stuck two bottles of water in the side pockets of my backpack and left it on the driveway while I tightened the chains on my bike. About ten minutes later, I hear the crunch of bike tires on top of gravel and I looked up to see to see blondie rolling up in front of me. "For some reason I thought everyone that lived in a beach town on an island lived in some hut with palm tree fronds woven together," Niall joked, wearing a similar outfit to mine with his blue eyes hidden behind sunglasses and his hair covered by his own snapback. His pale skin looked ready to fry as he had his tee shirt off and draped around his neck.

"Ha ha, very funny, we all live in normal homes, well except, Crazy Howie, he truly does live in some shack off the corner of the island. We'll steer clear of there unless you want to be chased away by him and his chainsaw, swear the man thinks he's a horror movie character..." I said, shaking my head as I slung my backpack over my shoulders. "You ready for your grand tour of the Dunes?" I ask, sliding onto the seat of my bike and beginning to pedal off, leaving Niall to chase after me. He quickly pedaled up onto my left side and I grinned easily at him, "So, I was thinking we'll make a trip around the whole island since it's not that big and we'll be back for dinner. I packed some snacks in my backpack and plenty of water, hope you like apples and peanut butter filled pretzels," I said as I pedaled onward, pointing out little things to Niall as we went. "I got drunk at that house for the first time ever when I was 14 and I puked in that bush right there for about 20 minutes straight, I swear..." or "I had my first kiss against that tree right there, or maybe it was a little ways back, it was dark out..."

We finally came to a stop when we reached the west side of the island where the beach was rocky and uneven compared to smooth and sandy. This is where the fishing pier was located and most of the industrial docks were located. We chained our bikes up and walked down until we found a large flat rock to sit on top and I pulled our makeshift lunch out of my bag. "So, you're about a day and a half into spending weeks upon weeks on this tiny little island, what do you think of it so far?" I ask him, crunching into a pretzel and leaned back on my elbows.

Niall cracked a smile as he twirled an apple slice between his fingers, "So far, so good, yeah? Thankful I ran into you lads down at the beach that first day. It's nice to know I won't have to spend every single second with my family. I love them to death, but their idea of fun and a teenage boy's idea of fun are wildly different," he said, shaking his head as he laughed. "You aren't sick of me already, are ye?" I smirk at him, "You're horrible company, the absolute worst, I don't know why I decide to invite you out here," I teased him, my dimples cratering into my cheeks. "Nah, you seem cool man. I never met someone who can laugh at damn near anything, you had Louis thinking he was the funniest lad to ever walk the earth yesterday."

Niall's laughter roared once again and I couldn't help but love the sound, it was so genuine and full. "So, we should you our bucket list for the summer, what about you? What do you want out of your vacation?" I asked him, sliding off my hat and pushing my hair back. I could feel sweat starting to collect on my forehead as I laid back on the rock and let the sun soak into my already tan skin. "Just to have fun, I guess. College is going to be great, craic, honestly. Just hoping for the same out of this," he said, settling back against the warm surface of the rock too. "Your tattoos...do they have any meaning?" he asked, eyeing my chest and arms.

I peeked down at my chest, looking over the swallows, to the butterfly in the middle of my chest, to the branches on my hips, "To be honest, no...I got my first ones just because I could and then I just got addicted to the ink..." I told him, shrugging my shoulders even though I had closed my eyes again. "I noticed your back was bare of ink, any reason why?" I smirked, "Maybe I'm saving that space for something special, but right now? No plans for it. Do you have any tattoos?" I counter, even though I had a good guess.

Niall's cheeks heated up with a blush, "Nah man, needles freak me out. I'm sweating bullets just thinking about getting one, not even just from the sun. I have my ears pierced though, but that was on a dare and the pain lasted only a second," he admitted, the embarrassment clear in his voice. I sat up and turned to look at him, "Hey..." I said softly, reaching out and rest my hand on his arm softly, "Don't be embarrassed. There are tons of people who hate needles. Nothing to be ashamed of, plus I feel like you look great without tattoos. Keep that look," I said, throwing him a wink before standing up and stretching my arms over my head, very aware that Niall was watching me intently. The blond had a curious look on his face. I sheepishly turn away to pack our things up, "I'll race you back to the bikes and first one back gets to pick our dinner location for tonight! Ready?" I said, giving Niall the chance to get on his feet. "Go!" I bellowed, taking off across the rocks, my long legs giving me an advantage, but Niall was quick and not easy to give up defeat, I only beat him by a second or two.

Niall panted as he unchained his bike, "I only let you win since I don't what the food is like around here," he argued, not willing to admit that he lost, a stubborn pout perched on his lips. I couldn't help but admire the fullness of his lips, too. They were soft, kissable, really..."So, where are we headed now?" Niall's Irish accent shook me out of my daydreams. I coughed, "Er, right, we'll circle back up the east side of the island and then I'm taking to Baja Taco, best food on the island, hands down. Don't tell Liam's parents I said that," I whisper conspiratorially before hop back on our bikes and begin our long pedal back towards the town. "I'll text the boys to meet us there when we get closer..." but part of me didn't want my time with Niall to end, I have never felt so at ease around someone who was pretty much a literal stranger. My anxiety usual tucks me away in a shy, quiet shell, but this boy just wants to make me know more, do more, all of it...

**A/N: thanks for reading guys! Next chapter will be Niall's POV! Don't forget to comment and vote! :)