Quarantine

Chapter Ten

Hero's POV:

By the time we stop, I'm more out of breath than she is and I make a mental note to start working out more when we finally make it out of this situation.. If we make it out.

Seeing all those people made me want to protect her.

Not just because of the whole fame thing and the public invading our privacy.. But the virus, too.

In those intense moments, that was all that truly mattered to me. Keeping her safe.

"What's wrong?" Jo asks, her tone of voice concerned.

"Nothing." I shrug dismissively.

"Don't lie." She smiles at me knowingly and I automatically have to look away to avoid smirking and giving myself away to her even more.

"I'm not.." I try my best to sound convincing.

"So then why did you sigh?" She counters.

She's not going to let this go.

"I did?" I try to sound surprised.

"Yes! So.. What's wrong?"

"Apart from the obvious?" I can't help but laugh as I gesture around us.

She laughs with me too.

I watch her as she becomes distracted by our surroundings, I had sort of noticed them earlier but I hadn't really taken the time to look until now.

Somehow, we had ended up on a beach which kind of makes sense and explains why it had become even harder to run.

"Since when did it get so dark?!" She half laughed.

I heard what she said but I chose to continue taking in the scenery before answering.

The sun was setting and casting a mixture of colours across the dusk sky which were being reflected back into the ocean waters in front of us.

It caused the strangest, most eerie and yet beautiful orange glow over everything in sight, including Jo.

"You're looking a little bit sun-kissed there Jo." I joke.

"So do you!" She giggles defensively.

I hold my arms out in front of me and examine them carefully. "Oh shit, yeah!" I smile.

"Um, Hero?" Jo's tone of voice sounds alarmed and causes an instant rush of anxiety within me.

"What? More people?!" I look around to check but so far, I don't see anyone. It's just her, me and the sounds of the waves crashing somewhere nearby.

"Look!" She reaches up onto her tip toes and places her warm hands on my face before forcing me to look left.

"Oh.."

"Yeah, Oh.." Jo mocks.

The water was fast approaching and living up to its local reputation of being a fast moving tide.

"We'd better move." Jo says assertively.

"Or.. Strip?" I calmly counter, shrugging casually.

"What! Hero, no. I am not going skinny dipping with you."

"But you would with someone else?" I mock whilst removing my top within seconds and dropping it on to the sand.

"Hero!!" Jo scolds, causing me to smile even more.

I love it when she does that.

"Don't you dare." She studies my hands that are hovering over the buckle of my belt.

"Or..?" I continue to undo my belt and unbutton my jeans.

"Or.. I'll.. I'll walk away."

"No you won't." I frown and smile before adding "Do you mind?" When I can catch her still looking at me.

"What?"

I look down at myself and see that my jeans have fallen a little, leaving the top of my white banded boxers exposed.

"See something you like?" I raise an eyebrow, narrow my eyes and smile at her suggestively.

"Hero!" She attempts to swat me but I'm too quick for her.

I catch hold of her with ease and hold her in place as she giggles and tries to wriggle free.

"Where are you trying to go, Jo?" I laugh.

She laughs too but I can tell it's more from the frustration whereas I'm laughing from amusement.

Winding her up, it's too easy.

Eventually she gives up and meets my gaze.

She manages to give me an unimpressed look for all of about two seconds before she ends up giggling and succumbing to the intensity of my gaze.

"Are you finished?" I ask.

"Are you?" She counters.

I look her up and down whilst smirking all the while. Then, I let her go.

"So that's it..?" She sounds surprised.

"Yep."

"You're just going to give up." She provokes.

"Correct."

"Wow, okay.." She says slowly.

If I didn't know any better, I'd say she sounds slightly disappointed.

Nevertheless, she turns away just as I had predicted she would and after kicking off my trainers and socks before manoeuvring myself out of my jeans, I make my move from behind by grabbing her and picking her up.

"Hero!!" She screams my name, making me laugh even more as I run towards the water with her over my shoulder.

"Put me down. Now!" She demands.

"What, here?" I signal to the water. "Right here, yeah?"

"No, no!" She screams and clings to me like some sort of helplessly vulnerable baby monkey as I attempt to lower her into the water.

"But I thought you said?.." I stop my mocking only because she has met her eyes with mine again.

And despite everything.. The freezing cold water nipping at my ankles, the invisible virus that's coming for us all.. In this moment all I can see and care about is her.