Page 52 of Be Your Anything
At that, I laugh, enjoying that we have this little secret, enjoying his attention and care, his love.
Whether he wants me to be his friend or his neighbor or someone to surf with, it doesn’t matter. I’m pretty sure I’d be willing to be anything as long as I had Lucas Pearson looking at me like that.
He pulls me in for a hug, holding me tight and snug and close, and I sink into him, relishing the warmth of his embrace.
And I know, without a doubt, there’s nowhere else in the world I’d rather be than wrapped in his arms.
A woman laughing nearby pulls me out of that raw memory, and I take a deep breath, enjoying the fresh beachy air rushing in from the shoreline. I continue to watch the ocean, taking a moment to collect myself.
There’s something so special about being by the water, in the water. I’ve loved it since I was too small to understand just how devastating the ocean can be.
I love that up and down, the constant motion, the fact that it is ever-changing, never stagnant. The smell and the taste, even that little bit of salt stuck in the back of your nose and throat when you’ve sucked down too much on accident.
I love everything about it.
Especially the sound. It’s one of the reasons I made sure to buy a house with a bedroom that faces the water, specifically with an outdoor area that allows me to open my doors and windows at night and hear the waves crashing against the shore.
It’s a sound unlike anything else, a ripplingthwapthen a surge and flow, a little bit of a sprinkling noise as bubbles and foam cover the sand. Then it fades slowly as the water gets sucked back into the sea and a new wave rushes forward.
When I was a kid, my mom put me in this total bullshit summer camp advantage program. It was supposed to focus on academics and behavior…which is obviously what every child wants to do during their summer break.
As someone who has always struggled a bit in school, I can promise it was absolutely the last thing I would have ever chosen to do with my time if I’d been asked.
But I wasn’t. I’m never asked.
One of the other kids brought a conch shell in her backpack, and we used to sneak it out and put our ears to it to hear the ocean.
Obviously, I understand now what you’re actually hearing when you put something like that to your ear. But back then? It was magical, and my mother was very confused when I came home and told her I wanted to play the ocean soundtrack on the stereo.
I take in one more deep breath and then listen intently for the next crash of waves, a ripple rolling through me, before I decide it’s time to make the short trek back towards Harbor’s to grab my car.
To connect with Lucas so we can…
Shit.
It’s then I realize I’ve left my clutch at Harbor’s.
Not only do I not have my car keys or valet ticket, I also have no way of knowing if Lucas has been trying to get in touch with me, especially now that my plans have changed and I’m not intending to spend the rest of my evening at the bar.
I move quickly in the direction I came from, knowing the girls at the table will mind my property but not wanting too much time to pass before I get back to my phone.
As much as I like to mock my friends for their inability to exist without being connected to social media, I’m just as guilty.
The bouncer gives me a nod and I step past the line that stretches around the corner.
When I’m back inside, walking through the darkened blue glass and leather lobby, slipping through the throngs of people waiting to be seated, I actually have a rush of gratitude that I forgot my clutch.
Hopefully, Ji-Eun is still at the table and I can see if she’s cooled down a bit. The last thing I want is for her to go home feeling bad or waking up with regrets, and I know her—that’s exactly what she’ll do.
As I wander into the main bar area, I have to squeeze through a group blocking my path,excuse mes on their tongues as they step back and out of my way, before crossing the room.
When our VIP table comes into view, I grin, seeing that Ji-Eun is still there, sipping on a water—or maybe vodka, but that’s a little less likely. It’s a rounded booth in the corner that fits up to twelve, perfectly sized for our crew, which varies in size depending on what we’re doing on any particular evening.
It’s nice having Paige’s dad be the owner of a handful of amazing spots around town, not that we’d have much trouble securing a table anyway.
Paige isn’t at the table when I get there, though, and my eyes scan across the room, instinctively looking for her but knowing she’s probably in the bathroom.
“Hey ladies, forgot my clutch.” I glance to the other side of Ji-Eun and spot it resting in the corner. “Thank you for keeping an eye on it,” I say, though she hasn’t made any move to grab it.
