And now, walking barefoot on fine sand, with the sound of waves lapping against the shore, palm trees illuminated by the moon as though they’re ghost trees, everything feels other-worldly, and maybe because of that, I don’t know, but somehow our hands find each other.
We link fingers, and it feels so very right.
12
EMMA
I almost want to laugh at how fairy-tale-like this whole…scene… is. Scene feels like the correct word.
Like… it can’t be real.
Whogets to pine for quite a serious length of time for The One That Got Away and then get on with their life but always have a memory and hurt in the back of their mind, and then re-meet him and havethis?
There’s no one else here. We came to an off-the-beaten-track beach and it’s literally just us and some seagulls and the whole scenery thing in the moonlight.
‘Argh.’ I trip as my foot plunges into a hole in the sand – probably caused by people digging on the beach during the day – and have a momentary sensation of falling until I’m rescued by Callum’s strong fingers and arm.
‘Okay?’ he asks. His arm’s gripping me round the waist from when he caught me. I don’t need him to hold me up now… but it’s very nice. I’m wearing a vest top above a long floaty skirt, and he’s wearing a T-shirt, and the bare skin of his arm is against the bare skin of my waist; the touch is turning my insides to jelly.
‘All good.’ My voice comes out sounding weird. I think my vocal cords might be as busy as the rest of me goingOMG, Callum’s arm is round my waist and it’sstayingthere. As in, we are now walking along with his arm round me, so that I’m hugged against his side.
We kissed last night and we’ve spent the whole day together in a verytogetherkind of way, but we haven’t done this.
We continue walking along for a few moments, and then I slide my arm round Callum’s waist and he moves the arm that’s round me up to my shoulders and there we are. We each have an arm round the other. Walking along in a joined-at-the-hip way. It’sgorgeous.
I can’t think. I’m scared to. In case it’s alltooperfect.
The beach curves round, and a building with fairy lights strung along its outside walls and pillars comes into view. We continue to walk towards it and as we get closer, we begin to hear the hum of voices punctuated by the occasional shout of laughter.
It’s clearly a bar, and when we get within a few metres of it, Callum says, ‘Do you fancy a drink?’
‘Yes, I really do,’ I breathe. I can’t remember ever seeing a prettier bar. Ever.
There’s a teensy possibility that I’m seeing things through rose-tinted spectacles today – Ilovedthe service station that we stopped at and I checked some online reviews and most peopletrashit ratings-wise, and I thought the campsite was lovely when I was looking at it with Callum but with hindsight I’m wondering whether it was in fact a tiny bit scruffy and also smelly – but honestly this bar and its location are objectively stunning.
It’s very, very busy, but in a lovely way, because everyone’s just spilling out of the bar’s terrace and onto the beach next to it.
Callum has a magic way with crowds and a whole sea of people part for us as we head towards the bar.
‘You’re like that biblical character,’ I tell him when we’ve finally made it.
‘Which one?’
‘The one who parted the biblical sea. I can never get through crowds like that.’
‘I mean, I am ofcoursebiblically amazing, but I think it might just be to do with being tall and not being averse to a bit of shoulder flexing.’
I laugh and manage not to go insanely fan-girl over him and tell him that it was actually amazing.Everythingabout him seems amazing today.
I opt for a piña colada because it’s a piña colada kind of evening.
Callum goes for a cold lager.
I frown. ‘Cold lager? Is that right for this bar, this beach, this evening?’
Callum stares at me. ‘I’m guessing… not?’
‘Exactly.’ I nod approvingly.
