“Come on.” He whispers as he walks across the street and down to the beach.
“What are we doing?” I ask him as he sits down on the bench, pulling the strings on his dress shoes before he pulls them off.
“Walking on the beach.”
“Why?”
He looks up at me, smiling and pulling me down to him. Our lips meet as he presses against them roughly before pulling back. “Because we can.”
“God, you’re so corny.”
“Come on.” Holding his hand out to me as he stands up.
“Fine.” Rolling my eyes, trying to seem as if I don’t love all of it, reaching down and pulling my heels off, holding them in my right hand as I grab his hand.
“Give ‘em here.”
Tilting my head. He smirks, nodding and motioning his hand, as if he’s telling me to hand them over. Rolling my eyes and giving in, I bite my lip as he slips the actual heels into his back pocketso the toes point backward.
He carries his shoes in his hand as he grasps my hand and we walk down the beach.
We’re silent as we walk in no particular direction.
Looking over at him, I smile.
“What?” he whispers without looking at me.
“I was just thinking it’s peaceful.”
“It is.” He nods. “I don’t know the last time I felt this at ease.”
“What?”
He doesn’t give me anything else, just shrugs.
We walk in a comfortable silence, not needing to say anything, not needing to fill the void.
“Drew?” someone shouts from a distance.
Glancing at Eli, I furrow my brows, wondering who the fuck would be calling out to me here.
He nods towards the voice. “Shit,” pulling his hand from mine. “Your grandmother is here.”
“What?” I gasp, turning around and looking at my father’s mother.
“Oh, I thought that was you.” She rushes over to me, wrapping me in a hug.
Looking at Eli over her shoulder. I’m bewildered why she would embrace me like this.
“Hi, Terri, I didn’t realize you lived up here.”
“Yeah.”
“But I guess that would track since none of us have seen you since the funeral.” Cutting my eyes at her.
“And look how you’re grown… you look just like your mother.”
It sounds like it’s a compliment, but it’s not. I know she hated my mother, well before my parents ever met.
