I let the telephone ring obnoxiously, reverberating on the walls and the ceiling. I turn back around, diving back into the two pristine pools that are Tasmin's eyes. I'm holding her so close to me, and her hand feels so nice on my cheek, I almost kiss her on the spot. But there's something about this moment that I never want to end.
Her eyelids are low, and each one of her eyelashes has a thin shadow on her glowing cheeks, casted by the golden light of the open bathroom. I think of Ally, and how she introduced me to a beautiful, green haven, not long before this cruise. I think of how quiet she became when we got there, and how especially silent she was when I started saying how beautiful it was, and how shocked I was when she pressed me to the trunk of a tree and kissed me.
Tasmin stands before me now, leaning against the shelf within the wardrobe, staring at me with half-lidded bluebell eyes, and I can't tell if she's tired or feeling as disorientated as I am. By her, by me.
I wonder how Tasmin would feel if I pressed her against the wall and kissed her.
The phone finally stops ringing.
I'm an inch from her, and I'm glancing between her soft-looking lips and eyes. Our noses touch.
"Harry." My name just crumbles away on her tongue as soon as she murmurs it. "Let me go change."
I rub my nose against hers, the same way Ally once did to me. The phone starts to blare again. Tasmin leaps in my arms, and I stare at her, grinning when she laughs aloud. But the enthusiasm ends as soon as it starts.
"You should get that," she says, nodding at the little menace on the desk. "It might be something important."
I think for a second, then shake my head, returning to nuzzling myself against Tasmin. She wriggles free of me, plucking the clothes she had picked out off of the floor and climbing into the bathroom. She turns to me before closing the door. "You should answer it, and I'll change." Then she closes the door.
"Hello?"
"Good evening. Uh, is… Tasmin Kelly with you?" the firm voice on the other end says. "Who's this?"
I turn to the bathroom. "Uh… She's in the bathroom," I reply, hesitantly. "This is Harry Evans, her… friend."
"Oh, Harry, is it? That's good. This is the Front Desk. We were just checking in with Tasmin to see if –"
"Everything's fine now," I interrupt, slightly irritated. "Tasmin's fine, thanks."
There's silence at the end of the line. "Erm… Alright. Please let her know we called, though, so she knows that she can contact us if she needs anything –"
"Right," I say, ending the call.
I grit my teeth and take a seat on the bunk beside me. My head's starting to hurt. I press my head into my hands. "You shouldn't have taken me, Ally," I whisper into my hot palms. Ally shouldn't have met with me today. Perhaps Boss can compensate for that when we return…
"Who was that, Harry?" The casual tone in her voice disappears completely when she sees my head in my hands. I look up. "What's wrong? Who called?" She has my hands in hers before I can say anything, and I quickly try to tug them back.
"It was nothing, the Front Desk, they called the wrong room."
She still has my hands grasped tightly in hers, and her eyes glare worriedly at me. She sits down next to me, and I feel the blankets shift with her added weight.
"Really?"
"I'm fine, Tasmin," I say. She gives me a look. "Really. Just tired." She stares. "Today was stressful."
She chuckles. "Tell me about it." She makes a face at nothing. "Actually, don't. Harry," she turns to me, "Don't go missing again, okay?"
"I didn't go missing," I argue softly.
Tasmin smiles. "No, of course not. You just went somewhere that not I, or your friends, or the cruise crew, could find you."
I stare at my feet. "Tired," I repeat.
I feel her nudge me in the side. "Too tired to continue where we left off?"
I meet her eyes slowly, and they're lit up in a blue flame. If I could stare into her eyes forever, I'd probably drown in them and I wouldn't mind it. It'd be an honour to. But if I could compare Tasmin's eyes to anything, it wouldn't be pools, as much as they usually look like pools. There's a lot more beneath those eyes, especially right now, shaded by the darkness of the room, changed by her intentions, by her mood, by me. When she's content, they are the rippling shallows of a Mediterranean beach. When she is indifferent, her eyes are still like lakes, with all thoughts hidden beneath the silvery-blue surface. Then, when she's upset, her eyes are dangerous river rapids.
I used to be terrified.
I reach forward with my right hand, running it gently along her cheek, over her freckles, over every pore, every small hair, over the land I want to get lost in. I stare into the eyes I want to drown in.
I'm not scared anymore. Because Tasmin is like the ocean. From a distance, it's beautiful and untouched by the filth of the world. She's a calm ferocity from afar, and when you're there with her, you learn to swim and you learn to love her.
Her lips are an inch from mine, and the closeness of her makes me feel cornered and unable to breathe. I want to jump up, run away, screaming at the top of my lungs. Then again, I want to lean forward, press myself against her, never let go.
Her lips draw nearer. She whispers something.
"Huh…" I breathe.
Softly, she repeats herself.
"Harry…"
My name. I shudder, then grin stupidly.
"Yeah?"
"… I'm glad we met again."