I watched as our footprints formed in the sand behind us long enough to be swept away by the sea. It had been nearly a month since my birthday, and everything was going exceptionally well, not only with Alex and I but for John and Nova. We were taking things slow, learning something new about the other person every day, and we never seemed to be at a loss of words. I smiled over at him; his green eyes twinkled as we stared at each other.
I never thought I could end up in a relationship quite like this one. Granted, a relationship can never be perfect, and you learn to compromise and work with one another. And I was willing to make this work.
I looked away as my pocket began to vibrate, signaling someone was calling me. Fishing in my pocket, Alex chuckled, knowing that I will take the call. "Hello?" I ask, still holding Alex's hand as we continued down the beach.
"Hey, Elsie, so I need some advice." Emma said, one of the members of my conservation team. Usually, she would call to see if I wanted to go out and do something. But lately, she had been acting funny.
"Hey Emma, what is it?" Concern filled my tone, and I knew we were about to have an in-depth discussion.
"So there's this girl that I've met, and we hit it off, and she asked me out. Normally I would know exactly what to wear, but her fashion sense is insanely good that I have no idea what to wear!"
"Okay, what's her name?" I inquired, calmly, "Maybe I know her."
"Tabitha Walsh, she's your boyfriend's sister."
"Oh," I said, unsure of what to say, "I can invite Nova over, she has better fashion sense than me, and I can give you some advice. When's the date?"
"Thursday. I'm not working on Wednesday, so maybe I can come over to your place after work?" She suggested.
"Sure, I'll call Nova and have her come over. I'll see you then."
"So, what's happening?" Alex asked as I stuffed my phone back in my pocket.
"Emma has a date, and she needed some fashion advice." I replied, squishing the sand in between my toes.
Alex turned to look at me, an amused look played at his features, "And she called you? Why?"
"Hey!" I said, playfully swatting his shoulder. "I have a good fashion sense."
"Yeah," he agreed, teasingly, "For someone from the 1950s."
I gasped, grabbing a handful of wet sand and ready it as if I was going to throw it. "You take that back!"
"You wouldn't hurt me." Alex stated, eyes twinkling with laughter.
"You're right, but I would do this!" Chucking the sand at him, I immediately take off running before a pair of arms wrapped themselves around my waist, making me squeal. Arms flailing, he managed to pin me to the ground. Laughing at the brown splotches in his hair, Alex managed to climb on top of me to keep me from running or causing any more damage. "Sand looks good on you." I giggled, moving to touch a smear of brown on his jaw.
"Oh yeah?" And then he sprinkled an entire handful onto my face, clothes, and hair: covering me with wet and dry sand.
"Alex!" I shrieked, trying to wipe the sand off of me, not that it would help much. Grinning, he stood, feeling triumphant as he helped me up.
"You're welcome." He said, brushing the sand from his clothes. "Do you want to get something to eat?"
"Not now! I'm covered in sand!"
"Now who's fault was that?" He asked, teasingly, and I glared at him, "You could just shake it off."
"You can't shake sand out of long hair," I stated as we took the steps towards First Street. "How about a shower first and then dinner. And we're splitting it because I paid last time."
"Sounds good to me." He commented as we continued our walk.
After our showers and I was dressed in clean clothes, Alex met me at his front porch. We haven't moved in together as we felt that was a decision for a later date. We were still learning about each other, and that is what matters now. Alex and I waved at Tabitha, who was amenably talking on the phone. Who, as I probably could guess, was Emma.
By the time we made it to the restaurant, Alex and I were a hysterical mess. Alex had insisted on walking ahead of me just to spite me, but I, in turn, kept poking him in the back. I don't know what we are to make us so goofy, but I was thoroughly enjoying it.
"Will you cut that out!" I exclaimed, getting tired of chasing after him.
"Fine." He said, slowing his pace and wrapping an arm around my waist.
The employee at the podium immediately looked at us and smiled, "How many?"
"Just two." Alex and I both replied and followed him to a table outside. A moment after we were seated, a gentleman who looked to be in his early thirties, came up to us.
"Hi, how are you doing tonight."
"We're good." I said after he left us alone with our menus.
"What do you want?" Alex asked, fumbling through his menu.
"Um," I said, pausing to look over the menu, "Fish and chips sound good. Do you want my cole-slaw?"
"Sure, yeah, that does sound good." He paused, looking through the menu before fully deciding. The waiter came back a moment after setting our drinks on the table and taking our orders.
"We rescued another turtle today." Alex informed, taking a drink of his sweet tea.
"Is it going to be alright?" He only nodded, "We're doing a trash dive tomorrow. Hopefully, that will help cut down on the pollution."
"Yeah. So have you noticed that Tabitha has been acting a bit strange lately."
"Yes, I have, but I don't think it's for me to tell."
It didn't bother me that Tabitha was into girls, nor did I think any little of her after finding out. But I wasn't sure if Alex knew this information.
"Hey, Alex?" This is probably a stupid idea, but here it goes.
"Yes, what is it?" His eyebrow creased, concern radiating off his features.
"What do you think of the LGBTQ+ community?" I asked, looking him in the eyes.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I mean, do you like them?" I asked, holding my breath.
"I like them," He said, "I don't have a problem with them. Why do you ask?"
"Well, I mean your sister-" I trailed off, not sure how or if I should break it to him. And then his face lightened as he realized what I was trying to do.
"Elsie, are you trying to tell me that my sister is gay?"
"Um, kind of?"
He laughed with relief, "Of course I already know she's gay. I was the first person she came out to."
"Oh, well, that's good." I commented as our waiter came with our food.
We ate in calm and familiar silence. We discussed our up-and-coming dive together, where we would explore the reef in a few weeks from now. I was super excited and couldn't wait as I have been busy previously and haven't been able to go diving. After we paid for our meal, Alex and I walked home, watching the sunset together. I smiled to myself, just as Alex spoke up, "Did you know your eyes change color?"
"What?"
"Like when you're happy for said, they change." He explained.
"Oh yeah, I know." I stated, turning back to the sun. "What is one thing you want to do before you die?" I inquire.
"Hmm," He said, deep in thought, "I'm not sure."
"There isn't anything you want to do?" I asked, and he shook his head, "I want to learn to surf." I announced.
"That sounds like fun."
"Yeah, but I'm too busy diving and working to learn." I stated.
"Well, you have a lifetime to learn." Pausing, he scratched the back of his neck before continuing, "I had a good time today."
Eyes twinkling, I turned to him, "Even when I threw sand in your face?"
Laughing, he wrapped his arm around my waist, "Yes, you're full of surprises."
When we finally made it to my house, I started to fumble with my keys when I turned around to face Alex, who had already started towards his home. "Hey, Alex?"
"Yeah?" He asked, looking over his shoulder.
"Tell Buddy I love him."
He gave me a small smile and said, "Okay."
"Hey, I forgot something," I stated, walking towards him. "What did you forget?" Concern contorted his face as he tried to process what it was that I had forgotten, but then he knew when my lips met his in a simple peck.
Smiling, I wished him a goodnight and walked up the steps and into my house. Shutting the door behind me, a million emotions swirled in my mind, and all the while, I wondered what would have happened if I didn't meet Alex the way I did. And I knew that the man I was with I would never find again.