They walked. She had no set destination, no path to follow. He had a goal. The sand was soft, running along the inner lining of their toes as they ventured a few minutes down the beach.
His hand just barely brushed the small of her back to indicate he was finally satisfied. This is where they'd sit, he thought. He thought, but he didn't know she was thinking it, too.
Her mind raced with what if's and how come's. Summer romances never lasted, after all, but something about him drew her in.
They sat, and his right arm lied behind her body without touching it. They both looked toward the water. It was black like the night sky, speckled with the reflection of glistening stars. It was quiet, but their glances met and silenced any last remnant of noise.
He leaned in. She followed suit. Before their lips met, they each let out a breath of silky air. He exhaled the last of his recent relationship, and she hers. They were free from the past and ready for each other. Their lips touched, fitting together like puzzle pieces. It was unexpectedly smooth. Easy.
But summer romances never lasted.
Six months later, they sit in her bed. She has no thoughts, no words to describe this sensation. He's on cloud nine, happy to be with the one he adores. Their heads are spinning, and they're drained from being so deeply in love.
He holds her head in his hands and tells her how much he loves her. As much as the deer on the sign, he says. They laugh, but it secretly means the world to her.
Summer romances never last, but this one did and it's the best there ever was. They can look at each other and see themselves. The mark they've left on one another.
He's all that matters to her, all she thinks about before she falls asleep.
His eyes, both pale green and royal blue, dig deeper into her skin with every glance. Their beauty breaks the skin and finds her heart. Then it melts. All because he looks at her the way he does.
She's all that matters to him, the only shoulder he can cry on.
Her fondness for him begins with jealousy. He's too good, she thinks. If only she could be more like him. She accepts that he's more caring than she, more of a giver than she could ever become.
Her fondness for him ends with gratitude. He's taught her to see the good in people, the good in the world beyond its surface. He widened her horizon, made its sun rise, not set. Everything's brighter when he's around. He's her everything.
Summer romances never last. She knows this.
She stops caring. She wants him for the rest of her life. She won't get scared and she won't back down, because everything she's ever wanted is sitting right in front of her eyes.
He looks up and his eyes tug at her skin. They reach into her, grab her melting heart. She gives it up willingly. They can keep it forever, she thinks.
And they do.