the heart never lies (chris evans)

chapter five - a stroll along the tide

Evans's POV
It's day three already. I can't quite grasp how quick the time seems to be going. Dodger gets me up early again, wanting to go outside. I throw some clothes on and then head downstairs with him, walking all the way down to the ground floor to let him out to do his business. He seems pretty content wandering around the big garden, so I leave the door ajar and head up to the kitchen, finding Hemmy and Renner in there. Hemmy seems to be making breakfast and a coffee. "Mooorning."

"Morning!" Renner chirps, swiftly followed by a yawn.

"Ah, morning, mate. Coffee?"

"Ooh, go on then. Thanks, bro." Hemmy smiles and nods, grabbing another mug out of the cupboard. "No one else up yet?"

"Mark's in the shower. Don't know about the others." Renner answers.

"What's the plan for today?"

"Nothing on the radar yet. I thought maybe we could all go for a walk this morning though. Maybe around Runyon canyon park. I always find walking is a good activity to get people chatting. I thought the beach after too." I nod gently.

"No, yeah, that sounds like a plan." I agree.

"Hopefully everyone's up soon so we can head out!" That's when the kitchen door clicks open and I perk up excitedly, sort of hoping it's Meg. However, it's Liv, and my shoulders drop.

"Ah, morning, gents!" She chirps with a smile, to which we all answer with a smile and hello.

"Would you like a coffee?" Hemmy asks her.

"Ooh, yes, please." Hemmy nods and grabs another mug, prepping that one.

"Sleep well?" Renner asks and she nods.

"Yeah, good actually! We got anything planned for today?"

"I was thinking a walk around Runyon canyon park this morning and then maybe the beach this arvo."

"Ah, yeah, that sounds amazing! I definitely want to see some of the beaches. I hear they're the best in the US here." Hemmy laughs softly and nods.

"Yeah, they're pretty good here. Not quite as good as Aus though." He comments, making us all laugh. "So you and Meg are good with a bit of a hike?" Liv laughs and nods.

"Well, Meg not so much. She's never been a keen 'hiker', bless her. But it sounds fun." Hemmy chuckles and pours everyone's coffees, before handing them out. We all thank him.

"Is Meg up yet?" I ask curiously, trying to sound as cool as possible. But honestly, I just really wanna spend some more time with her. Preferably without Liv butting in every five minutes.

"She was still asleep when I woke up."

"Ah, right, yeah."

"What was your favourite part of the tour yesterday, Liv?" Renner asks curiously, but I end up tuning out as soon as she starts to answer, going into a world of my own. I hope Meg comes down soon. I don't know why, but she just seems like so much more fun. I'm sure Liv is a really nice person, but there's something that doesn't sit right with me. She seems... sly. And I really don't like how she talks over Meg. It's like she always wants to be the centre of attention and likes to appear as if she's doing Meg a solid by talking for her, but I'd much rather hear Meg talk than Liv. All she needs is for people to have a little patience with her. I hope she knows that we want her to talk. All of us.

The kitchen door clicks open again and I quickly shift my eyes towards it. Meg walks in and my lips stretch into a wide smile.

"Good morning!" I chirp, perhaps a little too eagerly. In the corner of my eye, I see Hemmy and Renner glance at me, both smirking. Meg smiles back and gives me an awkward wave.