Coastal [h.s]

twenty three

SEPTEMBER//A YEAR AGO

~HARRY~

I stomped through the smooth sand as Maggie practically floated in front of me. I watched as her curls bounced up and down around her shoulders with each step and noticed how her freckled skin practically glowed under the moonlight.

The bottle of champagne was in my hand by then. She had wanted to run down the dunes so I offered to hold it in case she ended up tumbling but I told her I was just being gentlemanly.

"You're kind of a slow poke Harry come on!" she shouted from only a few yards in front of me. I could hear the bubbly pop through her words.

Jogging a little to catch up I came up behind her. Without a word I moved to be shoulder to shoulder and we walked in complete synchrony until she was satisfied with our spot and she plopped directly into the sand with no care in the world for her dress.

I imagined what my mom would've said if Caroline had done the same thing but quickly brushed the thought away.

No need to think about that at a time like this.

Out in front of us hung a shining white ball, suspended over the glistening horizon.

"He's smiling!"

You weren't looking at me.

"Who's smiling?"

It was a metaphor.

"The man in the moon!"

I laughed as I breathed in and out heavily. The craters making up two eyes and a bright smile were very present in contrast to the dark navy sky.

That would make a good painting.

It did make a really good painting.

Maggie adjusted her position to sit with her legs outstretched and one ankle crossed over the other. Her green dress stopped about halfway down her thigh and flowed around her in the sand. I resisted the urge to touch it, just to feel the silk. To feel her. Instead I moved my legs to sit criss-cross and placed one hand in the sand between us.

"So," I was tracing designs into the soft grains, "um... what have you been doing, you know, since graduation?"

"Oh we're doing this?" she questioned me.

"Doing what?" I replied, slightly offended.

"Small talk! It feels like we should be past small talk by now," she laughed as she spoke, it felt like sunshine.

"Would you rather talk about the guy you were dancing with in there?" The words left my mouth before my brain could stop them and I mentally slapped myself as my eyes flickered over to her face that was tinged the smallest bit red with a blush.