ephemeral [ Conrad Fisher ]

5

Hi hi welcome back to your scheduled programming - sorry for the delay I wanted to make sure that I didn't accidentally spoil anything from season two before the season released, but I'm back just in time for season two to premier. I'm beyond excited to continue this story AND to see my work on season two finally come to life.

I had never felt out of place around the Fisher family, but in this moment I couldn't feel any smaller than the grains of sand beneath my feet. It was clear to me that the bond the boys had to the Colkin family was stronger than the bond they had with me - of course it was they had known eachother since they were little. What I hadn't expected was to be cast aside so quickly rather than being invited to join in on the fun they were having.

"Oh honey you're burning." Susannahs voice cuts through my thoughts as she pulls the sunblock from her bag "c'mere let me help you."

I couldn't tell if my cheeks were red from the embarrassment seeping through my pores or if she was right and the sun had begun to burn me to a crisp. "I should've put some on god I didn't even think about it." I stand, grabbing the bottle of sunscreen from the kind womans hands.

"It's okay it happens to the best of us."

"Last year Belly got so burnt she had to stay inside for a whole week, we wanted to take her in to get seen but she refused." Belly's mom Laurel chimed in, a nostalgic smile on her face

"I can spray your back." Conrad. He had snuck up from the rough waves without me even noticing, the loud chatter of teens and families had drowned out anything happening outside the little bubble I was in. "and you should've thought about it nox, far too pale to be sitting in the sun in that with nothing to protect you."

There it was again, that intense never ending Conrad Fisher, always questioning and always having something to say.

"I have another one piece up at the house if you want it." Belly offers, stealing my seat as she squeezes her hair dry between a towel, "a little more coverage so more protection." her eyes trained on us as Conrad helps me spreads the sunblock across my back.

I couldn't remember the last time I had stepped foot near a body of water, let alone been in one. I had begged and begged my mom to take me to the one swim outlet in our city so I could grab a few suits just for the summer, it was a tedious, self esteem killing day and at this very moment I felt like I was stuck in that stuffy fitting room again, and in place of a mirror were the people that surrounded me.

"Not that we mind Lennox, I could get used to a summer filled with this." Steven winks, pulling a bottle of water from the cooler nestled between the chairs "Serioulsly Jerimiah and Conrad have been holding out."

I was sure now, that my cheeks were red from the embarrassment and not the sun. The last guy I had talked to ghosted me after someone at school had said something to him and since then every guy in our small school had turned a blind eye to me.

Jeremiah scrunches his nose, pushing Steven a little as he snags up the football from the sand "I thought you were getting water man not hitting on my sister."

Conrads eyes were no longer trained on my back, instead he was focused on Steven as I found a new spot on one of the beach towels we had laid out, snagging up my sweater I tugged it on, watching as Steven threw his hands up in defense and Belly let out a sigh.

"Sorry man I didn't know it was like that."

"It's not."