Kaitlyn's POV
I wake up the next morning and immediately jump out of bed. Grabbing my swimsuit, I run into the bathroom to change. My phone starts to ring in the other room, so I run out and pick it up.
"Hello?" I answer, not bothering to look at the caller ID.
"Guess who?" a familiar voice asks on the other end.
"Jake, babe, I can't talk right now. Riley's going to be picking me up in a few minutes so that we can go to the beach," I say. I know that it's RIley, but I love messing with him. I didn't have to look at the caller ID to know it was him. Only he would call me at five in the morning.
"Oh, I see how it is," he says jokingly. I laugh, and then I cover my mouth, remembering that my parents are still asleep.
"What's up?" I ask, closing my bedroom door. I sit down on my bed and admire the picture from our one year anniversary.
"We're about to arrive," he states.
"Okay, I'll go outside now," I say.
"Alright, see you in a few," he says, and he hangs up.
Yup, we haven't said those three magical words yet. Even though we've been together for over one and a half years, we haven't told each other that we love each other. I was hoping that he would say it, but I'm guessing he's afraid that if he says he loves me, I won't say it back, or that there will be a lot of tension when he goes on tour, which is understandable. I just wish that he would realize that those things shouldn't matter because if you love somebody, they should know.
I step out as they pull into my driveway, and I run to the rear door. I pull it open and slide into the way back, sitting next to Riley. Toby, Braiden, and Thomas sit in the middle seats, and Connor and Emily sit up front. We drive down the street, and Riley takes my hand.
Riley plays with my fingers as we drive along, and I can't help but feel sad. I want to tell him that I love him, but like I think he is, I'm afraid. I can't help but feel afraid. Some ways that he looks at me is like he hates me, but other times, it looks like he's completely in love with me. I can't tell anymore on how he feels.
He's starting to shut me out of his life. I don't know why. It could be becaus he doesn't want me to get too close so that he doesn't fall in love with me, but it's starting to tear us apart. I want this relationship to last because I love him. I really do. I just want those words to finally be out in the open, lifting the weight that's been on my shoulders for a year and a half.
We finally arrive at the beach, and I jump out of the car. Riley hops out right behind me and wraps his arms around my waist. I immediately lean into him and listen to the waves crash. Everybody else gets out of the car, and we run to the sand. We put our stuff down and quickly apply sunscreen before running around.
"Thomas, put me down!" Toby shouts. I look over to see Toby thrown over Thomas's shoulder as he walks towards the ocean. I giggle when I see the sudden splash, but that giggle turns into laughter when Toby pulls Thomas under.
"Wait, Braiden, let me go!" I hear Emily shriek.
He runs to the water with her over his shoulder, and he drops her like Thomas dropped Toby. Connor runs after them and jumps on Braiden's back. They go under as Emily pops up, and they playfully wrestle. I continue to laugh at them, just watching water fly around the flailing arms.
"You ready to go in?" Riley asks me.
"Yeah, but not like they did," I say. He nods and takes my hand, pulling me towards the water.
When we reach the ocean, I dip underwater and swim around. Riley walks more into the water, looking for me. I sneak up behind him and grab his ankle. He freaks out, and I hear him and his girly shriek. I swim up to the surface and laugh as he turns around. He frowns, but then he starts laughing.
"Hey Kaitlyn," somebody says from behind me. I turn around, and Toby splashes me in the face. I scowl at him and lunge, tackling him into the water.
"You little twerp!" I shout, dunking him under. When I pull him back up, he's laughing uncontrollably.
"Hey, let's stop trying to drown each other and just hang out," Braiden suggests.
We all swim around, and then we have a splash war. I get water in my eyes so much, I have to go back to my towel to get it out. I rub my towel on my eyes, and when I put it back down, Riley's standing in front of me.
"You okay?" he asks me, concern filling his own eyes.
"Yeah, I'm fine. The water just made my eyes hurt," I tell him. He hugs me unexpectedly.
"Good. I'm glad you're okay," he says, resting his chin on the top of my head. I wrap my arms around his waist, and lean into him.
"Yo, lovebirds! You coming back in or what?" Connor shouts.
"A few more minutes!" Riley calls down. He then pulls back, leans his head down, and kisses me.
He never forgets how to make me melt.
