Loveless Ages

Chapter Five

The water is freezing cold. So cold that I don’t even want to submerge my body in it. I sit at the edge of the very large pool and dip my big toe in the water, watching as a circle of ripples pushes outward from the impact. 

 “Are you going to actually get in the pool or are you just going to sit there?” Josh asks with a laugh. His blonde hair now looks more like brown now that it is wet.

“I’ll get in,” I tell him, “…Eventually.” He disappears under the water and I expect him to come back up right away but he doesn’t.

“Josh?” I say worriedly, looking at the spot in the water where he just stood. I am surprised when he pops up right in front of me and pulls me by my legs into the water. As soon as I regain my composure I mockingly glare at him. He is now laughing even more.

“You should have seen your face when I popped out of the water,” he laughs, “You looked like a raccoon in headlights.”

“Shut up!” I exclaim, but I can’t help but laugh myself. Josh pushes off from the ground and begins to float on his back. There are a few other people in the pool, however the pool is quite large and none of them are near us.

“That wasn’t cool,” I complain, “You almost gave me a heart attack.” He stops floating on his back and swims closer to me.

“I’m sorry,” he says with a goofy grin dominating his expression. His face is inches from mine and his blue eyes are nearly the color of the water. I look away shyly.

“It’s fine,” I mumble. He moves around in the water for a little bit.

“Do you remember the last time we went for a swim together?” Josh asks. I feel a blush warming my cheeks as the memory comes to play in my mind.

“Yes,” I say quietly, “I remember.”

“You know what we didn’t do that night?” Josh asks. I look at him suspiciously. I hadn’t thought about that night in a while being that I was so preoccupied with Xander…

“What?” I ask as I push some annoying strands of hair out of my face.

“Race!” He shouts excitedly. I smile at his enthusiasm and shake my head.

“I’m not racing you,” I tell him. He frowns.

“Why not?”

“Because what’s the point? You always win,” I explain.

“Not always…”

“Name the last time I won.”

“Well…” He thinks for a moment, “There was that one time.”

“Which one?”

“Oh wait, no, that was me,” he teases. I roll my eyes.

“Haha.”

“That doesn’t mean it’s impossible for you to win,” Josh says, “Persistence is key.” He finds my hand under the water and fills the gaps in between my fingers with his. I involuntarily widen my eyes and I find myself looking up at him questioningly.

“Please?” He coaxes. God, I didn’t know he could still do this to me. I mean, I knew, but it’s been a while. I press my lips together.

“Fine,” I give in. He lets go of my hand.

“I’ll give you a head start,” he reasons. 

 “No,” I shake my head, “I’ll beat you fair and square.”

“So suddenly you’re confident?”

“Nope. I’ll probably lose, but if you give me a head start and I still lose, I’ll never hear the end of it.”