The Sun, The Moon and The Ocean

chapter five

● above is Addison posing for a picture in her dorm back at university that she showed Sophia ●

I TRIED MY best to remain content and normal throughout the rest of the day at the beach rather than depressed and sad about Cooper. I pitied him, yes, but that wasn't what made me so affected by the story Addie told me. It was because he had such a traumatic experience at such a young age and probably felt the world on his shoulders and still does.

Yet, here he was. Making everyone laugh and even cracking himself up in the process.

It was amazing to me. Cooper had his heart broken, his best friend, his little sister who he dreamed to grow up and protect, when he was nine years old. His world probably crashed around him and I wondered how he coped with it, if he even did. That's most likely why Addison said it took him five years to at least accept what had happened and even then he was only fourteen. Cooper has been through hell and back and here I was: a girl who has some family drama and cries about it.

And even though Penny and I didn't get along, at least my sister was still alive.

The day went on and at the beach sitting on our towels and blankets, we all had casual conversation and Cooper made my sides hurt because his jokes were so funny. Addison shared more stories about university and Cooper made fun of her for some of them. She talked about some of the hook ups she had with guys, which were quite a few, and something funny her professor said or about the time she went night surfing with her friends. Addison really lived life and something twisted in my stomach, the urge to do the same.

I begun to get used to Cooper and how he handled himself. Like how he figured out when to step off the curb on the way back to the car, or how he felt around his body for his seatbelt. When we sat down for lunch at a nearby barbie place, he used his knife and fork very impressively. He sat next to me during our meal and when our elbows bumped, my body tensed up and it took me a second to regain my breath.

Cooper was a great guy and I've met great guys before but I've never reacted to one like this. And I kind of liked it.

The thought of me having a crush on the guy was starting to become more of a reality as the warm summer day progressed. Even if it was a little one.

We arrived back at the apartment complex around 1pm after lunch and hung out in the boy's apartment. I learned that Addison was staying here for the next four days for her break from school so she would be around more often and that made me delighted. I had told them about my life back at home, not in depth but I did. I informed them that my sister and I had some trouble with one another and that I dropped out of university. That was all. But instead of looking at me with disappointing eyes like my parents had; in fact, the way the three- uh, two- looked at me didn't change at all. "Well, Sophie, you have to pursue your passion and I think you made the right decision," Addie assured me, tapping my knee gently with her hand. "Yeah, university isn't everything," Noah spoke, the first nice thing he had said to me in a long time, which I greatly appreciated.

Cooper nodded in agreement with the two, his cloudy eyes just above my forehead, his sunglasses were off now that he was inside. "I think its great that you decided to go with what your heart said, Soph." My lips pulled upward. "And being an artist? What cooler and more beautiful thing is there to be? You're making art! That's great for the world and for yourself. Your family is missing out on supporting you for that."

I thanked him and I really meant it. I never expected to be accepted so easily for my choice, especially not from people I met a month earlier. But I warmly welcomed their encouragement.

Noah popped up from his love seat, "I want a beer."

"You wanna go stop by the shop across the street?" Addison offered, standing up. "I could use a cold one too."