The Sun, The Moon and The Ocean

chapter thirteen

● above is a picture Sophia received from Addison, captured by Noah, of Addison on a morning hike ●

THE WEDDING FLEW by and even though there was tension between my sister and my parents, Penny spent her big day with a huge, shining grin on her face. The Father-Daughter dance was alright, but my mom barely even spoke to my sister. I couldn't believe my mother was so ignorant and so caught up in her own mind that she refused to even act happy for my sister. But apart from my mother's attitude, I was proud of Penny. I was so unaware that she was feeling the same way I was: like I was living for my parent's interest. However, instead of doing what I did, run away from them, Penny danced and laughed and smiled and was herself right in front of them. That was strength I didn't think I could ever find in myself.

Throughout the evening, Cooper and I seemed to ignore our special moment, I think for sake of the wedding. We both understood that we could talk about it, or continue it later, at least that's what I hoped for.

We finally got the chance to bring it up to one another once we arrived at the hotel I booked that morning. We had spent the car ride chatting about the wedding and how cute it was and whether or not Cooper was invited to brunch like I was the next morning, we decided he was to tag along. The hotel was decent, we were able to score a room with two beds (now after that kiss, I regret clicking that button on the website) and made plans to go to the pool that night.

Once in the room, I let Cooper pick his bed as I went to the bathroom to change into pajamas, I figured I didn't have to look cute anymore, and I think the reason is self-explanatory.

I undressed from the dress I wore that had gotten wrinkled and loose around my body throughout the event and slipped into some spandex and a senior class t-shirt from high school. I picked out the hairpins that held up my bun then braided my hair to the side. I decided to just let the water from the pool take off my make up.

I walked out of the bathroom to find Cooper sitting on his bed, petting Sydney's golden fur. He sat with his legs crisscrossed and appeared to have changed out of his get up, which was nicely folded by the pillows and was wearing a tank top with some maroon gym shorts, his hair staticky from pulling off his shirt from earlier.

He was so stunning to me, even just sitting there in his pajamas. His curly hair more ratted than usual, that small smile that seemed to always rest on his tan face, the freckles that formed constellations down his arms and his dark hazy eyes. I wondered if he thought he was as wonderful as he was to everyone else, if he believed that he was good and deserved more than this world could ever give him, if he knew he was one of the most unforgettable people a person would ever have the pleasure to encounter, I wonder if he knew that even though it was dark where he lived, rays of sunshine glowed through his skin wherever he wandered.

I really, really hoped he knew all of that. And if he didn't, I wanted to show him.

The patting of my feet on the gray carpet probably caused Cooper's head to peak upwards, his eyes wide and staring at the wall. I slowly sat on my left leg on my bed across from his, not sure how to bring up the kiss, my thumbs twiddled with one another before I decided to speak up.

"So, about-"

"About the-"

We both spoke at the same time and shared a soft laugh with one another, his head turning slightly more in my direction. He chuckled, "You first." I made a face at that, I didn't want to be the one to start this whole thing, but at the same time I didn't want to go back and forth, I just wanted to know why it happened.

I cleared my throat, "Well, I'm pretty sure we both know what this conversation is going to be about," we smiled, "And first and foremost, I just want to let you know that I was okay with it, totally okay with it," I laughed and he did too, I noticed his cheeks turning pink, making my heart beat. "But I need to know why you did, and why you did it then? Not the romantic moment kind of guy?" I joked.

Cooper snickered before carefully throwing his legs over the edge of the bed, his eyes on the painting above my head. He rubbed the back of his neck, searching for the right words. "Well, I have been wanting to, you know, kiss you for awhile now." I blushed immensely. He quickly moved onto the next sentence, "And I was feeling pretty confident at the time, shutting your parents down really gave me a boost," he chuckled softly, "and, I don't know, I just found myself kissing you."

My breath slowed, looking into his cloudy eyes. If he had wanted to kiss me for awhile, that had to mean he returned my feelings for him. What if we actually became something? If we did, I would do my best to show him all the good things that he is surrounded with and how much love he deserves to be given. I would try to give him all of that love. I wanted to discover more about him, not just that heart-stopping smile he has, I wanted to know what was under it. If he was sad if he was happy and if I could do anything to make him feel better.

And maybe he could raise me up more than he already has, make me feel as beautiful as he thought to me to be. Maybe his fingertips will brush against my paintings and judge by the bumps and crevasses in the paint, he'd tell me they felt like masterpieces then I would laugh and tell him he is silly. And maybe he would come down to my flat more than his and we would just spend time making one another laugh and grow.

But suddenly, my daydream was shut down. The smile that rested on his face slowly shaped into a line, "And as wonderful as it would be to kiss you again, I cannot give you what you want."

My eyebrows matched the twist in my stomach and my slow breath became heavier. You already have, I wanted to say.

But before I could protest or even mutter a word, Cooper insisted that we moved on and go to the pool. Not knowing what to say, or how to feel, I obliged. I changed into my black bikini but the only thing I wanted to change was his mind.

-

Five minutes later we were outside about to slide my room key to the gate to enter the pool even though it was the last thing I wanted to do. Cooper had moved on from that conversation so quickly and so easily that he started small talking me about what kind of yummy food we would be having the next morning at brunch.

But I kept my composure. I did not want to spend the next fifteen hours being more awkward than I already am with Cooper. What was I supposed to say anyway?

As Cooper stepped onto the concrete steps into the water, I had realized that I had never seen him in the water before. I grimaced at remembering why, the terrible tale Addison had told me about Cooper on the beach that day.

"I've never seen you swim before," I stated for the sake of talking to him. I waltzed into the pool behind him, the water reaching my stomach and causing me to shiver. Cooper chuckled slightly as his back floated on the surface. "Yeah," he spoke. "The ocean and I don't get along."

I hummed as I went to duck my head in the water, the coolness relieving me from the summer's hot night. "I know Addie told you about Ava," Cooper confirmed, something I didn't expect to hear. I wasn't sure what to say.

"Yes, sadly," I affirmed, running my fingers through my hair, watching his tall body move on top of the water.

Silence fell over us that we both seemed to understand but for me, it was still painful. I bet it was for him too. "I miss her," he whispered.

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AUTHOR'S NOTE

well once again, here we are with chapter thirteen. i'm sorry about the inconvenience, guys. i emailed wattpad and hopefully, this situation will never have to happen again. i also started writing my chapters on other things like grammarly and pages so i'm sure this won't happen once again. thank you guys for your understanding.

if you're in the states, happy fourth of july! 💙❤️

love, nicole robinson