Pretty Boy In Love

|24| Love-Repellant

San Francisco is known for its beautiful beaches and all-around warm weather. Thankfully for Noah and I, both of those things were available to us today.

The last time I was at a beach was with Cassidy, Liv, and Cassie. Cassie, as in Cassandra, as in Cassidy's twin sister, who insisted that she teach us some of her modelling techniques so that we could improve our Instagram feeds, whatever that meant. I was the photographer and the other three girls were the models. Surprisingly, we actually got quite a few decent shots that day, but you could always tell which one was Cass and which one was Cassie in the pictures, despite them being identical. Cassie always had this air of ease when she was modelling, whereas Cass always felt awkward, so there was always a limb that looked out of place. 

Today, there were no little kids running around, throwing sand at each other like the last time I was here, probably due to the fact that it is school and work hours. 

We walk towards an area of the beach that is mostly covered by large rocks. We walk up the rocks to a height where it would mean a run to the hospital if we jumped. I tentatively walked closer to the edge and looked down. We are pretty high up.

"You scared, Merrill?" He teases.

Quite frankly, I'm not a huge fan of heights. That doesn't mean he has to know.

"Sorry for breaking your fantasies about being the prince charming who saves the damsel in distress, but I'm quite fine." I prove my point by standing up taller and looking farther out into the water. 

This is a perfect spot. No people around, the water is as clear as it can be, and a soft breeze is blowing my hair away from my face. 

I feel Noah's warmth move closer. "You look really beautiful."

I let out a breath, not quite knowing how to respond to that, but appreciating the gesture nonetheless. Nobody's called me beautiful before. Definitely not Cullen. He often opted for adjectives like "hot" or "sexy", which are nice to hear, but the word beautiful just feels so much purer. As if there are no ulterior motives for saying it, just pure admiration for somebody.

"What happened with Helen and my dad?" I question, breaking the moment of peaceful silence we were having.

The immediate stiffening of his posture is clear indication that we are now in dangerous territory. This is the reason we were fighting. Or at least one of the reasons we were.

Hiss hand runs through his brown hair that currently glistens in the sunlight. "They got married, but I told her about his history. She's so in love with him, Jules, it was pointless. She had a comeback for every negative thing I had to say about him."

At least he tried. That's more than most guys would've done, especially after they had just been yelled at and angered.

"I hope there isn't any awkwardness in your relationship with her because of me," I tell him. And it's true, I really hope that for her sake, whatever she positive things she believes about my dad are true and that she and Noah can still have the close, mother-son connection they had before.

"Don't worry about that," he looks down at his palms and I can see the clear structures of pain on his face. "I barely even see her anymore. She quit her job at my house and she's always with him now."

Instantly, I understand how hard standing up to my dad for me was for him. He putting himself out there to be judged by one of the only parental figures he had. And it hadn't worked out for him clearly. She is now being distant and has seemed to have abandoned him, just like his real parents did when Nicole became a star.

I turn my body slightly and push him into a big hug. He's a little bit surprised at first, but eventually eases into it, putting his arms around me.