Sophie had gotten permission from Forkle to let her take her friends to a beach in San Diego. So she chose Moonlight Beach. And one sunny day, she and her friends gather up their beach items and light leaped to the beach. Della and Edaline joined for parental supervision, but they mostly went for the experience.
Biana and Tam stayed on the shore with Linh. But Keefe, Fitz, Dex, and Marella raced into the water.
"C'mon Sophie! It'll be fun!" Keefe called to the blonde from the ocean.
"I think I'll pass," Sophie said, noticing a group of girls staring at shirtless Keefe. They suddenly made her feel a bit uncomfortable in her simple, red swimsuit.
"Please, Soph?" he asked.
Sophie glanced at Biana, who was sun tanning, and the Vanisher waved at Sophie to go. Sophie smiled and ran over to Keefe, sand sinking through her toes as she approached him. She grabbed his hand and they got waist-high (Sophie's waist. It was more of Keefe's mid-thigh) before he pulled her to a stop.
"So, how are you enjoying the Forbidden Cities so far?" Sophie asked, smiling up at the boy.
Little drops of saltwater littered his hair and covered his abs. Keefe's fluffy hair and ice blue shone in the California sun.
"Why haven't we come before today?" he asked, grabbing her other hand and looking around at the marvelous beach.
"Well, the cities are forbidden. And there are a bunch of girls that would want to date you, and I'm scared you're going to like one of them and then want to live here and then you'll want to leave us and.......me and I don't want that to happen," Sophie rambled.
Keefe laughed and took one of his hands to cup her face.
"I would never leave you, Sophie."
Sophie smiled and leaned into his hand. But with her other hand, she secretly splashed him, getting him in the face and getting the tips of his hair wet.
Keefe's mouth turned into a perfect oval and his eyebrows shot up. "Did you just-"
"Yeah, I did. And get ready for more," she said, smiling at him and flicking more water at him.
"Oh, it is so on."
Keefe picked her up bridal-style and started running into the waves. Sophie was clinging onto his neck and laughing, trying not to get too wet. Keefe stopped when the water was half-way up his chest and smiled down at her.
That's when Sophie looked down and realized that they were pretty far out. The only other people that far out were adult dads.
"Okay, you have to apologize for getting me wet, or I drop you. And you're short, so I know your head'll barely poke out, and I don't want you to drown," he said with a smile.
"Have you ever heard of something we can do called Breath Management?" she asked, looking up into his eyes and earning a smile from him.
"I'm trying to scare you so you can say sorry and then you fall in love with me and we live happily ever after," Keefe said, his eyes still shining in the sun.
Sophie smiled and placed a hand on his chest. "Can we go back to shore? I gotta give you something."
Keefe nodded, his eyes hopeful. When the water was pelvis-high, he set Sophie down. She quickly looked over at the shore and saw the group of girls from before. They were, once again, staring at Keefe and all his glory.
Sophie placed a hand on his chest once again and turned to look up at him.
"So, what's my present?" he asked with a laugh.
"Well, before I give it to you, there's a backstory. You see, at first, this gift was for someone else, but that person wasn't the right receiver. But you, Keefe Sencen, are the perfect receiver."
"Okay Foster. You're really scaring me," he said with a chuckle.
But without warning, she stood on her toes, closed her eyes, and pressed her lips to his.
They were soft but had a hint of sea salt. Keefe gasped , but wrapped his arms around her waist and closed his eyes as well.
She let go and giggled when there was a huge grin on his face.
"Wanna go get food? I saw a concession stand and I think you would love human food," she asked, taking one of his hands into hers.
"Let's do it, Foster."
