Dawn by McKayla Box
Chapter 8
We walk the beach for a little while and it feels normal.
It brings back all of the good memories.
The times when things were good and easy between us.
The breeze is cooler, the air smells saltier, and the sand feels softer when my hand is in his and we are walking next to the ocean. I want to bottle how this feels so I don’t ever forget.
But when we turn and head back to the bonfire, the ugly part of our past rears its head.
Because Derek Morgan is standing in front of us, a beer bottle in his hand.
“Isn’t this quaint?” he says, laughing. “Just like old times.”
“Jesus,” I mutter. “Doesn’t anyone ever go to jail around here?”
Trevor just stares at Derek.
I tighten my grip on his hand and look at Derek. “What do you want?”
He takes a drink from the bottle and shrugs like it’s a dumb question. “What do I want? I just wanted to say hi to a couple of my old friends.”
We are not old friends. We are the opposite of old friends. If Shanna made my senior year at Sunset miserable, Derek made it something worse. And he really should be in jail. But, again, when your enemies all have more money than a hedge fund, they can hire lawyers that make sure jail isn’t an option.
“Get out of the way,” Trevor growls.
Derek laughs. “Trev, come on. I thought we could let bygones be bygones.”
“Not a fucking chance,” Trevor says.
Derek smiles and takes another drink from the beer. “That makes me sad, Trev.” He eyes him for a long moment. “How are things going with you, man?”
Trevor doesn’t say anything.
“How’s…Brett?” Derek asks.
I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s something charged in the way he says it.
“I’ve seen you around town,” Derek says. “Seems like you’re keeping busy.”
“Let’s go,” Trevor says.
He squeezes my hand and we take a couple of steps to get around him, but Derek slides over, blocking our path.
“I’m not gonna tell you again,” Trevor says. “Move out of the way.”
Derek grins and chuckles, then looks at me. “You guys are good? Yeah? Wasn’t sure you were still together.”
“Fuck you,” I say.
“You made it clear you wouldn’t do that,” he says. “But that’s cool. Water under the bridge.” He takes another drink from the bottle, then makes an exaggerated step to the side. “Sorry for the intrusion, guys. You have fun tonight.”
Trevor doesn’t hesitate and pulls me along as we start walking. I look back over my shoulder and Derek holds his beer bottle up like he’s toasting us.
I turn back around. “The fuck was that about?”
“I have no idea,” Trevor mutters. “I knew this was a bad idea.”
“You what?”
“Not you,” he says. “Not you, Pres. I just mean coming to this. I used to make fun of the people who’d come back and party after they left Sunset. Now we’re those people. Like Derek.”
“We’re not like Derek,” I say.
“You know what I mean.”
“What the hell was he talking about?” I ask. “The stuff about Brett and seeing you around town?”
“I have no clue,” he says. “Just Derek looking for a fight.” He glances at me. “You want me to go back and kick his ass?”
“No,” I tell him. “That’s the last thing I want. I don’t want to see you in trouble ever again. I don’t think I could take that again.”
His eyes linger on me for a long moment, before he looks away as we walk. “Yeah. Right.”
I stop. “Hey.” I squeeze his hand. “Hey.”
He stops and looks at me. “What?”
“Are you alright?” I ask. “Because you don’t seem alright at all.”
He looks down at the sand for a few seconds, then looks back to me. “No. I mean, yeah. I’m fine.” He gestures back toward the direction we’ve just come from. “Just rattled, that’s all.”
“Rattled by Derek?”
“Yeah, I guess,” he says. “Just letting him get to me.” He turns around and glances down the beach toward the bonfire. “I think it’s the whole thing.”
“What whole thing?”
He puts his hands on his hips. “I don’t know. I think just all of you guys back here after being gone. And me just…being here. I haven’t done anything. I’ve just been here. You guys have gone off to all of these places and now you’re all back. I’ve just…been here.” He looks toward the water. “I think I feel out of place and I don’t know what I’m doing.”
“Is that why you were late?” I ask. “Because you didn’t really want to come?”
He shrugs.
“You could’ve just told me that,” I say. “I don’t need to be here.”
“Yeah, you do,” he says. “With Bridget and Maddie and Gina. I know you wanted to see them.”
“But who am I with right now?”
He doesn’t say anything.
“We can go,” I tell him. “Honestly. I don’t care, and the girls will understand. The only thing I really wanted for my break was to spend time with you. I haven’t seen you in nearly four months except for a couple of FaceTime calls. So I don’t care if it’s here or at my house or yours or wherever. I don’t care. I just want to be with you and if you don’t want to be here, then fuck it. Let’s go.”
He runs a hand through his hair. “No. I’m okay. Really. I’m…I’m not gonna let anyone else get under my skin. We’re good. Let’s go have a good time.”
“You’re sure?” I ask.
He leans down and kisses me, his lips hungry. His arms wrap around me, tight like a vise. Like he never wants to let go.
My heart hammers.
He breaks the kiss and looks at me with a smile. “Positive.”