Sun kissed

In Sun kissed, Andrea Ramirez writes a warm story on the excitement and warmth of young love.

For a second there, it was just the two of us.  (Image: WIX)

That summer smelt of sweet honey and oranges. It was sticky and hot and dizzying. Especially that day. I remember thinking that I would never get to feel like that again. It was one of those rare occurrences where you know it’s the first and last time you would ever get to experience something so great, so much bigger than you, so you try to savour every second of it.  

The sand seeped through my fingers. Usually, I despised the feeling, but I didn’t even care. I was watching May in the ocean, and she was smiling in the crystal blue water. From under the umbrella that shielded me from the burning sun, I grinned. God, she was beautiful. I was almost jealous. She was wearing her new bathing suit. She’d screamed for joy when she found it in a shop close by. It had white and red stripes, the top was heart-shaped, and the bottoms were high-waisted, with frilly lace.  

We were fast friends, May and I. I had heard her from across the room. It was like her voice had been calling out for me. She had been talking to a waitress about how delicious her meal was, profusely complimenting the chef. I found myself walking over, and before I realised, I was standing before her without anything to say. May had long dark hair and warm brown skin. She had grinned at me and said, You’ve got to try this. 

Not able to bear the heat any longer, I rushed to the water. May laughed at my sudden need to be refreshed. The water soothed my skin. Swimming towards her, I grabbed her torso and pulled her down with me. Under the water, she wrapped her arm around my waist. For a second there, it was just the two of us. Quickly, May pushed me away, surfacing out of the water. When I got out, I was met with a smile. That smile. I knew I was in over my head when I saw it. But that didn’t matter. It was going to go the same way no matter what. 

‘Come on. Let’s get something to eat. I’m starved. Race you?’ May said quickly before swimming off. I laughed before following her. 

Reaching the shore, May emerged from the water. I averted my eyes before catching a glimpse of her soft skin. May dried herself off and smirked, ‘You know, if you keep doing that, people will start talking.’  

I smiled, ‘Doing what?’ 

Rolling her eyes with a smile, May said, ‘Right.’ 

On the boardwalk, I told her how back home, in the town I lived in, no one would ever be caught dead walking around in their bathing suits. To which she said, Well, duh. It’s not a beach town. 

Where I lived, the clouds were different, darker, and the sun never shone as brightly. Even in the summer. The closest thing we had to a beach was the community pool, which reeked of children’s piss. It was different here. Not only in the climate, but everything seemed lighter, more exciting. I admit, this feeling was probably due to my proximity to May.

I often find myself wondering if it only seemed that grand because she was next to me for most of it.  

We walked past a pink and white gelato truck. I knew what May was going to say before she even said it. So I turned us around and lined us up. She was so giddy.   

‘You don’t understand, strawberry gelato is my favourite,’ she grinned, ear-to-ear.  

‘No, I didn’t catch it the first fifty times,’ I laughed. May placed her order and then turned to me. 

I smiled, ‘Oh, none for me, thanks.’ May grabbed my arm, 

‘What?’ 

‘I’m not a huge fan.’ 

‘How can you even say that? You haven’t tried this one yet– it’s ok, you’ll have some of mine. There was no arguing with her on that. I could protest as much as I wanted to, but I knew I’d end up eating it. 

May savoured her strawberry gelato with every lick. I felt like I wasn’t supposed to be watching. It felt weirdly erotic. Her lips looked so delicate. She handed me the cone, 

‘Try it.’ 

And I did. Tasting it, I thought about how her lips had just been on the same spot. I imagined her lips tasted like strawberry gelato.  

Lost in thought, I hadn’t realised that the scoop of gelato had started to melt under the searing hot sun. The sticky gelato dripped down my hand. May caught my hand and licked it off. She then took the cone from my hands and continued eating. I breathed deeply. I knew May felt me looking at her when she flashed a smile. 

People on bikes and roller skates passed by us, and I was amazed by their speed.  May must’ve seen me staring, because she said, ‘I think my parents have some bikes at home, if you wanted to go for a ride.’ 

I blushed hard, ‘No, that’s ok.’ 

She nudged me, ‘Why not? Come on, let’s go,’ May was already running off. Quickly, I clasped her hand. It was soft. We’d brushed hands before, but never like this.  

‘Wait,’ I said to her. 

She looked down at our hands and said, ‘What’s wrong?’ 

‘I uh… I don’t know how to ride a bike.’ 

May beamed as though I’d given her a gift, ‘I can teach you.’ 

My knuckles were white from gripping the bike handles so tightly. My heart was beating fast. I was afraid. I didn’t know what of. I felt May’s hand on my back, balancing me as I sat on the bike with my feet on the peddles. This time, she was gonna let go, and I would peddle.  

‘You’ve got this in the bag,’ May encouraged and quickly let go.  

‘Okay, now peddle,’ And I did. I was doing it. I felt unstoppable. When I got to the end of the street, May ran over to me. She wrapped me in her arms, spinning me around. She was so warm and smelled of sea salt.  

May’s parents were away for most of the summer, so I’d been staying at her house most nights. My parents were too busy at the hotel bar to realise. Usually, I’d sleep on the couch. That night was different. 

The house was quiet, other than its usual creaks. I tossed and turned on the couch. I was still so energised. It didn’t feel right sleeping. As I looked up at the ceiling, I wondered if May felt similar. Footsteps came from outside May’s room. Then, a door quietly shut. I waited to hear again, but nothing. Before I could change my mind, I got up and walked over to her room. Knocking gently, I breathed in and out. The door opened. And there she stood. 

‘I was wondering when you were gonna come.’ 

I smiled, ‘I thought you were gonna come get me.’ 

Her eyes flickered, ‘I almost did.’  

‘I know.’ May reached out for my arm, pulling me into her room. 

I never saw her again after that summer. I like to think that if I went back to that beach we spent so many days on, she’d be there waiting for me by the ocean, in her striped bikini.