Chapter 18-21

Chapter 18

“I say you just fuck him to get it over with,” Savannah said a couple of weeks later with a small shrug.

“Wow, way to be modest, Sav,” Natalie replied as she put her sunglasses on, continuing on walking down the boardwalk alongside her two friends.

“I’m just saying,” Savannah replied with a lazy shrug. “Bruno’s not a bad candidate to lose your virginity to.”

“Oh my God, you give horrible advice,” Hadley chimed in, shaking her head at Savannah as she started laughing. “I wouldn’t listen to her, Nat,” she added with a side smile giving Savannah an odd look.

Savannah turned towards Hadley with a shocked look. “What? How is that horrible advice?”

Natalie laughed as she shrugged her shoulders. “I dunno,” she said. “I mean, we’ve only been dating for like a month and a half…”

“So, what difference does that make?” Savannah asked, looking back in front of her. “It’s high school.”

“I think we should shut up on this right about now,” Natalie said awkwardly as she saw Bruno, Ryan, Robert, and Brandon nearing them from the corner of her eye. “Hey!” She smiled at Bruno as he walked up to her, grabbing her waist, pulling her away from the group.

He gave her a small peck on the lips, keeping his arm around her waist as he leaned back to smile at her. “You’re coming with us tonight, right?” he asked as he pulled off her sunglasses to see her eyes.

“Hey, I was using those,” Natalie replied as she reached out to grab them from him. Bruno held his arm behind his back from her reach, waiting for her answer. “And where exactly are you going?”

“Brandon’s having a party,” Bruno stated, keeping Natalie’s sunglasses from her still. Natalie paused, glancing up at his eyes curiously. “What?” He asked after a moment of her staring.

“Nothing,” She replied simply. “I just find it surprising that you’re actually telling me this,” she added, knowing he didn’t really like it when she partied.

“I thought we were over that,” Bruno said with a raised eyebrow. “So you’re going to come, I hope?”

Natalie relaxed her shoulders, folding her arms over each other as she shrugged. “I’m not drinking…” She said in a soft voice.

“I never said you had to,” Bruno replied while he replaced the sunglasses back on her face, leaning in to kiss her.

—

“Ladies!” Bruno said as they walked through the doorway of Brandon’s house, seeing a moderate-sized group of people.

“Oh my God, he’s already drunk…” Natalie whispered quietly to Hadley as he smiled brightly at her, setting his red cup down. Hadley shrugged her shoulders, giving her a what can you do look before slipping away as Bruno wrapped his arms around Natalie.

“You smell good,” Bruno said as he nuzzled his face into her collar bone near her neck. And you reek of booze, Natalie thought, trying to pull him off of her.

“And you look good, too,” he added with a smirk, glancing over her body when he leaned back.

Natalie rolled her eyes, slightly hitting him on the shoulder. “And don’t trust your eyes when you’re drunk.”

Bruno laughed, pulling her back in towards him. “I’m not drunk,” he said, pulling both his lips back in with his face only inches from hers.

Natalie smiled, shaking her head just as Bruno’s lips pressed against hers. Caught off guard, Natalie slightly jumped at his touch. But after a few seconds, she felt her lips open up to his mouth, tasting the alcohol on his breath.

Bruno’s hands immediately began roaming, sliding down to either side of her waist. He shifted them around her backside to her butt, pulling her closer to him.

“AY! You two need a room before clothes start flying?!” Brandon suddenly yelled from across the room. Natalie quickly pulled back from Bruno, who didn’t look too happy when he noticed the lack of contact between them.

“A room sounds pretty nice,” Bruno stated softly as he leaned in to kiss her again.

“No, Bruno,” Natalie said as she leaned her head away from him. She pulled back from him, reaching her hands down to where his still rested behind her, entwining her fingers through his as she brought them at a safe distance down to their sides.Oh my God, I swear drinking only makes him hornier…

“Why nottt,” he said with a slurred laugh, tugging her in so their chests touched.

Natalie shook her head, reaching her hands up to his head, putting them on both sides of his face. “You’re. Drunk.” She stated with a suppressed laugh, staring directly in his eyes as she tried to make him comprehend.

He failed to keep his focus in her eyes as his kept drifting off, eventually causing Natalie to roll her eyes, walking towards where Savannah was.

“Nooo,” Bruno said as he wrapped both his arms around her waist from behind, pulling her back in to him. “Come backkk.”

“Stop!” She laughed as he squeezed her sides, causing her to laugh and squirm from his hold. “I was just going by Hadley…”

“Fair enough,” he said as he spun her around to face him again.

“And gross, your breath smells like piss,” Natalie said as he breathed on her, scrunching up her nose.

Bruno laughed, leaning his face in closer to her, teasing her. “Do you want a taste?” he said as she leaned back from him.

“No thank you, I’ve had enough taste of that,” she replied, watching him stick out his bottom lip, pouting. After a moment of her not responding to this, Bruno leaned back close to her, smirking as he deliberately breathed in her face.

“Ewww, you disgust me sometimes,” Natalie said, squirming from his grip. “I’m going over here,” she added, walking over to Hadley.

She watched as some people played pointless drinking games, standing to the side lazily. “Where’s Sav?” She asked, leaning towards Hadley when she noticed she was gone.

“Oh she went off somewhere with Robert,” Hadley replied, rolling her eyes.

“Already?” Natalie asked, shocked. “It’s been like ten minutes…”

Hadley shrugged her shoulders. “I honestly thought you and Bruno would’ve disappeared by now…” He said with a small laugh, giving her a sideways glance.

Natalie pretended to glare at her before looking back forwards again. “Rudeee,” she said just as she felt a body come up behind her.

My God, he can’t even keep his hands to himself for five minutes, Natalie thought when she felt Bruno throw an arm around her shoulder.

“I brought you one,” Bruno said as he showed her the small shot glass he held in his hand. He held another one in the arm that was around her shoulders, motioning for her to take it.

“I said I didn’t want to drink…” Natalie replied, glancing up at him.

“Well you’re with me, so nothing’s going to happen,” He said with a confident smile. “Now take it.”

Natalie really didn’t want to, but she found herself taking the small blue shot from his hands. “What is it?” she asked, trying to see past the opaque glass.

“It’s good, now stop asking questions,” Bruno replied. “I’ll take it with you,” he added, smiling again.

She let out a defeated sigh. I guess one shot won’t hurt anything, Natalie finally concluded, tossing her head back when Bruno counted off for her, downing the bitter fluid as it burned down her throat, leaving a sour aftertaste in her mouth.

 

Chapter 19

“Do you love me, Natalie?” Bruno slurred as Natalie sat sideways on his lap.

“Of course I love you, Bruno,” Natalie said with a small laugh, staring down to his glossed over eyes.

“No, I mean love love me?” He asked, putting emphasis on the word love.

Natalie pondered the thought for a moment as she gently twisted the curls on the back of his neck around her fingertips, watching him.

“Well?” Bruno chirped after she didn’t respond, but simply smiled at him, softly shaking her head.

“Ask me when you’re not drunk,” Natalie replied with another smirk.

“That’s not fair,” Bruno whined, sticking out his bottom lip once more.

“Life’s not fair. You’ll get over it,” She said, tapping him on the tip of his nose before standing up. Oh shoot, everything’s already spinning, Natalie thought as she rested her hand on Bruno’s knee to keep her balance. “Nevermind, I think I like it better down here,” she said, sitting back down after realizing the alcohol was already getting to her.

“Woah Nat, you’re so wasted, you better calm it down,” Bruno said sarcastically when Natalie rested her forehead on his shoulder, taking a breather.

“Shut up,” She said, lazily punching his arm with her fist, bringing her head up. “I’m fine.”

“Just wait a couple of hours,” Bruno said with a teasing smile. “You’re such a lightweight.”

“Bet I’m not,” Natalie replied, mocking his face back at him.

“Bet you are,” he said before taking a drink from his glass, still staring at her. Natalie looked at him with an it’s on look before standing up again.

“Where are you going?”

“Would you like a drink?” Natalie asked, turning around, raising an eyebrow and a smile back to Bruno.

He smiled shaking his head as he stood up to follow her.

Through the next couple of hours, Natalie hardly even realized what was going on. She didn’t recall half of what she even consumed from when she walked into the door, let alone what the drinks were. An hour later she found her vision to be completely misinterpreting, and her judgment was misleading.

Small memories flashed through her mind of the house. She saw broken glass shatter on the floor as she recklessly knocked over an empty bottle, sending her and Hadley into laughter as Brandon complained of the mess. She remembered vague memories of nearly toppling over Hadley later as they both walked into the bathroom doorway together, talking about God knows what.

She remembered leaving the bathroom and walking back down the hallway behind Hadley, only to be met halfway down by Bruno. She didn’t recall how or whathappened, but slight memory of kissing him flashed through her mind.

And next thing she knew the two were alone at the end of the hall in one of the dark, spare bedrooms. And there was more kissing. And touching. And much ofthings Natalie really didn’t actually remember, at all.

Small flickers of flashbacks shot into her mind until she reached the point of where she stood now, halfway naked near the foot of the bed as Bruno ran his hands all over her body, touching every inch of her skin. She pulled back from Bruno’s lips, suddenly feeling extremely dizzy.

Oh my god, what am I doing? She thought, still feeling the effect of alcohol slightly on her. She glanced down at herself, feeling completely naked although she still wore her underwear. Bruno opened his eyes as she removed his hands from her body, giving Natalie a lost look.

“Oh my God, Bruno,” Natalie said, shaking her head. “I’m sorry, I’m not going to do this—and oh my God, my head is spinning,” she said, bringing her hands up to hold her head, trying to see straight.

Fuck, I don’t even know what we did up until this point, Natalie thought, trying to remember anything from the point of leaving the bathroom. She felt her face grow hot as panic settled in, causing her to shake her head over and over again. In fact, I hardly even know what happened at all tonight.

I hate not knowing what’s going on, she thought, realizing Bruno had been trying to talk to her. “What did you say?” She asked, looking up at him with concern.

“Are you okay?” He asked with a soft look, reaching his hand out to touch her arm softly.

Natalie shook her head, feeling her eyes beginning to burn. “I don’t know what I’m doing,” she said, sitting down on the side of the bed as a tear fell down.

She felt Bruno’s body sit down next to her, pulling her into a tight hug. “I’m sorry. I was pushing you too much,” he said in response to the original reason they were sitting on the bed.

She shook her head again, wiping a few tears. Why am I crying? “No, it’s not that,” Natalie said, trying to take deep breaths. At least I don’t think that’s why I’m upset. “I’m just—I—Everything’s spinning so fast right now. I’m so drunk, and I don’t know what’s going on, and I can’t remember anything, and I’m freaking out right now,” she blurted in a shaky voice, trying to regain her regular breathing.

Bruno simply hugged her tightly, rubbing her bare back, trying to sooth her. It took a few minutes before Natalie settled her shaky breathing and her eyes were completely dry. It wasn’t until then when she realized she was still had no clothes on that she finally spoke again.

“I just want to go home now,” she said, shamefully turning to face Bruno. He bit back his lip, nodding his head.

Natalie got up from the bed, shyly walking over to grab her shirt and pants, which had been scattered near across the other side of the room. She got dressed quickly while Bruno threw his pants back on. She crossed her arms over her chest, staring at the ground, still trying to help herself regain full control of her senses.

She felt Bruno wrap his arms around her as he came up to the front of her, shifting his chest in close to hers. “I’m sorry,” Natalie said, muffled into his body as she returned the hug.

“No, it’s my fault,” Bruno replied in a shameful voice, drawing back from her. “But let’s not talk about this now. Neither of us has the full mental capability to know much of what’s going on anyways,” He added as he opened the bedroom door for her, following her out into the hallway.

 

Chapter 20

Natalie found herself walking down the boardwalk again later the next day, without the presence of her friends, however. Bruno walked alongside her with his hands in the pockets of his shorts as he watched his feet.

“Are you mad at me?” Natalie asked after a few moments, turning to look over to Bruno who kept his head down.

“No, of course not,” he replied, sounding surprised that she’d even ask that. “Why would I be mad at you?”

Natalie shrugged her shoulders, thinking for a minute. She looked down at her wrist, playing with the bracelet he got her as she tried to manage her thoughts. “Because I was a complete mess when we left,” she finally said, embarrassed with herself.

“I don’t blame you,” Bruno said, finally looking up at her from the ground. “I mean, you weren’t exactly in the right mindset last night,” he added with a small laugh, shaking his head.

Ugh, Natalie thought, holding her arms tightly crossed in front of her chest. She shrugged her shoulders, not making any other response.

“What’s the matter?” Bruno asked, watching from the side of her face as she now looked at the ground. Natalie shook her head, not really wanting to elaborate.

“Was it about last night?” he asked when she didn’t respond.

She shrugged her shoulders, biting her lip for a moment in thought. “In a way.”

“So what is it?”

“It doesn’t matter. It’s stupid.”

“No,” Bruno said, touching her arm gently. “You can be honest, Nat.” He added as he gave her a sympathetic look.

Natalie contemplated for a moment before letting out a sigh. “I just hate how it seems like everything between us has to be physical,” she said with another shrug.

“Physical?” Bruno asked with a small laugh. “I’m not sure I know what you mean.”

Whatever, Natalie thought. You know exactly what I mean. “Nevermind,” she said instead, not wanting to explain. “I told you it was stupid anyways…”

“No Natalie,” Bruno quickly said. “Oh my God you’re so stubborn—just tell me what you’re really thinking about.”

“I don’t know,” Natalie said as she looked up in front of her, keeping her line of vision in front of her, “it just seems like everything we do has to be so rushed and hurried and I hate it.” She paused for a moment, letting out a small sigh. “Like it’s all happening so fast…I don’t want everything in our relationship to be all about physical stuff.”

“Oh, Nat,” he said, keeping his eyes on the side of her head. “I’m sorry. I didn’t know you didn’t want to do anything last night…”

“No, it’s not that,” she said, shaking her head. She stopped herself from speaking again, trying to figure out the best way to make him understand. Ugh, who am I kidding? He’s a guy, obviously he doesn’t get it, Natalie thought, mentally shaking her head at his inability to comprehend her. “I mean, I guess I would’ve been fine with all of that if I wasn’t…drunk, but I hate feeling like I’m being rushed into things.”

“I’m really sorry Natalie,” Bruno said as he pulled her in close to him as they continued walking. “I don’t want to push you into something you’re not ready for,” he said, giving her a small sideways hug. “And I think that was uncalled for on how recklessly I acted last night…”

“It’s not your fault. You shouldn’t have to take care of me when we go out places, you know.”

“Yeah, but I pressured you into drinking in the first place,” He said with a small sigh. “and even then, we still did stuff when I knew you were drunk and I shouldn’t have done anything with you.”

Natalie shrugged her shoulders. Shit, I don’t even know what we did. She quickly threw the thought to the back of her mind, not wanting to ask about it further. “…I just want to slow things down for a while,” she said honestly, slouching her shoulders down.

“I think maybe that’d be a good idea,” Bruno said as he tugged her closer, kissing her softly on the top of her head once. They walked in silence for a little while as Natalie let out a sigh of relief, feeling so much better. After a few minutes, Bruno finally spoke again, changing the subject. “So do you have plans for the fourth?”

“Oh shit, that’s tonight,” Natalie remembered, realizing she’d forgotten all about it. “Um, I’m not sure. I think Uncle Scott’s having a barbeque.”

“Well if you want, you can come over later. We’re going to my uncle’s house,” he replied with a small smile. “We’re doing fireworks on the beach.” He added with a wink.

“Well I’ll see if I can get away from my family then,” she said in reply. “Can we get some lunch now? I’m starving.”

—

Natalie lounged back in a lawn chair near the shore that evening, staring off into the near distance at the black sky above her. Splatters of colored lights shot up in the sky every once in a while, as they exploded into large, colorful canopies for several seconds before dimming back into darkness.

She stared in awe at the fireworks as Bruno sat in a chair next to her, lazily strumming his guitar while watching the night sky as well. She glanced over to him, seeing his head tilted completely back with his eyes closed as he focused on the current tune of the song he played.

“You better teach me how to play the guitar one day,” she said as she watched his fingers move across the strings effortlessly.

“Why not right now?” he asked, opening his eyes and looking down over to her.

“Because I’m lazy and I think I’d rather listen to you play than me,” she said, laughing at the thought of her trying to play a guitar.

Bruno shrugged his shoulders before returning his head back to the same position. “I really need to get an electric guitar.”

“I thought you had one…” Natalie replied, confused.

“Technically, it’s Uncle Johnny’s. And plus it’s really worn out,” he said simply. “First thing I’m gonna do when I get a paycheck for this summer thing is buy a new guitar. Then maybe I can annoy my family even more,” he added with a smirk to himself.

“Yes, because that’s a great goal in life: to annoy your family,” She replied sarcastically, staring off as another set of fireworks exploded overhead.

Bruno stopped strumming his guitar as the echoing explosion surrounded them. He smiled up at the fireworks before turning to face Natalie. “Merry Christmas, Nat,” he said with a smug grin.

Natalie turned to give Bruno a strange look with a small sideways smile on her face. “And Happy Easter to you, Bruno,” she replied, shaking her head.

 

Chapter 21

“Come over Nat,” Bruno sighed over the phone in a whiny voice. “Pleaseeee.”

“I told you, I have plans today already,” Natalie laughed back into the receiver as she stared in her mirror, trying to fix her hair at the same time.

“But I miss youuuu,” he replied in the same sad voice.

“Bruno, it’s hardly even been a day.”

“So…”

“So, then it shouldn’t be that long. And we’re having a strict GNO tonight,” She added with a small laugh.

“Ugh, whatever,” Bruno said with a disappointed sigh. “But I’m so bored.”

Natalie couldn’t keep herself from laughing at him, even though she knew he was probably serious. “You’ll live.”

“Where did you say you guys were going to dinner at?” he asked after a few moments of silence.

“Umm, I think Hadley said something about LuLu’s,” she replied, referring to a smaller-sized café-type restaurant downtown.

“Lulu’s is nice. Who’s all going?”

“Just me, Hadley, Sav, and I think Alicia and Kaydee,” she answered, mentioning two other girls from their school.

“So that’s five people?” He asked in a curious tone.

“Yes, Bru, that’s five,” she said with another laugh. “Why?”

“I dunno, I was just wondering…” Bruno said with another sigh. “Well don’t have too much fun without me,” he added, taking in a deep breath.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure I won’t,” she said slightly sarcastically, grabbing her bag from her bed.

“But I’m serious. Don’t pull any bonfire madness on me again,” he said in a pretend sad voice.

Natalie laughed one last time, shaking her head against the receiver. ”Goodbye,Bruno,” she finally said, hanging up the phone.

—

Natalie sat on one end of the dinner table, playing with the ends of her hair and talking to her friends as they waited for their food to arrive. Several minutes after the waiter left their table from taking their orders, he returned back, holding a small slip of paper in his hands.

“One of you is Natalie, right?” he asked, glancing up at the girls.

They all glanced around for a second before laying their eyes on Natalie. She gave him an oddly confused look, nodding her head. “I’m Natalie…”

He gave her a small smile, taking another look at the paper again. “Well somebody called in to pay for your order, so I’ll just write that down,” he said as he scribbled on her ticket.

What? Natalie thought, glancing confused at the table for a second as her friends all turned to her again. “Um, do you know who it was that called?” she asked suddenly, looking back to the waiter.

He shook his head. “He didn’t leave a name…” he replied, acknowledging her before leaving them to themselves.

Natalie turned to her friends, raising an eyebrow at them with a small smile. “I’m so confused,” she said, shaking her head with the smile still on her lips.

“Oh my God, fuck you,” Savannah said with a sadly scrunched up face, turning to take a drink of her water. “I wish I had a boyfriend that would do that.”

Oh shit, why didn’t I even think of Bruno? Natalie thought, feeling stupid. She felt the corners of her lips turn up as she smiled to herself, suddenly wishing he was here right now so she could just hug him. “Oh God, he’s so sweet. No one’s ever done anything so nice for me…” she softly said, shaking her head, keeping the smile on her lips.

“Geez, you guys make everything seem so perfect,” Alicia said as she shook her own head. “Lucky. Ass.”

—

It was only a few minutes before midnight when Natalie stepped through the front door to her house. She closed it quietly with a small click, letting out a small sigh, mentally patting herself on the back for getting home before curfew.

She changed out of her clothes into a pair of sweats and a loose sweatshirt, pulling her hair up into a ponytail on the top of her head. She kept quiet as she went back out into the living room, lazily watching TV, not wanting to go to bed quite yet.

After some time, a sudden, seemingly loud, ring echoed through the house. She quickly jumped up from the couch, running over to the kitchen where the main phone was located. Oh my God, Bruno, she thought when she saw his caller ID.

“Bruno,” she emphasized, speaking quietly. “My parents are sleeping. Why are you calling at one AM?”

“I want to talk to youuuu,” he said in the same drawn out voice he usually spoke in on the phone.

Oh, oops, I meant to call him about earlier tonight, she remembered, realizing she’d forgotten. “Well then…talk,” she said with a laugh.

“No, I want to see you,” he replied immediately when she finished her sentence.

“Then I’ll just talk to you tomorrow,” Natalie replied, wondering what he was getting at.

“Noooooo,” Bruno said sadly. “I’ll meet you outside in a half hour.”

“Bruno,” Natalie began, “I’m not going to sneak out. My parents would probably never trust me again…or trust you.”

“You said they were sleeping.”

“Yeah, so, it doesn’t mean they won’t wake up,” she said, hopping up to sit on the counter. “And I’m surprised you haven’t woken them up from this phone call.”

“So, just come on, Nat,” he said, trying to convince her.

It didn’t take very long before Natalie let out a small sigh. “Fine,” she said, before they hung up.

After a while, Natalie turned off the TV in the living room, reducing the noise in the house. She quietly walked back over to the kitchen, opening the glass doors that faced the ocean. She closed them quietly as well, stepping barefoot onto the back porch.

She saw Bruno already standing a ways down the shore, staring off into some place. She walked over towards him with her arms crossed over her chest, staring at her feet.

“Wow, you’re such a rebel,” Bruno said sarcastically when she reached within speaking distance of him.

Natalie half-heartedly glared at him before turning her lips up into a smile. “Thank you Brunooo,” she said, throwing her arms over his shoulders to hug him tightly.

“For what?” he asked with a small laugh.

“For dinner, you idiot,” she said as she drew back before kissing him softly on his lips that still contained a smile.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Bruno said, trying to keep his laughter in.

“Shut up,” she said, punching him softly on the arm. “You’re such a bad liar.”

He finally let out a laugh, shrugging his shoulders.

“Can we at least get away from the view of my house?” Natalie asked after a moment, grabbing his hand with both of hers, pulling him further down the beach. She walked for several minutes until they reached a large wall of rocks where the houses ended.

She felt Bruno suddenly wrap his arms around her hips, pulling her in towards him before down on the ground, so that they were both lying in the sand. Natalie rolled over, laughing at his sudden decision to lay down. She shifted her body so that she was on her back next to him, their shoulders touching as they stared at the sky.

“I can’t believe summer’s almost over,” Natalie said with a small groan. “We only have like a month left…”

Bruno shrugged his shoulders against hers. “It’s been a good summer so far though, right?” he asked with a small smile as he continued to stare up above him.

“Of course,” Natalie replied, playing with his fingers.

There was a long silence that followed, and the only sound that could be heard was that of the waves continuously rolling in and out of the shore. After a few minutes Bruno finally broke the silence, speaking again.

“I’m not drunk right now,” he stated simply, not turning his head.

“Yeah, so?” Natalie replied, laughing softly at him.

“So you never answered my question the other night,” he said almost questioningly. “You thought I wouldn’t remember…”

“What question?”

Bruno turned from the sky to face her, causing Natalie to turn her head as well. They were only a few inches apart, and Natalie saw the smile on Bruno’s lips as he stared at her. “And whatever, I know you didn’t forget,” he said, raising an eyebrow towards her.

Natalie smiled when she realized what he was talking about. She turned from his face, looking back up at the sky. She saw his eyes still on her as he weaved his fingers in through hers. “You’re too quiet. It’s scaring me,” he finally said when she didn’t reply.

Natalie turned back down to Bruno, the smile gone from her face as she looked at him seriously. “I’m afraid to say the wrong thing,” she said honestly, biting back her lip.

“Do you know what you want to say?”

Natalie shrugged her shoulders, glancing over his face. “I don’t know…”

“What do you know then?” he asked with a small laugh.

Once again she shrugged her shoulders, keeping her bottom lip pulled back. Bruno softly nodded his head at her. “Well I know that I love you, Natalie,” he said softly, finding her eyes with his again. “With my whole heart and all of my honesty,” he added, squeezing her hand again, giving her a sweet smile, looking as if he were trying hard not to laugh.

Natalie felt herself smile at him Oh he’s so cheesy, she thought, glancing down towards his chest for a second. But it works for him. “And I love you too, Bru,” she said when she looked back at his eyes. ”With my whole heart and all of my honesty,” she repeated with a laugh, causing him to smile.

Bruno suddenly leaned in closer to her until he kissed her gently on her lips, pulling her closer to him. He brought his free hand up to the side of her face as they continued to kiss, still lying down in the sand. After several minutes, Natalie pulled back so that their noses still touched, opening her eyes. “I should probably get back home now.”

“Nooo,” Bruno said as he wrapped his arms around her waist, causing her to burst out laughing at his touch. He pulled her close next to him, resting his head on her shoulder as he continued his tight grip on her. “Stay a little longer,” he said in a childish voice, turning his head up to pout at her, sticking his bottom lip out.

Natalie laughed as she brought her hand up to touch his curls. “Fine, just a few more minutes,” she replied, turning her head up to look back up at the sky as another silence took over again.