Chapter 48 It was our list of rules.
Ryan
The next time I woke, Saraphina’s face was right there, resting on my chest. She was deep asleep, her skin warm in the early light. Morning was creeping over the edge of the world, and I knew we had to head back. Last night, after Louisa almost spotted us, Saraphina and I had gone a good distance from the RV. We’d found a small, hidden space like a cave and stayed there until dawn, lying on a pile of our own clothes. We talked for hours and looked up at the stars. I don’t even remember shutting my eyes, but here we were.
Saraphina moved a little in her sleep, maybe she sensed me watching her. Then her eyes opened, and I was looking right into those big, clear blue ones. It was strange; her gaze could make me feel like I was everything and nothing, all at once.
“Good morning, beautiful,” I said, and kissed her.
“Hey… oh God!” She sat up fast, her mouth dropping open as she saw the sun. “It’s morning already! We have to go!”
I knew our parents would lose it if they realized we’d been out all night. Saraphina was all nerves, scrambling into her clothes and hurrying toward the RV. I followed at an easy pace. Honestly, I wasn’t that worried. I could talk my way out of most things; it was something I was good at. Besides, I’ve always been the type to let things happen. If the parents found out, so what? They’d just have to cope.
We got lucky, though. Louisa and my dad were still asleep when we slipped back inside. Maybe they’d had their own late-night adventure.
“Oh, thank God,” Saraphina breathed out, her shoulders sinking.
“You worry way too much,” I laughed.
She gave me a hard look and shook her head. “How are you so relaxed about this?” she murmured.
I shrugged. “It’s fine.”
I really didn’t get why it was such a big deal. Would it be so terrible if they knew? Wouldn’t that mean we could stop hiding? Saraphina and I are grown. They can’t force us into anything.
“Ryan,” she said, her voice low and careful.
“What?”
“We have to be more careful. You remember the rules, right?”
Those damn rules. I think they’re still crumpled up in my room somewhere.
“Yeah,” I said, rolling my eyes.
“I don’t want… what we’re doing… to hurt them or anything,” she said, biting her lip. “They can never find out.”
‘What we’re doing?’
I didn’t like how she said that, but I understood. Things would get fucking messy if the parents got involved. They’d want to know how serious we were, what came next.
And we hadn’t even talked about that yet.
“I hear you,” I told her. “We’ll be careful.”
She gave me a small, relieved smile, and I smiled back. We were standing close in the narrow RV, and I reached for her hand. I thought she’d push me away like she usually does, but this time she let me hold it. Our fingers curled together, and even though it was such a simple thing, it felt huge.
“Good morning, kids.”
My dad’s voice came from behind us, and we broke apart fast. Saraphina took a big step back, putting a whole lot of space between us.
“Did you sleep well?” Louisa asked, coming up beside him.
“Oh, yeah,” I said, maybe too eagerly. “I don’t know about her, but I slept great last night.”
Saraphina shot me a look, but I just thought it was cute. Her face went completely red. She’s terrible at lying.
“Sweetie, where did you go last night?” Louisa asked Saraphina. “I tried to find you.”
“Oh, I, uh!” Saraphina stumbled over her words, then looked down at her phone in her hand. “I was trying to find… a signal. I was calling someone back home,” she said with a tense smile, holding up her phone.
“Aww, you missed Cole, huh?” Louisa said. “He must miss you too. You two are always together.”
“Ha, yeah, guess so,” Saraphina laughed, the sound tight and nervous.
Wait. Who?
I stared at Saraphina, but she just rolled her eyes at me. I was being an idiot. I was with her the whole night. She wasn’t calling anyone. Still, I get way too possessive when it comes to her.
Once the parents were up, we got breakfast and did some sightseeing. We hiked to see the volcano, then headed home. Saraphina was much more relaxed on the drive back. She even let me sit beside her in the booth, our knees pressed together.
“That was a good trip, wasn’t it?” my dad said from the driver’s seat. He was watching us in the rearview mirror.
“It really was,” I replied, grinning at her.
“You kids have fun?” he asked again.
“I had an amazing time,” I said, still looking right at her.
“Maybe we should do it again soon?” Louisa chimed in.
“Oh, absolutely,” I said. Saraphina was staring out the window now, sinking down in her seat, her skin burning a deep, bright red.
Hell yes. I’d do that again in a heartbeat.
Saraphina
The family trip went smoothly, thank goodness. Well, except for that one moment my mom almost saw us. But other than that, it was actually really nice. We had good time together as a family, and Ryan and I had our own private time, too.
Now we were home, back to normal life. As the days passed, Ryan and I kept seeing each other. We just wanted to be together all the time.
My mom, though, had been pushing for us to spend more time together. She kept asking why I was never around, and I kept giving her the same excuses:
“I was just out… seeing the island… doing some yoga.”
Which wasn’t a total lie. I was out with Ryan, at our secret beach, doing something.
“Honey, we came back a day early so I could be with you. You leave for college in less than two weeks. Spend a little time with your mother, okay?” she said one afternoon, her lips in a pout.
“Okay, okay,” I sighed. “What do you want to do?”
She had a point. I only had a little time left before leaving for New York.
“Well, I have some things to take care of today. How about tomorrow?” she asked.
“Tomorrow works.”
“Perfect! We can get our nails done at that place in the mall. Then we can shop for your college wardrobe. Oh, it’ll be so much fun!” she gushed, already talking a mile a minute.
The next day, Ryan was not thrilled when I told him I needed a day off from us. We met early at the beach while he trained and I read.
“Do you really have to go?” He gave me that pout and that intense look, the one I find completely adorable.
“We’ll see each other after,” I told him, soothing him like a little kid.
“Promise?”
“I promise.”
So, as promised, I spent the day with my mom. We left around ten, got our nails done, and went shopping. It was fun, actually. I found clothes for school and picked up souvenirs for my friends back home. Before I knew it, it was lunchtime, and we were sitting in a quiet Italian restaurant.
Strangely, Louisa wasn’t her usual chatty self. My mom loves to talk, but she’d barely said a word all day. It felt like she was holding something back.
“So… how are things with Clement?” I finally asked, just to break the quiet.
“Things are good… really good. Actually, in Maui, we talked about trying for a baby,” she said.
“A baby? Wow. That’s… wonderful, Mom.” But the thought hit me immediately, Ryan and I would have a little brother or sister together.
That was going to be… complicated.
So that was it. That’s why she was acting so off.
My mom went quiet again. I could feel her wanting to say something, fighting with it.
“Mom, are you okay? What’s going on?” I asked gently.
She took a long breath and finally said, “Honey, I know.”
“Know what?”
“About you and Ryan. I know.”
I stopped. I watched her face.
She couldn’t know. She didn’t see us. We’ve been so careful!
“What… are you talking about, Mom?” My mouth went dry.
Louisa rubbed her temples, her expression heavy and serious.
“I didn’t believe it at first. But a few days ago, after the trip, I was gathering laundry and went into your room. I found Ryan’s jacket in your closet. I didn’t think much of it. Then last night at dinner, I saw something on Ryan’s arm. A tattoo that looked like your name. I told myself I was seeing things, that I was crazy. So later, I went to check on Ryan in his room. He wasn’t there. But I found this instead.”
She pulled a folded piece of paper from her purse.
I knew that paper. I’d know it anywhere. My handwriting was on it, and Ryan’s was, too. It was our list of rules.