One Golden Summer

by Carley Fortune

I’m not sure when I start crying, only that I’m overwhelmed with how big the galaxy is and how insignificant I am.

Relatable

I told myself if I worked hard enough, I’d reach the end of the rainbow and be rewarded with a windfall of artistic freedom. But the rainbow never ends. I’m stuck.

Me: Are you always this infuriating? Charlie: No. Charlie: Usually I’m worse.

Real

But then he smiles, and the gods of summer must be smiling, too, because a matching set of dimples appears in his cheeks, startlingly boyish and sweet. It slips past my lips before I can stop it: “Whoa.” His eyebrows lift.

THAT IS SO EMBARASSINGGG

I glance over my shoulder. The man’s pretty mouth is curved into a lazy grin, arms crossed over his superb chest. My gaze falls to the hard ridges of his stomach, to the waistband of his red bathing suit. A laugh, and then: “Eyes up.” I immediately turn as scarlet as a rose on February 14. His eyes wander to the flaming mass of hair tumbling out from under my hat. “That’s okay, Red,” he says. “I was checking you out, too.”

Flirtyyyyyy

“I don’t know,” he says, his smile teasing. “You seem like trouble. I think I’ll have to be careful when I’m around you.” “Don’t worry,” I tell him. “There’s no need to be around me at all.” I give him a close-lipped smile that we both know means, Now please leave.

LMAO

Charlie tilts toward me with a wolfish grin. “Are you blushing?” “It’s sunburn.” I let go of his hand and step back. A delighted bellow bursts from his chest. “You tell yourself that, Red.”

Cute

I stare at him, stunned. “What’s wrong with you?” “Far too many things to list.” He’s smiling—impervious to my irritation or simply enjoying it. “I’ll let you discover that for yourself another day.

LMAO

I square my shoulders. “You have no idea what I like.” He smirks. “I think I have a pretty good idea. Let’s not forget how we met,” he says with a wistful sigh. “I remember it like it was only this morning. You, me, the cucumbers…” He leans close and whispers, “Whoa.”

LMAO

At first all Charlie does is stare, but then he grins. “Message received. Alice Everly: not into faces.” He moves past me and steps onto the end of his boat so he can haul in John’s skiff. I watch the muscles in his back shift as he pulls on the rope. Charlie glances over his shoulder, catching me mid-ogle. Busted.

LMAO

“More of an ass woman, then?” His smile is a brilliant display of straight white teeth and dimples. I know I’m as purple as a beet, but something about him, his lack of modesty, makes me feel emboldened. “I was checking out your shoulders.” My eyes drop to his backside. “But your ass is okay.”

THEYRE SO UNASHAMED LMAO

I do a quick scroll of my notifications before I shut my phone off for the night, but there’s one from an hour ago that makes my heart skip. charlesflorek started following you

CUTE

I thought you and Charlie were friends or something.” I cackle at that. “We just met yesterday.” “Oh. The way he spoke…” Harrison frowns, and it’s adorable on him. “I figured you knew each other well.

okkkk

I pass over the A-frame and then Charlie’s boat, and almost drop the binoculars as he appears in my view. He’s on the deck. No shirt. Bathing suit bottoms. I shouldn’t creep on him like this, but… Whoa. He walks down the hill to the water. I see when he sees me: A brilliant smile lights his face. I curse, quickly set the binoculars down, and dive into the lake.

LMAO

I stare at that orb of white as the time changes from 11:59 p.m. to midnight. Seconds later, my phone glows with a message. Charlie: Happy birthday.

AWWW

And even though I’m disappointed, I transfer them $500. I don’t want them eating Mr. Noodles for a month straight again.

You're enabling them

Charlie takes a step closer. He bends down to my eye level and lowers his voice. “I can bake all night.” A laugh bubbles up in my throat and past my lips before I manage to school my features. I lean toward Charlie, our noses inches apart. His gaze narrows on me. “I don’t believe you,” I say slowly. “I think when it comes down to it, you’re all talk, no bake.” His eyes shine. “I’m going to bake you a cake so good you’ll be ruined for all other cakes.” “Prove.” I prod a finger into his chest, and sweet hell, it’s like poking a steel door. “It.” “Done. I’ll see you tonight.” He turns and begins walking down the aisle.

Cute

Think of me when you get to page 179.” I immediately turn to the page, see the words tongue and swirls, then snap the book shut. “You’re incorrigible, you know that?”

LMAO

I examine the cover. It’s called Ruling the Rogue. “You know,” I say, holding the book beside Charlie’s face, “there’s a bit of a resemblance between you two.” “Oh, I know.”

HE DID IT ON PURPOSE LMAO

“When you aren’t staring at him, he’s staring at you. It’s like watching a tennis match.”

Cute

“Don’t worry,” she tells me. “He never showed me a second of interest.” “Why would that worry me?” She looks between us. “Oh, I’m sorry. I assumed you were together. He’s been looking at you like you’re some kind of snack.”

SCREAMING

He gives me a long look and says, “Fuck it.” I’d smile, but his mouth is already on mine.

HELL YEAH

I’m so lost in the slow glide of our tongues, the caress of his thumb on the back of my hand, that I don’t notice the door to the tree house opening until I hear “Sweet Jesus.” I bolt upright, bashing my head into Charlie’s, holding the top of my jumpsuit closed. Sam stands in the doorway, his eyes on the ceiling. He lets out a long-suffering sigh. “I really should have known better.”

LMAO

That night, after Charlie has brought Nan home and we wish him a safe trip to the city, I get a notification: charlesflorek has tagged me in a photo. My chest tightens as I study it. Charlie must have been shooting before he asked if I was ready. It’s me, staring at the camera, staring at him. There’s a gentle smile on my mouth, and my eyes are warm. I look happy—no, it’s stronger than happiness. I look like I’m at peace. The caption is short. He’s only used one word. Alice.

COME ON HE'S OBVIOUSLY IN LOVE WITH YOU

“One more,” Charlie says, crouching beside me. He turns the camera around, an old-fashioned selfie. “Really?” I ask him. “Really.” We’re still looking at each other when he presses the shutter.

IMMA CRY THEYRE SO CUTE

I hear one of the girls asking her friend whether she thinks he’s too old for her. And then Charlie turns around so he’s facing me, winks, and then springs backward off the platform, flipping in the air before slicing into the lake. “Whoa,” I hear the girl say. I climb over the railing, and before I jump, I look at her over my shoulder and say, “Sorry, that one’s mine.”

SCREAMINGGGGG

“Please. You ogled him like you’ve seen him naked.” “Well…” “I knew it!” she cries, slapping me on the arm so that my drink almost spills. “Describe everything to me. Length. Girth. Curvature. Leave nothing unaccounted for.”

LMAO

“I hate you,” I say as he carries me to the edge of the dock, my arms around his neck. He smiles at me, water running down his face in glistening rivulets. “Nah,” he says. “You love me.”

“I missed you last week.” His voice is rough, scraping down my body like a calloused palm. He’s still concentrating on the task at hand, and I can’t reply. “I couldn’t wait to get back. I didn’t stop the entire drive here. I felt like I’d left my family behind when I was in the city.”

CRYING RN

Me: If you’re not in the mood for trouble, I’ll just have to read page 179 again. My phone rings seconds later. “Why don’t you read it to me?”

SCREAMINGGG

I snap a photo and then whisper “Nerd” in his ear. He tucks me under his elbow and tousles my hair before smacking a kiss on top of my head. Bennett stares at us, mouth agape, and we both freeze.

LMAO

Charlie stares straight at me in the photo. His cheeks are dimpled, his smile lit with wonder. But it’s the look in his eyes that leaves me breathless. It’s one I’ve seen before. It’s how Nan looked at Grandpa. It’s how my parents used to look at each other. It’s how Sam and Percy gaze at one another. I know the expression in my bones.

“When we go back to the city,” I say, running my finger over a dimple, “I think we should do this for real. You and me—I’d like to try.” Charlie squints like he’s not sure what I’ve said. “Try?”

IM SCAREDDDDD

“Don’t pretend that you don’t agree or that you don’t have feelings for me. I’ve seen it, Charlie. I know you.” We stare at each other for seconds, and then his face goes blank. He stands, giving me his back. “This was a great summer,” he says slowly. “I wish it could stay like this, that I’d stay interested longer than a couple of months. But I’m me and you’re you. We’re too different. It would never work. I’d get bored.”

WTF