It should be difficult for Olivia to dislike her hometown. The sun is always shining, and she loves the smell of sea salt in the air. But the lure of the coast, the ice creams, and even the strawberries from Mick’s do nothing to help her forget how she ran away the moment she could. Now, four years later, the same empty, loveless apartment will welcome her home.
And her annoying neighbor, Noah, probably. He’s always been around, whether she wanted him to be or not. It didn’t matter that they couldn’t stand each other. It didn’t matter before, and it doesn’t matter now. Not really. She’ll only be at home for a little while anyway She can deal with annoying him for a few weeks and then he'll push her to leave.
After all, one summer can’t change the habit of a lifetime. Can it?
art by @artbysanse
“Noah,” she whispers, flicking her thumb as they walk out of their apartment building twenty-three minutes later. Olivia threw on her strawberry dress, some concealer, an unrealsonable amount of blusher, and grabbed her bag. “Why do you keep going to hold my hand and then stopping?”
“Stalker,” he groans, but it morphs into a laugh when she playfully shoves him. “I know you have a touching limit, and I don’t wanna use it all up before lunchtime.”
Oh. She knew he knew her better than anyone else, that he saw things no one else would ever be able to see, but she wonders if he knows her better than she even knows herself.
Not yet. Otherwise, he’d know she only ever wants to be touching him.
“Not with you,” she mutters, pulling her lip between her teeth as he looks at her.
“Yeah?” he asks, his smile brighter than it reasonably should be at the fact she wants to hold his hand.
“Yeah,” she replies simply. She leaves it another eleven steps before she reaches for his hand. He links their fingers together immediately, like he was just waiting for her to make the first move.
Even though it’s her birthday.
Prick.