Learning To Love - Jamie Campbell Bower

Car Rides

I'll be honest, I may have been waiting the whole morning at work to get home and see Jamie again. He had dominated my thoughts the entire day, to the point I had to wake myself from a dream-like state walking around the hospital multiple times. Maybe this is a little unhealthy, but it hasn't done any harm so far...

"We're here, miss."

I lean forward and pay the taxi driver. "Thank you." I murmer as I exit the taxi, excited to see Jamie again, if he was around, that is. There's still an hour until the time Jamie and I agreed. I grab the keys from my pocket as I climb the stairs to flat A2, across the hall to Jamie's, A1. A short coridoor leads to the stairs continuing to the next level. I twist my lock open and step inside my flat. It's in a state I like to call "controlled chaos" it's mostly tidy, but there are things here and there flawing the perfect look. How tidy my flat is definitely depended on how busy my life was.

I glance out the window before shutting my blinds in my room. Sunny, 30°, a little breeze, perfect. Now, what to wear? I strip down and swap my bra and undies for a black bikini, the top piece had a cute lacy pattern over the top of it. As I reached for a yellow sun dress and shimmied it over my bathers, my hand brushed over my back, along my rib cage.

"I love you." I heard him whisper from beside me.

"I love you too?" I say, ending the sentence in a question, why was he saying this?

I flash of pain shoots across my back along my ribcage.

I snap out of it, exhaling quickly and shuddering. With time, I've become better at fighting off the memories. I stride over to my draw and take a black rashie and stuff it in my day pack. I go the hat rack beside my door and pick off my favourite floppy tan hat and grab my black sunnies from the shelf. I pad across the carpet outside my room and slip my black thongs onto my feet. I glance at the time - Jamie should be ready by now, if he's any good at time keeping.

I lock my flat door behind me and walk over to Jamie's door. Knock knock. He opens the door. "Heidi!" He excalimes, a smile creeping onto his face as the door swung open. He's dressed in black board shorts, a tan singlet and sunnies. "Come look, I made us a picnic basket!" He was so cute when he was excited, like a little kid. I chuckle as I follow him into his flat. His flat was a mirror image of mine, same layout, same furniture...but if I considered my flat fairly tidy, I should be reconsidering that now. His place was spotless.

"Does your flat always look like this?" I ask, serveying the room.

He smiles proudly. "I'm a man of tidiness. Now, come look at the picnic basket I made!" He grabs me hand and leads me to the kitchen bench. On top of it I see a rather large basket. "It has food and drink and even a blanket!" He grins proudly, like a little kid having completed a masterpiece.

"Looks great, have you got your bathers?"

"Yup!"

"Then lets go!" He follows me out of the apartment, outside to the carpark, and we file into my own little car.

"Nice ride, very spacious." He comments.

"Shut up." I say. My car is fairly small, but it serves me well. We drive in comfortable silence until we get to the freeway. I reach over to the radio and switch it on. The first few notes to "Uptown funk" by Mark Ronson and and Bruno Mars comes on. I glance over at Jamie, and see a massive smile growing on his face.

"Jamie what are y-"

"THIS HIT THAT ICE COLD MICHELLE PFEIFFER THAT WHITE GOLD" Jamie starts singing along animatedly and I crack up laughing.

"Jamie stop I'm trying to dri-"

"NO, THIS IS MY JAM." He cuts me off.

"No really-"

Jamie wasn't having it.

"I'M TOO HOT, HOT DAMN! COME ON HEIDI SING WITH ME!"

"I can't believe yo-"

"IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME JUST WATCH!" The instrumental starts and Jamie is dancing around in his seat, lip syncing every word perfectly. I give in.

"IF YOU DON'T BELIEVE ME JUST WATCH, HEY HEY HEY OOO!" I join in.

"Stop! Wait a minute!" We sing along to the upbeat tune as the blue ocean begins to appear on the horizon.

"Heidi, I have a confession," Says Jamie as the song fades to an end.

"Oh, what is it?"

"I've never gone swimming in the ocean before."

"What!?" I turn to him in surprise. "How?"

"Well, I did grow up in London."

"Hmm, I suppose. Well that's ok, I'll try my best to not let you drown."

"Try your best?" He raises his eyebrow at me.

"I make no empty promises."

"Hmph."

We continue listening to the radio as I drive along the coast looking for a parking spot. Apparently, Uptown Funk is the only song Jamie finds worth dancing to. I find a spot and pull in.

"So, are picnicing and swimming or swimming and picnicing?" He shuffles gangly body to face me directly, a mockingly serious look on his face to match his tone.

"Hmm..." I glance out the car window. "Swimming and picnicing I think. The change rooms are just there and it'll give us a chance to work up an appatite!" I say.

"Okie dokie."

We climb out of the car and Jamie grabs the basket and hands my daypack to me. "I'll wait for you here, go get changed." He says.

"Okie dokie!" I mimic him. I'm glad he didn't notice I already had my bathers on underneath, it would probably seem weird to him that I would insist on wearing a rashie over the top. (Authors Note - rashie is short for rash vest, it's like a t-shirt made out of bather material.) I walk into the change room, shimmy out of my dress, and slide my rashie over my bikini. I stuff my sundress into my pack and waltz out again, back to where Jamie is waiting with the car.

"A rash vest?" Jamie eyes it curiously.

My heart jumps. Please don't say anything. Think of someth- It's rather risky to go play in the waves in just a bikini, if you know what I mean." I wiggle my brows at him. He laughs. Phew.

"You're right, I didn't even think of that."

"I think skinny dipping would be going slightly too fast, don't you think?" I say as we set off down the sandy path towards the beach.