summer in the city 「 s.stan 」

DAY 8

— AUGUST 8TH —

Surprisingly, you weren't too hungover when you woke up at God knows what time the next day – your head ached a little, but it was nothing that a couple of painkillers couldn't fix.

Groaning sleepily, you attempted to roll over in your bed... only to discover that you couldn't move. And this was not your room.

Instantly, memories of the previous night came flooding back to you, and you finally realised where you were. You'd slept on the couch, with Sebastian's arms firmly wrapped around your stomach, holding you close to him.

Suddenly you didn't want to get up anymore.

Trying not to disturb his slumber, you shifted slightly until you were a little more comfortable; you settled down again with your head resting on Sebastian's shoulder, your fingers tracing shapes over his collarbones. Even though he was out cold, he looked beautiful, peaceful, with his lips slightly parted and his hair sticking out.

In comparison, you probably looked a fright, with last night's revealing dress clinging to your body and your mascara smudged underneath your bloodshot eyes. But there was nothing you could do about that now.

About half an hour later, Sebastian awoke with a quiet grunt. His eyes immediately widened when he noticed that you were still laying in his arms and, for a moment, you began to panic, thinking that his shocked expression indicated regret. Fortunately, the tired smile that he soon sent your way told you otherwise.

"G'morning," he murmured, and God, his morning voice was deep and husky and if you didn't have an ounce of self control, you'd jump his bones right then and there.

"Afternoon," you corrected, letting out a small yawn that caused Sebastian's smile to widen. You moved to sit up, but he tightened his grip on you with a whine.

"Stay."

You couldn't ignore the way your heart fluttered, but you protested all the same. "Seb, I look and feel disgusting."

"I'll have to disagree with you on that one," he murmured, finally letting go of you with a sigh. "Are you okay, though? Wait, let me get you some Advil or something."

You couldn't be more grateful for the way he looked after you – after handing you the pills, he made sure you ate a decent breakfast before you both headed to your separate bathrooms to take a shower. You felt much better once you were all clean and dressed in fresh clothes, so you jumped onto your bed, intending to call Allie to explain why you'd had to leave early last night.

Just as you were about to click on her contact, a knock at your door interrupted you. Sebastian leaned against the doorframe, his brow furrowed in confusion as you began to giggle.

"Seb, the door was already open, you didn't need to knock."

"Yeah, well... I didn't wanna just walk in, you could've been standing around the corner with no clothes on or something."

I wouldn't have minded, you wanted to say. But you opted to keep your mouth shut.

"Anyway," he continued, "do you... do you have any plans today? I was thinking maybe we could go on that date."

"Sure," you responded, trying not to give away how happy you were at the suggestion. "What time?"

"How about right now?"

⋆

Before long, you were reclined in the passenger seat of Sebastian's car, waiting for the movie to start. He'd brought snacks – popcorn, M&M's and sour gummy worms. You were about to ask how he knew that those were some of your favourites, but you were interrupted when the large screen in front of you lit up. Within a few seconds, you already recognised the film was playing.

"I love Kill Bill!" you cried excitedly, clapping your hands like a child. "How did you know?"

"You can never go wrong with Tarantino." Sebastian shrugged, before reaching across to drape an arm around your shoulder.

You sat like that for the remainder of the movie, with you stealing glances at Sebastian every so often. His side profile was incredible (especially his jawline) – sometimes, you found it hard to tear your attention away from him.

As the credits began to roll, he turned to you, making direct eye contact. You blushed, having been caught gawking at him, but he didn't seem to mind. He just smirked knowingly, chuckling at your slight embarrassment.

"Can I show you something?" he asked, beginning to reverse the car out of the parking bay. "It won't take long, it's about a ten minute drive from here."

"Damn, I thought you were gonna take me to meet Chris Evans," you joked, causing Sebastian to laugh.

"No way, wouldn't want him to steal my girl."

His girl? This man would be the death of you.

Ten minutes later, you stepped out of the car, gasping at the scene in front of you. Swans glided serenely across a lake, which was surrounded by stunning blossom trees. It was blissfully quiet and secluded – you'd have never known that this was in New York.

"This is beautiful," you gasped, a wide smile finding its way onto your face. You had always loved nature, and you knew that you'd definitely be returning another time before you had to leave.

"I found this place by accident a few years ago, I took a wrong turn and ended up here. I completely missed an audition because it took me too long to find my way out again, but I almost think it was worth it, y'know? Now I always come back here whenever I'm stressed and need to get away for a bit."

You gazed at Sebastian as he came to a standstill next to you. "Are you stressed now?"

"No," he replied, smiling lazily at you, "couldn't be further from it. But I had a feeling you'd like it here... and now whenever I visit, it'll remind me of you."

You practically swooned at his words. You couldn't be more glad that you were getting to see this side of him – when you'd first met him, he seemed flirtatious, confident, maybe even a little cocky. But now, he was almost vulnerable. Earnest. And you couldn't get enough.

A little giddily, you removed your shoes and socks before sitting at the edge of the riverbank, swinging your legs in the water as Sebastian settled down next to you. The pair of swans weren't at all bothered by your presence; they simply kept swimming alongside each other, almost completely silently.

"They mate for life, you know?" you mused, nodding towards the elegant birds. "And if their partner dies, they can die of heartbreak. It's like they can't stand to be apart from each other."

"I guess so. I'd like to be that in love with someone, one day," Sebastian murmured.

He wasn't looking at the swans. He was looking at you.