Florence Bonsee was focused on Wimbledon and her budding tennis career. What she least expected was Charles Leclerc colliding into her life and the impact they would have on one another.
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CHARLES POV:
I kicked to the surface taking a deep breath when I finally found air. Even for me, that was quite the jump from the arch. I swam over to the rocks that created a natural pool and held on to them as I looked up towards Florence. She was still on top of the rocks looking over the edge, and I could tell from here her body was tense. Behind her the sky was starting to shift in color, our day trip was slowly coming to a close which was a shame because the last 8 or so hours deserved to last forever.
I could already reflect on the day and it wasn't even over yet. Once we got the little island that was a part of Malta, Comino lived up to every expectation. Our morning started off with the tower as planned, we ended up taking a decent hike to actually reach the tower and not just look at it on top of the cliff. The view from the top was incredible looking over other rocks and and land formations. It was there that Florence made the decision we could only speak French in honor of the movie.
As the day went on, our rule for speaking only developed. Our language became more dramatic and our vocabulary shifted to phrases we would never use in the present day. After the tower, we anchored our boat on the edge of where the blue lagoon started. This was by far the most popular spot filled with people, but not insanely crowded. We avoided going onto land to get drinks or lunch because we knew the risk, so we swam around the crystal clear waters diving down to look at the rock formations underwater.
When we stopped for lunch, we boated to Mgarr Harbor which was right across from the Blue Lagoon on the south side of Gozo. We ate at a nice restaurant, the seafood was spectacular. While the waiter fortunately spoke French, he for sure hated us while we spoke old words and phrases to him that left him puzzled and constantly asking for clarification.
After lunch, we boated back to the northern tip of Comino to find the Santa Maria Caves. While I wished we would have packed scuba gear, the water was still calm enough to push our boat through sections with ease. Florence and I managed to dive into a few of the more accessible caves where we would pop up in little caverns. For the most part this area was private, the only people around us were too interested in diving and exploring the caves themselves that we were just another couple exploring the area. It was glorious in all ways. This section took up the most time, so it only left us one more spot which we both agreed on without even having to discuss to it.
We pushed to the north side of Gozo. With the water being so calm, it was a remote area that couldn't missed. Most of the time the waves were too choppy to really enjoy it, but today we were lucky. That's how we ended up at the Azure window with me in the water and Florence still waiting to jump.
"As-tu survécu [did you survive]?" Her yell carried down to me.
I let out a laugh from her question and yelled back. "Tu dois juste y aller [you just got to go for it].
I watched as Florence got as close to the ledge as possible. "J'ai peur [I'm scared]."
"Tu peux le faire [you can do it]!"
With my comment, I watched as she crouched and then jumped. Her body falling from the cliff into the water. Her screams carried over to me until she crashed into the water like a pencil. I let go of the rock to swim towards where she landed, slightly worried about how big the jump was but she quickly surfaced near me.
She splashed against the water clumsily while I approached her and offered her my hand. "Oh my god, that was terrifying," she blurted out reaching my for my hand. I kick towards the rocks guiding us while she quickly composed herself in the water. Giggles were still pouring out of her when we reached the rocks. Her grabbing onto them next to me. Our bodies were brushing under the water occasionally. "That was crazy!"
"Yeah, more intense than I expected," I laughed back with her. We were close as we clung to the rocks. I climbed over them offering my hand which she accepted. We plopped into the shallow water of the pool which eventually dropped off into a deep diving well. I leaned back against the rock and Florence did the same, the water lapping up to our chest.
"Can we not do that again," she said calming herself.
I smiled at her, our shoulders were touching. "I think that's best. Our teams may kill us for reckless activity."
"For sure," she breathed out.
"You know I think I win," I added grinning.
She looked at me finally meeting my gaze. "You what?"
"You spoke in English first."
Florence smiled back giving me a splash that hit my face. "It doesn't count, that was solely adrenaline."
"I think it does," I replied wiping my face.
She huffed next to. "Did we ever clarify what the winner gets?"
I let silence fall after her question and my eyes went to the water in front of me. My mind went somewhere risky, but I wanted to act on it. The moment seemed right after today. Sitting in the calm pool, the golden light hitting us, the sun making us a little pink after what I considered a perfect day. "I don't know if you'll like it," I whispered.
"You'll never know unless you tell me," Florence said lightly next to me. Her comment gave me confidence, I looked back to her and she seemed to be waiting for me. Her eyes were already locked to mine.
"I vote the winner gets to kiss you," I said next to her offering a little grin.
Florence let out a little hmmm, clearly not bothered by my statement. "You're the winner, no?"
I didn't have to say anything else, it was all I needed to hear. My right hand immediately raised out of the water and made it to Florence's face cupping her jaw. The space between us began to close due to both of us leaning forward. My other arm snaked around her torso, her skin smooth to the touch. Florence raised her arms and they wrapped around my neck, her fingers ending in my hair. The feeling was missed and it felt like like it hasn't been months. My eyes closed while I eagerly closed the space, my lips finally landing on hers. I felt her arms tug around me after a moment making the kiss far more than I would have initiated, but I wasn't complaining. It seemed like we couldn't help ourselves.
As the kiss deepened and I felt her tongue slip over my lips, she shifted her legs so she was straddled over me. I kissed her back passionately until I pulled away and found her neck, giving little kisses from her collarbones up to her earlobe.
"I missed you," she moaned out which only encouraged me more. I went back to her mouth, the kiss eventually left us breathless so we pulled apart. Our forehead rested together as we both opened our eyes.
"The feeling is beyond mutual," I breathed out quickly brushing my lips against hers again. "I'm done fighting it, Flo. I need to be with you."
Florence gave me a little grin, "the feeling is mutual," she repeated back earning a little laugh from me. "I had a lot to say, but I think this moment speaks for it."
"I think so too," I whispered before closing the space between our lips again.
