Half A Heart

Chapter 26

On Thursday morning I decided to message Hail and see if he was free to hang out. I figured I would try and spend some time with him and see whether or not he would open up to me about his plans for the masquerade ball, that was quickly approaching in a matter of days. He happily agreed and suggested that we meet down by the pier. Although he offered to come pick me up first, I reluctantly told him instead I would meet him there, and as a token of my appreciation I would even come bearing a little gift. That gift currently being a coffee for us each that I picked up from a local cafe on my way over to the beach.

I was currently walking towards the pier, coffees in hand when I already spotted Hail sitting with his legs hanging off the dock. He seemed to be lost in thought and so didn't call out his name in acknowledgment. Instead I quietly approached him and sat right next to him, bumping my shoulder slightly next to his. He quickly noticed my presence and leant over to place a sweet kiss on my cheek. Of course I couldn't help but blush at his sentimental affections towards me.

"Hey, I brought you this." I say as I hand over his coffee.

"Aw thanks babe." He says with an easy smile, accepting the coffee in hand.

He takes a few sips whilst placing his arm around my shoulder and drawing me in closer to his own body. I inhale his male scent before sipping on my own coffee. We sit in silence for a little while, simply enjoying each other's presence. We admire the view from in front of us and I close my eyes briefly at the feel of the ocean breeze hitting my face. It's not long before the quiet is broken however, as Hail suggests we take a stroll along the beach. He offers me his hand as we stand, and I easily accept it with a warm smile. By this stage we've finished our coffees and dump them in the nearest bin before making our way onto the sandy beach.

"One second." I tell Hail, as I slip off my shoes and hold them in one hand.

"Oh yeah." Hail says as he realises it'll be easily to walk along the beach with bare feet.

We intertwine our fingers again and settle out to walk at least halfway across the beach. Although I'm content with holding Hail's hand and walking in silence, I can't help the way my mind lingers off and starts overthinking and analysing the conversation I had yesterday with Violetta and Poppy. It was Poppy's question in particular that left me feeling guilty and a little loss for words. Of course I hadn't informed Hail that Lucas in fact will be accompanying me to the ball this weekend. At first I hadn't really come to the realisation because I was floating on such a high from Lucas's initial proposal but then it sort of hit me that by agreeing to go with Lucas it would mean I wouldn't be going with Hail and that left me feeling a whole range of emotions. More than anything, I was anxious to tell Hail and witness his reaction. I wasn't sure whether he would be angry, understanding or even upset. Either way it went, I couldn't imagine it resulting in a positive outcome.

"Penny for your thoughts." Questions Hail.

"What?" I confusingly retort back, as I still seem to be lost in some sort of mental trance.

"You seem miles away, what's on your mind?" He genuinely asks with a gentle smile.

"Oh...um...not much, just thinking." I lamely reply, having no real idea of how to dodge his question.

His laughter fills the space between us before he poses a similar question.

"I gathered that much Ava. If there's something wrong...you know that you can...tell me, if you want to." He suddenly says in a nervous tone.

I watch as his eyes shift downward and because I don't want Hail to think it's anything associated to being his fault for my lack of telling him, I simply drop my shoes, place both my hands against his cheeks and lean toward his face and place my lips against his pink ones.