Of Fiery Embers and Sea Green

His eyes were those of burning embers as the setting sun reflected in their deep hues as if drawing me in and drowning me in the sea of their color, and all I could do was be drawn to them, no matter what I did.

The warmth of the afternoon day still clung to the air as we swayed to the beat of the distant music, my arms wrapped around his shoulders and his hands on my hips, and I could feel the thump of my heart pounding against my ribcage at how close we were.

I had never been this bold in my life, to be honest … Having always stayed within the lines of a straight path, wanting to be successful and stable before ever allowing love to worm its way into my heart and soul. But the moment I ran into him, it wasn’t just the summer heat that had lit a fire across my skin.

Being sheltered and driven to better myself is a blessing, God knows I’ve been trying to protect my heart and mind, but I cannot stop myself from stepping closer to him, pressing my forehead to his and letting him lead our dance, and I sigh contently as our eyes meet once more, realizing that maybe, just maybe, he was placed into my life for a reason.

It was merely an accident that we met.

My best friend and I were on a much-needed summer vacation since we had decided to take a trip across the ocean, near a beach but also close to the city, and I recall exiting our condo and nearly knocking him over in my haste to have fun.

“Whoa there, Darling! Are you alright?”

He questioned softly, concerned that I had hurt myself, and I shook my head, terrified that my voice would fail me as I stared up at him, mesmerized by how hypnotizing his eyes were.

“Are you sure, Darling?”

“Yes, um, yes. I’m okay.”

I had stuttered, feeling embarrassed because of it, and I wanted to disappear at that moment, thinking I had already screwed up before I even knew his name.

After that singular moment, I couldn’t stop thinking about him, wanting to gain as much knowledge as I could on who he was because of his kindness and his gentleness, and I found myself daydreaming my evenings away due to his constant fix in my mind.

“Where’s your head at, Pretty Girl?”

His voice brought me out of my stupor, my cheeks flushing as I realized I had been staring intently at him for several minutes, and I chuckled softly.

“Oh, nothing honestly. I get distracted quite easily, Keegan.”

I defended myself, causing a rich, deep laugh to escape Keegan’s lips, and he drew me in even closer to his body, which made me gasp in shock, but I didn’t care. I want to be in his space. I have never felt like this before and I want it to last forever, but I’m not sure it will.

“Mmm, are you sure, Syrina? You were staring pretty hard there.”

Keegan teased me, prompting an eye roll from myself, and I snorted in response. How can he see through me like that? We’ve only known each other for two months and he has broken through the barriers I have carefully built better than people who are supposed to understand me the best.

“Yeah, I’m sure, but don’t let go. Please.”

I whispered, tightening my arms on his shoulders while brushing my nose gently over his, and I allowed my eyes to flutter shut, basking in Keegan’s presence, wanting to soak it all up before my best friend and I would have to leave at the end of the month.

“I won’t, I promise.”

Keegan promised not to let me go, making my heart soar, and I smiled sweetly, following his movements as our feet sunk into the sand and I could feel the heat of the sun’s rays slowly disappear.

As I gazed into the young man’s fiery ember irises, I reminisced about the times we spent together this summer, and one memory stands out while I take in every detail of Keegan’s handsome features.

“C’mon, Pretty Girl, I won’t let anything happen to you.”

“Keegan, I have never been on a motorcycle! I normally just admire them from afar!”

I complained one hot afternoon, stumbling a bit as the man dragged me out of my condo, his excitement quite palpable when he paused in front of his Kawasaki Ninja. I believe it was either a 400cc or a 500cc only because I was obsessed with them and wanted to educate myself on them simply due to the fact I hoped that one day I would get over my fear and purchase a motorcycle, but it was nerve-wracking merely looking at it.

“That means you have to ride with me. I will keep us both safe, Syrina. I will have a pretty backpack with me which means I am not going to be reckless. I promise.”

Keegan’s plea had me pausing, my brow furrowed as I contemplated the pros and cons of the experience, and I directed my attention to him and said,

“Fine, but if you do something I don’t enjoy, I’ll force you to take me home and I won’t talk to you ever again. Got it?”

“Yes, yes, yes! I promise I won’t do anything that you will not enjoy.”

Keegan was so excited to take me for a motorcycle ride through the city and I have to admit that I did have an enjoyable time. Holding onto him as he drove was unlike anything I had ever had the pleasure to experience, and it was freeing.

The rumble of the engine coupled with being slotted against Keegan’s back was exhilarating, and watching everything fly by us as he sped down the road made me feel as if I was on top of the world.

Keegan spun me in that moment, bringing me back to the present, and I giggled as he tenderly embraced me from behind, swaying our bodies side to side while he rested his cheek on my temple, our attention now focused on the setting sun.

“My goodness, it’s so beautiful, Keegan.”

I muttered loud enough for both of us to hear, flicking my gaze from the blazing horizon to acknowledge the man holding me close, as he tilted his head a little to focus his attention on my face, and a wide, contagious grin tugged on his lips.

“Mmm but not as beautiful as these gorgeous seas of green staring back at me, I’m afraid.”

Keegan complimented me, prompting a raging blush to warm my skin as I bashfully denied his response, but the man rolled his eyes, pulling me as close to his chest as possible, making me feel every strong, solid ridge of his torso molding to my back, and Keegan maintains intense eye contact with me while searching my eyes for something … Maybe he’s hoping to discover that I believe his every word when in all honesty, I can barely look at myself in the mirror without being drawn to every single flaw on my body.

“Don’t be like that, Pretty Girl. You are more beautiful than any sunrise, or sunset. You light up a room whenever you step foot inside of one. The way you laugh and scrunch your nose could make any man fall to his knees, begging for merely a sliver of your attention. God had a hand in the creation of such an exquisite creature like yourself and I have been blessed to be in your presence, as well as to have these breath-taking eyes focused on me for the last few weeks, Syrina. So please, do not object and refuse my affections, because it will only make me want you more.”

The sincerity in Keegan’s all-consuming vocals yanked on my heart and caused a shudder to roll up and down my spine, and I felt light-headed and floaty due to how passionately he spoke and the gentleness in his dark irises.

Though, dear Lord, I could not force the curiosity and yearning need away once my sights set on his perfectly shaped lips, and my breathing grew labored as my eyes darted back and forth between his ember hues and his pink lips.

“No one … No one has ever said such words to me before and meant them—”

I trailed off, inching nearer and nearer to Keegan’s handsome face, and we were so close that I could feel the heat of his breath fanning across my lips and cheeks.

“You deserve to hear those words every day, Syrina. You’re worthy of such conviction and honesty, Pretty Girl. Any man would be a fool to not be everything you’ve dreamed about and wished for yourself.”

Keegan’s honeyed words blanketed me in comfort and awe, but before I could thank him or say anything else, the young man eliminated the distance between our mouths, and his lips slotted over my own, making my eyelids shut instinctively as we kissed in the fleeting rays of the sun. It was clumsy, due to my inexperience, but once I decided to just allow the kiss to take me wherever it would lead me, I got the hang of it pretty quickly, and I cradled the side of Keegan’s face in my right palm to steady myself.

The deep, raw passion of the kiss felt something akin to heaven while our lips moved in perfect sync, and I leaned heavily into the man as his left arm stayed securely around my waist and his right slipped up and up until his right hand cupped over my jaw and the side of my neck in an almost possessive manner. Our mingling breaths panted lowly and laboriously as the kiss became heated, my body immediately spinning in the man’s arms to tangle my free hand into his dark, disheveled hair, and I reach up on my tiptoes to hopefully get closer to Keegan while my toes sink into the cooling sand beneath my feet.

“Are you sure you’ve never kissed anyone before, Pretty Girl?”

Keegan whispers teasingly against my lips, chuckling faintly at the sheepish noise that escaped my lungs in retaliation, but he shuts me up with yet another brush of his lips across mine, and all my thoughts drift away as I reciprocate his affection.

“No, never. You’re my first, Keegs.”

I muttered timidly, eyes reluctantly sliding open to gaze up at him, and I noticed that Keegan was already staring at me and a triumphant smirk graced his features as if I had told him that he won the lottery.

“Perfect. For the next month, I get to teach you all my moves.”

Keegan waggled his eyebrows at that moment, prompting a loud snort to escape my mouth followed by the most annoying cackle that had ever come from me, but Keegan seemed mesmerized even if I believed I sounded like a dying cat.

That month went by fast.

One minute, Keegan and I were getting sand in each other’s hair, the next we were saying goodbye.

“Hey, hey, don’t cry, Pretty Girl.”

Keegan comforted me as I clung to him, sobbing into his shoulder, and attempting to will the days back just so I could spend more time with him.

“But I’m leaving and you’re staying here, Keegs. I don’t live in this beautiful town, where the land meets the sea, and the sun kisses my skin every morning. I don’t want to lose you.”

“You won’t lose me, Pretty Girl. I’ll make sure of that, Syrina.”

Keegan stated determinedly while he ran his fingers through my hair, and I hiccupped softly, not wanting to face reality now that I had to go back to my normal, boring life.

“How can you say that? We live miles upon miles away from each other, Keegan. There’s no way that will happen. You’ll find someone else and forget all about me. It’s inevitable, My Ember. You gave me the best summer a girl could ask for and I wouldn’t trade it for the world—”

“No. I will find a way to see you again, Syrina. This isn’t goodbye. It is merely a see you later.”

Keegan snapped, causing me to jump a little, and I nodded in understanding, not wanting to upset him more. It was true. Keegan made things more bearable and even helped me discover things about myself that I didn’t know existed, and I was grateful for him. But it was time to part ways since our encounter was simply a summertime fling.

“I will see you later, Keegan. Thank you for everything.”

“Don’t thank me just yet. I still have to make good on my promise, Pretty Girl.”

**

It has been over three years since that fateful summer.

I attempted to go back in the winter, but I never saw Keegan. I even tried to visit that very beach a year after my trip and still nothing.

I was right. Keegan forgot about me and moved on.

I’m not upset. Truly I’m not.

I understood what I got myself into when Keegan and I began our little relationship … if you could even call it that. Though, I was hopeful that he would keep his promise. But after the one year mark, I decided to give up and go forward with my life, without Keegan.

Rain pattered quietly against my living room window as I reminisced on those few months. A cup of Earl Grey tea in my hand as I stared out the transparent pane, focused on the red, orange, and yellow leaves scattered over the browning grass, and I hummed contently. Keegan may not have held up his end of the promise, but I did not lie when I said he gave me the best summer ever.

Being so caught up in my thoughts, I was unaware of the noise happening around me, though I was yanked out of my stupor when a firm knock reverberated through the house, and I could hear my best friend giggling in the kitchen like a schoolgirl. I rolled my eyes in response, realizing she was not going to get the door, and then another knock sounded through the house, and I called out, saying,

“Just a minute!”

With that, I set my teacup down, then shuffled out of my reading chair, and padded out of the living room towards the front door. My best friend shot me a knowing look, smirking slyly at me, and I huffed, unlocking the door, and twisting the knob before swinging the mahogany open.

My breath hitched as my eyes locked with burning embers and an excited grin, his features more handsome than I remembered, and my hand shook on the doorknob as the next words spilled from his mouth, blanketing me in his familiar warmth.

“Hey there, Pretty Girl.”