Bright skies, clear water, white sand. They were at the beach.

It was their free day off of work, and so they decided to go on a much needed mini vacation.

Work was stressful as always, and being within the confines of such a busy and crowded city sometimes was just a hassle. They wanted to get away and anyway, they deserved it.

They rolled down their car windows once they caught sight of the sparkling blue water, still far from their reach.

The smell of fresh air was enough to send their minds reeling.

'Rest at last,' they thought. Deprived of all things relaxing, they enjoyed this much already.

The place they were going to was a private beach owned by her family. Yes, the house is by the beach, beside other beach properties, but theirs was inaccessible to people who didn't know it was there.

Her family respected privacy a lot. It was a vacation house after all, and people go on vacations to get away from the world. How is one supposed to get away if one is flocked around by plenty of people?

She took in every detail of what she saw and to her, everything was beautiful. Everything was fresh, everything was breathtaking. But everything was better because she had him by her side.

She spent many summers growing up in this place. She spent them with her cousins and her siblings. She spent them trekking by the river a short while away from their house. She spent them climbing the huge Acacia tree  right beside their front porch. But most of the time she stayed in the water; swimming, playing water polo, floating, all the things kids loved doing. Then she grew older and decided she'd just stay by the shore; building sand castles with a past lover, skim boarding with her friends, burying herself [and other people] in holes she dug on sand. She even went surfing one time. She had a list of memories here, but it was her first time to share this place with Jiyong and she thought the memories they'd make now would be her best ones yet.

She was pulled out of her own thoughts when she heard a question being addressed to her.

"Are you excited?" He asked as he reached for her hand.

"Uhuh," she nodded, locking her fingers around his.

She looked away to the scenery outside and she noticed that their ride was coming to an end. They were by the house now and he was already parking.

They got out and unloaded their bags from the vehicle. 

After making themselves at home, they got ready to hit the beach.

----

Ah, yes. Everything felt right in the world.

She was ecstatic, knowing she was only a few feet away from the water.

He was excited because he hasn't been to a beach in forever, and not one as beautiful and secluded as this. 

He looked at his girlfriend who was already taking her shirt off.

His eyes widened; it was just because he wasn't used to it. 'A girl? Taking her shirt off? Come on. When is that ever normal in public?' He thought.

"I see you staring," she said and then stuck her tongue out at him recently.

She was left in only her swim shorts and bikini top, which would have left him jealous and overprotective had they not been at her private beach house and in a public place where the eyes of lustful men could feast on her very image.

He snapped out of his daze and shook his head.

"Pssssh," he started.

"It's not like I haven't seen that already," he said and stuck his tongue out at her, leaving a shocked expression on her face. Then he took his own shirt off, exposing his chiseled chest and perfectly sculpted abs. 

They were both examples of perfect human beings, if such a thing was possible.

He had the looks of a demi-god and she had a face carved by angels.

He was angular in every good way possible and she had curves in all the right places.

She had long mahogany colored hair, while his was dark brown. And it suited them perfectly.

"Like what you see?" He asked her, and she realized she was biting her lip and holding her breath in while she was looking at him.

She snapped out of her daze too and said "I've seen better" but she wasn't supposed to say that out loud. 'Whoops' she thought.

"What?" He said. If looks could kill, he'd have killed about seven people by now.

She tried to cover up her tracks but it was too late. Before she could even voice out an apology, he swooped her in his arms and ran to sea.

He ran far enough that the water reached his knees so when he threw her in, she was drenched immediately.

A few fish seemed to approach the surface of the water, only to swim away when she slapped her hand against the waves and he started coming closer.

"You are so mean!!!" She yelled.

"You started it!!" He replied, she huffed.

He laughed, knowing she lost and she had nothing better to say, so he did something he'd know would make her happy.

Around his wrist was his favorite bracelet. He always had it with him so he would always feel comforted.

"Take it."

"No," she started.

"Why not?" he asked.

"What if I lose it?" She told him, she frowned and worry lines stamped her face. He's had that thing around his wrist even before they met.

"Then that means I'll have to lose you, and that's not going to happen."

She smiled, happily accepting what he gave her.

He pulled her up and they walked hand in hand.

So she taught him how to skim board, and she laughed everytime he fell. He looked so determined, but in the end...he always landed on his .

He'd huff and try again..and again...and again. And he fell again...and again...and again.

Until he FINALLY got ONE right. She pecked him on the lips and congratulated him, and she felt a smirk form on his lips.

"Told you I could do it," he said.

'Yeah, after a hundred and one tries.' she thought, but was truly happy. It was hard to get it right the first time, honestly. So she was happy he at least was able to enjoy it; even just for a few seconds.

She brought him to the river, which was where they had a snack, then they did all sorts of couply things: ones you'd think were cute, and others that aren't meant to be seen by anyone other than them.

After a day of fun, since the sun was slowly setting, they walked back to the house. However, sand kept on finding its way into her swimming clothes and that irritated her. He on the other hand just wanted to get submerged in water, and so they went to the sea for one final dip.

"Oh, the beach gets kind of whack when we get to somewhat deeper parts," she said

"How so?" He asked as they were walking through water that already reached up to their chests. 

"The sand is weird. One moment your feet are flat against it, the next, you're a foot underwater." She told him.

"Then we'll have to be carefu--"

He wasn't even able to finish his sentence when a wave crashed over them. He held her hand as tight as he could but even that wasn't enough to keep them together. Nature was against them and the waves were just too strong.  Before they knew it, they were both separated from each other.

Underneath, the water was black. It wasn't the friendly blue they saw during the moments of their arrival this morning. The waves were like washing machines, and the two were like clothes being spun  around inside. Round and round they went, not even a moment to catch a breath was given to them.

The moment the rotation ended, he kicked up for air, yet once he took a big gulp in, he wasn't able to enjoy it for long. Another wave came crashing on him, sending him into another cycle of spinning underwater.

Finally, he was being washed up to shallower waters and he was able to stand. While gasping for air, he scoured what was in front of him. He saw the horrible water and the lying sand, but the girl. He couldn't see the girl.

"Summer!" He yelled.

He looked again, and nothing.

"Summer!!!" He yelled again, this time panic clear in his voice because beyond him was his girl, and he couldn't see her.

Her head was bobbing up and down, body still being thrashed around by the waves underneath. The current was pulling her down, making it even harder for her to swim up.

He finally saw her.

Without any second thoughts, he swam. He swam like his life depended on it. He would never forgive himself if anything were to happen to her.

Though he was being pushed back, he swam faster, kicked harder. He had to reach her.

...At last, he had her within his reach.

He put his arm around her chest and started swimming ferociously back to shore. She wasn't awake, and he didn't know how much water she inhaled.

He had to make sure she was still alive and breathing.

--

Land never felt so good, but his worries were yet to be over.

He carried her in his arms and lay her down gently on the shore.

He checked for her pulse; she still had one, and he felt it.

Then he commenced CPR.

He wouldn't stop until she spat out the water that filled her lungs.

Finally, her eyes opened, and she started coughing uncontrollably due to the water that was within her system.

She realized the predicament she was in and felt horrible.

She almost died. She drowned. How could that have happened? She was the best swimmer in her family.

Nothing like that should ever have happened to her.

She was upset, frustrated, dissapointed, afraid.

She stared at those loving brown pools that were looking at her with worry. He saved her. He was the reason she was alive.

"Summer--" he started.

"You saved me." She said in astonishment. Then, "Will you always save me?" she asked.

"I need to know you'll always be there." she said, her voice catching in .

"Always, baby, always." he told her. 

"I need you," she told him as tears started pooling in her eyes, and then she cried.

He nodded and pulled her closer. He was afraid, too. What if he wasn't there? What if he was a moment too late? What if he had lost her? He couldn't think of a world without her. What would life be without that source of warmth and happiness and love he so longed to have? She was everything to him. 

"I need you too," he murmured as his lips brushed against the top of her head.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't careful." She said.

He wasn't letting her out of his sight again. He was never leaving her side. 

----

That is what every lover would think once the person of their heart's desire was put in harm's way.

But they remained only that;  instinct, thoughts elicited by the moment's rush.

Only time can tell if what was said was true or if they stayed just that: empty words.

But for this brief moment in their lives, they meant it.

They stood stuck in time; holding each other against the lapping waves on the shore.