5. Audrey
Theo’s instructions were vague, but not vague enough that I couldn’t find him when our date rolled by. One thing I was at least glad for, was that any eatery on the esplanade was going to be semi-casual, making my knitted dress fit in no matter where we went. Tonight’s inspiration from my French Pinterest board was subtle, with only a trench coat on top, and a touch of nail polish to match my lipstick. A slightly poor decision if kissing was on the menu, but I wasn’t going to plan to make out with Theo either. When I walked across the restaurant strip, I saw him standing coolly outside, with a pair of dress trousers and a black t-shirt. Just when I thought he must be cold, I watched him shiver, taking a knitted cardigan that hung loosely from his arms, then putting it on properly. He was cute.
“Theo,” I called out, and his face lit up.
“You’re here. I might’ve just cried myself to sleep if you didn’t turn up.”
“You say that like it isn’t 7pm on the dot right now.” I pointed to my wristwatch.
“In that case, I’m embarrassed to admit that I’ve been here for a while.”
“Are you excited for a hot date or something?” I suggested crudely.
“Yeah, something like that.” He laughed. He placed his arm around my side, touching the small of my back as he ushered me through the door. Theo picked well, it was a little restaurant that specialised in seafood, and Lucy and I had drooled over their menu before, from the freshly caught oysters, to their prawn dishes that I’d eaten far too much of. And in the nature of him learning more about the area, checking out the seafood was the perfect start.
“I love this place,” I said reassuringly, and he looked proud.
“I’m glad,” he whispered, before our waitress found us a booth to sit in. The place had been renovated since I was here last, with dim lighting revolutionised by neon accessories around the walls. It reflected onto us, making us look like fish in a bowl, but in a somewhat trendy way. I ordered the linguine marinara; Theo ordered some fresh salmon doused in honey with a side of rice, and we both were topped off with margaritas.
“So, yesterday was interesting,” I started, giving him a look of scrutiny. “I didn’t know you were the type to enjoy showing up out of the blue.”
“Well, I was in need of a tour,” he flirted. “But I am aware that if I asked nicely first, I might’ve gotten a discount.”
I smiled as I sipped my cocktail. “Henry’s prices are hefty, aren’t they?”
“I can’t blame the man. He has a baby to feed, right?”
“Exactly.” I laughed. “How was your experience, on a scale of one to ten?”
“Why? Is this review going in the Tourism Weekly?” My eyebrows reached my hairline as I realised he’d not only found Henry’s Hut online, but he also uncovered his hobby tourism blog. Henry had tried to gain traction on this after a photo went viral on one of his social media sites, because even though the fame was short lived, he always hoped that he was the reason tourists kept coming to the area. Definitely not because we’re near a capital city, and home to a gorgeous beach and hinterland to match.
“You think you have what it takes to be up there with the greats?”
“The greats being…” Theo trailed off, trying to think what he missed on his stalk.
“A cameo from Henry’s pet rock that he found off Mount Rejoice, and an intern from the local high school who plans to, I quote, ‘make it big’ online.”
Theo leaned back in his seat, a sense of joy radiating off his relaxed body. The date was going well. “What is Mount Rejoice like? Steep, but rewarding at the top?”
“I don’t know, I’ve never been.”
“Some tour guide you must be.” He poked out his tongue.
A toothy smile spread across my face. “I guess I’m glad you won’t be reviewing the experience after all.”
Once our food arrived, the small talk had come and gone, and Theo pursed his lips, ready to ask something more personal. “How did you end up here, anyway?”
“Well, for starters, I was out on a date,” I joked, dodging his question. It’s not that I didn’t want to talk about myself before moving here, but my heart did feel strained whenever I thought about it. I was a strong believer of the idea that some memories should stay in the past, or you’ll never get over them. Now here I was, in a new town, supporting myself while working on my travel dreams, and the past had nothing to do with me anymore.
“With someone handsome, I bet,” Theo teased. “But seriously, I’m curious.”
I tapped the tabletop in front of me, observing what was left on my plate as if the pasta would form the shape of a correct answer. Finally, I scratched my head and spoke. “I’m not exactly close with my parents. And after I turned eighteen, I decided it was time for me to find my own place. It started with a few casual job offers. I moved here because of them, and I haven’t had a chance to leave.”
“You’ve built a pretty great community around you in a short amount of time,” he commented, gracefully skimming over the parental situation. I could tell he wanted to know more by the glint in his eyes, but he wasn’t going to pry for more information when I wasn’t prepared to give it. Maybe one day, but it wouldn’t be all that fun for a first date.
“Thank you,” I said. Then I reached my hand across the table to hold his. The movement felt natural, even if it was a little bold, and Theo reciprocated by tracing my fingers with his own. “You’re doing pretty well at sucking us town folk in, too.”
“You think we’re on a date?” he continued the joke. “I’m actually a Venus flytrap, and you’re my next prey. I’ve booked Henry in for tomorrow’s meal.”
I grinned. “I’m shaking in my boots.” On this date, Theo acted like a true gentleman, our conversation was fun and easy, and the more I looked at him… the more I didn’t want to look away. He might’ve been right about luring me in as his prey, because I certainly wasn’t fighting it. In fact, sitting on opposite ends of the booth, I started thinking of ways to get closer to him. It felt like talking was too loud, and that we’d be better off carrying on with whispers and secrets, like all successful dates should have. But before I knew it, our drinks were empty, and so were our plates… and because it was a busy night at the restaurant, the waitress was hinting for us to take our leave, handing us the bill as soon as we placed our cutlery down.
After we split the payment, we found ourselves walking as we enjoyed the sea breeze, bickering back and forth in a way I felt only we knew how. There was sarcasm, humour, and something I noticed increasingly from our short moments together; passion. “I still can’t believe you haven’t been to Mount Rejoice, after all this time you’ve spent here, and all the Tourism Weekly updates you would’ve proofread.”
He read my by-line on some of Henry’s blog posts. He was paying attention. “I guess it just never came up—I mean, it’s not exactly on the top ten ways I want to spend my weekends.”
“And what is the perfect weekend for you, Audrey?” he asked, as if he was going to jot it down in a notebook and save it for later.
“Gorging myself on Lucy’s treats, rewatching an old comedy movie, likely with Steve Martin as the frontman, and chanting over and over again about how I’ll never go hiking willingly.” I winked.
“Your willpower is really strong on that front.”
“It is.”
“Why do I get the impression you’re a little bit sheltered here?” Theo had an amused look on his face. I feigned a scowl in response. “I’m serious, you’re spending so much time trying to escape this beautiful town, when you’ve barely even put in the effort to explore it yourself.”
“Well, it’s not like I grew up here.” I shrugged. “There’s going to be nooks and crannies I haven’t discovered yet.”
“But the nooks and crannies we’re talking about are like, first month bucket list type places to visit! I’d hope to see more by the time I’m gone from here,” he admitted. And that’s when I realised for the first time, he wasn’t going to be here permanently. Sure, he’d found himself a rental, but how long did he intend to stick around for? I bit the inside of my cheek, trying to hold in the urge to ask, before it just came out on its own.
“How long are you going to stick around?” I fiddled with my fingers, afraid of the answer. In a way, I realised the question was hypocritical. He knew very well that I was looking for an out, and my tone nearly blamed him for not planning to stay put.
“You’d miss me, wouldn’t you?” He smirked. When I turned around to face him, he was closer than I expected, and I bumped into his chest instead. As I looked up into his eyes, I realised he was dodging the question politely, letting me make up my own answer in my mind depending on what I wanted this to be. “Can I ask permission for something?” he blurted.
“Depends on what you’re going to ask,” I said, but as he lowered himself to meet my lips, the answer was as clear as the night sky above us, and I closed the distance. Our kiss was sweet, soft, and a little daring, given the questions we still held up in the air. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him in closer; deepening the kiss. He smiled against my mouth.
“I’ll be here as long as you’ll have me,” he promised. I’ve heard promises before, but they weren’t like Theo’s. They had a sense of sincerity behind them, where he had nothing to gain by saying something other than what he meant. He used this promise for reassurance, and as if a tidal wave crashed over me, I realised how much I liked this man.
“And you say I don’t take risks,” I reminded him, showing that letting him in was a risk I was willing to take. I was being vulnerable, telling him I had feelings for him that I wanted to explore, without saying it outright. And suddenly, whether it was the glee or the margaritas, I became brave. I pulled away from him, skipping down the esplanade until we reached the sandy shore, while Theo tried to keep up.
“I still don’t believe you do,” he called after me. “If an opportunity to be risky came up right now, I bet you’d tell it to shove off.” As if I’d known him my whole life, I knew he was trying to coax another kiss out of me, to continue where we left off. But now I felt motivated to be risky in a different way.
“You don’t think I’d have the guts?” I asked, dragging my feet around in the sand.
“You’d be cowering away.” He laughed, quickening his pace to catch up. Then, I watched him realise where I was heading, kicking my shoes off into the sand around me, peeling my dress from my body, so that I stood in nothing but my underwear. It wasn’t the sexy kind—it was practical cotton underwear from the town’s department store—but stripping down felt like a statement, and the moonlight reflected on the waves behind me, making my intentions clear.
“Audrey, no.” Theo said, shaking his head like I could still be convinced otherwise.
“I thought you wanted me to be fearless? A little night time adventure like this is filled with risks, isn’t it?” My dress dropped to the ground beside me, and with a cheeky grin, I let my toes dip into the water. It was freezing, but I kept a poker face, trying to stop myself from losing our game of chicken. I was doing this—no backing out now.
“I surrender,” he said, raising his hands. “You have nothing to prove here, trust me.” His feet were glued in place. I wondered if he knew that if he stepped forward, I’d follow each step backwards, like a dog playing chase with their owner. It definitely must’ve been the margaritas, because suddenly I began to think I shouldn’t listen to reason, and that my dumb decisions were somehow empowering. I ran into the deep, squealing from the cool that travelled up my legs, over my hips, and below my ribs. And with one courageous leap, I picked my feet off the sand and began to tread water.
“Who’s adventurous now?” I shouted, watching him weigh up his decisions. Part of me knew from our kiss earlier that he would’ve loved to be in the water with me, our dolphin skin brushing against each other as we kissed under the moonlight. But instead, he stayed responsible, squinting to keep a close eye on me, so that the black water that matched the dark skies didn’t swallow me whole.
“Just stay where I can see you, okay?” he politely begged, a nervous quiver in his throat.
Mischief took over me, and I swam backwards, further into the deep. “You mean here?” I called out.
“Audrey, stay close!” he shouted, walking toward the edge of the water. Maybe if I went a little further, he’d follow me? The way I moved now, it was like he was tethered, being dragged along, too.
“Come get me, then.” I laughed, swimming further out. Perhaps it was the alcohol again, but the water started to feel harsher, the waves larger, and the current stronger. Then I realised I was no longer flowing back by choice, but instead, I was being taken against my will. I held my arm up, hoping that Theo would notice, because soon enough, water was filling my throat, and even when I tried to swim back to shore, I was making no ground. I was caught in a rip.
“Audrey?” Theo’s voice was still, filled with a raw kind of fear that I hadn’t heard from him before—not until now, wondering if he was going to come in after me, or if he was going to be smart and not take the risk. But I had to ask him to, my life depended on it.
“Theo!” I screamed, water interfering with the sound. Then a wave crashed, toppling over me, and I was dragged further into the depths of the ocean.