Over The Ocean

Chapter Seven

As he back out of the driveway and drive away from the house I gasp from the excitement of the adrenaline rush, this was strangely fun and so far from what I normally do. What would this weekend do to me? It's just a weekend I argue with myself, but with Derek by my side it feels like it's going to be a weekend that will change everything.

He. He change everything and I don't know if it is good or bad.

He is both mischievous as a teenager and sexy with the whole musician thing, but there are more items on my list. Please, having a driver's license and having a job are items he's already checked off.

Having a good family, being good with children and being able to sort waste is a plus. It's not a bad family from what I gather so far, but I'd like to see for myself.

I sneak a peak at him as he drives and studie his profile. The wonderful smooth complexion, a slightly larger nose but absolutely nothing that makes him less attractive. Deep blue eyes that studie the road as he is in his own thoughts.

"What shall we do now?" he ask, glancing at me.

“Nikki.” I remind him but I smiled.

"Oh yeah, well, shall we all take a walk to the Pier?" if he was disturbed by my tone he didn't show it because he continue to talk.

Why don't you tell him? My inner self is pointing the finger at me.

Hush self! I will! I sigh.

When the car rolls up at the gate outside his house, he press the button that opens it. As the car stop we head out and walk towards the door. We hear Nikki from inside and as soon as Derek open the door she run out, like a bat from hell, around the house.

"I guess she was happy to see us?" Derek say, letting me in first. He open the balcony door and go out onto the wooden deck while I go into the toilet and take a couple of minutes by myself. When I look at myself the mirror, I see that even tough I had sunscreen on, the sun had really caught on. I didn't even notice that it had been so hot because there'd been breezes cooling us down all day. I leave the bathroom, go to the bedroom and find my after sun.

Back in the bathroom, I fold the tank top into my bra and am about to squeeze the loation in my hand when Derek enter the bathroom.

"Oh-" he exclaim when he see me standing there. "I thought you were done, sorry."

"It's okay." I meet his eyes in the mirror.

"Do you want some help?" he ask, looking at the tube in my hand.

I don't answer and just nod, he comes closer and hold out his hand for the tube. I loosen my grip on the tube and he take it. I pull the hair from the back of my neck. He squeezed out a small click in his hand and put his hand on my shoulder, as he does a shock goes through my whole body and I jump. I see from the look in the mirror that his body stiffen, his mouth is half open and he is looking deep into my eyes in the mirror.

Suddenly we hear Nikki's paws on the wooden deck and the magic is gone as we both react to the unexpected sound. He continue to apply the sunscreen to my shoulders and neck, he did it methodically and carefully.

After a few short seconds he look at me in the mirror and lift his hands from my skin. "All done."

"I'll leave you to use the bathroom then." I say, blush as I think about the amount of intimicy we've shared now that I had been here with him. I slip out before he can answer and decide I should probably wear a shirt with arms instead now.

Inside the bedroom I let my hair out and pull off my tank top then begin my search for a shirt. I chose a white loose t-shirt with a v-neckline and the bottom of the shirt has a lace edge. I'm sitting with my back to the door and have just pulled the t-shirt over my head when I hear footsteps. I slowly pull the shirt down over my arms and then let it fall down my back. I slowly gather my hair and pull it down so my neck is bare, then I peak a glance back and see Derek in the doorway. He look at my back and then he meets my gaze.

"What is it you like about me?" My mouth ask before I can stop it, I need to know before I tell him the whole truth.

The question takes him by surprise, probably because he had his thoughts elsewhere.

"I like your smile and you've got very soft lips. I like that you are kind and careful and gentle. I like that the first thing you did when we met was not to get inside my pants, and by the way I think I've been more persistent on that part.” He smiled. "I like that you look at me when you think I don't notice and that you smile a lot."

I sit quietly and mull over what he said. These are not stupid or silly observations.

"What do you think about environmental sorting and saving energy?" I ask to hopefully tick off another point.

"I like the idea of ​​saving energy and I'm trying to do it, actually I don't use my TV that much. Mostly my guitar, a pencil and a piece of paper." He smiled slightly before continuing. “Mimi does most of my sorting but I do some of it, to not be such a saphead to her.”

That's a good start. Not bad for someone who grew up with a stay-at-home mom, a working dad, two significantly older brothers and two younger sisters. Probably a silver spoon too.

I look at the clock on the table next to his bed and noticed that it was already half past five.

"Do we have time for The Pier tonight?" I ask, looking at my clothes that I'd used. Clothes in desperate need of washing.

Derek start to laugh, a loud and joyful laugh. I look up at him and after a couple of seconds I start to smile and it gets wider and wider.

It did sound rather strange. Do we have time? It's barely afternoon and the sun wasn't setting for at least four hours!

"Yeah, I know." I say and stand up. "Shall we be off then?"

He stop laughing but the smile doesn't leave his face. Inner Rosie hugs herself in euphoria.

“What was that thing you dropped earlier?” he ask, still with that beautiful smile on his face.

"Um-" What the fudge, how did I answer that. I look away to think.

"The black one."

I sigh, I might as well say it as it is, I meet his gaze.

"Josie left it in my purse. It's a negligee. She was hoping that we would sleep together since it’s been a while for me.” I blushed. I didn't mean to say that last bit. Derek flinched slightly but stopped smiling.

"Would you show it again?" he then asks.

Really? “Really?” I'm skeptical.

"Yeah, but I think we should get going to the pier though, it does take about an hour to walk there."

"Okay." I say and walk towards him. He doesn't move but look down at me when I stop in front of him.

He put his arms around me and give me a hug. I hug him back and we stay like this for a few minutes. Then Derek's phone ring.

"That damn phone-" Derek mutter. But let's me go and fish the phone out of his pocket.

“Hi, Mom.” he answer. "No, I can't come for dinner this weekend." Pause. "Because I'm busy, I've got stuff to do, plus, Paul asked me to help out in the shop too." Was he going to work? I open my mouth to ask and he hold his finger up in front of his lips as he listen to his mother. “No, I promised Adam and Hank that we would hang out tomorrow night.” Pause. “Yeah, I love you too. Give them my love and I'll see you next week."

He hang up and look at me.

"Wasn't your mom home yesterday?" I ask thoughtfully, feeling my brows furrow.

"No, she was picking up Nessa at judo and Tasha at a friend's place. I was just picking up Nikki and exchanged some hasty words with dad.” He shrug again and shift his balance on his feet.

“Why did you lie to her? …Unless you actually are off to work tomorrow?” I say raising an eyebrow.

"I didn't want a three hundred question conversation with my mom about you." After a few seconds he adds. “At least not yet.”

I get a lump in my throat but say nothing as we move towards the door and this time I take the leash. We double check that everything is off, locked and together with Nikki we head towards the Santa Monica pier which would take about an hour. As we walked there next to each other in the warm afternoon sun, my insides started arguing again, this time it was the pessimistic part of me that was barking and wanting to bang my head against a concrete wall.

I didn't even notice how far we had walked until cars started whizzing by at high speeds. Derek was holding Nikki's leash so I was just lost in my own thoughts. In any case, we made our way under the highway and we were met with the sea. There both the inner Rosie and pessimistic side of me went silent and I was speechless.

I'm met with one of the most beautiful views I've ever seen. The sun is still high and the sky is blue.

After another twenty minutes I could make out the pier.

"That's amazing." I say breathlessly. Of course I had seen it in pictures and in movies. But this is nothing compared to seeing it in reality.

Derek smiled and held in Nikki so we could stop and take in the moment. "You seem to be easily impressed."

"Should I act insulted?" I ask teasingly but continue "I do believe you're making fun of me Mr. King.”

“I would never, Miss Rosie.”

We continue towards the pier I had imagined in my head for so long. It is as magical as I had imagined it in my head. We walk around the pier and I admire the ferris wheel, the carousels and the shops that are placed around the pier. There's women dancing and men are playing instruments.

As we pass a red stall with full sides, a woman stuck her head out and look straight at us.

"What a beautiful couple you two make!" she said, eyeing us. “Humor me and come in and deal some cards. The dog can come too-“

She looks friendly and I look at Derek, he look as amused as I feel.

"I don't think you can tell us anything we don't know." Derek say and made a move to walk away.

“Oh, come on.” she insist. “I'll give you both one for free.”

I look at Derek and shrug.

So we follow her inside and sit down. She shuffle the cards and then hold them out to Derek.

“Take three please.”

He takes three, probably to humor me and then put them on the table with their backs to the table. The woman look at them, looking thoughtful.

She point to the cards one at a time as she explain.

"You've lived a full life until recently." She said, looking thoughtful.

"You've been lucky and according to these cards that will continue, you're on the brink off a big change." She looked up but didn't see us, when I looked closer I saw her gaze was unfocused.

"You're future is messy, you will find great happiness and great sadness, don't confuse the two. Think before you act.”

Her gaze became clearer again and she focus on us again.

Derek take my hand and stand up. "Okay, thank you."

Then he quickly walk out with me in tow.

"That was creepy." he said when we got some distance between us and the woman.

"But I didn't even get a chance to have my fortune told!" I say annoyed, Derek met my eyes but we don't dwell on the subject and continue to explore. Because the truth is that I'm also a little confused about his 'fortune cookie'.

I soon shake off the emotions because there is too much to look at and there so little time!

We find a stall selling cotton candy, in different colored bunches, which Derek buy for us.

When after a while I feel like I've explored enough, we sit down on a bench looking out at the sea.

Okay. This is it, it's time to come clean. So I take a deep breath through my nose.

"What you said earlier-" I start and caught Derek's interest who look at me curiously. "About me being easily impressed, that's because I appreciate the beauty in life. I’ve learned that from the last few years.”

I get caught in my own words.

"Okay?" Derek say still curious and wondering.

"I've got a mom and a dad, like everyone else. I've got three brothers, one older and two younger. But when I started my first year of high school I started to hang out with a new kind of people. They were definitely cooler than the crowd I came from, I met someone there, a boy. He-" I look out at the sea and swallow the hard lump "Was the most amazing guy I'd met so far. He was a couple of years older. The normal thing happened, girl falls for boy, boy falls for girl, teenage life and death love.” I pause unsure how to continue.

"You don't need to tell me, Rosie." Derek say.

“Actually I do.” I say and I'm able to focus again. "This is important for you to hear before I tell you the rest." I pause. “This was different though, we just clicked.” I laugh when I remember a special memory where Arvid and my brothers competed to see who could catch the biggest fish and when they had a hot chocholate drinking competition. "They, he and my brothers, were a match made from heaven, they were friends from start. He just fell into one of those extra spaces you have on the side of your family. My parents liked him. My grandmother called him a 'Mother-in-law's dream'. What a mother wishes for her daughter to meet in a young man.”

I glance at Derek and he is looking out over the ocean as he listen, when I don't continue he looks at me. I look at him for a moment longer. Then I take out my phone. I pull up a picture of Casper and hand it over. Derek take the phone and look at it for a moment.

"This. This is Casper.” I say and swallow the lump in my throat. Here it goes, the truth that could make or break. "He's my son."

He looks a shocked when he studie the picture, it's probably not what he expected. Then he looks at me.

"Why did you tell me?" he ask suspiciously.

"Because-" I say, looking into his blue eyes. "This feels like it could have become something more."

“Could have?” he say questioningly and raise a brow.

“Look, I really like you. It just feels like this is the wrong time. You’re at the brink of a big change.” I say and referring back to the fortune telling lady. ”Maybe if we’d met a year ago, it could have been different.”

Derek returned the phone which I put back in my pocket, then we sit in silence, listening to the people around us and looking out over the ocean until Nikki stand up and spin around in a circle.

“Oh.” Derek say. "Nikki needs to go."

At first I don't understand anything, why did she have to go? Where? Then it hit me. “Oh, like go, go?”

We get up and start hurrying back. I glance back, confirming that we didn't forget anything.

When we get off the pier, Derek steer us down under the pier so that we get a little out of sight. Nikki begin to address her needs and we look the other way. I look at the ocean and then my gaze drift to Derek.

"I'm having a hard time processing the fact that you're a mom." He say as he studie my face.

"Well, I got pregnant and I just couldn't do it. I couldn't 'take care of it'." I say, shrugging. "I'm not that kind of woman."

"I think I like that about you." He follow the sentence with a smile.

Okay, now do you see how stupid you were not to tell at first?

Well, maybe, but it could also be because he got to know me that he is willing to accept that I have a son.

After Nikki is done Derek picks it up with a bag, then we go to the nearest trash can. It takes a couple of minutes later, as the bag goes down we look at each other only for me to brake the gaze and look out at the sea.

"Are you done exploring here?" I hear him ask, I look back at him and nod. With that confirmation a sly smile spreads across his face. “I want to go home and get some exploring done on you.”