He Was Her All

Chapter 11: Laying Low

After Mariana felt better, they went outside to chill in the swimming pool.

The sun was at its peak, shining down on them as they sauntered towards the edge of the pool. Mariana wore a black swimsuit while Micah wore black trunks. They both had summer hats and glasses on as they tried to keep a low profile.

She got into a corner of the pool and began to paddle around. Mariana absolutely loved swimming, she found it very refreshing and fun. Meanwhile, Micah was still staring down at the shallow waters.

"Hey, aren't you coming in?" She asked.

"Yeah...coming," He slowly said and sat down. He slid into the waters while gripping onto the edge. Mariana noticed the ripples coming from his convulsing body.

"Are you cold?"

"Nope."

"Then why are you shaking?"

"No reason..." He finally let go and came closer to Mariana while making sure his feet were on solid ground.

"Are you scared of water?" She asked with a slight smirk.

"No, I just don't like going in the deep end."

"Why not?" She asked, still smirking.

"I- um, had a bad experience so I don't feel comfortable with my feet being freely suspended."

"Aww, what happened?"

"Well... I was swimming in one of the beaches of the Dominican Republic with my cousin and then we dived deep underwater. When we wanted to go back up, my legs got caught on some seaweed."

"Wait, so you nearly drowned?!"

"Yeah, my cousin swam up to the surface to get help, and luckily, my dad came and got me just in time."

"Well I'm glad he did," She gave him a tight hug around his torso. She was so glad he was alright otherwise he wouldn't have been here with her.

Once she let go, he grabbed his phone which was sitting on a chair.

"Hey, would you like to go to this garden on google maps?"

"What's it called?"

"Jardi del Bisbe, it looks pretty big and nice," Micah showed her the photos of it and her eyes adorned over the red roses.

"It's really beautiful!" She exclaimed. "I want to go check it out!"

"Okay let's go get changed and then we can go."

They went back inside and changed into regular clothes.

Mariana wore an off-shoulder white top with jean shorts. She wore a white bracelet and her mother's necklace. She brushed out her damp curly hair and applied some eyeliner and lip gloss. She felt so much better and fresh after her little swim and her hair felt much cooler.

When they reached the Jardi del Bisbe garden, they sauntered through the tall metal gate and began walking on the path.

They passed dark pink roses that resembled sweet kisses and were vibrant in their color. There were light pink ones that were like blossoms and much more calm and peaceful to look at. There were some violet flowers hanging down from a branch, providing them shade.

"Micah do you have your phone with you?" She asked as her eyes looked longingly at a rock.

"Yeah, do you want me to take you a picture?"

"Yes please!"

"Okay I will take your picture," He got out his phone while Mariana stood on top of a rock posing with her curls blowing. The sun kissed her skin perfectly, lighting it up like the tiny grains of sand, sparkling and bathing under the scorching rays of the sun.

While Micah was taking the picture, he occasionally zoomed into her enchanting cinnamon curls. They complimented her small round face so much and made her look like a goddess in his eyes.

"Do you know you have really beautiful curls," He said, giving her the phone to look.

"Aww really?" She came down while having her gaze towards the phone.

"Yeah, they are gorgeous," He twirled some around his fingers. They were so soft and so shiny when brought out to the light.

"Thank you so much," She blushed, puffing out her rosy cheeks.

They continued to walk through the garden. They passed this long pond which had a tree of flowers growing over it. Lily pads covered half of it with fallen petals. It was quite hidden but still a beautiful sight.

They passed through more ponds with fishes and more bushes with flowers.

After they went all the way around, they came back to the entrance and decided to eat out at a restaurant called Sa Llum. It was close by so they can easily walk to it without getting recognized.

They arrived at the cozy little restaurant which had a Western-style in terms of decoration; Two wheelbarrows at the front with their beautiful menus.

They walked inside and sat at the very back. They were black stool-like chairs around a wooden table with some glasses. The walls were painted baby blue with a few paintings hanging on them.

They ordered some curly fries, slices of steak with a side salad, and white wine. It came fairly quickly considering that they weren't that many people in the restaurant.

With the curly fries, Mariana was connecting two to make a heart. Her eyelashes fluttered up towards Micah who was indulged in his food. A subconscious smile crawled onto her lips as her fingers twirled around the loops of her fries. She was so glad to have met Micah who was the sweetest guy she's met. He's taken such good care of her and if her father were still alive, he would've loved to meet him.

"Mariana, you okay?" He looked up to find her staring intensely at him as her dark brown eyes twinkled and glowed.

"Nothing Micah, just continue eating," She couldn't stop smiling at him as butterflies started to grow and a warm bubble feeling rose in her abdomen.

"Okay..." He seemed a bit weirded out by Mariana just staring at him but he ignored it and resumed his food. She soon started hers but kept her heart fry separately.