Never Wash The Sand From My Feet // Jessie & Buzz
Distracted by watching some kids down the beach building a sand castle, Jessie was surprised to hear her name being called out. She whipped her head around to see Buzz approaching, and her stomach did a back flip. Would it always do that whenever she saw him? She squinted up at him, the sun very bright, even with her shades on, and it seemed like Buzz was doing the same behind his sunglasses, judging from the angle of his eyebrows anyway. “Well, hey darlin’!” she greeted him, sitting up and crossing her legs in front of her on the towel. “Pull up some sand, sit!” she said, patting the empty ground beside her. “Oh, nah, I haven’t been here long, it’s only been about ten minutes. Don’t worry, Buzz!”
As he sat next to her, she sighed. “Oh, I’ve been alright I guess… I mean, busy at work, you know. And then stressing out over the darned gossip announcing that we… Well…” She felt her face flush and she trailed off in a little giggle.
“Oh, nah, I haven’t been here long, it’s only been about ten minutes. Don’t worry, Buzz!”
“That’s good,” he responded, leaning back on one elbow and turning so that he was facing Jessie. ”I was worried I wouldn’t really be able to find you. Seems like everyone and their brother thought it’d be a good idea to come to the beach today. I’m glad to see you.”
He smiled up at Jessie, glad to see her. It had been a while since they’d been together — a little too long for Buzz’s liking. He didn’t know why, but he had missed her something awful. Sure, they’d only met up like once or twice, but they had a great time together each time. And it just felt like there was something more there, something deeper… he longed to be with her, and when he wasn’t near her it gave him a little ache in his chest. It was a little unsettling, but he found he craved the feelings she gave him none-the-less.
“Oh, I’ve been alright I guess… I mean, busy at work, you know. And then stressing out over the darned gossip announcing that we… Well…”
Buzz chuckled and ducked his head sheepishly, not really sure how to respond. He’d seen that gossip, and been properly miffed at it; after all, what he and Jessie decided to do was no one’s business but their own. But… at the same time, he was glad the gossip had been made known. It kind of marked them as… well, he didn’t know what, but as something. And it made them talk about it, which was something he had been wanting to do for a while.
“Yeah. I saw that. You shouldn’t worry about it, though,” he said. Buzz’s eyes fell to her hand, pale and small in her lap. He knew that he shouldn’t feel this way about her, that it was strange to fall for someone so quickly. Hell, even their basic age difference made what he was feeling wrong. And yet… he mentally wrestled with himself for a moment before reaching out and taking hold, thumb rubbing against her fingers. ”I’m not worried about it,” he said, looking up and smiling at her, trying to see her green eyes through their layers of dark sunglasses frames. ”I know it’s unconventional, but I don’t regret it.” He paused his thumb movements, but still held onto her hand. ”Do you?”
