Twilight Imagines

9. Believing Fate (Jacob Black)

   The wind whipped around me, blowing my hair and sand into my eyes as I picked my way across the crowded beach. It was considerably warm for late April and everyone was taking advantage of it, it seemed. With the high winds, though, most everyone was staying out of the water and that meant that the public beach was crawling with people. I was headed up to the picnic shelter to put on my shoes where there wasn't a ton of flying sand and where there might be a seat open.
   As I reached the boardwalk, though, I found myself blinded by my hair once again and I accidentally ran into someone with a little too much force. I began to fall backwards, but two arms grabbed my waist, pulling me upright and close them to steady me.
   "Are you okay?" A male voice asked.
   "Yeah, but I'd be better if I could see." I gave a small laugh, embarrassed at what had just happened.
   "It's pretty gusty out here." He agreed. A hand left my waist and brushed the writhing locks out of my eyes to tuck them behind my ear. With my vision cleared, I found myself looking at a young russet skinned guy with dark eyes and a smile on his face.
   "What's your name?" He asked, placing his hand back on my waist again.
   "Andrea." I answered hesitantly.
   "It's great to meet you, Andrea."
   At that moment and taking me completely by surprise, he leaned forward and captured my lips in a gentle, sincere kiss. I couldn't help but melt into his embrace, letting him kiss me for a good long minute. I was, however, inwardly suspicious and my mind was warning me that this didn't just happen; something was up.
   When he pulled away and the spell from the moment was fading, I lifted my eyelids to gaze up at him.
   "Why'd you do that?" I asked, slightly breathless.
   He gave me a slightly sheepish smile. "Do you believe in fate?"
   "Um, maybe?" I stammered, startled by the question. Did he think our meeting was fate? Maybe he was a little creepy under his attractive appearance...
   "Well, I made a promise that I'd kiss the next girl that I liked. And I guess that it just happened to be you." He told me with a chuckle. I raised an eyebrow.
   "Did you rehearse that?" I blurted out before I could stop myself.
   He shrugged. "Maybe once or twice... in my head. Am I forgiven?"
   "What do you need forgiveness for?" I asked, bating him.
   "Then can I have your number?" He requested, pulling me a little bit closer, though there wasn't much space left between us.
   "I can't exactly give it to you if I'm in your arms." I pointed out.
   Laughing, he pecked my lips again. "What if I don't want to let you go?"
   "Then you won't get my number and you'll be labeled as a clinger." I joked.
   "I could handle that, as long as it's you I'm clinging to." He murmured.
   "Cheesy, but it works." I shook my head with a grin. "Where's your phone?"
   "Wouldn't you like to know." He teased. I groaned and dropped my forehead on his shoulder, making him laugh. "Sorry, I had to."
   "You leave me no choice." I grumbled playfully, straightening and pulling the pen from my jean pocket. Uncapping it, I took his forearm and carefully wrote my number on his smooth skin. Then, adding a smiley face behind it, I capped the pen and tucked it back in my pocket. I glanced up at him again and found a small smile on his lips.
   "You forgot your name." He told me. I shook my head.
   "No, I didn't. It'd be cheating if you didn't have to remember something about me." I replied with a cheesy smile.
   "I won't forget you, Andrea. I might forget your number, but never your face." He assured me. I hoped I wasn't blushing as I gently pulled his arms off of me.
   "Well, I'd better get going." I excused myself, almost hoping he'd object. He just stepped back and shoved his hands in his jean pockets, though, which was both relieving and disappointing.
   Making my way towards the parking lot, I couldn't help but glance back a few times as I walked away and every time I saw him watching me leave. I still wasn't sure if he was creepy or flattering, but I was willing to at least give him a shot. After all, how many guys would actually have the guts to kiss a strange girl they'd never met before?
   And how many guys would make the effort to text you as soon as you were out of his line of sight? Because he did!

(Published August 28, 2021)