I wasn't used to the warming effect sunlight had on my skin. It'd been almost a year since my last visit to the ocean. It was an annual thing for my family, unlike my poor partner in crime. Frank had never been to the ocean as a child. When my mum and dad heard that, they instantly wanted Frank to join us for the day. It's how we ended up lying next to each other on the beach, the sun warming our bodies.
I felt brilliant today. I'd spent so long trying to get my hair not to fluff out and had picked out a dark blue sundress and bathing suit just for the occasion. Yet, somehow, Frank managed to look better than me. I couldn't turn to face him now- the sun would destroy my eyes- but the image of his appearance today was burned into my head. His sandy hair was swept in the same direction as the wind and his angularly tall body was tan even with the little sun exposure he got.
"Alice, can we go swimming yet?" Frank tapped my arm gently. My eyes squinted to try and see him. I gave up trying and just sat up.
"If you want to. I'm not exactly warm yet."
I hadn't even finished my sentence yet and he was running shirtless into the water. I wasn't used to seeing him in swim trunks either. My feet took off after him, each step delicate because of the heat of the sand. My parents shot me a curious look as I ran by, but I just flashed them a grin. They should have known better by now than to try and understand the way Frank and I thought.
The second my toes hit the water, I regretted following Frank. He was already in up to his waist, smiling and waving at me. I shot him a glare but he didn't pay attention. He knew I didn't mean it.
"Come on! The water's not going to hurt you!" Frank called out. It was hard to hear his soft voice over the roar of the waves. I hesitantly began to move towards him in the water. We were both in up to my neck when I finally caught up to him.
"Happy now? The water's freezing and now if I go back to my towel, the sand's going to stick to me. I'm going to have to reapply my sunscreen too!" I complained jokingly. I didn't mind any of it if it meant getting to see Frank's sky blue eyes light up in a smile.
"I'll help you reapply the sunscreen and stay warm, all right?" Frank grinned, wrapping his arm around my waist underwater. I wiggled out of his grasp though, to keep swimming as larger waves passed us by.
"Did you forget I'm a foot shorter than you and actually need to swim at this level?!"
"Well, then we'll move back to where you don't have to swim," Frank replied, his hands on mine in an attempt to lead me to shallower waters.
"Or we just get out of the water and you can attempt to make me less cold?" I smirked. I was slowly getting colder and colder by the minute. Usually I was fine in the ocean in the sunshine. That's when I noticed it wasn't exactly sunny anymore. Instead, the sky was becoming a little bit gray and cloudy. Frank noticed me staring up at the sky and looked up too.
"There goes any of my ideas."
"Which is why we should get out and go wait for the storm to pass somewhere w-warm and d-dry," I shivered. His hand on mine was more secure now, leading me out of the water. My parents stood right at the edge, waiting to speak to us.
"Alice, honey, we're going into the inn for some tea. You and Frank should join us later," my mother suggested. It amazed me that she was leaving Frank and me alone. Usually she was dead set against us being out of her gaze. Maybe it was her week off from chores making her a little happier.
"We'll see you soon then," I nodded at them. Frank did too. They headed towards the inn as we went the opposite way towards our towels. We had yet to dry ourselves before the thunder began.
"Bugger," I cursed quietly. Frank had both arms around me, hugging me close to him. His breath was in my ear and for a moment I forget that we were on a beach in the middle of a thunderstorm.
"I thought you liked thunderstorms?" Frank asked.
"I love thunderstorms. But I wanted to enjoy the summer heat. Bloody weather," I smirked. It was then that the rain began. There wasn't even the normal slow sprinkle leading into the heavy rain. It was just downpour.
"Come on," Frank whispered, grabbing the towels from the sand as well as my hand and running off towards the inn.
"Are you thinking clearly? It's a thunderstorm. Lightening could strike at any second and you want to run around in it?" He wasn't thinking logically. The smile on his face, however, made me want to be illogical with him. That brilliant smile and those brilliant eyes. Even his hair matted to his forehead made me want to smile with him.
"Yes. We'll run to the inn and take shelter. Just first, come with me." He then took off running. I followed behind, unable to separate from him because of our connecting hands. The inn was only a few feet away- one of the only buildings on this side of the beach- but the building Frank was leading me to was not it. The building turned out to be the inn's tool shed.
"Why here?" I asked, only a little confused.
"The roof." He pointed a finger up to the roof over our heads on the entrance to the shed. "Brilliant invention, meant to keep you from getting drenched by the rain."
"Little late for that," I smirked, holding out a strand of my very wet and now a bit frizzy hair. Frank let out a quiet laugh before tucking the strand behind my ear. My eyes were solely on his, my mind wanting to call him beautiful. He truly was though.
"You're beautiful," he said it almost too quietly to hear. It was no coincidence that we each had the same though running through our head. We'd been together since third year and we'd just finished our sixth. We knew each other's minds inside and out. Yet, there were always surprises.
"Thank you," I smiled. I stood on my tip toes, my lips meeting his. His mouth opened under mine, his tongue in my mouth without a second thought from either of us. A loud crack of thunder made me jump out of his arms and back into the rain. "Let's go."
We ran off holding hands and into the inn's tiny lobby. Neither of my parents were anywhere in sight, so I led Frank down the hallway to my family's room. I felt bad about leaving a trail of water behind me, but there was nothing to dry off with. Our room wasn't too far away from the lobby so it wouldn't be so bad for the owners. Outside of my door, I froze, recognizing my parents and their arguing voices instantly.
"Gustav, you know there is no way we can come back here next year. Not with the war and all. Alice will be out of Hogwarts and Gregor hasn't come in years. You know this is too much now. It's getting dangerous." My mother's voice sounded terribly worried. My ear was against the room door, listening intently. Frank held me protectively, listening too.
"Martha, the war is not yet bad. This evil man can be brought down easy, yes?"
"More people are missing every day back in London. How long until it is our neighbor or the poor innkeeper out here? Alice has no idea how lucky her and that boy have it to not know any of this yet."
It was that which made me storm off towards the lobby again. Frank didn't follow me, which only upset me more. My parents thought I didn't know about the war. They had no idea I was planning on being an Auror and putting an end to the fighting that way. I sure as hell wasn't safe and it terrified me.
I stood huddled in the corner nearest to a huge glass window, watching the storm pass over the sea. I felt something warm around my shoulders and I turned to see Frank wrapping a towel around me.
"I went into the room and got this for you. Your parents treated me like nothing was wrong," Frank commented. He had a towel around his own bare shoulders and already he seemed warmer.
"They're good at that," I sulked. "Frank, what will you do when the war breaks out? Are you going to be brave and become an Auror or..." He didn't even let me finish.
"Before summer holiday, Dumbledore invited me to join the Order of the Phoenix. It's the group he's raising to fight the war, since the Ministry is doing nothing. He said he was going to talk to you as well. Lily, James, and Marlene are already in and I think Marlene's even fought a few Death Eaters," Frank explained, drying me off with the towel. I turned to face him as he spoke, amazed by the steps he was already taking to fight.
"Thank you and I will join. I take it you won't be leaving me then when the war gets dangerous," I smirked, but the question was a lot more serious to me than that.
"Alice, I could never. How many times do I have to tell you? If the war gets dangerous, I'll marry you, okay? No matter what happens." Frank then kissed my forehead, his favorite way of making everything better for me.
"It's sunny again," I commented with a smile. Frank's eyes drifted outside to where the rain was just stopping and the sky was beginning to turn my favorite shade of blue.
"Let's go then, before another storm hits." Frank kissed my cheek before leading me back outside. I followed, staying optimistic. There'd be no more storms today. Not while I was this happy.
A/N: Inspired by the Panic at the Disco song of the same name. (The lyrics in the summary are from them too.) Constructive criticism is loved, flames are ignored, and reviews make me smile. As usual, written for my boyfriend to try to brighten his day.