A Beautiful Day

It was a beautiful day; there was no denying it. The soft, golden sand dusted Peggy's feet as wandered casually down the beach. Up ahead, the rippling waves glittered in the sunlight. She slowed her steps to allow Daniel to catch up. His crutch seemed to stick into the sand with each step he took. His false leg, usually concealed by his long trousers, was now exposed by his beach shorts.

The beach outing had been Howard's idea. He believed they deserved a day of recreation after their recent escapade.

"Over here Peg!" she heard Howard's voice call out, and looked over to see him running out of the surf, sporting his red tight-fitting swim trunks. "Has anyone ever told you your body was made for a swimsuit, Peg? You look stunning! Exquisite!" he commented enthusiastically, his eyes wide and fixated on Peggy's curved figure, which was clothed in a spotted, high-waist, baby blue bikini. "Don't worry," he added, "my gawking is purely platonic."

Peggy smiled, having expected Howard to appreciate her outfit decision. She could tell that, despite his womanizing tendecies, the compliment was genuine and well-meaning. "Thank you, Howard," she said kindly. "Where are Ana and Jarvis?"

"They found a quiet spot over there," Howard replied, gesturing to the left.

Sure enough, in a spot separate from the crowd of other beach goers, Ana and Edwin Jarvis sat comfortably on their beach towels in the shade of a large red and white umbrella. Peggy and Daniel set up their towels beside them.

"Enjoying the beach Mr Jarvis," Peggy asked her companion.

Jarvis lowered his newspaper. "The heat is dreadful and the sun will likely burn me raw if I leave the shade," he replied grimly, before allowing a faint smile to spread across his face. "But it is a rather beautiful place to be. I don't think we'd want to be anywhere else today, right darling?" He turned to Ana, who nodded in a agreement.

Jarvis was right; it was a beautiful day. However, Peggy found herself distracted by the constant, nagging feeling that a problem was near. It felt as if she was being stalked from behind and, just when she least expected it, the problem would lunge at her and steal away all this peace and happiness.

"What's wrong?" Daniel asked, turning his eyes away from the rippling waves to look at her. "After all your recent adventures, I thought you'd be overjoyed to have a day of peaceful relaxation."

Peggy sighed as she adjusted her sunglasses. "Yes," she answered, "but peacefulness doesn't ever really last, does it? It never has and it never will."

"What if we just pretended it could last, just for today," Daniel said optimistically. He inched his hand closer to Peggy's and gently brushed the top of it with his fingers.

"I seem to have a habit of losing people I care about," Peggy confessed. She paused, feeling the tension of a lump forming in her throat. "My last relationship was over before it had even started. Is that not a sufficient enough reason to not believe in the absurdity of endless happiness?"

"Fine," said Daniel, tossing a rock he had uncovered in the sand beside him. "So endless happiness isn't your thing. What about just a moment of happiness?"

Peggy looked at him, perplexed. "What on Earth are you taking about?"

"I'm talking about enjoying the now, instead of spending your happy moments anticipating your next problem," he explained as he pulled himself to his feet, using his crutch for support. He extended his hand in her direction. "Come on, Peg. We're going for a swim," he informed her.

Peggy shot him a disapproving glance before standing up, ignoring the beckoning hand in front of her. "I never do what you say," she remarked, as they started wandering towards the water. "What makes you think I'll start now?"

"Because you love me."

"Irrelevant."

"You wouldn't have worn that bikini unless you were going to swim."

"Maybe I wanted to show off."

"You don't show off."

"You're right. I don't need to."

"Wait... did you just say I was right?"

"You see the horizon, Daniel? That is where your crutch will end up when I throw it into the sea."

So they swam and splashed playfully together in the cool, salty water. Peggy felt joy bubbling up inside of her. The inkling that a problem was approaching seemed to wash away, carried out of the depths of her mind by strong currents. She allowed the bubbling joy to take over, just for the moment.

oOo

"Jarvis, you need to get my good side. No, not that one, the other one!" Peggy and Daniel heard Howard bark as they returned to the sand. Howard stood facing Jarvis and the camera with his chest puffed out, muscles tensed and his facial expression a mixture of a smoulder and flirtatious smirk. "Hey, Jarvis, get one of the these two lovebirds will you," he called, gesturing to Peggy and Daniel.

Peggy rolled her eyes. "Why do we need a photograph?" she groaned.

"Photographs are an excellent way to good times you've had," Jarvis told her, as he manoeuvred them into an appropriate position for the picture.

Peggy nodded in agreement. Though peace and happiness could never last forever, it could be captured in an image, where it would remain locked forever. When difficult times arose, it could be gazed at longingly and act as a reminder that happiness and peacefulness was real. She smiled joyfully as Jarvis snapped the photograph.

It really was a beautiful day.

Written for The Hostile Takeover forum's ongoing writing prompt challenge 'Write Away'.