Chapter 1

Bella stood on the pier, watching as the sun sank beneath the ocean waves. Her long, black hair whipped across her face as the breeze picked up, and the air cooled. Seeming to almost change with the colors of the ocean as the sun's last rays of light hit the waves, her eyes remained emotionless; unwavering- even when a loud scream, followed by laughter, erupted from the beach party behind her.

As the last bits of daylight disappeared into the sea, Bella turned to head back to the beach. She sighed, thinking of her friends, knowing she was going to have to drag them away from some sleazy college guys that they had probably attached themselves to all night. Bella rolled her eyes-which had returned to their typical green-as she heard another unprecedented shriek from the beach.

"I hate the moon." A voice spoke.

Not moving, Bella tried to locate where the voice came from. After having done so, she turned around cautiously, coming face to face with a tall, blonde haired, blue-eyed boy. Slowly letting out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding, Bella glared at him. "Who are you?" She said evenly. Bella was frustrated with herself. What had she been so uneasy about? It was just another one of those college guys-"Probably a local," she thought, noting his deep tan.

The stranger grinned. "Alex. You're Bella, right?"

Bella narrowed her eyes. "Maybe. What makes you think that?" She maintained a neutral facial expression, however, inside, she was freaking out. "Run!" Every instinct was screaming at her.

"I heard your friends," he pointed back to the beach. "Back there saying, 'Someone go get Bella from the pier. She's our ride home!"" His voice went up an octave as he imitated her friends.

"Yeah, I am, so I better get going." Bella said shortly. "Good to meet you." She brushed past him, ready to get away from this strange boy.

He grabbed her arm. "Hey, wait a minute," Alex flashed her what Bella had begun to realize was the smile he used on all the out of town girls that he hooked up with.

"What." She said shortly, not turning around.

He let go of her arm. "Can't I at least get your number?"

Bella sighed, knowing that guys like him didn't give up. "Fine. I can't promise that I'll answer though." She said, as she wrote her number on a napkin that she happened to have stepped on in her effort to leave.

Alex took the napkin, carefully folded it up and put it in his breast pocket. He took Bella's hand and, bending low, softly kissed it.

She didn't mean to blush, but really, how many guys around her age kiss a girl's hand? "Um, yeah. Okay, bye." Bella sprinted away before she completely lost her cool.

2 Weeks Later

"Alex quit it," Bella laughed hysterically as another spray of salty sea water blasted her in the face.

Alex grinned, his blue eyes, sparkling with the sun. "I thought you said you loved the sea." He teased.

Bella smiled, pushing her windswept hair out of her face. "I do, but not when it's all I've been tasting for the past 10 minutes." She pouted, as Alex wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her shivering body in a warm cocoon. Somehow he was always warm, even in the chilly ocean water. "Let's go back up to my room. I think I've had enough of the beach today. Besides its getting dark. Look," she pointed. "The moon is coming out."

Alex frowned as he saw the white orb become clearer in the darkening sky. "I hate the moon." He ran his fingers through his blonde locks, as he grabbed a towel and tossed it to Bella.

"You always say that," Bella said, curiously. "Why?"

Alex shrugged. "I dunno." He took Bella's hand, signifying that the conversation about the moon was over.

As they headed up to the resort, Bella quietly said, "I like the sun better. It's prettier." She didn't notice when Alex smiled widely to himself.

"You leave tomorrow," Alex said softly, as he pulled Bella closer to his warm chest.

She sighed, resting her head on his shoulder. "I know. I won't be coming back here for a while. I'll be going to college next year. I'll hardly have time to even…." Bella trailed off as Alex kissed her deeply.

He pulled back, and affectionately brushed her hair out of her face. "Let"s not talk about it." He said simply.

"Okay." She smiled.

"Okay." Alex kissed her forehead. "Goodnight, Arabella."