Ally Dawson's least favorite place to be used to be the beach.
Until Austin, who at the time was only a friend, went through all kinds of trouble to make her associate the horrible, no good, sandy hell with positive things – such as her best friends and ice cream and happiness.
So she liked the beach now – just not as much as she enjoyed a nice, cool, calm (sand free) pool.
But her best-friend-turned-boyfriend, Austin Moon?
Why, the beach was practically his second home. He spent more time at the beach than in the recoding booth, or even their music factory. He loved the sand, the sound of the waves crashing in on themselves and onto the shore. He loved the smell of the salty air. And he especially loved when he surfed and caught a wave that carried him more than ten feet – the rare ones that carry him almost all the way to the shore were his favorite.
So when he got a day off, such as today, he spent the majority of it at the beach in the water on his surfboard. Whereas his girlfriend spent her time sprawled out on a large towel, tanning and reading a book.
Every now and then Austin would jog up, shake his wet hair out above her (which she hated, but he thought it was funny the way she would scrunch up her face so he kept doing it) and grab a snack or a water bottle from their cooler. He would check in, remind her to re-apply sunscreen, give her a quick peck on the cheek and then in a blink of an eye he'd be out surfing again.
And by the end of the day, Ally was beyond relaxed. She couldn't wait to get home, cuddle in their king-sized bed and doze off in her boyfriend's arms.
At the thought, she rolled onto her back to look for her blonde so she could ask him if he was ready to leave. Except instead of her voice, all she could manage was a strained gasp.
She can't be.
Oh, but she most definitely is.
Ally Dawson, Miss-safety-and-precautions-extraordinaire, was sunburnt because she forgot to reapply sunscreen. Her entire back and legs were an alarming shade of red – almost as red as her boyfriend's favorite cherry-red Fender, she realized.
"What's wr-holy shit, Ally!"
Speaking of her boyfriend...
"What the hell happened? I'm gone for two hours and-and-"
"I'm freaking sunburnt, yes,"
She tries to lean back on her elbows to pout, only to feel excruciating pain on her lower back. She cringed, holding in a groan.
"Sweetheart...did you not reapply sunscreen when I reminded you?" Austin asks, hesitant.
"Well-I just-my book was so interesting and-and I couldn't put it down and-"
He laughs.
And laughs and laughs and laughs until it's so beyond funny that she's red from irritation now, not just the sun's harsh rays.
"Austin!" She whines, her bottom lip jutting out.
"Okay, okay," He says, calming down.
"We need to get home so we can get some aloe on you." He decides, glancing over her usually pale skin. "I'll grab our stuff. You just get into the car, Larry the Lobster."
He laughs when she attempts to throw her sandal at him, only to end up wincing in pain.
/
"You know, you're almost the color of my favorite-"
"I know."
"Okay.." Austin mumbles, unbuckling his seat belt and reaching over to do the same for his girlfriend.
"I could've-"
"I know," he says, getting out of his convertible before she can respond.
"Would you like help or do you wish to do the honors?" He asks with a humorous smile, motioning towards her car door.
"Please?"
She gives him her best puppy dog pout, already teary eyed from being in so much pain.
He rolls his eyes with a fond smile, opening her car door and helping her into the house.
"Google says aloe vera works best." She says, in a constant state of cringing as she enters their spacious home.
"I've got some under my sink."
So she hobbles after him through their home, quietly whining as she makes her way upstairs to their bedroom.
"Go lay on your stomach so I can slather aloe on you." Austin says, making a bee line for their bathroom.
He returns with a bottle of aloe in hand and an amused-yet-sorry smile.
"You ready?"
She whines in pain as she lays on their bed, "Not really."
He climbs up on their bed next to her, careful not to disturb her too much. When he's perched on his knees beside her, he unties the back of her bathing suit before squirting a glob of aloe vera gel in the palm of his hand.
"On the count of three?"
"Just go for i- HOLY CHEESE AND RICE, THAT IS COLD." She gasps, clutching the bedspread in surprise when he mashes his hand against her shoulder blade.
"Sorry," he laughs, sounding nothing close to sincere.
He gently, carefully massages the gel all over her back, smirking when she hums in relief.
"Enjoying yourself?" He teases, an eyebrow raised.
"Other than the fact that I'm fifty percent sunburnt, my boyfriend is currently rubbing aloe vera gel on my back and it's quite relaxing."
He chuckles, moving down the bed so he can reach her legs better.
He puts a line of gel down the back of her leg from the hem of her bathing suit bottoms to her heel and gently massages that into her leg.
"You know," she mumbles, eyes squeezed shut in both pain and relief, "If I wasn't sunburnt I would be so turned on right now."
Austin can't help the loud laugh that tumbles past his lips.
Honestly? I have no damn idea what this is. It just kinda...came to me. Anyways, hope someone enjoyed it!
PS; The next chapter of HS:AA should be out soon. So don't fret, my dears!