A/N: A little on the mature side, kiddies. You've been warned.

Summary: A short trip to town, she said. A quick detour, she said. It would only take a minute, she said. But she tastes like strawberries and I don't think either of us thought we'd be in this predicament.

Strawberry

"Lebreau wants to see you about something, Serah." Godot had said.

It hadn't taken much else; she turned to look at me with innocent eyes and a careful, pleading smile. I sighed and scratched the back of my head, knowing I would be unable to turn it down. Not when she looked at me like that.

"Go on, then. Can't keep her waiting, right?" I said, smiling back at her.

Her face lit up and she said, "Thanks, Noel! I promise it'll only be a minute! I haven't seen her in so long and I just…"

I waved my hands at her and interjected, "Don't worry about it. I'll wait here for you with Mog."

She nodded, still wearing that sincere smile before bounding off in the direction of the houses littering the beach of New Bodhum. I was left standing there with Mog flying around and Godot. I made sure to give him a long, nasty stare that he had no problem returning. He knew I needed to be on my way, that every moment wasted was precious time that could be used solving the paradox and saving the future.

He was outright mocking me.

He was also expecting a confrontation. But I wasn't going to give him one. I turned my back and waved Mog along; "Come on, Mog. Let's go find some shade."

I found a nice spot near the shore and sat down, admiring the view of the crystal blue water. The sun blazed and burned, scorching my back but I didn't move. The tide was low and I just wanted to watch the waves crash against the rocks as I waited. I found pebbles in the sand and wasted some time throwing them into the water, liking the plopping sound it made every time I did.

Caius had told me there was a method of making them skip but I couldn't for my life figure out how to do that. So I had settled for just dropping them into the water.

I envied them. What I would have given to take a dip in the cool water. To feel it against my skin, to dunk my head in there and have it cling to my hair. I was cooling off just thinking about it. But there was no time for that sort of stuff. As soon as Serah came back, we'd have to leave. There was still so much to do and we were falling behind.

Mog was still flying and I had to admit, I admired the little furball. It was really hot and there he was, his tiny wings flapping away. Although he did look like he'd lost some steam. He wouldn't go up very high and he didn't seem as exuberant as he usually was. I laughed at this and it earned me a curious "Kupo?" from our little friend.

I shook my head and looked away but then Mog cried out, "Kupo! Serah's back!"

My head shot up and I looked in the direction Mog was flitting about excitedly. I squinted and saw her then. Except…she was wearing something different?

I wondered for a moment if it was indeed the same Serah. But as she got closer, I knew it was her. The same pink hair, the side ponytail moving with her as she ran.

But…what was she wearing? What happened to her gloves? And shoes?

She waved at me and before I knew it, she was standing in front of me, breathing hard from running. She stood up straight and smiled at me, clasping her hands behind her back.

"Sorry I kept you waiting."

I didn't reply. I didn't say anything. I was staring. At her clothes. Or, well, I guess it was her skin I was really looking at. I could see her carefully painted and dainty toes, her long slim legs, her lean stomach, that cute belly button and her breasts. They were more exposed than usual now in the pink, low cut whatever it was she was wearing.

I didn't realize how much time I had spent staring until she had moved her arms across her chest, obscuring my view. When I looked up at her face, I could see she was flushed and she couldn't meet my eyes.

Well, this was awkward.

I scratched the back of my head and decided staring at the sand was a better idea. We didn't say anything but Mog interjected with a single kupo.

"Mog likes Serah's clothes, kupo! Is this what everyone wears here, kupo?"

Serah sounded flustered when she replied but I kept my gaze averted. Just in case.

"Yeah! Girls wear something like this when they want to go swimming." She explained.

I looked at her then. So that's what it was! I had read about it before, that folks living by the water would swim for leisure and they'd have special outfits for the occassion. I just…didn't know they would look so…

Enticing…

My eyes were on her again, glazing over her body and the pink, frilly attire she was wearing.

So much skin…

"Hey, Noel?" Her voice brought my attention back to her face.

I needed to stop that. It was probably rude and insulting or something because she didn't look too happy with me.

"Can we hang out by the beach for a bit? I just…I want to watch the sunset. One more time, before we leave. Please?" Her features softened and she leaned forward, soft pink tresses caressing her smooth shoulders when she moved.

I was so focused on not staring at her exposed flesh that I barely heard what she had asked.

"Sure. Why not?"

She looked pretty happy then. I was trying to fight a battle with my inner demons and failing, even as she turned to Mog and said, "Hey, Mog, I think Lebreau wanted to give you something cute, too! Why don't you go find her and see what it is?"

And just like that, I was left alone on the shore of New Bodhum with Serah in a…swimming suit.

As soon as Mog's little excited flying, furry self was out of ear shot, Serah turned to me and leaned in close, so close I had to lean back a little. I was feeling a little flustered and my skin tingled from the heat that might not have been caused by the sun.

"Don't you want to go for a quick dip?" She smiled and winked at me while all I could think of was how sweet she smelled whenever she got so close.

And then she pulled down her frilly shorts, tossed them aside in the sand and bounded off into the water. She splashed and turned to face me when she was knee deep. She smiled and waved me over.

I looked down at my own clothes and decided it wouldn't be a good idea. She pouted and came towards me, splashing me with water while grabbing me by the arm.

"Come on, Noel! Lighten up and have some fun!"

Before I knew it, we were in the water and I was trying to defend myself from her relentless splashing attacks. She laughed and so did I. My clothes were completely soaked but it was refreshing so I didn't complain. Instead, I went in for the kill. I smiled mischievously at her before tackling her into the water. We both went down together and she let out a yelp. We were both running out of breath from laughter.

When I finally managed to slow down a little, my eyes were perfectly level with her bare chest. The skin was tickled with goose flesh and droplets of water and I found myself wondering if she tasted as good as she smelled.

Before I realized what I was doing, I tasted her. To satisfy my curiosity. At first, I thought I'd imagined it but the sweetness of her skin mixed with the saltiness of the water was still fresh on my tongue. And I had heard her gasp, a sharp and quick intake of air, when I had done it.

I looked up into her eyes automatically, wondering if she would be angry or if she'd hit me or push me off of her. Instead, her face looked flushed and she watched me with unsure eyes. But she didn't say anything. She didn't move or object.

I looked down at her chest, heaving with the breaths she took, and I nuzzled my face against her, listening to the steady beat of her heart. And then I licked the hollow between her breasts again, this time slower and longer, relishing in how good she tasted.

She arched her back when I did it this time and her gentle fingers wound their way into my wet hair, grabbing fistfuls of it.

I skipped over to her stomach and licked another hot and wet trail all the way down to her navel. There was another sharp gasp on her part and she pushed my face closer to her body.

On instinct, I grabbed her by the hips and had her wrap her legs around my waist as I continued to taste her skin. I nibbled and licked and kissed every inch of her flesh that I had access to and couldn't bring myself to stop.

She didn't seem to want me to either.

"Serah!" The shout was so abrupt and so loud that we both fell apart instantly when we heard it.

Panting, we looked at each other and sat still in the water. My heart was racing and when I licked my lips, I could still taste her.

I wanted more…

I wiped at my mouth, and didn't look away from her. She stared at my lips briefly before we heard her name again.

"Hey, Serah!"

We both looked towards the beach and saw Lebreau waving at us. Godot was with her and he had his arms folded across his big, muscular chest. I could tell he wasn't too happy. Had they seen us?

I stood up and extended my hand to Serah. She took it and we both walked towards them, pretending as if nothing had happened. Nothing at all.

But I knew it had. I knew it was real. I could still taste her, feel her writhing beneath me, feel how warm she was and how her fingers had tangled themselves in my hair.

I remembered the urgency. I remembered the need. It was real.

We spent the night in New Bodhum upon Lebreau's insistence and she gave me a strange fruit before bed. She plopped it into my hands with a small smile and said, "Try it! It's a rare fruit but I'm sure you'll like it, future boy!"

I quirked up an eyebrow but bit into the small, deep red and seeded berry anyways. Lebreau watched me with a smile the whole time. The fruit tasted sweet and tangy but very delicious. I finished it with the next bite and looked at her for more. Lebreau laughed and handed me a small package filled with the mysterious little berries.

"They're called strawberries, future boy. I knew you'd love them." She said with a chuckle.

"How did you know I'd like them?" I asked between mouthfuls of berry.

She gave me a sly little smile then and said, "Because that's Serah's favorite body lotion flavor."

—Fin

A/N: Hope you enjoyed the read! :) Feedback, as always, is welcomed.