Short fluffy chapter with some serious tension and chemistry. Thanks to Rose the Fox for the story idea!

The Beach Day

Flynn and Julie always celebrated the first day of summer break with a trip to the beach. This year they were old enough to go themselves, without their parents, so Flynn picked Julie up in her car and Julie hopped in, snacks, books, and sunscreen in tow.

"Thank god it is beach day again. This year has felt so crazy long," Flynn commented as she started up the car again.

"Totally. Like…a year ago I couldn't bring myself to play music and now I'm in a ghost band that's blowing up the internet? Talk about a plot twist."

The two girls laughed, and reminisced about other things that had happened that year. Just as they pulled into the parking lot for the beach, which was thankfully not crowded since it was a weekday, Julie mentioned, "Oh, by the way, I told the boys we were doing this and said they could come if they wanted."

Flynn grinned and said, "Nice, can't wait to see you blushing from head to toe every time Luke looks your way."

Julie blushed in response, which only made Flynn cackle more, and then Julie punched her in the shoulder and they climbed out of the car.

When they made it down to the beach, Julie doubled over laughing, while Flynn looked at her in confusion. The boys were in the middle of trying to make a human pyramid on the sand, but between being made of air and being uncoordinated, it wasn't going very well.

They turned around before Julie could even catch her breath and explain what was going on to Flynn. Reggie and Alex started waving, but Luke's jaw hung open for maybe a full minute before he realized he was staring and blushed. He hadn't seen Julie in a bathing suit before and now he caught himself wishing she could wear it all the time.

Julie leaned over to Flynn and whispered, "Guess what? I'm not the only one blushing intensely," and the girls giggled. Flynn had seen Luke gazing at Julie often enough on stage to know exactly what her best friend meant.

Julie and Flynn went to lie down on their towels and start reading. The boys tried making sand castles but got frustrated by trying to pick up sand. Reggie lay down on next to Flynn, Alex wandered off for a walk up and down the mostly empty beach, and Luke started bugging Julie.

"Julie, come onnnn come swimming with me. You can't just do nothing at the beach. Pleeease?" She laughed at his puppy dog eyes and agreed eventually.

They waded into the water, and Julie was amused to realize Luke could move much faster because the water moved through him instead of holding him back. Hanging out with the boys constantly caused her to reassess the world and the things she took for granted.

They were out in water up to shoulder height when Julie stumbled over a rock, and the ocean floor fell out from under her. She uttered a small yelp and her head slipped under water. Before she could even push herself up and break the surface again, she felt a strong pair of arms wrap around her waist and pull her back up.

She gasped a lungful of air that was as much about surprise as it was about breathing. She was only an inch from Luke's face, and he wasn't letting go. Her breathing settled, but their eyes were still locked with a very specific kind of intensity that Julie thought romance books would probably describe as 'desire,' even if she'd never really seen it before.

Luke bit his lower lip as they treaded water. The waves pushed them a little closer, and Julie's eyes started to flutter shut.

All of a sudden, she heard jeers and cat calls from the shore. Reggie and Alex had noticed what was happening and started teasing them. Julie blushed just as hard as Flynn had predicted, and Luke finally let go of her while blushing just as hard.

Julie swam to shore quickly and hid behind her book the rest of the afternoon. Flynn eventually drove them home when the sun was setting, and Julie had dinner with her family, trying to put the memory of her almost-kiss with Luke out of her mind.

But try as she might, she couldn't. Almost against her will, she found her feet heading towards the studio after dinner. When she got there, she found Luke alone, just as she had been both hoping and fearing.

"Oh, uh, hi," she stuttered, unsure of what to say.

Luke jumped because he hadn't noticed her approaching, and then mumbled, "Hey Julie." He stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets, refusing to make eye contact.

"Where are the Reggie and Alex?" Julie asked, looking around as if she would find them hiding behind the couch.

"I, uh, kicked them out. Because I was mad at them."

"Because…" Julie paused for a moment, and then took a deep breath. She had come out here for a reason. "Because we almost kissed?" she managed to get out.

Luke finally looked at her. That same look was in his eyes again, and Julie suspected he could see it in hers, too. "Yeah," he said quietly.

The silence that hung between them was heavy with tension. Julie found herself wondering if it would ever end, but finally Luke took a step forward and then another, until he was in her personal space. He looped an arm around her waist again, and Julie could have sworn their bodies were designed to fit together like this.

Very softly, he said, "I'd really like to finish what we started."

Julie had barely finished saying, "Me, too," before Luke leaned down and kissed her. Julie's arms instinctively wrapped around his neck and the kiss deepened as he pressed her closer to him. Julie lost all sense of her surroundings, and was only able to focus on the sensations of Luke's hands and lips. Without noticing, she wound up pressed against the back of the piano, bracing against it for support.

This time, even Alex and Reggie interrupting wouldn't prevent Luke from kissing Julie for as long as he could.