This chapter is a bit peerrrvy, but it gets funny afterwards. Enjoy!

Aiden's P.O.V.

After finishing my first week of school, it was finally Saturday and mom wanted to get us out of the house like she always did, so she took us to the beach.

Nicky made friends already so some of them tagged along too. They were about as obnoxious as Nicky was.

It was hot as hell outside and the beach was crowded with people. Mom and I were sitting on blankets in the sand while Nicky and her girl friends were out in the water.

"You should go out to the ocean," mom turned to me while looking at me through her sunglasses.

I had my swim trunks on, but I didn't want to get in the water yet, especially when Nicky was out there. She would probably grab chunks of wet sand and throw it at me.

"Maybe later," I answered.

Mom nodded and laid back down. She was trying to get a tan, but I knew at the end of the day she would end up with major sun burn.

I sat for a few minutes, taking in the waves and the people around the beach. As I looked around, someone familar caught my eye. It was a girl heading towards the ocean. Wait, is that Clara?

She didn't seem to notice me as she stood at the edge of the ocean taking in the waves. Her hair was down, but it was a little messier than it usually was and she surprisingly wasn't wearing any makeup which was a weird sight for me, but she still looked good.

She was wearing a black bikini that showed quite a bit of cleavage along with matching bottoms.

I found myself checking her out as she slowly walked towards the ocean. I couldn't see her cleavage well anymore since she had just turned around, but I did however get a nice view of her ass. She had nice legs too.

God, what was I doing? I shouldn't be staring at her like that, but once she turned around, all my negative thoughts were forgotten. I found myself looking down at her chest. Her breasts were perky and big and she gave me a better view by raising her arm and running her fingers through her hair.

Jesus. She was hot. I mean really fucking hot. I've never stared at a girl for this long. I turned away only to now realize my lips were turning dry. Damn, I was completely about to drool over this girl, but I knew I had to look away. I couldn't let her catch me staring at her.

I took one more glance only to see her back facing me and I found myself checking out her ass again. If I kept staring at this rate, I might lose it.

"Hey! He's checking you out!" I heard Nicky's voice ring out from behind me.

Oh no.

Clara turned towards the voice and saw me. Shit. I spun my head around to see Nicky who was standing right behind me while giggling with the rest of her friends. Mom poked her head up as well.

I saw Clara making her way over to us. Once she got a good look at me, she mouthed out, "Aiden?"

Fuck me.

I didn't know if I should have ran, or just stayed put, but my mom would have my ass on the line if I ran so I stayed where I was while trying to make as less eye contact with Clara as possible.

I waited for my doom as I saw Clara out of the corner of my eye getting closer. Eventually her feet were visible and I looked up at her.

"I didn't expect to find you here," she said, her accent ringed out confusion.

"Yeah, me neither. I'm sorry my annoying sister over here won't shut her big mouth."

"You were so checking her out! I saw you staring at that booty!" Nicky said loudly before laughing.

God damn it, Nicky.

"I was not!" I felt my face get heated and it wasn't just because of the sun.

"Yeah right!"

"Wait, you two know each other?" Mom interrupted.

I heard Clara chuckle. "Yeah, we know each other at school. I didn't know you had a sister Aiden."

"Yeah, unfortunately I do."

"You're Clara, aren't you?" Mom said in realization.

"Uh, yeah. I assume he's mentioned me?"

"Oh he's talked all about you."

"Mom-" I tried.

"He says that you're the only person who has talked to him. I have to say you are a pretty young lady."

"Thank you. So are you," she smiled.

My mom grinned happily. "Why thank you." She leaned close to me and whispered, "This one's a keeper."

I rolled my eyes and sighed.

"Do you...want to go to the ocean with me?" Clara asked, sensing my discomfort.

"Of course," I gladly said as I got up hurriedly.

"Don't have too much fun out there with her Aiden," Nicky chanted.

I sigh exasperatedly. "Let's just go."

Clara giggled before leading me to the ocean. Once we got to where the water reached our feet, Clara asked, "You want to stand here, or get into the water?"

I shrugged while trying to keep eye contact with her face. "Whatever you wanna do."

She smirked as she looked me up and down. I was aware that I wasn't wearing a shirt. Wait, was she checking me out too? Now I felt slightly less embarrassed about her catching me checking her out.

"Right," she seemed to snap out of her own reverie. "Let's get in the water."

I nodded before following her out to the ocean. The water was kind of cold, which caught both me and Clara off guard. It had to be at least 85 degrees out here.

We went down further until we got used to the temperature and the water reached our shoulders.

"Your family is...interesting," Clara said.

"Yeah, you can say that," I chuckle. "Anyone in your family here with you?"

"Uh, no. I sort of live alone right now. My mom is out of town. I usually come here to relax."

"So you get to stay at your house all by yourself and do whatever you want?"

"Basically, yeah."

"Lucky. I'd kill to have at least a week away from my family."

"I don't blame you," she chuckled softly.

I didn't know why, but I strangely liked hearing her laugh. Her voice in general sounded soft and welcoming. I felt comfortable talking to her.

"Wait, if your mom's out of town and you're by yourself then where is your dad?" I asked out of curiosity.

I saw a weird look flash across her face that I couldn't quite make out, but it was only for a second before she went back to her normal expression.

Damn, did I strike a nerve?

"I haven't seen my father since I was little, so he isn't around," she frowned slightly.

"Oh...I'm sorry," I say, feeling dumb for bringing the question up. Way to go, Pearce.

"No, it's not your fault. How would you have known? I don't really think about him anyways."

There was an awkward silence between us after that. She looked away from me for a few seconds appearing lost in thought and I took a deep breath.

"My dad isn't around either," I broke the silence.

She turned to me.

"My mom thought he was absolutely crazy and he was, but she didn't want me to end up like him, so we moved to America when I was 13."

"Where were you originally from?"

"Ireland."

"Irish..." she smirked seeming to enjoy the fact I was from Ireland. "Do you speak any?"

"Haha, no. My family spoke english."

"Aw, that's a bummer. I really wanted to hear you speak a different language."

"Yeah, when pigs fly," I rolled my eyes and grinned.

"Who even says that anymore?"

"Me apparently."

We were silent again for a few more seconds before Clara spoke. "What would you do if I splashed you?"

There was a mischievous look in her eye that clearly meant trouble. I smirked, wanting to tag along with her little game.

"I'd probably splash you ba-"

Just then, she swung her hand across the water and I was greeted by the bitter taste of salt and fish shit.

"Oh no you don't," I say before I splashed her back.

She stuck her hands up weakly in an attempt to keep the water from hitting her face, but failed miserably.

Clara giggled almost like a school girl before splashing at me again. I was quick to back away this time and I saw her trying to swim away. I immediately went after her.

"Hey!" I shouted while chasing her. She was a giggling mess which caused her to slow down. I took this opportunity to catch up with her and eventually I caught her.

I grabbed ahold of her waist and spun her around so she was facing me. Our faces nearly clashed together, but Clara managed to steady herself by placing her hands on my bare shoulders.

We were close. My hand was still on the small of her back, and we found ourselves gazing at each other. I felt my heart begin to pound in my chest as I saw Clara beginning to bite her lip nervously or excitedly. I wasn't sure what she was thinking.

I cleared my throat before saying "Sorry," and letting go of her. "Was that too sudden?"

"What do you mean?" She looked confused.

"I mean..." I scratched the back of my head awkwardly, "Grabbing you. Was that too sudden?"

"No, you're fine," she chuckled sounding almost out of breath.

I sighed in relief. "Okay...so uh..." I tried to bring up another topic, but failed to do so.

I saw a small smile appear on her lips. "Really, it's okay. It's all part of the game, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," I shrug.

I heard my stomach begin to growl and Clara must have heard it too because she let out a soft chuckle.

"Why don't we get something to eat? And don't worry, I brought money so your family doesn't have to follow you everywhere."

"Thank God," I say with a chuckle.

Soon, we got out of the water and I had to tell my mom where I was going.

"I could have got you all something, but if you insist, go on ahead," mom says while waving us off.

I mentally sighed in relief. We dried ourselves off before putting on some clothes over our bathing suits and leaving. We decided to go to a local pizzeria since it was the nearest place we could find and simply because we were hungry.

Once we got inside, we waited in line in order to get a table. Clara turned to me with a wide grin.

"So what's your favorite pizza topping?"

"Hm...sausage and pepperoni," I said, feeling hungry.

"Really? That's my favorite too. I especially like putting a little hot sauce on mine. Jesus, now I'm getting hungry."

I chuckled, "I don't blame you."

After waiting for about a minute, we finally got a booth. We sat from across each other and got our menus even though we already knew what we wanted.

"This has to be one of the best pizza places in San Francisco. Trust me, I've eaten here before with my friends so you won't be disappointed. Matter of fact, I think you, me and my friends should all hang out some day."

"Yeah, as long as you're there, I'll go. There's no way I can handle your friends by myself."

She laughed a little, "Don't worry, they would be incomplete without me. I know how annoying they can be at times."

"Yeah, they can be."

We spent the next 10 minutes asking each other random questions like our favorite colors, favorite food, and hobbies. Our food came shortly after. The sight and the smell of the pizza had my mouth watering.

Regardless of the pizza being insanely hot, I took a bite anyway because I was starving. I nearly burned my whole mouth before spitting it back out, causing Clara to laugh at me. Yep, my mistake.

"You need to wait," she says while giggling.

"Yeah, yeah."

After a few minutes of waiting, we finally ate, and I had to say I was not disappointed. Honestly, it was the best pizza I've ever had.

After we got done, Clara paid for everything and we basically spent the rest of the day walking around the city for a bit before returning to the beach. Mom and Nicky looked about as red as tomatoes from the sun.

"This is gonna hurt like a bitch when I get home," mom swore under breath while picking up her blanket.

I couldn't help but laugh. I knew Clara heard it too and she laughed too. Nicky's whole body was covered in sand and sea salt. I'm glad I found Clara here, otherwise, I'd end up like mom and Nicky.

"Well...," Clara turned me with her hands behind her back, "I'm happy I found you here. I had a good time today."

I gave her a small smile. "Yeah, me too."

We were silent for a moment.

"So um...I'll see you at school?" Clara said.

"Yeah," I let out a slightly awkward chuckle.

"Okay..." she studied me for a few seconds before saying, "Goodbye, Aiden."

"Bye," I waved to her as she began to walk away. I turned around to face mom and Nicky.

"I'm guessing we're going home?" I said to mom with an amused expression.

"What do you think?" She said in frustration. "I'll burn to a crisp if I stay out here any longer."

So much for her wanting a tan.

When we got home, mom made Nicky and herself something to eat while I was still full from scarfing down half of a large pizza pie. Hell I think Clara could have eaten it all before I did; she was quick.

Yeah. I was glad I ran into her today. Otherwise, today would have sucked.