A/N: I am soooo sorry this took so damn long to post. I had a severe lack of inspiration for this story. I didn't abandon as I know a few of you were worried about. I would never do that with this story. I love it to damn much. I'd like to give a big thanks to TwightButterflies, Paradoxismminant, and Utena-Puchiko for helping me out with ideas and encouragement with this chapter when I called out to them for help. Thanks so much you three! This chapter is dedicated to you!
Chapter Ten
Shizuki woke up groggy and crusty eyed the next morning. A pleasant ache tingled through his entire body from the previous night's activities. However, an unpleasant sweaty, sticky feeling clung to the insides of his thighs and lower regions of his body. He always disliked falling asleep right after sex. He didn't like the clean up the next morning. He couldn't be upset with Umeda about it though. After all, he'd nearly done all the work. He'd been so damn hot last night.
The blond glanced over at his lover, amused to find him sprawled on his stomach with the pillow pulled over his head. He had no idea how the doctor never smothered himself in his sleep like that. The blocked the sun out though so that was probably why the man was still asleep. He was also probably exhausted and achier than Shizuki from the sex last night.
Shizuki slowly pushed himself up into a sitting position, yawning and scrubbing his fingers through his messy bed head. He was reluctant to get out of the warm, cozy nest of his bed, but he knew there were a lot of things to do before they all left for the beach this afternoon. His mother and the girls were probably gonna go crazy getting ready too. He just wanted to get a shower and pack his own beach supplies before they took over everything. Maybe if they weren't to scary he'd help them make stuff to bring for lunch. Right now, though all he wanted was that shower.
He pulled back the sheets and climbed to his feet. He looked back when Umeda shifted, sensing his sudden absence. He smiled slightly before gathering up his shirt and swim trunks to change into later.
"Shizuki?" Umeda sleep graveled voiced stopped him just as he was about to leave the room.
The blond walked back over to the bed as Umeda pushed the pillow off and raised his head to see where his boyfriend had gone.
"Good morning," Shizuki ruffled his lover's wild tresses. "I'm just gonna take a shower real quick before the women storm the bathroom. Stay here and relax. I'll be back."
Umeda groaned. "No. I better get up too. I'd like a shower as well."
He grimaced when he sort of stuck to the sheets as he tried to sit up. Shizuki snickered a little but stopped when the doctor glared at him. He waited for Umeda to gather his clothes to before they both headed down the hall to the bathroom. Shizuki checked to make sure the room was empty before opening the door and allowing Umeda to walk past him before he followed. He shut the door, set his clothes on the sink, and turned on the shower. He laughed when Umeda dropped his head on his shoulder with a tired groan.
"See, you pushed yourself to hard last night," Shizuki admonished him. He felt Umeda smile against his skin.
"Oh, I pushed hard alright."
The blond reached back to pop the doctor on the head when his hand began to creep around Shizuki's hip. "None of that now. You need your energy for the day."
Umeda raised his head with a sigh. "Mood wrecker."
"Sexaholic," Shizuki replied snidely before stepping into the shower. Umeda crowded in behind him. They began their morning ritual of showering together. It was a well coordinated set of steps. One got wet, switch while the other shampooed, switch to rinse, and then do the same for washing the body, except they each usually helped wash the other down. That usually led to other activities which Shizuki was trying to avoid this morning for the sake of time. Umeda seemed to have other ideas. He was horny again despite the sex from the previous night. He crowded into Shizuki's space as he slid his soapy hands down the blond's body.
Shizuki groaned as the doctor kneaded his hips. "You're really trying hard, aren't you?"
"Oh yeah. It seems to be working," he answered, rubbing his belly against the blond's erection.
Shizuki moaned, letting his head fall back. "How do you always manage to bully me into doing whatever you want?"
"Lots of practice," Umeda breathed. He slipped his hands around Shizuki's backside to knead at the muscle there. Shizuki cracked his eyes open to glare at him warningly. He shrugged, letting his hands slide away. "One of these days I'm gonna get in there."
"Uh huh. When I say so," the blond replied evenly, ignoring the quiver of fear that always rose with Umeda mentioned this particularly subject. "Now, c'mon. We need to get out of here."
"Fine fine."
//////////////////
The morning went by fast after their shower together. Shizuki did help his mother make food to pack for lunch. He knew his friends would be bringing stuff too so it would be like one big picnic. Umeda had packed their beach bag for him so he didn't have to worry about it. The girls took turns showering before they started packing their beach bags. They were just finishing up when Umeda plopped down onto the couch.
"Hi, everyone!"
Umeda looked up as a young black woman walked in the room with a big grin. Mizuki jumped up with a cry of delight and wrapped her arms around the woman in a big hug. Julia was next to greet her and give her a hug.
"Hey, Lisa!" Shizuki grinned as he walked into the room, carrying the big picnic basket.
"Hey, Shizu! Long time no see!" She pulled the blond man into a hug. He laughed and hugged her back warmly.
"Where have you been?" Shizuki asked her after being released from her embrace.
Lisa laughed. "You didn't even notice I wasn't here, you butthead."
Shizuki shrugged and smiled sheepishly. "I've been busy since I got home."
"Yeah yeah. Well, I've been at my parents' house for a few weeks." Lisa informed him.
"That's good. I'm sure they were happy to see you," The blond replied.
"They were, but I was happy to leave too. I love them both and my little sister, but they drive me crazy after a while. It was nice to come back to California," Lisa remarked as she sat down on a chair. "So anything new going on?"
Umeda shifted on the couch, which caught Lisa's attention.
"Oh my God! I didn't even notice you were there!" The young woman gasped in surprise. She gapped for a moment when Umeda looked up to gaze back at her. Holy shit! She thought. Hottie alert! "Who are you?"
Shizuki started to laugh. "Now who's not being observant?"
"Shuttup, Shizu, and introduce us!" Lisa barked at him.
Umeda grinned as Shizuki put his hands up in surrender. "Lisa, this is my boyfriend, Hokuto Umeda." Shizuki gestured at his lover. "Hokuto, this is Lisa. She's my dad's vet. assistant."
Umeda nodded his head in greeting. "Nice to meet you."
"It's very nice to meet you. I've heard a lot about you from Mizuki," Lisa replied as she got up and gave the doctor a hug in greeting. Umeda blinked in surprise before giving her a tentative hug back. Was it a girl thing in the states to hug everyone they saw? "Don't worry, sweetie, I just wanted to get my hands on you for a minute. It was hard to resist." She patted his shoulder with a grin.
Umeda chuckled. "You must have read my mind."
"You were practically broadcasting it aloud," Lisa replied with a bright smile. "You're a real handsome guy. Shizuki's got good taste."
"Thanks," he replied.
"So what are you all up to today?" Lisa changed the subject. She looked over at Mizuki and Julia who were checking their beach bags to make sure they had everyone.
Mizuki looked up with an excited smile. "We're going to the beach!"
"I've got all my stuff," Rio said as walked into the room with her bag in hand.
"There's new people all over the place in here," Lisa said.
Rio stopped and eyed up the new person.
"Lisa, that's my sister Rio Umeda. Lisa works for Mizuki's dad, Rio," Umeda introduced the two.
"Nice to meet you," Rio gave the woman a brief bow.
Lisa smiled in delight. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Rio." She walked over to give the girl a hug. Rio seemed less surprised by the gesture than Umeda had been. "Mizuki's told me a lot about you too."
"I was really excited you guys were coming to visit," Mizuki grinned sheepishly.
Julia snickered. "She wouldn't shut up about it."
"Well, she had a good excuse," Lisa remarked. "So you guys are going to the beach, huh?"
"Yeah," Shizuki answered. "You're invited if you'd like to come."
Lisa clapped her hands together. "Alright! I'd love to come. I'd have to run to my place to get my stuff though."
"We're not leaving for another hour," Julia told her.
"Well, I can get my stuff and come back before that." Lisa said.
"Great! You gotta come!" Mizuki grinned.
"We'll wait for you," Shizuki put in. "Actually we'll pick you up on our way out."
Lisa grinned happily. "Perfect! Don't you dare leave without me. I'll see you guys again in a bit!" She hurried out the room. A moment later, they heard the door shut behind her.
///////////////////
They actually ended up leaving on time for once. That was a miracle in itself. No one forgot anything. Mrs. Shizuki made sure everyone triple checked their bags for everything they'd need before they left the house. The car was packed in near record time. The parents and the girls all piled into one car while Shizuki and Umeda took the other. They figured out where they wanted to meet up at when they got to the beach then took off to get Lisa. Lisa was sitting on her apartment steps waiting for them when they finally made over to her place. She threw her bag onto the seat and climbed in.
"I thought you had forgotten me," she remarked with a grin. "Since you're so good at doing that."
"Gonna keep rubbing that in, huh?" Shizuki rolled his eyes. "We weren't gonna forget you."
"So I assume we are meeting up with everyone at the usual spot?" Lisa asked as she buckled herself in.
Shizuki nodded. "Yep."
"Who else is going? Just the girls and your parents?" She inquired.
"Gilbert's meeting us there. And all of my friends from school, except Chris. He had to cancel," The blond replied.
"Oh good. I love your friends." She clapped her hands. "Long as Houston doesn't try to flirt with me to much again."
"He's taken now."
"Oh, finally!" She laughed. "So, Hokuto, how you liking your visit to California so far?"
Umeda glanced back at her with a brief smile. "It's been good."
"What's Shizuki taken you out to do so far?"
"We toured U.C. Berkeley, we went clubbing ("Without me!" Lisa cried.), Shizuki took me out for a date in downtown San Francisco, he's shown me the hospital he used to work at, and some other very interesting places." Umeda ticked off the things they'd done so far.
"Interesting places…?" She glanced over at Shizuki and saw his cheeks turn red. "Oh! He took you to the lover's pond, huh? You dirty little sneak!" She laughed as Shizuki got redder and Umeda just smiled wider.
Umeda glanced back curiously. "Wait, how do you know about that spot?"
"Shizuki didn't tell you?" She asked in surprised.
"Lisa…" Shizuki grumbled, in a half irritating slash plaintive tone.
She rolled her eyes. "Stop being a baby. It's way in the past now."
Umeda was only getting more confused. "What's in the past?"
"Shizuki and I were a couple for a while about three years ago. We had a good relationship, but we figured out we just weren't right for each other so we broke up," She shrugged.
"We've stayed good friends though," Shizuki put in.
"Why were you worried about telling me that?" Umeda asked his boyfriend. He really didn't care who the blond dated in the past. God knows he was really somewhat of a whore before Shizuki. He couldn't really begrudge the man the desire to date an attractive woman before he'd finally figured out he was gay.
"It just felt weird, I guess. I mean you've been gay since puberty. Me, I'm still getting used to this and I feel awkward talking about my previous dating experiences when they were all girls," Shizuki admitted with a shrug.
"Oh…well that's kinda silly. There's no reason to feel like that about your dating history," Umeda replied easily. He turned back towards Lisa. "How'd you figure out he wasn't right for you? I know it was you that probably ended it, right?"
She chuckled. "Exactly. You've got him pegged. I could just tell he wasn't all there in the relationship. I mean, he was great in bed and an awesome kisser (as I'm sure you know), but it felt like there was a part of him he wasn't letting me in on."
Shizuki was once again turning red as she told Umeda this. He'd never realized until he'd begun to feel for Umeda how much of himself he'd been holding back. He felt somewhat guilty towards all the women he'd ever dated. He had tried to give them all of his attention, but with every girl he'd been with there had always been a feeling of lacking in the relationship. He didn't even know what it was until he realized he loved Umeda. He looked over to see Umeda smiling at him. He looked up in the rearview mirror to see Lisa giving him the same look.
"What?" He barked.
"You're an idiot," they both said and started to laugh.
He scowled in irritation.
"Well, I'm glad you finally found someone you really love, Shizu," Lisa said sincerely. "It makes me happy to know you've got someone."
"Thanks, Lisa," he dropped the scowl and replaced it with a warm smile that he directed her way via the rearview mirror.
The rest of the car ride was spent with pleasant chatting between all of them. Before long they made it to the beach and down to the usual spot. No one else was around except the Shizuki family car, Gilbert's old beater car, and Sarah's silver Honda. This stretch of the beach was completely theirs. Crystal ran over as they all climbed out of the car. She squealed in delight when she saw Lisa and threw her arms around the other girl. The two laughed excitedly as they hugged.
"Oh my God, I haven't seen you in ages! I'm so glad you came!" Crystal gasped as she finally let go of Lisa.
"It's good to see, you girl! You haven't changed at all," Lisa grinned.
Sarah came over to give the black girl a big hug while Crystal diverted her attention to Umeda, who couldn't escape before she'd grabbed him up in a tight hug. He'd never been hugged more in the rest of his life as he had been here in California. As nice as it was to feel like he was part of the group, the hugging was beginning to get to him. Thankfully she released him rather quickly after he gave her an awkward pat on the back. He breathed a slight sigh of relief and looked over to see Shizuki smirking at him knowingly.
They all made their way down to the beach where the girls as well as Mr. and Mrs. Ashiya had already staged their big umbrella and all their gear. They set down all their stuff to before starting to take off shorts and t-shirts then apply sunscreen. Gilbert and the girls didn't wait for them as they took off towards the water to play. It was only when Shizuki and his friends were ready to go down to the water that they noticed that Umeda was still wearing his t-shirt.
"Why are you wearing that shirt still. It's hot. Take it off." Houston remarked.
Umeda shook his head. "I don't feel like getting sunburned."
"You won't get sunburned if you take off that stupid shirt and let me put some sun block on you." Shizuki rolled his eyes.
"I don't like how greasy that stuff feels."
"Stop being a baby." The blond said.
"I'm not being a baby."
"We're not gonna wait for you if you don't want to come play in the water with us," Sarah told Umeda.
Umeda looked grumpy for a minute. He really hated getting sun burned. He hated sun block almost as much, but he didn't want to be left out either. He felt like the little brother everyone was trying to get rid of, because he was being a brat. He sighed to himself. "Fine, Shizuki can put sun block on me."
"Good. We'll meet you all out there in a few minutes, ok?" Shizuki smiled at the rest of his friends.
"Alright, but don't take to long," Crystal grinned before grabbing Lisa and Sarah's hand, then dragging them off towards the beach. Houston trotted after them.
Shizuki walked back to the place where the girls had piled their bags and his parents had set up their umbrella. He glanced back at the water to see Gilbert and the girls already out teaching Rio how to body surf. His friends were just splashing into the water. His parents were off walking the shoreline. He and Umeda were alone for a few minutes. He set down his bag, pulled out a beach towel and laid it, then found his bottle of sun block buried at the bottom of the bag.
"Sit down," he directed Umeda, pointing at the towel.
"You'd think with how far technology has gone they'd find a way to devise non-greasy sun block." Umeda grumbled as he dropped down to sit cross legged on the towel.
Shizuki shook his head and smiled to himself as he knelt down behind his boyfriend. "They have. We just didn't buy it. It's more expensive. This stuff works just as well."
"They lied any ways. There's no such thing as non-greasy sun block. It's like UFOs and aliens," Umeda replied.
"Are you gonna take off your shirt or am I gonna have to do it for you?" The blond played shoved his lover in the shoulder.
Umeda glanced back at him with a coy grin. "How about you do it for me?"
Shizuki laughed and wrapped his arms around the doctor to reach for the buttons of his shirt. "You're such an attention whore when you want to be."
"No, I just like having an excuse to get you to touch me." Umeda leaned back against the blond's chest and closed his eyes. He smiled when Shizuki's hands slipped inside his shirt to run over the smooth plane of stomach before dipping the tips of his fingers teasingly down the top of his swim trunks. Umeda grunted in annoyance when those fingers slipped away before he even got to enjoy anything. Shizuki chuckled in his ear at his obvious irritation. He pushed the shirt off the doctor's shoulders, folded it carefully, and placed it in his bag. "Tease." Umeda hissed as he watched the blond squeeze sun block into the palm of his hand.
"You wanted me to take your shirt off. You didn't ask for anything else," Shizuki said loftily, then slapped his sun blocked filled palm against Umeda's back.
Umeda yelped at the sudden slimy feeling on his skin. He shuddered as the blond smeared it across his skin in one long swipe. "Ugh, hurry up! That stuff feels disgusting."
"Stop acting like a girl," Shizuki murmured in his ear. He began to rub his hands over Umeda's back, making sure to cover every bare inch with a layer of the slimy lotion. He started at the small of the doctor's back and worked upwards, making sure to drop teasing kisses on Umeda's neck as he worked. By the time his hands had reached the doctor's shoulders, Umeda was beginning to breathe a bit shallow. "See, it wasn't that bad."
"If everyone put sun block on that way maybe I wouldn't hate it so much." Umeda remarked.
"True. Here put some on your face." Shizuki squeezed some of the sun block into Umeda's hand. "I'll finish up with your arms and chest."
Umeda had to force himself to concentrate as the blond worked the lotion over each arm with smooth, firm strokes of his palm. He was sure by the time Shizuki's hands touched his chest that the entire beach could see erection that was trying to tent the front of his shorts. He groaned as Shizuki's fingers kneaded sun block into his skin. He could tell the blond was deliberately going slow to drive him crazy. He growled under his breath when Shizuki tweaked a nipple and nibbled the side of his ear. "If you keep doing that the entire beach is going to see me hold you down and fuck you until I get my satisfaction." He threatened Shizuki.
The blond laughed and pulled his hands away to wave them in the air in a gesture of surrender. "Alright, I'm done."
"Damn tease."
Shizuki grinned. "I think we should go join the others before they start to wonder what we are doing."
"You mean besides you trying to seduce me?"
"I was doing no such thing. You were imagining it," Shizuki smirked as he stood up and reached down to help the doctor up too.
Umeda grabbed his hand then yanked downwards. The blond stumbled and fell right into the doctor's lap with a yelp. Umeda palmed the Shizuki's erection with a cheeky smile. "I imagined it, huh?" The blond's cheeks flamed bright red at the blatant move the doctor was making. Umeda squeezed him through his trunks before moving his hand away. "I suppose you're right though. We better go find your friends." He pushed Shizuki off his lap and got to his feet.
Shizuki glowered and grabbed a handful of sand. "You think you can just walk away after doing something like that in front of the entire beach?"
Umeda shrugged without turning around as he started to walk away. "Why not? What are you gonna do about it?"
The blond scrambled to his feet before hurrying after the doctor. He trotted up behind Umeda, grabbed the back of his pants, and dumped the handful of sand down Umeda's ass before the doctor even knew what he was doing. He laughed when Umeda yelped in disgust. The blond took off running before Umeda could grab for him. Umeda cursed at him before he took off after him. He chased the blond all the down to the water and out into the waves. He didn't catch the blond until they were more than waist deep into the water. He tackled the blond low in the back and they both went over in a heap. Water flew everywhere as they scrambled, twisted, and battled with each other; one trying to get away while the other struggled to hang on. They only broke apart when a wave suddenly swept up and smacked them in the face. Both sat up sputtering, trying desperately to wipe stinging sea water out of their eyes, and catch their breath.
Shizuki glanced over at Umeda and burst out laughing. "You should see yourself! Your hair's standing on end and your swim trunks are about to fall off your ass!" He continued chortling as Umeda readjusted his clothing with a look of wounded dignity on his face.
"Who's fault is it that my trunks are almost off? I distinctly remember you trying to de-pants me at one point," Umeda replied haughtily.
"Well, you can't really blame me. You do look very good with no pants on," the blond replied with a silly smirk.
Umeda rolled his eyes. "Kiss up. That's not gonna make me forgive you for putting sand down my pants. I'm gonna be digging that out of my ass for days."
"I'm not helping with that expedition."
"It's about time you guys came out here," they heard Crystal yell from a distance away.
They looked over to see her and the others wading towards them.
"I saw you try to yank his pants off, Shizuki," Houston winked at his friend. "I was a little disappointed when you didn't succeed."
"Well, as fine as I think my body is I'd rather not display it for the entire world," Umeda replied, retying the string on his trunks.
"What a shame," Sarah remarked with a mock sigh of sorrow.
"So we brought boogie boards! Who wants to be the first to use them!" Crystal held up one brightly colored foam board.
Shizuki laughed as he reached over to grab one. "Have you used one before, Umeda?"
"No," the doctor replied eyeing said board with skepticism.
"Well, I'll show you. It's a lot of fun. A lot easier than surfing."
Umeda wasn't quite sure he'd agree to that statement later.
/////////////////////////
A 1/4 mile down the beach Gilbert was body surfing with Rio, Mizuki, and Julia. He was having fun teaching Rio how to catch a wave probably in order to ride it all the way into shore. He thought half the fun of hanging out with girls at the beach was having an excuse to eye them up in their bikinis. He definitely felt like a helluva lucky guy to be hanging out with not one, but three pretty damn fine women. Each of them had a great body in her own right. Mizuki would always be flat chested, but her tiny waist and shapely legs made up for the boobs. Julia had a rake and ass on her that would make just about any girl jealous. It was Rio though that he thought was the cutest of the three. She had a nice set of boobs, trim little hips, and a lovely set of legs he'd love to get lost between. She was the perfect shape he thought. He really wanted to get his hands on her. It was such a tease to be so close to her and have to restrain himself, but he prided himself on being a gentleman now.
He had caught Rio sneaking glances at him too. He grinned when he met her eyes. She flushed bright red and spun around to talk to Mizuki. He chuckled to himself. He knew he looked pretty good. He'd been working hard to get muscle definition back into his arms, chest, stomach, and legs after years of being unable to exercise and play like other boys. He was lucky he hadn't gotten tremendously fat from all the surgery and home rest he'd been forced to endure. He was all worth it now he thought if it meant this cute girl was taking notice of him.
Rio was having a blast learning to body surf. She'd never gotten a chance to learn before back home. She didn't leave very close to the beach. The few times she'd gotten to go to one had been sort of a bust. It was so great to finally be with friends and get to actually play in the water. She was having a hard time keeping her eyes off Gilbert though. He was lot more muscular than she'd thought under his clothes. She kept finding her eyes drawn to that dark trail of hair that started at his belly button and dipped below his swim trunks. The V of his hips just seemed to draw her eyes there. She had almost missed a few waves from trying not to stare and failing miserably.
"Nice eye candy, huh?" Julia whispered in her ear as they waited for another wave to come.
Rio flushed bright red and looked over to see if he'd heard. He was busy joking with Mizuki though. She let out a sigh of relief. "Yeah." She agreed simply.
"Kinda makes you wonder what the whole package looks like," Julia smirked, letting her eyes drift down to Gilbert's crotch blatantly.
"Julia!" Rio hissed, cheeks getting redder still. "You're awful."
Julia laughed delightedly at her friend's reaction. Gilbert looked over to see what was going on. He smiled when he saw Julia laughing and Rio blushing. He had some idea what the topic had been without even having to hear the conversation. He glanced back. "Wave!"
They all got ready.
"Wait for it!...Go!"
They all jumped and surfed their way into the shore, laughing madly as they were dumped gracelessly into the sand. Julia clambered to her feet and grabbed Mizuki's hand to help her up. Gilbert did the same for Rio.
"Hey, Mizuki, you wanna go find seashell hunting with me? I wanna make a sandcastle and decorate it!" Julia exclaimed.
Mizuki clapped her hands excitedly. "I haven't made a sandcastle in a long time! Sure, I'll come! What about you guys?" She turned back to Rio and Gilbert.
Rio looked torn. She glanced back at Gilbert a touch longingly.
"Want me to teach you to jump waves?" Gilbert asked innocently.
"Yes!" She said happily. "I'm gonna stay with Gilbert if that's ok."
Mizuki grinned. "Alright! We'll see yah later! Don't lose sight of our spot on the beach!"
"We won't go that far," Gilbert assured her.
Julia dragged Mizuki away. "C'mon, Mizuki!"
Gilbert took Rio's hand and led her back out into the waves. The two laughed as they fought their way back into the water until they were a little more that waist deep. Gilbert explained the art of wave jumping, which was a lot like body surfing in Rio's mind. He kept hold of her hand as the first wave swept forward to meet them. They jumped and got slung backward by the small wall of water. Rio giggled delightedly as she touched back down again. The two worked their way back into deeper water and began the process all over again. They jumped waves until their stomachs hurt from laughing while their legs began to burn from jumping and slogging through water.
"Last one alright! Then we'll go back in for dinner!" Gilbert half called over the noise of the ocean.
"O-." The next wave crashed into them before she could finish her sentence. It slammed over them, ripping their hands apart and tossing them around under the water. Gilbert came up spluttering and scrambling to get his feet back under him. He glanced around half panicked as he searched for Rio. He had tried to hang on to her hand, but he'd lost his grip. He felt a jab of fear for a split second. Then suddenly Rio surfaced beside him. She gasped as her head broke above the water and then she regained her footing. Gilbert felt a wave of relief wash over him before he realized one very crucial thing.
Rio's top had come untied.
His heart leapt into his throat when he realized she was standing in front of him completely bare breasted. Oh God, forgive him, because he got an instant hard on. Those were the most beautiful pair of boobs he'd ever seen—porn models and ex-girlfriends included. His mouth went dry with sheer want. She glanced down to see what he was staring at and squeaked in horror. Her hands flew up to cover herself, but it was far to late. Gilbert spun around to give her a little privacy to put her bikini top back on. There was a moment of awkward silence as he waited for her to tell him it was safe to turn around.
"Ummm, Gilbert?"
"Yeah?"
Rio swallowed hard. "Could you…tie the strings for me? I can't get it."
Oh, dear Lord. He was being tested. He knew it! This was torture! "Sure." He turned around to see her back to him. Her hands were behind her neck holding out the strings for him to take. He tied the strings as fast as possible with shaking fingers. It took a lot of effort to resist the urge to rip the rest of her bikini off and just touch her all over to his heart's content. He bit his lip as he finally got it tied then double knotted for good measure.
"Alright." He reached down to take her hand and turn her around. "I think we better go back to shore before anything else happens."
She nodded. "That was really embarrassing."
Gilbert swallowed and glanced over to see her looking at him. Her cheeks were still slightly flushed. "For what it's worth, you shouldn't be embarrassed. You've got a beautiful body."
"T-Thanks," she stammered, looking away quickly as her cheeks flamed bright red again.
He squeezed her hand and slowly walked her back into to dry land.
//////////////////////
Shizuki, Umeda, and the others stayed out in the water boogie boarding for a while before they decided to head in. A glance over at the others saw Gilbert and the girls still body surfing. Mr. and Mrs. Ashiya were walking along ankle deep in the water up the shoreline. Further up, Crystal had spotted a volley ball net much to everyone's horror.
"Oh, we are so playing volley ball!" Crystal exclaimed with a big grin. She ran to her bag and returned with a ball before any of them could protest. "You can't come to the beach and not play volleyball!"
"You're the only one that thinks that," Houston teased her as he pulled on a ball cap to shade his eyes.
"So! We're all gonna play! We have enough people for 3 person teams! We'll play girls against guys." She said. "It's perfect."
"Perfect for you," Shizuki grinned. "We'll get our asses handed to us."
Umeda looked slightly offended. "I'm actually semi-decent at volleyball, thank you."
"What? Since when?" Shizuki asked in surprise.
"Since high school." Umeda shrugged. "Everyone had to be involved in one sport in Osaka High. I did volleyball, because I hate running."
"Maybe we're not doomed then," Houston grinned.
Lisa grabbed the ball from Crystal. "Don't start getting your hopes up."
Shizuki shrugged at the sudden hope that died in Houston's eyes. "Let's just play. C'mon. It'll be fun," he trotted towards the net.
"See, that's the right attitude!" Crystal agreed, running after him.
"I hope you can make up for two dismal players," Houston laughed as he and Umeda walked towards the net.
"I can try."
"Good luck," Sarah smirked.
The volleyball game was somewhat of massacre. Umeda actually managed to score a few points despite Shizuki and Houston's abysmal playing. Yet, for every point he scored the girls always got two or three more right afterwards. He didn't mind though. He was actually having a lot of fun. It'd been such a long time since he played any games. He still kept himself in shape but that was entirely different . He enjoyed the time spent watching Shizuki play just as badly as he said, but laughing and having a good time anyways. Houston's wild serves were hilarious. Crystal's prowess at the game sort of surprised Umeda. He knew she was smart under all that bubbly nature. It was amazing to see her play the game though with such focus. Lisa was pretty damn good herself. Sarah did fairly well at backing up her team mates. It was a distinctively lop sided game of skills, but it didn't matter. This game wasn't about winning. The competition was mild at best, which was so different than what he was used to. Everything in school, college, and work had always seemed like a competition. It seemed ingrained to constantly feel like you had to set and reach a goal for everything you did. It was relaxing to just do something for the sake of it.
Eventually they lost track of the score. They all agreed that the women had beat the guys soundly. They started another game; this time switching up the players. Umeda, Lisa, and Sarah on one side with Shizuki, Crystal, and Houston on the other. That game was much more evenly matched in skills level. Umeda actually managed to get his team to win that game by one point. He was quite proud of that.
By the time the game was over they were all starving. They were more than relieved when Mrs. Ashiya called them over for dinner. Umeda noticed Gilbert and Rio coming in from the water, hand in hand, with matching flushed expressions. He let one eyebrow quirk up as his sister drew closer. She smiled a little apprehensively. He had a feeling something had happened but he left her alone about it. He was getting to like Gilbert. He trusted the guy now. He couldn't blame his sister liking the blond. He was pretty damn cute. Julia and Mizuki had made a massive sand castle. He was actually amazed by the amount of detail they'd added to it.
Dinner passed with a lot of laughter, storytelling, and good food. He watched his sister sit close to Gilbert like she was reluctant to even leave his side. He could tell she had it bad for the guy. It was cute, but he didn't want her to be upset when it was time to go home. He had a feeling though that he didn't need to worry about that. He watched the interaction between Sarah and Houston with equal interest. He found it amusing that two such different people worked so perfectly together. He could say the same about he and Shizuki though.
After dinner, Gilbert and the girls all took off on a walk down the beach. Crystal coerced Lisa, Houston, and Sarah back out into the water. Umeda looked up when Shizuki grabbed his hand and tugged him gently to his feet.
"C'mon, we're gonna go for a walk."
"How romantic," Umeda smirked.
Shizuki shoved him playfully. "So what if I wanna be a little bit romantically clique."
"Should wait until the sun is setting then," Umeda teased.
"Stop trying to wreck the moment," Shizuki mock glared at him.
Umeda remained quiet after that. He was more than content to walk next to Shizuki as they wandered down the beach. The occasional wave came up to lick at their toes. They avoided a few washed up jelly fish, which Umeda couldn't help but poke with a stray piece of stick. Shizuki laughed at him, making Umeda pitch the ugly blob of a creature at him. They continued on their way. Shizuki scooped up a piece of ocean smoothed driftwood. They turned back the way they'd come when the sun began to fall behind the horizon.
When they got back the others were already packing up their belongings. It was time to go home. It was the end of a great day, Umeda thought. It had been fun and relaxing. This might be one of his favorite days yet during his vacation here. He squeezed Shizuki's hand and was rewarded with a calm smile. They helped the others finish packing and cleaning up their area before loading everything back into the cars. Good byes were exchanged between Umeda and Shizuki's friends before they piled into Sarah's Honda to go home. Lisa climbed into Shizuki's car, tired and more than ready to go home too. Umeda watched his sister talk earnestly to Julia and Mizuki about something while Gilbert stood a few respectful feet away. He had a feeling he knew what it was about. He wasn't wrong when he saw the two girls get into the Ashiya parents car. A moment later, they to pulled out of the parking lot and on to the road, leaving the rest of them behind to meet up with them back at the house.
He walked over to where his sister was standing next to Gilbert. "You're staying?"
"Yeah, if that's ok," Rio clasped her hands nervously. Umeda tried not to smile. He'd never seen his sister anxious about his input about a boy. He found it amusing.
"It's fine. Just be safe," he replied. He tracked his gaze over to Gilbert and gave him a hard look. "And you better take care of her. No funny business."
Gilbert put his hands up in a surrender gesture. "I promise I'll be a gentleman."
"I'll hold you to that," Umeda said seriously. He was a little impressed when the blond haired boy didn't quell beneath his glare. "Have fun. And don't stay out to late."
"Yes, mother," Rio smirked at him.
Umeda rolled his eyes. "Be glad she's not around. You wouldn't get any alone time." With that he turned and walked back to Shizuki's car. He climbed in, buckled his seat belt, and looked over to see his boyfriend giving him a knowing smile. "What?"
"I'm very proud of you for letting your sister stay with Gilbert," Shizuki said with a grin.
Lisa sniggered in the back seat as Umeda crossed his arms and scowled at him. "Oh shut up," Umeda growled.
"Come on. Let's go home," The blond laughed.
////////////////////
Be a responsible reader and review!
Omg, this chapter kinda exploded. First, I couldn't think of anything to write for it and now it's 16 pages long. I hoped this made up for the long wait though. Forgive me for any spelling or grammar errors I was in a hurry to get this posted. It probably didn't get as cleaned up as I could have gotten it. Thanks for returning to my story. Please leave me feedback!