"Do these make me look cool?"
Mason looks up from the snowglobe in his hands and immediately bursts out laughing. Jamie is wearing the most ridiculous sunglasses he's ever seen; obnoxiously oversized and bright yellow. The parts that stand out the most, though, are the lenses. Instead of normal tinted sunglasses lenses, it has two plastic layers with a blue liquid in between. To top it off, little shells and seahorses, along with a surfer, are floating in the liquid.
Grinning, Jamie tilts his head back and forth, making the liquid slosh around. "He's catching sick waves."
Between giggles, Mason says, "Please never say that again."
"You don't like my surfer dude?"
"He is not your surfer dude."
"He is if I buy these."
"Babe, I will never take you seriously again if you do."
"But they even light up!" Jamie presses a button on one of the arms, and the bright yellow turns into neon yellow due to the lights in the frames.
"Oh my god," Mason laughs, shaking his head. "Who even came up with that?"
"We can probably find a pair for you, too." Jamie points to a large bin overflowing with sunglasses of every colour and style. A bunch of them are shaped into common summer shapes like fruit, flamingos, and flowers. Then there are some that are straight-up weird, like the one pair that is fuzzy and purple. Mason has fun with Jamie as they try most of them on, posing in the mirror and taking selfies while the girl behind the counter of the touristy beach shop hypes them up.
"You two are cute," she says, ringing in the two pairs they settled with- Mason chose one that looks pixilated and fits over his glasses without looking weird, and Jamie's are shaped like sharks. "How long have you been together?"
"Nine weeks, but we've been best friends for, um. I don't know. A long time. Since grade 3."
"Nine years," Mason fills in helpfully.
"And you fell in love? That's adorable. No wonder you're in a honeymoon phase."
Jamie smiles sweetly at him, taking his hands to link their fingers together. "Yeah, it is. It's a dream come true."
Mason flusters, still not used to Jamie intentionally flirting with him and complimenting him. He really shouldn't be as affected as he is because Jamie is still wearing his shark sunglasses, but he can't help it. As the cashier said, he fell in love with his best friend, silly antics and all. He lets Jamie pay and tug him out of the store. Jamie's excitement for summer adventures is contagious, and it's easy to follow him like a lost puppy when he flashes his dazzling smile.
Thankfully, with Jamie working at his mom's architectural firm and the job Mason has with Sal, they both tend to have weekends off. At first, Mason assumed he'd be working throughout the weekend, as he often did when working for his dad, but Sal told him that most people want their lawns done during the standard work day; when they're not home and can enjoy the results on the weekend.
When they can, they hang out with their friends before they all go off in different directions in the fall, but today is just the two of them. Days like these are Mason's favourites. Exploring random places with his best friend and boyfriend without any expectations or interruptions from parents, school, or jobs. It's a blissful in-between where they get in Jamie's car and drive, then Mason gushes to Londa when he gets back to her apartment.
Of course, they can stay in, but they aren't usually alone at Londa's apartment or Jamie's house- where his mom has an open-door policy. Mason understands why, but that doesn't mean he is fond of the rule. He bites his tongue, though, because the end of August is coming up, and Jamie has a single dorm room waiting for him at UoI. Jamie promises they will have privacy for as long as they want.
For now, they walk and trip and stumble over roots and rocks, laughing as they make their way down a slope to a lakeside beach Jamie found. Partway down, Mason paused to take a picture of Jamie balancing on a fallen log, his serious expression of concentration clashing with the cartoon shark sunglasses. They make it to the beach without injury, but neither of them has swimsuits because they didn't plan on going to a beach, so they leave their shorts on and stay near the shore where the water only reaches just below their knees.
"Hey." Putting his hands on Mason's waist, Jamie tugs him close. They're chest to chest. Mason slides his hands up Jamie's arms to loop around the back of his neck, looking up at him. Jamie just looks at him for a moment, and Mason pushes the shark sunglasses up so he can look into his eyes.
Lit up by the sun, Jamie is golden and beautiful. He takes Mason's breath away, and Mason thrums with the knowledge that Jamie chose him to be his best friend. That Jamie, kind, thoughtful Jamie, fell in love with him.
Jamie leans in for a gentle kiss, his hand curling around to rest against the small of his back.
It's sweet, caring, and as warm as the afternoon sun shining down on them. It warms Mason from the inside out like a mug of hot chocolate on a cold winter day, and he tilts his head to deepen the kiss.
"I think…" Jamie licks his lip when they part. "I never want today to end. I want a million more days like today. I'll be forever grateful that our schools are close to each other's because I can't imagine having to give you up, even for a week, let alone most of the year. I can't imagine you anywhere but at my side. I want to be with you every day and share every heartbeat and daydream with you."
Mason swoons. A thrill of dizzying emotions rushes through him, leaving him lightheaded, and he hauls Jamie down into a deep kiss, his body arching up to firmly press against Jamie's.
There was enough force behind his kiss that Jamie stumbles at the same time as a wave hits their legs. They teeter, then tip, and fall into the water. The water isn't cold, but it's cool enough to be a shock to Mason's body, chasing away the warmth of the sun and Jamie's sweet, sweet words.
Pushing himself onto his hands and knees, Mason gasps for air seconds before another wave comes and hits him square in the face.
Jamie splutters next to him, wiping water from his face. "What happened to not getting wet?"
"It's your fault-"
"My fault?
"Yes, obviously! If you weren't such a flirt and hopeless romantic-"
Jamie cuts him off again by cupping a hand around the back of his neck and pulling him in for a kiss. Another wave washes over them, and they break apart with a laugh. "Dork. You're the hopeless romantic; you literally swooned in my arms."
"Yes, well…" He looks away, heat colouring his cheeks.
Jamie loops an arm around his neck to kiss his cheek. "While we're in the water…"
Mason only has Jamie's devilish, playful smile as a warning before he gets another faceful of water, only it's from his boyfriend, not the lake.
"Oh, you're on."
Like two little kids without a care in the world, Mason and Jamie engage in a water fight, splashing and kicking and trying to douse the other as much as possible. It's impossible to tell who wins since they both started equally soaked, but Mason doesn't care about that as he lies on the sand, his legs still in the water and with Jamie next to him. They're out of breath, chests heaving as they hold hands.
Mason feels like a winner, and his elation has nothing to do with the playfighting.
"Come on," he eventually says, sitting up. "We should get out of the water and attempt to dry off so we don't get your car soaked on the way back."
Jamie stands and sticks out his hand, pulling Mason to his feet. "We don't have anything to dry off with."
Glancing around, Mason doesn't see anyone else on or near the beach. "Well, we could always strip off and lay our clothes to dry on the rocks. They're probably hot enough."
Jamie's eyebrows shoot up. "We're in public!"
It takes a second, but Mason realizes what Jamie's referring to. "I wasn't suggesting we strip completely naked. We'll keep our boxers on. If anyone shows up, it'll look like we're wearing swim trunks."
"Except wet boxers will cling and leave little to the imagination." He pauses for a moment, then gives a devious grin. "Actually, yeah, let's do that."
"You're a scoundrel!"
Walking further up the beach to where they left Mason's backpack and their phones- a lucky and very smart idea in hindsight- Jamie throws a seductive smile over his shoulder. As he does, he puts his hands on the waistband of his shorts and slowly pushes the wet fabric down. Mason scrambles over his feet to catch up.
Though he teases, Jamie doesn't make a whole production of removing his wet clothes and instead drapes his shirt and shorts on the rocks, sitting down to pull out the sandwiches and drinks they brought.
The sand sticks to Mason's wet skin, and, yeah, it's uncomfortable, but it's also a part of summer and getting to sit next to Jamie while he's barechested and wet makes it worth it.
He pulls out his phone to put on some music, and when he looks back up, Jamie has his shark sunglasses on again and is shimming to the beat as he eats. "Dork."
Grinning and dancing more prominently, Jamie says, "You love me."
"Yeah, I do."
Jamie's smile goes a little shy at his soft tone, and he leans over to kiss Mason's cheek. "I love you, too."
As soon as Mason's done his sandwich, Jamie puts a hand against his chest and gently pushes him back onto the warm sand as he straddles his hips. He leans down and kisses Mason.
It starts soft but deepens when Mason tilts his head and threads his fingers into Jamie's damp hair to pull him in closer. Jamie's lips part under his, and his mouth tastes like the overly-sweet watermelon soda he had with lunch. Mason loves it and chases the taste with his tongue.
Fingertips tease his ribs and brush over his nipple- Mason grabs Jamie's wrists and rolls them over, pinning him to the ground with his hands above his head.
"Best not to start that here," Mason mumbles into Jamie's lips.
"Aw." Jamie pouts. "But I like this, it's fun." To emphasize his point, he rolls his hips up and presses his wrists into Mason's hands.
Mason pulls back. "Were you or were you not the one to point out that we're in public and thus shouldn't do anything sexual?"
"That was before you pinned me down with your hot body-" Mason shuts him up with a kiss. They keep making out, but Mason makes Jamie keep it in his pants.
"There is sand in places I've never wanted it," Jamie says as they start redressing. He's shifting around and his face scrunches up in discomfort.
Mason kisses it away.