#seacat

A voice from beside you interrupts your best attempts at staying oblivious to the proceedings. “You know, you are allowed to actually watch what’s happening. The rest of us have chosen to accept this as free entertainment.”

You glance over at your friend with a grin. You two are sitting side by side in a long row of beach chairs pulled out under the shade of a nearby house, one with an excellent view of the beach and the aforementioned scene. To your left, Giggles is sipping a fruity drink, and to your right, Kiki is calling you out for no good reason.

You grimace. “Yes, but if I look up from my book for a second, I might make eye contact with one of them due to all the stares they keep throwing my way. And if that’s the case, I might also realize that all of this has to do with me, and I don’t think I’m supposed to know that quite yet.”

Kiki laughs. “Y/N, how could you ever think that they’re talking about you?”

Just as she poses the question, one of the surfers flings his arm dramatically towards you, all the while shouting your name so loudly that a few nearby seagulls startle and take flight.

You arch a brow. “Yeah, I have no idea why I’d think such a thing.”

Besides, everyone on this side of the beach knows what’s going on. From the surfers to the bikers, this sort of strife has been the hottest news of the summer. Basically, Seacat is facing trouble from his friends because they keep teasing him about something:  namely, the fact that he likes you and can’t seem to muster up the courage to admit it.

That’s what they’re doing now, after all, trying to say anything they can to convince him to ask you out. The surfers are a good bunch with good hearts, but man, they can be loud. You can hear practically every other word from their conversation despite being fairly far away from them.

It’s not like you mind it, though. In truth, you would be more than alright with Seacat asking you out. Your worst fear is that he won’t be able to do it at all, and his crush will fade as surely as the tide. 

Thing is, you’ve been harboring a crush of your own for quite some time. You never thought your feelings would actually be returned, though– Seacat is unlike you in almost every way. He’s loud where you’re shy, exuberant where you’re quiet. You’re both still surfers, but that’s the most you have in common.

Still, you like him. Seacat has a character that makes him more fun than anyone else here, a way of making you laugh even when you swear up and down that you’ll never smile again. He sticks true to his friends and never lets a single detail go unnoticed– except, that is, when it comes to the fact that one of them may like him back.

This lands you back to square one, which involves the surfers all working together to get it through Seacat’s head that you actually do have feelings for him and he really needs to ask you out before it’s too late. You wouldn’t mind if they could be a little less obvious about it, though, because your friends are teasing you about it just as badly as Seacat’s are teasing him.

Next to you, Giggles rolls her eyes. “You might as well pay attention, it could actually goad Seacat into doing something. They’ve been having meetings like this all week.”

You pinch the bridge of your nose. “You think I don’t know that? Tanner has been following me around the beach to see if he can pick up on my favorite kind of flower to report back to Seacat. Eventually, they stepped on my towel so many times that I gave up and had to say it to you so he could overhear it and leave me alone.”

Giggles frowns contemplatively. “That does explain why you suddenly started talking about flowers yesterday. It didn’t make a lot of sense at the moment.”

You sigh. “None of this makes sense. I mean, when has Seacat ever needed encouragement for anything? He’s as confident as they come. Honestly, I think that’s just a sign that he doesn’t like me after all.”

Kiki and Giggles erupt in twin howls of outrage, both of them talking over each other to convince you how totally wrong you are to even suggest that.

“Honestly,” Kiki pleads, “the fact that he’s having trouble with asking you out shows that he clearly likes you a lot. I mean, why would he be overthinking things unless he really wanted to get this right?”

“Yeah,” Giggles adds, “plus, you and Seacat will be the cutest couple ever. I can practically sense it.”

“You say that about every couple here,” you point out, “even the ones that break up.”

“Well,” she sniffs, “this is different. You two are special.”

You laugh. “Well, I’m glad you’re certain about it. That would make one of us.”

Kiki’s face softens, and she reaches over to place a comforting hand on your shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry about it. I think the other surfers are making progress. Maybe Seacat will ask you out tonight, how about that?”

You smile at the thought. “We can only hope.”

Tonight is important, after all, it marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of Big Momma’s opening its doors for the very first time. The restaurant has been home to surfers and bikers alike for as long as anyone can remember, so of course everyone will be coming down to celebrate.

You’ve heard that the dancing should be spectacular, so you and your friends will be taking the trip down to see it for yourselves, dressed your best and ready to have fun. If Seacat’s smart, he’ll choose this as the perfect time to ask you out. He won’t even have to pay for decorations.

The hour of the celebration draws nearer, and you feel yourself growing nervous. You have no proof that Seacat will ask you out, after all, only the speculations of your friends. If you’ve learned one important lesson, though, it’s that your friends are usually right when it comes to these sorts of things. They know what boys like, and that’s girls like all of you.

You straighten the collar of your outfit nervously. Your friends have assured you a thousand times that you look stunning, but that doesn’t stop a storm of butterflies from taking up roost in your stomach. 

At last, it’s time to go, and you head out with your friends in a rush of pastel colors and swishing skirts, flower crowns and tulle ruffles. There’s a crowd around the doors to Big Momma’s, and the throngs of people only grow once you step inside.

Despite all of this, you still manage to find Seacat immediately. He’s across the room from you, but the two of you lock eyes through all of the people. A soft smile appears on his face, and he starts to weave around the throngs of dancers to make his way to you.

By your sides, Kiki and Giggles exchange triumphant smiles, then discreetly slip away so that you’re alone when Seacat reaches you at last.

“You look really nice,” he says.

“So do you,” you respond.

He holds out a hand to you. “Want to dance?”

“Sure,” you breathe, and take his hand without a second’s hesitation.

He flashes a relieved smile at you and leads you out onto the dancer. You’re certain that you see at least half a dozen other surfers give him a thumbs up when they see that the two of you are together, likely the result of many hours’ careful planning.

When you’re in the middle of the floor, Seacat turns to face you again. The song is familiar, one of your favorites, and the moves come easily. Seacat’s a good dancer, the two of you live and breathe and do well together. 

You’d like to think that it’s a sign of something, and maybe he does too, that both you and him have been supposed to be together for all of this time. Someone or something out there cut you two from the same cloth, and now you’re figuring out what it means to never have to be alone again.

The song ends soon enough. The silence seems pressingly loud in the absence of the music, and it rings around the dance floor, weaving in between partners and groups and solitary figures. 

Seacat leans close to you, speaking now that it’s quiet enough for you to hear him. “I was wondering something.”

He freezes slightly, and you nod encouragingly. “Yeah?”

He takes a steadying breath, then keeps talking. “Would you want to go out with me? It wouldn’t have to be a big deal, of course. Maybe ice cream or a movie? Or both?”

He looks at you hopefully, eyes full of all the daydreams he’s been too afraid to believe in all of this time. Luckily for him, you don’t intend to crush those aspirations quite yet.

“I’d love to go out with you,” you say, and Seacat’s face breaks into a dazzling grin.

“Really?” He asks, then tries to seem more sure of himself. “I mean, yeah, that would be a lot of fun. Maybe this Friday at six? I can pick you up.”

You nod, smiling. “I’ll see you then.”

Just like that, you’ve got a date. Life couldn’t be better.