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She dragged him towards the water, her tiny, sweaty palm slipping out of his larger one as she pulled as hard as she could. Her feet struggled to stay in her sandals, her toes grasping for purchase on the cheap plastic. Jyn looked over her shoulder at Cassian, flashing a huge smile that he returned with ease, but he kept his pace, savoring everything. Around them the boardwalk sang with life, reggae music blaring out of boom boxes, shouts of children and salesmen, the ever-present sweet stench of weed. It was almost too hot, the sand shone in nearly visible waves rising through the air, and only the call of the cold ocean kept their spirits up. They were nearly there.
The beach was crowded, hundreds of families had made their pilgrimage to that vast expanse of sand, the waves, and the overflowing boardwalk. Jyn admired the large families of every color, children and adults glistening with sunblock and exposed skin and just laughing. Old women in sunhats, infants in swim diapers, boys with skim boards, teenage girls retying each other’s bikini tops as to not lose them in the surf.
Jyn also admired her own beach companion, his soft caramel skin shining with sweat, practically glowing in the sun, looking like he truly belonged on that beach. Her own body felt like it was on fire in the direct sunlight, but Cassian had tilted his head back and seemed to smile softly as he turned towards the sun. Her eyes wandered down to his well-formed torso and slim hips, his trunks riding low. She shook her head and tried to keep her thoughts decent.
They found a small patch of unoccupied sand and kicked off their shoes, Jyn’s feet immediately scalding on the hot sand. Jumping from foot to foot, she wordlessly handed the can of sunscreen to Cassian, who shook it and indicated she should turn around. She squeaked a little at the freezing cold spray, and barely managed to keep her second squeak inside as the cold spray was replaced by the warm expanse of his hand, rubbing the oil deeply into her skin, making sure she was well protected. She spun back around, heart racing and smiled again, then he turned around and she got to enact her icy revenge. He jumped as the sunscreen touched his back and they laughed together again, the air easy between them.
“Race you to the water” he said in his beautiful accent, and Jyn was already half way there before he could blink. He ran after her, nearly catching up as she hit the water full speed, making it five steps before the water took her down laughing, and he was right behind her, falling at her side. She gathered a handful of icy water in her slender hand and poured it over his head, making him shiver as it went straight down his spine. He picked her up then, and dumped her wriggling and screaming into the next wave. She emerged, dark hair dripping beautifully around her heart shaped face, full lips in a not-quite pout, vowing payback. He caught himself staring at her lips for a beat too long.
They laughed and played until they were too exhausted to continue, and found they way back to their spot, collapsing on their towels. Their wet feet and hands had gathered thousands of grains of sand, the salt water was drying and leaving their skin rough and puckered, their hair was tangled and Cassian had a long piece of seaweed dangling from his right ear. Jyn removed it and tucked some of his long hair back behind his ear, cupping his cheek in an indulgent show of affection she rarely allowed herself.
She wasn’t soft, she could say over and over again, but he made her want to let a side of herself out she never had before. They had shared a few shy kisses and touches, but today was the first time they had spent time truly alone since they had started…whatever this was. They were busy people, both afraid of losing themselves in another person, but even Jyn couldn’t deny the chemistry and respect they mutually shared. So she thought, why not? She leaned over and captured his lips with her own, tasting the salt and sand and smile she found there.
It could be nice, Cassian thought, to just enjoy this moment. He focused entirely on her then, working his hands into the tangled hair at the base of her neck. He wasn’t thinking about the next day when they might retreat back into themselves and forget how much joy they felt together on the hot sand. He wasn’t even thinking about later that night, about how badly he wanted to take her home. He sank deeper into the kiss.
They stayed just like that for maybe just a little too long, and Jyn could feel the skin on the back of her thighs start to burn. She pulled back reluctantly and grinned, pressing her forehead to his.
“I’m gonna get sunburned, Cassian. I need to get out of the sun. Maybe get some lotion on my skin before I fry.”
“I’ve got an aloe plant at home, fresh aloe will do better than anything else. You can come over and have some, if you want?” The implication was thick in his voice, along with a little fear.
Jyn heard it, and decided then and there to stop hesitating. “Sure, that sounds perfect.”
His smile outshone the sun.