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Summer had come once again to the peaceful town of Faraway. The streets were alive with the shouts and whoops of children as classes paused for the summer holidays, at least if they didn't have summer classes of some sort. Some were getting ready to go on vacation with their family, while others were looking forward to being able to sleep in as much as they wanted.
In the case of one young man, he is returning to Faraway to spend some time with his friends. Though, things don't always turn out as planned...
"C'mon, Sunny, keep your head up! Just keep your arms out just like that!"
Behind Faraway park, a blue-haired girl in a pink shirt with a black and white checkerboard design cheers on a black-haired boy in swim trunks as he struggles to stay afloat in the large pond. Brightly colored beach towels with varying floral and seashell patterns have been spread along the edge of the pond, most likely to help with drying off once the boy gets out.
"Guh!" Sunny was far more focused with keeping his chin above water as he struggled to keep his shaking under control, so he gave a shuddering grunt in confirmation. He knew the basics on how to float, certainly, but his aquaphobia still lingered somewhat, and his time in the city hadn't given him many chances to brush up on his swimming.
Although he had gotten somewhat better, the deeper water of the pond felt like it was clinging to his body, trying to pull him down while he floated. The mildly cold water pressing up against his chest and sending chills down his torso. Each time his foot brushed up against something, he only imagined a dark hand trying to pull him down.
It was a little embarrassing for him, considering how he used to be fine with swimming.
"Hrgkl!" His head had bobbed down a bit too far, and now he had to deal with the uncomfortable sensation of water splashing up his nose.
"You good, Sunny?" Cris shouted from where she was sitting at the edge of the pond. Her legs were dangling off the edge with just her feet submerged in the water.
Instead of verbally answering, Sunny decided that he had had enough for the day and crawled onto one of the towels set around the edge and laid on his back.
"Aw, you done for the day?" Cris said, getting up from her spot to sit down near where Sunny was laying down.
Sunny nodded, before giving a soft "Yeah."
"Well, I think that's fine, we still have plenty of time to get you ready for the beach trip. And I think you're making good progress." She replied. "Do you want a soda?" She said, opening the cooler she brought with her.
"I still think that I'd be fine just staying on the shore or the shallows." Sunny grumbled out, ignoring Cris's question.
"Oh, don't be that way, Sunny" Cris said, pouting and putting aside her can of de-caffeinated Orange Joe (it tasted like regular orange soda now). "Even if you don't end up swimming much anyways, Kel and your other friends will feel better knowing that it was at least by choice. Besides, it's good to try and get over your fear of water. As I said, you're making pretty good progress on this. When Kel told me about the situation I was a little skeptical, but it's definitely doable in the time we have."
She crossed her arms and hummed thoughtfully. "In fact, I feel like it's something of a challenge! We can't just give up midway!" She pumped her fist up into the air to emphasize. For a moment, Sunny thinks he sees little flames in her eyes. "You can do it!"
Sunny just grunted and rolled over on the towel.
The beach trip. The reason for Sunny's current "sessions" with Cris in the old hangout spot.
When Sunny had returned to Faraway to visit for the summer, he was staying at Kel's house for the time being, it turned out his friends now had somewhat busier schedules than expected. Kel had gotten a spot on the basketball team and was practicing, Aubrey had gotten a part-time job at Gino's, and Basil... well, he was still pretty much free, but it all cut into the time they could spend as a group. So, before summer started his friends had gotten together to plan a trip to the beach when they were all free.
Sun, sand, ocean, watermelon, the perfect trip for the summertime. Basil had even taken swimming lessons, so it all worked out.
But, there ended up being a small wrinkle, namely that Sunny still had a lingering fear of water.
Sure, he didn't have it as bad since his... eventful three days before moving out, but he hadn't shaken the fear off entirely. He knew how to swim, he just had trouble getting over his aquaphobia enough to start swimming. Even if he could get lessons on such short notice, it wouldn't address the root of the issue.
Kel and Aubrey were already busy so they couldn't help him, Hero wasn't coming back until nearly the day of the trip so it would be too late by then, and Basil, while he did have the time, was not confident enough in his swimming that he could help Sunny if his fear got the best of him. Theoretically, they could have just asked Kel's parents or possibly Polly to chaperone him but that seemed a little... embarrassing.
Enter Cris, Kel's friend and local near-aquatic human. Sunny was already somewhat familiar with her from before the move, she made a seashell necklace for him (after he gathered them) and he had helped her dad find the TV remote multiple times, and in return, they had sent him some flowers in the hospital. Kel went out on a limb and asked her about it and she agreed to try and help.
And so, for the past few days, Cris has been helping him try and get over his fear of water until he can swim easily again. As she said, they had been making progress, as much as Sunny may have grumbled about it.
Just in case he changed his mind, Cris set down a can of soda near him before speaking. "So, how have things been since you moved away? You live in uh... What was it..." She snapped her fingers a few times, trying to remember.
"Neo Nouveau city." Sunny supplied her.
"Yeah! I was actually born there, you know?"
Sunny raised a brow, sitting up on the towel and eyeing the orange-colored can. "Really?"
She giggles. "Yeah, but my parents moved, like, right after, so it doesn't mean much." She looks thoughtful for a moment. "How is it compared to Faraway?"
"...It's much noisier, for one." Sunny responded, giving in and taking a small sip of the soda before continuing. "My mom had to buy me a fan just so I could get some white-noise to cover all the noises that come with the city." It was certainly a far cry from the sleepy nights in Faraway.
Cris winced in sympathy. "Oof, yeah, that sounds like it'd take a lot of getting used to. I was lucky that Faraway doesn't get much night traffic, otherwise it would have been rough coming back from boarding school." Sunny reminded himself that her boarding school was on an island. "Oh! Speaking of, did my seashell necklace help remind you of home?" She asked with a curious and somewhat hopeful look on her face.
Sunny thought for a moment before answering. "...It did, actually." He said with a short nod. "When I looked at the necklace, I couldn't help but remember what I was doing when I got each shell, as well as what I was doing when wearing it. It, uh, helped me stay calm when I wore it, too."
There were some fond memories associated with it, like helping wrinkly forehead guy with his son, or giving Kim and Vance's dad emotional support in attempting to fix his leaky pipe, or feeding that mysterious orange cat...
Cris smiled and clasped her hands together. "Oh! I'm really glad! I was worried that I made you collect those seashells for something you might just shove into a corner somewhere."
"Yeah..." Sunny said, taking another sip of the soda. "...Oh, um, thanks for making it for me. I, uh, forget if I said that before."
"You got the seashells for me, so, we're even, I think." She replied, smiling softly as she brushed a lock of blue hair away from her face.
Sunny decided that he wasn't quite sure what to make of Cris. She seemed kind, nice, not as energetic as Kel by any means, but at least on a similar wavelength in terms of personality.
"Hey, Cris?"
"Hm?" She cocked her head in response. "Yeah?"
"Are we, like..." He waved a hand from his chest to Cris's general direction a few times. "...friends?"
"Uh..." Cris blinked a few times before responding. "Well, I'd like to think we are. I know we haven't known each other for long, but I'd like to get to know you better." She pauses. "Well, if you want to be friends too, that's important."
"Yeah, that's fine- I mean, I'd like to be friends with you too. I just, uh, wasn't sure if you wanted..." He trailed off, suddenly unsure of what point he was trying to get to. He was pretty out of practice with making new friends.
Cris giggled. "It's fine, I think I get what you're trying to say." She held her hand out. "So, friends, officially?" She said.
Sunny looked at the hand for a moment, before setting his soda down and shaking it. "...Yeah. Friends." Her hand felt surprisingly soft.
After the shake ends, Cris turns to look up at the sky. "Hm, it's getting a little bit late... We should probably head back."
Sunny looked up too, seeing the sky begin to turn reddish from the setting sun. "Ah, right."
Good thing she and Kel lived on the same street.
"So! Since we're officially friends now, Sunny, I have to ask..." Cris began as they started walking towards their street. "...What's your opinion on Sweetheart, Defender of Love?"
Sunny shrugged. "I never really got into it, I was more into Spaceboy. My, um... sister was always more into it." He held back a wince.
Cris pouted and gave him a disappointed look. "Aw, really? Seems like you and Kel have similar opinions on it."
"Eh, I just didn't find the whole celebrity thing that appealing... and she seemed kind of unlikeable." Sunny replied.
Cris blinked and paused mid-stride. "...What?"
Sunny stopped as well and raised a brow, confused as to why she stopped. "Was it something I said?"
She creased her brow and gave Sunny a strange look. "...Sunny, what was your first introduction to Sweetheart?"
Sunny had to think for a moment about that. The memories were a little fuzzy from being so long ago, but he could still remember the answer. "I watched a movie with Mari- my sister. I... don't really remember the plot that well, but I know it was about some movie theatre coming to life." Mari watched it with him, Kel, Basil, Aubrey, and Hero, he's pretty sure it was their first real introduction to Sweetheart. Mari seemed to enjoy it, but everyone else had more mixed opinions about it.
"Ugh!" Cris smacked her face in frustration. "You started with The Cinema of Darkness!? That's not even directly about Sweetheart! It's about her alter ego created in episode thirty-seven, Bitterheart! That's the worst way to get introduced to the series!" Cris shook her head and sighed.
Sunny blinked in surprise when she suddenly grabbed his hand. "Um, Cris-"
"Okay, new plan!" Cris said energetically as she led Sunny by the hand and rushed towards their street. "We're taking a detour to my house and I'm gonna take you on a crash course of Sweetheart: Defender of Love!"
"You, uh, don't have to do tha-" Sunny attempted to argue, before getting interrupted again.
"Nope! I am exerting my newly obtained friendship privileges to educate you about the real Sweetheart!" She replied, still leading Sunny by the hand.
Sunny sighed and picked up the pace to make sure Cris didn't literally drag him. Still, this was... nice. "Alright, but I get to exert my friendship privileges at some point too, then." He replied.
Cris just giggled and nodded as her house came into sight.
"So Sweetheart is part of the..."
"Love Defenders!"
"Right, and they..."
"Defend pure love from the evil Heartbreak Brigade!"
"Right, right..."
Sweetheart, Defender of Love, ended up being deeper than Sunny expected. While they only got through a handful of episodes before he had to go back to Kel's house, he was looking forward to watching them again with Cris. Even though she said she had watched them before, she acted like it was the first time with each one, gasping in awe at the super moves and biting her nails when a cliffhanger happened. Sunny thought it was cute.
He hoped they'd be able to do it again soon.
The next day
"Okay! Another day of helping you become friends with the water again!" Cris said excitedly with a bundle of towels held in one arm and a cooler in the other.
"Woo." Sunny said in a deadpan voice.
"Today I got something special planned. Do you mind if we change locations from the usual?" She asked, still keeping her excited tone.
"Umm..." Sunny had to think about that for a few seconds. The pond behind the park was... familiar, secluded. Even if it was where he initially gained his aquaphobia, it was still a place he visited a lot as a kid.
On the other hand, Cris seemed excited about whatever she had planned for today. She'd probably cancel it if Sunny really didn't want to but...
"Sure, I'd be fine with that." He replied, a slight tug at the edges of his mouth.
"Alright! Just follow me!" With that, Cris took off with a brisk pace with Sunny at her heels.
"Would you mind telling me where we're going?" Sunny said after a few minutes of walking. They had ended up going in the opposite direction of the park and had ended up on a somewhat overgrown path in the woods in the southern part of Faraway. He eyed some cans tossed here and there on the old path between the gnarled roots and overgrown grasses, mentally jotting them down in his memory to give to the old lady in the park later.
"Weeeeeell, since we're already pretty close I'll let you in." She turned back to him and gave a dazzling smile. "After giving it some thought, I realized that I also have something of a secret spot like the pond behind the park." She gestured to the end of the path where the trees slowly began to thin out. "When I was a kid I used to come to a small, secret beach around here." She giggled. "My parents knew about it, of course, but I thought of it as my secret hideout regardless. I hadn't even thought about visiting it again until I started helping you."
She adjusted the towels and resumed walking. "So, two birds with one stone, we can step you up to swimming at a beach, and I can revisit my old hideout. Plus! No people around!" She pauses. "Eh, well, at least there shouldn't be. That'd be a little embarrassing if I turn out to be wrong about that..."
"Hm, well, here's hoping that you're right." He said, perhaps a little more harshly than he intended with his naturally very flat tone of voice. Not that it would be the end of the world if there were people there, but he would rather have an aquaphobia induced panic attack in front of someone he knew rather than a stranger at the beach. "...I'm glad that you're enjoying yourself. I kinda thought that you'd be, well, annoyed at doing this for me. I know I'm not, uh, the most enthusiastic about this, but I do appreciate your help..."
"Oh, it's no problem, Sunny." Cris replied, giving him a brief look before turning back towards the thinning tree line. "I wasn't busy or anything, and I feel like, as cheesy as it might sound, that giving someone the joy of being able to swim again is its own reward... Not to say I wasn't interested in spending more time with you too, though."
That piqued Sunny's interest. She was interested in spending time with him? "Oh? You were?"
"Well, yeah but- oh! We're here!" She said as the trees had thinned out nearly completely. "Let's take a look-"
Cris paused as she got to the point where the trees and grass began to shift to rock and sand. From here Sunny could already hear the sound of small waves splashing and he could see a little sliver of shoreline.
"Cris?" Sunny uttered as he picked up the pace a little bit to catch up with her, confused as to why she had gone quiet. "What's..."
Then he got to where she was standing. And he saw why.
"Ah."
Litter, cans, bottles, wrappers. A good chunk of the shoreline of what Sunny realized was a lake was marred by piles of discarded garbage and litter. It seemed that the people dumping trash in the park had moved down to here.
"You're... kidding me..." Cris nearly whispered as she looked at the trash-filled mini-beach. She sounded a far cry from the energetic girl Sunny had been hanging out with as she said that.
Sunny grimaced, unsure of what to do in this situation. Hero was always the more emotionally minded person... What would he do in this situation?
Tentatively, he put a hand on Cris's shoulder. "Cris? Are you okay?"
"Ah..." That seemed to shake her out of things, at least a little bit. "Yeah, I'm... I'm okay." She said in a shaky voice, shrugging Sunny's hand off of her shoulder and looking down at her feet. "...Sorry, I didn't realize it'd be... I should've checked beforehand. Do you want to just head back to the pond?" She said as she jabbed a thumb back north in the direction of the park.
"We don't have to do that, look-" He said pointing to a spot on the secluded beach. "-There's a spot over there that's clear."
"...Alright." Cris said, walking out towards the spot Sunny had pointed out to set up the towels.
...
It was certainly a step forward from the pond, Sunny felt. Whether it was because he had changed where he was swimming or due to the wider area allowed by the lake or just due to his practice with Cris, he felt a little bit more at ease trying to swim in this area. This would be best for preparing him for the beach trip with his friends.
Unfortunately, Cris didn't seem to have her heart in it at all. She seemed to just be sitting down on one of the towels with her legs huddled to her chest. No cheers or motivating calls, just silence.
After a few more minutes of this, Sunny thought it might be best to call things early.
He waded out of the water and sat down beside her. She didn't seem to notice.
"Hey, Cris?" He said, snapping her out of her funk.
"Huh? Oh... you done?" Cris said, giving his soaked form a quick once over.
"Yeah..." Sunny frowned, still not really sure how to help his new friend. He was never really that proactive about this kind of thing. "...Do you wanna... talk?"
He was good at letting people talk to him, at least.
She rubbed the bottom of her nose. "What is there to talk about? The beach... well, it's barely even a beach, but it looks like..." She gestured her arms around. "This... Ugh, I'm sorry. I'm the one who brought us out here and all and I'm just sitting here, moping around instead of helping you."
"It's fine, you couldn't have known."
"I could've at least checked..." She murmured, getting up from her sitting position and gathering up the towels. "I'm... I'm gonna go, if that's okay?"
Sunny wanted to say something to make her stay, some magic word that would make her happy and popped up again, but he had nothing. So, he gave a small, quick nod and said a simple "Okay."
Cris gave a sad smile and nod of her own, before heading off, leaving sunny alone with the dirty beach.
...
Sunny looked around for a few seconds. He looked at the ripped bags of trash, the aluminum soda and beer cans scattered here and there, the plastic grocery bags fluttering loosely around. And after a few more seconds of looking, he uttered three words that would commit him to action:
"...I have time."
He had done it in Faraway park, so why not here?
Pipipipipipiii~
The sky was already dark by the time Sunny's began cellphone ringing. He wiped some sweat off of his forehead and paused his work to answer the phone.
"Hello?"
"Sunny?" It was Kel. "Where are you? We're all waiting for you at Gino's."
Sunny smacked his head, he had completely forgotten. "That was today?"
"Wh- Yeah! You forgot?" Kel sounded incredulous from his end, which was understandable. Sunny also thought he heard a few more voices in the background. Probably Aubrey and Basil.
"Um... yeah, I guess I did..." He had gotten so caught up in what he was doing...
"...Where are you, anyways?"
He blinked before answering. "Well, it's a bit of a story. I'm at this, uh, well, sort of a secret beach, I guess? If you head straight south from the end of our street you'll be in the general area."
Kel was silent for a few seconds before answering. "...And what are you doing there, Sunny?"
Sunny almost waved his trash picker before realizing Kel wouldn't see it. "Well, it ended up being something of a dumping spot for trash. So, I'm cleaning things up."
Another pause. "...Sunny, how long have you been there?"
"Oh just for about..." Sunny checked the time on his phone. Then double-checked. "...Woof. Um, yeah, I've been picking up trash for like, five hours."
"...Hold on for a sec."
"Sure."
Sunny decided to bag a few more cans while he waited for Kel to respond.
After a few more seconds, he picked back up. "Alright, Sunny, we're coming over."
Sunny startled at that. "Huh? You don't have to-"
And Kel hung up before he could get any further.
He stared at the phone, debating if he should try and call Kel back to explain that he's fine finishing it up on his own. He eventually decided that it would probably be useless trying to convince Kel once his mind was made up.
So, Sunny just went back to bagging what litter he could while he waited. And, after about fifteen minutes, he saw three figures coming out of the tree line towards him.
Kel, Basil, and Aubrey stood on the beach, each one holding a garbage collecting tool.
"...You guys don't have to-" Sunny began, before being interrupted by Aubrey.
"Ugh! Don't start, you've already missed out on having Gino's with us-"
"We brought you your share of leftover pizza slices, Sunny. Though they're probably a little cold now." Basil said quietly as he brought out a cardboard Gino's pizza box and set it down on the dirt ridge.
"-So just be quiet and let us help you with... this." Aubrey finished, looking out at the beach. "Geeze, this place is pretty dirty, how much have you even got done?"
"Oh, um..." Sunny paused, looking around and doing a mental count of how much he had gotten done. "...I think I was able to clean up about half of what was initially here."
It was just like cleaning up garbage in Faraway park, just on a much, much bigger level.
Aubrey stared at him with a strange look for a few seconds before sighing. "...I swear, you weren't this weird when we were kids." She looked to Basil and Kel, both of whom only shrugged.
"I just like helping people." Sunny said, giving his shoulders a shrug. "Cris liked this beach when she was a kid, and seeing it with all the garbage made her sad. So..."
"So, you decided to spend five hours straight cleaning up?" Aubrey said with a deadpan stare.
"...Yeah."
Kel chuckled. "That's just how Sunny is! He likes helping people when he can. Whether it be finding a lost TV remote or giving art advice, he'll be there." Basil nodded in agreement.
Aubrey turned to him and gave an equally withering stare. "This is several degrees bigger than those."
Sunny felt a light blush on his face as he responded to Kel. "Well, it's just the right thing to do." He liked helping people.
Aubrey sighed. "Alright, well, let's just get started on this, everyone. Sunny-" She pointed at the black-haired boy. "-You go get some pizza first."
"Ah, I can wait-"
*Grooooar...*
Sunny looked down at his stomach, then back at Aubrey. "...I'll get some pizza."
With that, Sunny sat down and began eating some cold, pepperoni pizza while his friends fanned out and began working on clearing the trash.
It was certainly hard work, but with everyone working together, they were able to clear everything up in a little under two hours. All the garbage was put into neatly tied trash bags to haul to the lady at the park tomorrow.
Once finished, the four friends looked on at their handiwork.
Kel wiped his forehead. "Phew, finally done..."
"Yeah, geeze-" An exasperated Aubrey turned to Sunny. "-I have no idea how you of all people were able to keep going at this for several hours straight."
Sunny shrugged. "I have a strong will."
Basil giggled at that while Aubrey just sighed at her weird friend.
The blonde-haired boy looked up at the sky for a moment. "It's getting a little bit late. We should probably start heading back..."
Aubrey nodded at him. "Yeah, probably."
"...I feel a little bad." Sunny said a little sadly, causing his friends to look at him in confusion. "We were supposed to be hanging out, having some pizza, and I roped you all into helping me with this."
"...I'd say it was less you roping us, and more Kel." Basil said, glancing at the tan-skinned boy. "But, it's no problem, Sunny. This seemed to really matter to you. Even if we- er, me and Aubrey at least, don't know Cris that well."
Aubrey bobbed her head in affirmation. "Yeah, you might be a bit of a weirdo, Sunny, but you're our weirdo."
"Still..." Sunny trailed off.
"...Ya know, it's not that late, it's a pretty bright night out." Kel said, staring up at the sky. "It'd be a bit of a shame to just leave like this, right?"
Aubrey blinked in confusion, turning to her brown-haired friend. "Whaddya mean?"
"I meeeeeeean that it's a shame to work at cleaning up this beach, and not even get to use it, right?" He said, gesturing at the sparkling surface of the lake. The moonlight and stars twinkled off of the dark purple surface like liquid space. "And we're all free right now, right?"
She raised a brow. "Are you... suggesting beach party at night?"
Kel nodded enthusiastically. "Yeah! We can get our swimsuits and stuff and hang out here! Don't we deserve it from all that hard work?" He turned to Sunny. "We can even show Cris that the beach is all cleared up."
The others paused for a second to think. It sounded like a preposterous Kel idea, but as he said, it wasn't that dark tonight, and they did spend a few hours picking up trash, Sunny even more than that.
"Well... it sounds like it could be nice." Basil was the first to break the silence.
"Oh, what the heck, I guess we can try it." Aubrey said, throwing her arms up in the air.
Sunny just gave a silent nod of affirmation.
Kel pumped his fist up in triumph. "Alright! Let's go get our swimsuits. Sunny!" He turned to his friend. "You should call Cris and ask her to come by."
And with that, they ran off to gather up their swimsuits for the night beach party, while Sunny began dialing his phone.
Pipipipipipiii~
Cris was laying in her bed when her phone began ringing. She looked at the ID and was surprised to see that it was Sunny.
"Sunny?"
"Hey, Cris..." He paused for a few seconds before continuing. "Uh, would you mind coming over to the secret beach you showed me?"
She blinked in surprise. "You're still there?" Sunny certainly seemed to be a weird one...
"...Yeah, would you mind coming over?"
She grimaced. The memory of all the litter on the beach made her somewhat sick to her stomach. "...I'd... rather not."
"..." Sunny was silent on the other end for a few seconds before answering. "I hereby exert my friendship privileges."
"Huh?" Cris replied, surprised and a little confused.
"Since you made me watch Sweetheart, I am exerting my friendship privileges now to make you come over."
Cris rolled her eyes, not sure at all where Sunny was going with this. "Ugh, really?"
"Really."
"Okay, fine, I'll come." Cris said with a tinge of annoyance. "This had better be good, though..."
"...It will, trust me." He paused for a few more seconds. "Oh, and make sure to bring your swimsuit."
Click
Cris stared at the phone in confusion as she registered what Sunny said.
"Okay, well... I guess I'm doing this now. I hope you know what you're doing, Sunny..." She said as she hopped off of her bed and began to get ready.
To say Cris was speechless when she saw the beach would be an understatement. While there were still some trash bags on the side waiting to be moved tomorrow, the beach seemed almost spotless. If someone had shown her a picture of the beach this morning and during this moment, she would have said they were of completely different beaches.
"Surprise." Sunny said in his usual flat tone.
"Sunny... you... you did all this?" Cris said with clear shock and awe on her face as she gestured around the beach.
Sunny shook his head. "Nah, Basil, Aubrey, and Kel helped too."
"Oh, of course." Cris said, sighing in minor relief. She wasn't sure what she'd do if he had spent the whole day by himself doing this.
"Hey! Don't sell yourself short!" Kel popped up from the water to shout at Sunny and turned to Cris. "He did half of the whole thing before we even got here!"
Cris's eyes widened as she turned back to a blushing Sunny. "...Half?"
"...Yeah, I guess." Sunny said, avoiding Cris's gaze as he played with his fingers.
"I... I don't know what to say..." Cris began, taking another look at the beach again. "...At the very least, I should start by saying thanks."
"...You don't have to." He replied.
she gave a long sigh. "Sunny, you are a much bigger weirdo than I originally thought..."
He winced at that, turning his gaze back to the sandy ground.
"...But, you're a very thoughtful one." She said, walking over, putting her hand on the shorter boy's shoulder, and giving him a soft smile. "I think I like that about you."
Sunny gave a small smile of his own at that, turning his gaze back to meet Cris's green eyes. "Um, thanks... What else are friends for."
Cris giggled. "Geeze, I've gotta step up my game more than just showing you Sweetheart if this is what you regularly do as a friend."
"Hey!" Kel shouted again. "You gonna come in the water or what?"
Cris paused, looking between both boys for a moment, before shouting back. "I'll come in later, I wanna watch the stars for a little bit with Sunny!"
Sunny blinked in surprise while Kel gave a disappointed 'Aw' before getting splashed by Aubrey and Basil's team attack.
"Are you sure..." Sunny trailed off, not sure why she wanted to hang out with him more rather than heading into the water.
She giggled again. "Yes, I'm sure. After all, the stars do look beautiful tonight." She said, looking upwards.
Sunny followed her gaze. "Yeah... they are."
Hundreds of shining, twinkling gems hung in the dark purple sky, alongside the large, bright moon. If he squinted, he was sure he could make out a few constellations here and there.
"I don't get many nights like this in the city..." Sunny said, mostly to himself.
"Well, let's enjoy it as much as we can, then." Cris said with a beaming smile as she led Sunny to a set of beach towels splayed out on the sand.
With that, they both laid down on their backs, oo-ing and ah-ing at the night sky.
"Ooh!" Cris pointed up suddenly. "Shooting star! Make a wish, Sunny!" She said, turning back to him briefly before looking back to the sky.
Just as she said, a silver streak of light shot across the dark sky, eliciting small gasps of awe from the entire group.
"..." Sunny looked at the streak of light, mentally deciding what to wish for. Eventually he settled on the simple wish of wanting things to stay like this forever, hanging out with his friends and such. He thought it was a good wish.
After the silvery streak had left, Cris turned back to him. "So, what did you wish for?"
Sunny raised a brow. "Isn't it if you say it out loud, then the wish won't come true?"
She put a finger to her chin in thought. "Hmm, I'm pretty sure that's just with birthday candle wishes. It's fine to say shooting star wishes out loud, I'm pretty sure." She said matter of factly.
Sunny squinted at her in suspicion from his place on the blanket. "I'm not sure that's a thing."
"Hmph, oh yeah?" Cris said with a cheeky grin on her face. "I'll prove it, I'll say my own wish out loud and I'm sure it'll come true."
Sunny kept his brow raised but stayed quiet, wanting to see what she had planned.
"My wish is: I wish that my next date with Sunny will be just as good as this one."
Sunny blinked at that.
...
...
"Wha-" He then bolted upwards to look down at the grinning form of Cris. "What?!"
"Hehehehehe!" Cris sat up as well and gave Sunny a sly look. "Well, Sunny?"
"I-uh, um..." Sunny's face had gone completely scarlet from Cris's implication. Had she assumed he had asked her out on a date? "I-I didn't ask you out on- this isn't-"
Cris giggled again and waved her hand. "I know, I know... but if we do start dating, wouldn't it be more romantic to have this as our first one?" She said, gesturing around her.
"W-Well, yes, b-but that assumes that we'll be..." Sunny went quiet, unsure if he should say the rest.
"Dating?" Cris supplied, to which Sunny nodded. "Well... I'd like it if we started dating. But if you don't want to, that's fine with me. I just thought I'd ask."
Sunny went silent for a moment, mulling the idea over in his head. He had never dated before, it would be a wholly new experience for him. There was also the other question of if he liked Cris enough to date her. She was cute, yes, and funny, and she was willing to help him get over his aquaphobia... And he had wanted to clean the beach to make her happy... People normally do those sorts of things for people they like, right?
"...Okay." He said after a few seconds.
"Okay?" Cris repeated unsurely.
Sunny nodded. "Sure, let's date. I think I like you enough for it."
Cris laughed at his response, before giving him a soft smile. "Oh boy... Sunny, you really are a bit of a weirdo but... I'm beginning to love that about you." She paused. "...I'm gonna pick our next date, though. Since this was mostly you and I don't want to get too shown up."
Sunny just smiled happily back at the blue-haired girl.