Summer Deja Vu.
It was summer again. Delia couldn’t wait to get to her cousin’s cottage again. She just wished the drive was shorter then an hour. But as time wore down, and familiar landmarks proved they were getting nearer, Delia couldn’t help but remember last year, the summer she was sixteen.
~*~
"Delia! We’re playing man hunt now!" Tom called down to where she was standing on the beach.
Delia raced up the stairs to where Tom, Teddy, Jacob and Carla were standing. Jacob and Carla were brother and sister, and her cousins. Tom and Teddy were brothers, who had a cottage behind her cousins.
"Jacob’s starting." Teddy said with a smirk. "I caught him first when we were still playing ghost in the graveyard."
Of course Jacob protested, claiming the unfairness of it. Delia frowned, and turned back to the view of the dusk sky on the lake. Turning to Carla, who looked out onto the lake with her, she spoke.
"I’m here, standing alone enjoying the lake view, and they come and start bickering, ruining it completely."
Carla nodded, and the boys were silent for a few seconds.
"Fine." Tom said. "Everyone get out of here. I’m it."
"But that’s not fair." Delia said, turning to face him.
"It’s the only way this game is going to get started, so you can get back to your stars." He said, turning and walking away.
Delia was hurt at first by the comment, but she quickly turned and headed down the stairs, back onto the beach.
She stood on the beach, while everyone hid. Two of the younger kids were hiding came and hid under the stairs as she stood there, watching her. Tom came down the stairs, and in an effort to keep them from being caught, Delia whistled, catching Tom’s attention, then dashed down the beach, Tom hot on her heels.
Delia ran until she thought her lungs were going to collapse. She turned to find Tom still behind her, and the lights from the cottages, far behind them.
"Are you going to chase me all the way down the beach?" she cried, stumbling a bit.
"Maybe." He grunted, just as much out of breath as she was.
Delia started to slow down, and Tom jetted forward, catching up. Delia didn’t know what else to do, so she dived into the sand, and as she hoped, Tom dived over, into the sand as well. She tried to pick herself back up to keep running, but she was much to out of breath.
She sat there, looking up at the stars with a small smile on her face. Tom picked himself up and went and stood over Delia, his hand outstretched.
"That wasn’t fair." She said, still panting slightly.
"It was more then fair. Come on." He said, grinning at her.
She grinned back and grabbed his hand, a move that she would regret, even to the day of her remembering. When she grabbed his hand, she felt something, and certain electricity, and she knew he felt it to, judging by the way when their eyes met, they both looked away quickly.
Though their hands separated, their fingertips lingered until they were walking back down the beach. They walked in silence, until Delia thought she was going to explode.
"Who else is there to catch?" she asked, looking at him, hoping he’d face her.
"No one. You were the last one." He said, not breaking his forward glance.
"You mean the kids, they,"
"They were there because I knew you would run to try to keep me away from them. Your motherly instincts are to strong you know." he said with a laugh.
Delia laughed to, but wasn’t feeling it.
They continued in silence, and once they reached the stairs, Tom went up to gather up the others, but Delia stayed on the beach. Carla quickly made it to her cousin’s side.
"So what happened?" she asked.
"He caught me?"
"And?"
"That’s it. But there is sand in my pants!" Delia cried and started to shake to get rid of the sand.
As everyone started to gather on the beach, Delia gave up and sat on the ground unhappy. As everyone talked, Delia became more uncomfortable and stood back up to shake some more, complaining about the sand.
At one point in the conversation, Teddy suggested a game of strip poker and it was pointed out that Delia was half way there with her pants undone and her socks off and pants rolled up. Delia glared and kept shaking.
"It’s your fault for diving Delia." Tom said with a smirk.
"If your fault for chasing me Tom." Delia said, shifting her glare to him.
"Why don’t we all go up to the top of the stairs and play truth or dare then?" Teddy said, eager to do something other then sit on the beach.
Everyone liked the idea and everyone, including Delia who had done her pants back up, headed up top to sit and play.
The game went back and forth, having everyone doing stupid things until Tom’s truth caused an awkward silence and two people to blush profusely.
"Tom." Oliva, Delia’s sister said with a smile. "Do you like my sister?"
Everyone but Delia looked at Tom, waiting for an answer. Delia looked at her lap, thanking her lucky stars for the cover of night as she felt heat rush to her cheeks.
"Well." Tom started, causing Delia to finally look at him. "Do you mean, like as a friend, or like, I dunno."
"Just answer the question." Carla said, looking at Delia.
"Well then, I’d have to say I’m attracted." Tom said, a little nervously.
Everyone exhaled.
"Yeah, I’d have to say I’m very attracted to her." Tom finished, quickly keeping the game going.
There wasn't another awkward moment until the game turned to Tom again, this time, him taking a dare.
"Tom, I dare you," Kenny started with a coy smile.
"Kenny, nothing stupid, I have a girlfriend."
"I dare you to kiss Delia." Kenny said.
"Kenny, I said no stupid shit, I have a girlfriend." Tom said, looking slightly flustered.
"That’s a lie! You said yesterday," Teddy started, but didn’t get a chance to finish.
"Teddy."
"Tom, kiss her! You’re such a jackass."
"Look guys, this doesn’t need to cause a fight." Delia said standing up, and looking the two arguing brothers. "Kenny, he said nothing stupid, we’ll move on."
"No!" Teddy said. "He said a kiss, and a kiss is a kiss."
"Yeah." Kenny piped up. "Just kiss her on the cheek. A friendly little peck."
Tom sighed and stood and walked over to where Delia stood. She closed her eyes and took a breath, and contemplated turning her head so her lips met his, but she thought better of it. He kissed her lightly, then went back to his seat, and Delia sat down.
The game went on a little longer before Delia stood up and walked down onto the beach alone, and threw herself into the sand. Carla came and sat beside her.
"Why Carla, why?" Delia muttered into the sand.
"It’s ok Delia, don’t worry." She replied, trying to comfort her cousin.
"Delia! Truth or dare!" Teddy called down to her.
Delia sighed and rolled onto her back and sat up. "Truth." She yelled up to him.
Truth! She wanted to scream. Truth! Let me give you a truth Teddy! Though it took years to happen, I’ve fallen in love with your brother! That’s the truth!
"You’re no fun Delia! Let me give you a dare!" he yelled back with a mischievious grin, as himself and the others came down.
"Teddy, your brother made my brother dance on the beach singing, ‘I’m the only gay eskimo’. Do you really think I’m going to trust you to dare me?" she said, glaring at the younger boy.
He just laughed and stood over her.
"Let walk though." Delia said, pulling herself to her feet.
"But we’ll get soakers!"
"Soakers?" Delia and Carla said at the same time, and Carla stood.
"Yeah, when you step in the water, and your socks and shoes get soaked." Tom said.
"That’s why our shoes are off. Take your up to your cottage." Carla said.
The two boys nodded and headed up the stairs, and Delia and Carla started walking.
"Thomas! Theodore!" Delia called to them. "Just make sure you come back."
They both nodded to her and disappeared.
~*~
Delia hadn’t seen them again for the rest of the summer. In fact, she hadn’t seen either of them all year. Today would be the first time in a year that she would talk to them. And she was terrified. Not of Teddy, her and Teddy always got along. But of Tom.
When Delia and her family arrived it was all hugs and smiles from both her family and the two brothers, though Tom was distant, and she could tell.
"Teddy, is Tom alright?" Delia asked him, when she knew Tom was out of ear-shot.
"Not sure. He’s been acting weird all year. In a weird kind of daze. He snapped out of it when we got here, and was his old self again, but he’s acting all distant again. Why?"
"Because I’m noticing it and I’m worried, that’s all." Delia said, and went into the cottage to change into her bathing suit.
Once changed, Delia headed right for the beach. It was already late in the afternoon, and they would be eating dinner soon. She had to get into the lake. It was calling her.
She ran to the beach and threw her towel down and threw her sandals off and raced with everyone to the beach. The water was freezing, but Delia didn’t care. She was just glad to be back.
Delia only got out to eat her dinner. No one wanted to go back into the lake after they had eaten, but Delia begged to go to the small shipwreck just off shore. None of her family would cave, but Teddy and Tom told her they would take her out to it, but only for a few minutes.
As they swam, Tom seemed to come around, and it was just like old times when the three of them had gone to the shipwreck together in previous years. Delia couldn’t have been more happy.
At one point, the three of them floated their way on their backs, Delia in between the two brothers. She closed her eyes and just floated, her arms outstretched in the water, until her hand grazed another, and she felt that electricity she had felt a year before, an electricity that she never thought she’d feel again. She stopped floating and opened her eyes, and find Tom looking at her almost alarmed. Their eyes met, but he broke the gaze quickly and swam away from her.
Determined, Delia swam after him, and was able to grab onto his should stopped him in the water.
"Delia, don’t,"
"Don’t what? Say something I should have a year ago?"
"Say something you’ll regret."
"I regret not saying anything."
"Delia, please,"
"Please? Please what Tom? Don’t deny anything, you felt it."
Tom remained silent and didn’t look her in the eye.
"Look at me Tom." Delia whispered.
He looked up at her a pained look in his eye.
"So what if I did? When do we see each other Delia? Here. That’s it. After this summer, my parents are selling our cottage. They’re buying a cottage further north."
"So that means,"
"After this summer, we’ll never see each other again."
Delia broke their eye contact, speechless.
"Delia, I think I love you, but I don’t want to let you down."
Delia just nodded, thankful once again, but this time, of the water around her, so Tom wouldn’t see her cry.
They were silent until Teddy called out to them.
"Heya you two! Don’t get to cozy over there! I found the shipwreck!"
The two swam over in a somber silence.
They only stayed out at the shipwreck for a few minutes. Neither Delia nor Tom had the heart to swim, and the swim back was just as somber.
Once at shore, and up top where the cottage were, Delia said her thank you’s to both Tom and Teddy for taking her out, then promised to see them later. And later she did see them, we they started their game of ghost in the graveyard.
Delia stayed off the beach during the game, sneaking a creeping through the bushes, yards and trees, not being caught once. Except for one time.
Teddy found her, and Delia bolted, and not knowing where to go, she headed for the stairs of the beach. She ran down them, and Teddy gave up chase, choosing to stay up top.
Once at the bottom, Delia stopped and took a look up into the sky and was amazing. The sun had finally set, and they sky was left a hazy pink mess of clouds. It looked like something out of a dream. Delia couldn’t help but sit and just look at the sky, until she heard a familiar voice call her name.
"Delia!" Tom called down to her. "We’re ditching the game, because it’s getting to easy. Everyone knows where everyone hides. We’re playing man-hunt."
Delia was hit with a strong sense of déjà vu, but she brushed it off, as she stood and joined the group at the top of the stairs who were bickering on who would be it for the game.
"Fine! Guys! SHUT UP!" Tom yelled. "I’m it, get the hell out of here."
"Well isn’t this familiar." Delia muttered.
"What was that?" Tom asked, eyebrows raised with curiosity.
"Nothing." She said with a flirty smile, as she turned and headed down the stairs.
Delia was able to keep herself hidden under the stairs until once again, the sake of the younger kids brought her out. Two little ones came running down the stairs screaming, and Delia darted out from under the stairs, and stood a bit off as Tom came to stand at the top. Delia turned her back to him, and appeared to be looking at the stars.
Just as she wanted, she heard Tom start down the stairs, and as soon as she heard his footsteps muffled by the sand, she bolted down the beach, once again Tom right on her heels.
They ran and ran, further then they did the year before.
"Are you going to run forever?" Tom yelled to her.
"Maybe!" she called back, starting to lose her breath.
Tom was getting closer, and she knew that they had gone pretty far down the beach, as she couldn’t barely see the lights from the cottage twinkling in the distance behind her. They were much further then they were the year before.
Delia dived onto the ground like she had done the year before, and Tom dove over her, but didn’t fall, which Delia didn’t notice as she got to her feet quickly and began running again.
"No you don’t!" Tom yelled and tackled Delia to the ground.
"That was totally not fair!" she yelled, pushing Tom off her and laying on her back.
"It was more then fair." He said, standing up, and offering her his hand. "Come on, we have to get back."
Delia grabbed his hand, but instead of letting him pull her to her feet, she pulled him back down on top of her.
"No, we’re not going back until we settle this."
"Delia." Tom said, rolling off her and laying on his back beside her.
Delia sighed and just lay there looking up at the stars.
"I’ll be able to drive on my own come September. I can drive up to see you." Delia said.
"I can drive now."
"Then it’s settled."
"Delia, it won’t work."
"That’s only because you’re not letting it work Tom!" she said angrily, tears threatening to spill over her eyes again.
Tom propped himself up on his arm and looked at Delia. "Delia," he said softly.
"What." She said, closing her eyes to avoid the tears.
"I love you."
Delia opened her eyes and propped herself up on her elbows.
"I love you to." She said just as softly.
They both smiled, and Tom leaned in and kissed Delia.
~*~
The two weren’t found until much later in the night, lying in each other’s arms, watching the stars. They were laughing and talking with each other as waves tickled their now bare feet.
"Tom! Delia! We’ve been looking for you everywhere!" Carla yelled, looking at the two in shock.
Both Delia and Tom sat up in surprise as neither of them had realized Carla, Teddy and Jacob had stumbled upon them.
The two didn’t say anything, and the silence was broken by Teddy’s laugh.
"Finally. Let’s get back before the parents have a bird."
They did just that, Delia and Tom grabbing their shoes.
As they walked, Tom grabbed Delia’s hand and squeezed it softly.
"Tom, what are we going to do?" she whispered softly with a sad sigh.
"Well lets just say, our summer déjà vu hasn’t ended. It’s just begun."