Levi
Fishing at the pier?
My smile widens, and I lift my eyes to meet Dad’s again.
“Do you remember where my fishing rod is?”
Dad chuckles. “At my house.” Then he pushes to his feet and holds out a hand to pull me up. “I’ll help you find it.”
I cast my line out into the water again, glancing at Levi as he reels his in.
We’ve been out here for almost two hours, and not even a bite.
But as I watch the flex of his biceps beneath the thin fabric of his T-shirt, I find I don’t really care. Catching fish isn’t the only reason I’m here.
“I’m trying a different lure,” Levi grumbles, shooting a look at my rod before turning towards the tackle box. “This is bullshit.”
A quiet laugh slips out of me as I watch him crouch down and assess the lures with so much intensity, it’s like he thinks one of them will come to life and give him the answer to catching fish.
Always the overachiever.
Winston lies stretched out, sound asleep in the sun beside the tackle box, completely unaware and unbothered with Levi’s frustration, or anything else going on around him.
Eventually, Levi chooses a lure, replaces it on his line, and casts it back out into the water. And I keep my eyes on the muscles flexing in his back with the movement.
Comfortable silence stretches between us as we wait for the mackerel to bite, while I feel the warm sun on my skin and listen to water lapping softly against the pier posts, and the seagulls calling in the sky. It’s completely quiet out here, with just rocky shore on either side of the pier, creating a peaceful escape for quiet fishing.
It’s a perfect day. Even if the fish aren’t biting.
I glance at Levi again as he slowly reels his line in with a furrowed brow, looking so locked in I can’t help but let out a laugh.
He looks over at me and rolls his eyes. “Fuck off.”
With a smile, I reel my line in and set my rod aside.
Levi watches me with a small smile playing at the corner of his lips. “Giving up already?”
I just shrug. “No. But what do we usually do when the fish won’t bite?”
His eyes widen, and he looks out at the water, then back at me.
And I just smile.
“It’s going to be fucking cold, dude. It’s still June,” he says.
I tilt my head as I observe him. “Scared?”
Fire ignites in his eyes at that accusation, and he immediately starts reeling his line in.
I chuckle and grab the hem of my shirt, pulling it over my head while he does the same with his. We kick off our pants, shoes, and socks until we’re in nothing but our boxers in the middle of the empty pier.
Winston stirs to life as he notices something going on, and trots over to us with his tail wagging and tongue hanging out, ready to join the fun.
My heart thumps with anticipation as we turn towards the water, and memories flood my mind of us doing this as kids, bringing a smile to my lips.
And when Levi holds out his hand, I take it and meet his eyes, letting the familiar comfort of him wrap around me and pull me into the past when everything felt simpler, even when it wasn’t.
But right now, it is.
