Summer Heat

"Huh?" Hollie glanced at him, "Am I? Too clingy?"

"No." Danny's fingertips brushed her bare shoulder, admiring the tanned skin, "Only you look kinda sad."

Hollie pulled a face, "Really?"

"Yeah." He waited for a second before continuing, "Like that time we planned a funeral for your goldfish and you got home but your dad had flushed it down the toilet." The corner of his mouth twitched slightly, "I had to bin the cardboard hearse."

"That wasn't funny." Hollie said quite seriously, "I've been an emotional mess ever since."

Danny looked at her for a minute, "What is it? What's the problem?"

"I dunno." Hollie turned to face him, "OK, I do know." She took the proffered drinks can off him and sipped before progressing, "Danny, we've had this whole summer and it's been so great but now it's all about to end. I have to go off to bloody university and I'm just gonna go back into that stupid unfulfilling life again." She sighed, fiddled with the hem of her skirt before looking at him again, "This time with you has been like a slice of heaven. But now I've eaten it all and I'm never gonna get it back." She sighed, "I knew it was too good to last."

Danny raised a questioning eyebrow, "What, so you think as soon as summer's over, I'm over?"

"No!" Hollie hastened to rephrase herself, "I mean that we're, or I'm not gonna have so much free time. You might...y'know...get bored."

"Bored?" Danny shook his head in disbelief, "We'll have weekends. And holidays." He smiled across at her, "You thought summer was good? You should check out winter."

"Winter?" Despite her insecurities, Hollie couldn't help being curious, "What's so good about winter?"

Danny smiled, "Snow, Christmas, ice-skating, illuminations...we could do that shit together." He raised an eyebrow, "Unless you'd prefer me doing it with some other girl."

"No." The smile finally spread across Hollie's face, "I hate to sound like an idiot but I want to do it all with you." She smiled at him, "Danny, I really like you. Like, really."

Danny laughed, "Really? As in really, really?"

Hollie giggled as she leaned across to brush her lips against his. "Really."

"Good." Danny whispered, his face mere millimetres from hers, "Because I have a feeling that if I was with some other girl, this summer would have sucked."

Hollie smiled as she looked into his emerald eyes, "I was waiting for you to say that."

And as their lips met for the billionth time that summer, she finally decided that maybe reality wasn't so bad after all.

~ The END ~

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