Rocks Below

"Shirt, I get. Why the tie?" Corey asked, "I mean, I can pull off a decent semi-formal in a shirt and jeans. Hopefully not dragging you too far down by having me next to you."

Lily smirked over at him, "Oh, ties are just fun."

"Fun?" He asked in confusion. Not a word he associated with the formal item of clothing. It was always the first thing to be removed after work or a long meeting.

She shrugged, "Well, if I have to wait, so do you. So I'm not telling."

"Confused. Very confused." Corey shook his head.

%7%6%5%7%2%6%F%7%5%7%3%

"You just about done changing?" Lily called through the bathroom door, teasing him that she had managed to get ready in less time.

In truth, Corey had been ready for a while. It hadn't taken him long to slip into his new black shirt, with red tie, and plain jeans. He'd even made sure to tie a double Windsor. However, he was starting to feel strangely uncomfortable about their dinner plans. It had him second guessing himself.

What exactly were his intentions?

He would have had no doubts, earlier that morning. His intentions were only to soothe the shattered heart of his sister. To show her a good time, that she was still beautiful, and that her ex was just a hurtful dick looking to score a scar or two before he dumped her altogether. Only a special kind of rabid asshole complained about a girl's weight. And only the worst of those pigs did it to a girl who had zero reason to worry about her weight.

Except... Except helping his sister get off wasn't just soothing. It was wrong. There was no other way to describe it. It had been wrong, from start to finish.

So when he took her out to a restaurant under the stars, both of them getting all dressed up... Knowing that they were going to be sleeping in the same bed, afterwards...

Was he trying to date his sister, without admitting to it?

Corey honestly didn't have an answer to the question. The very fact he couldn't answer it, concerned him even more than it even being a question. He knew that she was attractive, but she should never have been on his radar as an option. She still shouldn't be.

Yet, he was disappointed he couldn't buy her roses.

Lily was adorable most of the time. Even when she was so quick to anger, and so terrifying when she was in a mood, she was still someone that he could imagine himself with. If she were not his sister, he would be trying to convince her to let him stay by his side, forever.

She was his sister, and he wasn't sure that wasn't what he was doing.

"Corey! You either answer me, or I'm coming in!" Lily yelled, with a hint of anger to her voice, and perhaps something more playful. True to her word, the door swung open almost instantly, but she paused as she saw him sitting on the edge of the empty hot tub.

A look of disappointment briefly crossed her face before she winced, "Oh. So you're imploding, then, huh?"

Corey wasn't able to answer straightaway. He was staring at the tight black number on his sister, which shimmered and sparkled with her every movement. The dress held itself up without any straps, cinched in tight around her breasts, leading to a very firm looking cleavage. It also only came down to mid-thigh, falling from her waist in semi-transparent shimmering layers. He could almost swear he could see her panties underneath, through the skirt section.

She knelt next to him carefully and brushed his cheek, "Look... You're not coping with what... We did... Earlier... But it was just... Nice. That's it. It doesn't have to mean anything."

Corey blinked, "That's it. That's why I can't get it out of my head... Because it doesn't have to mean anything... But... Get ready to run. Um... I wish it meant something. Or at least part of me, does. And that's, it's just so... Bad."

"It meant something..." Lily said with frightened eyes, "... To you, too?"

He looked away from her, "I'm a piece of shit."

"I love you."

The confession took a moment to percolate. Corey remembered the look that Lily had given him, when she was masturbating. That it wasn't all lust, that it was something he didn't think he had seen before. A look no girl had ever given him from underneath.

He looked over at her, "I..."

She put a finger to his lips quickly, "Ssh. Not ready to hear it. Not one way, or the other. Okay? I... I didn't expect to say that. But... I do. So... I want to go to dinner. I want you to treat me right. After? After I'll let you know if I've made up my mind what to think about this. Not before. Not a single word. I need to think."

She stood up slowly, and smiled at him before holding out her hand. Corey took it gratefully and stood up, "Well... The outfit is amazing. But there's something missing."

"Don't say that." She pouted, "I spent ages planning this! Starlight dress beneath starlight. Everything."

Corey smiled at her, walking into the main room and grabbing the shopping bag from where he stashed it, "Oh, I'm not saying it isn't good. It's amazing. I just hoped you might like this to go with it."

He turned and held out the box to her.

"My present!" Lily squealed excitedly and half-ran the couple steps to him. She ignored grabbing it, opting instead to jump and hug him. She landed on her tippy toes, hanging from his neck and kissed his cheek, "You always know how to cheer a girl up, Cor."

She leaned back, grinning up at him, but he found it difficult to look down at her with this particular dress. Especially considering the conversation that they had just had. It really did complement her well.

Lily took the box, lifting the stiff latch to reveal the necklace. She let out a long sound of interest, and then lifted it out. She put the box down carefully onto the end of the bed and then turned around. "Help me out, Cal?"

Corey took a double take. That was the second time she'd done that. Lily held her wavelets to the side, and he helped put the necklace on. His fingertips like fire as he brushed her soft skin. Fumbling with the latch before he sunk the loop.

Lily turned back to him, looking down with one handling fiddling with the gold piece nestled right at the top of her softness. "It's beautiful, Cor. I... I love it. We can go to dinner, now."

"You called me... Cal." He decided to open that can of worms.

She flushed, and mumbled, "I know... Um... I'll explain later? I'm sorry."

Corey shrugged, "Sure. So... Shall we get this sparkling gal to the restaurant?"

He opened the door for her, and Lily went to step outside. He saw a glint in her eye, and she stopped in front of him. Trapping him between the doorway and her, whilst he couldn't move without slamming the door on one of them.

Lily turned on her heel, and leaned up on her tippy toes and planted a soft kiss against his lips. She tasted faintly of raspberries, and though it was gentle, there was nothing hesitant about it.

His sister lowered herself back down onto her strappy flats, smiling to herself with reddened cheeks, "Don't mind me. Just... Testing the waters."

Then with that, she skipped by him and onto the deck.

Corey didn't know what to make of that, exactly. It didn't seem like Lily had thought it through, and chances were she was going to come to the same decision he already had. Tempting each other was a bad idea.

Lily leaned up on the railing, like she had when they first arrived, but her neck was craned up to look at the stars. She whistled softly to herself, "They're so clear, out here."

With the sound of the water crashing below them, and the lively venues of the cruise in the background, Corey stood beside her. "What can you see?"

"The usual. Orion. The triangle." She pointed at the bright lights in the sky, "There's the Southern Cross, and the North Pointer. Ooh! That, right on the edge, that's Perseus. That's next to Cassiopeia, but we can't really see that one, not this part of the year."

She eased onto the ground next to him, and leaned her head onto his shoulder, "It's... Peaceful, here. Makes me feel... Safe."

"Safe?" He said in concern, "I know that -"

"Don't talk about him." Lily whispered, "He used to make me feel this way. That's why I fell for him. No matter what happened, he made me feel safe. Until he didn't. You make me feel safe, Cor. That's... That's why I called you his name. You reminded me of him, when he meant everything. Call it a habit or a memory. But... Being here... It... Makes me know that leaving was the right decision. I thought I'd regret it. But I don't. I just feel free. And safe."

Corey stayed quiet, listening to her, and feeling an ache of his heart on her behalf. Her relationship was gone, but it was the last threads hanging in the tattered breeze to be blown away. This trip would have been about saving it, not a reflection of how close they had been.

She gave a small contented sound, "The biggest difference between you two? He made me feel safe for a few years. You've made me feel safe, all of my life. I could always count on you, Cor. And that's not going to change, because it never has."

She stood up, and interlaced her fingers with his, "Let's go get dinner."

The restaurant was busy, filled with couples chatting and laughing away. They were dressed in every way. From the skimpiest of swimwear all the way to dresses with furs that made Lily look underdressed. The wait staff wore the more formal and traditional garb, expressions preferring stoicism over warmth of greetings.

Their table was located over near one of the edges of the ship, beneath a crisscross of fairy lights, and as far from the bar and its loud laughter as you could get. The table was dressed in a black tablecloth, with bright red petals, and had two glasses of champagne already waiting for them.

Corey politely helped Lily into her seat, before sitting down opposite her. She looked picturesque as he gazed in her direction. Her cheeks had the slightest hint of red, like when she was thinking or concentrating. Her hair, which he'd been too distracted to notice earlier, was arranged in rivulets that framed her sweet face. One bang refusing to stay in place, and hanging down over her cheek.

Her earrings didn't quite match the necklace, little allergy-sensitive platinum circles with either zirconium or diamond gemstones. More specks of starlight, adorning her. Under the fairy lights, he could also notice for the first time that her touch-up included just the tiniest amount of glitter.

"You're supposed to want to eat the food, not me." Lily mumbled shyly, putting a menu between them, but sounding just a little bit proud of herself.

Corey picked his up, "Am I? Got to remember that."

"No... One liners. I still have to think." She said with a hint of irritation, "So... Um... Well, dessert's easy. Not sure what I want for the entree."

He glanced, "Let me guess... You want the tropical mousse?"

"No! You don't know me at all! The choco..." Lily trailed off, glaring at Corey's amused expression. She gave him a playful glare and then hid behind her menu again. Chocoholic was not an uncommon turn of phrase to refer to his little sister.

He shrugged, "I was thinking the smoked salmon. Nice and light."

"I hate capers." Lily shook her head, "So... I guess I'll have the... Melange just means mix, right? It's just a bunch of veggies."

"Potato, pumpkin, kale with herbs and a dressing. Just a pumpkin salad, really." He shrugged, "Sounds like you'd like it."

She shrugged, "Kale is either really good, or so bad you may as well be eating out of a toilet. Meh. It's a risk, but it's five star. What about mains?"

By the time the waitress arrived, they'd sorted out what they both wanted. Corey was surprised when the waitress refilled Lily's glass. He hadn't noticed her more than sip whilst they were talking, but she downed her entire glass when he hadn't really touched his.

Giving it a little thought, he couldn't really remember Lily drinking much at any family event. He had exactly no idea what her alcohol tolerance was like. Not that it was a question he could bring up in a way that was unlikely to insult her.

She leaned back in her chair as they waited, looking up at the sky. "It's so pretty here. Peaceful. I could live here... Wind in your hair, water in your ears. People just looking to make your every dream happen, no matter how entitled it is. A different world."

"Could do without the seagulls." Corey shrugged, "But it's nice. Watching the coast roll on by."

She smiled, "That the only view you like?"

"Oh, so you can flirt, but I can't?" He replied teasingly.

Lily gave a small laugh, "'Course. You're the older, responsible one. You get to follow all the rules... And I get to convince you to break them."

"Break them?"

She shrugged, "'Nuf of that. Mmm... If the bed is as nice as this, I don't know if I'm going to want to wake up, tomorrow. There's so much to do... But I also wanna just be lazy. Nothing to do, and no guilt about taking my time... It's been a while since I could just stop."

"Life can be an effort."

She shook her head, "Not life. Caleb. I had to do everything right just to worm a compliment out of him. I dressed up, and you've stared at me a couple times, already. Cal would ask me if I was really that horny, or if he could take a raincheck. I just... I want to feel appreciated. You're not even trying to get anything, and you make me feel more loved than he made me feel in months. Geeze, that's sad."

"You're beautiful."

Lily blushed, smiling proudly, "I wasn't fishing for you to say anything."

"I know." He shrugged, "But... You're beautiful. There's a lot of people here. Some wearing next to nothing, but I haven't got distracted. It's really not fair of you, it's hard not to stare."

She flushed a deeper red, almost touching her neck, "Um... Go ahead. Free pass for tonight? Stare as much as you like."

"Lils?"

She shrugged, "I swear I'm not drunk. I just... I like this. Okay?"

The arrival of their entrees cut the conversation. The later dinner time had apparently made his sister ravenous. She used her cutlery correctly, and delicately, but Lily didn't speak again until she had inhaled her salad. She also swiped a couple thin strips of salmon off his plate with a cheeky grin.

Corey spotted the guilt as she was swallowing her last mouthful. The furtive look down at her waist and crashing mood as she slowed her chewing. A look of disappointment with herself. He glanced around for an idea, and then spoke, "Hey. They're doing slow dancing over there. You want to get a taste of that, after tea?"

"Wanting to sneak a feel?" Lily replied, "That's not what the free pass meant."

He shook his head, "Nope. And I wouldn't. I was thinking it'd be a waste of the starlight, not to dance with a gorgeous girl in a sparkling dress. Doesn't it look best with a slow twirl?"

"Aw, you're sweet." Her nose crinkled upwards, "So... Can you actually dance, Cor?"

He shrugged, "Uhm... I can step and turn? But not really."

"Not quite what I meant. The one and only time Caleb and I danced like that was at a wedding. They had to ice my foot after he broke two of my toes." Lily smiled in amusement.

Corey laughed, "Okay, I'm not that bad. I'm not going to stomp on you, if you can follow my lead. How's your dancing?"

"Eh. Drift and go where the guy directs you. Not that hard. Unless his hand drops from waist to ass." Lily shrugged.

He shook his head, "Why do people do that? I know one or two girls out there might want you to cop a feel, but the vast majority wouldn't. Even if you're just looking to get lucky, doesn't it make the most sense to just make sure she loves the dance? Close, but not close enough? Build the tension."

"Romance is the best aphrodisiac." Lily agreed, "When a guy is so close, that you're waiting for him to kiss you... And he holds you just right... But never does... Goosebumps. He just waits for you to cross that last little distance, all night long... Until you're standing on the doorstep at the end of the night... That is a damned pantydropper."

"Lils!"

She blushed, "Well, it is! You can't tell me it doesn't do anything for you, either!"

"Well, yeah." Corey shrugged, "Though, in my experience, most girls won't cross that last line. They want the guy to. Rejection is hard, even if you're damn sure. Which I guess is why guys get hung up on hints. Sometimes it's hard to read a situation."

Lily nodded and gave a small laugh, "Yeah... I've done that... And got upset that he didn't realise I was giving him permission to kiss me. Though I suspect a bunch realised on the way home I was offering for them to stay the night. That's a fun little bundle of regret, probably."

"So, so many times. But screw me for being into clear consent." Corey laughed.

She frowned, biting the edge of her lip, "Consent is sexy. Being treated like you need to ask... That kind of respect is amazing. It can get old if you don't learn my hints over time, but to begin with... I mean it, Cor. A guy who can treat me like he always needs to ask, that's one I can see myself spending the rest of my life with."

"You wouldn't just friendzone him?"

She gave a frustrated sigh, "No... I think I'd fall for him. If he'd just notice."

"Barramundi for the lady." The waitress interrupted, "And slow cooked eggplant for yourself."

Lily was quiet, eating slowly as she was back inside her head. Corey felt like they might have made some progress. That maybe, tomorrow his sister would feel free to go looking for fun.

She'd rediscovered what she wanted in a relationship. Not something compatible with a one night stand, so she wouldn't feel any pressure to search out something on the cruise. She'd relax and do all the wild activities, and get back home ready to face the world, again. She was moving on from the jerk.

She was still lost in her head when their desserts arrived. Hers was a towering sculpture of seven different kinds of carefully handmade chocolates in the shape of the Sydney Opera House. Yet, even that didn't seem to bring her out of her funk.

He offered some of his tiramisu, and she took it, but she was still blank to the world.

"Sit for a while? Then head back to the room?" Corey asked her carefully.

Lily blinked, "Huh? Oh. Nope, I'm wearing flats. Show me that you're not a toecrusher, Cor. But if I spend the rest of the trip laid up because of you, you're gonna regret it."

They thanked their waitress and headed over to where the other couples were dancing to a slow sort of classical waltz, with flavour and overtones supplied by clapsticks for the rhythm and three women doing things with their voices that Corey didn't even know was possible.

He held out his hand to Lily, "May I have this dance?"

"Mmm..." She made a thoughtful expression, "I dunno. Do you really think that you're cute enough to dance with a girl like me?"

"Not at all. But worth a shot."

Lily gave a small laugh and took his hand, "Dream on. You've had like three people hit on you today. Stud."

He frowned as they started to dance, "Huh? Have I?"

"God, you didn't even notice, did you?" She said in irritation as they began their first slow arc across the floor. Her cheeks, earrings and dress sparkling in the depth of the shallow light, "The girls don't talk to me. They talk to you, Cor. And back off if they think you're with me. They're not just being polite."

His hand was in the small of her back, holding her firmly to help guide her, but keeping a respectful distance between them. The other hand was intertwined with hers, loosely held aloft. Her necklace caught the light, shimmering and projecting yellows of all kinds across the top of her chest.

"I'm sure that's not true. The staff are probably too busy with each other to think about touching a guest, and all the dangers that'd bring." He shook his head.

Her delicate feet seemed to glide almost ethereally across the top of the deck. She was floating in the turn, never touching down. As if he was in the presence of some otherworldly beauty.