𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟒𝟎

CHAPTER FORTY i'm a fool for you

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"GRAB ONTO THE post, we're here." Rafe's voice caused my reading to pause, immediately following his instruction.

I took in the sight around me in an attempt to gain any clues as to where he took us. A small, fairly run down building sat isolated in the middle of the area- making me wonder what was particularly romantic in his choice of location.

However, reminding myself of the beauty behind the boarded-up windows on the mainland, I knew not to get too judgemental before the secret unveiled itself.

"There should be a rope somewhere by your feet," he continued, "tie it to that silver hoop."

"I know how to moor a boat, Rafe." I scoffed.

"Congratulations." he kissed my cheek to follow his sarcastic comment, taking the first steps onto the dock.

His hand extended out to mine, helping me reach onto the wooden surface. I ensured to keep the book firmly in my grip whilst we walked closer to the front entrance, eventually catching sight of a sign that gave away the mystery of his chosen destination.

"Never took you as the guy to care for animal shelters." I stared at him with an adoring look, unknowingly contrasting my spoken words. "I swear you're nothing like what you perceive yourself to be."

"And what would that be?" he asked with an intrigued tone of voice.

"Do you not remember what an ass you were at the start of this summer? I swear the hair gel is seeping into your brain and giving you memory loss." I ruffled his hair with my free hand, causing him to gently shove me in response.

"Lisa's boy? You're earlier than I expected." an older woman greeted us with a bright smile.

Preventing our playful fight to go any further, she pulled him into a tight embrace, swiftly catching sight of my raised eyebrows. I wasn't quite used to physical affection when it came to greetings, my discomfort becoming evident once she hit me with a similar hug. My palm rested against her cardigan as her perfume overwhelmed my senses, hearing a faint chuckle come from where Rafe stood.

"Camille, this is Dani. Dani, Camille."

"God, where are my manners?" she gathered her hair over one shoulder, accompanied by the sound of her various bracelets clattering against each other. "I'm his mom's old friend, promise I don't mean any harm."

Despite feeling freaked out by her welcoming actions, the news of their relation made any worry fade away. Even if we'd only talked about her once before, I knew Rafe's mom was important to him, and him introducing me to the person closest to her raised the infatuation I had to a new high.

"Why are we still at the door? C'mon, I've got something I know this one will love." Dani pointed in his direction, gesturing for us to follow her with the same finger.

Rafe held me closer by resting his arm around my shoulders, reassuring me with a short peck. It was hard to tell if I was uncomfortable, or simply getting used to life on his side of the island. With each fact I learnt about his childhood, the more I wished I was given an earlier shot at living the way I was supposed to.

Nevertheless, it was better to start later than not at all.

All three of us gathered at the surgical table in the centre of the room Dani led us to. I was overrun with anticipation as to what he thought to be so special about an animal shelter, knowing that there was some deeper meaning beyond just meeting his mom's friend. With Rafe, there was always an alternate meaning, and each extended wait for the truth was starting to kill me.

"I know it's not the cleanest right now, so I apologise." she laughed whilst readjusting her brown waves again, "With how stuck up I was at your age, I think I'd throw a fit if my boyfriend took me on a date here."

The second she turned her back, I threw a surprised glance over at Rafe, seeing him attempt to mask the revealed information by clearing his throat. I took the advantage of us being left alone as a chance to continue projecting my reaction caused by her specific words.

"Boyfriend, huh. Seems like everyone knows about that but me." I joked, failing to hide my rather obvious grin.

"Shut up." he said before taking my face into his hands, using a kiss to prevent me from commenting on anything else.

A loud clatter sounded as both of us tore away from the other, met by an awkward smile on Dani's part. I immediately caught on to the cat in her arms, quickly replacing my embarrassment as I awed at the animal. No matter the endless amounts of begging May had to listen to over the years, I'd never previously had the chance to own even a fish- emphasising how opposing my life was becoming to what I was used to all these years.

It seemed like Rafe took every last detail of me into account for his plan and, although I hadn't told him that much about me, he obviously knew more than I would've normally intended him to.

"Didn't mean to interrupt your little moment, I swear. We're just running on limited time with this one, and I'm guessing you'd wanna see her before she dozes off." she started. "For a runt, it's a miracle that she lived long enough to make it to us. Isn't she tiny?"

The cat first strolled over to Rafe, only making me realise the size comparison once she was under his hand. I couldn't help but admire how delicate his touch was, highlighting the side of him that actually seemed to care for things. He crouched down to be face level with the animal, thankfully too focused on the sight before him to notice how wide my smile was.

I reached my hand out once I noticed her pacing the surface, the white of my dress starting to get coated in brown fur the more she brushed against me. My movements were stiff as opposed to how comfortable he was, cautiously easing myself once Rafe moved behind me. The placement of his chin on my shoulder helped him gain full sight of my hand, using his own to guide me with the animal.

"Does she have a name?" he spoke softly.

"We were gonna pick something eventually but you called, so I thought I'd let y'all choose."

"What about Iris?" my head turned at the same time as Rafe's, causing our noses to collide with each other. "Y'know, like the Goo Goo Dolls song?"

Dani's smile beamed once more before directing her attention to the cat, taking it back into her arms like earlier. Even if I didn't know the exact reason as to why I was brought here, there must've been good intent behind it- considering how much I adored just the first part of our date.

"I think Iris is tired. Told y'all, limited time." she chuckled faintly, eventually returning to the room she came from.

"Hey, you having fun?" Rafe pulled me in by the waist.

"Slightly confused, but I'm liking it so far. You better not let me down." the book pressed against his back as I returned my part of the embrace.

"I'll explain it all later. Two more places and we're done."

"Wouldn't wanna keep you here any longer then." the woman made her presence clear. "I smell like wet dog, but one last hug before you leave."

She threw herself around both of us, her obvious liking of physical affection resurfacing again. I was the first to tear away, leaving her and Rafe to have an extended moment. I'd rarely seen this side of him before and, considering we were only with his mom's friend, I could only imagine how good he'd treat her.

It could be seen since the day he helped me with May. Having an absent parent wasn't easy for either of us, but at least there were some places on this island that reminded him of his days with her. On top of everything, the fact he'd brought me along to one of them made me more obsessed with him than I already was- and I was struggling to believe that was even slightly plausible.

"Lisa would love her. You better tell her about you two or I will." Dani whispered rather loudly, only becoming aware of her volume once she noticed my flushed cheeks.

"Thanks, Dani. See you around?" he rubbed the nape of his neck, thinking it hid his equally red face.

"Make sure to bring Camille next time!" she shouted as we made our way towards the dock.

I placed the book that was still in my hand onto the boat first, following it up with myself. My focus was set on untying the blue rope from the post, the action being easy with how loose the knot was. Nothing could be heard apart from the engine's hum as we both processed our array of emotions, not needing any form of words to communicate how happy we were.

For some, silence represented tension and anger- being left in such a state that speaking would cause harm. But, for us, silence meant that we understood each other; it gave us the chance to bask in our thoughts without having to say them aloud, which was something we dreaded.

My fingers fell back onto the ivory pages of Rafe's book, resuming my attempt at reading from where I left off. Regardless of the neat annotations written in cursive, I continued struggling to understand Shakespearean English, my evident frown being of more amusement to the boy than me.

"Maybe stop death-staring the book and just put it down?" he laughed.

"No. I'm gonna understand it, just give me a minute." my tone was blurred with both annoyance and determination.

"You've been on the same page since we left the shelter, put it down."

"Stop being condescending," I raised my words almost to a shout, frankly more frustrated with the inanimate object than Rafe, "you brought this shit for a reason, it's not a crime for me to want to read it."

"Firstly, calm down." his chuckle continued as he removed the novel from my grasp. "Secondly, I brought it for myself. Don't stress yourself with a book, okay?"

The look he had behind his opalescent eyes suppressed any irrational anger I had in me. I'd glanced into a fair share of eyes in my time, but nothing seemed to even come close to how I felt looking into his. If his eyes were a storm, I was it's most vulnerable victim, foolishly diving head first like I wasn't bound to drown sometime soon.

I was a fool for every last aspect of him, hence why I couldn't force myself to stay mad for a moment longer.

My head angled towards the now-apparent building, recognising it to be the country club almost instantly. The last time Rafe and I were here, we were still stuck in our illicit fantasy, having to keep hidden around corners to keep his reputation pristine. Needless to say, I was shocked at his decision to bring us here, our affair obviously moving beyond what it used to be.

"You tryna turn me into a full-fledged Kook?" I kept my eyes glued to the dock, repeating my previous actions once the engine stopped.

"Don't think it'd work even if I tried my hardest. Besides, why would I chase after you for so long if I wanted to be with a Kook?" his hand pulled me up onto the decking, intertwining our fingers together.

"You barely chased me. Maybe a jog at most."

"I've had my eye on you for longer than you can remember, it's definitely been a chase." he planted a kiss on the top of my head, becoming more affectionate the closer we got to the swarm of people.

"Okay, creeper." I giggled. "I'll take your word for it."

Various sets of eyes were quick to fall on us, those who recognised me through talk of the town spreading the news of our appearance like wildfire. I was a stranger to Figure 8 no matter how long I'd been staying there, the country club in particular being a place I chose to steer clear of. The hold on my hand tightened with every whisper, once again needing nothing but actions to remind me of all the emotions I felt for him.

Rafe pulled a chair out for me as we reached a free table, sitting himself on the opposite end. I darted my gaze throughout the interior of the club, chuckling to myself whilst the memories of Midsummers filled my mind. The ring on my finger caught the overhead lights, the gold contrasting the pale white of the menu I held.

Everything had finally played out in the way it should've, and looking back on the turmoil was a bittersweet feeling to say the least.

"I think I'm gonna get a steak, you?" he spoke from across the table, taking my hand back into his hold and running his thumb over the same ring I was just admiring.

"I'll get the chicken tenders."

"For a girl with the liver of a 40-year old man, you sure do eat like a child." he shook his head, finding amusement in his own joke.

"So, just 'cause I'm 18, I can't enjoy a plain meal from time to time? Noted." I replied, quickly realising my fault in forgetting to mention my birthday.

"I thought you were 17. Did I miss something?"

"How may I help you this afternoon?" a young waitress unknowingly interrupted us, preparing to write down our order on the notepad in her hand.

"I'll take the chicken tenders and fries with a lemonade." I rushed, remembering how much I hated taking long orders when I was in the girl's position. "He'll have a steak with..."

"Uh, water will be fine." he finished off my sentence, as gestured by my dramatically raised eyebrows.

Rafe shot a glare at me once the waitress went to the bar, clearly still hung up on my slipped mistake. Though he arguably deserved an explanation, I didn't want to delve deeper into what had actually happened that day- knowing that the subject of my dad would have to be brought up again. I accompanied my lack of speech with tracing my fingers over his, using the act to reassure him like he did me.

Silence was- once again- proving to be both a weapon and a tool, in this case helping him understand my unease with the situation.

Contrary to the quiet I was starting to get used to, an all too familiar voice came from the direction of the bar, sparking concern for both me and him. I could've only imagined that the news of the company we had would cause our hands to tear apart, but Rafe's hold on me seemed stronger at the sound of the 2 Kook boys- their increase in volume clarifying that they had noticed us.

"Table 12? Yep, we've got it. You pretty ladies deserve a good break."

I bit onto my bottom lip as memories of working at The Wreck flooded my thoughts, their phrases putting me back into the same position the current waitresses were in. As disgusted as I was by the past and the present, I was holding onto one of the people who didn't prevent what was inflicted upon me back then, making me want an explanation for his previous actions or lack thereof.

I was being selfish. Who was I to demand so much on Rafe's part whilst I continued to dismiss any time he'd ask me for a straight answer? My mind spun in a whirlwind of doubts the closer the boys got to us, taking every minor detail into account and overthinking it until I lost all traces of logic. I never knew how to control my nerves, but there was something about them and their impending reactions that worried me more than anything had before.

"Rafe, bro, long time no see!" one of the voices laughed with the same menacing tone I'd grown to hate for all these years.

"Thought we'd never see you again, and then you rise from the dead with Foxy herself? You are one ambitious motherfucker."

"Well if it isn't Topper and his little bitch? Still going strong with the nickname, glad to know times haven't changed." I glanced up at the pair of Kooks with a bitter smile.

I could tell just from how this date had started that it was bound to get messy, and the look on Rafe's face made it clear that he knew too.