there's no real elegant way to get onto a hammock, especially not one that's already occupied. you start by trying to sit on the edge, and though you're slight, the whole thing still tips dangerously, threatening to spill you out already and take him with you. the only way to right yourself is to reach over him for the other edge of the hammock to try and balance things out, though it doesn't help as much as you'd pictured. instead, by the time the ropes have stopped swinging so precariously, you're trying to catch your breath from laughter, straddling his waist in an attempt to keep your equilibrium.

you've been close to him but not this close, and between the romcom variety scene that's been set around you with the rolling ocean and the setting sun and the lingering happy feel of lighthearted giggling, it's far too easy to get sucked into the moment. his hands gripping your hips only heightens the pull from unyielding eye contact and the color on your cheeks deepens as you try to apologize but make no actual move to shift your position.

hesitant, not because you're not sure you want to but because you're sure you do, you close the space between you to kiss him, starting softly, slowly, taking your time to ease into it all. the kiss is practically a whisper at first, building in intensity with each shared breath. it's easy to feel lost in this, and you twist your fingers in the knotted rope by his head, just trying to hold on, practically dizzy with the taste of him. it's nothing like what you'd imagined but it's the most delicious pay off to what feels like months of verbal foreplay.

you'd be happy to stay here all night, discovering the way it feels to be pressed against him, the touch of his fingers against your warm skin as the stars start twinkling in the sky above you, but the rope is digging into your knees, irritating the skin each time it rubs harshly. no one ever said a hammock was a good place for this. and you certainly never will, especially not after you try to adjust your position to something more condusive to moving only to lose your balance, only managing to dump yourself out into the sand in a heap.

you laugh through your groans, so hard that it brings tears to your eyes, even though you know you will never, ever get over the humiliation and only wonder if this is a sign that under no circumstances should you have fallen into this in the first place.