Waves and sand and so much more

[Jeremy Thorne]

With a content sigh, Jeremy opened his eyes from the nap he’d been taking on the sand, the sounds of the waves crashing into the beach a welcome way to come back to consciousness. The sun’s rays blinded him for a moment so he closed them again, using his hand to feel around the sand for the sunglasses that had fallen off of his face. There was no sense of urgency in any of his actions and when he finally found them and placed them where they needed to be, Jeremy resumed with the whole waking up. He stretched his muscles, his arms going over his head before he arched his back. Finally, he looked over to his left, hoping to see his travel companion by his side. Jeremy wasn’t disappointed. “Dude…I could live like this forever…the smell of the ocean, the sound of the waves…this is heavenly” Jeremy stated, his voice still filled with sleep, a lazy grin coming across his face as he turned his attention towards the sea. The tide had come in a lot closer while he had napped, but it was still a ways away. He hadn’t been too worried, figuring that Henri would have awakened him if they needed to move. As a seagull noisily looked for food nearby, Jeremy thought briefly about his disappointment that this was their last full day in Hawaii. By this time tomorrow, Jeremy would be heading back to New Zealand to get ready for his first shift after this glorious vacation. Five days and nights in Hawaii had been just what the Healer needed to relax. It was so rare that he ever did and now that he was finished with his training everything had grown even more hectic.

Jeremy was grateful that it was just him and Henri on this vacation. He only had to worry about one person’s opinion about what they would do and Henri generally had good ideas. They’d gone snorkeling, sat on the beach countless times, and been to a few clubs on the island. They had even been invited to a luau for their last night. “I think I’m going to head back in” he mentioned, sitting up and bringing his knees towards his chest. Removing his sunglasses, Jeremy tossed them onto his beach towel, his blue eyes adjusted enough to the sun. Getting up and brushing the sand off of the back of his trunks, Jeremy removed the white t-shirt he’d been wearing while he napped. “You coming?” he asked, waiting to see what Henri planned on doing.

 

[Henri Keto]

Henri was stretched out on the beach attempting to get a tan. He was from Finland however and seeing as they got very little tanning sun, he was almost positive that he would not be turning brown, but lobster red instead. Of course he had sun cream on, but with skin as precious as his was, he couldn't be too careful. Beside him, Jeremy was basically asleep, at least he thought he was, he hadn't actually checked. He was slightly concerned that they would be overwhelmed by the sea water, but he was pretty sure they he would at least hear the water approaching so he wasn't overly concerned. Flipping over to lie on his back when he started to feel the heat building up on his back, Henri adjusted his sunglasses and closed his eyes. This was definitely a good way to let go of stress and just kick back. Hawaii was a beautiful place. Henri hadn't quite made it here when he was travelling before, but he was glad he was here now. This beach was amazing. Henri wasn't quite sure how they had agreed on this, but somehow both he and Jeremy had decided that a vacation was the best cure for stress and or annoying people, which had mostly been Henri's reason for coming. Smirking slightly, Henri became aware that Jeremy was awake when he started moving around. Henri chuckled at Jeremy's declaration nodding in turn. "I agree. Except for the fact that you would be out of a job." Henri turned on his side and pointed to himself. "Whereas me, I am gorgeous enough to do whatever I want. Besides, I'm pretty sure a model could get work anywhere." Henri winked and smiled, turning over and sitting up, shaking the sand out of his hair.

This vacation was one of the best that Henri had been on. Of course Kellin was a lot of fun too, but, Kellin wasn't Jeremy. He didn't have those, bloody amazing eyes. Stretching out all the muscles, Henri ran his hands through his hair, trying to fix it a little. Getting the sand out of his hair had seen fit to mess it up and now he looked like he had just woken up or something. "Why is it that unless I actually put in effort I always look like I have sex hair? Is that a thing now? Jeremy! This is horrible!" Shaking his head in annoyance Henri groaned and fell back in the sand. "I'm ruined, my life is ruined, my family are going to forsake me, my job will be given to another. I might as well just stay here for the rest of my life." Dramatics had always been a thing in his family, but it so rarely came out in Henri. As an only child he was spoiled rotten, however, he was always on his best behaviour, well, most of the time. As a model herself, Henri had learned a lot from his mother. She had been determined that he follow in her footsteps. Of course it wasn't until after he got to New Zealand that he realised he actually wanted to be a model. Of course the way he had to eat was a pain in the arse, but it was what he had to do to survive in the cut throat world of modelling. "Going inside is boring, Jer, stay out here in the sun with me." He leaned up on his elbows to look at his companion and winked. "You know you want too." Contrary to what Jeremy may think, he actually hadn't had anything to drink, he just felt like being playful and Jeremy was making it decidedly easy. Whilst Jeremy had been wearing a shirt previously, he had now removed it and Henri made no secret glances at him. He just blatantly traveled his eyes along the contours of his friends body. Henri barely wore shirts as it was, mostly seeing as his job had him nearly naked on most occasions, but rarely did he see Jeremy with no shirt, considering his work as a Healer, surely that would have been malpractice.
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[Jeremy Thorne]

“That’s ok. I'll be poor but happy. Anyway, you can just take care of me since you’re gorgeous enough to do what you want” Jeremy rolled his eyes at his friend’s comment about being beautiful enough to do anything. It was true that the man could likely find a job anywhere he went. He exuded a charisma that Jeremy envied, and he was a good-looking guy. Even Jeremy couldn’t deny that. The healer knew that it was all just a fantasy, one that he was happy to endulge in while on vacation. The truth was that he really enjoyed his job. Sure, there were long hours and more stress than he cared to admit, but Jeremy couldn’t see himself doing anything else. He lived for the moments when he could crack the case on what was wrong with a patient and fix them up. As Henri sat up, Jeremy couldn’t help but roll his eyes again. He’d grown used to Henri’s dramatics, even enjoyed them, though he’d never admit that to the guy before him. With a shake of his head, Jeremy ignored it all and spoke. “No you dummy. I meant that I’m going back in as in the water” he indicated with a grand gesture to the vast ocean before them. The waves crested and banged against the shore as he finished as if to punctuate the point.

“Laying down all day is boring, Henri” he stated in an imitation of his friend. A smirk crossed his face as he brushed back his own windblown hair. He’d recently started letting it grow in a little more, mostly because he hadn’t taken the time to give it a quick cut. It was pure laziness because the process took all of ten seconds for a wizard to use magic to snip off the extra parts and load it with pomade. Jeremy rather liked the way he looked with the little bit of extra length. Holding his hand out with his palm up, Jeremy urged his friend to get up and stop being such a lazy ass. “C’mon!”

 

[Henri Keto]

Henri grinned at his friend and waggled his eyebrows slightly at him. Of course he was gorgeous. He got his bone structure from his mother and his charisma from his father, so really, confidence was something he was simply bound to have. "Oh, I very much do intend to take care of you, but maybe not right this second." Henri winked at Jeremy and really had to stop himself from saying anything further. Whilst he had the confidence of a politician, Jeremy likely did not and it became more and more obvious the longer he spent with him. Henri had to admit that he was behaving much like a child, but Jeremy had yet to call him out on it, and if it worked, why fix something that wasn't broken? Which actually reminded him that he should probably right to Kellin. He'd not had a chance to see his best friend for a few weeks being at work all the time and then attending a holiday with Jeremy. Not to worry though, Kellin was probably used to this behaviour from him by now. Henri rolled his eyes at Jeremy, though it was really at himself as Jeremy mentioned going back in the water. Henri sat up slightly and grabbed Jeremy's hand. "Yeah, yeah, no one likes a smartarse..." then he smirked and moved to glance behind Jeremy slightly, "although..." Shrugging, Henri tugged on Jeremy's hand to pull himself up and dusted off the sand. "By the way, I'll have you know, I speak three languages." He mock glared at Jeremy before tugging him along behind him as he walked back towards the beautiful water. Everything was just so perfect here, like a little paradise. Henri wished he would never have to leave, but this was their last day. He would definitely be coming back to Hawaii again.

Reaching the water, Henri let go of Jeremy's hand and promptly sat down at the waters edge, kicking out his feet. The water slowly washed over his legs and Henri leaned back with a smile on his face. He had to reapply his sun cream first before he went in the water, but he couldn't be bothered so he was just going to rest for a second before conjuring it. Luckily, no one else on the beach would be paying much attention, the beaches were huge so people sort of had their own little sections. "You know, you should keep your hair like that. It really suits you." Henri looked at Jeremy as he spoke before looking back out over the water. "It's so peaceful here. Like there's nothing else in the world." Henri closed his eyes again for a second before deciding it was now the time for his sun cream. Pulling the bottle out of thin air, as it seemed, Henri dusted the sand off of his hands and squeezed a little of the cream into his palm and rubbed his hands together, before spreading it along his arms and shoulders. The two most vulnerable places. Probably because they had the sun beating down on them like no-one's buisness. Henri had to be careful with the sun. If he dried out his skin too often, it wouldn't be so soft anymore, his mother would cry and his agent would probably kill him. She said one of his best assets was his skin. Unlike Jeremy, Henri's eyes were a boring brown colour and whilst that did annoy him, he preferred them over something sparkling blue. His mother's eyes were like that and he didn't want to be compared to her anymore then he already was. It was the worst feeling in the world. "Whomever decided that they weren't going to destroy this beach was a bloody legend. I would kiss that person if I met them. This has to be one of the most beautiful beaches in the world. Definitely something I would miss, going back to Finland."

Slight godmodding, sorry, let me know if you want me to change it!
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[Jeremy Thorne]

After having spent only a short amount of time with him, Jeremy had learned that Henri was fairly open when it came to flirting. Basically, he flirted with everyone, something that never ceased to amaze the inhibited Healer. Jeremy was a self-identified terrible flirt, so watching Henri perform was a source of amusement for him. Sometimes, though, when Henri turned that attention onto Jeremy, it made him a little uncomfortable, mostly because it always seemed a bit contrived like if he was putting on a show or using his charm to get his way. Sometimes though, Jeremy found himself responding before he could truly help it. "Oh...3 whole languages? Is that supposed to make me think you're more than just a pretty face?" he kidded, as he was tugged towards the water by the model. Jeremy actually hadn't known that about his friend. He stared at the back of the guy's head wondering what else he didn't know about his friend.

Jeremy stood beside Henri as he settled himself at the water's edge. With hands on his hips, the Healer listened to his friend speak about the beach and how great it was. He nodded his head, in complete agreement. The beach really was peaceful and beautiful. It was everything that it had been advertised to be, and so far there was nothing about this vacation that Jeremy had regrets about. Nothing. Not his choice in company, not the location. With a smirk, Jeremy crouched down beside Henri. The man had been putting lotion onto himself and kept missing the same glob of cream. His hand just seemed to keep going over it. Reaching to the back of Henri's shoulder, Jeremy rubbed the lotion in and then gave the guy a pat on the back. "There...you missed a spot." Rising back to his feet, Jeremy turned to face Henri as he took steps backward, the water now to his shins and quickly rising to his knees with each step. "You sure you're going to just stay there?" he asked, continuing to back up into the oncoming waves.

Out of Character:

Same. Let me know if the slight godmod bothers you.

 

[Henri Keto]

Henri had not had a real, proper holiday in as long as he could remember. Even all the travelling didn't really count, seeing as he always had to be on the move when travelling. It basically meant that he couldn't relax and see the sights like he would want too. Especially with Kellin around, but he wasn't interested in thinking about Kellin right now, he wasn't here, Jeremy was and Henri really liked Jeremy. Henri wasn't an idiot, he acted like it and he sometimes allowed people to believe it, mostly for his own amusement, but he actually wasn't stupid. He knew what he was feeling and he also knew they coming on too strong would freak Jeremy out. He could see it by the way Jeremy squirmed under his attention, though sometimes Jeremy flirted right back, it was almost a pressure point, Henri really had to squeeze. He smiled at Jeremy and poked his tongue out at the quib. "Of course it is, and of course I am. Modelling is very hard work you know, not all of us can get by on being able to not kill people." He said, shaking his head. He liked it when Jeremy pushed back, but really, he could at least be nice about it. Well, actually, Henri wouldn't have minded him being mean, but it had to be a good mean.

Train of thought aside, and Henri really wanted to get away from there completely, Henri decided to follow up with a question of his own. "Tell me, Jeremy, how does one decide to be a Healer? Was it something you always wanted to do, or was it something you picked later on simply from the grades you achieved?" Being homeschooled, Henri really had a lot of say in what he wanted to do, which eventually turned out to have very little to do with magic apart from the fact that he was a wizarding model with moving pictures. It was really the only thing about the magical applications that were different to that of muggles, at least that was what he had been told. He'd not had much experience with muggles at all. Lost in his thoughts, Henri hadn't noticed Jeremy crouching beside him until he was rubbing his shoulder. Henri turned and noticed that he had been missing a blob and slowly smirked at his friend. "You should be warned, doing that... it makes me want you. Just saying." Then he stood up and rushed out into the water. If Jeremy was going to play for it, Henri was going to let him, after all, it wasn't like he was making things any easier.

Splashing himself with the water, Henri took a moment to think about what he had said. It had been awfully obvious, and maybe a little crude, but Jeremy would surely know how he felt by now, right? He'd not exactly made it very subtle. At least it wasn't subtle in his eyes, but Jeremy was rather oblivious about these things, he'd figured that out pretty quickly. "God, I am an idiot. Who says that anyway!" As distressed as he was, Henri thought it better just to ignore Jeremy for now as he continued into the water until it was up to his waist. Water was nice, it was calm, it would make him feel better after be made himself look like an idiot.

Lemme know if you want me to change anything!!!
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[Jeremy Thorne]

Jeremy wasn't exactly sure he'd consider modelling a difficult job, but he reconsidered his position the more he thought about it. Becoming a Healer had been one of the most difficult accomplishments of the young guy's life and that was saying something seeing as he had been Head Boy. He'd spent months and months working and studying, but it had all been worth it to him. If Henri felt about modelling the way he felt about healing, who was Jeremy to say anything about the level of difficulty in his career. They were both happy with what they did which was more than some people could say. Besides, to be successful it was necessary to have charisma and be extremely photogenic, two things that Jeremy knew didn’t come easy to everyone. The man had heard Henri's question, asking why he wanted to become a Healer, but he didn't have much time to answer as Henri literally shocked him into silence. As Henri passed him on his way into the ocean, Jeremy stood frozen in place. His friend continued on behind him, somewhere close since he could hear the man's splashing, but he seemed to realize that Jeremy needed a moment.

Turning so his back was to the sand, Jeremy waded further into the water, watching as it covered his knees, his thighs and finally reached his waist. It was easier to do that than to look the few feet to where Henri was. To Jeremy, the man could have been miles away. Because his mind was that far away, sifting through all of the interactions that the two had over the course of the past few days. Mixed in with those thoughts were the memories of events that had led to Jeremy wanting to become a Healer. It was a simple answer with a complicated backstory. Jeremy rarely shared it with anyone though. It all came down to a girl, one who had done much like Henri and dropped hints from time to time about her interest, but that Jeremy had been too oblivious to notice. The man couldn't believe he'd been that naive and that he still seemed to be. Drifting onto his back into a floating position, Jeremy closed his eyes, trying to free his mind. As he began to sink, he knew that the effort was futile. There were two options here, Jeremy knew. He could pretend that he hadn't heard the comment. That would be easy and would save the two a lot of effort in trying to play off that it hadn't happened.

Moving deeper into the ocean, Jeremy was now treading water. His eyes moved, almost on their own, to look at Henri, his friend. The two had been having a lot of fun together, and Jeremy was enjoying getting to know the Finnish man. Of that, there were no doubts. Henri was many things that Jeremy was not, but it was good to have someone like that in his life. At different points in his life, Sapphire and Alyss had been those people. Different, yet necessary for what they taught him. "A friend motivated me to become a Healer" he called out, breaking the silence between them. The water lapped on his shoulders as he continued, "She had a really bad childhood and was mute. And then one year, she could talk. I was fascinated by the fact that magic could do so much damage and could also undo it." Lost in thought, Jeremy continued, " She's an author now." The two had seen each other recently, an encounter that had gone much less awkwardly than Jeremy had planned for. Awkward seemed to be a big part of Jeremy’s world these days. “Why did you say that to me?” Jeremy asked abruptly, his blue eyes rising to look at Henri head on. He was burning with curiosity for an answer. Sure, Henri flirted with everyone, but there had been something different about his words to Jeremy just then. The former Head Boy couldn’t figure out what made it different though nor could he figure out how he felt about it all. Confused. Intrigued., he decided after a moment. Those words seemed fitting.