I didn’t sleep, though. Look, I wanted to, but I wasn’t feeling comfortable without my pajamas, so all I could do was look outside the window.
Ronan finally stopped his car an hour later since we had already arrived at the beach. I went out of the car silently and headed for the beach.
The ocean was as vast as the eye could see, and it gleamed a brilliant blue under the sun. It was simply glorious; the sight of the ocean alone washed away my frustration.
“So, how is it? Gorgeous, eh?” Ronan came up behind me, admiring the ocean, just like how I was doing. As usual, he was smiling.
“It is.” I smiled. I could feel my mind calming down once I saw the deep blue sea. Then, Ronan and I had a little stroll along the beach. I could feel the morning breeze softly brushing across my cheeks, and it felt great.
Ronan was trying his best to make me laugh, and he managed to do it. Anyone would laugh at his jokes since he was naturally funny.
We spent quite a while at the beach before going back exhausted. It was getting late, and the sun was setting. As it would take us more than an hour to get back, it would be nighttime when I got home.
The exhaustion finally caught up to me when we were on the way back. I didn’t sleep a wink the night before, and I spent most of the day on the beach, so eventually, I drifted to sleep.
I woke up groggily a long while later, but the first thing I saw was a face inches away from me. Oh, sh*t! Who the heck… Oh, it’s Ronan. He was almost kissing me, much to my shock. I opened my eyes, and Ronan did the same.
We stayed in this pose for a while, then I shoved him away a moment later. I was angry because I knew what he was trying to do. Ronan was just like a little brother to me, so I never expected him to steal a kiss when I was sleeping. “What were you doing, Ronan?”
I glared at him furiously, and he shrank away in fear. “I-I didn’t mean it. I just couldn’t help myself,” he looked me in the eye while explaining seriously.
But since I was enraged, I wasn’t going to accept any explanation. I thought he was just a goofy guy on the surface, but I never expected him to sexually harass me. “That’s unacceptable, Ronan. I thought we’re friends! What am I to you, just a girl you’re flirting with?”
I thought he saw me as a friend, but I never knew he would try and take advantage of me. Honestly, I was disappointed.
“It’s not what you think, Anna. We’re friends, and I really like you. You can feel it too, right?” Ronan started panicking after that, and he tried to explain himself.
“You wouldn’t have done that if you saw me as a friend. Don’t you think that’s disgusting?” Even though he said he saw me as his friend, that did nothing to douse my fury. I had hung out with him a few times, so I thought he was just a goofy guy on the surface but a good guy in reality. However, what he did earlier had totally destroyed that image.
“I know I was rude, Anna, but I couldn’t help myself. You have to believe me!” He held my hand, and he was starting to panic.
I swatted his hand away the moment he touched me, as I was too angry to listen to any explanation. “I don’t think we should be friends anymore, Ronan. I don’t want to see you anymore, so leave.”
I only became friends with him because he was always full of warmth. But after all that had happened, I felt like our friendship had come to an end.
It was a pity, but I would never be friends with someone who would harass me, so I got out of the car without a word. And then Ronan quickly got out as well and blocked my way.
“I’m really, really sorry, Anna. Please forgive me just this once. I won’t do it anymore, I promise!” Ronan gazed at me and pleaded.
I really wanted to be his friend, but I couldn’t accept what he was trying to do in the car. Since I had fallen for someone, I didn’t like it when another man was trying to approach me. But even so, I didn’t want to turn him down when he was pleading like a child.
“I really, really like you, Anna. Can you be my girlfriend?”
Just when I was about to forgive him, he hit me with another shocker of a confession. I gawked at him and wondered if I was hearing things. Did he just confess to me?
It took a long time for me to process it, then I refused him without thinking, “I’ll never be your girlfriend. It’s impossible.”
There were two reasons for my refusal. One, because I loved someone else, and two, I prefer men who were more mature. Ronan was just a kid, so I couldn’t see myself falling for him.
“Why?”
To be frank, Ronan was actually quite charismatic. He was the perfect boyfriend in terms of looks and background, but he was younger than me, so I only ever saw him as my brother. Thus, having him as my boyfriend would look weird.
“Because we wouldn’t make a good couple. You’re like a brother to me.” I couldn’t believe he was trying to woo me. Didn’t he know I was older than him? And shouldn’t he try to woo the younger ladies first? Why did he even fall for me anyway?
Ronan frowned the moment I said I saw him as my brother. “But I don’t want to be your brother. I want to be your boyfriend!” he retorted.
“Get a grip, Ronan! I’m a few years older than you, so we can’t be a couple.” I gave him a look of resignation. How persistent can he be? I’ve already said no, so get a clue.
