I shouldn't have fucking let her wear it.
It was spring break, three years ago. A big group of us from college went to Miami for the week. Most of us were going into Junior year, but we had a few upcoming seniors in the mix who were mainly there to buy us alcohol.
My girlfriend, Elsa, brought three of her best friends. Two of them had boyfriends who came along. My best friend, Chase, was one of them. It was through Chase's girlfriend Alexa that I met Elsa. Alexa is a loud, outgoing type, just like Chase. The two of them heard I was into Elsa and relentlessly pursued her on my behalf until we were dating.
Elsa was Alexa's complete opposite. Reserved, respectful of everyone around her, quietly charming. The type of girl that exuded trust, someone an anxious young couple would finally settle on as their babysitter. She truly was beautiful, though. She had an angelic smile, big blue eyes, and silky brunette hair which she usually straightened, but had lovely waves in it. She was an athletic girl with a nice figure, though she was modest about showing it. Even at fraternity parties, she would usually wear something simple, never attracting lots of attention.
I asked her about it one time. Not that I minded, I liked that she saved so much for me. She said, "I've thought about wearing something a little more risque, but I feel like everyone would notice right away. I never wear stuff like that. I'd probably get laughed at."
"There is no way anyone would laugh," I told her, admiring her perfect figure. "They'd be jealous." She grinned.
Months later, the topic would come back up again.
We finally arrived in Miami first thing Friday morning. We drove through the night Thursday, so all of us were exhausted. We all needed naps. But you can't get to Florida and not go see the beach.
We dropped our bags in the hotel rooms, we rented two of them to share among 8 of us, and walked to the beach just a few blocks away. When we got there, Alexa took her shorts and t-shirt off immediately. Underneath she wore a cheeky red bikini, high waisted, and everything just fit perfectly. It was hard not to stare. Elsa must have seen me, because twenty minutes into sitting on the beach, her tone changed.
"I'm going in," she said. Before I could react, she was halfway to the water. I ran behind her and caught up as she walked into the waves. They crashed at our legs.
"What's wrong, babe?" I asked. She kept walking into the water, staring straight into the ocean.
"Oh, nothing. Just wanted to get in and figured you'd rather stay back there with everyone." That was her way of telling me she noticed.
"Baby, it's all good. I want to be here with you." I said.
"Even though I look like a goddamn grandma?" She gestured to her bathing suit, navy blue with a floral pattern, full-bottomed. It was a two-piece, at least.