Disclaimer: This story is a work of fiction. It involves elements of questionable consent. All characters are at the legal age of 18 or older.
*
"That one is cute," a teenaged girl mused. She was lounging on her deck chair next to her friend, and she was surveying the vast beach in front of her. In particular, she was keeping an eye out for attractive guys. It was just another average day.
The air was hot and salty. Fresh ocean waves continued to crash into the shore just a few feet away from where she was seated. It was a crowded area, and there were plenty of men walking around shirtless and in plain view.
"Oh! That one is a cutie too," she added when her leering gaze spotted another victim.
"Ahh, come on, Sophia! You're not going to approach any of them anyway," her friend answered bluntly. "You are too much of a chicken. Besides, what happened to your last boyfriend?" the curious girl added. "Weren't you together for a few months? That's a record for you."
"H-hey," the flustered teenager replied. "There's no need to call me out like that, have some mercy. Mercy!" Her smile grew wider, and she couldn't help but laugh at her friend's brutal honesty. "But, yeah, I guess so. It didn't become anything serious so we broke up. I'm more concerned about preparing for college. That's in just a few weeks anyway. We are adults now, so we have to do the responsible thing, right? Who knows... maybe then I'll take my time to get into a proper relationship."
"Proper relationship?" her friend asked. "Wait, so you didn't even get to third base with the guys you've been dating? You really never had sex? Christ, I can barely even imagine..." the girl added. She took a quick look around, and once more felt herself dumbfounded at Sophia's decision to try and stay pure. Their coastal city was a paradise for anyone with a progressive and open mind. Parties, festivals, debauchery, there was always something to enjoy. It was a city ripe with opportunities.
"Well, you know. One step at a time," Sophia replied. She leaned back into her beach chair and allowed herself to relax with the warm sun caressing her skin.
"Speaking of guys," her friend interrupted, "whatever happened to the weirdo your mother began dating? You said that he was up to no good, I guess your mother ditched him by now?"
Sophia inhaled sharply and grimaced. It was such an awkward topic for her. It happened a few months ago that her mother came home with an exhilarated and giddy expression. She could barely wait to tell her daughter the news that she had found someone special, after years of being a single parent.
The initial introduction even managed to sound intriguing. His name was Jacob, and she had met him on the internet at first. He lived somewhere in the southern part of the States. It was some old and regressive city somewhere in the Bible Belt.
Of course, Sophia was under the impression that he had to be out of place there. Surely it was only a coincidence he lived there. After all, why else would he be interested in her mother? It was only after he visited for the first time, that she realized how unpleasant he was. His personality clashed with everything Sophia grew up with.
He had showed up with his traveling bags, and immediately asserted himself by commenting on the state of the house, how he would prefer for the living room to be rearranged, and what he wanted for dinner. Sophia hated him immediately. He was strict, religious in the worst ways, and considered women to be property instead of human. It was surreal.
Sophia's mother however grew fond of his strange charms. He was outspoken, always said whatever was on his mind, and there was never any uncertainty. He was a man who knew exactly what he wanted. These days, it was apparently rare to find someone who always spoke the truth instead of sugarcoating everything.
Those two were a match for the strangest reasons.
"That guy? He recently moved in with us," Sophia reluctantly told her friend. "Can you believe it? He just packed his things, drove countless miles, and now lives with us. Worst of all, each and every night when he's alone with my mother in the bedroom, I have to listen to-"she interrupted herself and uttered a disgruntled sigh. "Yeah.... anyway, how about we get outta here? The sun is getting a little too intense for me."
"Uh...sure."
The two of them gathered their things, and Sophia briefly reached up to gather her wavy blonde hair into a tight ponytail. The topic that came up wasn't a pleasant one, but she was honest with her reason for wanting to leave. She had only a light tan, and didn't want to risk losing too much of her complexion. It wasn't because of pride or anything, she simply enjoyed taking things in moderation. It was healthier that way.
She was wearing a bikini when going to the beach for the very same reason. She didn't mind others seeing that she had freckles. It was just another natural part of her. Anyone who would take a second look at her, would also notice that she was slim and athletic -- a result of years spent in the cheerleading squad of her school. As far as she was concerned, all of this was a badge of honor. It was a sign that life was whatever you made of it. Hard work and effort could lead to any desired outcome.
Even if it meant that she had no time for relationships.
The two girls eventually left the beach as planned, and walked back towards the city. Their little journey always took them past multiple food stalls that were scattered along the busy road, so it was a particular delight. There was always a distinct smell of freshly cooked sea food all around. It was something that Sophia never grew tired of. Shrimps, fish, squids... there were as many local delicacies as there were stars in the sky.
She could feel her mouth watering and belly grumbling.
It only took a little longer before they reached the residential area of the city, and Sophia bid her friend goodbye. She could barely wait to get back home and grab a snack.
When she finally unlocked the front door and stepped inside, though, she was met by her mother's disgruntled boyfriend who was passing through the hallway.
"You?" he mumbled grumpily. "What have you been up to, where did you go? It's the weekend. There's no school," he pointed out. "You should've been home to help your mom around the house before she left." He stopped walking towards the living room and instead paused, turned to face Sophia properly, and then took an unpleasantly long moment to eye her up and down.
"And what's with that get-up, were you seriously going around in public like that, dressed in your underwear? How am I supposed to protect you, if you go walking around like that?"
"It's a bikini, and it's...you know what, it's none of your business, that's what it is," she hissed back at him. He was such a controlling, compulsive asshole sometimes.
It was especially offending to her because he was slouching around in a wife beater shirt and sweat pants. That wasn't stylish or impressive, either. He didn't care about what
he
was wearing, or what he looked like, but still dared to set unrealistic expectations for her. She could feel her cheeks flushing red in frustration and anger, and her heartrate peaked. His only excuse was that wherever he grew up, it wasn't near the coast, so he must have never seen ladies walk around in their beachwear.
Sophia had never been great at dealing with confrontations. When she was younger, it was a huge problem for her. She simply wasn't the type to actively seek out or engage in unnecessary discussions. Which made it all the more difficult for her to deal with someone so bluntly arrogant and overbearing.