Plumaria stood in the kitchen of her apartment, which was shared with her boyfriend, Gladion. It was a pleasant day as the sun endlessly shown through large windows, not a cloud was visible and the temperature was comfortably hot. Warm island breezes came flowing through every open door or window, carrying with them a humidity that seemed to latch onto every odor and carry it from place to place. That was one of the perks of living so close to the ocean on Maui, Hawaii. If the neighbors were cooking, you could smell the hot oil and chicken and herbs all frying together in the pan. If new flowers had been planted in a nearby garden, the new floral aroma was highly noticeable. On this day, a Saturday afternoon, the most prominent scents were that of the distant, salty ocean water and-if you paid close enough attention-the light, coconut smell of the coconut oil moisturizer Plumaria had rubbed all over her body the night before.
She was making lunch for herself and Gladion (just simple salads with plenty of locally grown vegetables). As she stood in front of their counter chopping up some lacinato kale, Plumaria was suddenly grabbed just below the waist. A set of arms tightly wrapped around her, and a torso pressed against her back. Screaming from the startle, she twisted and squirmed to escape for a second until her senses came back to her, and she could tell it was just Gladion. He pulled back his girlfriend's long, blonde hair and she could feel his warm, familiar lips gently kiss her ear. Plumaria smiled and laughed.
"You nearly scared me to death baby," she said with a light, giggly tone to her voice. Gladion rested his chin on her shoulder and smiled without a word. Plumaria turned her head and gave him a peck on the cheek.
