Emma lowered her headphones as her dad parked the rental car. Sunlight gleamed on the ocean behind the hotel. She opened the door and took a deep breath of humid, tropical air as she gathered her things.

“Wow,” her dad enthused, “smell that air!”

“It’s good to be back,” her mom agreed.

“Why’d we wait so long?”

“Well, you know, first we couldn’t come because of travel restrictions, then the next year was my cousin’s wedding, and then last year you’d just started your new job. Suddenly, it’s been three years since we’ve seen everyone.”

“Everyone” in this case referred to her parent’s old college friends. Back then, they’d done everything together. They all got married in the same year, and were all in each other’s wedding ceremonies. Then they’d all had kids within months of each other. And although they’d all moved away, they kept a tradition of taking a shared week-long anniversary trip to the tropics.

Now, after three years, they were back. Emma was both excited and nervous to see her childhood friends Zoya and Liam again. Three years felt like a lifetime to Emma. When she thought about how much she’d grown, who knew how the others had changed?

She was most eager to see Zoya. Her parents were Indian, and they lived in London. Compared to Seattle, Emma thought London seemed glamorous. The last time she’d seen her, Zoya had been a quiet, bookish girl with baggy clothes and large glasses.

Liam’s mom had married an Australian, and they moved to Perth. She remembered Liam as a slightly chubby boy who tagged along with them everywhere. They’d been good friends when he was little, but as they grew up, Liam had become awkward around her and Zoya.

In the hotel lobby, the adults greeted each other as if no time had passed. However, it took Emma a moment to recognize her friends.

Zoya had grown into a striking woman. The glasses were gone, and so were the baggy clothes. She tossed her head and waves of black hair cascaded down her brown shoulders. She wore a simple yellow tank top and flowy white skirt, but made it look elegant. Compared to Emma’s skinny frame, Zoya seemed to be all curves.

“Oh my god, Zoya?”

“Emma!”

The girls hugged each other warmly, skipping over three years apart with big smiles and confidence that their bond would renew itself.

The changes to Liam were no less drastic. Gone was the chubby, awkward little boy. He was dressed in skinny jeans and a grey t-shirt with a faded band logo. He brushed aside his careless mop of brown hair and grinned at her and Zoya. Then he gestured over his shoulder.

“This is my cousin Nolan.”

Oh my. Nolan was tall, with broad shoulders and shoulder-length sun-bleached hair. His chin was covered in stubble, and his eyes twinkled with an easy confidence.

“G’day,” Nolan nodded at them.

“Uh,” Emma stumbled, “Nice to meet you, Nolan.”

“C’mon, mate,” Nolan said, clapping Liam on the back. “Let’s go check out the waves, I heard there’s good surfing here.”

As they loped off, Emma shot a look at Zoya, who raised her eyebrows, and they both dissolved into a fit of giggles.

“That’s so cute,” Zoya smiled. “He brought a friend so he wouldn’t have to follow the girls around.”

“I don’t mind. I’m looking forward to watching Nolan. Surf, I mean. Watching him surf.”

“Uh-huh,” Zoya smirked.

“Okay, kids,” her dad said, bustling up and handing them keycards. “Here you go. Where are the boys?”

“I dunno, they said something about looking at the ocean.”

“Okay, well, you two can give them their keys and show them where the room is.”

“Wait, the room? I thought Zoya and I had a room and Liam would be in another?”

“That was the plan. But there’s some sort of convention or something happening, and the hotel overbooked. Your Mom’s reading them the riot act since we all made reservations months ago. The best we could swing was four rooms with a single queen bed in each.”

“One bed? Dad, you can’t be serious. There’s no way we can all share one bed. Did you see Liam brought his cousin?”

“Well, it’s that, or share a room with your parents, and since this is an anniversary trip…”

“Ew, Dad!”

“That’s what I thought,” he laughed. “It’ll be fine, you kids are practically siblings. The boys can sleep on the floor, and you two can share the bed. I’ll have the hotel send up some extra pillows and blankets. Don’t worry, we’re in paradise! The room’s just for sleeping. You’ll spend all your time on the beach anyway.”

Zoya and Emma shared a skeptical look.

----

The room was tiny. The four of them stood around the bed. There was nowhere else to stand. Next to the door was a window with a view of the beach. On the opposite wall was a small closet and the bathroom. There was just enough space on either side of the bed for matching nightstands with lamps.

“This is some bullshit,” Liam groused.

“Relax, mate,” Nolan grinned. “We’ll be spending all our time on the beach.”

“That’s what my dad said,” Emma ventured.

“Smart man!” Nolan winked at her, and Emma felt her cheeks flush.

“So we have to sleep on the floor?”

“It’s good for your back,” Nolan laughed. “Stop being such a downer. Make yourself a nest with these, and we’ll go for a walk while the girls get settled.” He thrust a pile of blankets and pillows into Liam’s arms. “Here, I’ll even take the side by the bathroom door so you don’t have to.” With that, he started spreading a few blankets on the floor, whistling as he did.

Emma claimed the side of the bed closer to Nolan, which Zoya generously pretended not to notice.

----

Emma had always been a light sleeper, so she wasn’t surprised when something woke her up in the middle of the night. She tried to figure out what it was without looking. She could hear Zoya’s quiet breathing. The hum of the air conditioner. The distant sound of the ocean. And something else she couldn’t place. A quiet rustling, perhaps? Blearily, she opened her eyes.

The room was dimly lit by moonlight, painting everything in muted blues. Zoya was asleep facing her, lips slightly parted. She thought the sound seemed to be coming from behind her. Maybe one of the boys was moving around? She rolled over to look, but whatever it was stopped. Mentally shrugging, she tried to go back to sleep.

Before long, it started again. She blinked the sleep from her eyes to see more clearly. The closet was closed, and the bathroom door was open. No one in there. She could see Nolan asleep on the floor. He’d gone to bed without a shirt, and she was vaguely disappointed his sheet was pulled up to his neck.

Oh! There was movement under his sheet. The last vestiges of her drowsiness fell away. Now that she looked, she realized Nolan was only pretending to be asleep. He was lying on his back, and his eyes were closed, but he was obviously touching himself.

Emma bit her lip and watched, trying to visualize what he was doing under the sheet. It was tented over his erection. His right arm was moving. She wished she could see more. Every few seconds, he tensed his legs and exhaled softly.

She wondered what it would be like to straddle one of his thighs while he was doing it. Very slowly, trying not to make any noise, she pressed her hand between her legs.

His breathing was becoming more strained as he stroked more urgently. What was he thinking about? Some bleached-blonde surfer girl from back home, sucking his cock? She wondered what he tasted like.

The thought made her squeeze her legs together. She imagined the look of hunger in his eyes as she wrapped her lips around him. As if sensing her thought, he strained his body, causing the sheet to pull a bit lower. She could see the muscles tensing in his exposed shoulders, and felt an echo of that tension in her core.

He exhaled again, just a little louder this time, and his hand moved faster. Emma watched, fascinated, as he bent his knees, causing the sheet to slip lower. She imagined licking his nipples, and caressing his now-exposed abdomen.

Please, she thought, willing him to kick the sheet off entirely. Don’t you feel constrained? Wouldn’t the cool air feel nice on your skin? Come on, show me, show me, show me. She imagined she was projecting the idea straight into his brain.

He stifled a groan and lifted his hips. The sheet slipped even lower! It was barely covering his pelvis now. She stared hungrily at the trail of dark hair leading down from his belly button. What would it be like to trace it with her fingers? To reach lower, and wrap her hand around the base of his cock. She imagined kissing him as he frantically thrust into her hand.

He seemed to be mumbling under his breath. She strained to hear, but couldn’t make it out. His hand was flying now, up and down the full length of his shaft. She tried to hear her name in what he was breathing, and her insides clenched at the thought. With every frantic stroke, it seemed like the edge of the sheet was slipping. Just a little lower, she pleaded silently.

Suddenly, he went completely rigid, lifting his ass off the ground. She watched with delight as the sheet finally pulled back enough to reveal everything. Emma stifled a surprised gasp. One hand was holding his boxers pulled down, and the other was wrapped around his cock. His mouth opened in a silent moan. A thick rope of cum erupted from the tip. It seemed to glow in the moonlight as it arced up to his abdomen. He let out a ragged breath as shot after shot of his cum fell on his stomach. At last, he relaxed, breathing heavily and dropping his hands to his sides.

Emma longed to touch him, to run her fingers through the hot, sticky mess. She imagined how it would feel to press her body against his. What he would smell like. How his eyes would look deep into hers.

Wait, he was looking at her.

Shit! She closed her eyes quickly, and tried to breathe slowly. Could he even see her in the dim light? Was he even really looking? Maybe he was just lying there in a post-orgasmic haze, staring vaguely in her general direction.

She hoped he hadn’t noticed her.

Mostly.

A few minutes later, she heard him stand up and walk into the bathroom. Only once the door was closed did she finally relax and roll away. Facing Zoya again, who had slept through everything, she bit her lip. This was going to be a fun week.