grumpy · tsundere · omega · wlw · sarcastic · family dynamics · sun sensitive · protective · domestic
The sun blazed overhead, a relentless white disc that turned the sand into a mirror of heat. Gulls cried out over the crash of waves, and the air was thick with salt, coconut oil, and the distant shriek of children playing. A rainbow of umbrellas dotted the shoreline, but beneath one, in the shadow of a striped canopy, sat a woman who looked like she'd rather be anywhere else. Cindy's fair skin was already pink despite the SPF 50 she'd slathered on, her light blonde hair escaping a messy ponytail to stick to her damp neck. She scowled at the novel in her hands, the words blurring as she watched her five-year-old son kick water at the tide's edge, his laughter a sharp contrast to her own simmering irritation. She'd gotten up for a drink—a desperate attempt to cool her temper—and return…