--keefe sencen--

The happy cheers and water splashes were not enough to make me forget who I was.

No, not who I was. I am Keefe. Keefe, Lord Hunkyhair, relentless pranks, cocky smirks, etcetera, etcetera. I'm talking about who I was supposed to be. Keefe Sencen, treasured son of Cassius Sencen, slick blonde hair and firm handshakes. Sometimes I feel like that second identity is right behind me, breathing down my neck and making sure I never quite forget how much I failed.

I didn't tell my dad where I was going when I left for Everglen. I doubt he cares. But the cold frown of disappointment he will give me when I get back...yeah, that still sends chills down my spine.

I pushed down my worries and tried to forget about my shadow of a last name. Everyone seemed to want to go swimming, eagerly jumping into the water like kids running to an ice cream truck. Marella splashed everyone near the pool- and even a little bit of the kitchen- with water as she slam-cannonballed into the water, Linh and Dex following suit. Sophie, Biana, and Fitz followed the first three into the pool with donut floaties that seemed to come out from absolutely nowhere tucked under their arms.

I smiled to myself as my gaze seemed to drift toward Tam. He was reading, silver-blue eyes fixed intently on the book, but it was obvious he knew that everyone else was getting in the pool now. Nevertheless, he stayed in the shady corner of the cabana. With me.

"Are you coming in?" I asked him, offering a soft smile. Tam looked at me and nodded, devoid of any sign of joy on his porcelain-like face.

"Yeah, when you are," he replied absently. I hummed my gratitude at him and scooted my chair closer to his.

"You don't have to wait for me, y'know," I assured him. Well, at least tried to. Tam shrugged, the metallic ends of his hair glistening with light from the late morning sun.

Tam didn't answer my question. "You seem off today." His intense eyes drilled into mine, reminding me a lot of what a fire would look like if it was made of an overcast sky.

I chuckled sadly. "I guess. I'm just...thinking. Of...you know who. Assius." I cracked a joke, the famous Keefe trick to subtract the seriousness of a conversation with humor. Please play along, I mentally begged, and was relieved to see a ghost of a smile linger on Tam's lips.

"I get it." Tam closed his book. "How about we go in together?"

I blinked. "Uh, okay." Tam sat up and took my hand, the soft of his skin feeling soothingly cool on such a warm day. Together we walked to the stairs of the pool, dipping the tips of our feet just below the shimmering surface of blue.

"You're in a good mood today," I noted. Tam stared at me for a moment, then a whisper of a laugh escaped from his lips.

"Something like that." The laugh disappeared from his lips, but it seemed to linger in the air like a breath of air during a cold winter. The cold breath fades from existence as Tam gazes into the clear reflection of the water. "It's not like me to like socializing this much."

I laugh. "The more things you enjoy, the better, right?"

Tam smiles hesitantly. "Perhaps."

We sat there for a while, basking in each other's company as the others enjoyed the pool by themselves. Linh and Marella seemed to be battling Fitz and Dex, the two pairs both on inflatable warships of some kind, Marella's middle fingers on full display as she belted her signature battle cry. Sophie waded at the edge of the pool, a drink of vibrant pink liquid in hand while Biana cheered on the two opposing battleships.

I glanced back at Tam, who I realized was staring at me intently. I raised my eyebrows a fraction of an inch. "Is something on your mind?"

"I feel like you want to go over there, but you feel obligated to stay here with me," Tam admitted. I smiled, surprised to feel no remorse for not being with everyone else. Basking in the company of Tam Song was more than enough.

"I like staying here." I punctuated my sentence with a kick to the water. "You?"

Tam kicked the water, the splash slightly pointed in my direction. "Yeah. Same."

I grinned, kicking the water a second time. "You wanna try me, Bangs Boy?"

Tam smirked, something I didn't know he could even do. "Oh, you're on."

Water erupted from the pool, splashing me in the face. I spit out the chlorine in my mouth and sloppily kicked the water toward Tam. An inflatable pizza slice slammed me under the surface of the water and I kicked at the figure that toppled above me.

"I win," Tam said with an expressionless face, sitting on the inflatable pizza like he was king of the universe. The sun glinted off his bare, pale skin, lacing his shoulders with golden sunshine. My eyes drifted to his chapped lips and I directed them back to his eyes as fast as humanly possible, just so I wouldn't seem like a lovesick idiot.

I grinned. "Fair enough. I think your sister is clapping for you."

Linh was whooping with delight on top of her battleship floatie, paying zero attention to Marella single-handedly kicking Dex and Fitz's asses. Marella's fiery blue eyes drifted towards Linh and her glare softened like melted chocolate. Fitz greedily took the opportunity to blast her face with a water gun.

"GO TAM!" Linh yelled at the top of her lungs before jumping off of her battleship to help Marella get up, the ginger-haired girl angrily demanding a rematch.

"Technically, Fitz and Dex did win..." Biana justified. Fitz grinned like an idiot while Dex stared down at the water, blinking as if he was desperately trying to make sure reality was still in check.

"How did we win?" Dex inquired incredulously. "No offense, Wonderboy." Fitz shrugged.

"Because Marella was too busy staring at L-" Sophie started to say but was shut up when Marella gave her the deadliest glare I've seen in my life.

"Ohhh, that's why," Dex said with an amused smile. Fitz stared at Sophie, obviously dumbfounded. He turned to Dex, his expression asking for a clear answer and Dex mouthed something that sounded a lot like we'll talk later.

"I DEMAND a rematch," Marella snarled, gripping the inflatable battleship so hard it looked like it was going to burst.

Biana glanced at Sophie and shrugged. "Sure, we've got time. Fedex one, Marellinh zero. Ready, set...go!"