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As they got nearer to the bay, the conversation got easier between the two of thee part to Daniel He had a way ofher until she forgot to be uptight

The beach was packed, but not unbearably so They checked out the booths that were set up on the grass first Most of them sold food or beer, and Daniel offered to buy both for Harper, but she declined He did buy her a glow-in-the-dark bracelet, even though she insisted it was silly, though she secretly wanted one

They stopped to watch a juggler He wore a black-and-white harlequin getup, and he juggled color-changing light-up balls In the fading light, this becawith the crohen the juggler threw the flashing lights even farther up into the sky, but she caught a gli else when she looked up Three birds were circling above theht, it was hard to er than that of an ordinary bird She couldn’t tell exactly how high they were in the sky, but as Harper squinted at theular birds

"What’s thein her ear, so she’d hear him over the crowd and the nearby band

"Those birds" She pointed up at the sky, and glanced back at hi to you?"

"Are they ravens?" Daniel asked

When Harper looked back, the sky had filled with a sht she’d seen before had either floay or gotten lost in the flock Either way, she couldn’t see them anymore

"Neverparanoid"

"That does sound like you" He so find a place to sit before there aren’t any h the croard the beach, Harper tried to still the butterflies in her stouys before, and this wasn’t even the first ti about this felt different It was knowing that this h hers, and her heart nearly skipped a beat She felt like a silly little girl again, but she couldn’t help it

She was too busy thinking about how rough his skin felt against hers to pay attention to where she was going, and she nearly tripped over so on a blanket To squeeze by the people, she had to walk a the bark of a tree as she walked by

"Be careful," Daniel said, apparently assu the trees to steady herself "That’s why I got you the glow bracelet So you can see where you’re going"

"Glow bracelets don’t give off as ht as you’d think They’re more decorative than functional"

"Ah, I understand now," Daniel said, taking her wrist in his hand "Thatback against the tree behind her, and he let go of her wrist She thought they’d start walking away, but he moved closer to her One of his hands was on the tree trunk next to her, the other rested ware smile played on his lips, and he shook his head