Sunset.

"Do I have to close my eyes?" Skye asked.

"Yes, it's a surprise after all."

Ash was leading Skye outside with her eyes blindfolded. He didn't want her to see the surprise until they got there.

"You can open it now." 

Skye removed the blindfold and gasped at what she saw.

The beach sunset with a golden horizon painted a beautiful picture as it reflected onto the calm sea. It looked like the perfect golden hour.

Just then, she took notice of the small table by the beach with two drinks on it, and beside it was a canvas and paint.

"How did you-"

"I asked someone to buy the canvas after you told me about your love for painting and since the sunset here is always magnificent, I thought it would be a good opportunity."

Tears welled up in Skye's eyes after hearing Ash's explanation and without thinking she went and hugged him tightly. 

"Thank you for this." She whispered to him.

Ash was stunned by the sudden hug, he didn't expect her to get that emotional because of his surprise but he was still glad that she was pleased with it.

The two stayed like that for a few seconds until Skye pulled away making Ash feel the emptiness of her absence.

"I'm sorry for abruptly hugging you like that. I was just caught up in the moment and-"

"You don't need to apologize for that. I'm perfectly okay with it... Now, I believe you should start painting before the sun sets completely."

"Right."

They walked toward the small table and Skye wasted no time before setting up the canvas and painting the golden sunset on it.

Ash watched in silence as she stroked the brush on the canvas with a great level of precision and professionalism. He kept quiet because he felt speaking might be a distraction to her as she did her work.

Skye on the other hand was absorbed in what she was doing. It had been a long time since she felt free enough to paint a sunset as gorgeous as that.

Painting made her feel like she was at home with nothing to bother her. It was relaxing.

The sound of the waves crashing and the birds chirping with the breeze blowing past her made Skye feel like she was in utopia. The atmosphere was so peaceful that it made her want to live there forever, leaving all her troubles behind.

She managed to finish painting just in time to watch the sun set completely.

"It's beautiful," Skye said, staring at the sun slowly vanishing from her sight as if being absorbed by the sea.

"You're right, it's beautiful." Ash's eyes weren't on the sunset as he said those words, he was simply staring at the girl by his side. a girl who managed to steal his heart and take over his every thought.

"Thank you for bringing me here Ash, it meant a lot to me." Skye turned to him.

"It's no problem, I'm just glad you enjoyed being here."

They watched in silence as the sun finally set, giving way for the moon to shine her light.

"Your painting... It's beautiful. You're good at it, Skye."

"Thanks." Skye shyly said.

"When we go back home, I'll set up a painting studio for you in one of the rooms so you can paint as much as you like. A talent like yours deserves to be nurtured."

"Really? That is so kind of you. Thank you so much Ash, for everything." She smiled warmly at him.

Seeing the happy smile on her face made Ash even more happy with the decision he made. He too felt happy just by seeing her smile.

"The dishes!" Skye yelled once the blissful feeling had subsided.

"What?" A confused Ash asked.

"We didn't wash the dishes or clean up the kitchen after eating and there's no one around to do it for us."

"Oh..." That was when Ash realized it was just them two in the house and they had to clean up since he sent the maids away for the day.

They quickly packed up the canvas and paint and went inside to start cleaning up.

Ash took the plates they ate with to the sink while Skye wiped the kitchen counter and cleaned it dry.

"I'll wash them in this sink and you can rinse them in the other sink," Skye said as she poured some dish soap onto the sponge.

"Yes, ma'am." Ash playfully said.

They washed the dishes in perfect coordination and from afar, one would think they were a married couple cleaning their house.

Feeling playful, Skye splashed some water on Ash's face and he countered back by doing the same.

They chased each other around the kitchen pouring water on themselves until they were soaked.

"Stop. Stop." Skye begged as she ran away from Ash who was now holding a glass of water.

"You started it so I'll finish it."

Their playful banter went on like that until the kitchen they had just cleaned was a mess yet again.

"I surrender! I surrender!" Skye said once Ash had her cornered.

Seeing how soaked both their bodies and the kitchen were, they started laughing at the childish game that caused that mess.

"We... have... to clean here... again," Skye said as she was trying to catch her breath.

They each grabbed mops and started wiping the soaked floor, not caring about the double work they were doing.

Noticing her wet clothes, Ash spoke up once the floor was dry, "Let's head upstairs, I should have spare clothes there for you to wear since you didn't carry anything extra."

"Okay."

They went to the room and Ash handed Skye one of his shirts and sweatpants.

just then, it started raining cats and dogs out of the blue.

"Can we drive home in this weather?" Skye asked as she looked out the window which was being hit with the heavy rain drops.

"I don't think so. We'll wait and leave tomorrow morning but let's get out of these wet clothes first before we catch a cold." 

Ash left the room to give Skye some privacy as she changed out of her clothes.

Skye stared at herself in the mirror, she looked like a child in Ash's clothes which were obviously too big for her but she still found it comfortable especially since it was warm and smelled like him.

By the time she was done changing, the rain had increased significantly and the worst part was that there was no signal on her phone due to bad weather.

As Skye got out of the room, Ash also was just stepping out of the room opposite. "There's no service on my phone, did you try yours?" She asked.

"I did but it's the same as yours... I guess we're spending the night here."

"This is going to be a long night then-"

"I see my clothes are too big for you," Ash said with a flustered look on his face because Skye was dressed in his clothes. "You still look good in them."

"They're comfortable and warm so it's fine," Skye replied.

Just then, Ash walked into the room Skye had just come out from and she followed him in and saw him checking the cupboard for something.

"Found it!" Ash was holding a box in his hand.

"What's that?" Skye got closer.

"Board games, let's play them to kill time else we'll be bored."

"Good idea." Skye smiled.