Sunshine on my shoulders 

He wiggled his toes, delighting in the feeling of the soft sand as it wormed between them and the gentle pull of the warm water as it ebbed and flowed around his ankles teasing at the rolled cuffs of his trousers. In the distance a child whooped in delight and the dim distant sound of an engine’s purr could be heard over the soft rush of the waves. 

He turned around to look at Ripper as he lounged on the towel he had spread out on the sand. 

“Oi, come on. Come and get your feet wet, mate.” He called out and watched as Rupert resignedly rolled his trousers up and made his way down to join him wading in the gentle waves. The trip to Toulon had used up all of what little funds they had, and Ethan could see no point in wasting it by spending the weekend sitting on a towel. 

A slightly larger than usual wave rolled in just as Rupert joined him in the warm water of the Mediterranean and reaching out on the pretext of steadying himself Ethan quickly flipped his lover into the water. The indignation of Ripper’s face as the wave rolled back out to leave him lying spluttering in the sand with his saturated clothes clinging to him and wet hair hanging across his face was too much and Ethan burst into a deep belly laugh only to be cut off as the other man’s face darkened. “Oh, shit,” he proclaimed taking off at a run down the beach with Ripper fast on his heels.