You turn, ready to join them, when arms wrap around your waist from behind. Familiar. Warm.

He presses a kiss to your shoulder, his chin settling into the crook of your neck.

You lean back into him, letting the tension of the school trip melt away. The beach stretches out before you, dotted with classmates splashing in the shallows, building sandcastles, chasing each other with seaweed.

The smirk in his voice hits you before the words do.

Too late.