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“Ooh, this is a good one,” she said, eying a tall wave heading their way. “Think I can ride this all the way back to the shore?”
“You can try.”
She dove into the water, swimming ahead of the wave. He plunged under it, knowing he couldn’t jump. When he resurfaced, Amelia was gone. A few seconds later, she appeared at the shore.
“I swallowed so much sand!” she called. “But that was awesome!”
“Think you can teach me?”
“You have to be ready to be beaten up by a wave,” she said as she slowly made her way back to him. “Can you handle it?”
“I’m willing to try anything once.”
It was not as easy as Amelia had made it look. There was an art to hitting the wave at the perfect moment to be carried to the shore. It took him many attempts, but after a dozen wipeouts, he could finally feel the water surge around him as a wave sent him all the way to the shore.
She wasn’t kidding when she said he needed to prepare to be beaten up. Sand got everywhere, and there was a moment where he didn’t know what direction was up. But then he surfaced, and he could feel the rush of adrenaline.
“We did it!” Amelia cheered. She was on her knees, having landed that way after the ocean spit her out. Her hair was splayed over her face, and she was somehow covered in more sand than him. Despite the back-to-back failures, it was the most fun he’d had in a while.
“It was, though I think I might need some not-salt water. I swallowed more than the recommended amount.”
She slowly stood. “I’ll go with you. I should probably drink some too.”
There was a vendor selling drinks out of a cooler. Daniel paid an exorbitant amount for two bottles of water, but he didn’t regret it. He needed hydration. He drank half of the bottle, and when he was finally done, he looked over and saw she had completely finished hers.
“Good call on the water,” she said, out of breath. “I needed that. I feel like an old beater car with all of its warning lights on.”
“Let me guess, you’re hungry too?”
“How did you know?”
“Because I’m starving.”
“I’ll get us food. And before you offer, you paid an arm and a leg for this water, so I’ll get lunch. There’s a sandwich place not too far from here.”
“Are you—”
“Yes!” She was already grabbing her cover-up. “I’ll be back in a few.”
She was gone before he could ask again. She was fast when she was determined to get something done.
Daniel found a table by the pool deck, content to watch the people walk by.
Families played in the water with smiles on their faces. It was relaxing to slow down and not look at his phone. Maybe he needed to do this more often.
“Daniel? Is that you?”
He looked over and saw that Mandy had walked up. She had a book in hand. “Hi,” he replied. He hadn’t talked to her much, save for their one coffee shop visit at the beginning of the trip, and he knew she hadn’t been feeling well.
“What are you up to down here?”
“Amelia and I were swimming and she just left for lunch.”
“Good. I was hoping you two were having a good time. Mind if I sit for a bit?”
“Go ahead,” he said.
“I’m sorry I haven’t been feeling well. I know it can be frustrating when one person isn’t participating.”
