growing in love - jj maybank

Ch 3. Sarah's Joke.

One morning in particular, still only days after the hurricane, and only a couple of days after John B had interrupted her tanning session on the Druthers, which was the day after the bonfire... for context's sake, Dani found herself with Sarah as the blonde comforted a little girl. 

Dani couldn't exactly remember the child's name, but she had seen her around at the country club and other various kook locations. 

Sarah crouched down, listening patiently as the girl tried to hold back tears. The girl, Alyssa, maybe, explained that she had left her stuffed elephant on her boat. 

Dani turned towards the water, instantly noticing the boat was covered in downed electric lines and tree branches, only accessible via a fallen electric pole. It would be quite difficult to retrieve the girl's toy. 

Sarah nodded warmly. "Okay. I'm gonna get her for you."

"Be careful of electricity." The little girl's eyes went wide. 

Even the 8-year-old was aware Sarah was asking for certain death. 

"Don't worry, I'll be okay." Sarah studied the boat. "It's dangerous for you, though, stay."

Dani grabbed Sarah's arm before she could even begin. "Sarah, this is a stupid idea, and you know it. You could get really hurt."

"Someone has to get her elephant." Sarah shrugged her shoulders in reply, moving toward the beam.

Dani instantly felt panic rise through her, hitching itself in her throat. She wanted to do anything but climb the pole, but she also knew that Sarah was a bit unreliable. The blonde may be kind and caring, and less flaky than many gave her credit for, but she could still be a bit of an airhead sometimes. 

"Hey, I'll do it. I took a few years of gymnastics when I was younger. I probably have better balance than you."

Sarah nodded at Dani's words, not opposed to the idea of someone else going first, i.e., climbing the electrical pole resting against a metal boat with wires dangling in the water. 

Dani took the lead, inwardly cursing herself for volunteering as she took the first step onto the wooden pole. 

Rose yelled from the porch, anger clear in her tone. "Hey, there's 14,000 volts in those wires." 

At Rose's words, Dani almost lost her balance and let out a small shriek. She really did not need anyone else making her nervous, she had enough of her own anxiety to push through. It also didn't help that mere moments later, Topper, Kelce, and Rafe came up behind the girls, their annoyance and nervous tension so strong anyone in a 10-mile radius could feel it. 

"Hey, Sarah, be careful!" Topper yelled at the blonde teen as she stood at the end of the beam, never mind the fact that Dani was the one shuffling her way down the death trap some called a pole... Dani could've scoffed at Topper's ignorance but chose to just ignore him as always.

Rose sauntered down to the water's edge in clear frustration. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me. Sarah, Dani, get down now!"

Sarah flipped a strand of hair over her shoulder. "Rose, calm down. We're athletes. We got this." 

Dani chuckled to herself, disagreeing with Sarah entirely. Sure, Dani once did gymnastics, but she was like ten, and her recent athleticism was made more for kook things, like ditzy-girl tennis or shuffleboard, though, she couldn't discount her occasional surfing with Kie. 

Dani ignored the protests behind her, which were mainly Topper with a bit of Rose, reaching the boat and laying eyes on the little girl's toy. 

A small, hesitant smile creased Dani's lips. "I see her!" 

Fortunately, when the girl shifted her gaze, she noticed the powerlines were disconnected and let out a small sigh of relief. At the very least, Dani wasn't going to end up electrocuted. 

Sarah followed Dani into the boat, making eye contact with her friend and giving the girl a sly smile. The blonde bent down as if she were reaching for something and instantly made her body fall and shake as if she had electrocuted herself. 

Dani rolled her eyes as she heard the expected commotion from the onlookers. Topper yelled "Sarah" repeatedly, in fact, Dani couldn't help but wonder if it was the only word in his vocabulary.

Sarah eventually gave up on the joke, ceasing her convulsing and looking at her worried crowd. She held the frayed powerline up for all to see, smiling wide. "It's disconnected."

Dani moved to exit the boat, ignoring Sarah as the blonde continued to egg the situation on, "Absolute sucker. Topper, you should see your face."

Topper looked at his girlfriend, extreme anger on his face. "Yeah. Okay, yeah. I'm sorry that I care. All right, guilty."

Rafe grabbed Topper's shoulder, still watching the events before him. "Congrats, pussy, you're officially her bitch." 

Dani hopped off the end of the powerline, handing the elephant back to the little girl, still unsure of her name. She didn't spend much time thinking about the nepo, kook child, though, as Dani sauntered to Rafe, jumping on his back, dramatically falling limp, and finally shaking wildly. It was an Oscar-worthy, mocking performance. 

"Funny, Dani," Rafe stated, clearly unamused. He carried his girlfriend toward the large kook estate with ease, Dani's head resting casually on his shoulder, as they both ignored Sarah and Topper arguing pointlessly in the yard.

--

Um, why are Rafe and Dani even dating? They don't really talk...

<3 Lillian