It all Comes in Waves: The Solitary Joy of the Ocean

Chapter 13

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"I'm gonna go cool off." I told the others, taking off my t-shirt and shorts, revealing my bikini.

"Oh, good idea, Lena." Este agreed, standing up to become only in her swimsuit too.

We both ran beside each other into the ocean, the boys running after us. As we crashed into the waves knee deep, where it was harder to run, we just stayed there, the boys catching up to us. The four of us were cracking up.

We usually go neck deep into the water, but this time we didn't. We were deep enough in the shallow end to balance on our knees, facing one another. I ducked under the water to get fully wet, my hair and my face. The water felt so refreshing to my hot skin. The others did the same, Rowan flipping head back to get his wet hair out of his face once he resurfaced.

We splashed around in the water and messed with each other. I got the idea to pick up a handful of wet sand, and chucked it at Rowan's chest. Not hard enough for it to hurt, but to where it splat and stuck to him. We all burst into more laughter, and so did Rowan. He wiped the splotch of sand off him, and I saw the glare in his eye, determined to get me back. He did it in one quick motion, grabbing a handful of sand from under us and aiming it at me.

I turned my head and put my arms up, an attempt at defense that did not work. The chunk of sand hit my shoulder, except he threw it harder than me, it almost hurting. Matt and Este started laughing harder at us.

I got back at Rowan by dunking his head under water. Once he resurfaced, he picked me up so quick, then threw me further into the ocean. I was in the air for a moment, then crashed into the water.

"What are they doing over there?" Este pointed to a handful of people paired off in groups, messing around in the sand.

We all looked closer to see for ourselves.

"Looks like a sandcastle building contest." Rowan observed.

I noticed two employees in company shirts, hosting the contest.

"Oh, we so got that in the bag." Este gushed, making her way out of the water.

We thought it would be fun, so we followed her over to the group.

"Can we join?" Matt asked one of the hosts.

"Course man, just find an spot and start building." He smiled.

Everyone settled down at an empty area we found, close to the shore line. I'd never actually built a sandcastle before, but I'm sure I could figure it out. Este and Rowan realized this quickly, and gave me a look that sort of said, you'll get it, so I helped with what they were adding. Matt was already building a base, so we added to it by making protective walls.

"Three minutes left!" The employee called.

We had joined a little late, so we didn't have as much time. But I got ideas quickly and contributed nicely I think to the build. It wasn't the prettiest thing in the world since we had to rush, but it came along. And it was fun. We helped each other add to all factors, and it eventually looked more like a castle.

"We need some wet sand for the edges!" Matt called. He was so serious about this.

Este and I ran to the shore, and scooped up a handful of wet sand, then brought it back. We put some where it needed to go, and it held the thing together. Matt was now shaping the top part of our castle, Rowan fixing the walls.

"And time!" The man shouted. "Yo, Ed, come over here and judge with us." He called another employee over so there could be three judges.

Our castle had everything it needed, and looked pretty good. The three guys walked around looking at everyone else's creations, whispering to each other, expressing what they thought. I looked around too, and saw other people took this more seriously than Matt.